The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

By the time Gu’er and the others had sold all their goods, Qu Shui had also sold more than half of his.

When he heard that Gu’er’s group was heading out to eat, he quickly packed up his things, grabbed Li Zhi, and said urgently, "Don’t go to one of those restaurants. The food is expensive and terrible—a total waste of money. There’s a shop nearby that sells dalieba bread. Why don’t you guys just get some of that? I already finished the instant noodles I brought, or else I’d share some with you."

The three of them were taken aback by his words.

Gu’er knew about the dalieba he was talking about. A Russian had once opened the Qiulin Mall in Harbin, which sold Russian dalieba bread and Gewasi soda.

Gu’er had heard that you had to stand in line to buy dalieba and Gewasi in Harbin, and if you went too late, they’d be sold out.

However, their city was no match for Harbin; it didn’t have dalieba or Gewasi for sale.

Back when Li Zhi had first told her he wanted to come to Russia, she had considered opening a shop back home to sell Russian goods. Gewasi and dalieba were quite popular with the people there, even though she personally didn’t care for the taste.

But selling them would have meant sourcing the goods from Harbin and shipping them by train to their city, which would be too expensive. There wouldn’t be much profit left by then.

’What if I learned how to make dalieba and Gewasi from the Russians? Once I had the recipes, I could make them myself. Then I could sell them however I wanted. So much more convenient.’

It was just a fleeting thought that crossed Gu’er’s mind.

Qu Shui said the restaurant food was bad. The local palate was different from theirs, so they definitely wouldn’t be used to the taste.

Gu’er didn’t really mind that, but when Qu Shui mentioned it was expensive, she decided against it. Making money was the priority for now. They could indulge after they’d earned enough.

So, they took Qu Shui’s advice and bought two loaves of dalieba and a few bottles of Gewasi. Gu’er also asked the street vendor for a bunch of empty bottles, which he gave her for free since he had no use for them.

"Where are you guys staying? We should team up. I came alone this time; the brother who came with me last time didn’t make it. We can help each other out if anything comes up."

Qu Shui chattered on as they walked.

"Sure,"

Li Zhi readily nodded. No matter what, Qu Shui had been here three times already, so he knew his way around far better than they did. It was a good thing that he was willing to team up.

When Qu Shui heard where Gu’er and Li Zhi were staying, he nearly slapped his thigh in excitement. They were living in the same building! The only difference was that Qu Shui was on the third floor, while Gu’er’s group was on the fifth.

Once they got back to their building, they first followed Qu Shui to the third floor, where he enthusiastically introduced them to several other people.

They were all from China, all in a foreign land. Meeting each other created a warm sense of kinship.

Qu Shui then walked them up to the fifth floor and told them to call him if they needed anything. "We’re all here trying to make a living. Sometimes we’ll be selling the same things. Who sells more is a matter of skill, but there’s one rule: no price wars. Don’t deliberately undercut each other with low prices, or sooner or later, none of us will be able to survive."

Gu’er thought Qu Shui made a lot of sense. The business here hadn’t reached a large scale yet. Once it did, there would inevitably be a street or two filled with foreign shuttle traders like them. These traders wouldn’t just be from China; there would surely be people from other places too. If they weren’t united by then, they would definitely be bullied and end up on the losing end.

"Alright, you guys get something to eat and rest up. I’ll come get you tomorrow morning. I’ll take you to a great spot where our goods sell really well. But there are also a lot of police. I’m telling you this now so you’re clear: be sharp. When you see the police, run fast."

With that, Qu Shui left.

The three of them talked as they ate their dalieba and drank their Gewasi.

The day had left a deep impression on them. Vending on the streets here was like being in a guerrilla war—always on the move. Even though there was nothing wrong with their goods, they still had to avoid the police. If they got caught, they’d have to pay them off. No one wanted to hand over their hard-earned money to someone else.

But it couldn’t be helped. They didn’t have a stall, and even if they did, they would have to pay stall fees, and maybe even protection money. It wasn’t that easy.

As for wholesaling to the locals, Gu’er was reluctant. According to Uncle Qu, the locals drove a hard bargain and pushed the prices down so low that they would lose a quarter of their profit. That added up to a lot of money, and the thought pained them.

"What do you need these empty bottles for?"

Li Zhi asked Gu’er after he had filled his stomach.

"To bottle the baijiu, of course. We brought our cheap baijiu in a bucket. We can’t possibly sell it by the bucket—it’s dozens of jin. Who would buy that? Later, I’ll wash the bottles, fill them with the baijiu, one jin per bottle. Selling them for one Ruble each isn’t too much, is it?"

Gu’er had already done the math. This cheap baijiu was the absolute cheapest back home—even someone like Zhou Mazi could afford it. A jin only cost a few fen. But here, selling a jin for one Ruble was the equivalent of eight yuan. The profit margin was enormous.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let’s wash them now!"

Li Zhi’s eyes lit up. He felt that partnering with Gu’er was the best decision he’d ever made. A woman’s way of thinking was just different from a man’s. He had initially scoffed when he saw her buy so much bubble gum, thinking she was just buying useless junk. And the result? A box containing fifty pieces sold for fifty Rubles. One box was four hundred yuan!

Gu’er had apparently bought dozens of boxes. Ten boxes would be four thousand yuan. Li Zhi did a quick calculation. Just from the bubble gum, if they sold it all, they could probably make ten to twenty thousand.

He wasn’t sure if all the goods he had bought, put together, would even make as much money as her bubble gum.

The calculation made Li Zhi’s head spin. ’Did I get that wrong? How can it be so much money? Is this what making money is like? It’s like money falling from the sky! But even if it did, it wouldn’t be this much at once.’ This just meant his decision to go into business was absolutely right, and choosing Gu’er as his partner was simply brilliant. Li Zhi began to laugh foolishly.

"What are you giggling about? Didn’t you say you were going to wash the bottles? Get to it."

Gu’er didn’t know what Li Zhi was laughing about, but she thought he looked pretty silly.

"Hehe, hehe... Gu’er, how much do you think we’ll make if we sell everything?"

Li Zhi didn’t move, the smile still plastered on his face. He felt like his legs wouldn’t work, like his body was floating. This feeling of making money was just too good. The money wasn’t even in his hands yet, and he already felt so dazed he couldn’t tell which way was up.

"I haven’t calculated it."

Gu’er really hadn’t.

"I did! If we sell all that bubble gum, we’ll make at least ten to twenty thousand. Add in all the other stuff we bought—the pants, the shoes, the baijiu—if we sell all of it, we’ll probably make thirty or forty thousand! And that’s just what we’ll make here! We still have to buy things here to sell back home. With that turnaround, this one trip... this one trip, we could make at least seventy or eighty thousand! Seventy or eighty thousand, Gu’er! Seriously, your bubble gum was a masterstroke. I never imagined it would make so much. I thought twenty thousand for the whole trip would be the absolute limit."

Li Zhi laid out his projections, gesturing wildly as he spoke. His excitement was a far cry from his usual self; he looked completely foolish.

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