Upon hearing her brother speak, Lin Wan didn’t persuade any further; she hadn’t considered this matter.
Lin Wan spent a week knitting and finished Zhang Shuhua’s set. In the past few days, Mom came back in the evening saying that a few sweaters had already been sold outside.
Selling a few pieces in a week is decent, given the price of these clothes; sweaters are expensive.
Lin Wan also thought about selling the clothes at the hot pot restaurant but realized it might affect the store’s image, so she gave up on the idea.
Lin Wan asked Mom to take Zhang Shuhua’s sweater over, and she continued knitting sweaters in the evening, not worried about them not selling. If they don’t sell this year, they will next year; after all, these items won’t go out of style.
There are many mountain goods in the Northeast; their store’s business is good now, using lots of black fungus and mushrooms. The market prices start rising as soon as it gets cold.
Lin Wan knew there was a village thirty miles north of the city, right next to the mountains.
Taking advantage of her brother’s day off, Lin Wan caught a bus and prepared to purchase some mountain goods over there, buying directly from villagers would certainly be cheaper.
Her brother was worried, planning to look after the store himself, as today there was someone causing trouble; such matters are better handled by a man, leaving Lin Wan to come over on her own.
Upon arrival, Lin Wan realized she was close to S City’s military district.
In her previous life, Grandma had mentioned Han Yi’s military district, but she had never visited. Two years into marriage, she had never been here on a vacation or a day off.
Most villages at this time still had adobe houses; rarely you’d see one or two with brick and tile houses.
The reforms had just begun, land was divided only a few years ago, and public grain had to be handed over. Most farmers still couldn’t fill their stomachs. Lin Wan remembered that in the North, the land hadn’t been divided yet.
When Lin Wan arrived, it was already ten in the morning. As soon as she reached the village entrance, she saw a family with their courtyard gate open, and she called out before walking in.
"Young lady, who are you looking for?" A woman who looked to be in her twenties was brushing crayfish and a few crabs by the well, with a hot water kettle nearby, clearly using warm water for washing. When Lin Wan first came in, she saw a few small fish thrown outside the door.
"Hello, madam, I’m from the city. A friend told me you can procure mountain goods here, and my family runs a restaurant, so we need some black fungus and mushrooms. That’s why I came to check," Lin Wan explained clearly, fearing she’d be mistaken for a scammer.
"Oh, you’re here to buy mountain goods? Come on in, we have some," the woman said, quickly washing her hands and calling out to her husband inside, "Brother Huang, come out, someone’s here to buy mountain goods."
With the openness now, though it hasn’t fully started, the team’s control has lightened quite a bit. Many families with surplus grain take it to the city to exchange for some money. They live close to the mountains, with plenty of wild goods and mountain delicacies, reluctant to eat them, choosing instead to exchange them for some money. This year, quite a few people have come to collect mountain goods from them.
"Who’s buying?" A rough male voice came from inside before anyone had stepped out.
Moments later, Lin Wan saw a typical Northeastern man step out, "Who’s buying? What’s the offer?"
"Hello, brother, it’s me buying," Lin Wan replied.
Huang Dashan glanced at the young Lin Wan, who was clearly a stranger, frowned slightly, and asked, "Young lady, what’s your offer?"
"Seven cents for mushrooms, nine cents for black fungus," Lin Wan had already inquired about the market prices.
Usually at the market, the mushrooms are one dollar, and black fungus is one dollar and thirty cents. The price she offered is already high; Lin Wan knows that the buyers usually collect them at a lower price than what she offered.