Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 4 Interest-free Loan
The carriage rolled along the dirt road, and Zhao Tiezhu cracked his whip: "Brother Zhe, what business are you going to town for?"

“I want to start a business in the village, but I don’t have any money. I’m going to the town to ask about interest-free loans.”

“You’re really bold. Not many people in our village dare to take out a loan for this kind of thing. A few days ago, a loan officer wearing glasses hitched a ride with me and kept talking about how they couldn’t meet their loan targets, and the director was yelling at them every day, forcing them to go door-to-door in the village to promote it.”

"Zhu Zi, you meet a lot of people, so I'd like to ask you something. Do you know where I can buy transparent plastic film?" This is crucial for building the greenhouse, and it's also what Li Zhe is most unsure about regarding the price.

"Yes, I know. There's a plastics factory in our county. In mid-May, I helped Wangzhuang haul a truckload. It wasn't cheap, I think it was five yuan per square meter, which is equivalent to more than two kilograms of meat from the back seat."

Li Zhe plans to build a greenhouse that is 7.5 meters wide, 60 meters long, and 3 meters high. It will require nearly 600 square meters of plastic film, which will cost 3000 yuan. In addition, the cost of straw mats, fertilizer, pesticides, cement pillars, bamboo poles, seeds, etc. will be nearly 6,000 yuan.

"Brother Zhe, what kind of business are you thinking of starting?"

Li Zhe snapped out of his thoughts and, without hiding anything, told Zhao Tiezhu about his plan.

Zhao Tiezhu gaped. Growing cucumbers and tomatoes in winter was beyond his comprehension. "This thing... can it even work?"

"Last year I worked outside and learned how to grow greenhouse vegetables from others, so I definitely have no problem with the technology. What I lack now is money."

"Brother Zhe, have you thought it through?"

"The government provides interest-free loans to help young people start their own businesses. I want to take a chance while I'm young. Whether I succeed or fail, at least I won't regret it later."

Zhao Tiezhu gave him a thumbs up, "You're really ambitious. If you ever need my help, just let me know."

Li Zhe patted him on the shoulder, "Yes."

……

Wan'an Town Rural Credit Cooperative.

Office of the Director.

Sun Liguo sat at his desk smoking, and through the smoke, you could see his furrowed brows.

As the director of the rural credit cooperative, he lived a comfortable life, but the personal loan quota was a real headache for him.

Interest-free loans are a policy intended to benefit the people, but they are very difficult to implement. Many villagers react to the idea of ​​loans as if they were facing a monstrous flood.

A few days ago, a young man came to apply for a loan. He completed the formalities, but no one came to collect the money.

The borrower arrived early this morning, along with his father.

Sun Liguo was initially quite happy, thinking he could at least complete some of the loan target, but then the loan was cancelled.

Sun Liguo tried everything to persuade him, but the borrower's father refused to agree, demanded the return of the loan application documents, and left without looking back.

Damn it, what kind of mess is this?

"squeak……"

A loan officer wearing black-rimmed glasses pushed open the door and entered. "Director..."

Sun Liguo frowned. "I've told you eight hundred times, knock on the door!"

The bespectacled loan officer chuckled, "Boss, two people have come to apply for loans."

Sun Liguo stubbed out his cigarette. "How old are you?"

"Around twenty years old."

Sun Liguo stood up and strode out of the office.

Two unfamiliar faces appeared in the credit union lobby. One was a burly young man holding a riding crop, squatting on the ground, looking somewhat uneasy. The other was a tall, thin young man with a military green backpack slung across his shoulder, on which was written "Serve the People".

Sun Liguo squinted his small eyes and sized him up. "Which comrade needs a loan?"

"It's for my loan. What's your name?" Li Zhe had lived for decades, and although he wasn't particularly capable, he had a good eye. This man looked like someone who could make decisions. He took out a pack of Hongmei cigarettes from his pocket and offered them to him. "My surname is Sun. I'm the director of the credit union. Just tell me about the loan." Sun Liguo took the cigarette and tucked it behind his right ear.

"My name is Li Zhe, and I'm from Daying Village." Li Zhe's tone became even more friendly.

Regardless of whether the credit union has loan targets, they are doing official business, while you are doing personal business. The money goes into your own pocket, and you are the one who benefits. It's always better to be polite.

“In May of this year, I saw in the newspaper that the Ministry of Agriculture had proposed the ‘Vegetable Basket Project,’ and I thought I should do my part and respond to the Ministry of Agriculture’s call by planting winter-warm greenhouse vegetables in the village to contribute to the country’s vegetable production.” Li Zhe took out a document from his backpack and handed it over, “This is my loan application.”

Director Sun took the application and warmly invited, "Come on, let's go to my office to talk."

Once inside, Director Sun invited Li Zhe to sit down, glanced at the title, and said, "Your handwriting is quite neat. Did you write it?"

"I practiced calligraphy with a fountain pen for a few days."

Director Sun looked down at the application, occasionally pursing his lips and frowning, as if he was thinking about something. "I've heard of the greenhouse vegetables you wrote about. The Ministry of Agriculture has been advocating for them, and they are in line with the credit union's loan policy. But the planting technology seems to be immature, and I haven't heard of any place promoting them on a large scale."

"Director Sun, you don't need to worry about the planting techniques. My family has been farmers for three generations; my grandfather's generation grew vegetables."

Last year, I went to Northeast China to learn how to grow greenhouse vegetables. The temperature there is even lower, but the greenhouses can still maintain a temperature above 20 degrees Celsius, and fresh cucumbers can grow even in the dead of winter. Li Zhe's words were seven parts true and three parts false; the kind of explanations he used to give his parents wouldn't be suitable here.

He has never been to Northeast China, but this is true. The Northeast has been researching greenhouses for vegetables in warm winters, but the technology is not yet mature.

Director Sun rubbed his chin with his right hand, not entirely believing Li Zhe's words, but the contents of the loan application form were very appealing to him.

Winter vegetables are limited to the same three types. If the plan to grow greenhouse vegetables is successful, fresh vegetables will be available even in winter, and people will still buy them even if the price is high.

If Li Zhe makes money, other villagers will definitely follow suit and grow greenhouse vegetables with him, thus solving the credit union's loan target.

Vegetable greenhouse cultivation is an emerging industry that aligns with the Ministry of Agriculture's "vegetable basket project." If large-scale cultivation is promoted with his assistance, Sun Liguo might even be promoted further.

Director Sun became even more eager, "Comrade, how much money do you want to borrow?"

The higher the loan amount, the better, but that's not the way to put it, as it would seem illogical. So Li Zhe quoted a relatively high price, "ten thousand."

"Comrade, this is your first time taking out a loan, right? Even if I wanted to help you apply, this amount wouldn't be approved."

Li Zhe countered, "What's the maximum amount I can borrow?"

“Generally speaking, personal loans range from several hundred to several thousand yuan depending on the loan project, and it’s rare to find one that reaches ten thousand yuan.” Director Sun asked subconsciously, “Is building a greenhouse that expensive?”

Li Zhe explained, "The main difficulty in greenhouse vegetables lies in winter insulation. It not only requires purchasing insulation facilities, but also digging foundations and building insulation walls. The project is quite large and requires a lot of materials. The initial construction cost alone is five or six thousand yuan, and there are also subsequent costs for fertilization, labor, etc."

Director Sun understood. "How about this? We'll apply for a loan of 6,000 yuan to build the vegetable greenhouses first. Then, I'll bring the county and cooperative leaders to your village to inspect the project. If it's successful, we can increase the loan amount."

The price of 10,000 yuan was an inflated figure by Li Zhe. 6,000 yuan was enough to build one greenhouse. If the loan amount could be increased later, a second greenhouse could be built.

Seeing Li Zhe remain silent, Director Sun added, "Comrade Li Zhe, from my perspective, I also hope you can get more loans, but the credit union has its own system, and it really can't approve that many at once. Even if I speak on your behalf, it's just empty talk."

Li Zhe nodded reluctantly, "Director Sun, we'll do as you say. Let's apply for a loan of six thousand yuan first."

"That's right. Everything is difficult at the beginning, so let's take it one step at a time." Director Sun took out a document from the drawer and handed it to Li Zhe. "Fill out an application form first. Did you bring your ID card and household registration book? We'll need them for the procedures later."

"Bring them all."

Li Zhe picked up the ballpoint pen on the table, carefully filled out the form, checked it again, and handed it to the other party, asking, "How long does it take to process the loan?"

Director Sun smiled and said, "It won't be long."

Li Zhe sensed that the tone was somewhat perfunctory, and thinking of certain departments in later generations, he felt uneasy. "When should I come to collect the money?"

Director Sun smiled again.

What, you want to leave?
(End of this chapter)