Chapter 10: Constantly Imitated

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“If I can’t sell these within two days, you’ll sell me the rooster, the geese, and the sheep at the price I set.”

How could the two refuse? This was like a windfall from the heavens!

Immediately, the two handed over two sheep, five geese, and seven large roosters to Lin Feng, even putting them into cages and lending him a small cart.

“Big brother, where did these come from?” Xiaodie and Li Qichuang were stunned when they saw the sheep, geese, and roosters on the cart.

“From Mrs. Tian’s place. She asked us to sell them; whatever we make goes to us.”

“That’s wonderful!” Xiaodie felt there was nothing faster than striking it rich with a lucky draw.

“Liu Xi, go get the peanuts. We’re making five-spice peanuts now.”

Xiaodie asked, “Big brother, is this the five-spice peanuts you mentioned before?”

“Exactly. We’re going to make five-spice peanuts and sell them in town.”

Lin Feng immediately had the two wash about ten pounds of peanuts with water. He prepared the seasoning bought the day before and boiled it in a large iron pot over high heat. After boiling, he reduced the fire to a simmer for ten minutes, then turned off the heat. Liu Xi and Xiaodie poured the washed peanuts into the pot and covered it.

After breakfast, Lin Feng scooped out the peanuts and drained them. He then poured half a pot of salt into the iron pot.

They hadn’t found fine salt in the nearby towns—only coarse grains, which were cheap and commonly used by villagers. The salt sellers said only the county seat sold fine salt, and it was expensive.

Lin Feng dumped all ten pounds of peanuts into the pot and began stirring continuously with a spatula.

Liu Xi and Xiaodie watched in amazement; they hadn’t expected peanuts to be prepared this way.

The peanuts started to emit a fragrant aroma, and the salt crystals on their surface began to loosen as the peanuts dried. Lin Feng took a few peanuts in his hands and rubbed them; the skins slipped off easily. This meant it was time to remove the fire and use the remaining heat to continue roasting for a while longer. Wiping the sweat from his brow, Lin Feng declared, “Done!”

Liu Xi and Xiaodie each sampled a few peanuts, their eyes sparkling. “Delicious! Crunchy and fragrant!”

Lin Feng smiled, “This is five-spice peanuts. Here, pack them up. They taste even better once cooled. In a couple of days, we’ll take them to town to sell.”

“Master, how do you plan to price the five-spice peanuts?” Xiaodie asked.

“Three hundred wen per pound.”

“Sell that much?!” Xiaodie was startled.

“Since no one else in these towns sells this, we have to price it high—scarcity adds value!” Lin Feng chuckled. “If they don’t sell, we’ll eat them ourselves as snacks. Now, let’s get ready to head to town. Hurry and prepare the boxes and paper wrappers.”

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The three loaded their goods onto the cart and set out for the small town.

On the town street, not far off, they saw another lucky draw event—also featuring a donkey, but this one was healthy.

It cost six wen per draw.

“Shameless, copying us!” Xiaodie grumbled in frustration.

Lin Feng admired a famous company from his past life that thrived on superb imitation, boasting annual revenues of twenty billion yuan.

Whatever was popular, they copied.

When Orion’s pies became popular, they launched Daliyuan egg yolk pies.

When Lay’s chips took off, they introduced Kebike.

When Red Bull soared, they produced Lehu.

When Wanglaoji thrived, they brought out Heqizheng.

…

They imitated whatever made money and became popular.

So never underestimate the imitation abilities of ordinary people, even in ancient times.

“It’s fine. They can’t outdo us. Our slogan is: always copied but never surpassed! We’ll always lead the Great Chu Dynasty!”

Lin Feng quickly had Liu Xi and Xiaodie set up their stall while he loudly called out, “Lucky Draw! Lucky Draw! First prize: two, a Little Fat Sheep! Second prize: five, a large white goose! Third prize: seven, a big rooster! The grand prizes await you! Come early to win, miss it and regret forever!”

People immediately grew excited. This sheep was worth much more than a donkey, and even if they didn’t win a sheep, a large white goose or rooster was still valuable!

Those lining up for the donkey draws quickly changed course, flocking toward Lin Feng’s stall.

Lin Feng continued shouting, “Lucky Draw! Only seven wen per try! Just seven wen for a chance to win big! Let the goddess of luck bless you!”

Since many people came for six wen, he charged seven wen.

Soon, Lin Feng’s booth was packed, with villagers from surrounding areas, townsfolk, and even visitors from neighboring towns all eager to try their luck, some bringing their whole families.

Some well-off individuals drew several times, and one even drew twenty times, though he didn’t win a single feather from the rooster.

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A large crowd gathered. This time, Liu Xi prepared a sack to hold the coins, and the clinking of copper coins made his eyes narrow with joy.

By dusk, all the prizes had been drawn, and many left reluctantly.

“Master, a whole sack of copper coins!” Xiaodie couldn’t stop smiling.

“Let’s go home and count the money!” Lin Feng laughed, hurrying back with Liu Xi and Xiaodie. Such a sack of money was too conspicuous—this was ancient times, and it was safer not to flaunt wealth in case of thieves or bandits.

Back at the village home, Liu Xi and Xiaodie immediately began counting.

“Master, a total of eighteen guan and three hundred sixty wen!” Xiaodie exclaimed excitedly.

One guan equals one thousand wen, so eighteen guan equals eighteen thousand wen!

If each draw cost seven wen, that meant over two thousand people participated, though many drew multiple times.

Lu Ping Town really had a large population, and many from neighboring towns had come too.

“Two sheep for ten guan, five geese for two guan five hundred wen, seven roosters for two guan one hundred wen. Liu Xi, take fourteen guan six hundred wen to Mrs. Tian and ask if she has more to sell.”

“Okay.”

After paying Mrs. Tian, the sack grew much lighter, and Xiaodie instantly looked unhappy again.

Lin Feng smiled, “Don’t be upset. We borrowed chickens to hatch eggs. We earned nearly four guan in pure profit—that’s very good.”

This was pure profit—no investment, no costs.

Once Xiaodie understood, she smiled brightly again. “Big brother, I’ll go to the village grocery store to buy wine for you.”

“You’re getting more sensible,” Lin Feng chuckled.

That evening, as the three drank, Mrs. Tian came by again, still accompanied by Tian Xier, who was no longer shy and much more confident around Lin Feng and the others.