Chapter 211: The Final Price of the Centennial Wild Ginseng
Bai Xueqing and Jin Fuqiang imdiately turned their attention to the conversation.
Inside the exquisite wooden box lay the dried, wrinkled Ginseng, tied with a red string, resembling a tiny figure.
“This is indeed the appearance of a centennial Ginseng.”
Jin Fuqiang, working for a state-owned purchasing company, could tell at a glance that this Ginseng was extraordinary.
Bai Xueqing remained silent. Her family owned a pharmaceutical group, and she understood Ginseng even better than Jin Fuqiang.
Having been exposed to it from a young age, she could discern the quality of a Ginseng at a glance.
Bai Xueqing leaned in for a closer look, then asked, “May I take it out for a closer inspection?”
Lin Heng smiled and nodded, “Of course.”
Bai Xueqing took the Ginseng out, walked to the window, opened it, and examined it carefully. She gently touched the roots and inspected other parts.
Finally, she placed the Ginseng back in the box, her pale face revealing no expression.
The room fell silent for a mont. Lin Heng was in no hurry and showed no intention of prompting the conversation.
At worst, he wouldn’t sell it now. After the New Year, he could find a buyer in Ancheng and still get a good price.
Centennial Wild Ginseng is a rare treasure. If not for the need to quickly ‘develop,’ he would have kept it.
Bai Xueqing was surprised by Lin Heng’s silence. Despite his young appearance, he was remarkably composed.
Swallowing, she spoke up, “Have you weighed this Ginseng?”
Lin Heng nodded, “I didn’t weigh it when it was fresh, but later I used a small scale at a pharmacy. It weighs thirty-six grams and is definitely over 150 years old.”
Bai Xueqing nodded, “This is genuine, but claiming it’s 150 years is a stretch. It’s just over a hundred. I’ll offer you fifteen thousand, and if you agree, I’ll pay imdiately.”
Lin Heng couldn’t help but smile, “Ms. Bai, given your background in a pharmaceutical group, you should understand the age and value of this Ginseng. Quoting such a price would only invite ridicule.”
Bai Xueqing smiled slightly, “Then what price does Boss Lin find reasonable?”
Lin Heng thought for a mont and said, “Thirty thousand.”
Bai Xueqing laughed, “Haha, Boss Lin, have you gone mad for money? Thirty thousand is an outrageous price.”
Lin Heng remained calm and smiled, “Centennial Wild Ginseng is a rare treasure. While it may not bring the dead back to life, it certainly replenishes vitality and prolongs life.
Moreover, our country’s Ginseng resources are dwindling. Holding onto this will only increase its value, not diminish it.
If you find the price too high, it’s fine if we can’t reach an agreent. We can part amicably. In a few years, I can take this to a major coastal city, and I’m sure there will be connoisseurs willing to pay a high price.”
Lin Heng’s words made Bai Xueqing grit her teeth. It seed he was not easily swayed; he fully understood the Ginseng’s value.
As Lin Heng said, its value would only increase over ti.
After a few minutes of thought, she looked at Lin Heng and said, “Let’s compromise. I’ll take it for twenty thousand. Despite what you’ve said, you seem eager to sell, or you wouldn’t have put out the word.”
Lin Heng shook his head with a smile, “That’s too much of a concession. I’m not in dire need of money. You can ask around.
Though I can’t compare to Ms. Bai or Director Jin, I’m still a small Ten-Thousand-Yuan Household. I won’t starve without selling the Ginseng. Even if I don’t go to the coast, I can find a suitable buyer in Ancheng.”
Taking a sip of tea, Lin Heng lit a sprig of cypress incense on the windowsill, filling the room with a faint, crafted scent.
Bai Xueqing glanced at the Boshan Censer, realizing it was an antique, and a look of surprise flickered in her eyes.
After a mont of thought, she looked at Jin Fuqiang, signaling him to speak.
Jin Fuqiang looked at Bai Xueqing, then at Lin Heng, and smiled, “How about this? I’ll be fair. This Ginseng is indeed precious, but thirty thousand is a bit much. How about twenty-eight thousand?”
Before Lin Heng could respond, Bai Xueqing spoke first, looking at Jin Fuqiang with a peculiar expression, “Uncle Jin, your fairness is too fair.”
Lin Heng was also surprised. He had expected Jin Fuqiang to help lower the price, but instead, he sided with him, which was quite unexpected.
Jin Fuqiang grinned, “Don’t bla . Your Baiyao Group isn’t short on money. Even at this price, you’ll make a profit taking it back.
I only shared this information with you because of our good relationship. If I told a few more people, soone would definitely buy it for thirty thousand.
Lin Heng is just a farr who went through great hardships to find a Centennial Wild Ginseng. It’s not easy, so don’t haggle over a little money with him.”
Jin Fuqiang genuinely liked Lin Heng. He was grateful, spoke well, respected him, and had a light view of matters. Jin Fuqiang saw him as soone with potential.
Bai Xueqing didn’t want to speak anymore. She looked at Jin Fuqiang with a bit of frustration. If it weren’t for the fact that he was sowhat related to her family, she would have given him a piece of her mind. Why was he siding with outsiders?
So what if she had money? She didn’t want to spend even a penny more on these outsiders.
Jin Fuqiang’s words left her with no room to negotiate further unless she decided not to buy at all. But she had driven all the way here in such a hurry, determined to get what she ca for.
“Fine, let’s go with Uncle Jin’s suggestion. I’ll give you twenty-eight thousand. What do you think?” Bai Xueqing looked at Lin Heng and thought to herself that it was fortunate he was at least pleasant to look at; if he were ugly, she wouldn’t even want to offer twenty thousand.
Lin Heng smiled slightly and nodded in agreent. “Since Uncle Jin has spoken, I have no objections.”
In truth, he hadn’t expected to sell at such a high price initially. It wasn’t that the ginseng wasn’t worth it, but finding soone particularly wealthy was challenging.
When he saw Bai Xueqing, he knew she was no ordinary person, so he silently raised his expected price for the ginseng.
It turned out that spending fifty or sixty yuan on als with Jin Fuqiang was worth it. This man really knew how to make connections.
“Shall we go to the town to complete the transaction?” Bai Xueqing asked Lin Heng.
Lin Heng nodded and checked his watch. “We can, but I’m afraid the credit union in town might already be closed.”
“That’s not a problem. I have my ways,” Bai Xueqing waved her hand dismissively and asked, “Where’s the restroom? I need to use it.”
“The restroom is in the backyard.”
Lin Heng led her outside and pointed in the direction, then turned back into the house.
Inside, he looked at Jin Fuqiang with a smile. “Director Jin, thank you so much. I’ll definitely visit you personally to express my gratitude another day.”
Jin Fuqiang waved it off with a smile. “It’s nothing. This is a benefit to as well.”
Facilitating the sale of century-old ginseng was also a testant to his connections.
“It might be nothing to you, but it’s a big deal for . I must thank you.”
Lin Heng said with a smile.
“Lin Heng, do you have musk deer here too?”
Just as they were about to exchange pleasantries, they heard Bai Xueqing’s exclamation from outside.
Lin Heng and Jin Fuqiang hurried out to see Bai Xueqing examining a male musk deer in the backyard.
Jin Fuqiang was also surprised by the scenery in Lin Heng’s backyard, which was arranged with such artistic flair.
Bai Xueqing looked up and asked, “Is this musk deer yours?”
She was initially amazed by how beautifully Lin Heng had arranged the backyard, but upon closer inspection, she noticed the musk deer and was even more impressed.
Lin Heng nodded. “Yes, is there a problem?”
Bai Xueqing looked again and said, “Why not sell it to ?”
She was interested in the musk deer. Live musk deer were rare these days, making breeding efforts difficult.
Lin Heng shook his head with a smile. “This one is not for sale. If you’re interested in musk, we can talk next year.”
Bai Xueqing really wanted to buy it and said, “Na your price. As long as it’s not outrageous, I’ll buy it.”
“That’s really not possible. To be honest, this one is for breeding. There’s a pregnant female musk deer in the back mountain, so I can’t sell it. If you’re interested in musk, we can discuss it, or maybe in the future when my herd is larger.”
Lin Heng smiled and ntioned the existence of the female musk deer, which was also an opportunity. Selling musk directly to pharmaceutical companies would certainly be more profitable.
“You have a female musk deer too? Do you have a special way to catch musk deer?”
Bai Xueqing was shocked. She thought Lin Heng was just a lucky guy, but it turned out he had skills.
Lin Heng smiled and said, “Just lucky.”
The more Lin Heng said this, the less Bai Xueqing believed him. She looked at him and asked, “Are you really not selling?”
“Of course not. This is my livelihood,” Lin Heng replied with a smile.
Bai Xueqing said, “Musk deer are hard to keep. Be careful not to lose everything.”
“I’m confident,” Lin Heng smiled.
“Alright then, let’s go to town and settle the paynt.”
Bai Xueqing didn’t insist further, knowing Lin Heng wouldn’t sell.
Lin Heng nodded, went inside to carefully wrap the ginseng for storage, then inford Xiulan before leaving with the two.
The three of them got into the jeep and headed toward Huangtan Town.
As they reached a secluded bend, Bai Xueqing suddenly stopped the car.
Lin Heng’s eyes narrowed, keeping a close watch on Bai Xueqing’s movents.
“Don’t worry, I an no harm.”
Bai Xueqing waved her hand and said, “I brought the money with . This place is just more suitable.”
She didn’t dare take out the money at Lin Heng’s house, as one can never be too cautious.
“I understand.”
Lin Heng nodded. He knew that bringing the ginseng out alone was because he was confident that as long as there were no firearms involved, he could handle both Jin Fuqiang and Bai Xueqing.
Bai Xueqing took out a black cloth bag she had been carrying, filled with bundles of ten-yuan bills, each stack about the thickness of a fingernail, totaling a thousand yuan.
She took out two stacks and threw the remaining money along with the black cloth bag to Lin Heng. “Here’s twenty-eight thousand. Count it yourself.”
“Alright.”
Lin Heng placed the ginseng aside and began to slowly count the money, keeping an eye on Bai Xueqing from the corner of his eye.
Ten minutes later, he nodded and said, “No problem.”
He then handed the ginseng to Bai Xueqing.
Bai Xueqing, seemingly worried that Lin Heng might change his mind, drafted two copies of a sales contract.
Both of them signed and stamped the contracts. Bai Xueqing looked at him and said, “The deal is done. You can get off the car now.”
Lin Heng turned to say sothing to Jin Fuqiang, then got out of the car.
As soon as Lin Heng got out, Bai Xueqing floored the gas pedal, speeding off and leaving a cloud of black smoke that made Lin Heng cough repeatedly.
“Damn, that woman!”
Lin Heng was speechless with envy. Driving like that was bound to cause trouble sooner or later.
He glanced at the bundle of money in the bag, zipped it up securely, and turned to head back ho.
The wind was particularly strong today. Other than when the car arrived and left, no one was around to watch. By the ti Lin Heng returned, the place was deserted.
Having no one around was a good thing for Lin Heng, who carried the bag of money ho without any issues.
“Why are you back so soon?” Xiulan opened the door, looking at Lin Heng with a puzzled expression.
Lin Heng grinned and said, “Of course, the deal is done. Do you know how much I sold it for this ti?”
“How much?”
Xiulan asked curiously. She had been in the main room with Xiao Xia while Lin Heng was negotiating and hadn’t heard anything.
“Twenty-eight thousand.”
Lin Heng whispered in Xiulan’s ear.
Xiulan was stunned on the spot. “How… how much?”
“Co inside, I’ll show you.”
Lin Heng smiled slightly, pulling her into the house. Xiao Xia was playing with a wooden horse in the main room and wasn’t clinging to Lin Heng at the mont.
Once in the bedroom, Lin Heng locked the door and handed the bag of money to Xiulan. “See for yourself.”
“Oh my, so much… it’s too much!”
Xiulan exclaid in amazent at the sight of the money in the bag.
It was the first ti she had seen so much money, and for a mont, she didn’t know what to say. It felt like it was beyond her understanding.
She picked up the money, touching and examining it repeatedly.
After taking a couple of deep breaths, Xiulan asked, “How did you manage to sell it for so much?”
Lin Heng briefly explained the process, leaving Xiulan even more astonished. Her gaze returned to the money. “What do you plan to do with all this money? Keep it at ho or deposit it in the credit union?”
Lin Heng held his wife’s hand and smiled. “We’ll keep so at ho and deposit so in the credit union.”
Such a large sum of money was considered a fortune in those days. It definitely couldn’t be kept all in one place, especially not entirely in the local credit union.
“Alright, let’s store it safely first.”
Xiulan nodded, releasing Lin Heng’s hand to find a box. Her heart was pounding with anxiety. With so much money, she felt it could be lost at any mont if not stored properly.
They divided the money into three parts, placing them in three separate small boxes, which finally put Xiulan at ease.
Watching her, Lin Heng pulled her onto his lap and laughed. “Look at how cautious you are. We’ll deposit it tomorrow.”
Xiulan rolled her eyes at him. “Even if we’re depositing it tomorrow, we need to keep it safe. If we lose it, we’ll be crying.”
Lin Heng laughed heartily. “Tomorrow, we’re not just depositing money. We’re also buying a motorcycle. You’ll co to town with , and we’ll ask Caiyun to look after Xiao Xia.”
Having made such a big sale, he planned to buy a good motorcycle.
“Okay.” Xiulan nodded, then looked at Lin Heng’s face and pinched it. “How did you get so lucky?”
Lin Heng laughed. “It’s all thanks to Xiong Ba. We need to take good care of him.”
“But my luck played a part too, and so did you. Without you taking care of the house, I couldn’t have gone up the mountain with peace of mind.”
Lin Heng chuckled, giving Xiulan a peck on the cheek. Making a fortune and sharing it with the one you love is the greatest joy in the world.
Xiulan wiped the saliva off her face, only for Lin Heng to give her another peck, prompting her to lightly slap him and scold, “You’re so improper.”
“As if you’re not happy. Your heart is racing.”
Lin Heng teased, holding his wife’s ample bosom with a cheeky grin.
Xiulan blushed, standing up. “Alright, you should think about how to get your cart back.”
— Translator’s Notes —
– Boshan Censer: A type of ancient Chinese bronze incense burner from the Han Dynasty, famous for its intricate designs depicting mythical mountains and often valued as an antique artifact.
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