Reborn in 78, I made my fortune by working in the mountains, supporting three families on my own.

Fatty Chen became increasingly alarmed, while also hatching his own scheme.

If it were an ordinary villager who didn't know anything about this, and he offered to buy them for fifty yuan each, the other party would most likely be overjoyed and make the deal immediately.

After all, fifty yuan in this era could buy more than fifty kilograms of pork. A small item the size of a palm could be worth almost half a pig, which was an astronomical price for ordinary people.

But he dared not fool Zhao Lei.

Zhao Lei's attitude, speech, and bargaining skills just now clearly showed that he was an expert. If the price he quoted was too outrageous, the negotiation would fall apart completely.

After much hesitation, Fatty Chen still couldn't gauge Zhao Lei's desired price, so he simply passed the buck back to him.

"Brother Lei, you surely know what you're after. Just tell me how much you want to sell it for, and I'll try my best to meet your needs!"

Zhao Lei saw through his thoughts at a glance, knowing that the other party wanted him to quote a price first, and then try to negotiate the price.

He had already figured out the market situation and was too lazy to deal with it too much. He simply held up two fingers and made a gesture.

Upon seeing this, Fatty Chen breathed a sigh of relief, secretly delighted, and completely at ease.

He muttered to himself: Zhao Lei, I thought you had a big appetite and knew a lot, but it turns out you only expected twenty yuan a piece.

Having figured this out, Fatty Chen immediately and readily counted out sixty yuan from the drawer and handed it to Zhao Lei.

"Alright! You're a generous brother! I'll take all three musk pods. Sixty yuan, keep them safe!"

Zhao Lei's pupils constricted slightly as he looked at the sixty yuan handed to him, and he cursed inwardly.

What the hell!

This fat Chen is really ruthless!

I clearly said it was 20 yuan per gram, but he actually bought it for 20 yuan each. He's so shameless!

Qin Bowen was furious when he heard this.

"What?"

20 yuan each?

"I have three musk sacs here. You think you can just settle for 60 yuan?"

Fatty Chen immediately smiled and said:

"Hey, Bowen, you don't know the market price. 20 yuan each is no small amount."

"Look at it yourself, it's just a tiny little lump of flesh, how big is it?"

"This is 20 yuan, not two. You'd need more than a month to earn work points in the fields, right?"

Zhao Lei watched quietly, wanting to see just how ruthless this Fatty Chen really was. If this man was so dishonest, Zhao Lei didn't plan to sell wild game to him anymore.

Qin Bowen was furious:

"No, Mr. Chen, do you think we don't know what we're talking about? I already told you, this is musk."

"Yes, I know it's musk. That's the market price right now, but I'm still charging you a higher price."

"You can smell it yourself. It smells strange, quite foul. Very few people buy it. It can only be used as a medicinal ingredient."

Zhao Lei gave Qin Bowen a wink, and Qin Bowen immediately understood, frowning and speaking solemnly:

"Boss Chen, my brother-in-law and I both thought you were an honest person, and you've been with our Peace Brigade for so long, we're all pretty familiar with each other, right?"

"I didn't expect you to be so dishonest."

Fatty Chen panicked upon hearing this:

"Bowen, what do you mean by that?"

"What do you mean? Do I need to spell it out? Are you trying to mess with me like I'm Japanese?"

"Oh, young man, I'm telling you the truth. This stuff is really hard to sell. I'll buy it for you now, but I'll have to figure out a way to sell it later."

"You have to pay money to ask someone for a favor, and the profit margin is very thin."

Zhao Lei, standing to the side, was so angry he laughed, and decisively put all three musk pods into his cloth bag.

Upon seeing this, Fatty Chen immediately panicked and reached out to stop him:

"Hey? Lei Zi, what are you doing? If you think the price is wrong, why don't you tell me your thoughts?"

Fatty Chen tugged at the cloth bag, unwilling to let go, and a thought suddenly popped into his head: "Oh no, did I ask for too low a price?"

Did Zhao Lei and his group already inquire about the value of musk?

That shouldn't be the case. This thing is extremely difficult to obtain, and many people don't even recognize it. Could it be that Zhao Lei, who hasn't received much education, knows the value of the musk deer?

Fatty Chen couldn't help but recall that a few years ago, when he was working at a supply and marketing cooperative in a production brigade in Huangshi Township, he had received a musk deer from a hunter.

However, this person knew nothing about musk, only that the musk deer had a strange smell, and he dared not eat it. So he sold it for one yuan and two mao as if it were more than 20 jin of meat.

Chen Pangzi made a lot of money from this deal, because the musk deer that the hunter brought was still relatively fresh. Although the musk sac on its belly was slightly damaged, no one had taken it, which allowed him to get a great deal.

The musk he pulled out of it alone sold for over 200 yuan, almost half a year's income for him.

That's why, after a brief moment of thought, Fatty Chen offered 20 yuan each.

I originally wanted to intimidate Zhao Lei and get him to take the order.

If the deal can be completed at such a low price, his profit will be at least a thousand dollars.

When he examined the musk pods earlier, he found that the three musk pods provided by Zhao Lei were of the highest quality in terms of maturity, color, and preservation.

This single musk sac could fetch at least four or five hundred yuan, but unexpectedly, Zhao Lei's attitude was so firm that Fatty Chen immediately softened his stance and pleaded with him to stay:

"Brother Lei, just tell me what you're thinking!"

Zhao Lei brushed aside Fatty Chen's hand and said coldly:

"Boss Chen, that's not fair of you. Do you really think I know nothing about musk?"

"Don't you know that my wife, Su Wanqing, is a doctor at the brigade clinic? And her teacher, Li Qingsong, is a traditional Chinese medicine doctor."

As soon as Zhao Lei said this, Fatty Chen suddenly realized what was going on, and a fine layer of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Oh no, how could I have forgotten about this?

Zhao Lei has an ex-wife, Su Wanqing, who is a doctor in the brigade and knows a lot about Chinese medicinal herbs.

Yes, that's probably it.

It's estimated that Zhao Lei hunted a musk deer on the mountain, and when he returned home, Su Wanqing recognized him, which is why she asked him to retrieve the musk pouch.

The more Chen Pangzi thought about it, the more convinced he became that this was indeed how things had happened.

After all, all three musk pods were of excellent quality. Without professional guidance, how could Zhao Lei, a simple farmer, possibly understand the relevant knowledge?

Fatty Chen inwardly cried out in alarm, realizing he had been careless.

So, he gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, and continued to plead with her to stay:

"Brother, name your price. I've never bought this kind of musk before, so I just gave you a random price."

"If you're not satisfied, tell me. If it's suitable, I'll accept it, right?"

"We're already acquaintances, and if you don't give it to me, I'll have to make a special trip to town, which isn't worth it."

Fatty Chen continued to reassure Zhao Lei:

"Brother Lei, we've cooperated so many times, and I've never cheated you. Just speak your mind."