After Wu Jun pressed her again and again, Xu Minli told him the truth.
Brother Hu, Hu Zhiwen’s wife, had been diagnosed with cervical cancer. It was stage three, which was considered late-stage, and the hope for a cure was slim.
A dark cloud had hung over Hu Zhiwen’s home recently. The whole family was so worried they couldn’t eat. After his wife learned about her illness, she lost her appetite completely and had no desire to eat anything.
With such a serious illness, if she didn’t eat, her nutrition would suffer, and her condition was getting worse and worse.
But ever since she started eating Hongyun Rice, her appetite returned. With her nutrition improving, her physical condition gradually recovered, and her spirits lifted considerably. She had now come to terms with her situation and was actively undergoing treatment.
"With Hu Zhiwen’s family going through this, I didn’t have the heart to mention the price increase to him," Xu Minli said. "That bag of rice I just sold was just a little something from me to show I care. I’ll cover the difference."
As she spoke, Xu Minli opened the drawer of the cash register to count out the money for Wu Jun.
"There’s no need, Sister Xu." Wu Jun reached out and placed his hand on hers. "Just charge Brother Hu the member price."
"Is that okay?" Xu Minli asked, looking guilty. After all, she had made the decision on her own without discussing it with Wu Jun beforehand.
Wu Jun said, "Why wouldn’t it be? Brother Hu is a loyal customer, and his family has fallen on hard times. Everyone faces hardship at some point. It’s as simple as issuing him a membership card."
"Then on behalf of Old Hu’s family, I thank you, Wu Jun." Seeing how magnanimous Wu Jun was, Xu Minli smiled happily.
"I’m going to head back to my room. I’ll let you get back to it, Sister Xu." Wu Jun said to Xu Minli before turning and walking toward the bedroom.
He pushed open the door to the bedroom, lay down on the folding bed, and stared blankly at the ceiling.
Thinking about Grandma Zhang’s and Brother Hu’s situations, Wu Jun felt that there were still some flaws in the details of the Hongyun Rice price increase and the membership card distribution. The plan wasn’t perfect.
When the rumors about Hongyun Rice first spread, some loyal customers who heard about it came to show their support, but many others probably never heard a thing.
Seeing card-holding members buy rice at a low price while they had to pay several times more would surely make the non-members feel it was unfair.
In the long run, this could have a very negative impact, eventually leaving only the members to buy Hongyun Rice.
’This can’t go on. After all, I’ve only given out about a hundred membership cards. I can’t rely on just these hundred members to buy up all the rice the game produces every day!’
After lying in bed for over half an hour, Wu Jun suddenly had a moment of clarity. He got up, walked to the door, and pulled it open to enter the small supermarket.
"Sister Xu, I have something to discuss with you."
Wu Jun walked over to the checkout counter. Xu Fei brought him a chair, and Wu Jun didn’t stand on ceremony, plopping right down.
"What is it, Wu Jun?" Xu Minli asked, looking puzzled.
Wu Jun smiled and said, "Good news."
"Good news?" Xu Minli chuckled. "Stop teasing me. Just spit it out."
Wu Jun stopped beating around the bush and explained the strategy he had just come up with: get a membership card with a pre-paid deposit!
Customers could sign up for a membership at the supermarket. By making a deposit of 3,000 yuan, they would receive a free Hongyun Rice membership card, allowing them to purchase rice at the member price.
Furthermore, that 3,000 yuan could be spent like cash in the store on anything, with no restrictions.
"Brother Jun, that’s a great idea," Xu Fei praised from the side. "This way, you can not only accumulate a huge amount of cash in a short time but also attract a new batch of loyal customers for the supermarket. And the customers get a good deal, too, buying high-quality rice at a low price."
"No wonder you’ve built such a big business. That brain of yours is worth hundreds of mine." Xu Minli tapped her own head, completely in awe of Wu Jun’s plan.
It was a simple strategy that killed several birds with one stone. The idea was brilliant.
Wu Jun said, "Then let’s do it. Tomorrow, I’ll have my aunt order some more membership cards and have them sent over to you, Sister Xu."
"Also..." Wu Jun paused, then continued, "From now on, any lonely elderly person over 60, like Grandma Zhang, can come to the store once a month to get a free bag of rice. Put it on my tab."
"Wu Jun, that’s a truly compassionate thing to do. I support you, and on behalf of them, I thank you." After hearing what Wu Jun said, Xu Minli gave him a thumbs-up.
"I support you too, Brother Jun." Xu Fei, standing nearby, looked at Wu Jun with stars in her eyes. ’Brother Jun isn’t just handsome; he’s also good-tempered and so kind-hearted. He’s the template for the perfect man!’
With the issue at the small supermarket resolved, Wu Jun brought up the matter of the restaurant business in his family’s WeChat group.
The final decision was: for a one-time order of 10 tons or more of Hongyun Rice, they would receive one free membership card.
The next day, as soon as the news about the new membership card offer was released, the small supermarket gave out over 100 more cards throughout the day, receiving over 300,000 yuan in deposits. Xu Minli’s hands grew tired from collecting all the money.
The restaurant market also got the news: a one-time order of 10 tons of rice would earn them one Hongyun Rice membership card.
The card’s benefit was the right to purchase one bag per day, up to 30 bags a month, at the original price.
Considering the long-term benefits, it was a very good deal, and many restaurants joined the ranks of those placing orders.
At five o’clock the next afternoon, when it was time to get off work, Wu Jun looked at the sales report Dong Lizhu had submitted. For that day alone, total revenue was 2.6 million yuan, a new record high!
"Jun, there’s no one downstairs. Aren’t you leaving yet?" Dong Lizhu knocked and entered, calling for Wu Jun to end his workday.
"I’m leaving now." Wu Jun put down the report, stood up, and walked toward the door, heading downstairs with Dong Lizhu.
On their way down, Dong Lizhu asked, "Jun, what are your plans for the rice expo? Are you going to keep selling at the current price?"
"Aunt Lizhu, have you heard of Ying Zhiguang?" Wu Jun didn’t answer, asking a question in return.
"Mhm, I’ve heard of it. It’s a rice imported from Japan." Dong Lizhu said as they walked. "They say that Ying Zhiguang is being sold for over 100 yuan per kilogram in Shanghai. It’s a first-tier city, after all, full of rich people. There’s even a market for it at such a high price."
Wu Jun asked again, "Then do you know how much it sells for in Japan?"
Dong Lizhu shook her head. "That I don’t know."
Wu Jun said, "In Japan, the same rice sells for just over ten yuan per kilogram."
"The same rice, and they ship it over here to sell it for so much? Isn’t that a rip-off? They’re just coming here to fleece us!" Dong Lizhu was shocked by what Wu Jun said.
Wu Jun shrugged. "They list the price clearly. It’s a case of a willing seller and a willing buyer. There’s nothing to be done. Some people just think foreign products are better."
"So..." Dong Lizhu looked at Wu Jun with a look of partial understanding.
"So, I plan to give them a taste of their own medicine," Wu Jun said with a smile. "Aren’t there a lot of foreign buyers at this rice expo? We’ll raise the price of Hongyun Rice by another 10 yuan, setting it at 30 yuan per half-kilo to reel in the big fish."
Dong Lizhu smiled and said, "I think that’ll work. Let them see how amazing our domestic rice can be."
The two of them chatted and laughed as they finalized the price for Hongyun Rice at the expo. The price would be clearly marked, and the willing would take the bait.
There was no publicly available information on the price of Hongyun Rice. He had the final say on how much it sold for.