CHAPTER 772: CHAPTER 747 WHOLESALE

Liu Huili sat on the kang, sewing clothes for her daughter.

The little one sat on the side of the kang, playing there.

Mrs. Fan put on the Dacron short-sleeve and checked herself repeatedly in the mirror.

"Xiao Hui, your skills are really good, look at the clothes you’ve made, the stitches are almost like those of ready-made clothes from the department store. I’ve seen those department store clothes go for 35 yuan each. If you have the time, make a couple of outfits for yourself too. Just look, the clothes you have now are from your wedding year, and they’re out of style."

Her daughter-in-law had been helping her rush to finish this piece all day yesterday, and this morning it was ready for her to try on.

If anything was unsuitable, Liu Huili was prepared to make adjustments for Old Mrs. Fan.

"Mom, I’ll first make clothes for you and Xiao Nine, don’t worry. When Jianguo makes big money, I’ll have plenty to wear. The clothes I have now are still wearable, and besides, I’m weak and don’t go out much. You’re the one who does the grocery shopping and other outings.

You should wear some new clothes out so they can see, don’t let them look down on Jianguo."

She heard no shortage of gossip from the neighbors over the past year. Initially, the neighbors thought their family was quite capable.

They got along well and even tried to curry favor with her and her husband at every turn.

Who would have thought later on, they’d see Old Mrs. Fan picking rotten leaves at the vegetable market and scavenging outside.

Immediately, rumors started among the neighbors, saying either Fan Jianguo committed a crime and their property was confiscated, or that the couple embezzled state assets and thus their shop was reclaimed and not returned to them.

All kinds of things were said.

Mrs. Fan nodded.

"Alright, I’ll wear this out and let them see. This is from my daughter-in-law’s filial piety. Who else has such a filial daughter-in-law like I do?"

"Mom, please don’t tease me like that."

Liu Huili laughed.

She now regarded her mother-in-law as her own mother.

"Jianguo has been gone for almost ten days for this trip, he should be back by now, but there hasn’t been any news. It’s making me anxious every day."

Old Mrs. Fan sat in front of her granddaughter, watching her play with blocks alone.

"Jianguo said when he left that he would return in no more than ten days, today is the tenth day, I guess they should have arrived soon."

Liu Huili was worried too, as her husband had been gone for so long. She had heard about how this kind of long-distance transport often encounters robbers, and if they did, the robbers would seize the goods.

Though the government was cracking down, some bold people from remote areas still dared to act.

Seven days ago, Fan Jianguo had reached West City.

This place was just across the border from Yue Country, and here they got a temporary passport and then went directly to Yue Country.

Of course, on the day they arrived, they contacted local comrades, who introduced them to a guide who did fruit trading professionally, and could connect them directly with farmers, saving them from middlemen skimming profits.

Fan Jianguo toured local orchards, and sure enough, the quality was excellent. Bananas, oranges, and mangoes from here were all in short supply in major cities, but they were everywhere here and very cheap, like bananas.

Freshly cut from the tree, they were only five cents per pound.

Other than transportation challenges for preservation, everything else was fine.

Fortunately, the people he found were quite experienced, and the fruit merchants did not dare to deceive them.

The bananas they picked were all green. Even if transported for three to five days, they would be perfectly ripe when they arrived.

The loss during transport would be minimal, and they had specialized storage methods for mangoes and oranges too.

In short, the merchandise was incredibly cheap, and if brought back to the Capital City, this business trip would definitely yield several times the profit.

They had eight large trucks fully loaded for this trip.

After being delayed here for several days, by the time they were heading back, eight days had passed.

They declined the hospitality of local comrades, packed up the goods, and returned overnight, mainly to avoid any risks on the road.

Fan Jianguo stayed alert on the way back, being extra cautious. When they left, the trucks were empty, so robbers wouldn’t target an empty truck since there’s nothing to gain.

But returning was different, as the trucks were fully loaded with goods.

Luckily, they faced a smooth journey and after driving for about two days, they arrived safely.

The eight trucks rushed to the Capital City, and Fan Jianguo didn’t even have time to go home first; the trucks were loaded with trendy fruits, and it was hot now.

Though the north is much cooler than the south, the temperature waits for no one.

He didn’t have the luxury of going home to announce his return.

He went straight to the fruit wholesale market with the load.

Fortunately, he knew the leaders of the fruit wholesale market, as in previous years, he had been a buyer there transporting goods back home to sell. But this time, he came as a wholesaler. Regardless, in the wholesale market, everyone was treated the same; when large trucks entered, they paid a fee.

It was about 50 per day, and however many days it took you to sell, then you left.

Fan Jianguo was lucky; on the first day at the wholesale market, people found out about the new shipment of fresh fruit, and quite a few middlemen wanted to take them directly for resale.

Fan Jianguo had already wandered the market; since he wanted to do this business, he wouldn’t venture into it unprepared.

The middlemen taking over would double the price, meaning with this round trip 100,000 yuan capital, he could at most earn 50,000 yuan.

But if he worked a bit harder and did the wholesaling himself,

the price difference would double again, and he could earn 150,000 yuan on this trip.

After all, others weren’t like him. Nobody else hauled goods from such a far-off place; they typically brought in fruit from neighboring provinces.

The superior bananas and mangoes he brought were unavailable in this area.

Each buddy watched over a truck.

A surprising number of wholesalers came to buy, resulting in a brisk business.

They found wholesale fruit more exhausting than transportation, at least during transport they could take turns resting.

But now, they were busy wholesaling fruits during the day, and when night fell, they had to go through all the fruits in the truck again. If they didn’t deal with it, spoiled fruit could ruin the fresh ones.

After three days of hustle and bustle, the entire shipment of fruits was sold out.

However, the old lady and Liu Huili at home didn’t know about it, and their hearts were already tied up in knots.

Seeing that it had been fourteen days, they still hadn’t seen any sign of them.

The two women at home had long been worried, but they knew being anxious wouldn’t help.

The old lady especially went to find Fan Xiuying; they were also at a loss.

This journey was too far, and there was no phone to contact even if they wanted to.

Fortunately, Jiang Xiaoxiao was clever, and directly sent her father to take a run at the fruit market, to various large fruit wholesale markets, and see if they could spot her uncle.

By timing, they should be back now.