PCJ – Chapter 626 Breaking the Monopoly

“You bet I’m taking it. I was here first, so this is my territory. Business must follow rules. I’ve got people in the town. You’re an outsider — you’d better not mess around, or I’ll make sure you can’t even leave Tianba Bridge,” Tao Chunhe glared at Zhang Jiaohua.

Originally, Zhang Jiaohua didn’t know much about the medicinal herb market, but hearing Tao Chunhe’s words, how could he not sense there was something fishy going on? With a cold smile, he replied, “Oh, you’ve really scared me now.”

Tao Chunhe smirked smugly. “You’d better be smart about this, or I’ll go report to Third Brother. Then you’ll be in for it. Let me tell you, Third Brother is my cousin-in-law. I’m allowed to collect wild herbs from five villages, including Yingpan Village, all because Third Brother has my back.”

Zhang Jiaohua smiled and said, “Then let me tell you this — I’m the village official of Yingpan Village, and I’ve got people backing me up too. The municipal Party Secretary of Bijiang City, Wang Zongxian, is my supporter. He told us village officials to act boldly, and if anyone dares mess with us, he’ll have our backs. I wonder if your so-called Third Brother has that kind of clout?”

Tao Chunhe snorted. “You’re just a lowly village official, so what? Stop acting like some big shot. If the Party Secretary of Bijiang City is really your backer, then why were you sent to a backwater like Yingpan Village? Why not somewhere wealthier?”

“What do you know, you lowlife herb trader? If I don’t come to a place like this, how am I supposed to rack up achievements in the shortest time possible? Rich places are already rich — nothing I do there makes a difference. But if I can turn a poor village into a rich one, that counts. Why am I even wasting time explaining to a two-bit thug like you? I’ll tell you a fact — from today on, I’m the official of this village. As long as I’m here, anyone who wants to buy wild herbs from our villagers must pay a fair price. If you dare try to cheat our people, I’ll make sure you regret it.”

Though Zhang Jiaohua spoke calmly, his words made Tao Chunhe uneasy. Tao felt like all his schemes were transparent to Zhang Jiaohua — as if any deceit would be useless.

Tao Chunhe eyed Zhang Jiaohua suspiciously, his expression shifting. Could this brat be bluffing?

Suddenly, Tao Chunhe sneered and loudly announced to the surrounding villagers, “Wow, Yingpan Village is really something now. You’ve got a big-shot village official. Your wild herbs? I can’t afford them anymore. From today on, I won’t be buying anything from Yingpan Village!”

Even though he said that, Tao didn’t leave. He parked his motorbike, pulled out a cheap pack of cigarettes, and lit one up — clearly waiting to watch Zhang Jiaohua fail.

“What do you mean you’re not buying anymore? If you don’t buy our herbs, how will we buy food? Selling wild herbs is our only livelihood!” an anxious old man shouted.

“Exactly! It’s that young guy’s fault. These city officials don’t understand the hardship of farmers. He’s just here to dip his hand in and make a profit.”

“Yeah, must be trying to get something out of it.”

Gu Yongyi couldn’t take it and shouted, “Are you all deaf? Just now, Comrade Zhang was speaking for us! The prices for wild herbs are far too low. If they keep dropping, we’ll basically be giving them away for free!”

“You’re not wrong, Yongyi, but what choice do we have? If we don’t sell to Tao Chunhe, who do we sell to? Is this Comrade Zhang going to buy our herbs? If he doesn’t, what do we rely on to survive?” the old man shot back.

Gu Yongyi had no answer and quietly stepped aside.

“It’s just wild herb trading, right? This dealer has monopolized our village’s market, constantly pushing down prices and squeezing every bit of sweat from you. We can’t tolerate it any longer. Otherwise, his greed will only grow. I’ll find a solution for the sales channels. So for now, please trust me,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

“It’s not that we don’t trust you. But we sell herbs to buy food. If we delay, we’ll starve. You say you’ll find buyers — then buy our herbs first, and look for sales later. If you earn a profit, we’ll count it as yours,” the old man said loudly.

His words stirred up the villagers, and soon the village entrance was in an uproar.

Tao Chunhe stood to the side, smirking coldly. He figured once the young official failed, he could swoop in and lower the price even more. Let these bumpkins taste desperation — otherwise, they’d get too bold to handle.

But Zhang Jiaohua’s next words left Tao Chunhe completely stunned.

“That’s a great idea! How about this: I’ll buy your herbs at double the price that dealer offered, then find a market myself. Any profits will be used for building up Yingpan Village. What do you all say?” said Zhang Jiaohua.

“Comrade Zhang, double the price? You might lose money!” Gu Yongyi quickly cautioned.

“Yongyi, whose side are you on? If Comrade Zhang is willing to pay double, he must be confident. No need to be the wet blanket here,” said the old man.

The villagers were clearly annoyed at Gu Yongyi now.

Zhang Jiaohua quickly added, “Folks, I stand by my word. I’ll pay double for your herbs and medicines. But you mustn’t cut corners or mix in bad goods. Chuangui, you and a few others come help me out — I’ll reward you later.”

Zhang didn’t know how to use the old-fashioned scales in the village, so he asked Zhang Chuangui and the others to help.

“One more thing — I don’t have much cash on me today. I’ll need to go to town tomorrow to withdraw money before I can pay you. Is that alright?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“As long as you don’t wait until after you sell our herbs before paying us.”

“Right, right — we trust you. Tomorrow’s fine!”

Tao Chunhe angrily flicked away his cigarette and spat, “You’ll never sell a single herb from Yingpan Village again!”

The villagers were still wary of Tao Chunhe.

“If Comrade Zhang can’t find a buyer, we’re screwed.”

“He looks young — can he really handle this?”

“And think about it — even if he finds a market, the herbs still need to pass through Tianba Bridge. If that bastard Cui San decides to block the road, it’s all over. He’s so feared that even the police don’t dare touch him. If Zhang stirs up trouble with him, he might not get the herbs out at all — and we’ll be the ones who suffer.”

“What’s the use of talking? If Zhang can’t handle it, we’ll go complain to the town officials. They’re the ones who sent him, and if this mess happens, it’s on them.”