In 1959, what's wrong with me pedaling a tricycle?

"Great! Xiao Wang, you really surprised me. I didn't expect you to be so efficient. Thank you so much, hahaha..."

Niu Ye was genuinely surprised that Wang Xingguo had brought the turtle so quickly; it was a pleasant surprise. He was overjoyed and gave Wang Xingguo two options.

Give him twenty yuan if he wants money, and I will definitely not let him suffer a loss.

You can pick whatever you want from him; he has a wide variety of goods, so you can take twenty yuan worth of goods to offset the cost of the turtle.

Wang Xingguo didn't hold back this time. He bought two Xiangshan liquors for four yuan each, four bottles of Fenjiu for two yuan each, and two bottles of Erguotou, making a total of twenty yuan.

Uncle Niu was quite satisfied, because twenty yuan was his selling price. In reality, he could get these things for twelve or thirteen yuan by using his connections.

So two soft-shelled turtles weren't an exorbitant price, and he was quite satisfied with the price.

This was the reason why Wang Xingguo didn't want to take the business in the first place. He was unhappy if the price was too high, and he would lose money if the price was too low.

Fortunately, he gave himself an option, otherwise he really wouldn't have known how to ask for a price.

The price of tobacco and alcohol hasn't gone up outrageously yet; it's simply because there's enough stock in Beijing.

However, due to various production cuts and raw material shortages, the price of these tobacco and alcohol products skyrocketed.

In the latter half of 1960, department stores only charged 1.2 yuan for a bottle of Erguotou with a ration coupon, but the black market dared to sell it for 10 yuan a bottle. The key point is that there was no stock available, and you couldn't buy the liquor even if you had money. Can you believe it?

Wang Xingguo then spread rumors that someone else had been reported in Nanluoguxiang, causing an uproar.

No one can understand why these people, despite their high prices, at least sell them decent, high-quality goods, right?

If they make such a fuss, who would dare sell them anything?

It's true that they make money, but the real key is to make that money safely.

Being vengeful is no joke!

Wang Xingguo is over forty years old now, spanning both lifetimes, and this is the first time he has ever been so embarrassed.

Besides, he's just playing mind games; preventing itinerant black market vendors from setting up stalls in Nanluoguxiang doesn't mean they can't buy things from the fixed black market.

As for getting arrested or robbed at night, what does that have to do with me?

Actually, the gambling den had several tables, but the Pai Gow game was in the main house of the courtyard. Other rooms also had Pai Gow games, dice games, and people would gather at small tables to play mahjong, cricket fighting, and betting. On the streets, there were also small, scattered games like "Yao Er Bao" and "paper ball spinning."

Those places are the heart of the gambling dens, because most of the people who gamble play those few games.

Especially cricket fighting, that's a disaster area. Those old-fashioned folks who come to play, if they lose everything, they borrow money at high interest rates and then use their best stuff to pay off the debt. These are the kind of big spenders that people like Master Niu welcome the most.

After leaving this place, Wang Xingguo walked back home. When he reached the gate of the courtyard, he found a bag of eggs, a packaged roast duck, and a bucket of fish in his hands.

As soon as I stepped into the yard, the neighbors surrounded me!

"Xingguo, why are you back so late?"

"Xingguo, you don't know how worried your older brother was that you didn't come home so late."

Wang Xingguo was dumbfounded and said, "What? Didn't I tell my older brother he wasn't coming home for dinner tonight?"

Wang Xingbang also heard the commotion in the front yard. He ran out and, seeing his younger brother safe and sound, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, because of the commotion in the front yard, the neighbors in the middle yard also came out.

They all rushed to the front yard. Wang Xingguo could only hand the packed roast duck to his older brother, telling him to take his younger siblings back to eat first, while he stayed behind to tell the neighbors about the prices.

Although there were eight crucian carp in the bucket, he only scooped out five for Grandma Sun, which weighed nearly two pounds, along with fifteen eggs. He told her that she received so many things for only five yuan, and he didn't even keep the two cents for the delivery fee.

It wasn't that Wang Xingguo was lying to her; it was just that five yuan couldn't buy this much stuff on the black market.

In the capital, unless you pick the biggest eggs, it takes at least nine or ten eggs to weigh one pound.

Fifteen eggs weigh about 1.5 jin (750 grams), and a two-jin (6.5 kg) crucian carp should sell for at least 2.5 yuan. So, 5 yuan isn't nearly enough.

He quoted prices to the neighbors for the remaining items, and he really didn't overcharge them. The dried wild chrysanthemums cost seven cents a pound, and he told them the truth.

The neighbors in the courtyard knew very well that they could complain about the high prices, but they couldn't say that the things Wang Xingguo helped bring were expensive.

They frequently visit pigeon markets and know the current prices for many items. Wang Xingguo genuinely didn't overcharge them to rip them off.

The items were quickly distributed, and Wang Xingguo accepted the two cents reward for his hard work without any qualms.

The extra fish were also snapped up, because he brought back live fish. Every household has a large water tank, and if you don't keep many fish, you can definitely keep them alive.

When Wang Xingguo returned home, his older brother and the others only opened the oil paper package and put the contents on a plate, but they clearly didn't intend to roll up the pancakes and eat them. It seemed they were waiting for him to come back!

Wang Xingguo quickly explained, "Brother, my classmate dragged me out to eat roast duck today. I figured I might as well eat it, so I came back late. My classmate is so nice; we ate half a roast duck, and instead of taking the leftovers home, he made me pack them up and bring them back."

Hearing his explanation, Wang Xingbang was relieved. He had thought his younger brother had offended someone outside, which was why he wasn't coming home for dinner.

Wang Xingguo cursed himself inwardly, realizing how incredibly foolish he had been to forget to tell his family he wouldn't be home for dinner.

Wang Xingguo said to the others, "I ate a lot tonight, you guys can eat. I'm going to take a shower first. I won't get up early tomorrow. I'm exhausted after running around all day."

Wang Xingbang nodded, then couldn't help but ask, "Second brother, you've had dinner for a long time, haven't you? Why don't you eat something together? It's not right for just me and my third sister to eat if you don't eat."

Wang Xingguo said, half-laughing and half-crying, "No, I'm really full today. You guys can eat, I'm going to take a shower."

Seeing Wang Xingguo turn and leave, Wang Xingbang shook his head and then said to his younger sister and brother, "Never mind, if your second brother isn't eating, then we'll eat. We really don't get a chance to eat this stuff often; one roast duck costs half a month's salary for your eldest brother."

Wang Xingning nodded repeatedly and said, "That's right, that's right. But Second Brother's friend is really generous. He even packed up half a roast duck and the duck carcass to bring back with him."

Wang Xingmin eagerly rolled up a roast duck spring pancake and said, "I can't help but drool! My second brother already has a lot of friends, so it's not surprising that he knows a generous friend. I even saw him shopping with a pretty lady once!"