After Apocalypse, I Got Rich With Superpower
Chapter 137 - 135: Discuss

Chapter 137: Chapter 135: Discuss

Zhang Qi and Qian Xi returned only after the spring had begun, and logistics had already made several deliveries. They lived at Xinghai Base and negotiated with the bases in several coastal cities nearby. Those bases relied on the sea for their livelihood, with little arable land and shortages of food but no lack of money and Crystal Cores.

Isn’t this a case of mutual compensation? The main focus of Zhang Qi and Qian Xi’s trip was to discuss cooperative agreements and they took the opportunity to open their stores. With this, logistics could follow closely and deliver goods to this side as the route was established.

The three bases paid a deposit and a portion of the payments, amounting to three million. The two of them returned with this sum. Subsequent actions required staff to interface, logistics to transport goods, and so on, creating many job positions, reviving quite a few things, and ensuring the coastal bases had food, so they no longer needed to kowtow to the rich district.

More than a dozen Base Commanders from nearby bases joined forces, mutually transporting their own base’s materials and excess resources for exchange, deepening cooperation between cities, and gradually freeing themselves from being controlled by others. They firmly held onto the law enforcement power and acted according to the law.

The rich district indeed found itself in a bit of a pickle but dared not make too much of a fuss since they still held a position in their respective bases.

The three farms were due to start spring plowing, and No.9 Farm, being large, was initially planned to open just two hundred acres. Still, with an overwhelming number of orders, that wasn’t enough to meet the demand, necessitating the opening of a few more acres.

Some lands in Farms No.7 and No.8 were yet to be cleared, and they planned to finish it all at once, fully utilizing the land.

No.9 Farm was divided into sections, and Li Pan bought large machinery, going straight to mechanized farming and opening a thousand acres in one go, mainly planting essential crops like grains and vegetables.

For instance, corn, rice, wheat, beans like soybeans and red beans—these could be intercropped. There were also tubers like potatoes, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins that could be eaten as staples.

These thousand acres were entirely dedicated to grains and vegetables, and an additional three hundred acres would later be set aside solely for a few types of popular fruit trees.

They mainly practiced intercropping, which they had over a year of experience with now. Li Pan and Xie Ling oversaw and inspected the process to avoid irreversible losses, ensuring the task of planting grains was completed even better.

Next year they planned to continue developing land. This year, aside from grains, they would also plant nearly a thousand acres of wheat straw, rotating crops like various wheats and alfalfa to ensure livestock and poultry had enough feed.

During the early spring, in March and April, when the rapeseed and wheat ripened, it was time to bring in the machinery for harvest.

Now with so much land, they had to use large machinery; otherwise, even exhausting themselves, people couldn’t finish the work.

In spring, they slaughtered some of the pigs, sheep, beef cattle, and poultry that had been fattened up for butchering. The meat was then directly stored in the base’s freezers, supplying all the base’s residents at fair prices.

The volume was considerable. Having endured the hardships of the first year when No.9 Farm was newly established, they now entered a time of successive bountiful harvests. A large amount of agricultural products flooded the market, were of excellent quality, had gentle energy, and were priced fairly.

This immediately stabilized the market prices, firmly controlling the market, causing the rich district’s supermarket prices to plummet, unable to sell at high prices anymore.

The rich district wasn’t solely occupied by the wealthy but also had elite middle-class residents. Why wouldn’t they walk a little further to shop at Panpan Specialty Store for meat, vegetables, and grains at fair prices and guaranteed authenticity?

The advantage of the rich district was sliding downhill, and their clout when speaking wasn’t as effective as before.

The Base Commander, Li Pan, and the brothers from the big yard united and collaborated, finally seizing the initiative. They no longer had to bow and bend, no longer subjected to humiliation.

This year the three farms were just beginning to emerge. This was only spring plowing; the real bounty would come in the autumn harvest.

Xue Dong went to the forest area to look for Li Pan, knowing he would surely find her there.

"Pan’er, the big boss is asking if we want to bring in a few pieces of machinery to process rice and wheat. This way, it would be convenient for us. There’s also customizing Panpan Farm’s packaging bags for our rice and flour. After deep processing, the price would be different. He doesn’t have much machinery, and it’s deducted from the cost as soon as it arrives. It seems not too worthwhile; our money might be better spent elsewhere."

"Whether it’s expensive or not, you’ll need to ask Wenwen and Xie Ling. Whether there’s enough money in the accounts, I no longer have the final say in these matters."

In reality, Li Pan now only made the major decisions; finance was left to Wenwen and Xie Ling, and they had the final word. Any unsatisfactory requests would be sent back, and funding would be refused.

Since people are employed, they must be given authority. As long as there weren’t severe mistakes, she would not interfere with the departments’ exercise of their powers.

Xue Dong thought for a moment, "Then shall I go and ask?"

"You write up a report, a few hundred words will do, and hand it to Wenwen. Since we’re doing things formally now, we have to follow the rules."

"And if it gets approved, where should we put it?"

"Try to choose a barren area that’s not suitable for farming, and don’t get too close to the forested areas. I might use that part later, possibly for planting Spirit Plants. Leave a space for me."

"Got it, I’ll have someone think it over."

Xue Dong took a few steps out then turned back, "This processing plant takes up quite a bit of space. I kind of feel putting it on No.9 Farm is a bit of a waste of land."

"You’re not telling me we have to buy another farm, are you? I’m out of money."

Li Pan quickly shook her head.

"No, I was thinking, does the base have a place? We could rent a factory building for these processing plants, or maybe collaborate with someone. What do you think?"

"Collaboration could work, but given the quality issues, we need to choose the right person and lock down the contract details tight. Why don’t you ask Brother Wen Bin about it? Getting the base involved could make it big, you know. We wouldn’t just be processing our own products but other people’s too, setting up a processing plant."

"I’ll think it over."

Xue Dong planned to go back and reflect on this first; setting up all processing plants by themselves didn’t seem too feasible.

They weren’t businessmen to begin with. Since they started the farms, they had been feeling their way across the river by groping the stones—dealing with problems and obstacles as they came along, step by step.

Their way of thinking differed greatly from that of businessmen, and this was something they started learning as they grew. It all relied on sheer sincerity and precious reputation, with the old hands under them all having fought together from the start, loyal and considering the farm their home.

If it had been a company, Li Pan might have been picked clean to the bone long ago; she wasn’t cut out for business at all.

Li Pan didn’t have much of an idea about this matter either and needed to pool wisdom from all quarters.

Xue Dong personally went to the base to discuss matters with the boss.

"Boss, I brought you some wine I brewed. This wine is five years old, made right after the harvest, it’s been aged."

"Let’s have lunch together; I have something to discuss with you, too."

"I came here to talk to you about the processing plants. It’s not just wheat and rice processing but also sauces, like soybean paste and soy sauce, tomato processing, and more. I can’t handle it all by myself, we can’t occupy all the planting land," he said.

"Sit down and let’s talk. I’ve been thinking about this too, and I can’t just rely on your farm to make a profit. I need to think about how others can work with us," the boss responded.

"It was Pan’er who reminded me. We could collaborate with others, fully utilize the old factory buildings, and start them up again," said Xue Dong.

"Boss, think about it. If this idea works out, think of how many job opportunities it could create. These assembly lines don’t require superpowers; ordinary people could handle the work," he suggested.

"Yes," agreed the boss.

The Base Commander stroked his chin, deep in thought.