Era: I was a farmer at the foot of Yaoling Mountain

"Third Brother, you've stayed in the provincial capital for quite a while this time; the spring planting work at the commune is all finished,"

Pan Lianhua has been quite busy lately, so she didn't go to the provincial capital with Fang Weiyi.

She has high expectations for the Yaoling Building. Once the building is completed, the furniture company can move in to work there and will no longer have to suffer the embarrassment of being evicted by the landlord.

"Yes, the preliminary work for the project was very complicated, but fortunately it has all been completed."

Fang Wei rarely went out for such a long time in all these years, so he gave his wife a brief explanation.

Pan Lianhua didn't have any other thoughts, she just missed the other person a little. After hearing what the other person said, she didn't ask any more questions.

After returning, Fang Wei rested for a few days before going back to work at the company and briefing everyone on the project's preparations. It's estimated that construction will officially begin next month, and the company will need to send someone to attend the groundbreaking ceremony.

in the afternoon.

Fang Tao came to Fang Wei's office.

"We have already selected a batch of corn varieties and have started trial planting. We will conduct a second selection after they mature."

Tao Tao reported the progress of the new project to his uncle. They were working very hard and found a large number of corn seeds in such a short time.

After initial screening, this batch of corn seeds has been planted.

"You're moving quite fast! However, the hard work is yet to come. I hope you can continue your efforts and complete this research project as soon as possible."

Fang Wei nodded; he hadn't expected Fang Tao and the others to be so efficient.

However, there is still a lot of work to be done, and Fang Wei does not want them to become complacent or arrogant.

"We will!"

Fang Tao is a very down-to-earth person and can endure hardship. If he gets the opportunity in the future, he will definitely rise to prominence.

After his nephew left, Fang Wei called Wang Songlin and Tian Bingyi respectively, inviting them to his home for drinks that evening. He then went to the village committee office, bought some pork and a duck, and went straight home.

He handed the meat and duck to his older sister and told her that guests would be coming over for drinks that evening.

The older sister took the items and began to work.

Fang Wei couldn't help either, so she went inside to chat with Grandpa. Grandpa was in good spirits and his mind was perfectly clear; chatting with the old man was quite interesting.

It was late afternoon.

Wang Songlin and Tian Bingyi arrived one after another, and soon after, Sun Daoren and Pan Lianhua also came in.

Dinner was served quickly at home. Fang Wei, Wang Songlin, and Tian Bingyi drank while asking about the Yao village and Tian Bingyi's cooperative.

They both said their situations were basically stable and they hadn't encountered any major problems.

"That's good! I've been quite busy this year and haven't been able to visit you much. If you encounter any problems, please let me know immediately. Come on, let's drink."

Fang Wei called the two over for no particular reason; firstly, to inquire about the situation, and secondly, to reconnect.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, the two said goodbye and left.

the next day.

Fang Wei went to check on the two vegetable greenhouses.

Throughout the winter, the greenhouses are growing off-season vegetables, and sales are excellent. Basically, every day before dawn, people and vehicles are waiting outside, and the vegetables are sold as soon as they are harvested.

When this season arrives, the supply of greenhouse vegetables will gradually decrease, and then higher-value fruits such as strawberries will begin to be planted.

Fang Wei checked the books and found that revenue and profits had increased significantly in the first few months of the year, and he estimated that the investment would be available soon.

"Secretary, our greenhouse cultivation not only yields high output but also produces high quality products. We have already made a name for ourselves, and our chestnut pumpkins, strawberries, fruit cucumbers, and mini persimmons have become our flagship products."

The person in charge of the vegetable greenhouse introduced more details to Fang Wei, with a proud smile on his face the whole time.

Fang Wei nodded, full of confidence in the development of vegetable greenhouses.

noon.

Fang Wei drove to the breeding center and had lunch at the center's canteen.

After lunch, I listened to a work report from the relevant personnel at the center and then took a walk around the fields.

“Secretary Fang, there is a trend of supply falling short of demand for Nanguang No. 4 rice. Many people have come to me through connections in order to buy Nanguang No. 4 rice seeds smoothly in the summer.”

After reporting on his work, the head of the center made a casual remark, seemingly unintentionally.

Fang Wei understood; the other party felt that the planting area for the [Nanguang No. 4] rice variety was too small.

However, he ignored the other party. He would explain this matter to the council members, but he would not respond to anyone else.

Fang Wei stayed at the breeding center until the end of the afternoon, not only personally going to the fields but also conducting spot checks on the accounts.

The breeding center is well-managed and there are almost no problems with its management.

"You've done a good job. We'll give you serious consideration when it comes to awarding bonuses during the summer harvest."

Fang Wei did not have dinner at the center, but drove directly home.

the next day.

Accompanied by Huang Zhigang, the visitors from the region came to the cooperative to inspect its work.

"Secretary Fang, this is Director Gou from the regional agricultural bureau. He didn't work in our region before, so he's not very familiar with some things. Please try to explain the cooperative's situation in as much detail as possible."

Huang Zhigang introduced the two parties. This Director Gou was a new official, and he hinted to Fang Wei to be careful with his words.

Fang Wei was a little surprised that the Agriculture Bureau had changed its personnel so quickly. However, looking at Director Gou's dark face, he knew that the other party was not an easy person to deal with.

Sure enough, after Fang Wei accompanied the group on a tour of the Breeding Research Institute, Director Gou finally exploded.

“Secretary Fang, although it is true that higher authorities should not interfere with your cooperative’s production plan, is it inappropriate to reduce the yield of a very popular rice variety so much?”

Director Gou had only been in the region for a short time when he received a large number of complaints, accusing the cooperative of deliberately limiting production and using rice seeds as a weapon to manipulate people.

The Nanguang No. 4 rice variety has performed exceptionally well, but unfortunately, the cooperative has gradually reduced its production, which has drawn considerable dissatisfaction from outsiders.

He hadn't originally planned to go to Xinlin County, but he changed his itinerary for this reason.

"Director Gou, I can't agree with that. When the yield of [Nanguang No. 4] rice increased significantly, we ended up with a stockpile of rice seeds, which is why we made the decision to reduce production." Fang Wei explained to Director Gou with a smile, and reminded him that a couple of years ago, the cooperative's rice seeds were constantly being impacted by low-priced seeds, and no one cared about the cooperative back then.

The key point is that the cooperative has the right to formulate its own production plan, and it doesn't actually need to explain this to anyone.

“Secretary Fang, what you said is theoretically correct, but you need to consider the overall situation. Right now, the grain output of the entire region and even the entire province is not increasing, and you have high-yield rice seeds but the yield is decreasing. This is a manifestation of not considering the overall situation.”

Director Gou spoke very bluntly, directly accusing Fang Wei of being unable to consider the overall situation.

"Does putting the overall situation first mean we deserve to lose money? When we couldn't sell our rice seeds, no one helped us. Now that our production has decreased, you're trying to pressure us with these accusations. That's not fair."

Fang Wei sneered and directly retorted to the other party's words.

Seeing the tension between the two sides, Huang Zhigang quickly tried to smooth things over.

"Director Gou, Secretary Fang, please don't argue. Arguing won't solve anything. Let's talk things over. Come on, let's go to the conference room, have a cup of tea."

The two then fell silent and went to the conference room.

Fang Wei had tea brought over and then waited quietly for Director Gou to speak.

"Comrade Fang Wei, my attitude just now may not have been very good, and I spoke a bit directly. So now I'm asking you, can your cooperative actually increase the planting area of ​​[Nanguang No. 4]?"

"I cannot answer that question for you. Production plans are arranged according to the market conditions at the time. They are not static, and we will not make blind decisions due to external interference."

Fang Wei made his stance clear, and Director Gou's expression turned grim.

Director Gou then stormed off. He couldn't do anything about the cooperative or Fang Wei for the time being, so he could only think of another way when he got back.

Huang Zhigang accompanied the other party as they left. Before getting into the car, he winked at Fang Wei, signaling her to wait for his call.

Fang Wei wasn't actually worried about what the regional agricultural bureau would do. That's how things are now. After the household responsibility system was implemented, anyone could plant whatever they wanted, as long as they could deliver the grain on time.

And since he, as the chairman of the cooperative, doesn't need to be appointed by higher authorities, what does he have to be afraid of?

Besides, this wasn't the first time he'd clashed with the local agricultural bureau. Last time, he'd made the bureau look bad over the rapeseed planting issue.

When it came to Director Gou, the other party still didn't learn their lesson and came back to cause trouble again.

As the afternoon was drawing to a close, Fang Wei received a call from Huang Zhigang.

“Secretary Fang, you’re being a bit impulsive today. Why argue with Director Gou?”

"It's not that I want to argue with him, but he immediately started labeling me as someone, which I definitely can't accept. Besides, they've been causing me trouble time and time again, so what's the use of just being nice?"

"Oh dear, what a mess this is! Secretary Fang, calm down. Don't worry, no one can force you to change the production plan. The county will support you."

Huang Zhigang could also see that Director Gou was not here today with the intention of solving the problem.

He just hoped that Fang Wei could be more tactful in her actions, but she should still maintain a consistent stance with the cooperative.

"Thank you for your support, Secretary Huang!"

Fang Wei didn't say much. After chatting with Huang Zhigang for a while, he hung up.

Director Gou was humiliated by Fang Wei, and after returning to the region, he reported to his superiors, exaggerating Fang Wei's faults.

But the higher-ups listened and that was it; they didn't seem inclined to pursue the matter further.

The situation is a bit delicate. In fact, it is not wrong for the cooperative to arrange production according to the actual situation. It is wrong to force the other party to change the production plan.

If it were someone else, I could use some methods, but I can't do that with this person.

The other party is not only a breeding expert, but also a national representative with his own voice. If the region goes too far, someone from above will naturally speak up for Fang Wei.

"Doesn't the Yaoling Cooperative have a large quantity of rice varieties on the market? If all else fails, how about your Agricultural Bureau takes the lead and encourages everyone to plant that [Nongyou 82] variety?"

"【Nongyou 82】is a hybrid japonica rice, which does not suit the dietary habits of people in this province, so not many people are willing to grow it. Moreover, the cooperative's rice variety has already been sold all over the country, so it is not easy to get a share of the market."

Everyone tried to come up with a good solution, but Fang Wei wouldn't listen to them.

Director Gou was so furious that he smashed his teacup when he got back to his office.

At the time, the province was vigorously promoting low-priced rice varieties, and the regional agricultural bureau also engaged in numerous underhanded tactics. The conflict between the two sides had a long history, and this time it was a complete breakdown in relations.

Fang Wei didn't care about any of that. He and a few other directors went to the provincial capital to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the Yaoling Building.

Many reporters were present that day; the news that an agricultural cooperative could build a large building in the provincial capital was quite eye-catching.

Many distinguished guests attended the event that day, including Huang Zhigang, who made a special trip to cut the ribbon with Fang Wei.

This is not only an honor for the cooperative, but also for the county.

After leaving the provincial capital and returning to the cooperative, Fang Wei and two directors began visiting customers around Xinlin County and signed rice purchase agreements with more farmers who grew "Nanguang No. 4".

The cooperative is no longer just a professional breeding unit, but is gradually moving towards a complete industry chain from breeding to branded rice sales.

After the news spread, many counterfeiters gave up hope, as they saw virtually no chance of obtaining the raw materials.

Most of these people have started to change careers, but Wuling Rice is still persisting.

"Secretary, can we increase the planting area of ​​[Nanguang No. 4] next season?"

Zhao Jinsheng often couldn't understand Fang Wei's actions. One day, taking advantage of the opportunity to get Fang Wei to sign something, he brought up the topic of increasing production of "Nanguang No. 4".

Fang Wei shook his head and said, "This is nothing. If the current yield of [Nanguang No. 4] can be maintained for another planting season, it will basically wipe out the counterfeit merchants."

“Secretary, this year, those previously low-priced rice varieties have resurfaced and taken over the market again. I’m very upset about this.”

Zhao Jinsheng was resentful. His cooperative had the best rice seeds, yet its market share was declining. Who could he complain to?
However, he couldn't help but support Fang Wei's decision.

"Old Zhao, some things can't be calculated solely based on profit. We must take revenge on those who have wronged us, otherwise anyone will dare to bully us in the future."

As for market share, you don't need to worry. We don't need to compete with those low-priced rice varieties; instead, we should explore a new path for agricultural industrialization.

Fang Wei never intended to eradicate all rice varieties on the market, nor could he actually do so.

Over the years, he has invested in many businesses, but he considers his chili sauce factory to be the most successful.

We should leave some opportunities for rice seedlings to others; after all, the profits will remain within our own borders, and international giants have little competitive advantage in this area.

It's a pity that no truly competitive rice variety has emerged over the years, but if all the low-priced rice varieties are wiped out, then there will truly be no hope left. (End of Chapter)