7
The Competitor Has Arrived: She Doesn’t Plan to Destroy the World
Wang Xiao was about to step outside when Chen Yidong quickly called out to her, “What are you doing? Didn’t we agree to sell tomorrow? It’s so late already.”
Without turning her head, she replied, “I’m going to the street to tell the chicken feet and tofu sellers to prepare more goods tomorrow, so we don’t run out and delay my braised food preparations. I forgot to mention it earlier in town.”
The truth was, the braised chicken feet sold so well, and with her aunt and Jingjing being new to the business and lacking experience, she couldn’t get away. Eventually, she simply forgot in the midst of the busyness.
Her uncle felt a headache coming on and quickly stood up. “You go and tell them? Do you even know which way their doors face? Alright, alright, I’ll go.”
He strode out the door, leaving Qian Xuemei with her daughter and niece chuckling gleefully. Served him right for drinking in the evening without doing any work—making him run errands late at night was just what he deserved.
As it turned out, preparing goods in advance was indeed necessary.
By the time the sun rose again, she and her cousin only needed to visit Yangliu Village at noon to sell out all their braised dried tofu.
They didn’t even have to wait until 2:30 p.m. The sisters returned home and got to work, pushing their bicycles out to sell at 4 p.m. sharp. After dinner, they continued their business in town.
After five consecutive days, the two girls had gained some experience.
In town, braised chicken feet sold better than braised dried tofu because buyers, aside from trying something new, mainly used them to add flavor to their late-night snacks rather than treating them as a proper dish.
In the villages, however, braised dried tofu was more popular than braised chicken feet. It was flavorful, went well with rice, and was cheap. Served on the table, it made a satisfying treat that didn’t look shabby.
With this experience under their belts, the two girls sold braised food with even more enthusiasm.
Especially on Sunday noon, they sold two full pots of braised dried tofu in one go, and even most of the braised chicken feet were sold out in the fields. Customers even chased after them to emphasize, “You’ll come back tonight, right? I’m placing an order in advance.”
Chen Jingjing was overjoyed and repeatedly assured them, “Yes, yes, we’ll definitely come. We’ll save some for you for sure.”
But when evening came and the two sisters pushed their bicycles back to the village to sell braised food, before they could even raise their voices to call out, a distant shout reached them: “Selling braised dried tofu and spiced dried tofu—”
Chen Jingjing was startled. “Lu Gan Grandpa is back.”
Sure enough, after a few days of busy farming, the old man selling braised dried tofu looked darker and thinner than before, but his spirits were high. His two large buckets were steady, filled entirely with braised dried tofu and spiced dried tofu.
The door of a nearby courtyard immediately swung open. The auntie who had repeatedly insisted at noon that Wang Xiao and her sister must save braised dried tofu for her in the evening rushed out excitedly, clutching a porcelain bowl, and called out to Lu Gan Grandpa, “Uncle, you’re finally here! Give me one yuan’s worth of braised dried tofu, and an extra ladle of the braising sauce.”
As she took the bowl filled with braised dried tofu and paid Lu Gan Grandpa, she turned her head and spotted Wang Xiao and her sister. Her face flushed with embarrassment, and she stammered, “Oh, you two are here. Tsk, well, you don’t have spiced dried tofu. Uncle, give me another fifty cents’ worth of spiced dried tofu.”
Wang Xiao pushed her bicycle forward. “It’s fine, Auntie. You’re busy; we’ll be on our way.”
Chen Jingjing hurried to catch up. Only after walking about ten meters away did she dare voice her worries. “Sis, Lu Gan Grandpa is back. What do we do? They’re all buying his braised dried tofu now.”
It wasn’t that she was underestimating herself, but Lu Gan Grandpa’s decades-old golden reputation truly wasn’t built for nothing. The moment he raised his voice to call out customers, countless people would come running out of their courtyards with bowls in hand. Those buying Braised Dried Tofu, Stinky Dried Tofu, or Spiced Dried Tofu came one after another.
This made the two of them pushing a bicycle with no customers look utterly like clowns.
People came and went around them – some felt embarrassed, some pretended not to see them; in any case, no one approached to buy their braised food.
“Let’s go!” Wang Xiao made a quick decision, calling her cousin to get on the bike. “We need to get to Chen Village quickly.”
Chen Jingjing immediately understood: “Right, we need to sell before he does.”
Unfortunately, despite the sisters’ swift actions, whether because Chen Village was too small or for other reasons, their braised food suddenly became difficult to sell in the village. They went through Yangliu Village and Qianjin Village continuously, and by the time darkness fell, there was still some Braised Dried Tofu left in the pot.
In 1990, there were no street lights in Zhou Town’s countryside. Wang Xiao didn’t dare to travel in the dark, especially since villagers ate dinner early – some households had already finished their meals and were washing dishes.
She quickly rode back to Qianjia Village with her cousin.
Qian Xuemei had already prepared dinner waiting for their return. Seeing them, she couldn’t help but wonder: “Why are you so late today? Come wash your hands and eat.”
Chen Jingjing said anxiously and angrily: “Don’t even mention it, Mom. Lu Gan Grandpa is back.”
Chen Yidong, who had just herded all the chickens into the coop, responded indifferently: “Oh, his family must have finished their busy period. It’s time for them to come back and do business.”
He hadn’t felt it much before, but now that their family was selling braised food, he understood how profitable it was and could particularly relate to not wanting to take even one day off. After all, stopping for a day meant losing at least twenty or thirty yuan – who would be willing to do that?
Chen Jingjing became even more frustrated: “Chen Village and the others weren’t good either. My sister and I went to three villages today and still have Braised Dried Tofu left unsold.”
Really, just a couple of days ago they couldn’t even meet the demand.
Chen Yidong washed his hands and brought dishes to the table, casually responding: “That’s normal. The busy harvest season is over. Which family would buy Braised Dried Tofu every day now?”
The sisters suddenly had an epiphany: the recent excellent sales of braised food were the result of perfect timing, location, and conditions. During the autumn harvest, people did heavy physical labor that consumed a lot of energy, which was why they were willing to spend money generously.
Under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t be so extravagant.
Qian Xuemei served rice to the two girls, comforting them: “It’s alright. After dinner, we’ll go to the night market to sell chicken feet. We can still sell the remaining Braised Dried Tofu along with it.”
Thankfully, the number of people eating Braised Chicken Feet at the night market was about the same as usual, with no obvious decline in consumption. The small half pot of Braised Dried Tofu was sold out along with it, though it took more time than usual. By the time they headed home, there were hardly any people left at the night market.
Chen Yidong and Qian Xuemei, being content with small fortunes, had the aunt emphasize: “Alright, from now on we’ll just sell Braised Chicken Feet. We can still earn over ten yuan a day – much better than when your uncle and I were working regular jobs.”
Chen Jingjing couldn’t stand this first: “Mom, that would mean losing at least half the money!”
It made her heart ache.
Qian Xuemei glared at her displeased: “If you put this much effort into your studies, I’d be laughing in my dreams.”
See, see, here it comes, here it comes – parents everywhere are all the same.
Just as Chen Jingjing was about to secretly roll her eyes, her mother delivered the ultimate blow: “Seems you’ve lost your mind playing around. Tomorrow you’re going back to school! Don’t forget which direction the school gate even faces!”
Chen Jingjing finally snapped back to reality – oh heavens, her farming break was over. The October farming break wasn’t like the June rush harvesting season, offering only a pitiful one-week vacation.
The unfortunate middle school student could only turn her head and look pitifully at her sister: “Sis, if we don’t sell Braised Dried Tofu, we’ll miss out on so much money.”
Wang Xiao was also frustrated. Before transmigrating into this novel, her daily income might not have reached astronomical levels, but it was still counted in tens of thousands. Now she somewhat looked down on these small-scale businesses. Most importantly, she wanted to enter a more efficient money-making model. She needed to accumulate the largest initial capital in the shortest time possible to ride the waves of the 1990s with ease.
Hmm, what were the quick money-making opportunities in 1990?
Speculating in treasury bonds?
Too late – she had transmigrated two years too late. That was the playground for the trailblazers of 1988.
Investing in stocks?
Sorry, her financial investment luck had never been great. Before transmigrating, she still had over a hundred thousand yuan trapped in stagnant stocks. She couldn’t understand why Wuliangye performed so much worse than Moutai in stock price.
Moreover, she had no research on the 1990 stock market, only vaguely remembering that the stock market in the 80s and 90s first surged then crashed dramatically. But whether it was currently before or after the surge, she truly had no idea.
Maybe she should ask around?
She tried asking someone: “Uncle, how’s the stock market now? Has anyone made a fortune?”
“What?” Chen Yidong looked completely bewildered. Though he was an educated youth sent down from the provincial capital, the stock market had already disappeared by the time he was born. He’d never even heard of such a modern concept – he hadn’t even cashed the forcibly assigned treasury bonds still sitting at home.
Wang Xiao had to give up. The supply and marketing department head was considered quite worldly in their town, and her uncle had even attended the Canton Fair dealing with foreign businessmen. If he didn’t know, probably no one in Zhou Town had studied stocks.
She needed to return to the city. The city had more information, and the provincial library should have preserved newspapers from recent years where she could gather information. It was said the stock market turbulence of the 80s and 90s had gripped the hearts of millions. Countless rags-to-riches myths were created during that period.
Having made up her mind, she announced: “Uncle, aunt, I’m returning to the provincial capital tomorrow to check some materials.”
She was currently avoiding that Ruan guy, but her destination was the library, so the likelihood of running into him on a weekday should be small. After all, as a high school teacher, Ruan Rui probably wouldn’t skip work casually.
But Chen Yidong and Qian Xuemei immediately turned pale with fright, delivering a triple rejection: “No, no, no! Your parents said you can’t go anywhere until they give permission.”
Wang Xiao was speechless. How old was she? Everyone still treated her like a child needing confinement.
Ugh, headache. No point arguing with them.
Most importantly, she suddenly realized that transmigrating meant this was a constructed world. Who knew if the author had created an alternate reality or done proper research? What if they just randomly drew stock market trends to conveniently give the protagonist a golden finger?
Never mind, she had transmigrated into a book, not been reborn. It was better not to take advantage of what she assumed were cheat codes lightly. Some advantages might cost her life to repay.
Wang Xiao decided to continue honestly earning the hard-earned money from selling snacks.
When Chen Jingjing’s alarm clock rang in the morning, even though it was still dim outside, Wang Xiao got up without a word, brushed her teeth, washed her face, and pedaled her bicycle to town to buy ingredients for braised food. She had specifically asked someone to stock more chicken feet yesterday; if she went late, they might not save them all for her.
By the time she returned home laden with packages, the house was in chaos.
Because when she left, Chen Jingjing had gone to the toilet, Qian Xuemei was cooking breakfast in the kitchen, and Chen Yidong had gone to fetch water from their private plot to water the vegetables. No one had seen her leave.
Combining this with her expressed desire to return to the city the previous night, the two adults instinctively assumed Wang Xiao had secretly run off to find that man again. Even though Chen Jingjing insisted her sister wasn’t that foolish, the adults wouldn’t listen.
Now, looking at Wang Xiao returning fully loaded, Chen Jingjing snorted forcefully at her parents: “Hmph! See? My sister only cares about making money; she wouldn’t do something stupid. Her clothes and suitcase are still here—how could she have run away?”
Chen Yidong and Qian Xuemei both thought to themselves: What does a suitcase matter? She has money on her; she could run anywhere. Although grain coupons are still used now, it’s not impossible to buy grain at higher market prices.
Wang Xiao, being sharp, didn’t need to hear the whole story; her cousin’s one remark was enough for her to grasp the situation. She quickly reassured the adults: “I was just afraid of going too late and not being able to buy anything. Hey, Jingjing, help me take the aluminum pot inside.”
She had to hold the bicycle handlebars, or the basket would tip over and the pot would fall.
Chen Yidong felt embarrassed, scratching his nose and mumbling: “Buying groceries? You should’ve said something; Uncle could’ve gone. Why did you buy so much tofu? The braised dried tofu seller has already started business again.”
Wang Xiao parked her bicycle and smiled: “It’s fine. I checked—he comes from Jiaozuo Township, and with his carrying pole, he only covers about three villages: our Qianjia Village, Huangnitang, and Chen Village. Places like Yangliu Village and Qianjin Village, he can’t reach before selling out. I’m not competing with him; I’ll sell at noon and head toward Yangliu Village. Some people will buy dried tofu there.”
Actually, she found one thing particularly strange: people in Zhou Town clearly liked eating braised dried tofu—there was market demand—and the current supply obviously couldn’t keep up. Why hadn’t anyone else entered this business to fill the market gap?
But upon further thought, it made sense.
After all, Zhou Town had developed township enterprises, and most young and middle-aged people worked in factories, like her uncle and aunt. Combined, the two earned over sixty yuan a month. Plus, they grew rice, wheat, and rapeseed in the fields, vegetables in their private plot, and raised chickens, ducks for eggs, and pigs. Throughout the year, they spent very little extra on food and drink.
Nowadays, school selection wasn’t popular in the countryside; people went directly to the village clinic or town hospital for medical care, and rural residents could build their own houses to improve living conditions. In short, there was little life pressure, so there was no need to rack their brains to earn more money.
Unlike her—she would instinctively panic if she didn’t make money for even a minute.
Qian Xuemei had to remind her niece: “If you can’t sell it all, don’t worry. I’ll push the cart to sell it in the evening. At noon, most workers eat at the factory; there aren’t many people in the village buying braised food.”
Wang Xiao smiled and nodded, “Alright, I’ll sell as much as I can. Aunt, you should hurry and eat so you can go to work.”
However, Chen Yidong dared not leave his niece home alone. As someone who had raised a daughter, he knew that some children who appeared well-behaved on the surface were capable of anything when they were holding back their energy.
He eagerly declared, “I’ll handle the fried tofu. This isn’t a gas stove—you can’t manage it alone.”
That was certainly true. Cooking on a rural earthen stove was a skilled task that required simultaneously handling firewood, tending the fire, and managing the pot. Without experience, one would surely be overwhelmed.
Wang Xiao only asked one question, “Uncle, don’t you need to go to work?”
“Ah, it’s fine. The supply and sales department isn’t the production workshop,” Chen Yidong pretended to be casual. “It’s okay if I go a bit late.”
After finishing breakfast, he washed the pots and dishes, then lit the stove and fried a whole basket of fried tofu in one go.
Seeing the clock hand pass nine o’clock, Wang Xiao had to urge him, “Uncle, if you don’t go to work now, it won’t be just being late—it’ll count as absenteeism.”
Chen Yidong was also in a dilemma, but he didn’t dare leave his niece home alone. So he had a sudden idea, “Xiao Xiao, how about coming to the factory with me? There are some production problems the technicians can’t solve—maybe you, as a college student, could take a look.”
Wang Xiao nearly collapsed on the spot.
Wh-what kind of joke is this? The last time she opened a chemistry book was seven years ago. She hadn’t touched chemistry since choosing her track in high school. And now they wanted her to provide technical guidance at a chemical plant?
Heh, although transmigrating into a book was pretty miserable, she had no intention of destroying the world.