Witty Wife, Better Life-Chapter 600 - 590: Winter Break is Coming Again

After confirming the date of Li Hongjun’s return to his team, the couple relaxed. Li Hongjun simply took care of eating and lying at home, while Shen Yunfang worked hard every day to feed the several mouths at home with delicious food, creating an atmosphere of unprecedented harmony. By December, everyone in the family, except Shen Yunfang, had gained weight, even Taxue had become plump and strong.

It was then that Ma Liguo came to visit.

"Yunfang, are we going to take on any small side business for the New Year?" He had been waiting at home, and it seemed that Yunfang had forgotten about this matter, preoccupied with taking care of the patient.

"What else is there to add, isn’t selling couplets and firecrackers enough?" Shen Yunfang really hadn’t thought about doing anything more this year. She felt that it would be very good if they could just continue the business of couplets and firecrackers.

"It’s not about that; it’s just that we already know the couplets and firecrackers business well, and it doesn’t require much worry. I was thinking, since we’re idle anyway, we could look for other ways to make money." Ma Liguo had been influenced by Shen Yunfang these past two years and was now singularly focused on money.

Since the latter half of the year, Ma Liguo had taken it upon himself to manage the couplets and firecrackers business without Shen Yunfang’s directions, and he was able to procure goods every month to store at the Siheyuan. Now, except for rooms on the east and west sides that could still accommodate people, the rest of the rooms were filled with goods. This ensured they wouldn’t worry about supply before the New Year.

Shen Yunfang was aware of these things, but she really hadn’t considered adding anything else to sell this year. His question caught her off guard, and she couldn’t think of anything immediately, "I really haven’t thought about this issue. But the winter break sales are mainly New Year goods. Do you have any ideas? Let’s discuss them."

"Hehe, I do have some thoughts." Ma Liguo had come prepared this time. "I was thinking that during the New Year, people want to buy chicken, duck, fish, and meat. Although the supply in grocery stores has improved over last year, not everyone can get what they want. Your sister-in-law has a classmate in the south who has some influence. They’re near the coast, and I was thinking we could get some seafood to sell."

Shen Yunfang’s eyes lit up upon hearing this, "Really? If we could really get fish and shrimp, we’re guaranteed to make a good profit this year." She hadn’t expected her sister-in-law to have such connections. Indeed, people in the public security system have considerable influence and a wide-reaching network.

"Hehe, you think it’s feasible?" Ma Liguo had come to ask for his sister-in-law’s opinion, feeling that if she approved, it would surely be successful. Of course, this was also his wife’s sentiment since she didn’t trust him but had great faith in Yunfang’s capabilities.

"Yes, our country is facing a shortage of supplies everywhere right now. If we could get these good items, they would definitely sell like hotcakes." There was no need to think about it; in these times, if you have good stuff, it’s summed up in one word: snatch.

This was a seller’s market.

"Since you agree, let’s settle it then. We’ll partner up again, and I’ll take time off after the Solar Calendar New Year to go and check." This venture was going to be a significant investment once again, and Liguo wanted to be there to oversee it personally.

For their family, this was another investment that would leave them with nothing to spare.

"Once we get the goods, how do you plan to transport them back?" Li Hongjun had been listening quietly to their conversation from the beginning, like wallpaper, not voicing his opinion. Now that they were nearly finished discussing, he spoke up.

"We’ll decide when the time comes. However, I’m thinking, if we really do get good stuff, and quite a bit of it, then I’ll hire a truck to transport it back." Ma Liguo had thought everything through.

"Hmm, that is a solution, but if there’s really a lot of stuff, won’t the cost increase if it’s transported by truck? Have you guys considered rail transportation?" Li Hongjun offered his opinion.

Trucks are certainly the most common mode of transportation nowadays, but from south to north, that’s a long journey. With such a trip, Yunfang couldn’t get it done for less than a thousand or eight hundred yuan, and now there are really few individuals with big trucks in the transportation business—mostly these are company vehicles. Private individuals taking out these trucks to run illegal jobs, well, such vehicles are reluctant to take on such long hauls. If they get caught, they might even lose their jobs, so it’s difficult to find vehicles for long-distance transportation.

"What’s the matter, you’ve got connections for a wagon?" Ma Liguo and Li Hongjun had been old comrades-in-arms for many years. To put it crudely, if one lets out a fart, the other knows what he’s about to shit. So, as soon as he heard Li Hongjun say that, he knew he must have some connections.

Shen Yunfang was also curiously looking at her husband, unaware that he had such contacts.

"Hmm, I’ve got a comrade whose family works for the railway; I’m not sure if it will work out, but it’s always possible to ask," said Li Hongjun casually.

He wasn’t the type to take on tasks, nor was he very keen on making money. However, from what Lao Ma meant, he was going to partner with his own wife, and his wife readily agreed. This opportunity came from someone else’s find, and his wife was basically waiting around to divide the profits without having invested anything—how could that be right? Although he and Lao Ma didn’t have outsiders between them, he still had a wife. It’s said even clear accounts make for good brothers, and when money is involved, it’s better to be cautious. For his wife’s sake, he had to think of a way to contribute.

Ah, the endless worries of each day. freewebnσvel.cøm

"Oh my, if we really can secure a wagon, that’d be great." Train transportation costs are much lower than by truck, and it’s faster and more convenient.

Of course, Comrade Ma Liguo didn’t have as many circuitous thoughts as Li Hongjun. It wasn’t that he hadn’t considered them, but these past two years doing business with Yunfang, it had always been Yunfang who came up with the plans, and their family just tagged along. Yunfang never quibbled with them over it. Now, although they were using their family’s connections to get the seafood, they hadn’t thought about leaving Yunfang out.

This was because both families were straightforward with their intentions, and having discussed the terms beforehand, no sordid issues would arise later on.

Shen Yunfang also paid great attention to this aspect, so when Li Hongjun said he could find a wagon, she discussed the details of the business cooperation with Ma Liguo in-depth.

This year, Ma Liguo wanted to make a big move, so he had already discussed with his wife that they would invest twenty-five thousand yuan—almost all the money he earned last year, pretty much their entire savings. (This year, their family also bought a house for over two thousand yuan, so after some scraping together, that’s all they could manage.)

After discussing with Li Hongjun, Shen Yunfang decided to invest fifty thousand yuan.

In this way, Ma Liguo and his wife would invest twenty-five thousand yuan, then take care of sourcing the goods, while Shen Yunfang and her husband would invest fifty thousand yuan to handle transportation. Once back, they would sell the goods together, and finally, the profits would be split fifty-fifty.

In the beginning, Ma Liguo didn’t agree—he felt it took advantage of Li Hongjun and his wife, insisting on distributing profits according to the proportion of the investment. That’s how they had always done it when cooperating in the past. But Li Hongjun disagreed; after all, securing a supply of seafood wasn’t that easy nowadays, as it involved building relationships and paying service fees, all of which were Ma Liguo’s responsibility, so such a division was fair.

In the end, Ma Liguo couldn’t out-stubborn Li Hongjun, and the matter was settled.