Chapter 691
On a summer night in early August 1990, the cicadas were still chirping, and the office of the Sujia Village Committee was brightly lit.
More than 20 village representatives sat around Xizhou. Some were shirtless with blue towels draped over their shoulders, while others wore yellowed Dacron shirts with their cuffs rolled up at different heights.
The sparks from the pipe flickered in the twilight, and the air was filled with the scent of earth, sweat, and freshly cut rice.
Uncle Su Wu sat in the main seat and knocked on the enamel pot. His voice carried the majesty of a village party secretary:
"We've summoned all the household heads here today, mainly to discuss the expansion of Yuanzheng's factory. Let's first ask him to explain the rules."
Su Yuanzheng stood up, his straight blue shirt standing out among the crowd.
He pushed a stack of mimeographed welfare plans to the center of the table:
"Dear brothers and sisters, fellow villagers, our factory has been established in the village for quite some time. Thank you very much for your daily support.
The sales of our shredded papaya are very good now. We are not only selling it in Guangxi, but we have also sold it in the province since last year.”
Su Miao's Xibo smiled very enthusiastically and said:
"That's great! If you like shredded papaya, it's the same as liking the papayas we grow. Yuanzheng, thanks to you building this factory, we now have an extra income."
Several uncles and aunts nearby also echoed, and Su Yuanzheng continued:
"We have launched a new product recently and the initial trial sales have been very positive, so we need to increase production.
As you may know, the large machine we just bought from Yangcheng has been installed today. Next, we hope to contract a piece of land from the village for expansion.
The contracted land is located on the right side of the existing factory, and its area is the same as the existing factory."
An aunt nodded and said, "This is a good place. Although no house has been built there before, the land is very flat. If we connect it directly to the current factory, we can double the size of the previous one."
Before Su Yuanzheng could continue to talk about the contract and welfare terms, a man's voice rang out from the corner:
“Who knows whether you really want to expand the factory or just occupy space?”
Everyone's eyes turned to Zhang Laosan who was speaking. Uncle Wu frowned and asked:
"Zhang Laosan, what do you mean by this?"
Zhang Laosan, who was sitting in the corner, suddenly moved the wooden stool under his butt with a creaking sound. He tilted his neck and curled his lips into a shape of eight:
"I heard from my relatives that there was a boss who rented land in their village. He broke his promise just one year after signing the contract. He brought in workers from outside and drove out all the workers in the village.
The people in their village rebelled, and the boss can no longer do business in the village. He is looking for a new place everywhere, and he is offering a high price.
Your family is signing a contract with the village at this critical juncture. Who knows if it's like occupying the land and subletting it to them, hoping to make a profit from the difference in price when it's sold second-hand."
These words were like a stone thrown into a pond, and the crowd immediately became agitated.
It seems that Zhang Laosan also heard the gossip and made up a big drama in his mind.
Su Miao stood up and said, "Uncle Zhang, you're worrying too much. I've actually heard about what you're talking about. It happened in Nitang Village in Lin County.
The boss's surname is Feng. He rented the land not to open a factory, but to engage in planting. He grows passion fruit, which had just been introduced two years ago.
The plot of land he needs to contract is very large, and the area we want to rent is less than one-fifth of his. The supply and demand are totally mismatched.
Besides, we brought the machinery into the village this afternoon, and many uncles and aunts saw it. We had mentioned the expansion of the factory before, and it wasn't a sudden idea."
"Yes, I can testify to this. In the spring, my second brother was talking to me about expanding the factory.
It's just that Miaomiao and Yuan were in the capital at the time, so we'll make arrangements after summer vacation," said Uncle Wu.
The Zhang family does not have much labor force and their relationship with the Su family is also average. Now that no one in the family works in the factory, they don’t care whether the Su family’s factory can develop or not. They are just more concerned about whether they are being taken advantage of.
Zhang Laosan saw that his question had been answered, so he continued to ask:
"So how do you want to rent it? How long do you want to rent it for?"
Su Yuanzheng nodded and took out a contract to pass around:
"We previously bought the land for our factory from Wei Lao Er. This time, we want to rent an area of the same size as before, for 15 years, and then..."
Before Su Yuanzheng finished speaking, someone exclaimed:
"15 years? That's too long. How do we calculate the price? It can't be the same price every year, right?"
"Hey! Don't be so impatient, let Yuanzheng finish what he's saying! We haven't even discussed the price yet!"
This person was anxious, and so were others. They all wanted to know what rental price Su Yuanzheng would offer. After all, everyone would get a share of the money.
When the rent was mentioned, the noisy crowd gradually quieted down.
Su Yuanzheng cleared his throat and continued:
"That piece of land is on the edge of the village and is not arable land. The rent in other villages is 30-50 yuan per mu per year. We can pay the higher rent.
Of course, the rent will not be the same every year. Starting from the time of signing the contract, the rent for each subsequent year will increase by 5% based on the rent of the previous year.
As soon as this was said, everyone started discussing it. Some people thought it was a good idea, after all, the land was empty anyway.
Some people think the price is too low and they can’t get any bargain;
Some people think that the lease period is too long and it is hard to say whether the factory will hire them in the future.
All in all, everyone has their own little thoughts.
The meeting room suddenly became buzzing with people whispering to each other in groups of three or four. Uncle Su Wu coughed heavily, and the enamel pot made a crisp sound on the table.
"Everyone, be quiet!"
Uncle Wu looked around at everyone and said, "I've already reviewed this contract in advance. The guys on the village committee all think there's no problem with it and that it's a very good thing.
That piece of land was originally empty, no one used it, so it just sat there. It's been idle for ten years, the grass is taller than a person, and now it can be exchanged for money, and you're still being picky?
If it can be rented out and the village collective makes a profit, then won’t the money be spent on everyone?
We have activities every year, and the villagers are doing renovations here and there. What doesn't cost money? Do you think you can just make that money?
Isn't it all based on this revenue? Now that you have a ready-made fixed income, what are you still hesitating about?"
Everyone was silent at this time. They all understood that this money came easily, without any hardship or loss, and each family did not have to pay much, so there was really nothing to object to.
Seeing that everyone's attitude had calmed down, Su Yuanzheng took advantage of the situation and pointed at the list, saying:
"As I said earlier, in addition to the rent you pay, the factory will also provide other benefits. Don't worry, just look at the list I sent out and you'll know."
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