sbdcsierra Chapter 1930: Even the Imperial Pharmacy didn't have as many ginseng kings as the Zhao family b
Chapter 1930: Even the Imperial Pharmacy didn't have as many ginseng kings as the Zhao family b
Chapter 1930: Even the Imperial Pharmacy didn't have as many ginseng kings as the Zhao family before!
The next day, June 26, 1988.
Since it was Sunday, Wang Meilan slept in a little longer and didn't get up until almost five o'clock.
When she got up to get dressed, Zhao Youcai was still asleep.
When Wang Meilan turned to look at Zhao Youcai, she subconsciously pursed her lips.
The reason she pouted wasn't because she disliked Zhao Youcai, but because after lying down last night, Zhao Youcai tossed and turned for half the night, keeping Wang Meilan from getting a good night's sleep.
The couple had been together for over twenty years, and naturally, they had developed feelings for each other. Although Zhao Youcai hadn't slept well, Wang Meilan tried her best not to make any noise or wake him when she got off the bed.
But for some reason, the moment Wang Meilan stepped out of bed and put her feet on her shoes, Zhao Youcai, who was lying in bed, suddenly sat up.
This startled Wang Meilan. Just as she stepped back, Zhao Youcai, who had stood up, turned around and stared intently at her with wide, round eyes.
That sharp gaze startled Wang Meilan, and she instinctively shouted, "What are you doing?"
"Huh?" Zhao Youcai was taken aback, his small eyes blinking several times before he gradually came to his senses.
"Oh dear..." When he realized he was at home and that the person in front of him was not Da Xiong Ba, but his wife, Zhao Youcai breathed a long sigh of relief.
"What are you doing?" Wang Meilan angrily nudged Zhao Youcai, who let out an "Ah" and leaned back, lying directly on the kang (a heated brick bed).
Wang Meilan was speechless. She glared at Zhao Youcai and then turned to leave.
As if remembering something, Zhao Youcai, who was lying down, sat up again when Wang Meilan left.
Zhao Youcai got dressed and went to the outer room, where Wang Meilan was washing up.
So Zhao Youcai, without washing up, went outside to pump water to wash his face.
The icy well water splashed on his face, completely waking Zhao Youcai. After washing his face, he rinsed his mouth with water, then lifted his shirt to wipe his face. He walked to the front of the house, sat on a small stool, took out a cigarette, and smoked while looking towards the courtyard gate.
After washing up, Wang Meilan took four bowls of soybeans from the dish rack, intending to go out and exchange them for some tofu and dried tofu.
When she reached the door, Wang Meilan saw Zhao Youcai sitting there, like a statue waiting for her husband.
"What a day!" Wang Meilan muttered Zhao Youcai's favorite phrase, then called out to him, "Don't sit there, go pick up some tofu."
Zhao Youcai readily agreed, getting up to take the basin and turning to leave. Just then, Wang Meilan's voice came from behind him: "Change the dried tofu a few less times, okay?"
Zhao Youcai didn't say anything and just left.
Wang Meilan glared at the back of Zhao Youcai's head, then turned around and saw Zhao Jun and Ma Ling coming out from the west corridor.
"Oh!" Seeing her son and daughter-in-law, Wang Meilan hurriedly asked, "Why didn't you two sleep a little longer? Did Mom wake you up?"
"No, Mom." Ma Ling smiled at Wang Meilan and said, "I went to bed early yesterday and woke up."
Ma Ling is less than three months pregnant, and the young couple, having no entertainment activities in the evening, went to bed early.
After the young couple finished washing up, Ma Ling followed Wang Meilan to the vegetable garden to prune the tomato plants. At this time, the tomato plants had already formed, but they were still green.
Zhao Jun went to the backyard to feed the dogs, while Zhao Youcai, after changing the tofu, put the basin on the stove in the outer room and went out to sit on the small stool in front of the house.
When the mother and her two children finished their chores and met in front of the house, Zhao Youcai was still sitting there looking out.
"What are you doing?" Wang Meilan frowned and said, "You've been peeking around with your little eyes all morning, and the three of us have been busy like this, but you've been acting like you haven't even seen us."
At this point, Zhao Youcai gave Wang Meilan a sharp glare. Wang Meilan didn't care and simply said, "What? Who wants to introduce you to someone?"
"Get out of here!" Zhao Youcai said irritably, "What nonsense are you spouting?"
Zhao Jun and Ma Ling, who were standing nearby, chuckled. Then the young couple followed Wang Meilan into the house, leaving Zhao Youcai outside to continue watching.
Not long after, Xing San arrived. The old man walked up to Zhao Youcai and asked, "Second brother, what are you looking at here for?"
"I wasn't looking for anything," Zhao Youcai replied casually. Xing San didn't waste any more words with him and went straight into the house.
Just as Xing San entered the house, Li Baoyu and his wife climbed over the wall from the west courtyard.
The biggest improvement Liu Mei made after marrying Li Baoyu was learning to climb over walls, and she became better and better at it.
The young couple came over from Zhao Youcai's right and saw him sitting there, staring blankly in the direction of the gate. Li Baoyu and Liu Mei asked in unison, "Grandpa, what are you looking at?"
"I didn't... expect anything." Zhao Youcai was annoyed by the questions, but suddenly remembered Liu Mei, so his voice softened when he got to the last two words.
Li Baoyu and Liu Mei exchanged a glance, then the young couple went into the house hand in hand.
As soon as the two entered the house and the door closed, a sputtering sound came from the front door.
Immediately afterwards, the motorcycle came into Zhao Youcai's view.
Wang Qiang was riding the motorcycle, with Zhang Yuanmin sitting behind him. On the back rack of the motorcycle, there were two water taps, one on each side, filled with small river fish.
Last night, Wang Qiang and Zhang Yuanmin discussed getting up early this morning to pick up the fish, and then rode off on Zhao Jun's motorcycle.
The motorcycle traveled along the path and soon arrived in front of Zhao Youcai.
As soon as the motorcycle stopped, Wang Qiang said to Zhao Youcai, "Brother-in-law, you..."
"I didn't look at anything!" Zhao Youcai stood up angrily, and as he stood up, he picked up a small stool from behind his back, then turned around and walked into the house.
"Huh? How did he know what I was going to ask him?" Wang Qiang muttered in surprise, just then he heard Zhang Yuanmin behind him call out, "Uncle, take the fish to the house."
Seeing Zhao Youcai enter the house without looking back, Wang Qiang and Zhang Yuanmin had no choice but to get off the motorcycle, untie the water bottle from the back rack, and carry it into the house.
They went inside, put down the tap, and were about to leave when Wang Meilan asked them to stay for dinner. The two men simply said they would come back later.
As the two left, Zhao Youcai sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) in the west hut, craning his neck to look out the window.
Wang Meilan was very happy that her son Zhao Jun wasn't going out today, as he had been away from home a lot lately. She specially made him his favorite home-style tofu this morning.
So-called home-style tofu is simply tofu cut into small, bite-sized pieces, then pan-fried in oil. After frying until golden brown on all six sides, it's then briefly stir-fried.
Wang Meilan put a lot of effort into making this dish, but she noticed that her son seemed a little distracted during the meal.
"What's wrong, son?" Wang Meilan asked. Zhao Jun sighed and said, "Mom, well... Manager Huang hasn't called either."
Zhao Jun is a very steady person, but this matter concerns two million, so he can't help but take it seriously.
Hearing Zhao Jun's words, Wang Meilan also sighed and said, "Mom has been thinking about this all night..."
At this point, Wang Meilan suddenly looked at Zhao Youcai and exclaimed in realization, "Ah, no wonder you were so clueless! Were you getting anxious too?"
"Huh?" Zhao Youcai, who was eating in silence with his bowl in hand, was taken aback. Just then, the telephone rang in the small west hut.
Zhao Jun quickly got up and went to answer the phone. At this time, Wang Meilan, Ma Ling, Li Baoyu, Liu Mei, and Xing San had all put down their bowls, only Zhao Youcai, Zhao Hong, and Zhao Na were still eating.
"Hello." Zhao Jun answered the phone, steadied himself, and said, "This is Xishantun."
"Hey, Zhao Jun, it's me." Manager Huang's voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Manager Huang," Zhao Jun responded, and then Manager Huang said, "Zhao Jun, are you getting impatient?"
"No rush, hehe." Zhao Jun denied it, but Manager Huang said, "Zhao Jun, here's the situation. Boss Zhang wants your Ginseng King, and Boss Yang wants your Miao Snake Transformation Dragon."
The Boss Zhang mentioned by Manager Huang is the one who bought the White Dragon to save his father. And Boss Yang is the one whose second wife just gave birth to a healthy baby boy.
Hearing Manager Huang's words, Zhao Jun was very happy. Just then, Manager Huang added, "In our Anguo West Market Street, there is a fellow ginseng merchant, Boss Hu, who wants to buy two ginseng seedlings that are seventy or eighty years old."
"That's great." Zhao Jun sells goods, so it's a good thing for him if someone wants to buy his products.
But the next second, Manager Huang changed the subject and said, "But Boss Zhang has some business to attend to outside recently, and he won't be back in the capital for about ten days. And what about Boss Yang? His son isn't even a month old yet, and he has to hold a celebration for his son's one-month birthday before he can leave Tianjin. Don't you think you should make some concessions for them?"
"Of course." Zhao Jun felt that the timing of these two bosses was very favorable for his ginseng king conference.
So Zhao Jun immediately said to Manager Huang, "Manager Huang, thank you for helping me connect with the business. If I can close the deal with these bosses this time, I'll give you a 5% cut."
What Manager Huang is doing now is similar to some of the things Li Ruhai did before; they are both middlemen, or in the local dialect, "middlemen".
The broker acts as an intermediary between two parties, and both sides have to take a cut once a deal is reached.
Zhao Jun wasn't a petty person; he'd rather bring it up himself than have Manager Huang bring it up.
Zhao Jun had mentioned this matter before when Manager Huang helped him close a deal.
But when selling the White Dragon and Amber Dragon to Boss Zhang, Manager Huang begged Zhao Jun and urged him again and again.
When Zhao Jun brought up the matter of taking a cut, Manager Huang replied that as long as Zhao Jun could get the three dragons within the time required by Boss Zhang, he would not take a cut from Zhao Jun's share of the water.
He always said this because he had received enough benefits from the buyers, so Zhao Jun didn't insist any further.
Later, when it was sold to Boss Yang Shilong, Zhao Jun brought up the matter again. But at that time, Old Master Huang was unwell, and Manager Huang and Huang Haizhen were both unable to leave.
Furthermore, Boss Yang is Old Master Huang's apprentice, which is also Manager Huang's senior brother; the two grew up together.
Although Mr. Yang later switched to the clothing trade, their friendship remained unchanged.
So, Manager Huang said that he, as the middleman, couldn't be present, and also that he couldn't take a cut from his senior apprentice's water, so he simply stopped taking a cut from both ends.
When Zhao Jun brought up the matter again today, Manager Huang laughed and said, "Alright, Zhao Jun, I'll go with you whether you go to the capital or Tianjin."
Manager Huang's words meant that he agreed to Zhao Jun's condition of giving him a 5% commission.
Actually, these days, there are rules about the commission rates charged by herbal medicine brokers, and these rates are divided into two categories: those in the formal market and those in the private sector.
The legitimate market is located in large pharmaceutical markets such as Anguo, Bozhou, and Yuzhou, where there are officially licensed managers who take a cut of one or two percentage points from both the buyers and sellers.
One advantage of using this channel is that it's safe and reliable.
However, wild ginseng trading generally doesn't reach this level, because in most places, wild ginseng farmers can't get a good price if they try to sell their ginseng to state-run pharmacies, supply and marketing cooperatives, or purchasing stations.
In addition, a 9% handling fee will be charged.
Therefore, wild ginseng can only be traded through private brokers.
These days, there are certain rules to follow when it comes to dealing in medicinal herbs through private brokers.
First, medicinal materials need to be classified, mainly into two categories: common medicinal materials and precious and rare medicinal materials.
For ordinary medicinal herbs, water is typically pumped from three points.
Wild ginseng is a precious medicinal herb, with a water extraction rate as high as five to ten points.
Of course, in this industry, higher fees are expected for smaller amounts, while larger amounts are negotiable.
Zhao Jun's ginseng king seedling was priced at two million, which is a large amount that can be negotiated. In this case, if Zhao Jun were to lower the price by three percent, Manager Huang would most likely accept it.
But Zhao Jun was very generous and directly promised Manager Huang five points, which Manager Huang accepted without hesitation.
But at that moment, Zhao Jun smiled and said to Manager Huang, "Manager Huang, I won't be going this time."
"Huh?" Manager Huang on the other end of the phone was taken aback and said, "So you mean, you still want Boss Zhang and the others to go to... Shulan?"
“This time we’re not going to Shulan,” Zhao Jun chuckled. “What I’m thinking about this time is that I’m planning to hold a Ginseng King Conference in my hometown. Afterwards, I’ll invite all the bosses over. First, they can taste our local delicacies and wild vegetables. Second, we can sit together, drink tea, look at the ginseng, and talk business. What do you think?”
"This..." Upon hearing Zhao Jun's words, Manager Huang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Zhao Jun, you only have a few ginseng seedlings. If possible, Boss Zhang and the others will buy them all for you. Why are you holding a meeting?"
"Hahaha." Hearing Manager Huang's words, Zhao Jun laughed and said, "Manager Huang, I don't only have those few ginseng seedlings. The photos my Uncle Zhao gave you are only a part of it. If I'm going to hold this Ginseng King Conference, I can at least bring out two ginseng king seedlings."
"Two seedlings?" Manager Huang's tone was somewhat incredulous. Although wild plants, animals, and medicinal resources were abundant these days, ginseng kings did not appear every year.
Zhao Jun not only produced ginseng kings, but he also produced two seedlings at once, which is truly astonishing.
Although Zhao Jun couldn't see Manager Huang on the other end of the phone, he could sense his shock.
Zhao Jun smiled faintly. In fact, if the trip to Lushui River went smoothly, then with the ginseng king that Xing San gave him, Zhao Jun would have four ginseng kings in his possession.
He believed that even the imperial pharmacy in the former palace could not possibly produce so many ginseng kings at once, from ancient times to the present.
Zhao Jun believed that once this Ginseng King Conference was held, the Zhao family gang would truly make a name for themselves in the industry.
But then, Manager Huang on the other end of the phone posed another question to Zhao Jun: "Zhao Jun, the problem is... the road to your area isn't very safe."
"That..." Hearing Manager Huang's words, Zhao Jun secretly hated the bandits. These people were truly a black sheep, not only corrupting the morals but also damaging the local reputation.
"Manager Huang, have you forgotten?" Zhao Jun said with a smile, "Weren't those guys arrested? They're probably all dead by now."
"Well... this..." At this moment, Manager Huang was quite afraid to come here because he remembered what Zhang Xinglin and the others had gone through.
But she didn't know how to say this to Zhao Jun, since Zhao Jun was giving her a 5% cut of the water.
Putting everything else aside, just that one triple-stemmed ginseng king alone could bring in a profit of 100,000 from Manager Huang. If Zhao Jun were to offer another ginseng king for Boss Zhang and his group to buy… Manager Huang was already excited just thinking about it.
But then Manager Huang thought again, whether it's money or ginseng, if something happens on the way, no one can afford to bear the consequences.
Thinking of this, Manager Huang's excitement gradually subsided.
Just as Manager Huang was hesitating, Zhao Jun said, "Manager Huang, how about this? You can put in some effort to connect these bosses together."
"Afterwards, I'll personally arrange for someone to pick you up and drop you off. As soon as you get off the plane, I'll meet you here. And after this meeting, regardless of whether you buy any ginseng or not, I'll still put you back on the plane. Is that alright?"
“Alright!” Manager Huang readily agreed when Zhao Jun said so, because he had heard from Zhang Xinglin that Zhao Jun had an old man by his side who could scare away robbers without saying a word.