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

From an economic perspective, delaying the market launch of high-yield corn seeds is not a major problem, but from the perspective of staple food, it is actually a loss.

Fang Wei wandered around the fields for a while, then went home for lunch.

night.

Guo Yongqing suddenly arrived at the house.

"Uncle Guo, why did you decide to move today? Please sit down. I happen to have some good tea at home. I'll brew you a cup to try."

Fang Wei had already finished dinner, and Guo Yongqing said he had also eaten, so the two of them sat on the rooftop to drink tea.

"Third brother, the army is closing down a logistics base. They have 4 mu of prime farmland, plus some ancillary facilities. They plan to sell the entire logistics base as a package. Are you interested?"

After drinking a few cups of tea, Guo Yongqing directly stated his purpose.

Upon hearing this, Fang Wei immediately sat up straight and asked, "How much are they asking for?"

"The package price is 2000 million yuan. The land is state-owned, but it can be used for a long time."

"How exactly does it work? Is it sold directly once a buyer is found, or is it a public offering where the highest bidder wins?"

"They don't want to go through all that trouble; they'll sell as long as they can reach an agreement."

This was definitely a great thing for Fang Wei, like a pillow coming when he was sleepy, making him very happy.

Price isn't a big issue; their asking price is reasonable. We'll see if there's room for negotiation. His main concern is that they might hold a public offering, but Guo Yongqing said they wouldn't.

There was no reason to hesitate. The next day, he went to the logistics base under Guo Yongqing's guidance.

The base's supervisor was surnamed Zhang, and he addressed Guo Yongqing as "Battalion Commander Zhang."

Battalion Commander Zhang led the two on a long tour of the base, inspecting the farmland and various ancillary facilities. To be honest, the base's facilities were excellent, well-maintained, and required no modifications after the purchase.

However, Battalion Commander Zhang couldn't make the decision on the bargaining, so a higher-ranking officer came along.

“We didn’t overcharge; 2000 million yuan is a reasonable price.”

"Your facilities are well-maintained, but they're a bit old after all, so of course they need to be discounted. Enough said, I'll buy it all for 1600 million yuan. That way you'll have peace of mind, right?"

"That's impossible. At most, I'll give you a discount, and the total price will be 1800 million yuan."

"make a deal!"

In fact, the prices were all transparent. Fang Wei didn't pester the other party and, feeling that the price was within a reasonable range, reached an agreement with them.

Of course, this agreement still needs to go through procedures between the two parties, but there shouldn't be any problems.

Fang Wei had already spoken with the directors of the cooperative, and the draft agreement was approved that same day.

Both parties quickly signed a formal contract. The cooperative had no shortage of funds, and after paying 50% of the amount, the base began to be handed over. After the handover was successfully completed, the cooperative paid the remaining balance.

The organization has already allocated manpower, and personnel will be stationed here immediately after the others withdraw, ensuring a seamless transition.

"Old Zhao, this will be the cooperative's planting base from now on. Who do you think would be suitable to manage it?"

The planting base is nearly 30 kilometers away from the village, so it is important to determine the leadership of the base.

Zhao Jinsheng then suggested several names, and Fang Wei, after considering his own choices, reached a conclusion. He then submitted a list of base management personnel to the council, which was approved.

Then came the list of grassroots personnel. The company transferred a group of able-bodied men to work at the base. There are ready-made barracks here, and the facilities are quite complete, but it's not realistic to go home every day.

Taking into account everyone's practical difficulties, Fang Wei generously purchased two large buses.

I can't go home every day, but going home once or twice a week is no problem.

If it's a young couple, the organization will try its best to arrange for them to be together. The accommodation at the base is quite good, with a large area and many houses, so there shouldn't be any problem with arrangement.

The agricultural machinery brigade needed to send over the corresponding agricultural machinery, and Fang Wei agreed to their application to purchase new agricultural machinery.

After being busy with various matters for half a month, everything has finally been sorted out.

Fang Wei designated 4 mu of farmland for the planting base, and then planned to use 2 mu of land to cultivate high-yield corn seeds, and use the other 2 mu of farmland to cultivate soybean seeds.

This year, there is a shortage of soybean and peanut seeds on the market because the prices of these two crops have suddenly soared, prompting various regions to increase their planting areas, which has made the already tight seed supply even worse.

Setting aside a portion of farmland to cultivate high-yield corn seeds involves considerations beyond just economic benefits.

New Cage's specialty is cultivating corn seeds. He doesn't know if they are genetically modified products, and the company's research institute is not yet able to conduct such testing.

However, as a competitor, you must not allow the other party to quickly seize the market.

Previously, there was no other way; the cooperative's land was insufficient. Between economic benefits and containing competitors, Fang Wei chose to prioritize economic benefits.

But now that 4 mu of farmland has been added, he can no longer focus solely on economic benefits.

It's not too late to sow now. Anyway, I plan to plant two crops this year, and then see if I can plant three crops next year.

Next, the agricultural machinery team provided full support to the planting base and quickly completed the planting task.

"Old Zhao, their logistics base is really well set up. There are enough wells, and it's also very close to Qinghe."

Fang Wei and Zhao Jinsheng visited the planting base again to inspect the work, and everything in front of them made them feel refreshed and happy.

To be honest, the land here is of better quality than that of the cooperative and even better than that of the breeding center. With abundant water and fertile soil, it's truly a blessed place.

"It's a pity that a new Cage suddenly appeared and is going against us, otherwise we could have made a lot more money this year by using all of this space to cultivate soybean seeds."

Zhao Jinsheng still felt a little regretful because the price of soybean seeds has now risen to 8.9 yuan per kilogram, almost double that of the previous two years.

Taking the cultivation of 1 mu of soybean seeds as an example, it can yield approximately 550 million jin, which is worth 4895 million yuan at the current market price.

The value of corn seeds from the same area is far less; the difference is significant.

Now, 2 mu of farmland are used to cultivate high-yield corn seeds, and the total value of the two differs by about 4000 million yuan.

"That's not how you do it. You'll understand later."

Fang Wei didn't say much. He knew that the other party was just feeling sorry and didn't mean anything else.

At noon, the two ate lunch at the canteen of the planting base. The canteen was originally very large, high-end and classy, ​​much better than the canteen of the brigade.

The food here is pretty good. Fang Wei ordered two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and an egg drop soup, and enjoyed it very much.

After lunch, he and Zhao Jinsheng held a short meeting with the base's management team before returning to the company. The journey here was quite long, but fortunately, transportation was convenient; otherwise, it would have been even more troublesome.

A few days passed quickly.

The strawberry seedlings from the seedling nursery were put on sale to the public, and customers flocked to buy them, quickly selling out.

The total number of strawberry seedlings produced this season is not very large, which is to protect the interests of our customers. Too many of these things will reduce their value, so there needs to be a total quantity control.

Next, the chili peppers planted in various places also ripened.

Zhao Jinsheng personally led a group to supervise the farmers in delivering their chili peppers. The cooperative always pays cash on delivery and never issues IOUs, so the purchasing process went very smoothly.

After finishing the procurement in the county, they started working on procurement in other counties, which ensured a good supply of raw materials for the chili sauce factory.

Farmers who planted chili seeds supplied by NewCage had a slightly later harvest, about ten to two weeks later. The purchasing process went smoothly, with large quantities of chilies being transported to the factory.

In the chili sauce market, Yaoling chili sauce has virtually no rivals, maintaining its position as the top-selling product in its category for the past two years.

As for dried chili peppers and chopped chili peppers, each has its own strengths, and no one dares to claim that they are the best.

Xin Kaiqi's victory lies in its successful penetration into the cooperative's rear, rendering the claims of Yaoling chili peppers' origin meaningless. Simultaneously, Xin Kaiqi has launched several other vegetable varieties, already squeezing out the cooperative's vegetable seed sales.

The cooperative did not cultivate any vegetable seeds this season, but it still has a stock of seeds available for sale in the distribution sector.

The Tian Bingyi Cooperative, which specializes in cultivating vegetable seeds, was among the most affected. The days of making easy money are over.

Fortunately, Tian Bingyi's cooperative is not large in scale, so there is no problem of unsold goods.

"Third brother, I've come to ask you for help. You have to help us. New Cage is too powerful. We can't compete with them at all. If this continues, they will take over the entire market sooner or later."

night.

Tian Bingyi arrived at Fang Wei's house and immediately began to complain.

Thanks to cultivating vegetable seeds, Tian Bingyi's cooperative has been doing quite well in recent years and has made a lot of money. But that was when there were no competitors. Now that the new Cage has suddenly appeared, he immediately feels the pressure.

"Don't rush. Once their vegetable varieties are on the market, bring some from each of them, and I'll have the research institute study them. Also, you need to find out the yield of each variety so we can do a comparative analysis."

Fang Wei also felt the pressure. Even someone as skilled as him was unsettled, which shows just how powerful the international giant was.

However, vegetables are a minor issue; his concern is that New Cage is secretly cultivating seeds for cash crops such as peanuts and soybeans.

Fang Wei increased his investment in soybean seed cultivation with the intention of making a fortune. He would be heartbroken if the price plummeted due to the impact of the market.

"Third brother, don't be so careless. You'll have to provide us with support later."

Tian Bingyi noticed that Fang Wei was a little distracted, so he quickly said something nice.

Fang Wei couldn't help but smile and said that she would make time to go and take a look in the next couple of days.

The next day.

After finishing his official business in the office, Fang Wei drove to Tian Bingyi Cooperative.

He saw the members working diligently and methodically, processing various vegetable seeds and continuously buying them from customers. If Tian Bingyi hadn't come to see him last night, he would have thought that Tian Bingyi's cooperative was doing very well.

He knew this was an illusion; with the continued efforts of the new Kaiqi, the good days for Tian Bingyi's cooperative were coming to an end.

"Third brother, you said you'd come over in a couple of days, and here you are today."

Tian Bingyi was a little touched. After all, they were family, and they were reliable in getting things done.

"I'm not here to see you. You'll come with me to visit the various vegetable growers later. I'll take a look at the vegetable varieties from Xin Kaiqi first."

Fang Wei shook his head and did not stay at Tian Bingyi's cooperative. Instead, he went to visit vegetable growers in the suburbs.

Some of these growers have already chosen NewCage vegetable seeds. After all, NewCage is a large company with a wide variety of products at reasonable prices, so it's not surprising that they can quickly open up sales channels.

The two chatted until noon, and Fang Wei basically got the gist of it.

Detailed conclusions can only be drawn after physical research, but based on his experience, he judged that the other party's vegetable varieties could significantly increase yield, have excellent appearance, and be resistant to storage.

But these are probably achieved at the expense of texture and taste.

In layman's terms, it's like the vegetables from New Cage are shiny like donkey dung balls—good-looking and high-yielding, but they don't taste like vegetables.

A few days later, Tian Bingyi sent over samples of vegetables from Xin Kaiqi. After studying, analyzing, and tasting them, it was found that the vegetables did indeed have a poor taste.

"But, third brother, why do you think vegetable vendors are willing to buy New Cage's vegetable varieties?"

Research is research, but it can't stop the new Cage's pace of conquering new territories.

Tian Bingyi was very disappointed. The other party's vegetable varieties were obviously not very good, so why were they able to overwhelm him?
"The main reason is that they are easy to store, so vegetables can be transported over long distances without being too damaged when they arrive at their destination. For example, our tomatoes are delicious, aren't they? But one thing is that they don't store well and spoil easily."

Fang Wei used tomatoes as an example, saying that Tian Bingyi's tomato variety has a pure taste and good texture, but it is not resistant to storage.

As a vegetable vendor, he would naturally choose vegetables that store well, since he needs to make a profit. Vegetables that don't store well may taste better, but they're more likely to result in a loss. So, what do you think he would choose?

Once the distribution process is completed, most of the vegetables entering the market will be of this type.

Consumers have no choice, or rather, they only have the power to choose passively.

As a result, vegetable growers will tend to buy New Cage vegetable seeds, because it's difficult to sell the vegetable varieties grown by the Tian Bingyi Cooperative.

"So what should we do? It's obvious we're going to be kicked out of the game."

Tian Bingyi immediately deflated; he really didn't know what to do.

"That's not necessarily true! Brother-in-law, you've been living too comfortably before, lying around too long. Now it's time to put in the effort and work hard. You should be producing vegetables while simultaneously selecting varieties that are easy to store, and then cultivating them."

I'll have the research institute cooperate with you on this task. Leave the brainstorming to them; you'll handle the physical work. Don't slack off!

Fang Wei rephrased the statement, but what she was really thinking was something else entirely. (End of Chapter)