Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

In the end, Zhang Dabiao only purchased 3 catties of eggs, 5 catties of walnuts, 5 catties of chestnuts, 3 catties of dried shiitake mushrooms, 2 catties of almonds and 5 catties of dried apricots. There are still some dried and fresh fruits in Changping.

In addition, there are 3 preserved chickens and ducks, and 2 dried wild rabbits.

As for live pigs?

Don't even think about it. That's a task assigned by the commune. How could they possibly sell it privately?

Zhang Dabiao wanted to buy some vermicelli, sweet potatoes, corn, and the like, but the villagers were living off these surplus grains and couldn't possibly exchange them for money.

Zhang Dabiao thought for a moment, "I've come all this way, and this is all I've received?"

They weigh no more than 30 kilograms in total, not even enough to fill half a tricycle.

Wasn't this whole rural trip a waste of time?

Some villagers did bring medicinal herbs and broken porcelain to exchange for money...

But Zhang Dabiao neither understood nor needed these things, and he had nowhere to put them.

How many antiques could he possibly fit in his tiny apartment?

The key question is, what if it's fake?

Therefore, it was confiscated.

Xu Damao, however, thought today's harvest was pretty good: "Da Biao, that's enough. How much do you think a purchasing agent can bring back in one trip to the countryside?"

"Besides, in these days, everyone is short of food, and we won't sell it for money unless it's absolutely necessary."

Considering the size of the comprehensive utilization plant under the steel rolling mill, the items Zhang Dabiao purchased were more than enough to satisfy his needs.

According to the "market price," Zhang Dabiao calculated that he had only earned less than 5 yuan from this trip to the countryside...

The noodles and hot pot base I ate alone cost more than that. Isn't this a complete rip-off?

So he asked the brigade leader, "What other rare things do we have in our village? Like wild boars, tigers, ginseng, or anything like that?"

The captain tapped his pipe and rolled his eyes at him: "Wild boar, tiger, ginseng?"

"Everything that could be dug up on this back hill has already been looted!"

"People almost died while hunting wild boars, let alone tigers..."

"Little one, aren't you making hunting seem too simple?"

Zhang Dabiao scratched his head. Isn't that right?

That's how it's written in novels. The male protagonist can easily hunt wild boars weighing three or four hundred pounds when he goes to the countryside, then sells them at the steel mill to make a fortune, and then embarks on a path of wealth, promotion to CEO, and marriage to a beautiful and rich woman.

Buy two more courtyard houses, have two more kids, and you'll be all set.

At this moment, Qin Jingru came over again: "Grandpa Captain, doesn't the old hunter at the east end of the village have tiger bones?"

"They even have wolf pelts!"

Zhang Dabiao's eyes lit up!

Tiger bones can be used to make medicinal wine; it's a good thing!

Wolf skin can be used to make vests or coats, and also knee pads. His tattered cotton-padded coat is too worn out. If he could exchange it for a wolf skin coat, how fashionable would that be!

What others think is tacky, he thinks is trendy!

So Zhang Dabiao urged the captain to take him to see it, saying he could pay more and it was negotiable!

The captain patiently explained, "The old hunter doesn't lack meat or money; what he lacks is fine grains."

"His son is frail and sickly, with a weak stomach, so..."

Before the brigade leader could finish speaking, Zhang Dabiao immediately ran to his tricycle and lifted the cloth from the basket—

"I have refined grains!"

"Rice! Millet! Flour! Noodles! And compressed biscuits!"

"It weighs 30 jin (15 catties)!"

Today, Qin Jingru went out to buy cornmeal, and Zhang Dabiao also gathered some supplies, just in case they could barter for goods. Who would have thought they would actually come in handy!

------------

With the captain's coordination, Zhang Dabiao exchanged 1 jin of tiger bones and 1 wolf pelt for them.

In those days, the state-owned pharmaceutical companies purchased tiger bones for tens to hundreds of yuan per kilogram, while the black market price could reach several hundred yuan!

But the old hunter wanted to exchange his money for fine grains, and even after paying back the money, he had nowhere to buy fine grains, and he didn't have any grain coupons, so he kept them and didn't sell them.

As for the portion allocated to the brigade and commune, he had already handed it over; the rest he kept hidden away.

The state-owned local products company buys wolf skins for around 10-30 yuan.

These are things that ordinary workers can't afford.

大米国家牌价（凭票价格）0.15-0.18元/斤、小米0.10-0.13元/斤、挂麵0.20-0.25元/斤、麵粉（富强粉）0.18-0.20元/斤。

To be honest, the price is not expensive at all, but this year is 1960, and the black market price of rice has reached 2-3 yuan per kilogram, and there is no market for it!

Do you think it's multiplied by how many times?

Compressed biscuits are a special supply item, and ordinary people cannot buy them on the market. They are mainly used for special purposes such as the military, geological exploration, and disaster relief, and are not included in the civilian planned supply system.

These things, weighing 30 jin (15 catties) in total, would only cost about 6 yuan at market price. Even if Zhang Dabiao's noodles were egg noodles, plus a few packs of compressed biscuits, it would only cost 10 yuan at most.

However, the old hunter's family lacked fine grains, and given the current state of affairs, it became a seller's market.

The old hunter gave him a pound of tiger bones and a wolf pelt in exchange for all of Zhang Dabiao's fine grains, and also gave him a string of wolf teeth and a string of cured meat weighing about 3 pounds!

Both parties are very satisfied!

But the captain was a little dissatisfied—

Why didn't you say so earlier that you had fine grains?!

You should have said so sooner!

I have cured pork at home too!

It's not impossible for me to hunt some fresh wild game for you, but why are you trading so much fine grain for tiger bones and wolf skins?

It's not worth eating or drinking.

Furthermore, Zhang Dabiao and the old hunter made an agreement that next time he would come to him to exchange things, Zhang Dabiao would keep all the good stuff for him, but Zhang Dabiao would have to give him more fine grains!

Zhang Dabiao's batch of fine grains: the rice was crystal clear and obviously of top quality, the millet was golden, the flour was whiter and finer than high-gluten flour, and the noodles were clearly different from those sold at the supply and marketing cooperative. I heard that eggs were added to them.

As for compressed biscuits, the old hunter used to be a soldier and knows their value. They're filling and nutritious—they're a real treat! This kid is incredibly capable; someone in his family must be an officer in the military, otherwise he couldn't possibly produce them!

So he was very happy!

The captain's face turned green—this meant he was bypassing me and doing business directly with the client in private? This is a serious taboo in the industry!

Finally, the old hunter gave some more to the captain, and Zhang Dabiao promised to come every ten days or so to bring some fine grains and nutritional supplements. Only then did the captain calm down.

The amount of rice and noodles that can be refreshed each day is limited, so Zhang Dabiao has no way to get more.

But nutritional supplements—he has milk tablets! Milk, honey, milk candy, tea, and ginseng slices…

His little nest doesn't have many things, but it's a treasure trove!

------------

After having a simple lunch at Qin Jingru's house, the three of them got up and returned to Beijing.

When she left, Qin Jingru's mother gave Zhang Dabiao a lot of flatbreads and a jar of pickled cabbage, which Zhang Dabiao liked.

Zhang Dabiao and Xu Damao took turns riding the tricycle and bicycle, and finally returned to the compound at 9 p.m. The journey was fine; Zhang Dabiao's tricycle didn't have much stuff in it, and no fools jumped out to rob them.

Yan Jiecheng opened the courtyard gate for him, offered him a cigarette, and together everyone carried the tricycle and bicycle inside.

As for delivering the goods to the factory, let's talk about that tomorrow.

Zhang Dabiao carried his things into the room, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep almost immediately. The two-day round trip of more than 200 li (approximately 100 kilometers) had really exhausted him.

Qin Jingru wanted to come over and boil water for him to wash his feet, but the door was already bolted. Hearing Zhang Dabiao snoring, Qin Jingru had no choice but to take the basin back to the rain-soaked room.

------------

The next morning, Zhang Dabiao was woken up by knocking on the door.

"Zhang Dabiao, are you up?"

【Um? 】

[Mu Wanqing's voice?]

What does she want from me so early in the morning?