A city in Guangdong Province.
The climate in the south is warm in mid-March. Although it is already evening, for people living here, this time is a good time to go out. The temperature is suitable, so it is very suitable for shopping, eating, walking and chatting.
However, the streets have gradually become deserted in recent days, and today is even more extreme. Seventy percent of the shops on the streets are not open.
Not only were most of the shops closed, but there were also fewer pedestrians walking on the streets. The occasional passers-by walked very fast, and they seemed to be deliberately keeping a certain distance between them.
Many people are wearing masks, but most of them are cheap disposable masks or cotton medical masks that were popular in the last century. People hope that this kind of mask can help them resist the infectious virus that is spreading outside, but they have no idea about it. Masks are actually of no use against viruses.
However, even such masks are sold out.
On the cold street, there is only one drugstore that is doing very well. There is a long queue at the door. However, although this long queue is long, it is not dense. Everyone automatically keeps a certain distance from the people queuing in front and behind. There is a huge red poster posted at the door, which reads: The latest arrival of Banlangen is only 120 yuan/pack, the quantity is limited, welcome to buy!
The people queuing up are all coming for Isatis root.
Originally, everyone wanted to rush in to buy things, but two store clerks wearing masks kept blocking them and making strong demands, so they queued up.
Similar situations are common in Guangdong Province, surrounding provinces, and even across the country. People know that the virus is coming, and everyone is on tenterhooks. The only thing that can bring them a sense of security now is those rumored to be able to resist the virus. If you get something, your heart will feel more relaxed. If you can't get it, your heart will always be in suspense.
A middle-aged woman walked out of the drugstore, holding a pack of isatis root in her hand, feeling both happy and distressed.
I’m happy because this granule is said to be able to prevent that kind of infectious disease, but what’s sad is that this thing is more than twenty times more expensive than usual. In the past, a big pack like this would only cost five yuan. Now the asking price is 120, no counter-offer, no more buying, each person is only allowed to buy one box.
She was quite lucky and was the first in line. No matter what, she had already bought a box, and she felt relieved. There were 25 small packages in a large package of Banlangen. She calculated that she, her husband, and children would have one package a day. , which is only enough for eight days, so I still have to find a way to buy more.
At this time, people who were still queuing outside saw her coming out with Banlangen and asked her from afar: "Excuse me, does this store have a lot of stock?"
The middle-aged woman shook her head: "I'm not too sure, but they said there aren't many, so each person is only allowed to buy one pack, and you have to see your ID card."
"What? Do you want to see your ID card?" The woman who asked her suddenly became anxious. Many people in the queue also stamped their feet anxiously: "I don't have my ID card, what should I do?"
The middle-aged woman hurriedly explained: "Don't worry, just leave an ID number if you don't have an ID card. They have to register."
Others finally breathed a sigh of relief. If it weren't for the isatis root sold in this store, who would risk queuing on the street? If they couldn't buy it, they would really cry.
The entire Guangdong Province has long been plunged into this kind of panic.
Before today, there had been various rumors about SARS in Guangdong Province. After countless transfers and reprocessing, various rumors had become somewhat evil and had always made people panic. But today, things seem to have It has reached a new level, because YY released a blockbuster news today, making everyone truly realize that the epidemic is coming and it is coming fiercely. Even the WHO has issued a global warning. This is the World Health Organization. Chinese people have always There is an inexplicable sense of authority towards organizations starting with "The World".
Therefore, today the rush to buy related supplies in Guangdong Province has become more fierce, and the prices of stores have also increased inhumanely. Originally, Isatis root could be bought for 80 or 90 yuan, but today it costs 120 yuan.
There was a middle-aged man in the team who said that one hundred and twenty would be good. He lived in the next district a few kilometers away, and the pharmacy downstairs of their house was robbed of everything they sold for one hundred and fifty. He couldn't help it. I could only ride a motorcycle here to try my luck, but I didn't expect it was available here, and the price of 120 was quite reasonable.
Too.
When others heard this, they felt relieved. A bowl of rice is not worth three or five cents, but when you are about to starve to death, you can eat three to five hundred cents without feeling distressed. This is the rule of commodities, and everyone If you don’t lack it, you won’t buy it even if it costs a dime per ton. When everyone is short of it, you still have to queue up to give away money if it costs one yuan a gram.
After the first middle-aged woman who bought Banlangen came out, two more people came out with a large bag of Banlangen. The people in line asked the same question again and got the same answer.
The middle-aged man who came on a motorcycle sighed again: "Oh, this store is really conscientious. It is much better than the pharmacies in our area. The pharmacies in our area are eager to sell out quickly and collect money to close, so some people It cost more than ten or twenty packs at a time, and they kept selling it, but no one else could buy it! The queue was in vain, and I was almost furious. My wife was like this. I heard someone said that there is a drug store that also sells isatis root. She queued up early in the morning and waited for more than an hour. She was almost in line, but a guy finished all the remaining 30-odd packages in one go! She didn't even buy a small package in the end, really. This makes me so angry!"
When he said this, everyone around him nodded.
An old man sighed: "These days, there are too many profiteers and too few honest businessmen. It is really rare that stores that can sell in limited quantities and limit each person to one pack at this time, and their prices are cheap, only selling for 120 , and he is indeed very conscientious.”
"Hey!" A woman sighed: "The price of everything has increased now. Masks usually cost a dime each, but now they are selling for one yuan or two yuan. The 84 disinfectant is even worse. It is out of stock. I originally wanted to buy some 84 to disinfect my home, but I couldn’t buy it anywhere, so I could only buy two bottles of white vinegar, which was expensive! Two bottles of white vinegar cost me one hundred and eleven!”
"Forget about white vinegar. The same goes for our house. We boil a kettle to boil white vinegar, and the whole house smells like vinegar! It makes me want to vomit when I smell it!"
An aunt said hurriedly: "Oh, sister, you don't understand. White vinegar kills germs by the smell of vinegar. If you breathe more of the water vapor boiled by white vinegar, all the germs in your body will be killed!"
"Is it so amazing?" Someone was obviously skeptical and said: "If 84 can disinfect, I will definitely admit it. After all, it is a serious disinfectant from 800, but this white vinegar... it is a food seasoning! If it can sterilize , then why not soy sauce?”
"You don't understand!" the aunt said seriously: "The two people downstairs in my house are both doctors. They said that there is some acetic acid in vinegar, which can really sterilize. If you eat fried food outside, For pho, some fastidious shopkeepers soak their chopsticks in vinegar to sterilize it, but now that vinegar is too expensive, no one probably does this anymore.”
"Oh..." The person who was a little skeptical at first nodded and said, "It seems that this is really the case. I remembered it when you said that."
At this moment, a roar came from the store: "I am old mother Diului. I have money and just want to buy more. Why don't you sell it?"
The female clerk tried her best to explain something, but her voice was too low and could not be heard clearly from outside.
Bang!
Something was broken in the drugstore, and the roar came out again: "Isn't it just money? I have a lot of money, can't I just give you more money? How many isatis root do you have here? I will give you all the 151 packs." Bought it!”
As soon as these words came out, there was an explosion outside.
Someone with a bad temper yelled: "Hey, what's so great about having money? Everyone is waiting in line, why do you buy them all? Besides, it's so unethical for people like you to jack up prices!"
At this time, a middle-aged man with a sinister face came out of the drugstore. He took out a pile of cash worth one hundred yuan from the leather bag under his arm and said to the man: "Is it illegal to buy things? I'm fucking rich. , do you care? I don’t steal, rob, cheat, or cheat. I buy things with cash. Why are you yelling at me? And you accuse me of gouging the price? Please don’t be so self-righteous. I’m here to take care of everything. Yes, you are so ridiculous! You should leave as soon as possible, I want all the isatis roots here today."
After that, the middle-aged man turned around, slapped a wad of banknotes on the cashier, and shouted loudly: "This is 20,000 yuan. How much inventory do you still have in the store? Give it all to me. If the money is not enough, I will give it to you now." Just call and have someone deliver it to you. My family has a big business and a lot of relatives, so I’ll buy it back and drink it as tea!”
"you… "
"this… "
Not only was the shouting person outside stunned, but even the girl at the cashier was stunned.
Although this guy is arrogant, he is not wrong. He has money and he is willing to pay a high price. Who can stop him? Even when the police came, he was still justified. Besides, most of the people in the queue were women, with only a few men. The man who was yelling at him didn't dare to continue arguing with him. If he really wanted to fight, , he definitely won't be able to take any advantage, and besides, this guy really looks like a rich man, and most people can't afford to offend him.
Therefore, everyone's hope can only be pinned on the salesperson.
They hope that the salesperson can maintain the integrity of their store. If they agree to limit purchases to one pack per person, they will limit purchases to one pack per person. If they agree on 120, it will be 120.
However, the salesperson was a little dumbfounded at this time. She said solemnly: "Brother, I have to ask our boss for instructions..."
The arrogant-looking man nodded immediately, tapping his fingers on the table, and said, "Please hurry up, I'm in a hurry."
At this time, several women outside suddenly became nervous and said hurriedly: "Little girl, isn't your temporary price increase going too far?"
The girl said apologetically: "Sorry, sorry, you have also seen that we are not raising the price temporarily, but this customer wants to buy at a higher price..."
"That's not okay!" The woman was unhappy and said, "If you do this, what will we do who have been waiting in line for a long time?"
The girl said very politely: "We are in business after all. We are taking such a big risk to open our business because we want to make more money. Please forgive us."
Well-founded and reasonable, this kind of polite rejection makes others feel like a punch on cotton, which is more depressing than a punch on iron...
(End of chapter)