Rebirth: I Am Not the Movie Queen This Time-Chapter 61 Wanzhou Trip 1

It was 4:30 AM on the 20th of the twelfth lunar month, and Bai Zhixi had already gotten up to start a fire and cook breakfast, since it’s best to have something warm to eat before setting out in the morning, otherwise, it would be too cold on the road.

Despite being sixteen years old and naturally inclined to sleep in at that age, Wan Chu’er still managed to get up at five o’clock, just in time for breakfast after a quick wash.

After a quick meal, the mother and daughter moved a pile of previously packed items onto their tricycle and hurried to the cargo station.

Upon arriving at the cargo station, the person in charge they had seen before was busy dispatching vehicles. Seeing them, he proactively greeted them.

"Big sister, you’re here! There’s a vehicle about to leave for Wanzhou, and there’s still space available. If you’re ready, you can go with this vehicle."

Bai Zhixi smiled and thanked him, then took out a pack of cigarettes from her pocket and handed it to the person in charge, saying, "We’ll follow your arrangement then, sorry for the trouble."

The mother and daughter had agreed that Bai Zhixi would handle the interactions at the cargo station since Wan Chu’er, being just a teenager, might not be taken seriously by others.

The person in charge glanced at the cigarettes, which were not cheap, and realized that though Bai Zhixi was a woman, she knew how to conduct herself even better than some men.

A smile appeared on his face, and he said, "What trouble? It’s just something along the way." After saying that, he opened the cigarette pack and called a driver over.

"Xiao Sun, come over here for a moment."

A young man shivering with cold ran over, breathing out puffs of air as he asked, "Boss, what’s up?"

The cargo station manager took four cigarettes out of the pack and threw them at him, "I have a task for you."

Xiao Sun’s eyes lit up as he clumsily caught the thrown cigarettes and asked with a smile, "What’s the task?"

The cargo station manager pointed at Bai Zhixi and Wan Chu’er standing next to him, "Take this big sister and her daughter to Wanzhou and load their goods as well."

Bai Zhixi said with a smile, "Young man, thank you for your trouble."

Xiao Sun glanced at Bai Zhixi and her daughter, and then at the tricycle behind them, and promptly said, "Alright, come on over."

Bai Zhixi, feeling a bit embarrassed, spoke to the cargo station boss, "Boss, can I leave this tricycle here for now? I will come back and pick it up tonight."

"The tricycle isn’t going with you?" the cargo station boss asked, surprised.

Hearing this, Wan Chu’er quickly asked, "Can we take the tricycle with us?" It would be much more convenient for them if the tricycle could be transported to Wanzhou, saving them from hiring another vehicle there.

Xiao Sun turned around and said with a smile, "It’s just a small tricycle; if you want to bring it, just bring it along. It won’t take up much space."

Bai Zhixi then quickly said, "Then we’ll bring it along, thank you, young man."

Those who worked in cargo transport were generally rough men, and usually spoke very casually. Suddenly encountering someone as polite as Bai Zhixi made Xiao Sun feel somewhat embarrassed. He said, "No need to thank me, it’s just on the way."

Thus, with the help of several people at the cargo station, both the tricycle and the goods were loaded onto the vehicle, and Bai Zhixi and Wan Chu’er sat in the front driver’s cab of the truck.

There was no conversation during the journey, and after three hours they arrived smoothly in Wanzhou. Xiao Sun helped to unload the goods, and Bai Zhixi gave Xiao Sun the ten yuan as she had previously inquired.

Xiao Sun didn’t play hard to get. After taking the money, he grinned and asked, "Big sister, when will you be back? I am returning to Wutong at six in the evening. If you can make it, wait here for me."

Bai Zhixi replied, "Sure, if you don’t see us here when you arrive, you don’t need to wait." She did not want to have anyone waiting.

Xiao Sun was happy to earn some extra cash. Ten yuan could even buy a good packet of cigarettes, and it would be nice to have someone to talk to on the road too.

It was around ten in the morning. Bai Zhixi was pulling a cart full of goods, with Wan Chu’er insisting on pushing from behind – there were quite a few items on the cart. After asking around, they headed to the area selling New Year goods.

The market was bustling, and their mountain products were indeed popular. Many people came to inquire, but since Wan Chu’er set high prices, many ended up buying some pickles and left.

By the afternoon, around two or three o’clock, they sold out the eight wild rabbits and five pheasants they brought, and an old lady bought all of the mountain walnuts. Half of the pine nuts were sold individually.

Bai Zhixi was in high spirits; after some rough calculations, they had made at least three hundred yuan from the mountain goods, and still had items left unsold. She was already planning where to gather more mountain goods to bring after returning.

Wan Chu’er was not particularly thrilled. In her previous life, Mrs. Jiang used to pay even higher prices for their goods.

However, this was Wanzhou, which was still quite distinct from Beijing.

Only a few pine nuts remained, and Wan Chu’er suggested going door-to-door to sell pickles. Selling mountain produce was just short-term business, but pickles were their long-term interest.

They went to some restaurants like they would in Wutong. Many restaurants, when hearing that they were from Wutong County, were reluctant to buy.

Wan Chu’er thought it over, and discussed a new strategy with Bai Zhixi.

At the next restaurant, they no longer talked about cooperation but instead offered a kilo of pickles for free for tasting, saying they would return in a couple of days and if the restaurant liked the pickles, they could then buy more.

People love free stuff, and Wanzhou residents also knew that Wutong’s pickles were famous, happily accepting the offer.

A couple of restaurant owners, who were rather prideful, felt sorry for the mother-daughter pair who had journeyed so far to do business; they felt awkward about simply taking the free pickles. After tasting and finding them quite delicious, they bought an additional two or three kilos each.

They also encountered a kind-hearted boss who gave them a tip: "At the vegetable market, there’s a section specifically for various pickled vegetables. The locals usually go there to buy pickles, and those sellers are also buying from other places. You might as well go there and talk about wholesaling."

The mother and daughter found this advice sensible and hurried to the largest vegetable market in Wanzhou.

As expected, it was truly a provincial city’s market, several times larger than Wutong’s, with a wide variety of goods including vegetables that are not seen in Wutong during winter.

They indeed found a stall specifically selling pickles. Wan Chu’er presented their pickles and explained their purpose. The pickle seller was a genuine businessman, always smiling at his customers.

He did not directly say yes or no but spent just over half an hour chatting with Bai Zhixi and Wan Chu’er. Although Bai Zhixi and her daughter were anxious as they had to catch a ride by six o’clock, the man’s cheerful demeanor was not off-putting. Instead, it made them wish they had more time to properly sit down and talk.

Glancing at her watch, Wan Chu’er was surprised to see that half an hour had passed without discussing any concrete business. She became alert, carefully contemplating the pickle seller’s words and observing his interactions with his staff member. After watching for a while and seeing no apparent issues, she actually benefited quite a lot.

She couldn’t help thinking that if this man were to promote their pickles in restaurants, the success rate would definitely be higher.

Indeed, there is a teacher to be found in every company of three.