Chuxia repeatedly expressed her gratitude, while insisting it was unnecessary, but the people paid her no heed, leaving her with no choice but to continue thanking them.
"I was wondering why it was so bustling here. Mr. Lin, your presence has even disrupted the order of our vegetable station,"
Wang Cheng came over with a big smile.
Seeing the person in charge come by, the villagers also composed themselves and lined up to deliver their vegetables.
Only then did Chuxia walk aside with Wang Cheng.
"Howâs it going? I heard that the greenhouses have been thriving these past few days. Any problems with the sales channels? Can all the vegetables be sold on the same day?"
Vegetables are perishable goods and fear accumulationâthey not only reduce in weight but also deteriorate in appearance, ultimately affecting the price.
Wang Cheng responded with a confident smile, "No problem at all. Not to mention our current output, we could handle even thirty to forty percent more without any issue."
As Qin Family Villageâs greenhouses gained fame, they no longer needed to go door-to-door to deliver their vegetables.
Ever since they had their own wholesale point at the vegetable station, buyers from various organizations would come to purchase produce early in the morning just as the sky began to brighten.
There were also small vendors who would wholesale vegetables from Qin Family Village and retail them at the market.
He pointed to a few individuals nearby, "You should recognize those twoâthey used to manage the wholesale at the vegetable station, Hu Jun and Tian Youping, and now they are in charge of this area for Qin Family Village as well. Plus, thereâs another piece of news..."
With a face brimming with joy, Wang Cheng said, "Back when the vegetable station was in a slump, Li Jian was in charge of the market and had formed relationships outside of Ancheng County. Recently, theyâve heard about our villageâs vegetables and sorted out these connections and handed them to me. In the past few days, two spots have already sent trucks over to get our produce directly. If it wasnât for ensuring we supply Ancheng Countyâs market first, our vegetables would have been sold out by nowâthereâs truly more demand than supply."
Ever since responsibilities were distributed to individual households, Wang Cheng witnessed a decline at his vegetable station day by day, having not felt this content for a long time.
Having finished discussing with his team, Hu Jun approached Chuxia.
"Mr. Lin!"
"Brother Hu!"
With Chuxia calling out to him, Hu Jun was both honored and surprised.
"Iâm not worthy, not worthy," he chuckled as he pointed towards a distant vehicle, "Thatâs a truck from Qing County coming to pick up vegetables. Theyâve been turning up reliably every afternoon, and today they negotiated with us to take an extra truckload of vegetables each day. I havenât given them an answer yet..."
"Taking an extra truckload is out of the question," Wang Cheng interjected, "I forgot to tell you earlier. I took a call from Baoshan, who heard we provided early spring vegetables, and they requested us to send some their way. Iâve agreed to let them come and collect."
When you ask for help, youâre the underdog, but when youâre asked, youâre in charge. Thereâs no way weâll deliver.
"This year, letâs stick to this policy: supply each of the external markets with, at most, one truckload per day. Letâs cast a wider net and then reassess next year."
Chuxia nodded her head in agreement with Wang Chengâs approach.
Managing vegetable greenhouses is challenging, but nothing is absolute.
Now that the market is open and everyone is their own boss, seeing the profit Qin Family Village greenhouses have made, thereâs no guarantee others wonât follow suit next year.
Clothing, food, shelter, and transportationâitâs a massive market.
Qin Family Villageâs greenhouses are a long-term project, and they welcome neighboring villagers who want to get involved.
From the very beginning of this vegetable station, Wang Cheng and Chuxia had a common understanding.
The station served not only Qin Family Village but also all the farmers who brought produce there.
Well aware of this, Hu Jun couldnât resist sharing his thoughts in front of Chuxia.
"To be honest, I think thereâs no need for us to build this warehouse. When it comes to warehouses, thereâs none bigger than the vegetable stationâs. The vegetable stationâs warehouses have been largely unoccupied for the past couple of years, and especially now theyâre all vacant. Given our brotherhood, it would be no trouble at all to rent a few warehouses from the station chief. Moreover, the vegetable station has been running for many years and the local villagers within ten miles know the place well. On the other hand, our location here in Qin Family Village is somewhat off the beaten path.".
Chuxia didnât deny it, "The vegetable stationâs warehouses are indeed good, but I think the patch allocated to you by the village chief is still a bit too small."
This first year, many fellow villagers teamed up to build a single greenhouse.
The fear is all the effort might go to waste.
With the success achieved this year, next year people wonât just be teaming up for a single greenhouseâsome families might even run two or three by themselves.
The people of Qin Family Village are the most hardworking and resilient when it comes to farming.
By then, this warehouse transfer station will be far from adequate.
Upon hearing Chuxiaâs words, Hu Junâs eyes lit up, "Right? Thatâs what I told Old Wang, but the guy wouldnât agree, claiming itâs inconvenient. Whatâs inconvenient about this short distance?"
Chuxia glanced at Wang Cheng, her knowing smile slight, "It is inconvenient."
It wasnât a matter of the distance.
Wang Cheng knew Chuxia understood his point and his smile revealed all of his white teeth.
Leaning in, he whispered to Chuxia, "I reckon itâs just a matter of a year or two. If Mr. Lin is interested in the vegetable station, it wonât be too late to take it over then."
Chuxia nodded, "Indeed, weâll go with Brother Wangâs approach for now. Keep an eye on itâthe space for those two warehouses is indeed a bit small."
"No problem."
Lost in their exchange, Hu Jun was completely baffled.
They seemed to agree with him just a moment ago, so why did they suddenly agree to follow Old Wangâs lead?
"Hey, what kind of riddle are you guys playing at?"
Both Chuxia and Wang Cheng laughed.
Wang Cheng patted Hu Junâs shoulder, "Old Hu, Iâve got my eye on the vegetable stationâs warehouse too, but we canât let our project get entangled with the stationâs operations. Do you still want to go back and continue being the small group leader, letting them boss you around up top?"
Hu Junâs eyes widened in realization.
Watching Wang Cheng walk away, he slapped his thigh, "Well done, Old Wang, you really do have the shrewdest mind. Of course, I donât want to stay as a small group leader."
Wang Cheng waved his hand, "This isnât being shrewd, itâs having foresight."
What exactly does renting the vegetable stationâs warehouse entail right now?
Though theyâve stepped out to look for work and the station chief has no objectionsâafter all, the station has been unable to pay salaries for several months, and it canât just let everyone starveâif they go and rent warehouse space while still acting independently, that would be unacceptable.
In his view, the current vegetable station wonât last more than two years, and taking it over then would be joyful indeed.
Now it seems Chuxia has the same idea, truly a wise woman.
......
Upon hearing that the couple had returned, Qin Han left the fields early to come back home.
Mrs. Qin glanced behind him, "Why didnât Technician He come back with you?"
While Qin Han washed the mud from his hands, he said, "The crops in the Li Familyâs greenhouse caught a disease, so Technician He went there. I came back first. Arenât they at home?"
The moment Qin Han finished speaking, Chuxia stepped out of the house, freshly changed.