Courtyard House: I Rely on Time-Space Trade to Build a Nation

After several rounds of drinks and five courses of food,

The guesthouse where Zhao Ping'an was staying didn't have any good wine, so Zhao Baoguo brought two bottles of Fenjiu from outside.

The food was good. Thanks to Zhao Ping'an's bountiful harvests in Northeast China, which in turn led to a thriving livestock industry, the meat supply in Beiping was plentiful.

So the hotel prepared several hearty dishes: a braised pork hock, beef stew with potatoes, and braised pork belly.

In addition, there were two side dishes to accompany the drinks: a dish of peanuts and a dish of tofu with scallions.

But the three of them drank very happily.

Zhao Baoguo held his wine glass, his face already flushed, but his eyes were very bright.

"Ping An, you have no idea, that year at Panshan, you asked me to lure the First Regiment."

My soldiers all thought I'd gone mad. But what happened? That idiot Sun Degong actually fell for it!

Liu Dazhu chimed in from the side, "Brother Baoguo, I've heard this story eight hundred times."

Zhao Baoguo glared at him: "You've heard of it, but Ping An hasn't. What's wrong with letting him hear it?"

Zhao Ping'an smiled and raised his glass: "Listen, I'm listening. Second Brother, please tell me slowly."

Zhao Baoguo repeated the story again. After he finished, he laughed first.

"Those were tough times, but they were also enjoyable. After the war, we had meat to eat and wine to drink, which made us feel at ease."

Liu Dazhu chimed in, "Now we have meat to eat and wine to drink."

Zhao Baoguo didn't reply, but took a swig of his drink.

The atmosphere suddenly became a bit somber.

Zhao Pingan looked at him, then at Liu Dazhu.

"What's wrong? Doesn't the wine taste good?"

Liu Dazhu scratched his head, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Ping An, it's not that the wine is bad. It's just..."

He looked at Zhao Baoguo, but Zhao Baoguo didn't say anything.

Liu Dazhu finally spoke up: "The war is over, but I don't know what to do after that."

Zhao Ping'an remained silent.

Liu Dazhu continued, "We soldiers have fought so many wars, but we don't know anything else besides fighting."

Now that the war is over, do we still need so many troops? What will happen to us?

He picked up his wine glass, then put it down again.

"Some of my soldiers ask me, 'Brigade Commander, will we still have training in the future?' I say yes. Then they ask, 'What will we do after training?' I say I don't know."

Zhao Baoguo nodded in agreement.

"It's the same on my end. After fighting for half my life, suddenly they say we don't have to fight anymore, and I feel empty inside."

He looked at Zhao Ping'an.

"Ping An, tell me, what are we going to do from now on?"

Zhao Ping'an remained silent for a while; this was a genuine question.

He looked at Zhao Baoguo and Liu Dazhu.

"Second Brother, Dazhu, I have a question for you."

The two of them looked at him.

"Do you remember the five-person team system I promoted in the army back then?"

Zhao Baoguo nodded: "I remember. Each person is in charge of one of the five areas: military, political, agricultural, educational, and financial. The squad leader must be proficient in all five."

Liu Dazhu chimed in, "I was even the leader of an agricultural team back then. We grew vegetables next to the camp, and our harvest was better than the villagers'."

Zhao Pingan smiled.

He took out a briefcase from the side, pulled out two documents, and pushed them in front of the two men.

"This is what I compiled later. It's more comprehensive and in-depth than the original textbook, and it incorporates new industrial information."

How to manage agriculture, how to learn from industry, how to promote education—it all has it.

Zhao Baoguo took the document, flipped through two pages, and his eyes widened.

"Ping An, this...this is..."

"Go back and study it carefully. Learn it now." Zhao Ping'an picked up his wine glass. "It will be very useful in the future."

Liu Dazhu scratched his head: "Brigade Commander, why should we soldiers learn these things?"

Zhao Ping'an looked at him.

"Dazhu, the war is over, but the nation's affairs are just beginning. The military needs to transform, and soldiers need to transform as well."

If you can drive a tank, you'll learn to drive a tractor quickly. If you know how to manage a military unit, you'll understand factory management just as easily.

He paused.

"You'll find out later. For now, let's learn."

Zhao Baoguo put the documents away and picked up his wine glass.

"Ping An, I believe you. What you taught me will definitely be useful."

The three clinked glasses and drank it all in one gulp.

The next morning, Zhao Ping'an went to the sea.

The conference room lights were already on. Comrades 02 and 03, Comrade Chen, Minister Li, and several other comrades in charge of the economy and agriculture were all present.

When Zhao Pingan entered, 02 was looking at documents. Seeing him come in, she waved.

"Comrade Ping An, please sit down. You will be the speaker today."

Zhao Pingan sat down on one side of the long table, with a stack of documents spread out in front of him.

"Comrades, I would like to report a few things today."

He opened the first document.

"The first thing concerns grain in Northeast China."

He looked at the people present.

"The statistics for this year's grain output in Northeast China have been released: 90 billion jin (45 million tons)."

There was a moment of silence in the conference room.

Comrade Chen put down his teacup.

"Comrade Ping An, could you say that again?"

"Nine hundred billion jin." Zhao Ping'an repeated, "The total grain output of the three northeastern provinces, plus eastern Inner Mongolia, is nine hundred billion jin this year."

Comrade Chen remained silent.

02 began by asking, "How long could this amount feed the entire country?"

Zhao Ping'an was prepared.

"Based on per capita grain rations, 90 billion jin could feed nearly half of the country's population. But that's also where the problem lies."

He paused.

"Too much food is not a good thing."

Minister Li looked up at him: "Is having too much grain a bad thing?"

"If there's too much, it will impact agriculture in other regions. If grain prices drop, grain farmers will suffer losses."

Regions that don't grow grain will also be affected, even if they could previously exchange other agricultural products for food.

He opened another document.

"Therefore, my suggestion is that a portion of the grain from Northeast China should be stored as national reserves."

A portion was used as animal feed, and the livestock industry was vigorously developed. Pigs, cattle, and chickens were all raised.

Meat can be sold, exported, and used to improve people's lives.

02 nodded.

"That's a good idea. Having plenty of grain isn't the problem; the problem is using it poorly."

Comrade Chen asked, "How much grain is in reserve?"

Zhao Ping'an said, "Based on two years' worth of national grain rations, we need to reserve 300 billion jin. The Northeast has 9 million jin a year, so we can store enough in three years. We can take our time with grain reserves; I plan to store 150 billion jin over five years."

03. Opening Question: "Do you have a foundation in animal husbandry?"

"Yes. In recent years, large-scale pig farms and chicken farms in Northeast China have been piloting this program, and the results have been very good."

There is no shortage of feed, especially sweet potatoes and potatoes. Not only are the fruits edible, but even the stems and leaves are high-quality feed.

Corn stalks are also a good source of feed.

We have the technology, but we lack the scale. Now that we have more grain, we can scale up our operations.

The leaders exchanged glances.

02 said, "I agree with this in principle. You guys can discuss the specifics in more detail after the meeting."

Zhao Pingan opened the second document.

"The second point concerns the food supply and orchards."

He spread out a map of China on the table.

"The supply of non-staple foods for urban residents has always been a problem. Vegetables, meat, eggs, milk, and so on are all in short supply. My idea is to establish a number of specialized vegetable bases around the city. Using greenhouses, improved varieties, and chemical fertilizers, we can ensure that there are fresh vegetables all year round."

He pointed to several points on the map.

"Start with Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenyang, Wuhan, and Guangzhou. Each city should be equipped with three to five large-scale vegetable bases, with the military engineering corps assisting in construction and the local agricultural departments responsible for management."

Comrade Chen nodded: "That's good. It's time to solve the problem of city dwellers having difficulty buying vegetables."

Zhao Pingan continued, "There are also orchards. Citrus fruits from the south, and apples, pears, and peaches from the north can all be grown on a large scale. Not only can they be supplied domestically, but they can also be exported."

He opened a file of data.

"Canned fruit, dried fruit, and jam are all good products. There's a huge demand for them in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Southeast Asia also likes them. Developing these products can improve people's lives and earn foreign exchange."

Minister Li asked, "What about funding? What about technology?"

"The funds come from industrial profits. As for the technology," Zhao Ping'an paused, "I have the channels."

02 smiled.

"Okay, I agree with that too. After the meeting, Comrade Ping An and Comrade Chen will compile a detailed plan and personnel arrangements, and then discuss the specific implementation..."