章 9: Chapter 9 Planning to Open a Store
"What? Forty-eight kilograms, all sold out?"
Back at home, Luo Xiaofen almost rolled off her chair upon hearing that Liang Jingxian's crayfish had all been sold.
"Yes, all sold out. Made a total of one thousand and six hundred." Liang Jingxian, carrying a few kilograms of pork, handed it to Luo Xiaofen and also took out one thousand yuan to give to her. "Mom, take this money to help with the household expenses."
"Help with household expenses? Save the money," Luo Xiaofen said without any courtesies, taking the money and starting to nag. "You're not getting any younger. Save up to get a wife. Son, work hard, do well, and strive to settle the lifelong matter this year."
Liang Bin, who was off to the side, although he didn't say a word, his face was full of satisfaction.
He had been particularly worried about his son's matrimonial prospects, as for the young men in Huang Liang Village, finding a wife was getting increasingly difficult.
"Uh..." Liang Jingxian was at a loss for words.
"Mom, these are the fragrance pouches I made. You and Dad should each wear one. They'll help you sleep more soundly at night and when you're working during the day, snakes, insects, rodents, and ants won't come near you. Remember to carry them with you..."
"I also bought some more fishing traps, planning to catch more crayfish. Now the more I catch, the more I sell, and the more I earn."
"Mm-hmm, then go. Making money is the most important thing."
...
After sending his mother off, Liang Jingxian hopped onto his electric tricycle and headed over to Yang Xi's house.
Yang Xi only needed it in the morning, so she had already collected it and was drying it at the entrance to her house in the afternoon before going over to Liang Jingxian's house.
These fishing traps cannot be soaked in water all the time, as they will deteriorate very quickly.
Plus, the sun was too harsh in the afternoons, and even Yang Xi couldn't bear it.
In the afternoon, while dealing with the crayfish, Yang Xi found out that Liang Jingxian hadn't returned until around eight o'clock the previous night, and given today's larger quantity of crayfish, he would return even later.
Xiao Long and Xiao Feng had already been coaxed to sleep, so Yang Xi thought of taking advantage of this time to quickly take a shower.
"Ms. Xi, how are you doing?"
Yang Xi saw Liang Jingxian anxiously pushing the door open; her face went from green to red, red to white, white back to green...
"You... you go out..." Yang Xi was on the verge of crying, feeling utterly embarrassed.
When Liang Jingxian arrived, he suddenly heard Yang Xi's voice and thought she was injured. He didn't think further and rushed in, only to encounter such a scene.
This was so damn awkward!
"Ahem, Ms. Xi, I took the fishing traps at the door. Here are some candies I brought for Xiao Long and Xiao Feng. Give them these tomorrow."
After putting down the candies, Liang Jingxian ran off, thinking as he fled, "Oh, Ms. Xi's figure is really nice. It's a shame I didn't get a better look."
Yang Xi was left feeling conflicted whether to continue the bath or not; in the end, she hastily finished up.
The next day, Liang Jingxian went to check the fishing traps, and Yang Xi did not appear, probably still feeling a bit embarrassed. Liang Jingxian was also thinking about how to break the ice.
But soon, he was drawn to the catch in the fishing traps.
Yesterday evening, Liang Jingxian had set his fishing traps incorrectly, yet when he tried a few new ponds, he unexpectedly caught about sixty pounds of crayfish. In addition, there were also several pounds of loaches and eels.
The people of Huang Liang Village mainly farmed, and very few fished for these creatures. Over the years, it turned out there were such plentiful resources.
He was still considering how to contact Yang Xi when an idea struck him, and he promptly made a call to her. Yang Xi quickly answered.
"Ms. Xi, I bought ten more fishing traps last night, and just this morning I've got over sixty pounds of crayfish. Come early today to deal with the crayfish, and then you can even collect some more in the evening," he said.
He didn't give Yang Xi a chance to get angry and directly talked about work.
"Oh, okay, I'm aware," she responded.
In the afternoon, as Yang Xi brought over the caught crayfish to the Liang family's place, she initially thought their meeting would be awkward. But to her surprise, Liang Jingxian acted as if he had completely forgotten, which irked Yang Xi.
What, am I not appealing anymore?
Women can be strange sometimes. If you sneak a peek at her, she gets upset.
But if you don't glance her way, she's equally unhappy, thinking she's lost her charm.
Similarly, Yang Xi would have been displeased if Liang Jingxian had deliberately mentioned the incident last night. Yet when she realized that he didn't bring it up at all, as if nothing had happened, she felt shortchanged and was upset.
While processing the crayfish, she deliberately stared at Liang Jingxian, only stopping and giggling when she saw his face blush once again.
For the following ten or so days, Liang Jingxian would set the traps at night, and Yang Xi would use them during the day. Together, they could catch around one hundred to one hundred and fifty pounds of crayfish daily.
During the day, Yang Xi also became more diligent. After all, they could sell as much as they caught.
Yang Xi was earning about three to five hundred yuan a day, and in just under half a month, she made as much money as the villagers did in over half a year. Life was truly getting more hopeful.
Moreover, the way she looked at Liang Jingxian was becoming gentler by the day.
Gradually, even she didn't know what her feelings for Liang Jingxian were; all she knew was that she was indeed very concerned about him.
...
"Dad, Mom, I plan to go to the county town and rent a storefront to sell crayfish," Liang Jingxian said that evening when he returned home and began discussing with Liang Bin and Luo Xiaofen.
"Xiushan Town is still too poor after all. Maintaining crayfish sales at around one hundred pounds per day is almost the limit. To sell more, we can only go to the town center or the city. City rents are too expensive, and costs are too high. We won't consider that for now."
Luo Xiaofen was somewhat worried and said, "A shop in the county can cost fifty to sixty thousand yuan in rent a year. You've only earned a little over thirty thousand yuan with hard work these past couple of weeks. If you open a shop, you might just lose all of it in one go..."
Liang Bin, however, had a different view. "If our son wants to try his hand, we should support him. Xiao Xian, we've saved up over twenty thousand yuan these past few years. Adding what you've recently earned, we can barely afford to rent a shop in the county. I will give it all to you tomorrow. If it's not enough, I'll borrow some," he said.
Luo Xiaofen furrowed her brows, her lips moved as if she wanted to speak but then she stopped herself.
Liang Jingxian knew his mother was worried. He smiled and said, "Mom, you don't have to worry. Let's do this: we continue selling crayfish at the bus station. After I've prepared them, you and dad can cycle there to sell. This can guarantee an income. At the same time, let's also start selling in the county. We'll walk on two legs. If we make a loss in the county, it won't be too much."
Luo Xiaofen's expression eased somewhat. "That could work," she said.
She personally wasn't in favor of taking big risks, and opening a shop in the county counted as a big risk for her. After all, selling near the bus station was virtually cost-free, which suited her much better.
Liang Jingxian continued, "Dad, there's another thing. I estimate that in two more months, we may not be able to catch crayfish here in Huang Liang Village anymore. So, I plan to cultivate them myself. We have two acres of water fields, right? I'm thinking of using them to farm crayfish. If things go well, I'd also like to take over a few nearby ponds."
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