The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 422 - 411: Pricing

Chapter 422: Chapter 411: Pricing

Old Zhou, with his hands clasped behind his back, took a walk around the village, even having his midday meal outside. He finally completed his visits to all the families that had exchanged seeds with them last year and had agreed upon terms. Then, he headed home with a pair of red, swollen hands.

The redness was from helping others rub wheat; one simply couldn’t just squat there and smoke while others were hard at work, could they?

And he didn’t even have that much tobacco to indulge in constant smoking.

Old Zhou felt that he had never worked so vigorously even when rubbing his own wheat.

With his hands still clasped behind his back, he walked home where Manbao had returned from school and was squatting in the courtyard teaching her nieces and nephews to read. Seeing her father arrive, she immediately said, "You guys just memorize this part for now; I’ll explain the meaning to you in a bit."

She followed her father into the main room and poured him water with alacrity, "Dad, are they willing?"

"They’re willing to exchange, but we all feel that a one-to-one pound exchange is a bit of a loss," Old Zhou, unaware that this business arrangement involved his own daughter, shamelessly tried to swindle her, "So, we’re thinking of going to Old Master Bai to talk. We want to raise the price to one pound for one and three-tenths of a pound."

Manbao’s eyes widened, "Isn’t that too expensive? Last year when they exchanged with us, we didn’t ask for more."

"How can that be the same? Most of us share the same village and clan ties," Old Zhou claimed with unabashed confidence. "The Bai Family, they are outsiders, and Old Master Bai is not short of money."

Manbao opened her mouth, thought for a moment, and then said, "Dad, don’t go talk to Old Master Bai about this. I’ll speak for you, and don’t bring this up with Old Master Bai."

Old Zhou waved his hand dismissively, "Alright, alright, I know, it’s supposed to be a surprise, right? But can the young master of the Bai Family and Second Young Master make decisions? We don’t want to agree with the villagers and then have them renege."

Manbao affirmed, "They can make decisions!"

Old Zhou trusted his daughter and thus smiled and agreed, "Okay, then I’ll listen to you."

Feeling that one pound for one and three-tenths of a pound was a bit pricey, Manbao asked her father directly, "So, Dad, if it’s not one pound for one and three-tenths, would you still exchange? What’s your bottom line?"

Not realizing he was dealing with a little spy, Old Zhou thought they were in this together and shared, "We’ve discussed it and the very least is one pound for one and a tenth, but of course, more would be better."

"Life is tough for everyone these days; didn’t you see the long lines at the mill these past couple of days? They’re grinding wheat that’s hardly dry," Old Zhou added.

While father and daughter were talking, a servant from the Bai Family came to summon Old Zhou, saying that Old Master Bai had something to discuss with him.

Manbao looked at Old Zhou immediately and whispered, "Dad, Old Master Bai must be asking about farming. You just tell him about that, but don’t mention the wheat seed exchange..."

"I know, I know," Old Zhou sounded a bit jealous, "You’re not usually this concerned about household matters."

But this was household business indeed!

However, Manbao didn’t dare tell Old Zhou that. After sending him to the door and waving goodbye, she reminded him quietly from behind, "Dad, you must remember, okay?"

Old Zhou quickened his pace, wanting to ignore his daughter for the moment.

Manbao returned to explaining meanings to her nephews and nieces, supervised San Tou and Sanya as they practiced writing, assigned their homework, and then rushed out to find Bai Shanbao.

"One pound for one and three-tenths of a pound?"

Manbao nodded, "That’s what my dad said. But I’ve managed to glean the bottom line from him. It’s at least one pound for one and a tenth."

After thinking it over, Bai Shanbao said, "Then let’s give them one pound for one and two-tenths."

"Grandma Liu has already agreed to extend us food credit as long as we can repay the account within two months. I had her transport a lot more wheat over than we need, so there will definitely be enough to exchange," he stated.

Manbao asked, "Don’t you think one pound for one and two-tenths is a bit much? Are you really not bothered by the cost?"

Bai Shanbao laughed, "I don’t mind because this wheat is really good. I thought about it again last night and figured that if the wheat we exchange isn’t good enough to sell as seed, then we’ll keep it for our own planting. I won’t be at a loss either way."

"I discussed with Grandma Liu last night, and she said that even though business is about profit, we can’t let others suffer too much. We’re meant to study and serve society, not to become crooked merchants," he shared.

After some consideration, Manbao felt that Grandma Liu made a lot of sense, so she nodded decisively, "Okay, then let’s exchange at one pound for one and two-tenths."

Bai Shanbao then offered, "If we can’t sell them later, I’ll buy them at cost price to prevent you from losing out."

But this didn’t let her profit either. However, after thinking it over, Manbao felt somewhat reassured, having someone to protect her interests. This was equivalent to a sure-win deal for them.

At the very least, they had made a profit off this season’s wheat harvest.

Manbao became cheerful, "Have you asked your grandmother yet?"

"I haven’t," Bai Shanbao declared confidently, "I can make this decision on my own."

Bai Shanbao was quite self-assured in this aspect.

Manbao quickly realized that Bai Shanbao’s family situation was different from Bai Er’s.

If Bai Er dared to use so much money on his own or to conduct such a large business for the household, he would be beaten not just by Old Master Bai, but likely also by Mrs.Bai and Bai TaiTai, who would then dismiss all his prior decisions on the grounds of ’the child is young and doesn’t understand’.

But Bai Shanbao’s household was different. His words seemed to hold even more sway than Auntie Zheng’s, and Grandma Liu deeply respected his decisions.

Manbao had seen several times that even if his decisions were wrong, Grandma Liu would not overturn them.

Once she recognized this, Manbao perked up and shared this secret and the information with Ms.Qian that very evening.

Ms.Qian, looking at the radiant Manbao, felt joy as well and smiled, "Our Manbao has always been lucky."

So Ms.Qian paid more attention to the matter. On the following day, she sent Old Zhou out to calculate how much wheat each household had.

Old Zhou, reluctant to go, complained, "Many families haven’t even threshed their wheat yet; how can I calculate?"

"But most of it has been threshed, right? You can’t just count how many baskets or bags there are? We have to give Manbao and the rest an idea of how much to prepare, don’t we?"

Old Zhou couldn’t help but grumble, "Why can’t these kids just focus on their schooling instead of getting involved in all this commotion? Isn’t this something for the adults to deal with?"

Ms.Qian glared at him, "Hurry up and leave. What can you do at home? You wouldn’t even help if the oil bottle were to fall over. What’s wrong with Manbao doing this? Isn’t she still young?"

As she continued to rattle on, she pushed him out the door, saying, "She’s nearly eight years old now. When Daya and Erya were her age, they were already working in the fields, planting rice and harvesting wheat. But do you see your daughter being able to do such work?"

She added, "If she can’t do farm work, doesn’t she have to find some other skills to support herself? I think it’s good for her to get involved in this, so you better not hold her back. Get a clear count on how much wheat each family has. Also, tell them to dry their wheat properly before bringing it over. They better not mix in half-dry wheat to fool my daughter, or I’ll plaster their faces with it."

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