Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 39 Selling Cucumbers

11 month 1 day.

The fixed stall number is No. 3 in row 5 of the Chongwenmen Farmers Market.

Sun Tao took out more than a dozen cabbages from the bag and stacked them into a small pyramid. The dark green cabbage stalks looked very fresh.

He sat by his stall, glancing at the stall next door that had been empty for two days. Li Zhe hadn't come back since he rented the stall that day. "Hey, this is a mess. I hope the Red Armbands don't catch us."

"Taozi, why are you alone today? Didn't your mom come?"

"With this cold weather, my mom's old ailment has flared up again, so she's been staying home. Aunt Wang, what would you like to order?"

"Pick me a fresh, crisp cabbage." Aunt Wang wrapped her woolen scarf tighter around her neck and pointed to the cabbage on top. "This one is the one I like."

"It's getting cold, the price of cabbage should go up, why don't you stock up?"

"How many can my old bones lift? I'll buy them when my son takes a break from work."

"Alright, I'll wait. Four jin and two liang, that'll be four jin for you. Two cents a jin, that's eight cents in total." Sun Tao quickly took the money. "Aunt Wang, please come again."

Just then, a young man in a blue coat pushed a small cart used by the market. Sun Tao glanced at him and exclaimed, "Hey, isn't that Li Zhe?"

"Hey, Brother Li, you've finally arrived! I hadn't seen you for the past two days, and I was worried something had happened to you."

Li Zhe unloaded the vegetable baskets from the cart and said, "I took care of some things at home, which delayed me for two days."

As they were talking, Zhao Tiezhu also came over pushing a small cart and unloaded two baskets from it.

Sun Tao, having nothing to do, watched the two men work. He saw Li Zhe lift the quilt covering the baskets. The first basket contained radishes and was placed on the left side of the stall; the second basket contained potatoes and was placed on the right side; the third basket contained…

Sun Tao thought he was seeing things, so he rubbed his eyes and looked closely. The green cucumber had yellow flowers on top, and he could even see fine hairs.

That's right, it's a tender cucumber with its flower and thorns still on top!
Cucumbers in November!
Sun Tao jumped up, rushed to the basket, and with trembling hands, picked up a cucumber, shouting in a hoarse voice, "Holy crap, where the hell did this cucumber come from?!"

Sun Tao's roar startled everyone around him.

Li Zhe calmly arranged the cucumbers on his stall, attracting not only customers from the surrounding area but also several other stall owners from nearby.

Grandma Wang returned and touched the cucumbers on the stall. "Oh my, they're prickly! Freshly picked! Where did you get them, young man?"

"Hey, this is really strange. I've never seen cucumbers in the middle of winter before."

"Who says otherwise? This thing isn't made of plastic, is it? Last month, someone was selling wax apples at the Hongqiao Market!"

"Is this some kind of magic trick? Otherwise, how can there be cucumbers in winter?" The people around them chattered amongst themselves.

Li Zhe didn't answer, but called out, "Auntie, these cucumbers are so fresh and tender, have a few to try."

Aunt Wang swallowed hard. She hadn't eaten cucumbers for over a month. The weather was dry, and looking at the fresh, crisp cucumbers made her mouth water. "How much are they?" she asked.

"Five yuan per pound."

"My goodness, five yuan a pound! Why don't you just rob me?" Aunt Wang clutched her shirt pocket, seemingly genuinely afraid that Li Zhe would rush up and snatch her money.

"This is way too expensive. If people didn't know you sold cucumbers, they'd think you sold ginseng."

"Even if it's sold at a lower price, I'll still buy two to try."

"Your cucumbers are so expensive, who would buy them?" someone nearby chimed in, trying to bargain.

"Everyone, the cost of cucumbers is high and the yield is low in winter. There are only a few dozen kilograms left. Once I sell them all, you won't be able to buy them for even ten yuan a kilogram, let alone five." This was Li Zhe's trial price after careful consideration. He could raise the price when the weather gets colder. However, not all vegetables can be arbitrarily increased in price. Essential goods such as cabbage, pork, and eggs are not allowed to be increased.

Aunt Wang was a little unconvinced. "Young man, don't brag. I don't believe that in such a big market, you're the only one selling cucumbers." In Aunt Wang's view, either there's no one at all, or if there's one, there will be another. With more cucumber sellers, the price will naturally be cheaper.

Li Zhe didn't argue. "You can buy them elsewhere. Please make way and don't block the way. Let's do our business and buy our vegetables. If you want cucumbers, come and take a look. I guarantee they're fresh and tender."

An old man in a Zhongshan suit squeezed in, "Young man, weigh two jin!"

"Okay." Li Zhe weighed a few cucumbers. "Two jin and one liang, I'll charge you two jin, that'll be ten yuan in total."

The old man took the cucumber, rubbed it with his hands, took a bite and it was crunchy. "Hmm, this cucumber is fresh and juicy, it must have just grown. Young man, where did you get this cucumber?"

"It grows in the ground."

"Don't try to fool me. I used to farm when I was young, and cucumbers don't grow this season."

Li Zhe changed the subject, "Please come back after you've finished eating! Is there anything else you want?"

"Give me a pound too! My wife's been craving this since she's having morning sickness..."

"I want two pounds, no, just one pound first. This stuff is more expensive than meat, let the kids try it."

Five yuan for a cucumber may be expensive, but it's not unaffordable; Beijing's purchasing power is unparalleled nationwide.

After Zhao Tiezhu and Lao Li finished transporting the vegetables, they also rushed to help sell them.

Sun Tao was completely bewildered, his eyes darting around. Last time it was fresh corn, and this time it was cucumbers. His gaze towards Li Zhe was different now.

After this wave of customers passed, Sun Tao moved a stool over and placed it behind Li Zhe. "Brother Li, you must be tired. Sit down for a while."

Li Zhe did a rough calculation and found that in just a short while, he had sold more than 30 jin of cucumbers and had nearly 200 yuan in cash in his hand, which was bulging in his bag.

Sun Tao took out a pack of Guanting cigarettes, offered them to everyone, and smiled at Li Zhe, "Brother Li, could you spare some cucumbers for me?"

Li Zhe took the cigarette, tucked it behind his ear, and wasn't surprised by his suggestion. "How many do you want?"

"Twenty, no, thirty jin."

“Brother, to tell you the truth, we only have a hundred catties of cucumbers, which isn’t even enough for ourselves to sell. If others want them, we definitely can’t give them to them. But you’re different from others. If it weren’t for you, we would still be renting a temporary stall. It’s four yuan and eighty cents a catty. If you think it’s reasonable, I’ll share some with you.”

"Brother Li, you're so generous. I'll take thirty jin." Sun Tao took out money from his bag, counted it twice but it wasn't enough, so he borrowed more than twenty yuan from the female stall owner diagonally opposite him. "Brother Li, please count it."

Li Zhe patted the basket next to him and said, "Brother, this basket has thirty catties of cucumbers, they're yours."

"Brother Zhuzi, lend a hand." Sun Tao beamed with joy, loaded the cucumbers onto the tricycle, greeted Li Zhe, and rode off on the tricycle.

Zhao Tiezhu watched the tricycle drive away and said, "Brother Zhe, he bought it for 4.8 yuan and sold it for 5 yuan a pound. Even if he sells 30 pounds, he will only make 6 yuan. Why should he just abandon the stall?"

Li Zhe retorted, "How do you know he sells it for five yuan? This is the capital city; there are plenty of people willing to pay a high price for fresh, tender cucumbers."

"Then why don't we sell it for a higher price?"

"We're here for the first time, so we don't know the ropes or have any suitable channels yet. Let's explore first."

By midday, the remaining cucumbers were sold out, along with the radishes and potatoes. Old Li, who was in charge of the money, counted it and found there was a total of 508.

"Snapped!"

Old Li slapped himself across the face. "Damn it, I'm not dreaming, this is real!"
(End of this chapter)