Song Tan’s Chronicle - Chapter 29

Looking at the lush green wild vegetables all over the ground, Wu Lan couldn’t help but feel pained: “Are we really not selling them anymore?”

Song Tan, who had gotten used to picking wild vegetables during this period, replied, “No, we aren’t.”

It was time to give the wild vegetables a break. The bit of spiritual energy she used had long been absorbed, and continuing to sell them would compromise the quality.

Plus, it was a good opportunity to whet the appetites of her precious 28 group members.

“Twenty yuan per jin!” Wu Lan still couldn’t let it go.

“Twenty yuan per jin!” Qiao Qiao echoed like a parrot.

Song Tan put down her spade: “Mom, look at me. I graduated from college and worked in Ning City. Doesn’t that make you proud?”

Wu Lan’s lips curved slightly: “What are you talking about? Life isn’t about pride—though it is nice. There aren’t many college graduates in our village.”

“Then think about it, I’m now back home farming instead of working. Don’t the villagers gossip? When we visit Grandma and my uncles, won’t they talk? Won’t they say you didn’t raise your kids properly?”

Wu Lan’s expression darkened: “What do they know! My daughter earns one or two thousand selling wild vegetables. Do they have that kind of luck?”

Song Tan: … It’s not luck, it’s actually skill.

But she continued: “Wild vegetables grow every year. Why didn’t they sell them at this price? If you say I make good money, they’ll think you’re just being stubborn. Since our wild vegetables are great, we should let them taste them and shut them up.”

“Shut them up!” Qiao Qiao parroted again.

Wu Lan glared at him: “You silly child, what do you know—But Tan Tan, you’re right!”

“They love to gossip. I need them to see my daughter went to college and can farm better than them!”

“Come on, Qiao Qiao, let’s pick more!”

Song Tan smiled secretly, her plan working perfectly.

Actually, their relatives got along well with no major conflicts.

However, Qiao Qiao’s situation had been a sore point. Wu Lan, being proud, had swallowed many tears behind the scenes.

There were other children with disabilities in the village. Raising a child with disabilities required effort, education, and careful attention…

Generally, those with some self-care ability were sent to factories through agencies where wages were high.

Those without self-care ability worked locally on labor-intensive jobs, providing food, lodging, and relieving the family.

Because of Qiao Qiao, it seemed Wu Lan had done something wrong, and every relative felt entitled to offer advice. Not all were ill-intentioned, but the words were always hurtful.

Now, a well-educated college graduate had suddenly returned to farm. Relatives would undoubtedly speculate.

Letting them taste these wild vegetables would give Wu Lan more confidence.

Thinking this way, Wu Lan no longer cared about the twenty yuan.

While mother and son were busy, Song Tan’s phone kept buzzing. When she checked, the [Village Wild Vegetables] group was full of messages:

[Boss, when are you coming again?]

[Girl, bring more shepherd’s purse next time. It keeps well for dumplings. I missed out last time.]

[Bring more wild onions! They’re great in pork buns!]

[Boss, your vegetables are amazing but too expensive. My son eats up to a hundred yuan per meal. The food bill is too high!]

[Yeah, girl, now that it’s warmer, there are more wild vegetables. When will you lower the price?]

Song Tan thought for a moment and snapped a picture of the wild vegetables she was picking:

[Dear customers, the wild vegetables are in their growth period now, and the market is seeing more of them. Maintaining a price of twenty yuan per jin is difficult. Additionally, these wild vegetables have matured and are getting old. To ensure quality, we won’t be selling wild vegetables for the rest of the year.]

The group chat exploded:

[Oh girl, we were just discussing prices, not demanding a discount. Twenty is fine, we love your vegetables.]

[Yeah, boss, please don’t stop selling! I swear by your stall in the whole market.]

[These vegetables don’t look old at all. Look how green they are, just like the usual… Boss, aren’t you still picking them?]

Song Tan responded to each message:

[The last batch of wild vegetables is reserved for family, sorry, no sales!]

[However, I will inform you in advance. In three days, the vetch in the fields will be ready for harvest. They are plentiful and delicious. See you at the market then. The price remains twenty yuan per jin.]

This unexpected news left everyone in the group puzzled.

Before they could mourn the wild vegetables, there was talk of vetch.

Wasn’t vetch usually used as fertilizer or fed to livestock? It wasn’t a common human food around here.

Growing it themselves, vetch was easy to cultivate. How could it be worth twenty yuan per jin? That was too expensive.

The group chat went silent.

Then, a member who had never bought vegetables before spoke up:

[While shopping with my girlfriend, I found your stall and have wanted to try the wild vegetables but never managed to get any. Now that I’ve returned home—Boss, is vetch as good as wild vegetables? If so, can you send me five jin by courier?]

Finally, an online customer.

Song Tan readily agreed:

[Sure, but the vegetables are best eaten fresh, so they need to be sent cold. Shipping costs are on you.]

The person, eager to secure the order, immediately agreed:

[Okay!]

With someone leading the way, others, reminiscing about the taste of the wild vegetables, became enthusiastic:

[Alright, when is three days from now? I’ll definitely be at your stall then!]

[Xiufen, let’s go together.]

[Don’t worry, girl, as long as the taste doesn’t change, I’ll keep buying.]

Song Tan thought, vetch wasn’t wild vegetables but grown on several acres, yielding plenty.

Although the spiritual energy she used was limited, it had been nurturing the plants from the seed stage, ensuring the taste was excellent, even better than wild vegetables.

Seven plots, leaving one for the old ox, meant the rest could be sold.

Counting on just twenty-eight group members wasn’t enough!

So, setting up at the market had to be more frequent, and she needed to edit and promote her videos. No matter how small the initial customer base, each one was valuable.

Despite the high price, she could guarantee repeat customers—steady and reliable.

She added: [Please help spread the word. If there aren’t enough buyers, I might need to find suppliers in Ning City. If that happens, I won’t be selling directly anymore.]

The aunts, who had been keeping the stall a secret, felt guilty.

They hadn’t shared because they were afraid of missing out!

But if the vetch was plentiful, they could bring a few more people. Otherwise, if they missed out in the future, what then?

Everyone began to scheme.