AWB Chapter 7 Water Spinach for Sale
Chapter 7 Water Spinach for Sale
The weather was overcast today, and the sky looked rather gloomy. I wondered if it would rain later, so Xia Shiyu put an umbrella in the truck bed and set off.
I drove all the way to the market and found that the spot where I got in the car was already taken, so I moved to another spot to set up my stall.
She had just put the item down when she saw someone running towards her. She looked up and recognized the person, but couldn't quite place them.
When Aunt Li saw the girl who sold bok choy last time come again, she couldn't resist her curiosity and went up to greet her.
"Girl, you've finally arrived! I used to have a stall next to yours. You can just call me Aunt Li."
As soon as Aunt Li mentioned it, Xia Shiyu knew who it was and greeted her, "Oh, Aunt Li, hello."
Aunt Li smiled warmly, "You've finally arrived! You haven't been around for a while, and many regular customers have been looking for you but haven't been able to find you."
Xia Shiyu said while arranging the items, "These vegetables aren't cooked yet. I'm just selling what I can't finish eating. They'll be available on a large scale later."
"Oh, what are you selling? Water spinach? That's pretty good..." But when she saw the price on the shelf, she was speechless. It was still eight yuan a pound. This girl is quite bold.
However, considering the customers who have come looking for her these past few days, only to leave disappointed and unable to find her, it seems normal that the price is so high.
However, she was still a little disappointed because it was too expensive and she couldn't bear to buy it. Also, customers came to her stall, so she chatted for a few minutes and then went home.
Soon, customers started arriving at Xia Shiyu's stall. She didn't bring any cooked dishes this time, but regular customers didn't need them either. When Wang Guihua and a few others saw her, they pounced on her like hungry wolves.
"Little girl, why are you only arriving now? I've been looking for you for days."
"Yes, yes, my granddaughter wanted to eat more of your food after eating it. Why haven't you come over all this time?"
"Yeah, why aren't you here yet? What kind of water spinach are you selling? Okay, give me five pounds."
"Yes, me too, I want three jin."
Seeing the excited expressions of these middle-aged women, Xia Shiyu quickly said, "Aunties, let's take it one at a time. We didn't come a while ago because the vegetables weren't ripe yet. Once we sell out this time, we can wait another ten days or so before they're available on a large scale."
However, her words displeased the older women, who said, "What? We have to wait another ten days? What are we going to do? Our family loves your cooking."
"Yes, yes, we've been waiting for you these past few days."
"I can only buy more this time, but you must come next time."
"Yes, young lady, how about we exchange contact information? That way we can stay in touch."
"Yes, yes, let's add each other on WeChat."
Xia Shiyu thought it was a good idea, so she quickly created a WeChat group. "Aunties, just scan this QR code to join the group. I will notify you in the group later."
After everyone joined the group, they started buying groceries again. Since they would have to wait another ten days, they bought 5 jin (2.5 catties) or more each time, thinking they would eat them for several days. They didn't care if they were not fresh after a long time; they would just put them in the refrigerator for a few days and they would still taste pretty good.
Xia Shiyu packed them up one by one, and in the blink of an eye, more than 40 jin were sold. She put some away for her aunt's family and waited for the rest of the customers to arrive.
Then, many people who were shopping at the market noticed that the girl who sold bok choy before had returned, and they all excitedly went up to her.
The others were curious to see this group of people happily heading towards a little girl's stall. They went over to take a look and found that the dishes were indeed good, but the prices were also quite shocking.
They were all puzzled as to how such expensive vegetables could still be sold.
"Why is water spinach so expensive? I only paid 3 yuan per pound at the supermarket before."
"Could it be a hired shill?"
"Yeah, so many people are scrambling to buy it, is it really that good?"
"I'm curious too. There don't seem to be many vegetables, but look at those leaves, they look so fresh."
"Sigh, the price is too high. This price can buy two pounds of fruit."
However, some people were really curious, so someone asked the people who bought the vegetables, "Young ladies, why are you all rushing to buy this vegetable, and buying four or five pounds at a time? What's so special about this vegetable?"
The person who bought the vegetables was also very helpful and immediately explained, "If you ask me if there are any other benefits, I haven't seen any yet, but these vegetables are really delicious. After I bought them last time, my family has been craving them ever since, and it was only after a lot of effort that we were able to buy them."
"Just because it tastes good? Is it really that miraculous?" Wang Qi was still a little doubtful, and at the same time, he voiced the thoughts of the other onlookers.
"Why would I lie to you? Just buy it and try it, you'll see it's delicious. I have to go back now, so I'll be going now."
Wang Qi thought about it. His wife had been injured recently, and he was the one who went out to buy groceries. He heard that this vegetable was delicious, so he thought it wouldn't hurt to buy some.
So he said to Xia Shiyu, "Boss, give me a pound."
"Okay!" Xia Shiyu said with a smile as she served the old man his food.
This time, she didn't even need to shout out to attract customers; the lively crowd drew many more people to come and buy.
So two hours later, she had sold almost everything and packed up to head to her aunt's house.
I called my aunt on the way, and she told me to take it directly to my cousin's shop.
"Xiaoyu, just tell her it's at your cousin's shop. She was really worried when she heard you brought it. By the way, do you know where her shop is? It's at that intersection on the Second Ring Road... Yes, do you know where her shop is? It's at that intersection on the Second Ring Road..."
"Okay, Auntie, I understand." After hearing this, Xia Shiyu turned and headed in another direction.
Upon arriving at the location, Xia Shiyu saw her cousin-in-law Ye Wan's shop. It wasn't mealtime, and there weren't many customers in the shop. However, when Xia Shiyu went in, she heard a customer ask, "Boss, do you still have that dish from the other day?"
Ye Wan smiled sheepishly, "No, they were planted by my relatives in the countryside. It will take a while for them to ripen."
"Alright then, please let us know when it's ready."
"Definitely, definitely."
After Ye Wan finished speaking, she walked to the door, just in time to see Xia Shiyu walk in. She exclaimed in surprise, "Shiyu's here!"
Xia Shiyu glanced at it and obediently called out, "Sister-in-law, I've brought you some vegetables."
Ye Wan's smile widened after hearing this. "Alright, come in and sit down for a while. Would you like me to make you a bowl of noodles?"
Xia Shiyu shook her head. "No need, sister-in-law, let's go look at the dishes first."
"That's fine, I'll bring the vegetables in."
Ye Wan and Xia Shiyu walked out. This time, Ye Wan ordered 30 jin of water spinach. More wouldn't be good. Although she was very confident, she still had to test the waters first. After all, because the ingredients were expensive, she would have to raise the price of the vegetables a bit.
But raising prices isn't so easy. Most noodle shops in this area have the same price, and customers would be unhappy if prices were suddenly raised, so she decided to try it out first.
Xia Shiyu helped carry the vegetables to the storage room inside, and Ye Wan transferred the money, still charging 8 yuan. Actually, Xia Shiyu was thinking of selling them cheaper, but her aunt's family felt that they couldn't do that. After all, they were going to sell them for money, and they couldn't take advantage of them.
However, Xia Shiyu still added a little more to Ye Wan's dish, more than 30 jin.
After Ye Wan paid the money, she wanted Xia Shiyu to stay a little longer, but seeing that the shop was getting busy, she didn't plan to stay. She said a few words and left.