Returning to the mountain village, starting with mushroom picking to get rich

After successfully devouring the matsutake mushroom and producing a top-quality matsutake in his hand, Yang Lin was picking the mushroom, intending to stir-fry it and try it out, when suddenly he sensed something was amiss.

"This is...mycelium floating on the mushroom?"

By focusing his attention on the plucked matsutake mushroom, Yang Lin quickly discovered the reason for his unusual feeling.

It turns out that after the matsutake mushroom was picked, it didn't completely sever its connection with him.

To be precise, the mycelium still hanging on the matsutake mushrooms was still within his perception.

This is something that has never happened before.

After carefully observing and identifying the condition of the mycelium in his mind, Yang Lin quickly made a new discovery.

It turned out that after consuming a certain number of different fungi, his sensory abilities were enhanced once again.

This is a qualitative improvement.

He can now sense the aerial mycelium of fungi.

The mycelium he sensed from the plucked matsutake mushroom was the aerial mycelium of the matsutake.

Mushroom mycelium can be divided into two categories.

One type is nutrient mycelium, which mainly takes root in the soil or culture medium and absorbs nutrients like tree roots to provide nutrition for the growth of fungi.

Another type is aerial hyphae.

It is the main reproductive structure of fungi. After growing upward to a certain extent, it will differentiate into structures such as spore filaments to form spores, thus realizing the reproduction and spread of the population.

Before this, the mycelium created by Yang Lin was a nutrient mycelium that needed to take root in the ground.

The mycelium he can sense is also nutrient mycelium.

Once the mushroom is picked, it loses its connection with the nutrient mycelium underneath.

Yang Lin will immediately lose his sensitivity to the fungus.

But things are different now. The aerial mycelium that grows on the ground and floats in the air is now also appearing in his senses.

With a thought, countless extremely fine aerial hyphae, each only about one micrometer in size, immediately appeared on Yang Lin's hand.

"call!"

Yang Lin went to the window and blew out a breath.

Countless invisible aerial mycelia were immediately blown out of the window and swayed in the wind.

"Huff...huff!"

A gust of wind blew by outdoors, instantly scattering the aerial mycelium that Yang Lin had just released.

Most of the aerial mycelium was blown onto the walls of the apartment buildings in the community.

Some of them fell onto the leaves of the trees in the green belt, and onto the lawn in the green belt.

A small portion of the debris was blown onto clothes drying on the balconies of the neighboring buildings.

From the sensations transmitted by the mycelium, Yang Lin discovered something interesting.

The garment hanging on the balcony was suddenly draped over someone's shoulders and then moved about a meter below the balcony.

Yang Lin stuck his head out of the window and turned to look at the neighbor's house.

A strange man was seen hanging from the balcony with one hand, wearing no underwear and an ill-fitting coat.

There seemed to be some noise coming from inside the house.

Seeing Yang Lin peek out from next door, the man hanging on the balcony looked embarrassed and quickly made a "shh" gesture with his other hand, signaling Yang Lin not to make a sound.

However, this one movement nearly caused him to lose his grip and fall from the building.

In his panicked attempt to salvage the situation, the man still managed to make a sound.

People passing by downstairs in the community saw it and exclaimed in surprise.

The male homeowner quickly returned to the balcony upon hearing the commotion and looked down to see the other person.

Then, chaos ensued.

Yang Lin gave a wry smile; he had no intention of spying on other people's private lives.

With superpowers at his fingertips, he couldn't resist the urge to use them.

This was just an accident.

……

After stir-frying a plate of matsutake mushrooms, Yang Lin changed into a simple short-sleeved shirt and, unusually, did not take a taxi to the company.

Instead, they took it one step at a time, enjoying the wind and sun, and walked from their neighborhood to the development zone.

Fortunately, the county town isn't too big, and the house he bought isn't far from the development zone; it's only a 30-minute walk to his company.

On the way, Yang Lin transformed into a human dandelion.

On the arms and palms of both hands, micron-sized aerial mycelia are constantly being created.

He walked and shook his arms, flinging countless invisible aerial mycelia into every place he passed.

As the wind blew again, the outline of a street scene in Wuyou County began to vaguely appear in Yang Lin's mind.

……

"No way, Mr. Yang?"

"You haven't been to the office for days, what happened to you? You look terrible!"

When Yang Lin arrived at the company, he looked a little haggard. The manager, Su Rong, whom he met at the door, had a knowing smile on her face and took a half step back with a hint of disdain.

"I'm afraid Mr. Yang has been indulging in too much sex these past few days," Su Rong thought to herself.

It's true what they say, men with money tend to go bad.

The company has only been operating for a short time, and it hasn't even recouped its investment in the premises and equipment yet.

The boss took the ill-gotten gains and went off to have a good time.

Judging by this appearance, they've probably been partying every night for the past few days.

Yang Lin didn't know what Su Rong was thinking, but seeing her expression, he knew it probably wasn't anything good. His face darkened, and he questioned her in a deep voice:

"How's work going, Manager Su?"

"What directions and suggestions do you have for the company's development? What are your future plans? What are your considerations for handling and filing for company risks and unexpected situations?"

Hearing this, Su Rong's heart tightened, and she quickly begged for forgiveness: "Please stop reading it, Mr. Yang, I was wrong..."

"What are your instructions, Mr. Yang? I will make arrangements immediately."

"Do I have to tell you before you make arrangements? If I don't tell you, are you going to do nothing?" Yang Lin shook his head, but said with a smile.

"As a manager in the company, you need to take initiative and not just wait for instructions and work passively like an operator on an assembly line."

"Yes, yes, Mr. Yang is right to reprimand me," Su Rong said, bowing and scraping.

After all, it's a job in a small county town that pays more than 20,000 yuan a month. It's not shameful to make money.

Just treat the boss like a child and coax him.

"I'll give you thirty minutes to finish your work. Come to my office in half an hour to report on the latest situation."

"I also have other things to arrange."

"Okay, Mr. Yang."

As soon as she finished speaking, Su Rong hurriedly left.

……

"Is it really that bad? Everyone noticed?"

Back in his office, Yang Lin was also somewhat puzzled.

The mycelium he scattered on the road was clearly micron-sized, invisible aerial hyphae.

I'm just a little tired from walking because I haven't exercised for a long time.

Yang Lin looked in the mirror and found that he did look rather haggard.

For the average office worker, this kind of haggard appearance is nothing unusual.

After all, under the pressure of work and life, not many people can maintain a bright smile and a positive attitude all the time.

But for Yang Lin, a hands-off boss who earns millions a month, this is a small-town tycoon.

Her face shouldn't look so haggard.

Next, Yang Lin weighed himself on the scale.

You won't know until you weigh it, and you'll be shocked when you do.

He lost three pounds after walking for just over half an hour.

He was so focused on studying the wind direction and street scenes of the county town that he didn't even notice that the aerial mycelium he had released had accumulated into a considerable amount.

Fortunately, Yang Lin ate and drank well, and his nutrition was fully adequate.

Removing three pounds of substance from my body is just a way to lose weight; it won't have a significant impact.

"Why……!"

After stepping off the scale, Yang Lin looked up and sighed deeply.

"The task of building a mushroom network is arduous and has a long way to go!"

"Indeed, we still need to promote more strains of fungi. Only by allowing the mycelium to absorb nutrients from the outside world to grow can it have the potential to spread all over the world."

……

Boom, boom, boom.

Half an hour later, Su Rong arrived at Yang Lin's office on time and knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Yang Lin quickly placed the scale in the corner, sat back down in his chair, and then called out towards the door.

With Yang Lin's permission, Su Rong immediately pushed open the door and entered, reporting in detail what had happened during Yang Lin's absence from the company.

"Boss, the company recently hired four biology majors to cultivate secondary strains in the lab. A cooperative in Tianlong County is interested in collaborating with us..."

"Not bad, your handling was fine, keep it up." Yang Lin sat upright in his chair, tapping his fingers on the table, and instructed Su Rong:

"I have a few plans coming up; you'd better figure out how to arrange them."

"First, the company's R&D department has developed a batch of new mushroom varieties, mainly including three varieties: Prairie Mushroom, Jingxi Mushroom, and Golden Fortune Mushroom. I will bring the mother culture over in a while, and you will be responsible for cultivating the secondary and tertiary cultures to produce new spawn..."

"Secondly, our company has many stable cooperative merchants in Junma Wholesale Market and Shuimu Trading Center, so we can also purchase mushrooms produced by farmers under the company's name..."

"By adopting the model of 'company + cooperative + farmer,' we will further deepen the cooperation between mushroom farmers and our company, open up sales channels for mushrooms for them, solve their worries, and allow them to purchase mushroom spawn from our company with greater confidence to cultivate their own mushrooms."

"Thirdly, since our company already has sales channels for mushrooms, why should we only focus on the mushrooms cultivated by our company? We can certainly enter the wild mushroom market."

"Go and arrange for some people to go and buy wild mushrooms from the countryside..."

"Seriously, boss?" Su Rong exclaimed in surprise. "We haven't even figured out how to sell our shiitake mushroom varieties yet, and you're already starting to work on other varieties?"

"The 'company + cooperative + farmer' model is indeed a common supply chain in the industry, but we're just starting out. And aren't we worried about problems with our unsterilized mushroom spawn?"

"Just do as I say. I only have one question: can you do it?" Yang Lin said.

"Yes, yes, I guarantee it! Boss, you have to trust my abilities!" Su Rong hurriedly explained.

"That's good. Go and make the arrangements, and report to me regularly," Yang Lin nodded.

……

Yang Lin's main reason for having the company send people to collect wild mushrooms was to find a reasonable excuse for his termite mushrooms and truffles.

Like termite mushrooms, matsutake mushrooms are also a type of wild mushroom that cannot be artificially cultivated.

No one but him could reliably obtain it.

Compared to termite mushrooms, matsutake mushrooms are not as popular in China.

Its price is mainly driven by Japan and Europe.

Compared to other places, the matsutake mushroom resources in southwestern China are not lacking.

However, due to differences in dietary habits between China and other countries, especially the unique food culture in the southwest region, the situation is different.

Matsutake mushrooms have always been considered worthless wild fungi.

It is known as pig burr or stinky chicken mushroom.

Before the 1980s, domestic consumers had not developed a habit of consuming matsutake mushrooms.

However, in Japan and Europe, matsutake mushrooms are considered a high-end ingredient.

Driven by the Japanese and European markets, matsutake mushrooms have suddenly transformed from a worthless miscellaneous fungus in China into a high-end, top-tier ingredient.

It is welcomed by many high-end hotels.

Its value also skyrocketed with the rise of international trade.

Some exceptionally high-quality matsutake mushrooms, with their exceptional appearance, can be auctioned and sold for tens of thousands of yuan per kilogram.

Under normal circumstances, matsutake mushrooms can cost anywhere from several hundred to several thousand yuan per kilogram.

The price for mass-market quality ranges from 200 to 400 yuan per kilogram.

Medium-quality goods cost between 500 and 1000 yuan per kilogram.

Top-quality goods can sell for around two thousand.

For Yang Lin, this was undoubtedly another golden opportunity to make a fortune.

As the saying goes, the world's best matsutake mushrooms come from China, and China's best matsutake mushrooms come from Nanzhao.

China accounts for approximately 60% of the world's matsutake mushroom resources.

The matsutake mushroom resources of Nanzhao Province account for more than half of the country's total.

Due to dietary habits, China is not a major consumer of matsutake mushrooms.

Therefore, the matsutake mushroom resources produced domestically are mainly exported to earn foreign exchange.

The average export price of matsutake mushrooms is about $20 per kilogram.

According to records, in 2015, China exported more than 1,400 tons of matsutake mushrooms, with an export value of approximately US$55 million.

Back then, the global export volume of matsutake mushrooms was only around 1,600 tons.

China accounts for nearly 90% of the world's matsutake mushroom exports.

The province of Nanzhao exports approximately 1,100 tons of matsutake mushrooms, accounting for about 80% of the country's total exports.

Among them, the matsutake mushrooms exported from Nanzhao Province are mainly fresh mushrooms.

In terms of monetary value alone, the matsutake mushroom market in Nanzhao Province generates more than 40 million US dollars in foreign exchange for the country every year.

That's right, the world's main foreign trade currency is also the US dollar.

Across the ocean from Earth, there is a country called the Eagle Nation, which plays the role that Yang Lin is familiar with as the United States.

As the most developed country in the world with the strongest military.

The United States, relying on its powerful military hegemony, has tied itself to the oil trade and ordered all countries on Earth to use the US dollar for foreign trade settlements.

According to the current foreign trade exchange rate, one US dollar can be exchanged for seven Chinese yuan.

In other words, the matsutake mushroom market in Nanzhao Province can reach 200 to 300 million yuan a year.

It is worth mentioning that, as a rare wild mushroom, matsutake, like termite mushroom, cannot be artificially cultivated.

It can only be obtained by mountain hunters from various places who go into the mountains.

However, with social development and industrialization, urbanization has expanded and population activities have become more frequent.

Many forests are being cut down, and the living environment for matsutake mushrooms is deteriorating year by year.

This phenomenon is not unique to China; it has occurred in all countries on Earth.

Global matsutake mushroom production is showing an overall decreasing trend.

In other words, there is a growing shortage of matsutake mushrooms in the market.

If Yang Lin can seize the opportunity and produce a suitable amount of matsutake mushrooms to fill the market gap...

Therefore, no one can take this portion of the trade revenue away from him.