Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 70 Dealer

Hong San felt a cold sweat break out on his back. "Damn it, I only made a few bucks from you, and you've taken it all back with this one go." He couldn't help but ask, "Boss Li, what does 'highest bidder wins' mean? What happens to the money after we bid?"

"The money from the bidding will be temporarily held by me as a deposit for purchasing the goods. In the future, when you order cucumbers, you don't need to pay a deposit in advance; you can pay directly when you pick up the goods. If we terminate the cooperation, I will refund you every penny."

As soon as Li Zhe finished speaking, the crowd began to whisper among themselves again.

The old man wearing a dog-skin hat asked, "Boss Li, how much vegetables will be supplied daily for the six slots?"

Li Zhe replied, "There are three tiers: 15 jin, 12 jin, and 10 jin. Those who pay more deposits get to choose first."

Big Gold Tooth pretended to pick his gold teeth, thinking to himself, "Pah, that guy's scheming is too cunning. He's trying to make us throw money at him. How can he be so heartless?"

Boss Hong understood. He didn't want to pay the deposit, because once he did, he would be in a passive position. But he still wanted cucumbers. If he could get 15 jin a day, even if he only made one yuan per jin, he could earn more than 400 yuan a month, which would be enough to pay a worker's wages for three or four months.

In addition, cucumbers can create additional value if used properly.

Hong San rubbed his chapped hands. "Boss Li, I have only one question. The weather is getting colder and colder. How long can you keep selling these cucumbers?"

Others chimed in, "Yes, yes, Mr. Li, you really need to make this clear."

"We'd be losing a lot of money if we paid the deposit and then the cucumbers stopped growing."

"Yes, we earn our money through hard work, and we can't afford to suffer like this."

Li Zhe nodded, "I understand what everyone means. If I'm only going to sell them for a few days, there's no point in me going through all this trouble. Let me put it this way: barring any unforeseen circumstances, the cucumbers will be available until before the New Year."

"What! Cucumbers can still grow before the New Year!" someone exclaimed in surprise.

This news is astonishing. Temperatures around Beijing can drop to minus ten degrees Celsius. If fresh cucumbers were available at this time of year, they could fetch a fortune.
Of course, those present also had doubts, worrying that Li Zhe was trying to fool them.

Many others were secretly pondering how much to bid.

Li Zhe glanced at everyone. "Does anyone have anything to add? You can also ask other questions. If not, let's start the bidding." Li Zhe took out a stack of pre-cut slips of paper from his bag. "In a moment, I'll distribute numbered slips of paper to everyone. Remember your number. Everyone writes their name and the amount they're bidding on the slip of paper and hands it to me."

After that, I will identify the person with the highest bid as the distributor.

After Li Zhe finished speaking, he distributed slips of paper to each table in order from the inside out.

After handing out the notes, Li Zhe leaned back on the long bench, slurped up the mutton offal soup from the large bowl, and specially asked the waiter to add a portion of mutton tripe, which he chewed with great gusto.

Li Zhe had eaten enough; his stomach was a little full, and he felt warm all over. He asked the waiter for a plate and started collecting the slips of paper from table to table.

After collecting them, he went through the twenty or so slips of paper.

Li Zhe stood up and said, "Everyone, I've identified the six highest bidders. I'll read out their names now so you can all get to know them. If you want cucumbers in the future, you can get them from them."

"Jiang Zhicheng, with the highest bid amount, will be the first to choose the purchase volume."

Big Gold Tooth jumped up from the stool, clasped his hands in greeting to the crowd, and said, "Gentlemen, thank you for your hospitality. My cucumbers sell well, so I won't trouble you any further." Then, he said to Li Zhe, "Mr. Li, I'd like to buy 15 jin (7.5 catties) of cucumbers."

"can."

"How much do you want for Sun Tao, the second-place winner?"

"Brother Li, I'll also choose the 15-jin one."

"How many kilograms does Mr. Hong want?"

Hong San quickly asked, "Can I choose 15 jin?"

Li Zhe shook his head, "There are only two spots available for each tier, so choose one of the others."

Hong San slapped his thigh in anger, cursing Big Gold Tooth for interfering. If it weren't for him showing up halfway, Big Gold Tooth would definitely be the first one standing. "I choose the 12-jin one."

Li Zhe wrote it down in his notebook and continued, "How many kilograms does Lu Dayou want?" An inconspicuous man in a gray cotton-padded jacket stood up from the corner. He had bought cucumbers twice before, but Li Zhe didn't have a deep impression of him and had hardly spoken to him.

"Mr. Li, I'll choose 12 jin."

After all the other grades had been selected, Li Zhe said directly, "Li Jinxia and Wang Jianjun, both weighing ten jin. Stand up and let everyone get to know them."

You might not recognize the name Wang Jianjun, but once you see him, wow, isn't he a member of the Li family?
This guy is definitely a relative, and although Li Zhe ranked him in the top 10 jin category, no one takes it seriously.

Those present could easily calculate that the distributors had increased their purchases, but the number of people taking delivery had decreased, resulting in a total shipment volume that was about ten kilograms less than before. The remaining stock was likely in Wang Jianjun's hands.

To put it bluntly, this is Li Zhe's own distribution channel. Vegetable vendors who want to buy cucumbers will also give priority to Wang Jianjun.

Li Zhe said, "These six people are the distributors. If you want to get goods, you can contact them."

You reap what you sow; if you're unwilling to pay a deposit, you'll only be able to get overpriced goods from distributors.

Of all the people, Big Gold Tooth was the happiest, grinning from ear to ear, revealing his gleaming gold teeth.

Big Gold Tooth wasn't from the Chongwenmen vegetable market, and he got the news late. He came twice and managed to snatch a total of 5 jin of cucumbers from Li Zhe. Now that he had secured a share of 15 jin of cucumbers, he no longer had to fight for them, and he felt much better.

As for whether there are risks in handing over the deposit? Damn, if you're afraid of this and that, how will you make any money? You deserve to be poor for life.

After finishing the mutton soup and the lively atmosphere subsided, the stall owners gradually left.

Some stall owners looked regretful, while others didn't seem to care.

The old man wearing the dog-skin hat spat, "Just wait and see, in less than three days, this guy will definitely run away with the money! What kind of bullshit distributor is he? A bunch of suckers."

"Haha..." These words drew a burst of laughter.

Li Zhe left several distributors behind, told them the address of Suzhou Hutong, and asked them to bring money to pick up the goods the next morning.

After paying the bill at the mutton soup restaurant, Li Zhe went home with his cousin Wang Jianjun.

In the living room, Wang Jianjun turned on the coal stove. "Zhezi, what am I supposed to do from now on?"

"Just like before, I first deliver vegetables to Quanjude, and then go to the market to check on the stalls."

"If someone buys goods from me, how should I price them?"

“Brother, your current public identity is that of a distributor, but you are different from Sun Tao and the others. To put it bluntly, you represent me and stand in front of the public to understand the market and the situation.”

"Zhezi, what you're saying makes me even more confused."

Li Zhe organized his thoughts, "Well, to put it simply, you're a distributor in front of customers, and you can't sell to them at the original purchase price. Otherwise, your distributor status is meaningless, and Sun Tao and the others will have complaints. You should sell at the same price as Sun Tao and the others."

In addition, when gathering market information and considering issues, you are not just a distributor, but also an observer.

We need to investigate whether other distributors are engaging in any market-disrupting or profit-harming practices, such as concealing market information or deliberately lowering purchase prices to gain more profit.

Wang Jianjun said thoughtfully, "I understand."

Li Zhe warmed his hands by the coal stove. "Brother, we've been in Beijing for a while now. I'm thinking of visiting Uncle's house tomorrow. Do you want to come with me?"

"I won't go. I'll visit during the holidays."

"That works too." The two brothers sat around the coal stove, warming themselves by the fire, and chatted about how to distribute cucumbers to the distributors tomorrow.

After chatting for a while, Wang Jianjun went back to the guest room to rest. He squatted on the edge of the bed and took out a biscuit box with several crumpled envelopes inside.

He trembled as he took out the envelope, staring intently at the address on it…

(End of this chapter)