CTF 0039

Xu Yin’s sister-in-law herself was very surprised when she saw Xu Yin bringing back five huge rolls of fabric.

“Yinyin, did you find the wholesale market?”

“Yes, it’s in the north of the city. It was a bit far, and I had to take two buses.” Xu Yin explained the route she took to her sister-in-law.

She then took out all the day’s spoils and showed them to her sister-in-law.

Her sister-in-law was surprised. “You bought so many! How much did this cost?”

When Xu Yin mentioned the price, she was shocked to the point where her jaw almost dropped to the ground. “It’s so cheap… How could it be so cheap?”

Xu Yin smiled. “I had the same reaction as you at first! I felt like I’d just picked up some money from the side of the street. However, it made sense after I thought about it. Department stores sell at a more expensive price because they have to pay rent for their space and wages for their employees. How could they make a profit without charging higher prices? Also, we’re opening a store, so it makes sense for us to buy in bulk. However, most people go to fabric stores to buy fabric just for one clothing piece. Why would they need so much fabric? 

“Besides, I noticed that there weren’t many colours of soft chiffon at the wholesale market. There were blue and red, but the rest were either black or grey. I guess the department stores get prioritised when they buy from the fabric factory, and they can pick the best colours, although in smaller quantities. The pretty ones probably got picked, while what’s left gets sent to the wholesale market.”

As Xu Yin explained this, Xu Dasao also calmed down.

Just a moment ago, she was about to gather all the money in the house and rush to the wholesale market to buy soft chiffon.

There was also a special offer on foreign fabric for thirty metres per roll. Each roll was sold for only twenty yuan.

Because of the outrageous price difference for soft chiffon, Xu Yin’s sister-in-law’s hands were still trembling from excitement, even though she was considerably calmer compared to before. She had never bought fabric in a fabric wholesale market before and had no idea that wholesale prices could be this cheap.

The military wives from the military residential compound formed a line to see the five rolls of fabric Xu Yin had brought back. When they learned that it was a special deal for slightly flawed fabric, some hesitated, but others inquired about the price.

“Sister, my eldest child starts school in September and I was thinking of making him a new outfit. If you’re selling this fabric, I won’t have to go to the city,” one of the neighbours said.

Xu Yin’s sister-in-law had already discussed it with her and immediately quoted a price.

When everyone heard it was only 1.3 yuan, those who had hesitated came back. After all, they’d all fought in the department stores for flawed fabric before, and those flawed fabrics had been sold at 1.5 yuan at the cheapest. There was also a much more limited selection of colours in the department stores compared to the few rolls that Xu Yin’s sister-in-law had.

As a result, they started grabbing the fabric. Some took three metres, while some took five. Even those who hadn’t planned to buy couldn’t resist the cheap price and ended up taking a few metres.

In the end, the five rolls of flawed fabric were completely sold out within the military residential compound’s circle before the tailor shop even opened.

They made a net profit of 95 yuan from the five rolls. Xu Yin’s sister-in-law couldn’t believe it.

Xu Yin generously gave her 50 yuan of the profit.

Her sister-in-law waved it away. Besides quoting a price for her neighbours, she hadn’t done much.

“Sister, you keep it! If you hadn’t given me the 50 yuan, I might not have gone to the fabric wholesale market in the north at all.”

Xu Yin insisted and placed the money in her hand.

“This is too much! We’ve already made more than our initial investment.”

“It will only get better in the future.”

In just half a day, they could make dozens, even hundreds of yuan. It was a pity that this special deal on fabric wasn’t available every day; otherwise, Xu Yin’s sister-in-law would have seriously considered starting a fabric business.

But thinking about the few rolls of regular-priced fabric still in their possession, especially the soft chiffon that Xu Yin had bought at such a low cost, made Xu Yin’s sister-in-law initiate a discussion with her younger sister. 

They decided to make another trip to the north of the city before the tailor shop opened to buy more fabric in different colours to sell. She believed that with soft chiffon in stock, the tailor shop would thrive.

In the next few days, the two sisters-in-law got both very busy. 

Xu Yin’s sister-in-law was busy preparing for the grand opening of the tailor shop, and Xu Yin took the early morning bus to the city to set up her street stall.

Xu Yin chose a square with high foot traffic, and there were many other vendors around her. She spread out a blue floral-patterned coarse fabric on the ground, placing dried mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, dried bamboo shoots, and other mountain products on the left side, and seaweed, dried shrimp, and seaweed on the right side. In the middle, she displayed several jars of canned fruits and traditional red sugar.

Canned fruits and red sugar were the largest items in her system inventory apart from rice and cooking oil. She didn’t need much for personal consumption, so she decided to sell some to generate cash.

On the first day, there were more onlookers than buyers. Initially, the items that sold the most were neither seafood nor mountain products but red sugar and canned fruits.

Tongcheng was located in a plain. The people in the countryside not only grew their food, but also raised chickens, ducks, and vegetables, and caught fresh fish from the river to sell in the city. Mountain and seafood products were uncommon to them.

It was rare for them to see someone setting up a stall to sell this. Regardless of whether they are sincerely buying it, they would curiously ask for the price.

“What is this? Kelp? It’s cheap, but how am I supposed to eat this?”

Many people didn’t know about how to process kelp. Xu Yin taught them how to eat it, so they weighed and bought some and went back to stew them with the pork ribs.

The mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and dried bamboo shoots, among other mountain products, were selling well, and by 9 o’clock, they had all been sold.

Bamboo fungus and red mushrooms were priced higher, and there were no takers for the time being. Xu Yin wasn’t in a hurry; if they didn’t sell, she could take them back for her sister-in-law to use in cooking.

After closing her stall on her first day, Xu Yin made a net profit of just over fifty yuan. 

When she returned home, she brought back a crispy-skinned roast duck, which she had her sister-in-law steam, cut thin sheets of noodles, shredded cucumber, and scallions, and prepared a secret sauce to teach everyone how to eat Peking duck.

Little Doudou’s mouth was smeared with oil, and he couldn’t wait to share the delicious Peking duck with his friends after dinner. Soon, there were sounds of the boys getting into scuffles in the hallway.

Xu Yin: …I didn’t mean to cause trouble.

On the second day, even before she had set out her coarse hemp cloth with the dried mountain products and seafood, she was surrounded by nearby residents.

“Little Boss, do you still have seaweed from yesterday? I want two pounds, and a little dried shrimp, dried bamboo shoots, and mushrooms. Can I get a discount for buying this much?”

“Little Boss, I want two pounds of seaweed too, and half a pound of tipsy crabs.”

“Little Boss, do you still have mud snails from yesterday? Do you have any bigger ones? I’m giving them as a gift. Also, how do you cook these dried razor clams? Can you use them for soup or stir-fry? Great, give me two pounds.”

“Little Boss, how much for these red mushrooms?”

“Little Boss…”

Xu Yin, a bit confused: “…”

What was happening?

It turned out that the people who had bought mountain products and dried seafood from her stall the day before had cooked them for dinner and found them exceptionally delicious. Since such items were hard to come by, they decided to stock up on more. After all, they were either dried goods or pickled, and they had a long shelf life. So, they woke up early and came specifically to wait for her.

These returning customers were like walking advertisements, sparking a buying frenzy among other passersby.

Other vendors looked on with envy. 

She had only been here for a day, and her stall had become the most popular in the market square. 

Who wouldn’t be envious of her?

But what could they do? She had a unique product that nobody else in the whole square was selling, and trying to compete by lowering prices wouldn’t work.

Luckily, this girl’s supply of mountain products and dried seafood was limited. She announced that she had sold out on the fourth day. If her business had continued, it would have undoubtedly affected their businesses.