Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 108 Professional
In the evening, Yan Hui's cousin went out to run errands, so he ate something by himself and strolled around the streets.

For tonight's business, my cousin gave me 40 yuan, which was Yan Hui's first business deal here.

He was the one who negotiated with most of the clients, and he had no problem splitting the profits. Although this client was a small one, at least things went smoothly.

What Yan Hui was most satisfied with during his trip to Jianye was the area where the market was located. It's situated near the Zhonghua Gate in Jianye, right next to the Qinhuai River. The surrounding area has a rich historical and cultural atmosphere, with many former residences of famous figures open to the public free of charge. Parks, docks, and cruise ships are all readily available, and the night view is also beautiful.

Yan Hui walked along the road, finding everything novel and interesting, even without his cousin by his side.

When the lights went out for a while, Yan Hui reluctantly returned to his lodgings. Inside, he picked up a pen and paper and wrote letters to his family, Lao Guo, his eldest and second eldest brothers, and others.

The next morning, after mailing the letter, Yan Hui was wandering around the market when his pager suddenly went off.

Yan Hui was both surprised and delighted; the voice was truly beautiful!

Two or three people nearby heard Yan Hui's pager and turned to look, their faces full of envy.

Yan Hui, on the other hand, wished that half the market could hear it.

With a click, Yan Hui skillfully removed the pager and glanced down at it.

At this point, the pager and the belt were still connected by an iron chain, so Yan Hui couldn't reach them directly, but it was enough to hold them in front of his waist.

It was just a simple pager; Yan Hui understood at a glance that it was his cousin calling him. There was no special information; his cousin was probably at the shop.

After reconnecting the pager, Yan Hui returned to his cousin's shop amidst the envious gazes of the others.

"How about it? The pager works well, right?" my cousin laughed.

"It works so well, it's amazing!" Yan Hui felt it was incredible.

I just don't know the underlying principle.

"It will be even more convenient with the new mobile phone."

"Of course!" Yan Hui remembered the important matter. "Brother, what did you want to see me about?"

“Two things. A friend of mine needs 6-8 cubic meters of timber, this time it’s larch from the Greater Khingan Mountains. Do you know anything about this stuff?” my cousin asked.

"You know a little bit, what's wrong?" Yan Hui nodded.

“Okay, this client was introduced to me by someone else. I heard he’s picky and not easy to talk to, so I think it’s more suitable to take you.” My cousin continued, “The second thing is that I have two brothers coming over tonight. I’d like to introduce you to them. Didn’t you just break up with your boyfriend? I’ll cheer you up.”

"Huh?" Yan Hui was stunned. "What kind of breakup is this? There was no relationship at all. It was all just wishful thinking on my part."

“That’s even worse than a breakup,” my cousin nodded. “Anyway, come to the store at 5:30 tonight and wait for me.”

"Ah."

An hour later, my cousin brought Yan Hui and the client to the timber yard.

Not all the unloaded timber has orders; most of it is bought by distributors who then try to resell it. It often just sits there, untouched by anyone.

The caravans in the market were roughly divided into four groups, all from Anhui province, but each group maintained internal unity. Although they each had their own interests, everyone knew how they made a living, so they also took the opportunity to maintain order at the timber yard. If outsiders entered without permission and stole timber, they would definitely be discovered.

"Brother Wang, I've been looking for this timber for a while now, and I think the quality of this one is quite good," the cousin said, leading his client, Brother Wang, into the market. He found a pile of timber and explained it to Brother Wang. "Where is this from?" Brother Wang asked.

"The Greater Khingan Mountains," my cousin explained.

"Don't try to fool me with goods from the Lesser Khingan Mountains!" Brother Wang examined it carefully and even measured it with a ruler.

Yan Hui and his cousin watched from the side without saying a word.

"This thickness...wasn't it supposed to be 5 centimeters?" Brother Wang said, somewhat displeased, waving his hand. "Come and take a look, why is it only 4.8?"

“This is normal,” my cousin explained immediately. “It’s the industry standard. The 5-centimeter thickness of the timber is drawn on the log. But when cutting, the saw blade also has a thickness, so 4.8 is normal. It’s the market rule that anything above 4.6 is normal.”

"Normal?" Brother Wang was a little unconvinced. He glanced at the pile of wood next door, and went over without saying goodbye to Yan Hui and the other person. It seemed that he wanted to take the initiative to measure it.

"This client is a complete novice, it's going to be tough," Yan Hui whispered to his cousin.

"Do you think he's faking it? Is he deliberately using the 4.8 price as a bargaining chip?" My cousin was a little unsure.

"Of course not. What are you talking about with the Lesser Khingan Mountains? You know that larch trees in the Lesser Khingan Mountains are actually more expensive if they can be broken into smaller pieces," Yan Hui sighed.

"That's true." My cousin nodded.

Larch wood from the Greater Khingan Mountains has fewer knots, making it suitable for splitting into planks and blocks, while larch wood from the Lesser Khingan Mountains is not. However, this is in theory. If a batch of larch wood from the Lesser Khingan Mountains could be split, it would certainly be more expensive, given the harder wood there. Buyers may be unfamiliar with larch wood, but processing plants are not. How could a processing plant not know whether wood can be split or not?
The two could only watch this person wander around, and they were getting quite impatient. This person also had a lot of questions, asking the cousin questions for a long time, until the cousin was also getting a little impatient.

"Let me speak," Yan Hui said, thinking it was worth a try. This kind of customer was considered good in the Fengtian timber market, considering that Yan Hui was often scolded back then.

When dealing with customers who are only partially knowledgeable and make uninformed claims, the best approach is to demonstrate sufficient professionalism. For example, when selling a car, if the customer starts mentioning the suspension model, the salesperson needs to explain the underlying data such as materials and manufacturing processes.

"Fine, we can just cancel this order if it doesn't work out." My cousin didn't seem to care. A business deal involving a few cubic meters of timber wasn't that big.

By this time, Brother Wang had reached the fifth pile of timber. Yan Hui approached him and asked, "Brother Wang, are your requirements so detailed because of the price, or is the purpose special? Isn't the larch you're asking for for building houses?"

"Price isn't the issue, quality is the main concern. Hmm." Brother Wang seemed a little embarrassed, perhaps realizing he had asked too many questions. "I process furniture here, high-end furniture. What if you give me goods from the Lesser Khingan Mountains, and they suddenly crack later? Wouldn't that ruin the furniture?"

"Making furniture?" Yan Hui nodded. "Brother Wang, there's something I'm not sure if I should say. Who told you that furniture should be made from larch trees from the Greater Khingan Mountains?"

"We all...?" Brother Wang looked at Yan Hui's calm demeanor and became somewhat insecure. "Then what do you suggest we use?"

"The Greater and Lesser Khingan Mountains are essentially both Dahurian larch, just with different growing environments but the same species. The timber from the Greater Khingan Mountains is indeed suitable for making furniture, but if you're making high-end furniture, Dahurian larch isn't really suitable. You should try Changbai larch instead," Yan Hui offered his professional advice.

"Changbai larch?" Brother Wang looked at Yan Hui with some doubt upon hearing the new term. "You know about Changbai larch?"

"Well, I've worked in the forest farms of Baishan. I can't say I know everything about it, but there aren't many people who know more about this market than I do," Yan Hui said, even being polite.

Then, Yan Hui gave Brother Wang a whole bunch of information. Anyway, Brother Wang couldn't remember it all.

The wood of the Greater Khingan Mountains larch has a straight grain, medium hardness, and strong corrosion resistance, making it suitable for construction and furniture; the wood of the Lesser Khingan Mountains larch is denser and has a stronger nail-holding power, but it is prone to cracking; the wood of the Changbai Mountains larch is softer and suitable for carving and making musical instruments.

In general, Changbai Mountain larch is the rarest and most expensive, and can be used for flooring, decorative materials, and high-end furniture. It's worth noting that the term "soft wood" here only refers to wood that is softer than Xing'an larch; it is actually much harder than white pine.

Yan Hui talked for more than ten minutes straight, and Brother Wang nodded repeatedly as he listened: "This is good, this is good. It doesn't matter if it's a bit expensive. I'll buy a few cubic meters to try it out first. Take me to buy this."

(End of this chapter)