1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 352 Zengcheng Cabbage, Still Unknown

Chen Jiazhi finished reviewing the documents and was in a good mood.

I've been keeping an eye on it regularly, but the prices have been fluctuating a lot in the last few days.

For example, the price of cucumbers and tomatoes has climbed to 1 yuan per kilogram, which is a very considerable price.

Li Mingkun sipped his tea and said with a relaxed smile, "The price may rise further, and these 50 mu of greenhouses can still contribute a lot of income."

Chen Jiazhi pondered for a moment and asked, "Have you thought about what to plant in spring and summer?"

Li Mingkun shook his head. "We're really a bit clueless right now. When spring comes, Yuanmou will lose its advantage of producing winter and early spring vegetables, and prices will definitely plummet."

Chen Jiazhi tapped his fingers on the table, thinking of Xiang Bin. The feedback on the vegetables he sold to him last time seemed to be good.

After a moment of contemplation, he said firmly, "Build cold storage facilities, establish ice and foam box factories, grow leafy vegetables, and find markets along the Chengdu-Kunming Railway."

Li Mingkun was surprised, "This investment is too big, the money we've earned is far from enough."

He had been feeling relaxed just a moment ago, but in that instant he felt the pressure.

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "Don't be nervous. This is a long-term goal, not something you have to do right away. Right now, the focus is on promoting the seedling farm and doing scientific research. Growing vegetables is just a side project."

"That scared me to death." Li Mingkun then asked, "So what should we plant next spring and summer?"

“That requires your collective wisdom,” Chen Jiazhi said thoughtfully. “However, if those 50 mu of greenhouses are managed well, they may be able to continue harvesting until April.”

At that time, we can directly plan the seedlings for winter and early-season vegetables. We should have orders next year, and we can consume some ourselves, allowing us to operate both the seedling nursery and the vegetable market simultaneously.

The scene from the last training session is still vivid in Li Mingkun's mind, and he is confident in securing seedling orders.

Then Chen Jiazhi talked to him about the composition of his compensation package, which also included profit sharing.

There wasn't much disagreement on this point; Chen Jiazhi was quite generous, and Li Mingkun was still adapting to the rapid changes of the past two years.

At the beginning of last year, he was farming three or four acres of land in Guangzhou, but by the end of this year, he had moved to Yuanmou to take charge of a territory.

He believes that following Chen Jiazhi will only lead to a better future.

...

Before leaving Yuanmou, Chen Jiazhi had several more conversations with Ji Song, Peng Qian, and others.

He places great importance on seedling cultivation and propagation, and will increase investment in this area, while also having the two of them recruit more people to improve their research team.

The only way to achieve results on this path is through perseverance.

After finishing these tasks, he and Xue Jun boarded a plane back to Guangzhou.

"Hey you, Brother Long, any news lately?"

Since his conflict with Brother Long, Xue Jun has been leading a team to investigate market conditions at the wholesale market while keeping a close watch on Brother Long and his associates. He also rarely appears at the farm, preferring to stay at night.

"Perhaps someone gave us a heads-up, because now he avoids us. He probably knows that we are a project that the government is paying close attention to."

"Well, that's best."

As long as no one causes trouble, Chen Jiazhi has a lot of trust in Li Mingkun's skills in growing vegetables, so making money is not a problem.

After boarding the plane, Chen Jiazhi took out a textbook called "Chinese Vegetable Breeding" and started reading it.

This book systematically introduces the technical approaches and innovative breeding methods of vegetable breeding, the basic theories of improved seed propagation, field trial design and statistics.

There are also breeding examples of more than 30 kinds of vegetables such as cabbage, tomato, cucumber, bok choy, and mustard greens.

After reading this book, he gained a general understanding of the theory and practice of vegetable breeding.

He has a vegetable market, so he can conduct experiments and verify his findings anytime, and he is gradually making progress.

Strengthening this area of ​​learning is also for better management.

Time flew by as he read the book, and upon arriving at Baiyun Airport, Chen Zhengxu came to pick him up again.

Where did Li Cai go?

Chen Zhengxu said, "He went to Zengcheng again today and hasn't come back yet. He said you asked him to find a kind of late-maturing cabbage, but he hasn't found it yet."

"It's been almost a week, and they still haven't found it?"

“Li Cai said that choy sum is quite easy to find, and late-season choy sum is not hard to find either, but I have never been able to find the kind of tall late-season choy sum with an amazing taste that you mentioned.”

Really? Is it that hard to find late-season cabbage in Zengcheng?
Shouldn't every household have some?
A little over a week ago, thinking that New Year's Day was approaching, he figured that Zengcheng late-season cabbage would probably be on the market around that time, so he asked Li Cai to go to the countryside of Zengcheng to look for it.

They don't sell it in Huacheng, but there should be more in Zengcheng.

I thought it would be relatively easy, but it turns out it's not as simple as I imagined.

Chen Jiazhi pondered for a while, wondering if the taste of Zengcheng late-season cabbage had not yet been discovered by the market?
Or perhaps the place of origin is incorrect?
Thinking about it that way, it does seem like that's a possibility.

After all, there are relatively fewer people growing late-maturing Chinese cabbage, and the most well-known variety at present is still the late-maturing Chinese cabbage No. 2 cultivated by Peng Qian.

Late-season Chinese cabbage is a type of Chinese cabbage, also known as tall-stemmed Chinese cabbage. It is a winter-grown vegetable and is generally available in the depths of winter. Ordinary Chinese cabbage weighs about 50g, while late-season Chinese cabbage can weigh up to 500g.

If few people in Zengcheng are growing it at this time, and there is no special promotion or production area found, it seems normal for it to remain unknown.

The crux of the problem likely lies here.

Chen Jiazhi had eaten Zengcheng late-season cabbage, and it was even after the first frost. The fresh, sweet and crisp taste left a deep impression on him.

Meanwhile, dried late-season cabbage hearts are also excellent for making soup, as they can clear the heart and lungs, and relieve heat and detoxify.

Chen Jiazhi remained silent for a long time, so Chen Zhengxu had no choice but to say, "How about I call him and ask him to come back first?"

"No need, let him look." Chen Jiazhi came back to his senses. "If he can't find it, we'll look for it in a few days too."

"Still can't find it?" "Then we'll go grow it ourselves!"

The reason we don't plant them directly is because Zengcheng City is also quite large.

The taste of agricultural products that can become geographical indication brands is generally greatly affected by factors such as soil and climate.

If it goes outside a certain range, the taste will be off.

Just like late-season cabbage, why are Zengcheng and Lianzhou the two regions most famous for it?

It's just that the soil and water here are a perfect match for the late-ripening cabbage.

Chen Zhengxu asked in surprise, "You're going to build a new market in Zengcheng just for this tall, leafy Chinese cabbage? Uncle, is this cabbage really that delicious?"

"You'll understand when you get to eat it."

It's hard to describe the texture of things, and everyone's taste is different. For example, some people like tofu pudding salty, while others like it sweet.

He never gets involved in the sweet vs. savory debate; he prefers spicy tofu pudding with at least two spoonfuls of chili.

The same goes for bok choy; some people don't like it, while others can't live without it.

Zengcheng late-season cabbage can be considered the finest of all cabbage varieties.

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "Once we master this type of cabbage, Zhengxu will be able to secure high-end distribution channels even more firmly."

Chen Zhengxu hesitated for a moment, then said, "Then I'll go with you to look for it."

"are you free?"

"Yes." Chen Zhengxu nodded and said, "Now I've mostly delegated the tasks at the distribution center to Xiao Xiong and a few others. I'm mainly responsible for visiting clients and collecting payments, so I have plenty of time."

"You've had so much time and you still haven't found a partner?" Chen Jiazhi suddenly said with a stern face, "How am I supposed to explain this to Brother Shun when I get back!"
You don't need to go this time. While there's still time before the New Year, hurry up and find one!

Chen Zhengxu muttered, "My dad won't make things difficult for you."

Chen Jiazhi said, "Stop talking nonsense. I'm giving you time to find a partner, am I wrong?"

It was getting late, so Chen Jiazhi didn't rush back to the market. Instead, he planned to stay at the distribution center for the night.

After Li Cai returned, I asked him about the situation of Zengcheng cabbage.

Li Cai sighed, "I've been to several towns and found farmers and markets that grow late-maturing Chinese cabbage, but the taste is pretty much the same, and it's not particularly famous locally."

Chen Jiazhi pulled out a map. "Tell me, where did we go?"

Li Cai also came to the map and pointed, saying, "I've been to Yongning, Xintang, Xiancun, and Shitan Town."

"Plains?" Chen Jiazhi saw the Dongjiang River, a tributary of the Pearl River. "Then you must have come to the wrong place. Panyu is also a plain, and the late-ripening cabbage grown there doesn't taste particularly amazing. You should look in the mountains."

The mountainous area of ​​Zengcheng is in the north.

Li Cai said, "I also went to the north, but the farmers in the mountains mostly grow citrus and lychee. Very few grow vegetables. If there are late-maturing cabbages, I guess they only grow a little around their houses for their own consumption."

After thinking for a moment, Chen Jiazhi said, "Let me go back to the market for two days first, then we'll look for it together. If we can't find it, we'll just plant it directly."

Even if we use the process of elimination, the late-season cabbage in the plains south of Zengcheng doesn't taste good, so it must be from the north.

If you can find it, try it and see how it tastes.

If you can't find a suitable site, you can choose a location to try planting. Once you have a little more funding, you can build a base directly.

Unlike Lianzhou, Zengcheng is closer to the market and has more convenient transportation.

...

The morning of the last day of 1995.

As soon as the car stopped in front of his house, Chen Jiazhi was met with Peng Guozhen's resentful gaze.

"Wow, Boss Chen finally decided to come back. Back in Yuanmou, you could eat sheep every other day, so why did you come back?"

"Mom, don't be sarcastic." Chen Jiazhi stepped forward with a smile. "Look how tanned I am. The ultraviolet rays in Yuanmou are stronger than in Guangzhou."

Peng Guozhen looked him over and saw that he had indeed gotten much darker. "Why did you run so far away? You left your old man and me here. Are you not used to it?"

Missing your hometown?

“A bit. After staying here for a while, I found that it’s more comfortable in the village. You can chat with acquaintances wherever you go, and your dad can go shopping and play cards. Unlike here, you can’t see many friends.”

Both of them were over sixty years old, and it was inevitable that they would feel homesick.

Chen Jiazhi silently went to the back of the car and took out the local specialties he had brought back.

At this moment, Chen Shaochang heard the commotion and brought Chen Zhengyun out of his house.

Chen Zhengyun had grown a little taller, and his bright eyes scrutinized Chen Jiazhi as if he were a stranger.

Chen Shaochang instructed, "Dou Dou, quickly call him Daddy."

The little guy pursed his lips. Chen Jiazhi first greeted Chen Shaochang before picking up Chen Zhengyun with one hand and carrying him into the house.

"Can you talk now?"

Peng Guozhen laughed and said, "He can say some simple words, but he can't say anything longer."

"Okay." Chen Jiazhi teased Chen Zhengyun again, "Dou Dou, hurry up, call me Daddy, Daddy."

Chen Zhengyun neither cried nor made a fuss. She simply tucked her two little hands together and stared at Chen Jiazhi's handsome face, as if she were looking at herself 20 years from now.

(End of this chapter)