1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 201 Growth
360 mu of land were sown in 5 days!
After Tong Gang vaguely understood the plan, his heart skipped a beat.

Having spent over a year at the market, he wasn't a complete novice.

The market covers only 600 acres, and more than half of it needs to be completed in just 5 days. This is no small feat.

There are also issues related to subsequent management and sales.

He didn't actually have a very strong background; he just had a relative who was a leader in the town government in charge of agriculture, and that's how he got a job at Jiangxin Vegetable Market.

The market also needs him to establish working relationships with the government.

Therefore, not only is his salary higher than that of ordinary people, but his position is also relatively stable no matter who the manager is. Unless Jiangxin Vegetable Market goes bankrupt, he can continue to work there.

And Jiangxin Market almost went bankrupt!

If it weren't for Director Chen's appearance, Tong Gang felt he would have already left.

His relatives' influence was limited to the Dagang Town area, and the two families weren't that close, so finding him another well-paying job wouldn't be easy.

So Tong Gang has been working very hard lately because Director Chen has given him hope.

There's no job in the market that can stump him. In the past, if a machine broke down or supplies were lacking, it would take him a day or two to fix.

Director Chen would either fix it on the spot or immediately drive the machine to be repaired.

Uh... even if he skips work, the deputy manager will still drive him to get repaired.

The management of the vegetable garden is much better; just looking at it, it's much more pleasing to the eye than before.

Especially after the seedlings planted a few days ago have sprouted, the vegetable field has become much more colorful.

Those neatly arranged vegetable seedlings were a sight Tong Gang hadn't seen in a long time.
Anyway,

This is an exceptionally capable manager!

Is it a bit of an exaggeration to plant 360 acres in just 5 days?
Tong Gang glanced at Xu Yao, who was also somewhat surprised and doubtful, and after thinking for a moment, asked in plain language, "Is there enough money in the account to pay the workers' wages?"

"At least this month will be fine."

Xu Yao hesitated for a moment, then explained in plain language, "But we've been working too much overtime lately, and the overtime pay is very high. If we don't have any income next month, or if the income doesn't meet our expectations, the market might not have enough money to continue operating after we pay everyone's wages for next month."

"Should we remind Director Chen?"

"You go."

"You are the accountant."

"No need, I roughly understood it," Chen Jiazhi suddenly said to the two of them.

"..."

Xu Yao pursed her lips and pondered, "Director Chen, isn't planting so soon a bit too risky?"

Tong Gang chimed in, "We were already very efficient, sowing 30 mu a day a few days ago. But now we're sowing more than 70 mu a day. Isn't that too fast?"

These two sentences were spoken in Cantonese-accented Mandarin.

Yi Dinggan and the others all understood.

Chen Jiazhi said, "A few days ago, we sowed 30 mu a day because that was all the land we had prepared. Now most of the land has been prepared."

After a pause, Chen Jiazhi added, "Opportunity knocks but once. If we rush to broadcast now and catch the right market conditions, even if the output is a little lower, the profits will be just as good."

Xu Yao asked, "Does Director Chen predict that vegetable prices will be good next month?"

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "It will at least be better than the current market."

Tong Gang hesitated for a moment and said, "The price of vegetables has been very cheap recently. Will it be better next month?"

"If you ask me, the answer is yes."

After being questioned by the two men, Chen Jiazhi and the others stopped talking about work and started drinking again.

The event didn't end until 10 PM.

Xu Yao lay in bed, unable to sleep, calculating in her mind how many vegetables she could harvest each day after planting 360 mu of land in 5 days.

It's likely to be a very alarming number.

I struggled with this all night.

The next day, when everyone was out, Xu Yao dialed the phone in Xu Wenxiang's office.

"Hey."

"Sister, it's me."

"Yaoyao, what's up?"

Xu Wenxiang was somewhat surprised. She stood up, picked up her phone, and looked out the window at the scenery.

When the time came, Xu Yao hesitated, even though she actually had a high opinion of Director Chen.

After thinking it over, I realized that sowing seeds was too important, and it was necessary to report to my cousin Xu Wenxiang in advance, otherwise I wouldn't be able to explain it to her later.

So he went on to explain in detail the planting plan for the next few days, the recent overtime work situation, and so on.

"Sister, I'm worried it's too risky. If something goes wrong, we might not have enough funds again in a month."

After hearing this, Xu Wenxiang also felt that Chen Jiazhi was really bold, and his fighting style was completely focused on achieving everything in one battle.

Then I remembered that he had mentioned the issue of vegetable sales when I went to the market last time, and he probably had an idea then.

Didn't he ever consider the possibility of failure?

Can the newly formed team keep up with the planting and management?

But she was the one who chose him, and now there's no turning back.

"Let's do it his way," Xu Wenxiang said. "As long as he's working diligently and not messing things up, we'll give him our full support!"

"Okay, I see."

Xu Yao also breathed a sigh of relief; she had been inexplicably a little worried about Director Chen.

As I hung up the phone, I suddenly felt someone flash past the window. When I came out, they were nowhere to be seen in the corridor.

But she already guessed who it was; besides Cheng Tiantian, there was no one else in the office.

Standing by the wall, I looked out and saw jets of water scattering across the vegetable field like a shower of flowers.

Director Chen rode his bicycle through the vegetable fields, sometimes shouting instructions loudly, sometimes personally giving guidance. Even the two elderly men, Huang Rixin and Zheng Zhong, were completely subdued by his teachings.

...

Three more days passed.

The vegetable field was bustling with activity: sowing, watering, thinning, and fertilizing.
There's always work to be done every day.

The continuous high-intensity work left everyone physically and mentally exhausted.

Huang Rixin unexpectedly encountered Zheng Zhong, who was smoking, under a kapok tree.

"Old Zheng, you still have time to relax and smoke? Have you finished working in the fields?"

Zheng Zhong exhaled a puff of smoke and said, "There's no end to the busyness, but the planting progress is on track. At least I didn't get criticized today. Come on, have a smoke."

Huang Rixin sat down on the ground next to him, took a cigarette and lit it. Seeing that no one was around, he said, "Liu Feng and Gou Tao came to see me again and asked us to have dinner tonight."

Zheng Zhong shook his head: "I'm not going."

"I don't want to go either, but I already took money from people last time, so it wouldn't be right not to go." Huang Rixin sighed, "What kind of situation is this!"

Zheng Zhong pondered for a moment and said, "At worst, I'll just return the money to him."

Huang Rixin: "You're thinking too simply. If we return the money to him, he definitely won't take it back and will expose the whole thing. So, should we continue doing this?"

Zheng Zhong silently took one puff of his cigarette after another until he finished it before saying, "I'm going to find Director Chen. Are you coming?"

Huang Rixin asked in surprise, "Why are you looking for him?"

Zheng Zhong looked up at the busy figures in the distance. He saw Director Chen standing by the pond, with Li Mingkun and several workers responsible for spraying pesticides next to him.

Director Chen must be conducting training again.

He has experienced similar scenarios many times in the past two weeks.

From initially dismissing it, he later came to want to listen more.

Learning new skills is only one aspect; more importantly, I want to integrate into this team.

When the thought came to him, he thought he had lost his mind, but that was just how he felt.

Be positive and optimistic!
After spending more than half a month with them, he could feel that this group of people were really working hard!

Zheng Zhong and Huang Rixin also managed 100 mu of land, but their progress was always behind the other four groups.

Three days ago, Director Chen gave them an ultimatum: either do it or get out!

Zheng Zhong and Huang Rixin originally wanted to leave in a fit of anger, and the two had complained about it many times in private.

Feeling pathetic? Want to leave? Fine, I'll just quit. If they don't want me here, there are plenty of other places that will.
However, when the time came, both of them gritted their teeth and said yes.

Because I feel like it might actually happen~
Honestly, if you can save a vegetable market that's on the verge of bankruptcy and participate in the whole process, you'll have a lot of face to show for it!

Moreover, they also learned of Director Chen's plan: to take a big gamble!
We'll see the results in a little over a month at most.

If they win, they'll turn their lives around completely, and everyone involved will benefit. If they lose, the responsibility will mainly fall on Director Chen's group.

He and Huang Rixin were already at the poker table; if he were to quit now, he would be an absolute idiot.

By answering "yes," one has essentially chosen a side.

After thinking for a while,
Zheng Zhong said to Huang Rixin, "Let's speak frankly and clearly. We were blinded by greed before."

"..." Huang Rixin said, "What if Director Chen turns against us?"

Zheng Zhong: "Probably not. Now is the time when we need manpower, and it didn't affect him last time."

Huang Rixin: "That's true. Last time those shareholders came, they left without saying a word."

...

After a while,

Chen Jiazhi overheard their confession, and while it was unexpected, it wasn't entirely surprising.

I just figured out why Huang Jianyuan and the others came last time; it was probably because Gou Tao was causing trouble.

He had known all along that there were many 'devils' inside, but he had never really cared.

Break all laws with one force.

The vegetable market is more about the produce itself; it has its own team, and once a batch of vegetables is harvested, most problems are solved.

And it did work.

The three shareholders, Huang Jianyuan, Zhang Lerong, and Li Zaixing, probably left hastily without finding fault because the event went well.

Zheng Zhonghe and Huang Rixin's frankness did not anger Chen Jiazhi.

"Alright, I got it. Go do what you need to do. Don't bother with Gou Tao. There are only two days left. The important thing is to get the seeds planted!"

"Okay! Director Chen, I will definitely work hard for you!"

Looking at Zheng Zhong's devout face, Huang Rixin couldn't help but think to himself, "You, Zheng Zhong, with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, you're so quick to pledge your loyalty?"

"Director Chen, I'll follow you from now on."

"Well, go ahead and get busy."

Chen Jiazhi wasn't swayed by a few kind words; he simply needed two people right now.

After all, there is a big difference between successfully growing 400 mu of vegetables and growing 600 mu of vegetables.

The two men had been complaining every day, which had affected the morale of the other workers, so he gave them an ultimatum: either do it or get out!
But in fact, he had no other suitable candidates.

During this period, Ao Deliang, Qi Yongfeng, Li Mingkun, and Guo Mancang have made great progress, but each of them still finds it somewhat difficult to manage 100 mu, let alone 150 mu.

If the two leave in a huff, Chen Jiazhi might reduce his plan to plant 360 mu in 5 days.

Time passes day by day,

As the seedlings grew and the autumn heat intensified, Chen Jiazhi reduced the number of times he went home.

I spend all day at Jiangxin vegetable market, keeping a close eye on production management and resolving logistical issues as soon as possible.

The vegetables grew bigger day by day.

(End of this chapter)