Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 202 Master Chen's Brand
He ran off in a flash, pulling the cart to where the livestock were kept and found Master Liu.

The old man was smoking and chatting with several other elderly men whose ages were hard to guess. When he saw Chen Fan and his group approaching, he went to greet them. Looking at the empty cart, he couldn't help but ask in surprise, "You've sold everything?"

Chen Fan grinned and nodded, then pulled a pack of Peony cigarettes from his pocket and handed it to him. "They're all sold out. Didn't you go out for a stroll?"

Master Liu quickly grabbed his hand and pushed it back, saying, "What are you doing? You gave me a few bowls and plates before I left, how can I take your cigarettes back?"

Those bowls and plates were worth at least a dollar, much more expensive than cigarettes, so he felt embarrassed to accept any more gifts.

With a flick of his wrist, Chen Fan easily shook off the old man's iron grip, stuffed the cigarette into his pocket, and chuckled, "This isn't a service fee, it's a red envelope for you, old man, because the goods sold well today."

If Xiao Liewen knew how much effort he put in, I don't know whether he would cry or laugh.

Hearing him say that, Master Liu stopped refusing and grinned so wide he could barely open his eyes, "You're a man of principle."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I just walked around, and apart from a few more food stalls, everything else is pretty much the same as last time. I won't go anymore. You guys go and look around, buy whatever you want first, and then come back here. I'll wait for you."

Chen Fan cupped his hands in thanks, "Thank you, Master Liu. Let's go for a walk first."

He then smiled and nodded at the elderly men beside him before walking out.

Chen Fan slung the cloth bag around his neck and swaggered ahead, while the four girls nervously looked around, afraid that someone would jump out and rob them.

Looking back at them, Chen Fan said with a smile, "Relax, all of you. You're all acting like spies on a rendezvous. Are you afraid people won't notice you or what?"

Huang Ying stepped forward and cautiously said, "Teacher Chen, this is several hundred yuan! What if bad people target it?!"

Thirty charcoal stoves cost 360 yuan, 30 sets of tableware cost another 300 yuan, and over a hundred other miscellaneous bowls and plates sold for over 70 yuan each, totaling over 730 yuan. This is equivalent to two mud-brick houses, a senior craftsman's annual salary, or the dividends of a strong laborer in the village for over ten years...

It's no wonder they were nervous.

Chen Fan said helplessly, "Just be natural, don't act like you're hiding a treasure, then bad guys won't target us."

Huang Ying and the others laughed awkwardly, trying to adjust their expressions and postures. Although they were still a little unnatural, it was much better than before.

Chen Fan nodded in satisfaction, then coughed lightly, took a few steps to a secluded spot, and whispered to them, "Huang Ying, Yang Ju, Liu Dan, do you want to keep some money for yourselves?"

The three girls stared at him with shining eyes, not blinking.

Keep some money on the side? Great!
But how do we keep it?
If this money were given to them, the consequences would be obvious: they would have to hand it over; there would be no other outcome.

What was the girl planning to do with those few dozen yuan in her hand? You have to understand that many families in the village don't even have that much savings.

But they were already sixteen or seventeen years old, and their pockets were usually emptier than their faces. It was impossible for them to buy anything, so how could they not yearn for a little money?

Seeing their bright eyes, Chen Fan chuckled softly, "Well, this suggestion is for your own good. My money is mine, and Xiao Jiang's money is also her own business. Only you have to hand it over, so whether you listen or not is up to you."

But don't worry, Xiao Jiang and I are both good at keeping secrets. As long as you don't tell anyone, no one will know. Besides, even if you don't plan to use it, you can't tell anyone I said that, otherwise I'd be like a meddlesome busybody.

Huang Ying glanced at Yang Ju and Liu Dan, exchanged a look, and the three of them nodded in unison. Then they looked at Chen Fan and said, "We definitely won't tell!"

Then Huang Ying asked in a low voice, "What method?"

Chen Fan chuckled, "It's simple. If someone asks you how much you sold today, just say you only sold a little over 500."

Those two truckloads of goods were sold in front of the villagers, and the prices were all made public; it was impossible to hide too much.

However, with two large truckloads of goods and the goods selling so quickly, and with so many people looking around, people have no idea how much there is. Even if you offer a 7% discount, what you say won't be too different from what people are actually estimating.

As for why Chen Fan made this suggestion, it wasn't to help the three girls hide their secret stash of money, but rather to minimize the presence of "envious patients."

In just a few days, you can earn several hundred yuan. Even if you share some with the four girls, you'll still have over 400 yuan left out of the 700 yuan. That's comparable to a family with many able-bodied men receiving a year's dividend. No wonder people are envious.

If there's a discount, although the difference between 300 yuan and 400 yuan isn't much, the psychological impact is different, and the number of envious people will decrease significantly. As for the rest, Chen Fan can't do anything about it. Only mediocre people aren't envied; he's just that outstanding, what can he do?

After hearing Chen Fan's suggestion, Huang Ying and the other two thought about it for a moment and then readily agreed.

If you ask them to hide half of it, they might be hesitant, but if you only ask them to hide 30%, they immediately feel much better.

Having set the tone and agreed on a common message, the five continued browsing the market.

There were quite a few people here today, but just like what Mr. Liu said earlier, the things they sell are pretty much the same. The only difference is that there are many more vendors selling cooked food.

The wisdom of the common people is boundless. Some people saw that Chen Fan made money selling turtle meat last time, so they followed suit and started selling turtle meat as well. Therefore, there are at least fifty or sixty stalls in the market today that are steaming turtles in large iron pots. Even the rice bowls are imitations of Chen Fan's, all of them are bamboo tube bowls.

However, some smarter people, after hearing that many people were going to sell turtles, switched to selling other things.

So along the way, there were roasted sweet potatoes, steamed sweet potatoes, roasted potatoes, roasted fish, roasted flatbread, and some people even set up tables and chairs to sell noodles.

However, some of these stalls were doing well, while others were not. Many vendors selling turtle meat still had more than half a pot of meat left, and only a few people were buying. Compared to Chen Fan's unique business last time, it was nothing.

Chen Fan didn't care about these things. The market in Nanhu Commune was only so big, and the main force willing to spend money to buy meat was still the town's residents. There were only so many buyers, but dozens of times more sellers, so naturally business was bad.

But even though it's not very good, people still buy it, which is better than those stalls selling pickles.

The stalls that did the best business in cooked food were actually those selling sweet potatoes, potatoes, grilled fish, and baked flatbread. The prices were affordable, ranging from a few cents to a dime or two. Even rural villagers would be willing to buy one or two for their children to eat. As a result, when Chen Fan arrived, some stalls had already sold out and were preparing to pack up and go home.

Some stalls have closed down, while others remain. Every time Chen Fan sees something new, he can't help but buy a little bit.

Anyway, I have plenty of money in my pocket and a lot of people behind me, so I'm not afraid of not being able to afford it or not being able to finish it.

As he walked along, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he waved to the person in front of him, calling out, "Brother Sanhu, Brother Sanhu."

It turned out that the people walking towards them were from Team 5 of Lujiawan, one of whom was Zhang Wenliang.

Upon seeing Chen Fan, Zhang Wenliang immediately strode over. "You're here! How's business?"

Chen Fan walked to an open space by the lake and laughed, "I've sold out, so I came out for a stroll."

He then asked, "And you? How are the turtle meat sales?"

Zhang Wenliang grinned from ear to ear, "They're all sold out. I made a lot of money. Here's the money for you."

He reached into his pocket as he spoke.

Chen Fan quickly stopped him, "Let's talk about it when we get back, there's no rush now."

He looked at Zhang Wenliang curiously, "There are so many people selling turtle meat today, and I see some who have only sold less than 20% of their stock. How come you're selling so fast?"

Zhang Wenliang chuckled and said, "When I first arrived, it was indeed difficult to sell. Some of them came earlier, and when I arrived there were already more than 20 stalls selling turtles. As someone who arrived later, it was really difficult for me to sell."

As he spoke, he pulled over Zhang Cuie, who was standing next to him, and pointed at her, saying, "It was Xiao'e who came up with a solution. She found a wooden board, wrote a few words on it, and put it up next to the stall. It sold out in no time."

Chen Fan looked at Zhang Cuie in surprise, then at him, "What word?"

Zhang Wenliang stood with his hands on his hips, looking rather arrogant. "It says 'Turtle meat made by Master Chen himself.' The whole commune knows that your turtle meat is the most authentic and the best. Even if others sell it for 8 cents a bowl, I sell it for one dollar. More than 100 bowls were sold out in no time, not a single bowl was left!"

Chen Fan's mouth was agape, he forgot to close it. What, have I become a brand?

When Zhang Wenliang saw Chen Fan's expression, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Just then, Zhang Cuie suddenly said, "Teacher Chen, there's someone selling a mare over there. It looks like Gan Laibao, the one who sold the foal last time. Do you want to go take a look?"

(End of this chapter)