Forced to marry a disabled man in the countryside? I'll repay you tenfold!

Old Master Chen was a native of Bincheng, and since they often dealt with the supply and marketing cooperative, they knew quite a few people.

At that time, the supply and marketing cooperative was still quite arrogant, but they were still relatively polite to Old Master Chen. Old Master Chen also knew the person in charge of the supply and marketing cooperative, surnamed Liu, a middle-aged man in his forties.

"Oh, what brings you here, sir?" Director Liu greeted him with a smile.

Grandpa Chen chuckled, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then asked directly, "Do you need any oyster mushrooms here?"

Director Liu was taken aback: "Your Academy of Agricultural Sciences can now produce oyster mushrooms? Didn't you only supply state-run restaurants before? Can you produce enough now?"

Grandpa Chen waved his hand, and Chen Xiuer and Guo Mingyuan immediately stepped forward. One brought up the mushroom buns, and the other began to introduce them.

Upon hearing such a good deal, the man's eyes lit up. "You said you can deliver to my door every week, with no limit on quantity, as much as I want? This one? This looks really good."

In Chen Xiuer's hand were nearly mature oyster mushroom spawn bags. Each bag was snow-white and plump, with dense clusters of mushroom buds, growing even better than the ones Grandpa Chen cultivated at the Agricultural Research Institute. The key was that these would produce mushrooms in just a few days, making them very convenient whether for personal consumption or for resale.

Director Liu pondered for a moment, "This is good, but how did you calculate the price? If it's more expensive than the Agricultural Research Institute, then forget it."

Moreover, we generally don't deal with private individuals here. It was only after the reform and opening up, and with goods in short supply, that I started to consider it. I can't represent private individuals; we have to follow the rules for business dealings.

Do you have a business license? Do you have a fixed place of business? We can sign a purchase and sale contract, where you will receive the goods first and then pay. The payment will be settled by the supply and marketing cooperative's finance department; cash transactions are not accepted.

In the early days of reform and opening up, supply and marketing cooperatives needed to sign written purchase and sale contracts when purchasing goods from individual businesses, and the finance department of the supply and marketing cooperatives would handle the unified settlement.

Guo Mingyuan said from the side, "Don't worry about that. We used to do business with businesses directly, but now that we've started reforming and opening up, we're thinking about doing business privately. We'll wait for you to get everything you just mentioned done. All the contracts and supply procedures will be processed according to the rules, and the payments will be made according to your regulations."

Chen Xiuer added, "As for the price, it's the same as the Agricultural Research Institute's. To be honest, the Agricultural Research Institute also grows oyster mushrooms on a large scale, but they supply restaurants first, so the cycle is a bit slower. We're actually one company."

As he spoke, he glanced at Su Wanqing.

Su Wanqing immediately understood and said to Director Liu with a smile, "I have new mature mycelium here, which will yield several times more. Therefore, I will release the same strain on both sides at the same time. However, one side is the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and the other side is my private operation. Moreover, I am only on secondment, specifically to impart planting experience. I am not a formal employee, so it does not violate organizational regulations."

Grandpa Chen nodded and said, "Xiao Su's cultivation techniques are among the best in the country. It's a privilege to have him come to Bincheng to provide guidance. Bincheng will definitely not have to worry about mushrooms in the future."

Director Liu was now more at ease. He was still a little worried about dealing with private individuals, since supply and marketing cooperatives generally do not cooperate with private individuals. This was not an exception that was made after the reform and opening up.

He said directly, "Okay, let's do it this way. But as you know, I don't have the final say on this process; I have to apply to my superiors. However, these oyster mushrooms are a good product, so we need to get 500 catties every week to start."

The next step was for Guo Mingyuan and Chen Xiuer to discuss the matter with Director Liu, and they reached a preliminary agreement. If there were enough auxiliary materials, the mushrooms would be ready in about ten days; if mushroom bags were used, delivery would be even faster, with mushrooms ready in a week.

"Then we'll follow the prices provided by the Academy of Agricultural Sciences to various regions. Prices will fluctuate with the market. If the Academy of Agricultural Sciences lowers its prices, you must lower yours accordingly."

"OK."

"Our area is a residential area, and there's a military family compound next door. It's the largest supply and marketing cooperative in the vicinity, so we need a large quantity, at least 500 jin (250 kg). Your mushroom bags are also very good; we need some too."

Especially with the Lunar New Year approaching, everyone wants to prepare some good food, and we expect to sell four to five times more during that time each year. Therefore, we need to prepare at least four to five thousand catties before the Lunar New Year this year, and we'll need to order more if that's not enough.

"Our next batch of mushrooms will be ready in ten days, and the production will be stable before the Lunar New Year next month. We can produce as many as you need."

"That's good. You must seize this opportunity during the Chinese New Year."

Su Wanqing roughly calculated that this supply and marketing cooperative alone needs at least 500 jin per cycle, which is 400 yuan at 8 mao per jin, plus several hundred yuan more for the mushroom bags.

If this is expanded to dozens of supply and marketing cooperatives, not counting wholesale markets and small restaurants, just breaking even each cycle can earn tens of thousands of yuan.

Nowadays, if a pound of oyster mushrooms is priced at 80 cents to 1 yuan per pound in winter, 100,000 pounds would cost between 80,000 and 100,000 yuan. Especially with the Lunar New Year next month, demand may be two to three times higher than usual, and prices will rise. Even the poorest people will buy some meat and rare vegetables for the New Year, and having oyster mushrooms on the New Year's Eve dinner table is considered respectable.

"This year's scale is still a bit small. After the New Year, I'll first take over the entire oyster mushroom market in Bincheng, and then expand into the mushroom bag market in the surrounding seven or eight cities..." Su Wanqing thought to herself.

After Director Liu discussed the matter with the two men, he wrote a report and submitted it. Generally, there shouldn't be any major problems.

The group then went from the supply and marketing cooperative to a state-run hotel called "Bincheng Hotel," a large hotel with six or seven food service windows.

When we arrived at the restaurant, it was quite crowded. Today's menu had dozens of dishes, including braised pork, braised chicken, stir-fried seasonal vegetables, and pickled fish. The variety was so appealing that it made us want to eat more.

Su Wanqing ordered braised pork, braised chicken pieces, braised pig's trotters, and several other main dishes.

Grandpa Chen quickly said, "Alright, alright, Xiao Su, eat less. We old folks can't eat that much."

Su Wanqing smiled: "This is all thanks to you two for working so hard all day. You should eat more."

The waiter took down the order and left. There were quite a lot of people, and the waiter didn't look too happy, but no one paid much attention to it.

At that time, the restaurant's slogan was still "No beating guests without cause." I don't know if this meant that you could beat guests if you had a reason.

But now that reform and opening up have begun, small restaurants are springing up like mushrooms after rain. However, going to a state-run restaurant is still a matter of prestige, so it is still quite popular.

The food arrived in no time, and I must say, the dishes cooked by the chefs at this state-run restaurant were really delicious.

After changing the baby's diaper, Aunt Wang also served the baby some braised pork. The baby ate it with gusto, looking incredibly cute.

There was no way there would be any food left on the table, even though Grandpa Chen and Director Wang had big appetites. After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, Grandpa Chen called over the person in charge.