1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 256 Confident
clap clap clap!
Boom!

When the profit-sharing plan was finally finalized and applause rang out in the meeting room, Chen Jiazhi's heart couldn't help but pound.

This batch of vegetables took almost three months to grow, during which time it involved a long period of cultivation.

Throughout the process, Chen Jiazhi put in far more effort than he did with the first batch of vegetables.

From planning in mid-to-late October, to applying base fertilizer and deep plowing at the end of October, to sowing snow peas in early November, the Chinese cabbage seeds took more than ten days to be sown because autumn came late.

Watering, weeding, fertilizing, spraying pesticides, building trellises, covering the greenhouses, and finally harvesting—it took nearly 100 days to finally reap today's harvest.

59.51 yuan!

In the conference room, Xu Wenxiang, Huang Jianyuan, Li Zaixing, and Zhang Lerong were also extremely happy at this moment.

100 days ago, when they received the funding plan for the new crop of vegetables, they all hesitated, after all, the investment for a single crop of vegetables was as high as 115 million yuan!

In contrast, when Chen Jiazhi arrived in September, the cost of the first batch of vegetables was less than 300,000 yuan.

How can such a risky move not make people hesitate? Wouldn't a higher dividend be more appealing?

Xu Wenxiang didn't think it was appealing, so she supported the adventure.

To this day, the adventure has proven to be a great success.

As the major shareholder with 56% of the shares, Xu Wenxiang received a total dividend of 86.93 yuan this time. Combined with the previous dividend of 60.9 yuan, she personally earned more than 147 million yuan in just four or five months!
Huang Jianyuan received a total of 71 yuan in dividends over two separate occasions!

Li Zaixing: 15.8 yuan!

Zhang Lerong: 15.8 yuan!

Such a high return in such a short time made everyone applaud with extra force.

After a long while, they stopped clapping.

Xu Wenxiang stood up and extended her right hand to the side, "Director Chen, thank you for your hard work~"

Huang Jianyuan, Li Zaixing, and Zhang Lerong also came to shake hands one after another. Despite their bickering and commotion, their excitement was palpable when the dust settled.

Xu Wenxiang then said, "We've been busy for so long, let's have dinner together tonight. It's on me, Director Chen, would you do me the honor?"

Chen Jiazhi said, "I can eat, but I won't drink alcohol."

"How can we not drink? Brother, I'd like to have a few more drinks with you today." Huang Jianyuan stepped forward and put his arm around Huang Jianyuan's shoulder.

"I was scared by what you guys did last time," Chen Jiazhi chuckled. "Besides, after dinner, I need to drive back early."

Huang Jianyuan teased, "I've heard that you Sichuan and Chongqing people are afraid of your wives. I didn't believe it at first, but now I'm starting to believe it."

"No, not at all." Chen Jiazhi didn't like this way of putting it. "There are only a few days left until the New Year, and there's still a lot of work to prepare."

Xu Wenxiang glanced at it: "It's fine if you don't want to drink. Let's go have some tea first. I've already had someone prepare it."

Walking in the hotel lobby, Chen Jiazhi felt that business was a bit quieter than the previous times he had been there, or if it was just his imagination.

There weren't many people in the tea room.

However, after walking only a few steps, people greeted Xu Wenxiang and the others, who were probably regulars at the hotel.

They found a tea table by the window and sat down. Chen Jiazhi ordered a cup of black tea.

"Mr. Xu, it's a pleasure to have some time for tea today. This must be Director Chen, right?"

Before long, people at the tea table next to him started talking across the distance, speaking in Cantonese. Chen Jiazhi looked in the direction of the voice and saw an old man with gray hair.

As the old man asked his question, some other people also looked over, but most of them were sizing up Chen Jiazhi.

Xu Wenxiang smiled and introduced, "President Duan, you still have such a sharp eye. That's right, this is Chen Jiazhi, the manager of Jiangxin Vegetable Market."

Then he introduced Chen Jiazhi in Mandarin, "Director Chen, this is General Manager Duan Zhibin, who mainly deals in electronic products."

Duan Zhibin walked over and extended his right hand, "Director Chen is truly a promising young man!"

Chen Jiazhi shook hands with him: "I am young, but I am still a bit lacking in ability."

Duan Zhibin smiled and said, "Director Chen, there's no need to be modest. I've heard that Jiangxin Vegetable Market has made a fortune recently."

After a pause, Duan Zhibin turned to the others and asked, "President Xu, President Huang, is your meeting today just about discussing how to split the money?"

"Mr. Duan, you guessed right!" Huang Jianyuan replied loudly. "The New Year is just around the corner, and we need to split some money for the holidays!"

Someone else asked curiously, "Mr. Huang, you seem so excited, how much money did you get?"

Facing the gazes of everyone, especially the frustrated looks of two or three original shareholders, Huang Jianyuan smiled smugly and said, "Not bad, I've only received about 70 yuan in the past six months!"

He wanted to continue, but Xu Wenxiang coughed, stopping Huang Jianyuan's high-profile behavior.

However, it still caused quite a commotion in the tea room, especially for the shareholders who withdrew midway, who were filled with regret.

This also attracted other curious people who came over to subtly inquire about the news, and some even directly invited Chen Jiazhi to cooperate with him in the future.

Hearing this made Xu Wenxiang feel uneasy. After drinking two more cups of tea, she went to a private room to eat.

At the dinner table, no matter how much the others tried to persuade him, Chen Jiazhi refused to drink alcohol and instead focused on devouring all sorts of rare seafood.

"Director Chen, are you planning to build your own base?"

Slightly tipsy, Xu Wenxiang said, emboldened by the alcohol, "Actually, we can collaborate in the future."

“You understand technology and management, while we have sales channels and a foundation of trust between us. Maintaining cooperation is the better choice.”

Huang Jianyuan and the other two also joined in the persuasion. After nearly half a year of cooperation, no one wanted to sever the connection. They all understood that Chen Jiazhi was the core of Jiangxin Vegetable Market; they could do without the others, but they couldn't do without him.

Having said all that, it's pretty clear that Chen Jiazhi wants to build a base.

“Even if I leave, I will always be a shareholder of Jiangxin Vegetable Market, and this cooperative relationship will not end.”

“I’m referring to your new base,” Xu Wenxiang said thoughtfully. “Could we also have a stake in it?”

Huang Jianyuan, Li Zaixing, and Zhang Lerong all echoed the same sentiment.

"Yes, Director Chen, could you please bring us a share too?"

"Just tell me if you need anything!"

As Chen Jiazhi ate the crab leg, he pondered the gains and losses. For the time being, he was actually not keen on accepting the investment from the others.

First, there is enough funding;
Secondly, in terms of sales channels, focusing on the domestic market is also a viable option.

Third, the business environment in Huacheng is barely acceptable, especially for investment in vegetable markets, because locals are increasingly unwilling to farm, and apart from rising land rents, it is not difficult to rent land.

"Let me think about it some more." Chen Jiazhi did not agree immediately: "No matter what, I will always be a shareholder of Jiangxin Vegetable Market. Before I leave, I will definitely leave a suitable team for the market."

Xu Wenxiang was somewhat disappointed. Had the channels in Hong Kong lost their appeal to him?
After finishing his meal, Chen Jiazhi didn't linger and drove straight home.

Knowing there was a meeting today, he didn't go to sell vegetables last night, so he wasn't sleepy and was in high spirits the whole way.

It was already 2 p.m. when I got home. As soon as I parked the car, I saw Li Xiu carrying Chen Zhengyun out.

"Jiazhi, how did the talks go?"

"Take it!"

Chen Jiazhi laughed heartily, stepped forward, hugged the mother and son and gave them a kiss, while Chen Zhengyun laughed and hid in Li Xiu's arms.

Li Xiu then asked, "How much did you take?"

Chen Jiazhi whispered in her ear, "More than 59, almost 60!"

Li Xiu's eyes widened instantly, but fearing she might disturb Li Cai and Chen Zhengxu who were still sleeping, she could only suppress her excitement and exclaim, "So many!"

Chen Jiazhi nodded and said, "The 206.9 million from the sales in the first 12 days has all been distributed."

Li Xiu asked, "What about the workers' wages?"

"Salaries and bonuses are only paid before the New Year," Chen Jiazhi said with a smile. "We're out of bok choy, but we still earn 30,000 to 40,000 yuan a day from snow peas. Not only salaries, but also subsequent investments come from this."

"Oh, and snow peas too!"

Li Xiu was so excited that he couldn't express it and paced back and forth in place.

"Where are your parents?"

“I went to the market to get some vegetable scraps, and I asked you to drive over and bring them back later.” Li Xiu grumbled, “I said I could use a bicycle, but you insisted on using a van. Aren’t you worried about getting the van dirty?”

"..." Chen Jiazhi: "It's okay, the car was dirty anyway. I'll go to the market first."

"I'll go with you too."

After getting in the car, Li Xiu asked a lot of questions, and Chen Jiazhi vividly recounted what had happened that day.

I also took stock of my existing assets: 73 yuan in bank deposits, about 15 yuan in cash at home, plus 59.5 yuan in dividends that I haven't received yet, totaling 147.5 yuan.

There are two more cars...

When Li Xiu got off the bus, she hadn't fully processed all this information. Suddenly she was a millionaire, and she was in a daze.

"Jiazhi, am I dreaming?"

"You need to get used to it now," Chen Jiazhi smiled. "Are you going to the office, or are you coming with me?"

Li Xiu shook her head: "You go about your business, I'll go watch Mom and Dad prepare the vegetable leaves."

"Okay, watch your step." Chen Jiazhi teased Chen Zhengyun again, "Come on, son, call me Dad~"

"Da da da da da~"

The magical baby talk could only be understood by babies of the same age. Chen Jiazhi also talked in a babbling style, which amused him so much that he danced with joy and left reluctantly.

"Director Chen, you've arrived?"

"Ah."

Chen Jiazhi glanced at Yi Dinggan and Qi Yongfeng, walked into the seedbed, scooped up a handful of well-mixed nutrient soil, and found it to be very pleasant to the touch—deep, loose, and fertile.
Qi Yongfeng said, "Brother Zhi, it's all according to the proportions you wrote down: 6 parts coconut coir and 4 parts organic fertilizer, without adding a single bit of soil."

Coconut coir is a natural organic medium that is removed during the processing of coconut husk fibers.

After processing, it is very suitable for cultivating plants and can also be used as a mixed fertilizer for fields to improve soil structure.

However, this place is mainly used for seedling cultivation.

"The seeds arrived this morning, delivered by the seed company. It's a pity you weren't here. He said he'd come back in two months." Yi Dinggan pondered, "It seems he's not optimistic about the profitability of growing sweet peppers in Huacheng right now. He listed a whole bunch of difficulties."

"That person's name is Luo Yi, right?"

“Yes,” Yi Dinggan said. “He looks like a leader.”

"Don't worry about it, we can start planting seedlings in trays." Chen Jiazhi was now full of confidence; even if he failed, no one could do anything to him.

(End of this chapter)