Chapter 8

Looking at the sun, it was probably around two in the afternoon.

Ning Weimin roughly organized his harvest, raised the two-pronged hook, and waved it to the vagrants.

"Hey! I'm leaving. If anyone wants me to bring something, come over quickly and register."

This was his habit; once he felt hungry, it was time for him to stop working.

For health reasons, he did not allow himself to continue working in such a harsh environment while feeling hungry.

Additionally, only by leaving at this time could he comfortably ride the bus home, avoiding the crowded rush hour.

To put it bluntly, scavenging was just a temporary measure for him. Selling his time and labor to earn money was out of necessity.

His nature inclined him to be lazy and seek easy profits.

He had no intention of becoming a long-term scavenger and then advancing to an environmental tycoon.

His future direction would naturally be to earn easy money.

However, his thoughts and ideals were beyond the understanding and imagination of these vagrants.

They only knew that if Ning Weimin did not go to the store before it closed, he wouldn't be able to buy things for them.

Therefore, they were all sympathetic to Ning Weimin's situation.

They pitied him for traveling such a long distance every day, yet having so little time to make money.

When "General" led three vagrants towards Ning Weimin, each of them muttered cheap words.

"Scavenger, you're leaving already? Haven't you had your fill yet?"

"I feel sorry for you; you waste so much time on the road. The most valuable trash is often delivered in the afternoon and evening."

"Exactly, you should live with us. You can dig whenever you want, which would be more profitable."

"Hehe, but you're too skinny. You need to eat more and get stronger to make more money..."

Ning Weimin took advantage of this.

He used this opportunity to make his request.

"Yes, yes, I can't compare to you guys. Where do I have your strength? Since I provide you with the convenience of buying things, can you also think about me and make it easier for me?"

Seeing the vagrants stunned by his words, Ning Weimin further explained.

"Look, the things I collect every day are too varied. It's hard to carry them all together. I have to sell them first to buy things for you. How about this? I'll convert the things I collect into copper pieces."

At this point, the vagrants understood but still seemed hesitant.

Ning Weimin knew what they were worried about and added more explanation.

"Don't worry, I won't let you down. The price will be based on the scrap yard's price. If the weight exceeds, I'll definitely make up for it, whether you want things or money."

"How about it? I just want to travel light. Do you still not trust me?"

"I mean, we did it this way yesterday. Ask 'General' if you don't believe me..."

Hearing his name mentioned, "General" quickly took out a copper tube and placed it on the scale in his other hand.

"Right, right, I still owe you three yuan, don't I? As agreed, I'll use this copper tube to pay. See, it's one kilogram and one liang. You even get a little extra."

To be honest, Ning Weimin just wanted to curse.

Because he could see at a glance that "General" was fooling him.

That copper tube was definitely stuffed with dirt.

When placed on the scale, it would appear to weigh less by two liang.

However, even though he knew this, he couldn't say a single "no."

First, he couldn't lose face in front of "General," who was the leader of the junkyard and couldn't be offended.

Second, he still needed "General's" help with the scales and to use his authority to persuade others.

Third, the copper pieces "General" gave off a rosy glow.

This indicated that the copper tube was made of purple copper.

Each kilogram was worth one yuan more than yellow copper, so it wasn't a loss.

Perhaps it was Ning Weimin's "foolishness" that worked.

Not only did "General" become quite satisfied with him, but the other three also dispelled their doubts and agreed.

They even allowed Ning Weimin to pick the items he liked from their things and weigh them for conversion.

This truly suited Ning Weimin's wishes, and he couldn't be more pleased.

He took out the ledger from his bag and noted down what each person needed.

Then he followed the vagrants to their temporary storage area and started picking out purple copper.

Since he only cared about quality and not quantity,

Under "General's" large scale, Ning Weimin quickly completed the transaction with the vagrants.

However, one thing made him quite uncomfortable.

His harvest today was too small.

The day's labor only yielded a broken aluminum basin, seven or eight kilograms of wire, two bearings, a copper lock, a copper handle, two corrugated steel plates, less than five kilograms of waste plastic, and about thirty kilograms of scrap iron.

After keeping the copper lock, copper handle, and aluminum basin for himself and secretly removing the copper parts from the bearings,

The rest was worth at most twelve or thirteen yuan.

Even with the few yuan needed for shopping, he could only exchange for about six kilograms of copper pieces.

This was really too little, and it felt a bit unsatisfactory to go back like this.

Seeing the high-quality items still on the ground, he was eager to get more copper.

Fortunately, his mind was quick, and he came up with an idea.

Not long after, he quickly asked another question.

"By the way, do you want watches? Who wants one? If anyone does, I'll need to pick more copper as a deposit to buy the watch for you."

This suggestion was quite effective.

Before anyone else spoke, "General" was already interested.

Because in this era, a full-steel watch was a big item, one of the "three turns and one ring."

It wasn't just a watch but a high-end consumer good that displayed status.

Even domestic brands like Pearl, Shanghai, and Double Diamond were a source of pride when worn, and people would smile more at you.

As the leader of the group, "General" had long wanted to get a watch to show off.

However, this item required industrial coupons, which couldn't be bought with money alone.

In "General's" mind, he knew that fifteen industrial coupons were a necessary prerequisite.

He never expected Ning Weimin to suddenly bring it up, which made him both surprised and delighted.

"Can you really buy it? Do you have that much influence? Don't trick me!"

"How could I? I wouldn't dare to trick you. Do I still want to work?"

"You're right, but where will you get the industrial coupons?"

"That... you don't need to ask. I'm confident I can buy it at the store."

"How much copper do you need?"

"Well... the more, the better. You know the price of a watch, right? One hundred and twenty yuan. I can't carry that much money. If you want it tomorrow, I need to have enough copper today. I think I need to take about thirty to forty kilograms of copper."

Seeing the change in "General's" expression, Ning Weimin knew he was starting to be interested, but was hesitant about the risk.

So he took a step back and quickly pushed "General" further.

"But to be honest, if I take so much copper, you won't trust me. This is a problem..."

"Or, let's wait a bit. If I work for another two or three days, I can probably gather enough money to buy the watch."

"Then I'll bring the watch, and you can pay me. In the meantime, you should think about it to avoid changing your mind."

"Just to be clear, I'm not afraid of the worst-case scenario. If the store sells out in the next few days, I can't do anything and will have to wait for another opportunity..."

Hearing this, "General" became excited.

He couldn't resist the temptation of owning a watch.

He couldn't bear to miss out on what should have been his.

So he slapped his thigh and made a decisive decision.

"No, no waiting. The longer we wait, the more things can go wrong. It's just copper. What's there to not trust? Forty kilograms, then. Here you go!"

He then pointed to the other vagrants' harvests.

"My copper isn't enough, so take from theirs. If it's still not enough, just come to my shack and take what you need. I'll let them know later."

Ning Weimin blinked, deliberately showing hesitation.

"General, you... you really trust me? Aren't you afraid I might..."

This made "General" even more confident.

He laughed and said proudly,

"Of course. Not only do you lack the courage, but you're not that foolish. You just said you've earned enough for a watch in a few days. Would you throw away your golden rice bowl for one hundred and twenty yuan? No way..."

This speech immediately earned applause and admiration from the other vagrants.

Ning Weimin quickly put on a face of awe and admiration, giving a thumbs up.

"Brilliant! No wonder you're the leader of the junkyard!"

"General" was flattered.

Like being tickled, he couldn't stop smiling.

With a wave of his thick hand, he declared with a domineering air,

"Take it, take whatever you want. Until you're satisfied."