North and South groceries

Nanbei Grocery has been cooperating with farmers in the suburbs for several years. At first, they planted peppers, then cold melons, and some other vegetables and fruits. But so far, peppers and cold melons are still the main ones.

For most rural households in the suburbs, it is a good choice to cooperate with Nanbei Grocery.

At the beginning of the cooperation, North and South Grocery will set a minimum purchase price for this crop of the year, and then when harvesting, according to the market conditions at that time and the quality of these growers, they will make specific purchase prices. Pricing, this price is usually higher than the minimum purchase price set earlier, if it is really bad, it will be purchased at the minimum purchase price.

During the cooperative planting period, Nanbei Grocery will hire some experienced old farmers to go to those cooperative farmlands to check the growth of the crops. If they see that the crops are not growing well, they will give pointers.

And their stewards, each of them has a small book, and they will write you down if they are good or bad. When this cooperation is over, they will give you a score. Those scores If it is particularly low, it is likely to lose the qualification for cooperation in the coming year.

Many growers don't like the management method of being graded every year, especially when they get a low score in a certain year.

However, there are many advantages to cooperating with Nanbei Grocery. First of all, they are very trustworthy. When the cooperatively planted crops mature, no matter how low the market price is at that time, they will strictly follow the minimum purchase price set before, and never break their promise.

And they also gave these growers another guarantee, that is, as long as the cooperative planting area of ​​the year reaches a minimum standard, then if these growers encounter any natural disasters and man-made disasters that cause the grain in the field to fail this year, the North and South For groceries, they will help them pay the rent adjustment of the year, so that they will be exempted from the tax pressure of this year. This guarantee is like a reassurance, which is very attractive to farmers.

It is very different from the time when Luo Sanlang went to the outskirts of the city to find someone to grow peppers in cooperation with the North and South groceries now.

Most of the farmers who cooperated with Luo Sanlang to grow peppers made a small fortune later, but now such good things have long since disappeared. Most of the time, the income is not bad. When it is good, it can earn two dollars more than growing grain. Three times, that is very good, and there are also bad times, months of hard work, but in the end there is very little income.

Like them growing cold melons in recent years, some people are bold and cautious and are better at growing melons. The cold melons they grow mature earlier than other people's cold melons, and they can be on the market in early summer.

At that time, the price of cold melons on the market was very expensive, and the purchase price given by Nanbei Groceries was also high, so I made more money.

Most of the melon farmers are still relatively well-behaved. Now when cold melons are on the market on a large scale, the watermelons in their fields are also ripe.

At this time, you will not be able to earn a lot of money. Like those larger and better watermelons, the purchase price given by Nanbei Grocery is only two or three yuan. Dozens of melons, and the remaining melons that are not close to each other will have a lower purchase price.

As far as this year is concerned, most of the melon farmers in the outskirts of the city can get more than 300 yuan per mu of land, and the better ones can get up to [-] yuan.

If this mu of land is used to plant millet and produce two loads of grain, according to the current grain price in Chang'an City, one load of corn costs about sixty or seventy renminbi, and two loads of corn can be sold for less than 150 renminbi.

Therefore, cooperating with North-South Groceries to grow melons is still more profitable than most farmers growing their own food, and most growers are quite satisfied with such income.

However, many farmers couldn't figure it out. The cold melons that the North and South groceries collected from them for two or three pennies were transported to the city one by one, and the labor cost alone was quite a lot.

When it is transported to the city and sold in shops, many customers buy it now and cut it. If the white flesh is cut out, they will definitely not want it. You have to change it for them. This is how it is sold. If you sell it for four pennies, can you still make money?

On this day, several young ladies who had a good time with Si Niang also asked her such a question.

"You can make money, how can you not make money?" Si Niang was leaning on the railing with a happy face at this time, blowing the cool breeze.

The location of this store is ingenious. Even in the hot summer, when you sit in the gazebo of his house, you can still feel the cool breeze blowing on your face, which is very refreshing, but the price is more expensive.

On such a hot day, you should invite a few friends to hide in such a cool place and eat ice to escape the heat.Thinking about Goro and the others, at this time they have to recite books and attend classes with the children of the Bai family, tsk tsk, what a pity.

"I'm afraid I won't earn much."

Although these little ladies don't know how to do business, they also know a little arithmetic. The melons collected for two or three Wen are sold for four Wen, and there are still many losses in the middle.

"Earning half a penny from a melon is earning money." Siniang said:

"Those melon farmers have been busy for half a year, and they can only earn three hundred yuan per mu of land. I can earn such money by selling six or seven hundred cold melons here. The business of groceries in the north and south is so good, but It’s just a matter of a moment.”

"What's the use of earning these three hundred Wen?" The little ladies laughed.

"Then what can I do?" Si Niang said helplessly: "Nowadays there are a lot of cold melons in the market. If I want my own cold melons to sell well, I will naturally set the price lower. If the price is high, the melons will be sold." It cannot be sold."

"Why not lower the purchase price." A little lady suggested.

"How can it be done? I can't let me smash the signboard that my elder brother has worked so hard for." Siniang said, "It must be that these farmers earn so much money that there are so many good farmers. Farmers are willing to cooperate with my family, so I can pick them here. They have to score and regularly arrange people to go to check, so they can be patient. If it is not for more income, you can have such a farmer. So nice?"

This is the case in business. When the market is not good, it is considered good if you don’t lose money. If you can ship, hurry up and ship. If you are too greedy, you will probably stumble in the end.

These little ladies still don't know how to do business. If you talk about the mysteries in Chang'an City and the gossip between the various families, then they know much more than Luo Siniang. But they, but when it comes to business, Si Niang is much smoother than them.

Like these cold melons at present, Si Niang can sell them for four Wen each, as well as smaller ones for three Wen, and even smaller ones for one or two Wen.

They also cut the biggest and best cold melons in half, and put them on the shelf. Each of them smelled of melons, and they were red and tender. You can buy half of them for two pennies. optional.

So even if the price is similar, many people would rather walk a few steps, and they are willing to buy melons from North and South Grocery.

No matter how hot the weather is in summer, the business in their north-south grocery store has never been deserted. When Chang'an people say cold melon, the first thing they think of is north-south grocery.

It's okay to make less money now, when the weather gets cooler, it's time to make money.

They also have a super large freezer for North-South groceries. The ice cubes have been selling well recently, and Siniang asked people to put cold melons in the space vacated after the ice cubes were sold.

They have already experimented with the storage method of the cold melon in the freezer two years ago, and gained a lot of experience. This year, the price of the cold melon just caught up with the low price, so they picked the best quality cold melon every day. Put the melons in the freezer and store them. Later, when the cold melons in other people's homes are out of season, they will take them out and sell them slowly.

These stored cold melons are of the highest quality. Most of the cold melons sold in North and South grocery stores are of good quality, and those with poor quality or white flesh are sold at a low price to Auntie’s Food Shop. side.

Sister's Food Shop has developed a variety of fruity syrup drinks in recent years, among which there is cold melon drink, which is to squeeze the juice from the cold melon, mix some cane pulp, and add some crushed ice to it, which is very refreshing Summer, a penny and a cup, I don’t know how much I will sell every day.

Those little ladies from big families felt that Si Niang earned little from the cold melon business this year, but in Luo Siniang's own opinion, it was not bad.

In business, there are always gains and losses, and when you can make money, you should cherish it, and don't think too little of a penny or a penny.

When she used to look at the grocery store in her yard in Xipo Village, she could argue with the children in the village for a long time because of the two pieces of jujube cake. Now that the shop is so big, the daily expenses are more than before. It costs a lot, so you have to plan carefully.

She now has a clear account of every income and expenditure in the shop, and the accounts are more detailed than when Luo Yong was the head of the house.Fortunately, she is meticulous, but she will not skimp. Whether it is the payment of goods or the salary that should be paid every month, there will be no loss of a penny, and there will be no delay.

This morning, Si Niang was looking at the account books of North and South groceries, and those little ladies came to ask her to go out to eat ice cream together, but Si Niang refused to go.

"That place is too expensive, I can't afford to go there, you go by yourself." For a person from a farming family like Siniang, such a high-consumption place always feels a bit too extravagant.

"Don't search like this, and I don't want you to pay for it." Among these little ladies, there are indeed a few who are not short of money.

"Then I'm not happy, so I won't go." If she goes too much, it will be her turn to pay the bill, and it's not like she really has no money. How can she be so thick-skinned and wait for others to pay all day long.

"You have a lot to do." If Luo Siniang didn't go, they didn't want to go either.

With nothing to do, he simply sat down in the small office hall on the second floor of Nanbei Groceries, intending to pass the time here.

These people are like this, if they don't want to study and learn to work as girls, they just gather together, gossip, eat some desserts and so on, and there is nothing else to do.

If you are married, your husband teaches your son to embroider and sew clothes every day. If you really can’t stay at home, then go out to eat, drink and have fun. If you think it is not enough, then find a concubine. That's it.

So they all envied Si Niang to have such a shop. At this time, even if they were bored sitting in the North and South Grocery and looking at her account book, they felt that it was better than staying at home.

Siniang was also very familiar with them, so they were allowed to go, but they asked someone to fetch half a watermelon from downstairs with some ice cubes to treat them.

After Si Niang finished reading the account book in her hand, she looked up to see that the people in front of her were really busy, so she thought about it and asked them: "I'm going to the warehouse, are you going?"

"What are you doing in the warehouse?" A little lady looked up.

"Just to check the correct number of goods in the warehouse." Si Niang explained.

Those little ladies thought about it, and they were idle anyway: "Then let's go."

... Several hours later, the sun set.

"Crackling..." The door of a certain house was opened, and a thirteen or fourteen-year-old lady strolled in. Two maidservants came forward to greet her, but she signaled her to keep quiet. Go to your own room.

Looking at the back of that posture, it is also dignified. It can be seen that he has received good etiquette instruction, but there is a lot of dust on the clothes and hair. Coupled with this dignified manner, it looks a bit funny.

"Tsk, look at this muddy guy, I don't know if he has eaten yet." In a certain room on the side, a woman stood by the crack of the door at this time, stretching her neck and looking out secretly.

"Didn't all the attendants tell you just now, it is said that noon and night are all meals in North and South groceries." An old woman was lying on a wooden couch in the house, and the maidservant at the side gently shook her. With cattail fan.

"My son was spoiled and spoiled since he was a child, so what can he eat in that place." The woman sighed.

"I ate a lot today." A maidservant standing next to her laughed.

"Don't bother with that carelessness, your husband said to let her go." There was a bit of a smile in the old woman's voice.

"Those men fight with each other all day long. If my daughter is useful, it's too late to be happy, so I don't care about that much." The woman by the door sighed and walked into the house.

"Don't say that, it's not a bad thing to make more friends." The old woman said, "In my opinion, Luo Siniang is also a good person, so it's good to let your daughter grow up with her. "

"What kind of insight can I gain..." The woman sat on the edge of the wooden couch and straightened her skirt.

The old woman stretched out her hand and patted her on the back lightly twice, and explained: "Why don't you think about it, Luo Sanlang has been away from Chang'an for many years, but his family's north and south groceries have been flourishing all the time, so the fourth lady of the Luo family She is not only good at juggling knives, but also smart, and her elder brother...how many people are thinking about the current situation in the court..."

"I didn't say not to ask her to go..."

"The current world is a bit different from ours at that time..."

"What's the difference..."

"Just watch..."

"..."