In the evening, the main topic of conversation in most households in the village, whether envious, jealous, or curious, was more or less related to Ding Yun.
Even the educated youth point wasn't an exception.
They discussed Ding Yun with envy. They felt her parents truly doted on her, allowing her to bring so much money and even live alone in a new house. This wasn't like coming to the countryside to suffer; it was practically a vacation. Amidst their envy, they secretly discussed ways to get on good terms with the newcomer, hoping they might be able to buy things they lacked through her. They received some subsidies from their families, but their families couldn't possibly stretch their budgets to constantly support them. At most, they'd send some food or cash. However, ration coupons were scarce. This meant many things were hard to buy, almost as difficult as for the local villagers. If Ding Yun could help them acquire items that required coupons without needing them herself, it would be beneficial. At the very least, it would save them the trouble of desperately trying to get soap coupons just to buy a bar of soap. To improve their living standards, the dozen or so educated youth at the point agreed to try and build a good relationship with the new educated youth. They planned to each contribute some ingredients the next day and invite Ding Yun over for a meal as a welcome.
The next morning, Village Head Wang arrived early with breakfast for Ding Yun. He assumed Ding Yun wouldn't have cooking utensils and thus wouldn't be able to cook, so he brought food to discuss matters over. Ding Yun hadn't eaten breakfast yet either. Her "expiring inventory sales network" only sold items like overnight rice, overnight steamed buns, and near-expiry bread. Even bento boxes were cold. To get hot food, one would need self-heating hot pots or rice. However, those items were inconvenient to reveal, so Ding Yun had planned to eat near-expiry bread. Since the village head brought millet porridge, she accepted it gratefully, took it, and returned to her room to find two salted duck eggs. She handed one to the village head and asked, "Village Head, have you got the results? Just tell me!" As she spoke, Ding Yun cracked the salted duck egg, scooped a bit out with her chopsticks, and began sipping the millet porridge.
"Oh… yes, there are results. Let me tell you first. If you find it difficult, we can discuss it further. I'm looking for a television, a bicycle, and a sewing machine. Additionally, if you could get some wedding supplies, like Hong Shuangxi quilts and washbasins, or a thermos, that would be even better! See if you have any difficulties. We can negotiate if there are any," Village Head Wang said, still unsure if Ding Yun could truly procure these items. He repeatedly emphasized that they could negotiate and he was willing to compromise. Ding Yun continued eating and replied, "Let me put it this way, I'm less certain about the wedding supplies. However, televisions, bicycles, and sewing machines are absolutely no problem. But I need to be clear upfront: while I have channels to get these items, I can't guarantee they are the latest models. For instance, with a black-and-white TV, I can get one, but it might not be from this year; it could be from a few years prior. Bicycles and sewing machines are similar; most have been produced for two or three years but haven't sold. Do you understand? They're essentially inventory items. They haven't been used, but they aren't the newest models. If you don't mind this, then there's absolutely no problem."
"I don't mind at all, of course not. Being able to buy them is great. Forget inventory, even used ones are fine! Can you give me a price estimate? How many can I exchange for?" Village Head Wang, though unaware why items that were impossible to buy elsewhere would be in inventory, figured that items stored for a few years wouldn't be significantly affected and wouldn't be broken. Being able to get them without coupons was the most important thing. He immediately agreed and cautiously began inquiring about prices. He had already researched the prices of these three items and was prepared for them to be slightly higher than the normal retail price, but if they were too high, he would negotiate.
"For a black-and-white TV, a 14-inch one, I'll quote 500 yuan. Bigger ones aren't really necessary. For bicycles and sewing machines, I'll set them both at 100 yuan each, to make it a round number and avoid loose change. As for the wedding supplies you mentioned, I haven't bought those before, so I'll need to contact someone to check. I can't give you a price now, but based on the quotes for the first three items, you can see the prices won't be excessively high. If you don't need many, just one or two sets... How about this? You have tables, chairs, benches, and a bed in this room, don't you? Give me all of those, and I'll contact someone to directly send you two sets of wedding supplies. How about that? No haggling, just a straight exchange!" Ding Yun had actually searched for common wedding items on her expiring inventory sales network before, but she hadn't searched for wedding supplies. Therefore, she couldn't quote a price and asked the village head if he could exchange his furniture for them.
The village head was overjoyed. He had learned from his youngest son that a TV would cost around 600-700 yuan and required coupons, a bicycle would be 160-170 yuan, also requiring coupons, and a sewing machine would be at least 120 yuan, with coupons being essential. Not only were they hard to buy, but even with connections, the price would increase by over 20%. Now, what was this quote? It was 20% lower than the original price. He was almost afraid it was too low and worried if there were issues with the items. Regarding the wedding supplies exchange for furniture, he was also surprised. His initial quote of 1500 yuan had included the furniture in the room, as wood and labor weren't expensive nowadays. Without including the furniture, the total wouldn't reach 1500 yuan. He didn't expect this young girl to be unaware and still consider the furniture separately. After a long period of silent deliberation, the village head finally decided that if the girl was telling the truth and the TVs and other items were fine, deceiving her now would negatively impact her impression of him. Therefore, he honestly revealed the situation: the furniture in the room was already included in the price of the house.
Ding Yun's impression of him immediately improved. No one wanted to be cheated. Voluntarily agreeing was one thing, but being deceived was another. She immediately replied with a smile, "It's alright, it's alright. Village Head, you're truly honest. In that case, I'll still exchange wedding supplies with you. Two sets remain unchanged. Please help me get some cabinets. This room only has tables, chairs, benches, and a bed. It lacks wardrobes for clothes, and shelves for bowls, chopsticks, and other items. Please help me get those. I don't know any carpenters in the village, nor how to get wood, so I'll trouble you with everything. If you think it's acceptable, then it's settled. Also, tell me how many TVs, bicycles, and sewing machines you want. I'll go to the county town to contact someone and have them deliver the items as soon as possible. We can inspect the goods first, and only then finalize the exchange if you're satisfied. What do you think?" Ding Yun wasn't deceiving anyone, so she had the confidence to offer an inspection. Hearing this, the village head felt the possibility of her faking it to cheat him was extremely low, and the matter was likely genuine. He immediately nodded in agreement. "Yes, yes, absolutely! Tell me what kind of furniture you want, and I'll make sure it's done. As for how many TVs and so on... I'll take one TV. For bicycles, I want three. For sewing machines, I also want two. That leaves 500 yuan. Are there watches available? If so, I'd like a few."
"I won't charge you much for the watches either, just 100 yuan each. They're all mechanical watches; there are men's, women's, and pocket watches. How many do you want?" Ding Yun said readily. Wholesale and retail were different. Although she sold them to the black market boss for 50 yuan each, she never sold them for less than 120 yuan at retail. So, this price was a concession.
"Um, I'd like three men's watches and two women's watches, is that okay? Three for my sons, one each, and two for my wife and daughter. That way, the money will be spent completely, saving any excess that might attract unwanted attention!" After a quick mental calculation, Village Head Wang decided to buy five watches.
"Village Head, aren't you getting one for yourself?" To be honest, Ding Yun was quite surprised. She hadn't expected this seemingly sturdy village head to be so considerate of his wife and daughter. In this era, it was difficult to be fair to everyone.
"I don't need one. I'm old, what use is a watch for me? If I need to know the time, I can just ask. With a few extra watches at home, someone can tell me the time!"
"Alright then, I'll go to the county town later! I'll ask them to expedite the delivery. It will take three to five days at the shortest, and a week at the latest for the items to arrive."