Volume One, Chapter Six: Scanning—What Code to Scan? The First Earnings

Old Lin had seen plenty of king clams before, but generally speaking, ones of this size were farmed; it was rare to find wild ones this large.

"Of course, my brother dug these up on the beach," Xiao Hu said proudly.

"Does your village really have king clams this big?" Old Lin was still a bit skeptical. "I haven't seen them like this before."

"Well, they haven't been common, but maybe we just got lucky today. See what you can offer for them," Ye Cheng replied calmly.

"Look, the product is nice, but the taste is about the same as regular clams. They don't fetch a high price. I can only offer twelve yuan a jin."

"Twelve?" Xiao Hu shouted in excitement, his joy immediately giving him away.

Ye Cheng glared at him. How could this kid be so impatient in business?

Old Lin, a crafty old fox, saw that one of them was already hooked and immediately reached for a bucket to weigh them.

"Wait." Ye Cheng calmly pressed down on the bucket.

"What? You think it's too little?" Old Lin’s expression darkened. He set the bucket down and spread his hands. "If it's too little, then forget it. That’s the price I’m offering. You don’t have much anyway; I wouldn't even be buying these normally."

Ye Cheng took a slow puff of his cigarette. He had seen this kind of tactic many times before. It was just like dealing with a corporate client—no matter what, they would pick a pile of flaws just to drive the price down.

Sure, the taste of a king clam was similar to a regular clam, and they weren't much better than sand clams, but people paid for seafood for that slight nuance in quality. And there was the size; when people hosted dinners, they wanted to show off. It wasn't as mediocre as he claimed. This Old Lin was just trying to squeeze the price.

"Boss Lin, I know we don’t have a large quantity, but the quality is undeniable. Add a bit more, and I’ll be sure to bring you the good stuff next time," Ye Cheng said.

Old Lin flicked the ash from his cigarette and shook his head. "That's the price. I have to make a living, don't I? If not, go try somewhere else."

Xiao Hu wanted to speak again, but a glare from Ye Cheng made him swallow his words. He couldn't understand why Ye Cheng wasn't satisfied with twelve yuan a jin.

Ye Cheng feigned a sigh and said with a look of disappointment, "Fine, we won't get in the way of your business, Boss Lin. We'll go ask around elsewhere."

"Xiao Hu, grab the stuff, we're leaving." Ye Cheng picked up the bucket and headed out first.

Xiao Hu was stunned. Why stop selling all of a sudden? He didn't understand, but he trusted Ye Cheng and followed him out, carrying the buckets.

Seeing the two walk out of the shop without looking back, Old Lin couldn't sit still. He walked out and chased after them for a few steps, calling out helplessly, "Hey, wait, wait! Come back, let's talk more."

Ye Cheng smiled triumphantly. Merchants were the same everywhere; this trick had worked for years and never failed. But if Xiao Hu hadn't let his excitement slip, he wouldn't have needed to use it.

"Brother, let's not go back. He was clearly trying to lowball us. What a greedy merchant," Xiao Hu realized, feeling a bit angry.

"Business is all about negotiation, don't get worked up," Ye Cheng said calmly. In business, you have to stay steady. No matter what someone says or does, profit is the first priority.

Ye Cheng walked back with the bucket but stopped right at the entrance. This told Boss Lin that he was ready to leave at any moment, applying psychological pressure. "Boss Lin, what do you say?"

Old Lin shook his head and smiled at Ye Cheng. "People always say 'Second Brother Ye' is a good-for-nothing, but I think they were wrong about you."

Ye Cheng smiled without a word. They weren't wrong; they just didn't know the soul had changed—it had become that of a seasoned corporate veteran.

Since Ye Cheng stayed silent, Old Lin had no choice but to name his price. "How about this: fifteen yuan a jin. Let's just call it a gesture of friendship."

"Twenty. And I'll give you priority on any good stock in the future."

"Twenty is impossible, absolutely not! I can't even sell them for that much—I'd be losing money." Old Lin waved his hands like a fan.

"Then what's your offer?"

"Sixteen at most. Any more and I'll be in the red."

"Eighteen, final offer. Take it or I'm trying another shop." Ye Cheng picked up the bucket again.

"Hey, hey, why are you using that trick again? Fine, eighteen it is. I'm afraid of you." Old Lin looked annoyed. Who the hell told him Second Brother Ye was a small-time thug? This guy was sharper than a ghost.

Xiao Hu watched, dumbfounded. Brother Cheng was amazing—he had gone from twelve to eighteen in an instant. But when did Brother Cheng get so good at this? Did he have an epiphany after peeking at Widow Zhang taking a bath?

Once the price was settled, Old Lin efficiently picked out the king clams. The more he sorted, the happier he became. At this size, even at twenty yuan a jin, he would still make a healthy profit. Seafood was like jade; once the quality reached a certain level, the price could jump tenfold. Many wealthy bosses loved these rare, high-end wild catches, and they didn't care about the price—to them, money wasn't an issue; encountering such goods was a matter of destiny.

"I won't be taking these small clams," Old Lin said, leaving the runts in the bucket.

"No problem, we'll take those home to eat ourselves."

After draining the water, he put them on the scale. "Thirty-two jin. That's five hundred and seventy-six yuan in total."

Over five hundred! Xiao Hu’s breathing quickened. That was half of his family’s monthly income.

"No problem, scan the code," Ye Cheng started to pull out his phone out of habit, then realized it wasn't the future—there were no QR codes.

"Scan what code?" Old Lin looked blank.

"Nothing, just talking to myself. Cash is fine."

Only now did he realize a problem: he didn't even have a mobile phone. It was 2002; in his previous life, he couldn't have lived without one.

Old Lin gave Ye Cheng a suspicious look, thinking the reputation of being a good-for-nothing wasn't entirely unearned—he really was a bit erratic.

Counting out five large bills and seventy-six yuan in change, Old Lin handed the money to Ye Cheng and added, "Remember to come to me if you have any good stuff next time."

"No problem, definitely. Thanks."

Holding the money, Ye Cheng felt the fatigue of the day vanish. People needed something to strive for. Five hundred yuan wouldn't even pay for a meal in his previous life, but right now, it was half a month's wages. With this kind of income, Ye Cheng felt things were looking up.

"Brother, with this much money, should we go have a big meal?" Xiao Hu was already drifting on cloud nine.

He was met with a sharp flick to the forehead. "Eat what? We'd spend all our earnings on food."

Ye Cheng counted out one hundred and fifty and handed it to Xiao Hu. "Take this home to your family. Don't spend it on yourself."

Xiao Hu scratched his head, feeling embarrassed. "Brother, that's too much. You dug them all up; just give me enough for a pack of cigarettes."

"Take it. If you're going to follow me, there will be plenty of chances to make money in the future. Are you going to refuse your share then, too?"