ryethenovel Chapter 34 They Came to the Door
Chapter 34 They Came to the Door
Back in 1986, Zhang Beichuan, emerging from the backyard, watched as Zhang Dequan and Lan Baojun busied themselves tidying up the counter after seeing off a group of customers.
"Third Brother, Baojun, I'm going out for a stroll to see if I can consider getting some new products."
"No problem, go ahead," Zhang Dequan said with a smile.
After leaving the shop, Zhang Beichuan walked and pondered.
Industrial products from 1986 were expensive and technologically outdated; bringing them back to 2026 would certainly not have a market.
The only option we can consider is to get some food supplies from 1986 and sell them in 2026.
On the one hand, food supplies were cheap in 1986, but relatively expensive in 2026; on the other hand, food is essential for people's livelihood, so bringing it back would be relatively easy to sell, and there would be no worry about a market.
After figuring everything out, Zhang Beichuan went straight to the vegetable market.
The morning market was bustling with activity, filled with the shouts of vendors and the sounds of shoppers haggling over prices.
"Fresh eggs! Only six cents each!"
"Buying fish, 80 cents a pound... Yes, yes, they were just caught from the reservoir last night, they're so fresh!"
"Chickens for sale! Chickens for sale! Two yuan and thirty cents a pound!"
Hearing these prices, Zhang Beichuan stopped in front of a stall selling free-range chickens, looking at the chickens with red feathers all over their bodies but white legs, and asked curiously.
"Comrade, why does this free-range chicken look a little different from the ones I usually see? What breed is it?"
The chicken vendor glanced at Zhang Beichuan's clothes and realized he was obviously a rich young master from the city. It was normal that the vendor hadn't seen him before. He smiled.
"Comrade, this is a genuine yellow-feathered white-legged chicken, one of the native chicken breeds of Jianmenguan."
"Jianmenguan free-range chicken?" Zhang Beichuan muttered to himself, then thought about it carefully.
There is indeed such a variety in the province. I saw it in supermarkets in 2026, and it cost about 50-60 yuan per kilogram.
"Is this chicken delicious?"
"Delicious! It has to be delicious! If you don't like it, come find me!" Seeing his interest, the stall owner tentatively asked, "Young man, how about buying one to try?"
Looking at his confident expression, Zhang Beichuan thought for a moment.
These days, apart from chickens raised in state-owned farms that might be fed with feed, free-range chickens are 95% likely to be raised on grains, grass, or wild vegetables.
This thing is very difficult to fake.
"Can the price be lowered?"
Upon hearing that Zhang Beichuan was interested in buying, the stall owner quickly explained.
"Young man, just ask around about the price. Two yuan and thirty cents isn't a high price for you. If it weren't for needing some money at home, I wouldn't be willing to sell the chickens I've raised for two years."
That makes sense.
In rural areas, chickens are typically raised from hens to lay eggs. Eggs are an important source of nutrition for the whole family and also a source of daily necessities.
That's how the term "chicken butt bank" came about.
If a family isn't in a hurry to spend money, no one would be willing to sell a laying hen.
"Alright, I'll take both of your chickens."
"Alright." The stall owner quickly put straw on the chickens, hung them on the scale, and weighed them. "Two chickens, eleven pounds and two ounces."
Zhang Beichuan did the math: "Twenty-five yuan and seventy-six cents."
The stall owner was slightly taken aback, a little worried that he had been cheated, and picked up a pebble from the ground to start calculating.
"Hey, young man, you're absolutely right."
Zhang Beichuan smiled, offered no further explanation, gave him the money, and continued walking into the market with the chicken.
This trip did indeed lead him to discover many business opportunities.
For example, in 1986, wild grass carp and crucian carp here could only sell for 80 cents a pound, while native eels were even cheaper at 30 cents, and free-range chickens were a little over two dollars.
If we collect all these items and bring them to 2026, they should be easy to sell thanks to their unique local quality and reasonable prices.
This not only explains the increasing cash flow but also adds another avenue for wealth creation.
With a plan in mind, Zhang Beichuan's steps back became much lighter.
Just as he was walking back, Zhao Xueming, who had received the news, was leading a group of young people and blocking the entrance of Beichuan Department Store.
Zhao Xueming, who just finished collecting the September "management fee," will probably come to Jiefang Road again next month.
But in the past few days, news has suddenly spread in the county that a new Beichuan Department Store has opened at No. 26 Jiefang Road. Not only is business good, but it also sells all high-end goods from the coast.
When this reached Zhao Xueming's ears, he naturally wanted to see for himself when an outsider had suddenly appeared on his turf.
This unexpected encounter with Lan Baojun came as a great surprise to him.
But after all, this street is his territory. If everyone else pays but Lan Baojun doesn't, wouldn't that break the rules?
"Brother Baojun, it's not that I'm disrespecting you. It's just that all my brothers need to eat too. Besides, everyone else is paying, so what's the point if you don't?"
Zhao Xueming stood blocking the doorway and said casually.
"Get out of here! If you want money, you've come to the wrong place!" Lan Baojun glanced at him and said coldly.
Zhang Dequan stood nervously beside him, his hand unconsciously clenching the rag. He looked at the guests who dared not come in at the door and was secretly anxious.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xueming's face darkened.
The underlings beside him didn't know much about Lan Baojun, but as soon as they saw their boss getting the short end of the stick, one of them immediately stepped forward.
"What the hell are you talking about! Believe me or not, I'll make sure you can't survive on this street!"
"If you want to do business, don't you even bother to find out who's in charge on this street? If you don't listen to us, we'll shut you down in three days!"
Others might not know Lan Baojun, but Zhao Xueming did, and he immediately pulled his underling back.
"How dare you speak to Brother Baojun like that?" he scolded his underling, then turned to Lan Baojun. "Out of respect for our past relationship, I'll call you Brother Baojun. But shouldn't you at least give me some face too?"
Lan Baojun raised an eyebrow at him, wanting to know what he was up to.
"Oh? I'll give you face? How?"
Zhao Xueming didn't want to push Lan Baojun too far, after all, Lan Baojun's notorious reputation from back then was still fresh in his mind.
"Here's what we'll do: considering our long-standing friendship, Beichuan Department Store will only give you half of that each month, 20 yuan will do. As long as you pay it in full each month, I guarantee no one will dare to cause trouble at your store."
"20 yuan?" Lan Baojun smiled and glanced at him.
"How about that? Pretty loyal, huh?"
Zhao Xueming glanced at him smugly. Anyway, if Lan Baojun didn't pay, he could make sure the department store went out of business starting tomorrow.
He believed that Lan Baojun could clearly see which was more important.
Lan Baojun thought about it. 20 yuan wasn't much, but if this set a precedent, then any kind of monster or demon would dare to come and cause trouble.
Besides, does Zhao Xueming really have the final say in this area of Jiefang Road?
Anyway, he doesn't believe it.
"Zhao Xueming, I'll say it again. No money. Get lost, or I'll slap you!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xueming's face suddenly darkened.
"Fine, fine, you just wait! If anyone comes to your store to buy anything tomorrow, I'll believe you!"
Today he gave Lan Baojun a lot of face, but Lan Baojun didn't give him any face at all!
This made Zhao Xueming tremble with anger. He turned around and walked out with a few shady-looking young men, determined to shut down Beichuan Department Store!