Chapter 65

"Is Zhang Dashan at home?" Li Bin shouted loudly as he walked in, and Xiao Yuanhang and the others followed him inside, casually picking up a handful of the pine nuts that were drying in the sun. They were heavy, and when he cracked one open, the pine nut inside was plump and tightly adhered to the shell, so much so that it couldn't be pried out by hand.

A man in his forties, wearing a robe, pushed open the door and walked out. Seeing Li Bin in his industrial and commercial uniform from a distance, he exclaimed, "Oh!" and hurriedly ran up, smiling and said, "I heard the magpies chirping on the roof this morning, and it turns out a distinguished guest has come! Please, come in!"

Li Bin waved his hand irritably and said, "Cut the nonsense. You must be cursing me for coming to collect taxes again!"

Zhang Dashan looked embarrassed, clearly hit by Li Bin's words. Seeing his pained expression, Li Bin waved his hand and said, "Alright, stop looking so gloomy. I'm not here to collect taxes today. I'm here to bring you a big customer."

"Ah!" Zhang Dashan clearly didn't believe Li Bin, his eyes uncertainly looking at him, his mouth moving but unable to say anything.

Li Bin pointed to the pine nuts drying on the ground and asked, "Zhang Dashan, how many dried pine nuts do you have?"

Seeing that Li Bin wasn't mentioning taxes but was asking about the pine nuts, Zhang Dashan relaxed. He looked at the pine nuts drying on the ground and said, "There are about 2,000 pounds drying here, and another 2,000 pounds in the warehouse, so a total of about 4,000 pounds!"

Li Bin puffed out his chest and said, "I'll take all 4,000 pounds. What's your price?"

Hearing that Li Bin wanted all 4,000 pounds of pine nuts, Zhang Dashan was pleasantly surprised. This year's pine nut harvest was bountiful, and the mountain forest his family had contracted could produce about 30,000 pounds of pine nuts. However, the trading company under the Forestry Bureau had set a very low purchase price, only 2.8 yuan per pound for the best quality, and they used every trick to downgrade the quality. His family's pine nuts were clearly top-grade, but the trading company only gave them a second-grade rating, which was only 2.6 yuan per pound. Not selling to the trading company meant that such a large quantity couldn't be absorbed in the small town of Linquan, and selling felt like a loss. Now, they were in a deadlock, but Zhang Dashan couldn't hold out much longer because the loan for the mountain contract was due, which had almost turned his hair white with worry.

The vendors at the mountain goods market bought from him at 3 yuan per pound, but they needed very little, sometimes selling a few hundred pounds a day, and sometimes not selling anything for several days, leaving him in a constant state of worry. Seeing Li Bin wanting 4,000 pounds at once, he thought for a long time before saying, "Mr. Li, all my pine nuts are top-grade. If you want 4,000 pounds at once, I'll give you 2.9 yuan per pound, but no credit, it must be paid in cash!"

Li Bin's mind was quick, and he quickly calculated that 4,000 pounds at 2.9 yuan per pound would be 11,600 yuan. He didn't know if Xiao Yuanhang had that much money, so he turned to look at him.

While Li Bin was negotiating with Zhang Dashan, Xiao Yuanhang had been listening. He would have bought them at 3.2 yuan per pound, let alone 2.9 yuan per pound, and 4,000 pounds at once! Seeing Li Bin's inquiring look, he said very straightforwardly, "Deal, we'll pay in cash. Just bag and weigh them, and I'll pay you after!" He patted his bulging backpack, indicating that the money was all there.

"Alright, alright, I'll bag and weigh them right away!" Zhang Dashan was overjoyed, and he ran to the house, shouting as he went, "Big brother, second brother, mother of Third Son, come out quickly, we're saved!"

Hearing the shout, Zhang Dashan's eldest son, second son, and wife, who was holding a child, all ran out of the house, their faces full of confusion as they looked at the excited Zhang Dashan. Zhang Dashan said urgently, "Big brother, go to the warehouse and get the burlap bags. Second brother, bring the scale out of the house. Mother of Third Son, go back and get a notebook to record the accounts!"

Seeing the whole family mobilized, Xiao Yuanhang called over Wang Dahai and said, "Dahai, go to the Linquan station cargo area and find Li Yifeng. Tell him the pine nuts are ready, and have him bring the containers here."

Wang Dahai nodded and said, "Okay, Second Brother, I'll go right away." He then walked out briskly...

While watching Zhang Dashan bag and weigh the pine nuts, Xiao Yuanhang took out a notebook to record the quantities. Seeing that Zhang Dashan was using burlap bags, he said, "I'll be loading them into containers later, so we can't use all burlap bags. Prepare some woven bags as well, or we won't fit them all in two containers."

"Alright, alright!" Zhang Dashan, excited, agreed and then said to his second son, "Second brother, go get some woven bags!"

After the 4,000 pounds of pine nuts were bagged and weighed, Xiao Yuanhang counted out 11 bundles of 10-yuan notes from his backpack, then took out another bundle, counted out 400 yuan, and handed the remaining 600 yuan to Zhang Dashan, saying, "Count it!"

As Zhang Dashan's family counted the money with smiles on their faces, Wang Dahai returned with a Jiefang truck, and Li Yifeng came with it. The truck's bed held two 1-ton green containers with white numbers painted on them. Seeing the bags of pine nuts piled in the yard, Li Yifeng was also very excited, as this meant he would earn 100 yuan!

After counting and putting away the money, Zhang Dashan, with his two sons, happily carried the pine nuts to the truck. Zhao Bingnan and Wang Dahai helped Li Yifeng load the containers according to his instructions. Li Bin, who was as thin as a reed, didn't do any work and went into the house to get a drink.

Taking this opportunity, Xiao Yuanhang pulled Zhang Dashan aside and said, "Uncle Zhang, I heard your family can produce tens of thousands of pounds of pine nuts this year?"

Zhang Dashan said, "Yes, it's worrying. If only we hadn't contracted the mountain."

Xiao Yuanhang said, "This is a gold mine. What are you worried about?"

Zhang Dashan said, "The loan is due in a little over a month. Even with what you're buying, I still need nearly 30,000 yuan. If I can't pay the loan, the bank won't lend me money next year, and my contract for the mountain is good for another five years. Where can I find the money?"

Xiao Yuanhang said, "Don't worry about that, Uncle Zhang. I'll be back in a while, and I'll need even more. Just focus on producing more pine nuts for me!"

Hearing this, Zhang Dashan was very happy and said, "You're really helping me out. Don't worry, I'll start increasing production today and make sure I have enough for you next time."

Xiao Yuanhang smiled and said, "Great, let's agree on that!"

The containers were quickly loaded. Under Li Yifeng's direction, the 4,000 pounds of pine nuts filled two containers exactly. Li Yifeng closed the container doors, secured them with a lock, and sealed them with lead. He then jumped down, closed the truck bed, and shouted, "Li Bin, let's go!"

Hearing the shout, Li Bin ran out of the house. Since the cab could only seat two besides the driver, Xiao Yuanhang had Li Yifeng and Li Bin sit in the cab, while he and Zhao Bingnan and Wang Dahai climbed into the truck bed. The driver started the truck, and they headed towards the Linquan station cargo area...

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PS: A gentle reminder from Old Qu: Don't forget to vote for the Three Rivers Award after finishing the book!

{Piaotian Literature}