UGB Chapter 425 A Capital Megamarket Arrives, Merchants in Qingshui Town Suffer Heavy Losses
Chapter 425 A Capital Megamarket Arrives, Merchants in Qingshui Town Suffer Heavy Losses
"Brother Chen! You have to stand up for us! If you don't do something, we'll all starve!"
The next morning, as soon as Jiang Chen came out of the house, the village committee courtyard was already crowded with people.
Hu Lahua led the way, wearing an apron stained with pig's blood, her eyes red-rimmed. She slammed her hand on the stone table in the courtyard, making the teapot lid on it jump up with a "bang".
A large group of people were standing behind her.
Jia Fugui, who sells fake antiques, is holding a high-quality replica of a blue-and-white porcelain vase, his face full of bitterness.
Wu Youcai, who sells wreaths, rarely smiled; his lips drooped.
Li Suanpan, who sells fertilizer and seeds, fiddled with the beads on his abacus, his brow furrowing more with each turn.
Even Bai Lu, the usually extremely Buddhist florist, got up early for the first time and stood at the back of the crowd yawning.
Jiang Chen walked out wearing a coat, looked around at the scene, and then took a tissue from the side and handed it to Hu Lahua.
"Sister Hua, don't worry, I'll take care of things. What happened to the supermarket?"
"What's wrong? This is terrible!" Hu Lahua took the tissue, blew her nose, and raised her voice even louder.
"The day before yesterday! The Chu family in the county town opened a 'Chu Family Benefit Supermarket' overnight on that open space at the entrance of our town!"
"That place is terrifyingly huge! It's like an airport!"
"The key is their price! Brother Chen, guess how much eggs cost per pound?"
Jiang Chen picked up his teacup: "How much?"
"penny!"
Hu Lahua held up one finger and waved it in front of Jiang Chen.
"Eggs for just one cent per pound! Cabbages are practically free! Buy a dollar's worth of toilet paper and you can even win a gold bar!"
"Tell me, is this something a human being would do?!"
Li Suanpan chimed in from the side, frantically clicking away on his abacus with a pained expression.
"Brother Chen, I've done the calculations. At their current pricing, they're losing 80,000 yuan a day just on eggs. Add in cabbage, meat, cooking oil... the daily loss won't be less than 300,000 yuan."
"This isn't doing business, it's throwing money into the river!"
"But it works!" Jia Fugui chimed in from behind, his voice trembling with tears.
"All the elderly people in town have gone to their stall and are lining up there! Not even a fly comes near my stall!"
Tan Xiaolong, who sells takeout, squatted in the corner and muttered, "Yesterday, I only took one order. And that was placed by myself."
Jiang Chen put down his teacup, stood up, and patted Hu Lahua on the shoulder.
"Let's go take a look."
As the black Maybach drove to the entrance of Qingshui Town, Jiang Chen saw the enormous machine from afar.
Chu's Huimin Supermarket.
Spanning at least 2,000 square meters, a huge red signboard hangs above the main entrance, and an LED screen scrolls through various promotional messages. A giant inflatable rainbow archway arches at the entrance, proclaiming "Grand Opening Specials, Everything from 90% Off!"
The parking lot in front of the gate was densely packed with tricycles, electric vehicles, and bicycles.
Hundreds of people lined up in several long queues, stretching from the entrance of the supermarket all the way to the other side of the road.
Looking around, all I could see were familiar faces from the town.
There were middle-aged women carrying plastic bags, elderly men pushing strollers, and even an old lady holding her grandson.
Everyone's face was beaming with the joy of having gotten a good deal.
Wang Dagou leaned out of the passenger seat and started cursing.
"Look at these people! They've been completely bewitched by a single egg!"
Jiang Chen didn't speak, his gaze passing over the noisy supermarket and landing on the old street of Qingshui Town not far away.
The old street was deserted.
On the bluestone path, a few withered leaves were swirling in the wind.
The meat shop of Hu La Hua had its shutter door half-closed, making it dark inside.
Jia Fugui's fake antique stall didn't display a single item.
At the flower shop during the White Dew season, the sunflower at the entrance looked droopy and listless, just like its owner.
Even Lao Jintou's hardware store, which is usually the busiest, has put up a "Closed for Business" sign.
The whole street was lifeless.
That vibrant, lively atmosphere of everyday life seemed to have been drained away overnight.
Jiang Chen's gaze slowly turned cold.
He knows this tactic all too well.
First, they used rampant dumping below cost to wipe out local small vendors. After the old street was completely cleared out and all physical stores went bankrupt, they then monopolized the market and doubled the prices back up.
By then, the Chu family will have control over the food supply and daily necessities of tens of thousands of people in Qingshui Town.
This is not about doing business.
This is like using the gaping maw of capital to devour the lifeblood of a small town, bite by bite.
"Brother Chen!"
Wang Dagou pulled out a stick from somewhere, his veins bulging, and roared.
"This is fucking jeopardizing our livelihood! I'm taking my buddies to smash that lousy supermarket's windows right now!"
"Put down the stick!"
Jiang Chen gave a low shout.
Wang Dagou's hand trembled, and the stick fell to the ground with a "thud".
"If you smash someone's window, they can sue you for organized crime, do you believe it?" Jiang Chen looked at him. "Business matters should be resolved using business rules."
Wang Dagou's face turned red with suppressed anger, but he dared not utter another sound.
Jiang Chen turned his head and looked at the group of anxious merchants who had followed him.
Hu Lahua, Li Suanpan, Jia Fugui, Bai Lu, Tan Xiaolong... Every face of these people was filled with fear and helplessness.
They weren't important figures; they were just ordinary people from Qingshui Town.
A butcher shop, a general store, and a flower stall were their entire livelihood and means of survival.
Jiang Chen remained silent for a few seconds.
Then, he turned to look at Li Suanpan.
"Uncle Abacus".
Li Suanpan quickly stepped forward: "Brother Chen, please speak!"
"Go to the town government."
Jiang Chen's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.
"Ask the higher-ups how much it would cost to buy all the shops along the entire old street of Qingshui Town as a package."
Li Suanpan was stunned.
Not only him, but all the vendors were stunned.
"Chen...Brother Chen, what did you say?" Hu Lahua thought she had misheard.
Jiang Chen looked at the deserted old street, his tone indifferent.
"I'm going to take it all this afternoon."