One day a farmer shows up at the market. He was carrying some vegetables, a couple of chickens in a locked container, and a big clay pot filled with white milk. He set his stall in a seemingly peaceful corner and began to spread a cloth on the ground to put up his wares. After done so, he sat back and began to cry out towards the milling crowd.
The wares that he was selling was decently priced and the vegetables look fresh, albeit looks quite weary from the travel and the warm weather. But they look better than some stalls located near. The milk was not sour and was sold for a price per cup. The chickens were the priciest of them all but not the most expensive in the market. The farmer makes full profit from all of this. He cried out more for the crowds to buy his wares.
Then, a woman came with her husband trailing behind. The woman was decently dressed like a villager, came to the central city for the market. The husband was gloomy faced and looked weary from all the walking. The woman asked the farmer about the wares with a stern face. The farmer smiled and told her the prices. A shilling for a full basket of vegetables, a shilling and a half for a full chicken, slaughtered or not, and 3 pence for a cup of milk. The woman frowned and said that the vegetables were too steeply priced and walked off, with the husband behind.
The farmer was confused at this. A whole basket of vegetables is a lot of vegetables. But maybe the woman was right. He looked at the wares and saw that some of them have begun to look not so very fresh. He decided to lower the price per basket to half a shilling, or 5 pence. He began to rearrange the vegetables so that the crowd would see the fresher ones above.
After that, a man garbed in expensive clothes came to his stall. Behind him, a servant garbed in a black suit followed with his head bowed. The farmer thought that he was a merchant by the looks of him. The merchant leaned forward and inspected the chickens. He asked the price for one full chicken. The farmer said it was a shilling and a half for one. The merchant looked stunned at this and began to beckon to his servant. The servant folded out a piece of yellow paper and showed it to the merchant. He inspected it thoroughly with sharp eyes. Then he fished out a big purse and took out 6 shillings. The man said that he would buy 4 chickens. The farmer agreed on that and asked if he wanted them slaughtered. The merchant replied no and he wanted them fresh. The farmer agreed and gave the merchant the chickens in another container with 6 shillings in hand.
When the merchant went off though, he could hear his loud whisper that the chickens were nice and healthy but to sell at one and a half shilling is either foolishness or the man knows not of trading for profits. The farmer was confused at this. He looked at the shillings and then at the chickens. The chickens clucked. He thought that the price was already steep but he guessed that the chickens were quite healthy. He fed them everyday and take good care of them. He pushed the shillings into his pocket and decided the next time someone asked, the chickens would be 2 shillings.
Just after that thought, an old woman appeared. She was in rags and a pair of kids trailed behind her, looking just as dirty and ragged. The woman looked at the vegetables longingly and asked the farmer what was the price for them. The farmer took pity on them and said, it only costs 1 pence for half a basket. The woman frowned. Then she saw the big pot. She asked how much is the milk for a cup? The farmer said it was 3 pence for a cup. The beggar woman frowned again. Then one of the kids pulled onto her dirty sleeve and asked if they are going to eat anything today. The farmer fought back his tears and took up a basket, filled it with some of the fresh vegetables and handed it to the beggar woman. The woman was shocked and refused to take it because they had no money to pay for them. The farmer said it wasn't a purchase, it was a gift. The woman wiped away some tears in her eyes and took it with a thousand thank yous trailing behind.
After the woman went away, the previous village woman came back. This time the farmer saw that the still gloomy husband was carrying a basket full of food and vegetables with some jars of milk. The village woman saw the beggar walked away with a basket full of fresh vegetables and demanded the farmer the price he sold her those food. The farmer said they were free and a gift to the old lady. The village woman turned red and demanded he should do the same to her because she was a hard woman too in a hard life! But when she saw only the wilted vegetables are left, she changed her mind and demanded a "gift" in the form of 5 cups of free milk. The farmer was shocked. The woman pushed him even more while her husband struggled to keep straight from the weight of the filled basket.
At that moment, the merchant from before came but his servant wasn't there. Instead, trailing behind him like a herd of sheep were several other better clothed men and women. They were other merchants as well and silk draped over some of their clothes. The merchant ignored the angry woman and stood before the farmer. He asked how much does he sell the chickens. This time, the farmer said it was 2 shillings per chicken. The merchant was taken a aback. He said to the farmer that the chickens were cheaper when he bought them. The farmer said that the chickens were healthy and fine so he decided to increase the price. The merchant fumed and turned towards his other colleagues. They was a heated discussion and then the merchant turned towards him again. He said if he decreases the price to 1 shilling, he will take all of the chickens at that moment. The other merchants agreed, nodding their heads behind him.
Meanwhile, the woman was chucking her waist and demanded that she should be given those milk because of her hard life. The farmer said that she looked quite well considering she already has a lot of food. The woman said that the food was her provision for the entire week and it will be hard for the rest of the month. The merchant looked at the woman below his nose and snorted, mumbling about poor management and servant life. Luckily the woman was so angry she didn't hear it. The merchant demanded again about the chickens and this time said that if he doesn't decrease the price, he would not be allowed at the market anymore, with a smirk on his face. The farmer gulped down and said to the merchant that he won't be making any profit if that's the case.
The merchant retaliated that he is a farmer. For a farmer to live, he doesn't need that much profit now does he? The farmer thought that yes, he didn't really need all that much money. All he had is a small little farmland and a healthy wife back home. Who needs more than that? But they could use a new barn, this old one looked like it would be torn off if there's a few strong gusts and they could use a proper feather bed. His back aches whenever he got up from his hay bed. And he knows that his wife doesn't really like it either. So, he said to the merchant that he can buy them at the normal price of 1 and a half shilling. The merchant thought about this and slightly turned towards his colleagues. They nodded a bit and the merchant smiled and said deal.
So the merchant and his herd of little human sheep walked away happily with a couple of chickens. The farmer pushed 6 more shillings down his pocket and faced the angry woman. The woman demanded once more for free milk but this time she added that for making her wait, he would have to give the rest of the vegetables too! The farmer sighed and said that he would sell the milk for 1 pence a cup and the vegetables are free for her. After all, the vegetables looked bad now. The woman said the milk will have to be free as well or she would complain to the merchants guild and he would be kicked from the market. The farmer sighed and gave up. He took 5 cups of milk and gave it to her and the rest of the vegetables were quickly put on top of the over-encumbered basket. After that she stormed off without a word.
In the end, the farmer turned towards the rest of the milk in the pot. There was only a quarter left and decided that it would serve for tonight's drink. He turned towards the cow, unhooked it and walked off towards his home. On the way back, he counted that he made 12 shillings today. If he had sold for the price he decided, his profit would be about 16 shillings. The profit today would be used for his home maintanence and if there's any left, he would buy some much-needed blankets, thin as they would come. He sighed and decided that the next time he wanted to give something for free, or bargain for something, he would have to be prepared that some would take advantage of it.
Moral of the story: You can't make everyone happy. If you do, you won't be.
