Dinner was ready in no time, and tonight’s spread was especially lavish. There was braised fish, tofu stewed with fish, wild boar simmered with radish, and two vegetable dishes.
Several large bowls were set on the table, and everyone ate until their mouths were greasy with satisfaction. After the meal, they all left happily.
But when they saw there was still a whole live fish left, they ran into a dilemma.
They had caught five fish in total. Originally, Su Sanlang planned to divide all five evenly among everyone, but the others refused no matter what. In the end, four fish were split among the group, and the last one was taken home by Su Sanlang.
Truth be told, everyone already felt they had gotten a good deal. The meal had only used a small portion of fish, and there were still over ten catties of meat left for their own families.
But now there was still this big, lively fish remaining.
Finally, Old Man Su slapped the table and made the decision: “Tomorrow morning, we’ll take this fish to the market and sell it.”
Su Sanlang asked, “Then how much should we sell it for?”
Old Madam Su thought for a moment and said, “We don’t need to price it too high—just a little above the usual. Let’s sell it for six wen per catty.”
Su Sanlang couldn’t help but twitch his lips. “Mother, six wen per catty isn’t expensive? Ordinary big fish only go for four wen.”
“You brat, what do you know?” she snapped. “A fish this big is something you might not see once in decades. Selling it at six wen is already cheap!”
Old Man Su nodded in agreement. “Listen to your mother. Big fish like this are rare, and the meat is excellent. Isn’t there a saying—things are more valuable when they’re rare? It’ll definitely sell out.”
With the head of the family having made the decision, Su Sanlang had nothing more to say.
The night passed quietly.
Early the next morning, the three brothers borrowed a cart from the village chief and hauled the large fish to town.
They set out before dawn, and by the time they arrived, the sun was already up. The marketplace was gradually filling with people. They found a good spot and parked the cart.
Su Sanlang quickly began shouting to attract customers.
“Come take a look! Don’t miss it! A giant fish you might only see once in a century—tender, smooth, and delicious!”
“Cheap sale, cheap sale! Only six wen per catty! Come quick before it’s gone!”
Su Dalang stood by, watching his younger brothers shouting enthusiastically. He was naturally shy and simply couldn’t bring himself to join in.
Seeing this, Su Sanlang nudged him with his elbow. “Big brother, you’ve got to shout when you’re selling! If you don’t, how will people know what you’ve got? Look, someone’s already coming!”
Su Dalang looked up and sure enough, a man was approaching their cart.
“That’s a big fish. How much are you selling it for?”
The man appeared to be in his thirties, slightly plump, dressed in a thick cotton robe and leather boots—clearly someone from a wealthy family.
“Nine wen per catty.”
Good heavens! Su Dalang and Su Erlang’s eyes widened in shock.
Back at home, they had agreed on six wen per catty, and he already thought that was expensive. But now, the moment someone asked, he raised it to nine!
One brother pretended not to know him, while the other wished he could bury his head in the ground.
Seeing that the customer didn’t respond right away, Su Sanlang continued pitching:
“Sir, just look at how big this fish is—imagine how long it must have taken to grow! Fish this size are practically spiritual creatures. Eating it might not make you live for hundreds of years, but it’ll surely bring health and longevity!”
The slightly plump man looked over the fish and, seeing how fresh it was, nodded in approval.
“Alright, weigh out ten catties for me.”
Su Sanlang quickly grabbed a knife and was about to cut when the man hurriedly stopped him.
“I want this part—cut from here, just below the fin, and go a bit deeper.”
“Got it, sir. I can tell you really know your fish,” Su Sanlang replied smoothly.
The meat beneath the fin was the most tender and flavorful, especially on a large fish—perfect for stewing.
With a swift motion, Su Sanlang sliced off the requested portion, tied it neatly with hemp string, and hung it on the scale.
When they weighed it, it came out to a little over twelve catties. “Twelve catties and four liang. Minus the string, it’s about twelve catties and three liang. I’ll just charge you for twelve catties—how does that sound?”
The man nodded, took out two strings of coins from his pouch, counted out another eight coins, and handed them over.
Su Sanlang counted quickly—each string was fifty coins, plus the extra eight, making exactly 108 coins.
“Thank you, sir. Come again!”
He handed over the fish with a broad smile and saw off his first customer.
After the man left, Su Dalang leaned closer and asked in a low voice, “Third brother, didn’t you say even six wen per catty was expensive? Why did you sell it for nine?”
Su Sanlang looked at his honest, somewhat slow-witted older brother and said, “Big brother, just look at how he’s dressed—he’s clearly wealthy. Rich people don’t worry about a few extra coins; they care about quality. So of course the price should be higher.
Besides, our fish is something no one else on this street has. If they can spend a few extra coins to taste something special, why wouldn’t they want it?”
Hearing his reasoning, the two brothers had nothing more to say.
As the market grew busier, the Su brothers sold more and more fish. Before long, they were almost sold out.
Just then, a few tax collectors came over and surrounded their cart.
After taking a look, they demanded twenty coins as a fee. Su Dalang, though honest, wasn’t someone who tolerated unfairness, and he immediately started to argue.
But Su Sanlang quickly pulled him back, counted out twenty coins from his pocket, and respectfully handed them over.
He even cut off a piece of fish and offered it to them.
“Sir, please forgive us. It’s our first time setting up a stall in town, and my brother doesn’t know the rules. Please don’t take it to heart. This is just a small token—please accept it.”
The leader sized him up, clearly pleased with his tact, and accepted the fish.
“Not bad, not bad. Which village are you from? Will you be coming again?”
Su Sanlang replied politely, “We’re from Taoliu Village. If we have more goods in the future, we’ll come back to sell.”
“Good. Next time, set up your stall right here again. I’ll arrange a long-term fee for you—only eight coins each time.”
Su Sanlang thanked him repeatedly. After the men left, Su Dalang asked resentfully,
“Third brother, I saw others selling vegetables from baskets—they only pay one or two coins. Why did we have to pay twenty? And why did you just give it to them so easily?”
“Big brother, they saw we were making good sales, so they raised the fee. If we refused to pay, we might not even be able to keep the money we’ve earned today.”
Su Erlang added, “Exactly. There are more of them than us—we’d definitely be at a disadvantage.”
“Yes,” Su Sanlang said. “A strong outsider can’t overpower local forces. Our village is far away, and we don’t know anyone here. This is the only way.”
Su Dalang nodded in understanding.
Just then, two more customers came and bought all the remaining fish. The brothers packed up, ready to head home.
Only then did Su Dalang remember something. “Third brother, what did you mean earlier—about coming back to sell other things?”
Su Sanlang grinned. “Big brother, with the luck our little treasure brings, we’ll probably be coming here often to sell things in the future.
That miraculous bait? My precious daughter was the one who gave it to me.”