Happy Little Farmer
Chapter 779

Chapter 779: Chapter 779

"I didn’t expect that thing to actually turn out to be true." Yang Fan said in surprise.

Mr. Fan frowned, "What true or false?"

"The thing about the leaves," Yang Fan replied.

"So, you didn’t know?"

"I knew, but I didn’t know whether it was true or not. Still had my doubts." Yang Fan explained, "I just thought, whether it’s real or fake, why not give it a shot first and see?"

"I get what you mean. Let’s talk more about it later. The item exists, and it’s indeed a good one." Mr. Fan roughly understood the implications of Yang Fan’s words and nodded.

Fan Sisi and the others looked at Yang Fan and Mr. Fan, exchanging words back and forth with puzzled expressions. They had no idea what these two were talking about. They could understand every word, but not the meaning behind the conversation at all.

Even Ji Dong’er, who knew a little about the situation, was completely confused.

"Grandpa, Fanzi, could you two talk about something we can understand?" Fan Sisi grumbled unhappily.

Mr. Fan waved his hand dismissively, "Don’t be so curious. It’s better for you all not to understand this kind of stuff. Let’s leave it at that."

With that, Mr. Fan clasped his hands behind him and walked out of Yang Fan’s room directly.

Fan Sisi pouted, let out a soft "hmph," then glanced sideways at Yang Fan with a touch of blame. "Look at you two being all mysterious, acting like I care so much about it. I don’t care at all, okay?"

Yang Fan gave a faint smile and didn’t say a word.

It really wasn’t something easy to explain.

Fan Sisi and the others likely had some clue about it, but if you told an ordinary person, they’d probably think he was crazy, maybe even enthusiastically offer to help him contact a mental hospital.

Yang Fan had actually been a little curious about the function of the Lifebound Locust Leaves just now, but with outsiders present, it wasn’t convenient for him to ask. He could only hold back and plan to discuss it with Mr. Fan later.

"Miss Zhou, shall we talk about the medicinal materials?" Yang Fan redirected the topic.

Zhou Yingnan, although clueless about the earlier exchange, didn’t have any interest in probing further. Hearing him, she nodded, "The types of materials you’re focused on collecting, I do have them, but not much in quantity."

"You’re aware of this year’s market situation. Most of what’s still circulating out there is basically fake. Genuine goods are scarce and rarely available. The initial rounds have already knocked most of the fruits off the tree, so to speak."

Yang Fan nodded; he was well aware of this reality.

If it weren’t for the scarcity in the market, he wouldn’t have resorted to this method to source materials for his contract obligations.

Back when prices were high, most people who could sell had already sold.

What’s being held onto now is largely stock purchased at a high price earlier, but before they could resell, the market crashed. These people feel the sting of selling at a low price and are sticking to higher bids.

But if Yang Fan paid too high a price, he’d feel the sting as well. Even if the profit margin wasn’t much, he deserved to at least earn something for the effort, didn’t he?

If the contract deadline was nearing and they faced penalties, he and Old Zhou might have to cave to these people, but for now they could still hold out. No need to throw their own money into filling someone else’s hole.

Zhou Yingnan continued, "How about this? Let’s speak plainly. Although you’re a customer introduced by my grandpa, and I’ll definitely give face to that, I still have to make a bit of profit. There’s no way I’m covering my own costs—things like labor, fuel expenses—just because of a connection."

Yang Fan nodded in agreement. "Of course, that’s how it should be. Doing business without making a profit would be pointless. Miss Zhou, how about this—why don’t you draft up a list of the medicinal materials you currently have or expect to have during specific times? Mark the prices and quantities clearly on it."

"What I’m looking for isn’t just a one-off deal. If possible, I’d prefer for us to develop a long-term collaboration."

Zhou Yingnan nodded. "That’s doable. I’ll work on it later. However, there’s one thing I need to clarify upfront. If your situation is similar to mine—primarily focused on collecting certain materials—then I’d advise not going through the trouble."

"The supplier I previously worked with is a major procurement company. Their upstream connection is directly with pharmaceutical firms. So if your upstream is also just a major buyer without a channel to the pharmaceutical industry, then I’d recommend against all this effort. You likely won’t be able to accept my pricing."

"It’s fine, I think there’s still room for collaboration." Yang Fan smiled.

His channels might be limited.

But Old Zhou had plenty.

In this line of business, even if he didn’t earn much from the other medicinal materials, as long as the ones specified in the contract were fulfilled, the profit margin would still be considerable. And knowing Old Zhou’s opportunistic nature, there was no way he’d let Yang Fan walk away without earning a penny from the other materials.

Seeing Yang Fan’s confidence, Zhou Yingnan didn’t press further. "Alright then. You all stay busy, and I’ll prepare the list. I’ll probably come back tomorrow or the day after. Judging by Boss Yang’s condition, it looks like you’ll be stuck in bed for at least ten more days, right? This isn’t too urgent, is it?"

"Not really urgent, but the sooner the better. My injuries look bad, but they’re actually not that serious," Yang Fan said. "It’d be good to finalize it soon—puts everyone’s mind at ease."

"...Alright."

Without unnecessary pleasantries, Zhou Yingnan gave Yang Fan a farewell nod and left directly.

Yun Miaoyi followed her out briefly but soon returned, looking a little embarrassed. "Fanzi, my cousin’s always been like this—straightforward to a fault. She’s never been one for subtlety since she was little. I hope you don’t mind."

"You’ve got it wrong. On the contrary, I mind people who beat around the bush. I actually like her personality—everything is simple and direct," Yang Fan replied with a smile. "Doing business with someone like her is easy. Dealing with people who twist everything around is just exhausting."

People who beat around the bush might sound pleasant on the surface, but who knows what’s really going on in their heads?

"That’s true." Yun Miaoyi chuckled softly and sat down beside Yang Fan.

"But no matter if it’s for my grandpa’s sake or mine, she won’t go too rough on you. I think there’s a nine out of ten chance you’ll close the deal. Besides, her business isn’t as small as she makes it sound—it’s actually quite substantial."

"I don’t know what counts as ’big’ in your line of work, but I’ve heard her mention that during the slow season, her monthly net profit is about twenty thousand. In the peak season, it goes above a hundred thousand."

"That’s not huge, but it’s not small either. Definitely bigger than me," Yang Fan said with a laugh.

That figure was larger than Yang Fan had initially estimated.

But it wasn’t really an issue.

With Old Zhou backing him, someone who could rake in a million with just a flick of the wrist, this level of business was easily manageable.