A Tale of Two Cities Supporting Xinjiang

Looking out at the vast white Gobi Desert, Li Chao recalled the lofty ambitions he had when he first arrived three years ago.

He said he wanted to grow the sweetest apples on this barren land, that he wanted to lead his fellow villagers to prosperity, and that he wanted to change the fate of the Gobi Desert, where only herding was possible.

Looking back now, it seems like a joke.

"Let me think about it," Li Chao said.

"As soon as possible."

Ali stood up, walked to the door, then turned back. "By the way, let me remind you, farmers' patience is limited."

When they come knocking on our door demanding an explanation, the scene... won't be pleasant.

Li Chao slowly squatted down and picked up the documents scattered on the ground.

One page was torn; it was his hand-drawn orchard plan, clearly indicating when the flowers would bloom, when the fruit would ripen, and when the fruit would be harvested.

In one corner of the picture, written in red pen: "Three years to complete the garden, five years to achieve a bumper harvest."

Let the scent of apples fill the Gobi Desert.

This cold wave came at the worst possible time.

The de-icing truck at Shihezi Airport made three trips back and forth on the runway. The helpless voice of the control tower came through the walkie-talkie of Lao Chen, the ground staff manager: "It's no use. The ice layer is too thick and the temperature is too low. The de-icing agent is not working."

"Then let's use physical de-icing, and do it manually!" Old Chen shouted into the walkie-talkie.

"At minus thirty degrees Celsius, a person will be frozen solid after standing outside for ten minutes. How can you get rid of this?"

Old Chen looked out the window at the white expanse of the running track and slammed his fist on the table.

On the airport's large screens, flight statuses were a sea of ​​red: delayed, canceled, delayed again...

Air traffic throughout northern Xinjiang was almost completely paralyzed.

When the news reached the Gobi Desert, Li Chao was in the warehouse inspecting the last batch of apples ready to be shipped.

Five thousand boxes of "Nine-Link Cold-Resistant Apples," each weighing ten kilograms, are neatly stacked, ready to be loaded onto trucks and transported to the airport early tomorrow morning.

Xiao Wang from the freight company called anxiously: "Officer Li, Shihezi Airport is closed for at least three days."

Urumqi Airport is also in a difficult situation, with all flights on the eastern route suspended.

Li Chao's heart sank: "What about Lu Yun?"

"The Guozigou section of the Lianhuo Expressway is icy, and all the trucks are stuck on the road. I heard that the traffic jam has already stretched for more than 20 kilometers."

Xiao Wang sighed, "Officer Li, this batch of goods... I'm afraid it won't make it in time for the Spring Festival."

After hanging up the phone, Li Chao looked at the five thousand boxes of apples in the warehouse as if they were five thousand time bombs.

The worst thing about fresh fruit is delays.

A day later, the freshness drops a level; three days later, the taste is significantly worse; five days later—the buyer has a reason to lower the price.

The next day at noon, the first off-road vehicle with out-of-town license plates drove into the village.

A middle-aged man stepped out of the car, wearing a mink coat and a gold ring. He immediately began breathing out white puffs of air and rubbing his hands, exclaiming, "This awful weather! It's freezing!"

The visitor, surnamed Zhao, was a fruit buyer from Hebei. He had come to inspect the market half a month ago and offered a purchase price of twelve yuan per kilogram, which was a good price. Li Chao had already planned to sign the contract.

Boss Zhao shook hands warmly, with a strong grip, "Cadre Li! I heard the airport is closed?"

Oh dear, this is going to be a problem.

Li Chao ushered the person into the prefabricated house and poured them a cup of hot tea.

Boss Zhao wasn't in a hurry to drink his tea. He first walked to the window and looked at the warehouse in the distance: "Is all the goods ready? Five thousand boxes?"

"All done."

"That's good, that's good."

Boss Zhao turned around, his face all smiles, but his eyes held no mirth. "Boss Li, let's not beat around the bush."

"You can't ship this batch of goods out now, can you?"

Li Chao remained silent.

"Fresh fruit is all about timeliness."

Boss Zhao sat down, crossed his legs, and said, "A day later, the value drops by 10%. Three days later—it's no different from an ordinary apple."

"What does Boss Zhao want to say?"

"I'm here to help you."

Boss Zhao took out a calculator from his bag, pressed a few keys, and said, "Okay, I'm willing to take the risk and buy all the goods now."

The price... is six yuan per kilogram.

Six pieces?

Cut in half at the waist?

Boss Zhao, this joke has gone too far.

We agreed on twelve dollars two weeks ago.

"That was two weeks ago!"

Boss Zhao raised his voice: "Back then, transportation was smooth and the market was good."

Now what? The airport is closed, the highways are jammed, even if you manage to get those apples out, they'll be frozen by the time they reach the consumer!

"My apples are a cold-resistant variety, suitable for storage and transportation..."

Even the most durable materials require scientific methods for storage and transportation!

Boss Zhao interrupted him, "Frozen at minus thirty degrees Celsius, the cell structure is definitely damaged, and the taste will absolutely be affected. I'm already risking everything to buy it for six yuan—it's practically charity!"

charitable?

Li Chao almost laughed out of anger.

No sooner had Boss Zhao left than two more groups of people arrived in the afternoon.

One group consisted of purchasing managers from Shandong, who immediately quoted 5.5 yuan per kilogram.

Another group was even more ruthless, coming from Shaanxi, who directly bet five yuan.

They all use the same sales pitch: the transportation was disrupted, the fruit froze, and the quality declined; we are here to help you mitigate your losses.

That evening, Li Chao received a phone call from an unknown number.

"Officer Li, this is Lao Zhao."

It was the same voice of Boss Zhao from this morning, but the tone was completely different, exuding an air of confidence: "How's your decision? Six yuan, I'll take all five thousand boxes."

"Boss Zhao, I really can't accept this price."

"Then you wait."

To tell you the truth, we've already spoken with all the Shandong and Shaanxi people who went to your place today.

"This winter, the apple purchasing in northern Xinjiang is controlled by just three companies."

Li Chao gripped his phone tightly.

"You think you're the only one suffering from the disaster?"

Mr. Zhao continued, "Transportation to all apple-producing areas in northern Xinjiang, including Changji, Tacheng, and Altay, has been completely cut off."

The fruit farmers are eager to sell their produce, and there are only three of us as buyers.

Who do you think will ultimately buy the fruit?

"monopoly.

A blatant monopoly.

"Six dollars is the highest price we can offer."

Boss Zhao softened his tone: "By tomorrow, it might be five yuan and fifty cents."

It's not impossible to get four pieces by the day after tomorrow.

"Officer Li, you're a smart man; you should know how to choose."

The phone hangs up.

Li Chao stood by the window, looking at the lights of the warehouse in the distance, his mind buzzing.

Five thousand boxes of apples, fifty tons.

At a price of twelve yuan, it can be sold for six hundred thousand.

At a price of six yuan—three hundred thousand.

We lost half of our investment immediately.

This doesn't even include the costs invested over the past three years, the guaranteed purchase price paid to farmers, or the workers' wages...