Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Chapter 961 The celebrity effect is really huge; the number of acquisitions by the acquisition station has increased again (updated first, revised later)

The day after Li Long returned, he went to the county committee to report for duty.

The two main leaders of the county took the time to meet with Li Long in the conference room and listened to his detailed account of the meeting.

In particular, when Li Long mentioned that he met the former leader of the autonomous region while having dinner, and that the former leader had said a few words to Li Long and offered some encouragement.

After hearing about this, the two county leaders looked at each other, their eyes filled with inexplicable emotions.

"Comrade Li Long, you are truly blessed. When that leader was in office, I was still working in the township," the county's top official said with emotion. "Once, when he came to inspect our county, I caught a glimpse of him from afar."

You met with the leader and even had a drink with him; you're much luckier than us!

"Hehe, I was just lucky," Li Long said with a smile. "The leader is very kind, and I still miss life in northern Xinjiang."

The two leaders then spoke to Li Long with much more enthusiasm, asking him if he had any difficulties in building roads into the mountains. They also asked him to promptly submit a report if he needed the county's cooperation.

“No, no, our county is in the process of development and needs funds in all aspects. I can build this road with the help of my friends who are herders in the mountains.” Li Long hurriedly said, “I have already benefited from the county’s good policies and have benefited greatly from them. I can’t take advantage of the county any further.”

"Hey, Comrade Li Long's awareness is really high." People on the scene exclaimed, "If all the people in our county who got rich by starting businesses had this kind of awareness, our work would be much easier."

“Then let’s do this,” the county’s top official said after thinking for a moment, “we won’t provide any substantial support, but we will do what needs to be done in terms of publicity and preferential policies.”

Comrade Li Long, you have such high awareness, we can't let you suffer. Otherwise, many comrades will be disheartened.

The leader's promises were rather vague, but Li Long knew that these words would definitely get out, and his acquisition station would certainly attract attention afterward.

This is equivalent to adding an official protective umbrella to the purchasing stations. If anyone wants to take advantage of the purchasing stations, they'd better think twice.

After leaving the county committee, Li Long went to the Ethnic Affairs Commission to report for duty. It was relatively simpler there: he registered, filled out detailed information, and then copied the materials on advanced deeds that he had obtained from Ma Xiaoyan for filing.

Li Long's story will be recorded in the county annals, which means that from this point on, Li Long has already been remembered in history.

Then he went to the supply and marketing cooperative and brought Li Xiangqian a local specialty.

"Director, why do I feel like your 'Advanced Individual' plaque is bigger than mine?" Li Long said with a smile, looking at the "Advanced Individual in National Innovation" plaque that Li Xiangqian had displayed in his office.

"Even if mine is bigger, can it be bigger than yours?" Li Xiangqian rolled his eyes. "Just keep showing off. In two days, the whole county will know that you went to Beijing to receive an award. Your purchasing station is going to be all the rage."

"It can't be that bad," Li Long said dismissively. "How many people in the whole county would know about this kind of commendation and award? People don't read newspapers much, the county's radio station isn't as popular as the Central People's Broadcasting Station, and the county's TV station hasn't been established yet, so the publicity is limited."

“You don’t know? Lately, everyone in the county has been talking about it at every meeting. It’s much rarer for someone from our county to go to the national conference to receive an award than for Kobe Bryant to attend the National People’s Congress,” Li Xiangqian said. “There are many benefits, you’ll see for yourself.”

“I’ve already experienced that,” Li Long said with a smile. “I bought a courtyard house in Yanjing, and I was worried that if I wasn’t there often, someone else would occupy it. So I talked to the State Ethnic Affairs Commission’s Beijing office, and they directly put up a sign for us that it was a subordinate unit of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission’s Beijing office, so it’s considered an official institution.”

The Beijing office even helped us find a renovation team, which was very convenient.

"Hey, now that you mention it, I regret it. If I had known, I would have gone with you to buy a yard back then, and I could be benefiting from it now," Li Xiangqian said, slapping his thigh.

“It’s not too late now. Courtyards are still cheap these days, it’s just hard to get a household registration.” Li Long quickly said, “You have to find connections, otherwise you can’t get a Beijing household registration.”

He didn't elaborate, and Li Xiangqian didn't ask further. Li Long guessed that Li Xiangqian was just saying it casually and hadn't really made up his mind to buy a house in Yanjing.

When they came out of the supply and marketing cooperative and returned to the courtyard, Sister Yang said that the phone in his bedroom kept ringing.

At this point, there was no caller ID on the phone, so Li Long decided to wait a bit, and then the people from the Ethnic Affairs Commission arrived.

"Comrade Li Long, the State Ethnic Affairs Commission called and said that you need to report to the state in three days to give a tour report."

Li Long thought to himself, "They really are using me as an advanced worker?"

The county's Ethnic Affairs Commission staff also brought a notice from the prefectural Ethnic Affairs Commission, asking Li Long to sign it.

"The state said that the materials you gave us can be used directly as a report on your achievements. They will make some simple modifications, so you should familiarize yourself with them as soon as possible."

Li Long had expected this to happen, but he didn't expect it to come so quickly. However, since the notification had arrived, he might as well go; he couldn't enjoy the honor while neglecting his duties.

After the staff left, Li Long thought that Li Xiangqian was, after all, an advanced individual commended by the state, and he should probably go back with him, so he called Li Xiangqian.

“Hey, I don’t need to go here,” Li Xiangqian said with a smile. “The state even called me specifically to explain that our story overlaps with yours. If you go to our place, you don’t need to go there. Anyway, you’re a member of the supply and marketing cooperative, so you represent them.”

Li Long thought to himself, "I don't want this representative position."

But there's nothing we can do, so let's just go. We've seen big events all over the country, so this is nothing compared to what we've seen in the prefecture.

During lunch, Li Long mentioned this matter to Gu Boyuan and Gu Xiaoxia.

“We’re fine, but it’s going to be a hassle for Sister Yang again. Mingming and Haohao are so naughty these days,” Gu Xiaoxia said, “they can’t be left alone for a moment.”

"Mom is saying bad things about us!" Mingming disagreed.

"We're not naughty!" Hao Hao protested.

"Alright, alright, you're not naughty anymore," Gu Xiaoxia glared at them, "Who plucked the wool off that little lamb? Who destroyed the vegetables in our garden and the flowers in our flowerbed?"

"Hehehehe." The two children laughed and then fell silent.

"It's nothing, it's nothing," Sister Yang said with a smile. "It's just a little work. Mingming and Haohao are so cute, they even help me with the chores."

“That’s right, that’s right, we can all do chores now!” Mingming and Haohao chimed in. “I can even pick vegetables!”

"I can wash persimmons now!"

"That's more like it. You need to work hard from now on and help Aunt Yang cook the meals," Li Long said patiently. "That's what makes a good boy!"

"Yes, yes, we are all good children!"

Watching the conversation between the adults and the child, Gu Xiaoxia felt a little amazed. Her husband was nothing like other men who would only scold and reprimand the child. Li Long's extraordinary patience was something rarely seen even among mothers.

The next day, Li Long first contacted Jia Tianlong and sold the less than two tons of fritillaria bulbs currently stored in the warehouse. He had also collected some dried mushrooms during this period, but not in large quantities, and since Huang Lei wasn't there, he didn't sell them. With the money from selling the fritillaria bulbs, Li Long gave Gu Boyuan 80,000 yuan as working capital. Then, after making some arrangements at home, he drove his jeep to the State Ethnic Affairs Commission to report for duty.

The Ethnic Affairs Commission warmly received Li Long, arranged accommodation for him, and assigned a staff member to coordinate various tasks.

Li Long only realized after looking at the itinerary that this report on his deeds would take him to all eight counties and two cities in the prefecture, which would take at least half a month.

This was considered a work assignment, and he couldn't refuse it. Fortunately, he was very familiar with the materials about his deeds, since they were about what he had done, so it went very smoothly.

Moreover, I learned from the staff that this report meeting was mainly about him, with everyone else playing a supporting role. After all, he had been recognized nationwide, and his deeds were impressive enough to withstand scrutiny.

The first day of the report was held in the state capital, with attendees from various industries seated in the state auditorium. Some members of the reporting team were rather nervous, while Li Long was more relaxed, having seen such grand occasions as the Great Hall of the People before, this was nothing to him.

Over the next few days, they became more familiar with the process, including the reports and procedures, and the other members gradually adapted as well.

The day after Li Long started giving his report, the number of people at the purchasing station who could sell their goods suddenly increased, leaving Gu Boyuan and Sun Jiaqiang completely bewildered.

There used to be only about ten people in the yard a day, even fewer than last year. Gu Boyuan had inquired and found that other counties and cities in the prefecture had also established their own purchasing stations. They didn't make money in the first year, so they started to adjust their policies. This year, they started to learn from Li Long's purchasing station and began to have a service-oriented mindset.

Although we haven't reached the standards here yet, once we develop a service-oriented mindset, some people with small orders will no longer be willing to travel far.

Another issue is the acquisition standards and prices set by Li Long and his team. Those who are not honest will be offered very low prices, which makes some people unwilling to sell.

So the two of them had a pretty good idea of ​​how much merchandise they could collect each day.

They hadn't expected such a sudden surge in the number of sellers; forty or fifty people a day were already overwhelming, and the amount of goods they were buying had increased several times over. If Li Long hadn't left some emergency funds before leaving, the acquisition funds would have been used up in just three days.

Gu Boyuan and Sun Jiaqiang initially thought it was a coincidence, but as more and more people gathered over the next few days, they began to suspect something was wrong.

Later, after analyzing the situation with Gu Xiaoxia and the others, we guessed that it was most likely due to the impact of Li Long's report, which was a good thing.

May is typically the peak season for fritillary bulb acquisition, but so far this year, we haven't received even half of last year's amount.

However, during the time Li Long was giving his report, the number of people coming here to sell fritillaria bulbs, medicinal herbs, and dried mushrooms suddenly increased, and the amount purchased exceeded that of last year, and even more.

This can be considered the first positive feedback Li Long received in business after being recognized as a nationally outstanding individual.

After the delegation finished visiting all the counties and cities, returned to the prefecture to summarize their findings, and then disbanded, Li Long returned to the county. By then, May was almost over.

When they returned to the courtyard, as soon as they picked up Mingming and Haohao, Sister Yang told Li Long:

"Uncle, you need to go to the purchasing station right away. They've received so much stuff lately that they're almost out of space. Several shop owners have already made several trips to buy things these past few days, and without you there, they can't sell their goods."

Li Long was unaware of the changes at the purchasing station, which puzzled him. But since Sister Yang had mentioned it, Li Long hurriedly drove his Jeep to the purchasing station again.

The crowd in the courtyard surprised Li Long greatly; how could there be so many people?

Li Long parked the jeep outside the yard, got out, and squeezed inside. A middleman saw him and called out:
"Hey, Comrade Li Long is back!"

Upon hearing this, everyone else turned to look at him.

"Is this Li Long? He's really strong!"

"He looks like a capable person!"

"I knew it, how could an ordinary person do something so big..."

Listening to the people's discussion, Li Long roughly understood. He pushed his way in while shouting:

"Folks, please make way! I need to go in and take care of something. I have some guests waiting. Please make way!"

Everyone squeezed together to make way for Li Long as he entered the purchasing station.

As soon as he entered, he saw Gu Boyuan and Sun Jiaqiang, both with unshaven beards, looking extremely busy.

Before Li Long could speak, Gu Boyuan pointed inside:
"Boss Jia, Boss Huang are waiting inside, please go in quickly."

Li Long knew he was referring to Jia Tianlong and Huang Lei.

"Uncle Gu, how much stuff have you collected recently?" Li Long asked before going in.

"Here's a notebook for you to look at." Gu Boyuan opened a drawer, took out a notebook, and said, "The warehouse is almost full. We need to sell these things quickly, or we won't have enough cash."

It's impossible that there isn't enough cash. Gu Boyan said this on purpose, actually wanting the people selling goods outside to know that Li Long's purchasing station doesn't have much money.

Li Long walked inside, flipping through the notebook. When he saw the total, he was startled.

I've only been gone for half a month, how could I have received so many things in just half a month? No wonder Gu Boyuan said he was almost out of money, just from receiving these things, the money must be close to 150,000!

Uncle Gu has probably used up all his savings, right? Maybe even the little money Gu Xiaoxia had saved up.

More than three tons of fritillaria bulbs and nearly a ton of dried mushrooms—that's quite a lot!

Upon hearing Li Long's voice, Jia Tianlong and Huang Lei both came out of the reception room. After seeing Li Long, they both complained.

"I had no choice but to give a report; official business comes first," Li Long said with an apologetic smile. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Let's finish discussing all of this today."

"I haven't congratulated you on receiving the national award yet." Jia Tianlong had just expressed his opinion, but now he said with a smile, "Wow, you've achieved both fame and fortune."

"It's okay, it's okay."

Both of them brought good news to Li Long: the prices of medicinal herbs and dried mushrooms had both increased.

This is fantastic news!

(End of this chapter)