Chapter 35: Going to the Black Market

Zhou Yimin returned to the courtyard house, and as he passed through the front yard, Eldest Uncle called out to him.

“Yimin, the antlers have been processed for you. When you soak them in liquor, make sure to…”

Eldest Uncle then explained the details of soaking the antlers in liquor—how much to use per pound of liquor, how long to soak them, and other important notes.

“Got it! Thanks, Eldest Uncle!”

Zhou Yimin took the neatly cut antlers.

“You rascal, being polite with me now? Alright, get on home!”

Eldest Uncle was a doctor at the steel factory’s medical office, so he naturally knew about Zhou Yimin’s work there. He was proud and satisfied with this young man, the most accomplished one in their courtyard.

Zhou Yimin had brought honor to their courtyard.

On his way home from work, he even ran into an official from the neighborhood committee, who not only praised Zhou Yimin but also gave verbal recognition to their No. 56 courtyard.

And for just helping process the antlers, Zhou Yimin had given Eldest Uncle’s family two large apples.

The last time their family had eaten apples was years ago.

After bidding farewell to Eldest Uncle, Zhou Yimin returned to his room in the middle courtyard and casually stored the cut antlers in his shop inventory.

Then, he took out the remaining jerky—about 40 pounds—and 60 pounds of brown sugar, planning to have Li Youde and Dapeng test the waters at the black market that night.

He didn’t eat jerky much himself—why eat dried meat when fresh was available? So he might as well let Dapeng and the others sell it.

As for the brown sugar, he had no way of consuming all 100 pounds. Aside from setting aside 2 pounds for his grandmother and giving 1 pound each to Li Youde and Dapeng, he still had a lot left.

Before long, Dapeng and Li Youde sneaked over in the dark, looking so suspicious that someone might think they were sneaking around for an affair.

“Each of you take half. Set the price after you figure out the market rate at the black market. And remember, if anything goes wrong, ditch the goods,” Zhou Yimin reminded them once again.

Li Youde and Dapeng stared at the large piles of jerky and brown sugar, momentarily stunned.

“What are you waiting for?”

Only then did they snap out of it, feeling both nervous and excited.

They quickly divided up the goods, each taking 20 pounds of jerky and 30 pounds of brown sugar.

“Don’t worry! I know the black market well, nothing to worry about,” Dapeng assured him.

Zhou Yimin shot him a glance. “You’re actually the one I trust the least. Business is about making money peacefully—don’t go looking for a fight over nothing.”

If he ended up coming back with a limp and no money, that’d be a joke.

Li Youde was more composed, so Zhou Yimin felt more at ease with him.

Without further words, they carried their goods and set off. Since there were multiple black markets in the capital, they went to different ones to avoid competing with each other.

Dapeng knew the rules and paid the 1-yuan entry fee.

That’s why it wasn’t worth going to the black market if you had too few or low-value goods. Otherwise, it’d be like those modern news stories—where an old man selling bamboo shoots for 8 yuan had to pay a 10-yuan management fee.

But the black market’s fee wasn’t for nothing.

First, it provided a trading venue and platform. Second, it ensured lookouts who would warn everyone to flee if law enforcement showed up.

Once inside, Dapeng didn’t rush to set up shop. Instead, he took a stroll to assess the “market prices” for the night.

After getting a sense of the prices, he found a spot to set up his stall.

The moment he did, someone came over to check.

Everyone covered up well, so Dapeng couldn’t see the person’s face, but judging by the voice, it was likely an older man.

“What do you have?”

Dapeng lowered his voice. “Beef jerky, brown sugar. Interested?”

Hearing what was for sale, the man was slightly shocked and quickly asked, “How much?”

Dapeng lifted the cloth slightly to let him see the goods inside.

“Beef jerky, 5 yuan per pound. Brown sugar, 1 yuan 20 cents per pound.”

“That expensive? Fresh meat at the butcher shop costs less than a yuan per pound, and brown sugar is under 50 cents!”

Dapeng immediately covered the goods and waved him off. “Alright then! Go buy from the butcher shop.”

Why come to the black market if you’re going to compare prices to official stores? Meat at the butcher shop required ration coupons, and even with them, you might not get any unless you lined up early.

“Give me a better price!”

Dapeng shook his head. “No discounts.”

He wasn’t in a hurry. Edible goods were always in demand.

The man hesitated, then gritted his teeth and pulled out 12 yuan and 40 cents. “Give me 2 pounds of beef jerky and 2 pounds of brown sugar.”

Just like that, the first sale was made.

Meanwhile, Li Youde was also doing well. As soon as he set up, people took an interest in his jerky and brown sugar. However, he priced his brown sugar at only 1 yuan per pound, 20 cents cheaper.

By midnight, the two had returned, one after the other.

Carrying a small fortune, they were paranoid the whole way back, jumping at shadows.

Selling 20 pounds of jerky had earned them 100 yuan. As for the 30 pounds of brown sugar, Dapeng had made 36 yuan, while Li Youde made 6 yuan less.

Each of them now had over 100 yuan—when had they ever held so much money before?

Dapeng tiptoed to Zhou Yimin’s door and imitated a cat’s meow.

“Meow…”

“Meow your head! What’s with the cat noises? Are you sick? That sounds awful,” Zhou Yimin heard the noise and immediately knew they were back. The results were pretty much as expected.

After all, both jerky and brown sugar were scarce goods, so they should have sold easily.

Dapeng scratched his head awkwardly. “Didn’t you say not to alert the courtyard folks?”

“That doesn’t mean you have to meow! We don’t even have a cat in this courtyard. If people keep hearing cat noises at night, they’ll think the place is haunted!”

“Oh, right! What about a rooster call?”

The courtyard had chickens.

Zhou Yimin gave up on this guy. Was he just naturally dumb?

“Please! Chickens sleep at night too! And do you have to give me the money at night? Can’t it wait till morning? Or just give it to me when you pick up more goods next time.”

“I can’t sleep knowing I have so much cash on me!”

Dapeng then briefly recounted his experience at the market.

Zhou Yimin took the money, counted it, and handed Dapeng his 4 yuan 80 cent cut.

“Forget the 8 cents—4 yuan is fine. I’m already more than satisfied,” Dapeng said, taking only 4 yuan.

Earning 4 yuan in one night? He wouldn’t have even dared to dream about it before.

A short while later, Li Youde sneaked in as well.

Unlike Dapeng, he just lightly knocked on the door. “Yimin, you still up?”

“From now on, just keep the money after selling the goods,” Zhou Yimin said, letting him in.

If they kept doing this every night, how was he supposed to get any sleep?

One reason he asked them for help was to avoid becoming a night owl himself.

“Alright.”

Li Youde nodded. It was just that this was his first time handling so much money, and he was afraid of losing it.

He handed over 130 yuan, and Zhou Yimin gave him 3 yuan 90 cents as his cut.

Holding the money, Li Youde felt a surge of excitement despite his outward calm.

Back home, as soon as he opened the door, his father’s voice rang out.

“You’re back?”

Looking up, he saw that his mother was also awake—they had clearly been waiting for him.

—

(Author Note)

It seems some readers don’t like the black market scenes, so I’ll keep them brief in the future and focus more on everyday life.

(End of Chapter)