Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 204 A Busy New Year

Li Family Greenhouse.

On New Year's Eve, because of fire prevention, the greenhouse cannot be left unattended, nor can it be left unguarded for night patrol.

Meals were also eaten in shifts, with several people sitting at one table. Once they finished eating, the dishes were changed and the people continued eating.

In previous years, the men of the Li family would gather together for New Year's Eve dinner, and Old Li would take his two sons with him. But this year, for fire prevention, only Old Li went, while Li Zhe and Li Weidong stayed behind to watch over the greenhouse.

This afternoon, Wang Jianjun also took a car back to the village, and he will go to Beijing again early tomorrow morning.

Zhao Bing and his two brothers, Li Zhe, along with several militiamen, ate together. Just as he had mentioned before, there was pork, beef, fish, and mutton, and at the end, each person received a bowl of meatball dumplings.

Hey, this meal was really delicious.

After finishing their meal, the militiamen went out on patrol. Zhao Bing, preoccupied with something, slowed down a step.

He moved closer to Li Zhe and said hesitantly, "Brother Li, there's something I want to ask you."

"Brother Zhao, please speak." Li Zhe took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and handed one to the other man.

Zhao Bing took the cigarette, but didn't light it. He simply tucked it behind his ear and said, "Here's what happened. My wife sometimes goes to the general store to sit for a while when she has nothing to do. She's a real gossip in our village, always talking about other people's family matters."

I don't know where she got the news, but she said greenhouse vegetables could sell for six or seven yuan a pound. The people resting in the store were all shocked when they heard this, and they all said they wanted to grow vegetables in greenhouses like her.

At this point, Zhao Bing chuckled dryly, "My wife is indecisive, but she took it to heart and wants to set up a greenhouse too. She keeps nagging me about it, asking if she can learn to grow vegetables in a greenhouse from you."

After listening, Li Zhe frowned slightly, as if he was having some difficulty, and said, "Brother Zhao, you should know that I'm busy all the time, with a lot of messy things to do, and I don't have much free time. However, it's a good thing to be able to help the villagers make money. I'll think about it later."

At this point, Li Zhe added, "Are there any other militia members who want to grow vegetables in greenhouses?"

"Yes! Of course I have! I'm just too embarrassed to tell you."

"Alright, I'll discuss it with my dad later. If we're really going to get the villagers to grow greenhouses together, we'll definitely be among the first." The reason Li Zhe didn't agree immediately was because people have a common trait: they don't cherish what they get easily.

If Li Zhe agrees too readily, the other party might start to have doubts. Therefore, an ambiguous attitude is best when the other party first brings it up.

"Hey, Brother Li, with your words, I feel much more at ease." Zhao Bing left the greenhouse with a happy heart after receiving Li Zhe's reply.

Li Zhe stroked his chin and laughed, "This quick-tongued wife of mine is really something!"

Li Zhe recalled the reason she was beaten by the Zhou family: she had gone to a neighboring village to gossip about the Zhu and Zhou families. This showed just how influential she was.

Li Zhe even considered sponsoring her to travel to neighboring villages to chat and promote greenhouse vegetable cultivation. It would cost little and yield high returns, perhaps no less effective than official promotion.

In the past, I could stay up all night on New Year's Eve and still get some sleep after midnight. But this year, I really couldn't sleep; I spent the entire New Year's Eve surrounded by the sound of firecrackers.

Although each household didn't set off many firecrackers, you couldn't stop them all from going off all night long.

The patrolling militia also found several teenagers setting off fireworks near the greenhouse. After asking them which family they belonged to and why they were setting off fireworks, they let them leave.

Li Zhe also wrote down the names of these teenagers and their families. It might not have been intentional, but it was better to be prepared.

It wasn't until after 3 a.m., when the sound of firecrackers subsided, that Li Zhe was able to get some sleep for a little over two hours. He was woken up again around 6 a.m. to go with his father to pay New Year's visits to the village elders.

He missed the family gathering last night, but he definitely has to show up this morning. Otherwise, people will gossip about him. He wants to expand his vegetable greenhouses in the surrounding villages, and the Li family is his best helper.

After exchanging New Year's greetings, the three of them went home to eat dumplings. This morning's dumplings were different; they were filled with mutton and scallions, which was what Li Zhe, the foodie, had specifically requested.

If someone says they want mutton and scallion dumplings, Wang Xiuying will most likely retort: ​​"What are you trying to do? Pork and scallion, beef and scallion won't shut you up!"

But if it were Li Zhe who wanted to eat it, there would only be one word: bun!

Needless to say, these mutton and scallion dumplings are absolutely delicious! Especially when they're freshly made and cooked, with their thin skins, generous fillings, and rich broth, they're a true treat for the taste buds.

After dinner, Old Li would usually take his two sons to visit the graves. But this year they had to go later, because this time of year is also the peak season for setting off fireworks, and this time the fireworks would be set off in the fields.

Li Zhe distributed fire extinguishers to everyone and directed them to patrol around the greenhouse. Fortunately, there were no graves in the area where the Li family's greenhouses were located, and they passed through without incident. After the family returned from visiting the graves and the firecrackers subsided, Li Zhe and his two children went to visit the graves themselves.

After all this busyness, the New Year is almost halfway over.

However, the fifth and tenth days of the Lunar New Year are still peak periods for setting off firecrackers, and we cannot let our guard down.

Tomorrow is the second day of the Lunar New Year, and according to their custom, people visit relatives. So after lunch, Li Zhe took advantage of everyone being present to call a meeting.

In addition to the people working in the greenhouse, Li Zhe also invited village chief Wang Tietou and vegetable buyer Jin Baiwan.

These two people helped Li Zhe a lot during the time he was growing vegetables in the greenhouse, and they will continue to play an important role in the future.

Once everyone was present, Li Zhe scanned the crowd and his gaze fell on Wang Tietou. "Secretary, please say a few words first."

"What the hell am I talking about! I just finished drinking at noon and you dragged me here, my head is still spinning." Wang Tietou took a sip of tea and said with a laugh, "You better hurry up and say what you want to say, or I'm going back to sleep."

“Alright, let me say a few words first. The purpose of today’s meeting is mainly to discuss the main tasks for the first quarter of next year.” Li Zhe said with a smile to Wang Tietou, “Secretary, you don’t have to listen to this part. I’m just assigning tasks to them. What comes next is what’s relevant to you.”

"Go ahead and tell me, I'm interested in anything related to greenhouse farming." Wang Tietou gulped down a few mouthfuls of tea, and his mind became much clearer.

Li Zhe continued, "After the New Year, the weather will start to warm up, and once the ground thaws, the remaining ten acres of greenhouses will also need to be built. This is mainly being overseen by Comrade Lao Li and Brother Zhu. If they have any ideas, they should communicate with me promptly."

Zhu Yimin asked instinctively, "Brother, do we need to start seedling cultivation earlier this time too?"

“Yes, we need to start seedlings in advance. It's February now, and off-season vegetables can be sold until May. Summer vegetables will be available in June, so planning the planting time and varieties is very important. When Professor Chen comes back, we'll have another discussion, mainly to study the varieties and timing of the next crop of vegetables.” Li Zhe paused for a moment, then continued:
"It's enough that everyone knows this. What I'm about to say concerns everyone's development next year."

Let me first share my plans. Next year, I intend to establish a vegetable greenhouse cultivation company, with greenhouse vegetable cultivation as its main business. Everyone present, as well as Mr. Chen and Zhou Qinghe who are not here, are welcome to invest and become shareholders.

At this point, Liang Weiguo couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "Mr. Li, can I also become a shareholder?"

"Of course, I said everyone here can."

Wang Tietou smiled.

Jin Baiwan was also overjoyed. He had been waiting for this day for so long.
Lin Xiaohu was a clever man. He hadn't worked in the greenhouse for long, but he had earned a good amount of money and benefits. He was very interested in the company that Li Zhe had mentioned. "Brother Li, how much money do we need to invest?"

"It depends on your individual abilities; any amount is acceptable," Li Zhe replied, then changed the subject.
"However, there's something I need to clarify beforehand. An agreement needs to be signed before any investment, stipulating that 'if an employee loses their eligibility to hold shares due to transfer, resignation, or dismissal, they must transfer their shares back to the company within one month, with the repurchase price generally calculated based on the previous year's net asset value.'"

If you can't accept these terms, then it's best not to invest.

Ge Qingshan said, "Second Brother, if I don't invest, why would I still work for you?"

Li Zhe laughed and said, "Of course! Whether you want to invest or not is up to you; it's not mandatory. Even if you want to go out and do it on your own, I won't stop you. I'm just giving you all an option. After all, I made money growing greenhouse vegetables, and that wouldn't have been possible without your help; in return, I want to help everyone make money together."

Lin Xiaohu laughed and said, "Qingshan, are you stupid? Brother Li has put a money-making opportunity right in front of you, why are you still backing away?"

Ge Qingshan said helplessly, "Tiger, I know Second Brother is doing this for our own good, but I don't have any money!"

"You're such a fool! Brother Li didn't have any money when he was growing greenhouses either. He set an example for us, and you still can't copy it!" Lin Xiaohu replied to Ge Qingshan, and didn't forget to flatter Li Zhe, "Brother Li, how about we get a loan from the credit union to invest in your company?"

“No,” Li Zhe answered decisively. Seeing the slight change in everyone’s expression, he added, “However, you can sell the greenhouses you built with the loan to my company at a discounted price, and then use that money to invest in the company.”

The younger Malay brother understood and said with a smile, "Second brother, isn't that the same principle?"

Before Li Zhe could answer, Wang Tietou glared at her and said sternly, "Wei Dong's family's loans are different. Loans from the credit union have regulations; you can't just use them haphazardly."

"Secretary, I'll remember." Ma Laixiao was a little embarrassed, knowing that Secretary Wang was referring to her. Her family had taken out a loan last year under the guise of running a chicken farm, but in reality, they had put the money in the bank to earn interest.

Fortunately, Li Zhe had a good relationship with Director Sun of the credit union, who had already agreed to let them use the loan money to build greenhouses.

Zhu Yimin also had an idea: "Brother, can I sell my greenhouse to the company and then invest in it?"

(End of this chapter)