Chapter 117 – Pearls, Opening Mussel! (1/2)
Zhejiang Province, Zhuji City.
It was a rainy day and drizzling. But the rain seems to be stopping soon.
Dong Xuebing alighted from Zhuji train station with a big Merry Supermarket bag. He was walking fast and keep adjusting his clothes. He felt very uncomfortable. The humidity at Zhuji was very high and cold. Dong Xuebing was used to the cold and dry weather in the North. He was walking along the road and quickly found a small restaurant by the roadside.
“Boss, give me the menu.” Dong Xuebing sat down at an empty table.
“Coming.” A fat middle-aged woman walked over with the menu.
Dong Xuebing picked two dishes and said: “Give me a local soup too. It’s too cold.”
10 minutes later, all the dishes were served.
The soup was clam soup. Although Beijing people called these as clams, it was actually mussel. Pearl mussels. Other than a palm-size mussel, there was nothing else in the soup. Dong Xuebing was curious. He used his chopsticks to open the mussel. The mussel was full of peals. Dong Xuebing took a bite of the mussel flesh and then spit it out. It was too tough. How can anyone eat this shit?
The lady boss who was sitting at her counter saw him, and laughed. “That mussel is not for eating. You just drink the soup.”
Dong Xuebing’s face was red with embarrassment. “What about the pearls?”
“Are you here for a holiday? You can pay people to string the pearls for you and bring it back as a souvenir.”
“Oh, then this soup is also considered a form of pearl gambling?”
“You can say that. If you are lucky, you might be able to find some good pearls. You want me to serve another bowl of soup?”
“No. This is enough for me.” Dong Xuebing knew this person was talking nonsense. He was reading up on pearl gambling on his more than 10 hours train ride. He knows that these mussels are low-grade mussels. One would be considered damn lucky if pearls worth 20 RMB were found in it. These mussels produce worthless pears. “Boss, can I ask you something? Do you know any pearl gambling places near here? How much will it cost to gamble pearl?”
The female boss looked at him: “There should be a pushcart two streets away from here. The price is about 200 to 300.”
Dong Xuebing replied: “Is there any places that sell better mussels? Like those 2,000 to 3,000 RMB types?”
“Oh, then you have to go to the Pearl breeding farms. But they don’t do pearl gambling there. They will open up the mussels themselves and then sell the pearls according to grades. Pearl gambling here is mainly small roadside stalls. The grades are not high.”
Dong Xuebing chatted with the female boss for a while and got a better understanding of Zhuji’s pearl gambling.
The rain had stopped, and Dong Xuebing left the restaurant and got into a taxi.
The driver asked: “Where to?”
Dong Xuebing said: “Bring me to the nearest pearl breeding farm.”
The driver sped up and asked: “You are from Beijing? Are you here for a holiday?”
“Yes. I am here to buy some pearl mussels to try my luck.”
“Oh, you want to buy mussels .” The driver thought for a while. “Then we should go towards the west. The two pearl farms nearby are not in season yet. Their mussels are not ready for harvest. The breeding farm on the west side might be further away. I was staying nearby the farm and saw them preparing to harvest the pearls a few days ago.”
Dong Xuebing replied: “Ok. Let’s go to the west side then. Thank you.”
About 20 minutes later, Dong Xuebing reached his destination. He paid the fare and quickly alight. He looked around and carried his bag tightly. His bag looks ordinary and old fashioned. But Dong Xuebing purpose picks this bag. There was a password box which contains 440,000 RMB, in the bag. Dong Xuebing was determined to raise 1 million on this trip. This was why he withdraws all his savings.
There were a few white-colored buildings in the distance. As Dong Xuebing got closer, he saw 5 to 6 breeding farms.
Dong Xuebing walked up to the metal gates. There was no one there, and he continued into the compound.
“Hey! What are you doing?” A man, covered in mud, stood up from the breeding farm. He shouted at Dong Xuebing: “Who allows you to enter?”
“I am here to buy pearls!” Dong Xuebing frowned as he looked at that man. “Where is the boss?”
“Buy pearls?” That man looked at Dong Xuebing from top to toe. “I am the boss here. What pearls do you want? Pearl powder?”
You are the boss of this farm? Dong Xuebing was surprised. He knew the owners of pearl farms were earning more than 1 million RMB annually. They should be either in suits and ties or at least look like a boss. But this person in front of Dong Xuebing looks like a hill billy. Even the roadside food seller in Beijing looks more like a boss than him.