Lu Fan rode his electric scooter straight to Fengyuan Town. Upon reaching the town center, he parked his scooter in a designated spot and boarded a bus that passed through Jinyuan County. Jinyuan was a small county town, the closest one to Fengyuan Town, and Fengyuan was under Jinyuan County's jurisdiction.
Fengyuan Town was nestled deep in the mountains, so selling anything at a high price seemed unlikely. Thus, Lu Fan decided to head to the county town to see.
The twenty-odd li journey wasn't far; he arrived in the time it took to doze off. After getting off the bus, he headed straight for a farmers' market closest to the station. He had attended high school in the county town, so he was somewhat familiar with it.
After browsing the market, he found no matsutake mushrooms for sale. His plan to check prices first had fallen through. He took a plastic bag, moved over twenty catties of matsutake mushrooms from his storage ring, and spotted a small empty space next to a fruit stall. He placed the bag down and started calling out.
"Matsutake! Matsutake! Fresh matsutake, picked this morning!" Lu Fan shouted a few times, his voice a bit awkward.
The fruit vendor was a plump woman in her thirties. She leaned over to look at the matsutake mushrooms in Lu Fan's bag, her eyes immediately lighting up.
"Young man! Your mushrooms look good! How much are you selling them for?" the plump woman asked.
Lu Fan swallowed, it was his first time selling these, and he really didn't know how much to charge. However, since Wang Yan had said they sold for forty to fifty in town, he decided to ask for a bit more. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Sister! Six... sixty yuan a catty! These are mushrooms I picked fresh early this morning, guaranteed fresh."
The plump woman's face lit up, and just as she was about to speak, two coughs sounded from nearby.
"Cough, cough! Hey! How much are you selling these mushrooms for?"
A tall, thin man in his thirties stood in front of Lu Fan. Seeing this person appear, the fruit vendor instinctively stepped back and fell silent.
"Brother! The mushrooms are sixty yuan a catty!" Lu Fan quickly replied.
"Nonsense, what kind of mushrooms are worth that much? Wouldn't sixty yuan buy more delicious meat?" The tall, thin man lowered his head to look at the mushrooms in Lu Fan's bag, his eyes suddenly lighting up again. He reached out and fumbled with them, then said, "You're from the mountains, aren't you? I see it's not easy for you to pick mushrooms. How about this, I'll give you forty-five yuan a catty, and I'll take them all!"
As the tall, thin man spoke, he lifted the bag and placed it at his feet.
"Brother! That's a bit too little! I can get this price in my town, and I've traveled dozens of li more to get here!" Lu Fan reached out and pulled the bag back, saying.
"Kid! Don't think your stuff is worth that much. What I'm offering is already quite high. How about this, I'll raise it a bit more, fifty yuan a catty." The tall, thin man finished speaking, picked up the mushrooms, and placed them on the fruit stall's scale.
"Twenty-five catties, one thousand two hundred and fifty." The tall, thin man said as he took the mushrooms, then pulled out a wad of cash, counted out one thousand two hundred and fifty yuan, and handed it over without regard for Lu Fan's willingness.
"Damn it! This is forced buying and selling!" Lu Fan's mouth twitched. Just as he was about to speak, the fruit vendor next to him quickly said, "Young man! Sell it! It's good to sell it all at once. The sooner you sell, the sooner you can go home!"
Lu Fan hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took the money.
The tall, thin man left with the mushrooms without another word.
Watching the man walk away, the fruit vendor seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and lowered her voice, saying, "Young man! You don't know him, do you? His name is Xu Shouzi, and he's a local thug who operates in the market. If you hadn't sold to him, you wouldn't have been able to sell your mushrooms at all. No one would dare buy from you.
How about this, I'll give you a business card. If you have this kind of mushroom again in the future, just call me directly. I'll buy them for sixty yuan a catty, whatever you have, I'll take it."
The plump woman handed Lu Fan a business card.
Lu Fan took the card, but his eyes were fixed on the direction Xu Shouzi had gone. Seeing Xu Shouzi exit the market through the north gate, Lu Fan smiled at the plump woman, "Thank you, sister! I'll be in touch."
Lu Fan left the fruit stall and ran towards the market's north gate. He didn't believe Xu Shouzi would keep over twenty catties of mushrooms for himself.
Leaving the market, Lu Fan saw Xu Shouzi heading down another street. Crossing the street, Xu Shouzi stopped in front of a hotel called Yixiangyuan.
It was too early, and the hotel hadn't opened yet. Xu Shouzi walked directly towards the side entrance, making a phone call as he went.
A moment later, a young and beautiful woman came down from upstairs. Not only was the woman young and beautiful, but she also had a great figure. Her nearly 1.8-meter height showcased her long, straight legs, and her work attire did nothing to conceal her curvaceous charm.
Seeing this woman descend, Xu Shouzi swallowed hard. However, his face was full of flattery.
"Manager Bai! I hope I'm not disturbing your rest!?" Xu Shouzi said, bowing obsequiously.
"It's fine! You said you got matsutake mushrooms? Let me see!" Bai Xuemei said calmly.
"Certainly!" Xu Shouzi immediately brought a bag of matsutake mushrooms to Bai Xuemei, opened the bag, and said with a grin, "Manager Bai! These are genuine matsutake mushrooms, and their quality is absolutely top-notch. It's not common to see matsutake this large! I saw them in the market and immediately bought them from you at a high price of one hundred yuan a catty to bring to you. Take a look, what price can you give me?"
"Hmm! These mushrooms are indeed good. I'll make an exception and give you one hundred and thirty yuan a catty! If you find any more wild delicacies in the future, bring them to me, and I won't treat you unfairly. Come with me to weigh them!" Bai Xuemei nodded after looking at the mushrooms.
"Certainly!" Xu Shouzi happily picked up the mushrooms and followed Bai Xuemei towards the storeroom. There was a floor scale at the storeroom entrance. He placed the mushrooms on it, and they weighed exactly twenty-five catties.
"You son of a bitch! You made two thousand yuan in one transaction!" Outside the courtyard gate, Lu Fan almost lost his temper. Fortunately, he had kept his wits about him, otherwise, he would have been severely cheated. No wonder the fruit vendor had offered him sixty yuan a catty. Humph! Lu Fan threw the business card away with a flick of his wrist.
Xu Shouzi left with the money, looking pleased. Bai Xuemei locked the storeroom door and prepared to go upstairs. This task wasn't originally hers; because it was too early, the person in charge of procurement hadn't arrived yet, so she had come down herself.
"Manager Bai!" a voice suddenly called out. Lu Fan walked in from outside the main gate, holding several plastic bags, with a smile on his face.
"Are you looking for me?" Bai Xuemei asked, startled.
"Of course, I'm looking for you! Are you still buying the mushrooms you just bought?" Lu Fan asked with a smile.