Chapter 199: Chapter 199: Middlemen Profit from the Price Gap
Yi Heng could only step out with heavy steps.
The twins insisted on going, so Ai Jie had to take them along.
As the group walked a distance, footsteps sounded behind them.
"Bro!"
Yi Heng turned around and saw Yi Kai catching up. He frowned, "What are you doing here?"
"Going with you to sell fish."
The little boy pursed his lips, "You look tired."
Yi Heng initially wanted to say, ’You’re just a kid, you’ll only tire me more,’ but then realized that before leaving, Yi Kai had been playing with Gu Miaomiao and the others.
Would he rather not play with friends and come with him?
Yi Heng gave a light ’hmph’.
The program team rented a personal small fishing boat. It wasn’t large, and they only went out to sea for a day, relying on the sea and weather for their livelihood. This catch wasn’t much but not little either; the program team estimated it could sell for between eight thousand and ten thousand.
After deducting labor costs, fuel costs, and other expenses, the profit wouldn’t be much. But fortunately, the program would cover these costs, so the money from selling fish would all go to the guests.
If they could sell it for ten thousand, Yi Heng thought, that would be a decent performance.
But when negotiating with the fish buyers, he realized how naive he was.
The fish buyers were owners of a comprehensive aquatic product wholesale market. They bought fish to sell to vendors, who then sold to residents.
To maximize profits, these buyers pushed prices down.
Initially, Yi Heng remained calm as Ai Jie bargained with them back and forth, but eventually, he couldn’t stand it anymore, "You’re just bullying us because we’re outsiders!"
The price was too low!
Besides, he had been vomiting all day, working hard to catch fish — how could it sell for such a low price?
Comparing several fish buyers, Yi Heng found that each one was more exploitative than the last.
He got so angry that his face turned red, "Might as well sell directly to the vendors!"
Selling to residents would take too long, and the longer it took, the less fresh the fish would be, resulting in higher losses. Yet, some fish vendors directly connect with those who catch fish, bypassing the comprehensive aquatic product wholesale market.
However, the new problem was that they didn’t know any vendors.
The group came out in a huff.
Ai Jie hesitated, "The longer we delay, the higher the losses. Should we go back and try bargaining again?"
Yi Heng felt stifled.
At this moment, he didn’t have any thoughts of ’I’m a celebrity, give me face.’ He thought only that these people were too heartless.
"They said they’d pay market price, but when they saw the fish, they said it wasn’t fresh one moment or that it was too small another. Clearly just trying to lower the price! We worked hard to catch these fish for so long..."
He had long forgotten the ’elegant gentleman’ persona Yi Fei had set for him, and vented a slew of grievances.
[Stunned, has he forgotten his persona?]
[Forget it, it’s better to be down-to-earth. Sometimes being too high and mighty is just too fake, easily exposed.]
[I have to say, their experience is too real. My family has a fishpond, and every time the buyers come, they always nitpick, just to lower the price. We wanted to contact vendors directly, but vendors think the market is more stable and offers more variety. That’s true, but that’s not a reason for the buyers to lower the price.]
[This is just a small fishing boat; considering the cost of going out to sea, the buyers pushing prices down, and the limited good days for fishing in a month, plus the fishing ban period, it seems fishing doesn’t earn much.]
"Mrs. Ai, Brother Yi Kai!"
A soft voice carried over with the wind.
The group, turning back, looked up in surprise, only to see a gust coming toward them.
No, it was a Tuanzi flying over, landing steadily as she held her hands with a cheerful smile, "Mr. Liu introduced several fish vendors and seafood barbecue restaurant owners. The quantity they want is about the same as what you caught this time."
Yi Heng wasn’t really ignorant of the ways of the world.
Selling fish to buyers fetched a low price; selling to vendors could demand a bit more, though still less than if vendors bought from wholesale. Seafood barbecue restaurant prices were the same.
All in all, this was a win-win, removing the middleman was beneficial.
For the first time, Yi Heng looked at Tuanzi with a gentle gaze.
"Where are they now?"
"Waiting at the villa."
Tuanzi raised her small paw to point, seeing Yi Heng’s friendly gaze, she shuffled to Yi Kai’s side, asking quietly, "What’s up with your brother? He seems like a different person."
Yi Kai scratched his head, "Maybe he got angry, the price the buyers offered was too low."
Besides, they were major local fish buyers; others wouldn’t need such large quantities.
In other words, local fish prices were monopolized by these people.
"Suddenly feel that vendors have a tough job."
Tuanzi blinked, speaking with old-fashioned wisdom, "It’s not easy for those who work hard."
The little boy sighed, and Tuanzi followed suit, the two of them appeared worried.
[Both moved and amused]
[Are they worried for the adults?]
[But you could say that many dealers everywhere are like this — why not earn more if they can? That’s just how they think.]
[But for someone poor like me, it’s becoming impossible to survive.]
By about nine in the evening, the guests gradually got ready to rest after washing up.
No one would go fishing tomorrow, so everyone was supposed to go perform, leaving the task of contacting a renovation team to the program group.
"Brother Gu Chi, Miaomiao’s going to make a call now."
Calling out to Gu Chi, Tuanzi headed out with her smart watch.
Encountering staff along the way, she greeted them with a cheerful smile.
Once she reached a place without cameras, she started calling.
First, she called Gu Cheng, who picked up quickly, but there was some noise in the background.
She instantly became alert, "Big brother, are you drinking again?"
"...Yeah, I’m gathering with some bosses after the promotion."
Tuanzi unwittingly pouted.
"Drinking is bad for your health."
Gu Cheng changed the subject, "Is it tough? I heard you guys need to raise a lot of funds."
"It’s okay, Miaomiao just needs to perform every day; thinking of new shows is a bit taxing," she complained, patting her head, "Feels like my brain’s not enough."
Gu Cheng offered a few suggestions.
Tuanzi, standing in the dark, smiled with her eyes bent toward the distant sea, "Wow, big brother is so smart, Miaomiao can try that tomorrow!"
But soon, she refocused, continuing to nag him not to drink. After ending the call, she dialed Gu Che.
Gu Che was still shooting a night scene, and his assistant answered the call.
Tuanzi simply asked the assistant about her second brother’s recent state.
"His state is great. Gu is always serious when filming, and he only took this one role, so he’s wholly dedicated to it."
The assistant remarked, "But he’s a bit too serious, even supervising other artists, occasionally mocking a few who frequently take time off or double-book. Many people turn pale at the sight of Gu."