Chapter 40 Cooperation
"Xiao Wu, is there a guest at home?"
Yang Guofeng looked at Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen, and he could tell at a glance that these two people were definitely not from their hometown. They had different temperaments, were good-looking, and dressed like the people on the Internet.
He extended his hand and greeted them, "Hello, both of you. I'm Yang Guofeng, the Party Secretary of Yanggou Village."
"Hello, my name is Li Jianbin, and this is my lover Jiang Zhen. We are both garden designers and friends of Xia Xia. I'm here this time because Xia Xia asked me to do some design work on the hill she contracted. It's nice to meet you."
As soon as these words came out, Yang Guofeng was delighted. It was obvious that he had met a cultured person. He quickly asked Xia Wu, "Xiao Wu, your two friends are capable. Our village is in need of such talents. You are going up the mountain, right? I will go with you so that I can take care of you. If there is anything you don't understand, just ask me. I will tell you everything I know. If I don't know, I will call the town government and ask. Come to my house at noon and ask your aunt to cook more dishes."
Xia Wu was at a loss for words. Yang Guofeng was a veritable village-building maniac. He welcomed anyone and anything that was good for the village.
It was because he knew his personality that Xia Wu particularly admired this village party secretary.
She responded cheerfully, "Uncle Guofeng, if you have nothing to do, you can come with us, but we won't be having lunch at your place. I've already arranged to treat two friends, so please accompany us up the mountain so we can have lunch together."
Liu Guizhen and Yang Guojun also spoke up for Xia Wu, and finally Yang Guofeng happily agreed.
The guest should follow the host's wishes.
Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen wanted to walk up the mountain, so Xia Wu and Yang Guofeng took them there. On the way, Yang Guofeng talked about the scenery and past history near Yanggou Village, and the group listened with great interest.
Yanggou Village is most famous for the mountains behind it. The two largest mountains are called Mother and Zi Mountains. The taller one is called Mother Mountain and the shorter one is called Child Mountain. From a distance, they look like a mother bending over and caressing her child with his head raised, hence the name.
"There's a story circulating in the village that this Mother Mountain was transformed by a goddess. During the Ming Dynasty, natural disasters and man-made calamities, such as droughts, floods, and locust plagues, hit our area hard. People didn't even have food to eat, and were starving to the point of cannibalism. Then a goddess emerged from the mountain and, with a wave of her sleeves, conjured up clean water and food, alleviating the local people's hunger."
"The people loved her very much, but the good times didn't last. When the county magistrate heard about the goddess, he brought his soldiers to capture her. Fortunately, the people informed her, and she escaped back to the mountains in time. The county magistrate was furious and killed and hacked the villagers to pieces, leaving only one child who escaped to the mountains with his protection."
"One of the county magistrate's advisors said the child must be running into the mountains to find the goddess. So he led his soldiers into the mountains with the child. Just as he said, the goddess appeared to protect the child, but the county magistrate forced him to the edge of a cliff, and he fell off."
"Later, two mountains arose from the ground. Their shapes resembled the goddess who protected the child that day. So the people who moved there called them Mother and Child Mountains. Mother Mountain has a Mother Goddess. The people worship the Mother Goddess in the Mother Temple. She blesses us with good weather and a happy life."
"It seems that stories like this can be found all over the country. Do you still believe in the Mother Goddess?" Jiang Zhen was a little curious. As the village party secretary, Yang Guofeng should not be easily feudal and superstitious.
Yang Guofu said with a smile, "These days, everyone believes in science and believes that science can make life better. Ordinary people believe in the Mother Goddess to find peace of mind and to desire a better life. Science and faith don't conflict, so there's nothing wrong with believing in both."
Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen both smiled and gave him a thumbs-up, praising him: "You are obviously a good village party secretary. You are so wise."
"I don't deserve it. I'm just an ordinary person. I can't compare to you young people who are educated and knowledgeable. Take Xiao Wu, for example. As soon as she came back, she started her own media. She can make money online and even help some villagers get rich. Now she has leased the mountain and invited talents like you. This is a great thing!"
Yang Guofeng kept praising the two of them, and his compliments were always appreciated wherever he went. Xia Wu followed beside him with a faint smile on his face.
She always felt as if she was being watched by the village party secretary.
"We're here. In front of us is the mountain of Xiaowubao. This mountain is called Yantou Mountain. There used to be a lot of wild geese there. It's not far from the mother mountain."
As Yang Guofeng introduced, Jiang Zhen also saw the mother mountain behind Yantou Mountain. It was indeed not far away, and from this angle, it really looked like a goddess leaning over gently.
She took out her cell phone and took two more pictures. On the other side, Li Jianbin had already asked the village party secretary about the area of the hill.
Yantou Mountain is large in area. Xia Wu didn’t run across the entire mountain last time. The entire mountain is divided into two sides, north and south. The south side faces the sun and the north side is not in the sun. The people who previously owned the mountain were all engaged in breeding and planting on the south side, and the north side behind it was basically in a state of no one opening up the land.
"There are beehives here," Jiang Zhen saw the beehives under the loquat tree, took a few photos, and then excitedly asked Xia Wu, "When will the loquats be ripe? Can we sell them online then?"
Xia Wu smiled and said, "Loquats will be ripe after March next year. As you can see, our area is a mountainous area with not many people. Loquats are not common here, but the purchasing power is low. If we don't sell them online, we won't be able to sell them at all."
"There are beehives in the strawberry garden. I just collected honey from them yesterday. When you and Brother Li leave, take some with you. It's a small token of my appreciation."
"That's how it is in mountainous areas. Lao Li and I have been to many places. The problem in many mountainous areas isn't that there are no good things, but that it's difficult to monetize them. Young people go out to work, and there's a serious loss of young and middle-aged people. Only some middle-aged and elderly people are left at home, with no solution at all." Jiang Zhen smiled at Xia Wu. "So I think you have a good idea. If your videos go viral online, you can accumulate a lot of fans. And with such a mountain area under your control, you won't have any trouble selling your products."
As the two were talking, Li Jianbin and Yang Guofeng came over. He already had a general understanding of the structure and scope of the southern mountains. The next step was to go back and discuss land use planning with Xia Wu.
Yang Guofeng had sharp ears. He heard something about selling something online, and then he remembered the reason for his visit today. He quickly came forward and asked, "What are you talking about?"
"I'm praising Xia Xia for her intelligence. You have a great environment here. She rented a piece of land to grow crops and raise livestock, and she also shoots videos online. She can make money right at home."
"Yes, yes, that's what I said about Xiao Wu. She's the smartest and most promising person in our village. You see, once she came back, people like you came along. Otherwise, I've never seen cultured people like you before."
Yang Guofeng's flattery made Jiang Zhen laugh. "Uncle Yang, do you need Xia Xia's help with something?"
"Hey, this..." Yang Guofeng was a little embarrassed, but the embarrassment lasted only three seconds before he smiled sheepishly, "Look at you smart people, you can see through this."
Xia Wu shook his head and said with a smile: "Uncle, if you have anything to say, just tell me directly. We are not outsiders."
"Then I'll tell you," Yang Guofeng chuckled, "Xiao Wu, I just want to ask you, can everyone shoot and post videos online?"
"Yeah, as long as you have a mobile phone and know a little bit of editing, it's not difficult to post videos. Uncle, do you also want to start your own media?"
Yang Guofeng slapped his thigh and said, "Of course I do. Look how well you've done. These days, you've been picking strawberries and digging bamboo shoots with Uncle Yang and Shi Hongniang. You've made at least a few dozen yuan a day. The average salary in our town is less than 3,000 yuan, and those of you who are older can still earn quite a bit. Everyone in the village is quite envious."
"To be honest, our village is short of young people, but not people. Some middle-aged people can't go out to work because they have things to take care of at home. Those who stay at home rely on working on their few acres of land. Who doesn't want to make money? But after the work in the fields is done, people have nothing to do but play cards and drink. Look at the small store at the entrance of the village. It's full of smoke in the afternoon because people gather to play cards!"
Yang Guofeng sighed. He understood the current situation in the village and knew that these people did not want to make money, but were limited by their cognition and abilities and did not have the ability to make money out of thin air.
Now that he saw in Xia Wu a way to make money through the Internet, he naturally wanted to learn from him and find a way out for the villagers.
This old secretary has been working diligently in the village and serving the villagers. Whether in terms of character or responsible attitude towards work, he can be regarded as a good village official.
Xia Wu also admired him very much. She was not the first one to shoot videos and sell things online. In that case, there was nothing wrong in teaching Yang Guofeng a lesson.
"Uncle, this is simple, it's easy. Shooting a video is easy, but it doesn't mean people will buy it. From shooting a video to selling products, you need an opportunity. What are you planning to sell online?"
Yang Guofeng was not surprised to hear Xia Wu say this. If selling things online was really that easy, wouldn't everyone be a businessman?
"I understand. We can only take it slow. Look, there are so many good things in our mountains. When there were more people in the village, we would go up the mountain to pick mushrooms and dig bamboo shoots, catch fish and river shrimp, and sell what we couldn't finish in town. Now there are fewer people, and mushrooms and bamboo shoots are flooding the market. Isn't that a waste?"
Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen were listening, and they also felt that Yang Guofeng was a rare and good secretary. They nodded and said, "If it's a genuine mountain product, there will definitely be people who buy it if you put it online. However, many people are cheating and using fake products to deceive people these days. If you don't have some brand recognition to open up the market, why would people believe that your products are genuine mountain products?"
Li Jianbin's words hit the nail on the head, and this was Yang Guofeng's second purpose in coming to see Xia Wu.
"Xiao Wu, can you help me get started? I'll sell the things in our village under your name first, and you can give me some commission. When I really make a success of making videos, I'll transfer the money to my name," Yang Guofeng kept rubbing his hands. He felt embarrassed to make such a request, but for the sake of the village, he didn't care about his face.
Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen looked at Xia Wu and said nothing. This was Xia Wu's village affair and they couldn't interrupt.
Xia Wu thought about it and decided to directly point out the difficult points to be implemented.
"Uncle, this isn't going to be easy. You see, I'm not particularly good at making videos right now, and I don't have many fans. My purchasing power isn't very strong. If I help sell things for the village, everyone will be happy. But what if I can't?"
Yang Guofeng said firmly, "I've thought about it. You must prioritize selling your goods and making your money. If you don't help, the villagers won't be able to sell their goods. If you help, there's a better chance of making money. Even a little hope will be enough."
Xia Wu nodded and asked again, "Okay, let's settle this question. Take selling winter bamboo shoots as an example. The online purchase volume might be fixed, and our villagers can easily dig up enough to meet the demand. So who will be given priority when the time comes? How will the profits be distributed?"
Xia Wu understood the principle that inequality is more of a problem than a lack of income. For example, she initially only let Qiu Lan earn this amount of money, but later, when the number of customers increased, she brought in Yang Siye, Shi Hongniang and others to help.
If only Qiu Lan is asked to earn this money, others will sooner or later have opinions.
There are more people in the village, and if the order volume is not enough to share, there will definitely be complaints. Not making money is one thing, but if they start arguing, they will be in trouble.
Yang Guofeng had obviously thought it over carefully. He replied without hesitation, "It's hard to divide the big pot. Leave it to me. I'll distribute it based on merit. Set a standard. Only those whose products meet the standard can sell their products to you. Those who don't meet the standard will be rejected."
"I want everyone to make money, but making money requires hard work. Just like Li Honghong's attitude, even if she gave you a thousand, you wouldn't care about selling her things, right?"
Yang Guofeng touched the heart of Xia Wu.
There are many opportunities to make money in the village. Even if Xia Wu sees a way to make money, it is impossible for him to take on everything by himself, because there are only a few people in the Yang family. Without superhuman skills, it would take several days or half a month to work on two acres of strawberry fields, not to mention that Xia Wu has such a big mountain.
We need to plant trees on the hilltop, and we need manpower to plant trees. Where can we get manpower? We have to find people from the village to help.
She wants to build a house on the mountain, but whether the higher-ups will approve it is another matter. Yang Guofeng is willing to help her with that. In such a remote place, many things can be turned a blind eye.
Therefore, it is impossible for Xia Wu to isolate herself from the world and just make her own money. She must have a healthy relationship with some people in the village in order to continue to develop the mountain.
Xia Wu was very satisfied with Yang Guofeng's performance.
He is a good official who is dedicated to the villagers. He has ideas and takes action. He can control the troublemakers in the village and also move up the ladder.
So Yang Guofeng's answer passed Xia Wu's test, and she simply agreed: "Uncle Guofeng, I believe in your character. Besides, I have received many favors from you since I returned to the village. Since I have taken over the mountain, I must want the village to become better and better. Why don't we cooperate for a while and see how it goes."
Is this a promise?
"That's great! Uncle will treat us at noon! Let's have a good chat!"
Yang Guofeng was overjoyed, and his joy infected Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen.
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