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As for the potatoes and sweet potatoes, it wasn’t the right time to harvest them yet. They were considered easy-to-store items, with almost no wastage compared to fresh vegetables.
Old Qian gritted his teeth and paid three to four times the market price.
He purchased them at three mao per half kilogram.
He bought two boxes of each: green peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, potatoes, and sweet potatoes, with each box weighing twenty-five kilograms.
In total, it was three hundred kilograms. At three mao per half kilogram, the total came to one hundred and eighty yuan.
Adding the cost of the grain, the total amount was one thousand six hundred and sixty yuan.
Su Niannian earned a huge sum just from this batch.
In addition, with the three hundred yuan from Lu Hongliang’s sale of braised pig offal, it came to nearly two thousand yuan in total.
The money Old Qian gave Su Niannian was all in ten-yuan notes, thickly stacked.
One thousand six hundred and sixty yuan, a thick wad of cash.
With the money settled, Su Niannian counted it, and it was impossible for her not to feel happy.
If it weren’t for this space, Su Niannian probably wouldn’t have been able to make this much money so easily.
She silently thanked her rebirth and the spiritual spring space.
As for the tickets, Su Niannian spent one hundred and fifty yuan to buy a bicycle ticket from Old Qian.
She also bought two watch tickets, one costing sixty yuan, for a total of one hundred and twenty yuan.
There were also some sugar tickets, cloth tickets, soap tickets, and industrial tickets. Su Niannian didn’t ask for much, but Old Qian waved his hand generously and directly gave them all to her.
Being able to take out all these items at once meant that if Old Qian’s own sales went smoothly, he would make a lot of money in the future.
It was still necessary for Old Qian to show some goodwill to his supplier. He felt it was well worth the effort.
Su Niannian accepted them without hesitation. After all, the grains and vegetables she sold to Old Qian were priced higher than the market rate, but Old Qian still stood to make a significant profit.
Su Niannian also believed that once these items circulated on the market, Old Qian would definitely come back to her for more supplies.
At this time, Old Qian had already arranged for his underlings to load the items from Su Niannian’s two rooms onto the truck.
The grains still needed to be transported for threshing before they could be sold.
Once everything was loaded, Old Qian left with his men.
Lu Hongliang divided up some of the vegetables and cheerfully took his share home.
He and Su Niannian had agreed to meet in the black market three days later.
In the blink of an eye, it was already noon. Su Niannian, carrying a large sum of money, headed straight for the supply and marketing cooperative.
She planned to buy a bicycle.
Su Niannian knew she would be coming to the county town often in the future. Although taking the ox cart was somewhat convenient, it required her to follow the ox cart in the morning when coming and leave with the cart again at two o’clock in the afternoon.
The timing was not very flexible.
But with a bicycle, it would be completely different. She could come and go whenever she wanted, without having to worry about adhering to a fixed schedule.
Kaoshan Village was part of the Hongqi Commune, which was actually considered a relatively large collective—big enough to be above average, but still lacking compared to the best.
It was considered an average level. Compared to more remote areas, at least the villagers here could get enough to eat.
In fact, Kaoshan Village had only four bicycles in total. Of those, two belonged to the village head’s family.
This showed how much the village head had made from various sources.
After Su Niannian bought the bicycle, she expected that many people would likely feel envious and jealous.
On the way, feeling hungry, Su Niannian took out two meat buns from her basket and ate while walking.
At that moment, the meat buns were still warm when she took them out, as they had been retrieved from the space.
Su Niannian finished eating and had just arrived at the supply and marketing cooperative.
Once inside, she headed straight to the counter where watches were sold.
In this era, the styles of watches were few and far between, all quite basic and popular models.
If she waited a couple more years, when the policies weren’t as strict, many people would take the risk of smuggling some gray-market goods from Hong Kong.
By then, there would be more styles of watches available. Of course, the prices would fluctuate significantly as well.
Su Niannian stood at the watch counter and picked out two couple’s watches.
Though called couple’s watches, they were actually the same model, just with different face sizes.
They could barely be considered a couple’s set.
“The watches require watch tickets. One watch needs one watch ticket!”
The salesperson sized up Su Niannian from head to toe. Seeing her dressed in ordinary clothes and only looking at two watches, the salesperson immediately assumed she couldn’t afford them and didn’t bother to engage.
After all, the watches here could sit unsold for days or even weeks.
If it weren’t for the leader being nearby, the salesperson would have already shooed Su Niannian away.
“These are two watch tickets. I’ll take these two,” Su Niannian said as she selected the watches and placed the tickets on the counter.
She then began reaching into her basket to get the money.
The salesperson was first in disbelief, then picked up the two watch tickets, inspecting them carefully. After confirming they were genuine, they spoke again.
“Each watch still requires an additional 120 yuan. The two models you’re looking at are Shanghai brand.”
The watch tickets were real, and there were no issues with them, but each watch costing 120 yuan was nearly the same as a worker’s half-year salary.
The salesperson couldn’t understand how this young girl could suddenly pull out 240 yuan to buy two watches.
Su Niannian didn’t mind the salesperson’s reaction at all. It was normal for someone with a fixed wage to lack passion for their work.
She counted out the 240 yuan and placed it on the counter.
At that moment, not only did the salesperson look surprised, but even the other shoppers and the leader nearby couldn’t help but take a second look at her.
Su Niannian was beautiful, with flawless skin, which naturally drew attention.
“Are you looking to buy a bicycle, young lady?” the salesperson at the bicycle counter asked, noticing Su Niannian’s purposeful stride toward their section.
Her calm and confident demeanor, combined with the recent display of wealth, made her even more striking in the eyes of those around her.
“These bicycles require tickets as well,” the salesperson continued, gesturing toward the two remaining bicycles. “The cheaper ones are all sold out. The only ones left are the Yongji brand, and they cost 220 yuan each.”
The salesperson’s tone was matter-of-fact, as if it were perfectly normal for a bicycle to come with such a price tag. The remaining bikes were certainly not affordable for everyone, but Su Niannian seemed unbothered by the price.
“Cheaper ones will be restocked in a few days,” the salesperson added casually, eyeing Su Niannian’s plain clothes and young age. They clearly assumed that she wouldn’t be interested in the Yongji brand bike.
“Really?” Su Niannian asked, her tone neutral. She wasn’t fazed by the salesperson’s assumption and, without hesitation, placed the necessary tickets on the counter. “I’ll take the Yongji one. Two hundred and twenty, right?”
The salesperson blinked in surprise, clearly taken aback by her decision.
The salesperson thought for a moment and then added, “The Yongji bike is a bit more expensive, and most people who buy bikes here tend to go for the cheaper ones. After all, two hundred and twenty is the cost of two months’ wages for a worker.”
He was right. The Yongji bike was indeed considered the most expensive item in a wedding set, and many people could barely afford the lower-priced ones. With a Yongji bike priced at two hundred and twenty, who would go for that when there was a cheaper option for just one seventy?
The saleswoman was somewhat puzzled but nodded in agreement and quickly processed the transaction.
Su Niannian took the ticket and the key, feeling a sense of satisfaction. This bicycle was not only her means of transportation but also a symbol of her stepping into a new phase of life. Though such an expense might seem extravagant to others, for her, it was a worthwhile investment.
She took the bicycle ticket and key and turned to head toward the area where the bicycles were parked, preparing to collect her bike.
The saleswoman then helped her push the bicycle out from behind the counter.
Su Niannian did a quick check to ensure everything was in order, and after confirming there were no issues, she pushed the bike out of the supply and sales office.
The two watches and one bicycle together had cost Su Niannian a total of 460 yuan.
After this trip, she still had over 1,200 yuan left from the nearly 2,000 yuan she had brought.
“Money comes quickly, but it also goes quickly!” Su Niannian thought to herself. However, this was just the beginning. Making money was so easy for her.
Therefore, she didn’t feel upset about spending the money at all.
Su Niannian rode her newly bought bicycle to the gathering point for the ox cart.
She had taken the ox cart to the county earlier, and if she didn’t show up, she feared that Uncle Jiang, who was in charge of driving the ox cart, might deliberately wait for her.