Chapter 82 Chapter 82 Cannery Opens
In order to get a good start and make the opening ceremony of the cannery more lively, Liu Mianmian simply asked Yu Guoliang to notify all villages to start purchasing raw materials on this day.
Three people from the factory's purchasing department came early in the morning. As expected, at dawn, people came with loads and baskets on their backs, and soon a long line formed in front of the cannery gate.
Even decades later, farmers who simply farmed would not earn much, let alone now. Anyone who could grow some vegetables and sell them at the market, or even make some vermicelli noodles and sell them there, was considered quite resourceful.
So even though the reform and opening up has allowed individuals to contract land, the harvest has increased, and every household can have enough to eat, in fact, people still have very little money.
After all, there are too few opportunities to make money.
So when the village announced that the cannery was buying radishes and bamboo shoots, everyone was overjoyed. If nothing else was available, how could radishes be unavailable? Radishes are a very common vegetable, grown in every household, yet for that reason, no one wanted them. Who would have thought the cannery would actually buy them, and at a very reasonable price?
As for bamboo shoots, they are not grown, but directly dug from the mountains. Apart from time, there is no other cost involved.
But the time of rural people is not valuable at all. Spending an afternoon digging a basket of bamboo shoots can be exchanged for money. This is really a good thing that can't be found anywhere else.
Qianjin Township doesn't have much else to offer except for its many mountains. It could be described as a landscape of eight mountains, one river, and one field. Because there's so little fertile land, everyone's harvest is barely enough to feed themselves; expecting to earn more money from the farm is out of the question.
However, there are many mountains and bamboo forests, so digging bamboo shoots is really not difficult.
People in each village also heard from village cadres that this purchase was for the entire township. Farmers simply believed that radishes and bamboo shoots were everywhere, and that it was impossible to buy all the radishes and bamboo shoots in the entire township. Most people would stop buying after reaching a certain limit.
So everyone went out early in the morning, for fear that if they arrived late, people would have collected enough and no longer wanted them. If they missed such an opportunity, they would have no place to cry.
Everyone wanted to get breakfast, so they all bumped into each other. Wasn't there a long queue at the gate?
This is the scene that Section Chief Ding and his colleagues saw.
Hearing that the cannery was buying raw materials, Section Chief Ding was also full of doubts. They were all in Nancheng. How could he not know what Qianjin Township had to offer? There were many mountains and forests in this area, but they only grew timber, not many fruit trees.
He approached with full of doubts, and then saw what was in the villagers' bamboo baskets: plump white radishes and fresh bamboo shoots with mud and shells.
This is the raw material for the cannery?!
Section Chief Ding's eyes almost popped out of his head.
He felt it was unbelievable, but at the same time, a vague idea came to his mind. Who said that canned food must be made of fruit? When he went on business trips, he had also seen pickled vegetables and pickled fish in glass bottles, but they were not available on the market in Nancheng, so he didn't think of it.
Section Chief Ding has a good relationship with Liu Zhigang. This time, Liu Zhigang wanted to set up a canned food production line, but he didn't have enough funds, so he came to him. He originally wanted to borrow money, but later Section Chief Ding thought that this was a sure-win business, so he also invested money and bought a share.
I never thought I wouldn't buy it in the end.
It's understandable that Section Chief Ding was very upset with Yu Guoliang for buying the production line. He had originally thought he'd invest some money and then make some money without having to work hard, but in the end, he ended up with nothing.
So, what he said about not being able to work in the cannery for long was all from the heart, and it could be considered as the truth spoken after drinking.
It was certainly not the right occasion for him to say that, but Section Chief Ding felt that he was being realistic. Besides, after debugging the equipment, they would return to Nancheng, and they probably wouldn't have much contact with Qianjin Township in the future, so he didn't care too much and even had the audacity to attend the unveiling ceremony.
In fact, he just wanted to come and see the fun.
Unexpectedly, he actually saw a lively scene, but it was not the lively scene he had imagined.
Section Chief Ding walked along the queue and saw radishes and bamboo shoots all the way. He immediately understood that this cannery was really going to make canned pickled vegetables.
But aren't pickled vegetables sold at the market? They're all in bulk in buckets, and people just pick up a pound or half a pound of them when they buy vegetables and can them. Although the shelf life is longer and the taste may be better, the cost is increased. Will anyone really buy them?
As for bamboo shoots, Section Chief Ding was even more confused because he had never seen canned bamboo shoots.
"Will anyone buy this thing? Even if it is produced, not many people will buy it. We will just lose more money. I don't think it will last long." Section Chief Ding said to the technician beside him.
The technician was speechless. Even if this was the truth, you couldn't say it so openly. It would be too offensive.
Before, you could say that he was just drunk and talking nonsense, but today you are as sober as can be. If you continue to say such things, how embarrassing would it be if others heard you?
But the technicians had no choice, because he was the section chief after all. They couldn’t cover up his boss’s nonsense, right?
I can only remain silent.
Section Chief Ding didn't notice it at all. As the technical section chief of a large state-owned factory in Nancheng, in Qianjin Township, Section Chief Ding had a kind of arrogance with contempt in his heart, so he spoke bluntly and was not afraid of offending others.
Besides, he was just discussing this among his own people, and he didn't say anything in front of the township leaders, right?
But he ignored the fellow villagers queuing next to him. On the one hand, he thought he was talking about the cannery, which had nothing to do with these people. On the other hand, he didn't take these peasants seriously at all.
Ten years ago, these people might have received some attention and preferential treatment because of their good background. But it is different now. The economy is being developed everywhere. In the eyes of Section Chief Ding, these poor people who can't earn much money are almost ants.
But he didn't expect that as soon as he finished speaking, a man squatting next to the basket suddenly stood up and asked him, "You are a dog that can't spit out ivory, what nonsense are you talking about?"
Some fellow villagers who heard what happened nearby also glared at Section Chief Ding.
"Who is this? He's dressed up like a real person, but why doesn't he say a single nice thing?"
"That's right. Our village cannery just opened today. This is so unlucky! He's cursing the factory for not being able to sell anything and hoping it'll go bankrupt. It's not easy for us to make a little money. The village finally found this way for us, so why can't he see others doing well?"
"He has shifty eyes and doesn't look like a good person. Bah!"
An auntie spat at Section Chief Ding.
Section Chief Ding had never been subjected to such a thing before. He was immediately furious, his face reddening. "Vulgar, barbaric! I'm telling the truth, and I'm not allowed to tell the truth? Besides, I'm talking about the cannery. What's it got to do with you..."
The first man who spoke punched him in the face without saying a word.
Section Chief Ding was halfway through his words when he uttered a cry of pain: "You, you unruly people, you poor bastards..."
Well, I got punched again.
It wasn't just fists. The fellow villagers in the queue acted as if they had made an agreement. You throw a piece of broken stone, I throw a handful of yellow mud; you throw a piece of radish top, I throw a handful of muddy bamboo shoot shells, and they all throw them at Section Chief Ding at once.
The man who punched Section Chief Ding twice had already dodged away, and even the other two technicians had quietly dodged away when everyone was questioning Section Chief Ding. So Section Chief Ding had to bear everyone's anger alone, and soon he was beaten to a pulp.
He wanted to hide, but he was surrounded by fellow villagers who were throwing things at him, so he couldn't get away at all.
It wasn't until people from the township government came over to stop the villagers that Chief Ding, with a bruised face, was able to escape the "encirclement." He was filled with anger: "I want to call the police! These people are beating me up! I want to call the police!"
Of course, the people from the township government had to understand what had happened first. After they understood it clearly, they were all very speechless.
It would have been fine if this guy just talked nonsense in front of them, but considering that he was from the military factory and came to help debug the machine, they tolerated it.
Who would have thought that this person would actually come in front of his fellow villagers and talk nonsense.
Yes, these fellow villagers are indeed not from the cannery, but don’t you think about it, the cannery buys radishes and bamboo shoots from them, which increases everyone’s income!
Don’t the fellow villagers want the cannery to develop well?
If you curse the cannery to close down, isn't that the same as cursing your fellow villagers to have no income in the future?
Cutting off someone's source of income is like killing their parents. How can they not beat you up?
Not to mention the villagers, the township leaders and officials also wanted to beat up Section Chief Ding. They had finally opened a factory in Qianjin Township, and the township was looking forward to its success. But this guy, on the grand opening day, came over and started talking nonsense.
The township leader could only hold back his anger and say, "Even if there are extenuating circumstances, beating someone is definitely wrong. Tell me who hit you, and I'll have the police station give them a good lesson."
Section Chief Ding felt that the township leaders’ words were not pleasant to the ear. What did it mean to be excusable? What did it mean to educate them? They should be severely punished!
But he also knew that he couldn't be too arrogant on someone else's territory, so he could only pretend that he didn't hear the township leader's favoritism, and instead stared at the crowd with wide eyes.
It was so chaotic just now that he really couldn't see who hit him, but it didn't matter, at least he could recognize the first person who hit him.
However, he looked around the crowd for a long time but didn't see the man at all.
The person is missing.
He couldn't identify the person, and the township leaders said there was nothing they could do. They also gave him a long lecture on how difficult it is to work with the masses, and that it could easily turn into a mass incident if one is not careful, and asked him to understand the township's difficulties.
Then he asked the clerk to accompany them to the clinic to check their wounds, and sent the three away in such a tactful and polite manner.
Since you don't have a blessing mentality, there is no need to attend the unveiling ceremony.
Outside the crowd, Liu Mianmian couldn't help laughing as she watched Section Chief Ding and his men being fooled away. As expected of someone who works in administration, she handled things in a smooth and tactful way.
Today is the day of the unveiling and opening. Not only the Yu family members came, but also the village cadres from Liuxia Village came. Some people who like to watch the fun also came along.
They actually came when the villagers questioned Section Chief Ding, but they just mixed in the crowd and didn't come forward.
In the past, if they encountered such a thing, Yu Guoliang and Yu Guodong might have rushed up and beaten people together. However, after more than a year of training, they have become much calmer and just watched the fun with Liu Mianmian.
Seeing Section Chief Ding being beaten by his fellow villagers was much more satisfying than beating him myself.
In Liu Mianmian's words, paying attention to this kind of clown is giving him face.
They didn't move, but the villagers who came to watch the fun took advantage of the chaos to do some "adding bricks and tiles".
After Section Chief Ding and his companions had left, several township leaders approached Liu Mianmian and the others. Township Chief Hong said helplessly, "I didn't expect the people sent by the Nancheng Military Factory to have such low quality. I will report this matter to my superiors and the military factory. I hope it won't affect the enthusiasm of Comrade Liu and Comrade Yu. Our township still strongly supports the cannery and is very optimistic about its development."
Although it was stated that the cannery was run by the brothers Yu Guoliang and Yu Guodong, the villagers also knew that the major shareholder behind it was actually Liu Mianmian.
Liu Mianmian smiled and said, "We also trust the village very much, otherwise we would not choose to set up a factory in the village."
Village Chief Hong nodded with satisfaction. He believed what was said, especially after knowing that the cannery was preparing to make canned pickles.
After all, there are many towns and villages with radishes and bamboo shoots, so they have a lot of options when it comes to setting up this cannery.
"These are just minor incidents. Business is like this. There will always be some jealousy and slander from some people, but these are not a big deal." Liu Mianmian smiled and invited the township leaders to move forward. "This only proves that we are doing a good job, so we don't mind it. It's almost time, let's go over and unveil the plaque."
Under the gaze of the villagers, they arrived at the cannery's gate. The factory had already prepared a row of firecrackers with a blast of ten thousand bangs. As the firecrackers were lit, amidst the deafening roar, Yu Guoliang, representing the factory, and Mayor Hong, representing Qianjin Township, jointly unveiled the red cloth covering the signboard, prompting enthusiastic applause from all around.
"Qianjin Township Youziyouwei Cannery!"
"Oh, what a nice name! Canned food is delicious, and our lives will be delicious too."
"Our radishes and bamboo shoots can really be canned. Oh, they're really fresh."
…
Amidst the heated discussions among the fellow villagers, the workers in the cannery who had been waiting for a long time also started working!
Later, Liu Mianmian stayed in Qianjin Township for another week. Together with Yu Guoliang and others, she continued to optimize the management system that had been formulated before based on the situation after the cannery started operation. Only after she was sure that all links were smooth did she return to Nancheng.
Production should be fine.
In addition to Xu Li's pickled radish recipe, they also bought a braised bamboo shoot recipe from a chef at a state-owned restaurant.
There are many bamboo shoots in Qianjin Township. This chef deals with bamboo shoots all day long. Over the past few decades, he has figured out an exclusive cooking recipe, which has become the signature dish of the township's state-owned restaurant.
Based on these two recipes, they expanded the flavors by adding spicy and sweet flavors, so the variety is not monotonous.
Then comes the issue of sales.
The township will help solve some of the supply and marketing cooperatives' channels, but this is definitely not enough, especially for township supply and marketing cooperatives. Customers are basically not their target audience, and their canned food audience is mainly in big cities.
There are currently no good sales staff in the factory, so Yu Guodong plans to take people out to try it himself.
He and Liu Mianmian went back to South City first. As soon as they walked out of the bus station, they saw his frail brother-in-law waiting at the door.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
