Making a fortune

"Old Liu, this time when we go to Xinfeng, where are you planning to buy navel oranges?"

"Where else? We'll buy them from the local farmers' houses."

"From the farmers' houses? Have you signed pre-purchase contracts with them?"

"No, not really. Last year, navel oranges didn't sell well, so I didn't think of pre-ordering any. I didn't keep in touch with those farmers. They even called me recently, and I told them I'd see how the market develops. It's okay; Xinfeng has plenty of navel oranges, and we won't have trouble getting them."

"While it's true that we can get them, when you go to the farmers' houses now, you'll need to check the quality of the oranges, sign contracts with them, and then coordinate with the procurement team and the transportation team. To deliver these oranges to Jiangxi and Zhejiang, I've done the calculations, and it would take over a week."

"Then, what else can we do?"

"I heard that the Xinfeng Agricultural Bureau has a substantial supply of navel oranges. We could approach them."

"I know about that too. I've heard that someone has stockpiled a lot of navel oranges and couldn't find a buyer, and they've called me as well. Well, it looks like we can get in touch with them."

"Yes, they've already gathered the fruit in their warehouse. We just need to send a truck to pick them up. It would be more convenient for us this way."

"Convenient it may be, but the prices might be a bit higher."

"If it's slightly higher, that's fine. Time is money, and with navel oranges being this popular now, if we're too late, the market won't wait for us."

"That makes sense."

The wholesalers from Ganzhou firmly decided to head to the Xinfeng Agricultural Bureau.

Meanwhile, Shi Lanfang was feeling helpless. She had contacted some of their previous partners, but these wholesalers didn't seem interested in making any significant purchases. With several thousand tons of navel oranges sitting there, she was uncertain of what to do. To add to her embarrassment, Chen Yu on the other end had suggested continuing to pick the oranges.

"Director Shi, what do we do now?"

"What can we do? We need to contact the wholesalers from various regions again."

"We've already contacted the ones we should, but they said navel oranges are too niche, and they don't plan to buy this year."

"Then contact them again."

"Alright... But Director Shi, should we continue picking navel oranges?"

"Why pick more? Stop."

Even though Chen Yu had said to continue, Shi Lanfang wasn't entirely on the same page as him. While he didn't mind the expenditure, Shi Lanfang was concerned about it.

She was in the midst of debating whether to call some familiar wholesalers when Mr. Liu from Ganzhou made a phone call.

"Hello, Mr. Liu."

"Director Shi, you mentioned a few days ago that you had picked a lot of navel oranges. Do you still have any?"

"Yes, we do. Mr. Liu, are you planning to buy navel oranges?"

"Yes, I'm thinking of buying some. I'm on my way to Xinfeng and will arrive in half an hour."

"Alright, how many tons do you need? I'll prepare them for you."

"How many tons do you have?"

"We have 3,000 tons right now."

"I..."

Mr. Liu's phone nearly slipped from his hand.

"Oh my, Director Shi, you're being too harsh! 3,000 tons? How can I possibly take all that?"

"No worries, no worries. How many tons do you need?"

"Please reserve 500 tons for me."

"Alright, no problem."

After hanging up the phone, Shi Lanfang finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although the buyer only wanted 500 tons, it was still a substantial amount. If a few more wholesalers like this came forward, there would be no worries about selling the navel oranges.

As she was contemplating making a few more phone calls, unexpectedly, another call came in from another fruit wholesaler. Just like Mr. Liu from Ganzhou, this fruit wholesaler was also interested in buying navel oranges. What's more, he wanted 1,000 tons, and they had even brought ten trucks with them, ready to transport the oranges to Jiangxi and Zhejiang that very day.

But that was not all. After this call, Shi Lanfang's phone didn't stop ringing, and it was a succession of calls from wholesalers across various regions. Some wanted a hundred tons, while others sought seven to eight hundred tons or even a thousand tons. In the blink of an eye, the entire 3,000 tons of navel oranges had been pre-ordered.

"This can't be, can it?"

"Since when did our Xinfeng navel oranges become this popular?"

"Xiao Chen, Xiao Chen, hurry, hurry and pick the navel oranges."

Shi Lanfang quickly gave orders, and half an hour later, the first batch of wholesalers from Ganzhou arrived.

"Mr. Liu, I thought you were fooling me."

"Hahaha, Director Shi, how could we? We're here, right? By the way, did you reserve our 500 tons?"

"I did, I did."

"That's great."

"Can we check the goods?"

"The goods are fine, but let's talk about the price."

"Director Shi, I haven't even tasted these navel oranges yet, and you look like you want to fleece us."

"Don't say that, Mr. Liu. You're well aware of the market conditions this year. Our Xinfeng navel oranges are highly sought after."

Although she wasn't sure what had happened, with so many people calling, Shi Lanfang wasn't naive and had a hunch about what was going on.

"Tsk tsk, Director Shi, you're really sharp. How about joining my company? I can offer you this amount."

Mr. Liu extended five fingers, representing a monthly salary of 5,000.

However, Shi Lanfang remained unswayed and said with a smile, "Mr. Liu, let's enjoy some navel oranges first."

"Sure, sure, we can talk about this another time."

Mr. Liu understood that now wasn't the time to poach people. He chose a navel orange and began eating.

"Sweet."

"Not bad at all. This year's navel oranges are even better in quality than last year's."

"If only I had come earlier to buy them."

Mr. Liu felt a bit of regret. Navel oranges, although niche, had a great taste. Even if they couldn't be sold in large quantities, they could still fetch a good price in other provinces if transported there. Unfortunately, he had considered it too much of a hassle and hadn't come earlier.

Now, looking at Shi Lanfang's expression, it was clear that this year's wholesale price would not be low.

"Mr. Liu, our Xinfeng navel oranges are sweet, right?"

"Sweet."

"Better than those from other places, right?"

"Better."

"Then you're satisfied, aren't you?"

"Satisfied."

Mr. Liu nodded in agreement. But he suddenly realized and quickly said, "Director Shi, forget about all this chit-chat. Just tell me the wholesale price."

"20 cents."

"What..."

Mr. Liu shook his head directly. "Director Shi, you're asking for too much. I'm not an outsider. When has the wholesale price of Xinfeng navel oranges ever been 20 cents? Just a moment ago, I called some local fruit farmers in Town of Anxi, and they said they'd sell for just 10 cents, with a 10% discount if I buy in bulk."

"Mr. Liu, you see... the wholesale price quoted by the fruit farmers only includes the cost of keeping the oranges in the orchard. You'll have to pick them, transport them back, and more. Not to mention the effort, the cost of picking and transportation alone is quite high. Now, here you can just load them up. Would you really want to buy them for 10 cents?"

"But even so, 20 cents is too expensive. I can give you 15 cents at most."

"15 cents doesn't leave any profit. 20 cents."

"Director Shi, these oranges aren't yours, why are you selling them at such a high price?"

"Exactly because they're not mine, I need to be more responsible."

"Cut it down."

"No, we can't lower it... Mr. Liu, you may not know, but just now, over a dozen wholesalers called me."

"Oh..."

Mr. Liu wanted to say more, but a few friends on the side gave him a sign to agree. So he nodded and said, "Alright, 20 cents it is. Let's load them up."

"Wait... I'll have to check with our boss first."

Seeing Mr. Liu agree, Shi Lanfang was overjoyed and called Chen Yu.

"Mr. Chen, Mr. Chen, good news, good news."

"What good news?"

"Ganzhou wholesalers have come to buy our navel oranges."

"Is that supposed to be good news? Didn't I tell you they'd come?"

"Oh..."

Shi Lanfang felt a bit awkward.

Oh, right.

The little genius had indeed mentioned this.

"Yes, yes, Mr. Chen, you truly are a genius. I've negotiated with Mr. Liu, and it's 20 cents."

"What, 20 cents?"

"The wholesale price, Mr. Chen. This time, we're going to make a fortune."

"Goodness..."

"Mr. Chen, do you feel like I'm a negotiation master? Don't thank me, just treat me to dinner later."

"I'll treat you to dinner..."

In a moment of cleverness, Chen Yu wanted to strangle Shi Lanfang. "Stop, stop, stop... who told you that our navel oranges are only sold for 20 cents?"

"Oh, Mr. Chen, should it be cheaper?"

"Cheaper? What are you thinking?"

Wasn't Shi Lanfang a graduate of the China Agricultural University? How did her brain short-circuit when it came to doing business?

However, now was not the time to consider this. Chen Yu said, "50 cents, tell them 50 cents. We won't sell for a cent less."

"What?"

"What do you mean 'what'? I'll be there soon."

"Well, okay, okay."