1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 190 A new beginning

Even at dusk, Haizhu Bridge remains bustling with traffic and bicycles, and the scenery along both banks of the Pearl River is captivating.

Looking further into the distance, you can also see two iconic buildings.

One of them is the Guangzhou Hotel, which locals like to call the 27-story building. It was a product of the Canton Fair and was the most magnificent high-rise building in my country in the 1960s and 70s.

The second is the Huaxia Hotel, which was renamed just two or three years ago. It was originally called the Overseas Chinese Building and was the first hotel in the country to receive compatriots from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and overseas Chinese. It has a total of 39 floors.

In addition to these two high-rise buildings, there are many restaurants, hotels and inns.

Spruce Hotel is just one of them.

It's unremarkable, and the floor isn't particularly high compared to other buildings, but it's one of the better resources Chen Jiazhi can access right now.

In the conference room,

After an afternoon of discussions, Chen Jiazhi and Xu Wenxiang, representing Jiangxin Vegetable Market, finally reached a final agreement.

Xu Wenxiang stood up, extended her right hand, and her white top and black trousers made her appear tall and slender.

"Director Chen, I'm waiting for your good news."

Chen Jiazhi also extended his hand, touching it briefly before letting go. "Thank you for your trust, Mr. Xu. I believe I won't let you down."

Xu Wenxiang liked his confidence very much, and then glanced at Yi Dinggan beside her.

"It's getting late, let's have dinner together first, and then you can go shopping. It'll be a way of making up for the free meal you got last time."

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "Then we've really gotten a great deal."

As the group walked out of the conference room, they were met by four or five other people.

Chen Jiazhi knew one of them, Gou Tao, who probably didn't get along with Xu Wenxiang.

However, at this moment, Gou Tao could only stand to one side, led by two short middle-aged men.

But when Gou Tao saw Chen Jiazhi, he said something that immediately made the group of people look at him with scrutiny.

It seems like they came with ill intentions.

Upon meeting, the man in the middle spoke up, "Chairman Xu, so this is the talent you carefully recruited? He doesn't seem that impressive!"

Although it was spoken in plain language, Chen Jiazhi understood it; as expected, the visitor was not friendly.

Another person chimed in jokingly, "Mr. Huang, you have a good eye for people. He's just a country bumpkin who's only farmed a few acres of land. Only Mr. Xu would treat him like a treasure."

Xu Wenxiang crossed her arms and said coldly, "President Huang and President Tang don't need to worry about that. If you're not satisfied, you can choose to withdraw now."

Tang Xiao: "How much money can you offer if I withdraw now?"

Xu Wenxiang: "Naturally, the assessment will be based on the existing assets, and you will be paid according to your shareholding ratio."

"You..." Tang Xiao was furious: "What assets does Jiangxin Vegetable Market have left? If you want to withdraw, you have to buy out the hotel shares along with it!"

Xu Wenxiang chuckled and said, "I gave you a chance before, but you didn't back down."

Tang Xiao cursed, "You're offering prices like that to beggars."

Xu Wenxiang said, "Now that the Huaxia Hotel has been expanded and renovated and officially opened, the price has dropped again. If we don't sell now, the price may be even lower in the future."

Tang Xiao's eyes widened in surprise.

Xu Wenxiang added, "By the way, Jiangxin Vegetable Market also needs additional investment. Just a reminder to President Tang, if we don't contribute, our shares will be diluted again."

Ignoring Tang Xiao, who was practically spitting fire, Xu Wenxiang turned to Huang Jianyuan and asked, "President Huang, what are your thoughts?"

Huang Jianyuan stared at Chen Jiazhi for a while, but Chen Jiazhi did not look away at all. The two stared at each other for three to five seconds before Huang Jianyuan looked away.

“I can increase my investment in Jiangxin Vegetable Market, but I hope Mr. Xu can also put more effort into the hotel.”

"Hmm~" Xu Wenxiang nodded and took the lead, followed by Chen Jiazhi and Yi Dinggan.

Chen Jiazhi found the layout of the Spruce Hotel to be quite ordinary, just passable for the time being.

But from the conversation just now, he also knew that Yunshan was not in a good situation. In terms of high-end dining and accommodation, Yunshan was definitely not as good as the nearby Huaxia Hotel and Guangzhou Hotel.

Further afield, when Chen Jiazhi and Xue Jun rode their bikes through the city last time, they also saw the Garden Hotel, Baiyun Hotel, White Swan Hotel, China Hotel, and the Guangdong International Hotel on the 63rd floor.

These are the top hotels in this city.

Spruce is at best a second-tier brand; there are two or three other competitors of similar caliber near Haizhu Square.
Given the current favorable economic situation, and the fact that spruce trees likely have some resources in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, it seems to be doing quite well.

There were quite a few people dining in the restaurant.

After taking a few bites, Xu Wenxiang left in a hurry. The dishes on the table were plentiful, mainly seafood. Many of the seafood dishes that would become commonplace later were rare at the time.

After enjoying a hearty meal, Chen Jiazhi and Yi Dinggan bid farewell to Xu He, who had accompanied them, and left the hotel.

"Jiazhi, you're under a lot of pressure."

"Do you understand?"

Yi Dinggan curled his lip: "I can understand it just by looking at their expressions. That condescending attitude, that look of looking down on people, have I seen it all before?"

Chen Jiazhi leaned on the all-cast iron railing, gazing at the surface of the Pearl River. Seeing the sunset up close only made it seem more beautiful.

"So you're scared?"

“I’m afraid?” Yi Dinggan said, “You said that even if we lose money, they can’t do anything to us.”

"Hmm~"

"Speaking of which, this woman really trusts you enough to agree to so many of your conditions."

Chen Jiazhi looked up and laughed: "This shows that the situation at Jiangxin Vegetable Market is very serious."

Yi Dinggan: "Can you handle it?"

"Don't mention the word 'loss' in front of me anymore. In my eyes, there's only the difference between making more or less money."

"How youthful and impetuous, full of youthful vigor!"

The two walked around Haizhu Square for a while, looked at the memorial statue in the square, and then crossed the Haizhu Bridge to the other side.

The car was parked on the other side of the bridge. Also, the wholesale market where Chen Jiazhi and Yi Dinggan sell vegetables every night is across the bridge, very close to Yunshan.

In comparison, the Jiangnan Market near Zengcuo Road is a bit further away, but not by much, only about ten kilometers.

As business in markets like Jiangnan, Yuexiu, and Dongwang becomes even more prosperous, business here will only become more difficult.

Actually, before agreeing to Xu Wenxiang's request, Chen Jiazhi had another development path.

They grow vegetables and run agricultural wholesale markets on the same time, developing the entire business independently. They quickly accumulate funds through agricultural wholesale markets and then use the funds to support their planting.

This is also the development history of the vast majority of companies in the previous life.

The advantages are rapid development and quick profits, but the foundation is weak, there is no core competitiveness, and some information cannot be used to maximize profits. When it comes time to establish a base, there are many difficulties.

Chen Jiazhi had initially planned to take this route and had also decided to go to the Jiangnan Market.

I only recently changed my mind.

In the past two years, competition in the agricultural wholesale market has been fierce. The Jiangnan Market is still in its early stages, and there is also the Yuexiu Market of similar size next door.

It is likely that Jiangnan will eventually merge with the state-owned Yuexiu Market, but that will probably take many years.

In comparison, there's no need to rush.

Chen Jiazhi's greatest strength is not actually doing business; he has never actually done any agricultural wholesale business. His biggest advantage is vegetable planting and management.

Of course, we must first give full play to our own advantages, which will be the core competitiveness in the agricultural wholesale market in the future.

With a solid foundation, you won't need to resort to deceit and trickery in the future; you can secure your place simply by relying on your hard power.

In addition, Xu Wenxiang gave him another chance.

The 600 mu of land at Jiangxin Vegetable Market is the best training ground.

If he does it well, he can also accumulate a considerable amount of money through this.

As Yi Dinggan said, Xu Wenxiang gave him very generous treatment.

First, they have complete say in the production and management of the vegetable market, including procurement and capital investment, but there will be dedicated personnel to supervise it.

Secondly, the basic salary is 1000 yuan per month, while the head chef at the Spruce Hotel only earns 800 yuan per month.

Third, Xu Wenxiang did not give Chen Jiazhi a commission, but instead gave him a tiered profit-sharing system. The higher the net profit of the market, the more profit Chen Jiazhi would receive.

In addition, Chen Jiazhi also requested the right to withdraw at any time after one year.

Xu Wenxiang also agreed to other things, such as appointing Yi Dinggan as production assistant and Qi Yongfeng and others as group leaders.

There's no way to disagree.

Jiangxin vegetable market is already suffering from a severe loss of manpower.

Finally, there's the issue of the next investment in Jiangxin Vegetable Market; Xu Wenxiang promised to invest 30 yuan.

Chen Jiazhi had no reason to refuse. For him, 30 was more than enough; he couldn't possibly spend it all.

As for the Dongxiang vegetable market

Chen Jiazhi continued to acquire the vegetable fields of Yi Dinggan, Li Mingkun, and Guo Mancang, increasing his personal vegetable market area to 50 mu.

He will take Qi Yongfeng and Ao Deliang with him, but he will also have three more veterans: Chen Jiafang, Huang Juan, and Zhou Yuqiong.

There are also a few vegetable workers who were originally from Yidinggan. We will recruit more people later to bring the regular staff to 20.

When things get busy, they'll hire temporary workers.

Overall, it adopts a more refined management approach, with a higher number of people per acre than most vegetable markets.

...

Three days later, at the Dongxiang vegetable market.

The vegetable workers enjoyed three comfortable days.

There was no such thing as a two-day weekend this year, and for vegetable workers who were paid by the day, three days of paid leave was even more precious.

Everyone took the opportunity to go to the city to shop at malls and department stores, bought a lot of things, and experienced more of the entertainment activities of city dwellers.

However, they were still very frugal, only going out for one day and then not going out again.

Either watch TV, take a long nap, exercise, or cook yourself some delicious food to reward yourself.

After giving them the money, Chen Jiazhi didn't invite them to dinner again.

Instead, he took Li Xiu, her son, and her second sister's family of three to various parts of the city for two days of fun.

Go to the park, go shopping, watch a movie, eat Western food, stay in a hotel~
After two days of eating well, playing well, and sleeping well, Chen Jiazhi was completely relaxed. Exercising on the hotel's large bed was much more comfortable than on a four-poster bed.

Yi Long also bought the bicycle he had been longing for, a Phoenix brand 26-inch geared bike, which cost 480 yuan.

After returning to the market, he stopped watching TV and started riding the bike with great enthusiasm.

Li Xiu and Chen Jiafang looked at Yi Long, who was already able to ride a bicycle skillfully, with great envy.

However, the two were very stubborn. Originally, Chen Jiazhi planned to buy another women's bicycle so that the two could also learn how to ride.

But both of them said they already had several cars at home and wouldn't buy another one. After returning home, they were intimidated by the old bicycle.

If you want to learn to drive, you'll have to wait until you've had your fill of playing with Yilong~
As night fell, after dinner, Chen Jiazhi called the heads of each household to the courtyard. They sat on the steps, smoking, and discussed in detail the future plans and management of the Dongxiang vegetable market.

He handed over production management to Ao Dehai for overall coordination, and began to explore more detailed division of labor and group management.

This includes the land preparation and sowing group, the fertilization and pesticide application group, and the thinning and harvesting group.
There will inevitably be some chaos at first, but once a system of specialization is established, efficiency will be much higher.

Jiangxin Market is likely a complete mess.

However, Chen Jiazhi, along with Yi Dinggan, Qi Yongfeng, Ao Deliang, Li Mingkun, and Guo Mancang who accompanied him, were all mentally prepared.

A new day, a new beginning.

(End of this chapter)