At the gate of the commune compound, Party Secretary Liu greeted the gatekeeper and learned that the commune director was already inside. The two then pushed their cart into the compound.
Parking his bicycle in the yard, Secretary Liu asked anxiously, "Honghui, do you think Director Cao will agree?"
"Do your best."
Upon arriving at the director's office, Party Secretary Liu knocked on the open door. The middle-aged man sitting at the desk looked up and saw Zhao Honghui. He stood up to greet him, "Honghui, it's been a while since I've seen you. How have things been lately?"
Zhao Honghui shook hands with him, "It's all good, thank you for your concern, Director Cao. Our brigade made some dried fruit, we brought it for you to try."
Party Secretary Liu then offered the candied fruit, saying, "Director, please try it and see if it's good."
Director Cao invited them to sit down, and seeing that the items were not valuable, he didn't stand on ceremony.
He picked up a piece, put it in his mouth, and chewed a few times. "It's sweet and sour with a bit of saltiness. It tastes pretty good. This should be quite popular."
"Director, you think it's delicious too, right?" Secretary Liu felt a little relieved and took the opportunity to explain his purpose, emphasizing that it was inexpensive and worth a try.
Director Cao looked up at the two of them and said, "You've given me a tough challenge!"
Party Secretary Liu leaned forward and hurriedly explained, "Director, this isn't difficult. If it succeeds, it will improve the lives of the people in Qingshan Village. If it fails, it won't have much impact on the commune. Director, I hope you can give Qingshan Village a chance."
Director Cao pondered for a moment, "The autumn harvest isn't over yet, is it? If the villagers are all doing this, what about the work in the fields?"
"Don't worry, our brigade headquarters has made all the arrangements. We'll only need half a day to make the dried fruit, and we'll continue working the rest of the time. It won't interfere with either task."
They had considered this problem last night and came up with this division of labor together.
Director Cao then asked, "Do other production teams have this kind of wild pear?"
"This... I'll go back and investigate."
Secretary Liu was sweating bullets. What should he say if Director Cao asked them to share the production method with other production brigades?
There are only so many units in the nearby communes. If there are too many sellers, the price and sales volume will be affected, and they may even be unable to sell their products.
Zhao Honghui, who had been observing from the sidelines, chimed in: "Is Director Cao suggesting that if other production brigades also have wild pears, then Qingshan Village should be allowed to purchase them so that they can also earn an extra income?"
Upon hearing this, Director Cao met Zhao Honghui's gaze, and a silent contest instantly began.
For a moment, the room was so quiet that it seemed as if the air had frozen, without a sound.
After a long pause, Director Cao smiled, pointed at Zhao Honghui, and said helplessly, "You..."
Zhao Honghui smiled and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.
Seeing the air circulating again, Party Secretary Liu interjected, "Won't we end up making too many and not being able to sell them all?"
Zhao Honghui: "I would appreciate Director Cao's support and help to put in a good word with the enterprises and supply and marketing cooperatives in the commune."
"You're pushing your luck!" Director Cao narrowed his eyes, revealing a displeased expression.
"Don't say that. If needed, I'll also go to the county town to make some trips."
Upon hearing this, Director Cao tapped his finger on his desk and pondered for a few seconds. “If we want to promote it to the county, it’s not appropriate to do so under the name of Qingshan Village.”
Zhao Honghui: "What if we opened a dried fruit factory?"
Director Cao shook his head. “Setting up a factory isn’t that easy. You need factory buildings, equipment, and workers. You only have this one product. Once this wave is over, how will you pay your workers’ wages? Unless you can process other fruits and produce them continuously.”
"That's quite possible!"
Party Secretary Liu exclaimed in surprise. Seeing Director Cao looking over, he excitedly explained, "Director, to be honest, this candied fruit was made by one of our female educated youths named Xie Yuyao. She may know something else. We'll go back and ask her right away."
If a factory can be established in Qingshantun, that would be a major achievement for him!
Zhao Honghui said, "Director Cao, building a factory is not something that can be done in a day or two. Why don't we take a steady approach and start by selling in a few nearby communes under the name of the brigade collective? We can apply to set up a factory when the conditions are right."
"Okay, we'll do it your way. You've struck gold in Qingshan Village! Go back and finalize it quickly. I hope you can bring me a pleasant surprise."
If the dried fruit factory is successfully established, it will not only increase employment but also boost the commune's economic development, and improve the lives of the villagers.
Zhao Honghui stood up. "Then we'll head back now. Please take good care of things at the commune."
"No problem." Director Cao saw them off at the door and only returned to his office after watching them ride away on their bicycles.
*
On the way back to Qingshan Village, Party Secretary Liu pedaled his bicycle, recalling the conversation he had just had, and said with emotion, "Honghui, it's good that you came along. I was really afraid that Director Cao would directly ask for the recipe for sour pears and then send them to all the production brigades under the jurisdiction of Hongqi Commune."
"Last night, didn't you also ask the educated youth team to directly provide the production method?"
"That's different!"
Zhao Honghui sarcastically remarked, "What's the difference? Not only that, but we also expect them to donate their painstakingly made dried fruit for free."
"That's Accountant Li! I didn't mean it that way!"
Zhao Honghui glanced at Secretary Liu and saw that his face was red, so he didn't mention the matter again.
"Even if Director Cao insists, we can take the opportunity to get some benefits. Besides, we have the upper hand."
"This is how it is this year, but it's hard to say what will happen next year."
"Before next year, other production teams might get the method from their in-laws, and they can also make it themselves after a few more tries." Zhao Honghui had long seen that selling only these sour pear preserves was not a long-term solution.
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