Returning to the small mountain village of '86, intelligence updated daily.

The aroma of tea wafted across the table as Zhou Rui sat in his chair, staring at the brewed tea.

Zhang Chengyun was right about one thing: the tea in his tea garden is indeed good tea.

Zhang Sheng didn't feel embarrassed at all. He found a chair, sat down, and poured himself a glass of water.

"Zhou Rui, tell me how you want to talk."

Zhang Chengyun also sat down, his smile unchanged.

"Mr. Zhang, how's the tea plantation doing?"

Zhou Rui took the initiative, thinking that since he was there, he should discuss things properly. However, he did not start by talking about the price, but instead asked about the operation of Zhang Chengyun's tea garden.

Zhang Chengyun's smile vanished just now because of a simple question; he realized that Zhou Rui was not easy to deal with.

"Don't worry, the tea plantation is well-managed, with few pests or diseases, and the yield is steadily increasing every year. If you subcontract it, you'll only make a profit!"

"Oh? Is that so? If it's so profitable, Boss Zhang, why don't you continue operating? Do you have too much money to burn?"

Zhou Rui spoke in a calm tone, and it was reasonable for him to call Zhang Chengyun "Boss Zhang." After all, these days, being able to contract 20 acres of land to do business is not something an ordinary person can do.

The joy on Zhang Chengyun's face vanished completely. After just a few words, he realized that this young man was not easily fooled.

"Zhou Rui is joking. Who would complain about having too much money? The thing is, this tea plantation was a joint venture between me and a few other parties, and we've run into some internal problems..."

Zhang Chengyun spoke eloquently, narrating in a calm tone.

After he finished speaking, Zhou Rui completely ignored his words and changed the subject, saying:

"Boss Zhang, if you say there are no pests or diseases, I won't say anything, but you say the yield is increasing every year, are you sure?"

"I went to check this morning. You haven't even applied fertilizer; the tea trees are practically starving to death. You're telling me this is a steady increase in yield?"

"Boss Zhang, I suggest we both be more sincere, what do you say?"

Zhou Rui's tone was calm, yet subtly carried a sense of pressure, leaving Zhang Chengyun stunned.

He couldn't understand why this junior was so shrewd, seizing the initiative with just a few words.

They originally intended to extort money from Zhou Rui by coaxing and deceiving him, but Zhou Rui knew everything about them; he probably even counted how many leaves were on which tree in the tea garden.

As expected, the Zhou family, once one of the most prominent families in the village, inherited their intelligence and prudence.

Seeing that his tricks had no effect, Zhang Chengyun immediately abandoned his last bit of underestimation of the person in front of him.

"My nephew is truly a young hero, as impressive as your father was back then. Since we've come this far, I'll just tell you the truth."

"This tea plantation was started by me a few years ago on a whim, along with some friends from neighboring villages and towns. I'm not afraid to admit it, but at the time I was completely clueless and just kept working on it without any real knowledge."

"Now look what's happened. There are no sales channels, and the tea can't fetch a good price. These past few years have almost drained me dry."

Zhang Chengyun finally spoke a few truths, and at this moment, Zhou Rui placed his palm on the cup and tapped it rhythmically.

"Boss Zhang, since you also know that tea doesn't fetch a good price and there are no other sales channels, let's be frank."

"Now, besides the workers' wages, you also have to pay fees to the village collective and the state, plus some other expenses. If I'm not mistaken, you'll probably be losing money for the next few years."

Zhang Chengyun remained silent. Although he was confused and didn't know many things, he had long realized that doing this was not so simple, and connections were very important.

But Zhang Chengyun was, in the end, just an ordinary person. He only decided to do this because he heard rumors about it by chance.

As time passed, this very incident became his final resting place, where a single misstep could have led to his complete financial ruin.

Zhou Rui watched the other person remain silent without disturbing them, while also having his own thoughts in mind.

He knew that several years before this point in time, a major strategy was announced, and Zhang Chengyun blindly jumped into the game after hearing about it from somewhere.

Lacking connections and technical skills, Zhang Chengyun might have succeeded in other industries, or perhaps, if he could hold on for another five years, he could soar to great heights.

Given the current situation, with limited sources of information and a still relatively underdeveloped socio-economic landscape, this almost certainly dooms the project to failure.

Zhou Rui thought to himself that he didn't sympathize with Zhang Chengyun, nor did he have the right to.

Now, Zhang Chengyun himself can't hold on any longer and is considering quitting.

Rather than wasting this opportunity like in the previous life, it's better to take it over myself. This would be good for me, and it would also allow Zhang Chengyun to recover some losses.

The silence lasted for a full five minutes. Zhou Rui even picked up the warm, comfortably warm tea on the table and drank half a cup before Zhang Chengyun sighed and said:

"Nephew, since you've already visited the tea plantation, I won't take you there again. You must already know how fertile the soil is and how well the tea trees are growing. Tell me what you'd like to do."

Zhou Rui put down his teacup, the faint aroma of tea lingering in his nostrils. He spoke thoughtfully:

"Regarding the land, I will discuss it directly with the village collective. You have already harvested all the tea leaves this year, so I will no longer bear the labor and land costs. You will need to figure that out yourself."

"Once you finish picking this year's tea, I will take over management, and then the tea garden will no longer be yours."

"You can handle this year's tea business yourself. Once we've reached an agreement, I'll pay you a deposit."

"So, in that case, the tea trees in that plantation are yours, and I'll pay you a rental fee. Does that sound reasonable?"

When Zhang Chengyun heard Zhou Rui's idea, it was almost exactly what he had in mind. The only difference was that the other party would have to negotiate the cost of the land themselves.

The Zhou family must have connections, so they'll probably get some advantages.

"Okay, we'll do it your way. After this year's autumn tea harvest, I will completely withdraw and will not participate in the management or trading of any tea gardens."

"Since you've decided to do this, I probably don't need to remind you; you should already have sales channels for this tea."

"However, I still have to say something: this is not a simple matter. Don't blame others when you lose money. I don't want you to back out, otherwise we will both lose face."

"Now that's been said, look at this price..."

Zhang Chengyun finally asked the most important question, and he made it clear: even if you have sales channels, can you guarantee a profit?

Don't blame me when you lose money in the end.

Zhang Chengyun had no desire to get involved in these things again; the safest thing to do was to honestly earn a living from the seedling fees.

Zhou Rui understood Zhang Chengyun's concerns and reminders, but he had another opinion: Zhang Chengyun wasn't a bad person at heart.

The fact that they were willing to help those in need just now also reveals some clues. Whatever their motives, they still paid half the money.

After finishing the last bit of tea, Zhou Rui didn't answer the question about the price, but instead changed the subject again.

"Mr. Zhang, let's not rush to talk about the price. There's something else I need to discuss with you."

"What is it? Tell me."

"I'd like to rent your tea trees first, then buy them."