The modernized pig farm that Feng Yu mentioned was something he read in the papers in his previous life. He knew that it was not too complicated, but the initial investment was a bit high. However, if the scale is significant, the cost will be lower than using the traditional method.
Also, building this pig farm had other benefits. He would be able to get the attention of the leaders and at least get to appear on the Provincial TV station. This was much better than advertising on the papers.
As for the distribution channels, Feng Yu was not worried. The coming few years or even the next few decades, the demand for pork will keep rising, and there will not be the situation where no one wants to buy his pork. If no one from the district wants to buy his pork, he can sell it to the cities. If no one in the cities wants his pork, he can sell it to Lin Province. Anyway, the distance was not that great.
If Feng Yu were to contract the pig farm, then it would be different. Once the modernized pig farm was set up and the profits start to come in, there will be people who would be jealous of his success. What if the current officer was transferred out and the next officer wants to take back the farm? Picking only the ripe fruits was the skill of some Government Officials. Contract? You think Government officials will talk to you about the contract?
“How much are you going to invest? The officer looked at Feng Yu. He knew that this kid, who was still attending high school, was the one who makes all the decisions in the family.
“At least a few million RMB in the initial phase. Just the construction of the pigsty will cost a lot. However, the farm should be able to produce at least 2,000 pigs in a year. In future, it will be producing more than 2,000!”
Feng Yu might not be investing so much after all. But the more he said, the more the Farm Department would be willing to sell. Feng Yu wanted to tell the officer that the farm would produce 10,000 pigs a year but that would be too impractical!
“2,000 pigs? This pig farm can be sold to you, but I need to discuss with others to determine the price. But don’t worry, we will sell the farm to you! The officer was beaming with joy. This was another political achievement!
The pig farm was struggling to make ends meet. The most pigs it can produce in a year was only about 500. Now, this number was multiplied a few times!
Feng Yu said: “Oh yes. Initially, we did not want to buy the pig farm. We had set up the sales channels for our animal feeds, but Deputy Farm Officer Wen kept persuading us. That’s why we had come to this decision.”
Feng Yu knew that this was a great political achievement and he cannot let this officer get all the credits. He must at least let Uncle Wen get part of it. Wen Dongjun wanted to be a civil servant in future, and it would help if his father were a high-rank officer. Furthermore, even if Wen Dongjun’s father got promoted to be only a deputy mayor, he would be able to help Feng Yu a lot.
The officer understood Feng Yu’s underlying meaning and smiled to Feng Yu: “Deputy Officer Wen must be part of this project. He is also one of the leaders in the Farm Department.”
The Farm Department discussed for about 2 hours. Their primary concern was that who would be in-charge of this and how much to sell the pig farm and the land for.
The pig farm was losing money every year, and since there was someone who was willing to buy it, then they should sell it fast! There were only a few workers at the farm. They can be transferred to other departments. Previously, the chicken farm was losing money every year and eventually it was closed.
In the end, just like the food processing factory, this pig farm would be under the charge of Wen Deguang. There were others who wanted to take on this role, but the Officer only said one thing: “They are only buying this pig farm because of Wen Deguang.”
Wen Deguang knew immediately that it was the Feng family that helped him. Even if others were jealous, there was nothing they can do, as Wen Deguang and Feng Xingtai were good friends.
As for the issue of how much to sell the pig farm and the land, there were arguments. There were some who said to sell it based on the market rate of about 300,000 RMB, there were some who wants to refer to the price of the food processing factory, 500,000 RMB and there was even someone who said the since the Feng family was so rich, then they should ask for more. At least 1 million!
300,000 RMB was suggested by Wen Deguang. The others all wanted more than that. There were even some who questioned Wen Deguang if he was giving the Feng family special treatment because his wife had shares in Feng Xingtai’s factory!
Wen Deguang just kept quiet after that. After all, he was the most junior and the youngest there. His wife did own some shares of the factory. But what’s wrong with that? That time, he was still a small village head.
Finally, the Deputy Farm officer that suggested the highest price was assigned to negotiate with Feng Xingtai, together with the Farm Officer. If they could get more money, they would be able to use it for other things. These were also considered political achievements.
……
“Have you finished talking?” Feng Yu said and looked at Deputy Officer Xu as if he was an idiot. This guy thinks that his whole family were stupid and would pay whatever they asked for?
It’s only the pig farm and the land. The location was also out of the way, and there was no one staying nearby. Yet they still wanted such a high price? With this price, they can buy a piece of land in the suburbs of Bing City!
“I will only offer 500,000 RMB for this piece of land, including the pig farm. Also, I have a condition. You must fix the road leading to the farm. It doesn’t need to be cement road, but at least a dirt road. The road cannot be flooded during heavy rains, and the width should be at least enough for 2 trucks to travel side by side.”
“Impossible! Why should we help you to fix the road? You want to set up a pig farm, you should fix it yourself! Also, 500,000 RMB is too low. At least 1.3 million RMB. Just the pig farm alone was worth 500,000RMB!” Deputy Officer Xu shouted and continued asking for more.
“Really? Since the pig farm is so expensive, then we can’t afford it. Treating a loss-making pig farm as a treasure, you can keep it for yourself. Let’s forget about this project. Just treat it as if I had not mentioned it. We shall make a move first. Bye.” Feng Yu and Feng Xingtai stood up. Feng Xingtai did not partake in the negotiations. He had complete trust in his son.
After they reached home, Feng Xingtai asked curiously: “You are not buying the farm?”
“I am buying.”
“Then why did you say all those? They didn’t chase after us. How will you carry on with the negotiations?” Feng Xingtai said.
“Dad, just wait patiently. They will contact us, and if I am not wrong, the one who will be coming to us is Uncle Wen.” Feng Yu said calmly.
At the same time, the leaders in the Farm Department were having a meeting. Deputy Officer Xu still insisted on that price and said that the Feng family will accept it eventually. But the rest did not believe him. The Feng family was wealthy, but they were not stupid. You mentioned 1 million during the meeting, and when negotiating, you told them 1.3 million. If it was you, will you accept it?
It was evident that Deputy Officer Xu was not suitable to carry on with the negotiations. The Chief Officer also should not lower himself and go over to Feng Xingtai’s house. Finally, this task was assigned to Wen Deguang. Everyone discussed for a while and decided on 800,000 RMB. They felt that Feng Yu would be able to accept this price. This was also because of the insistent Deputy Officer Xu.
“800,000 RMB? Uncle Wen, do they know what 800,000 RMB can do? Do they know that the pig farm is not even worth 100,000 RMB? You can go back and tell them that I will be present at your department’s morning meeting to do the calculations for them. We will put everything on the table and discuss.”
Wen Deguang sighed. He also knew that Feng Yu would not agree to it. But for Feng Yu to go to his department meeting tomorrow and explain personally, was already saving him from embarrassment.
“Son, how much are we buying the pig farm for?” Zhang Muhua asked her son out of curiosity.
“Mum, not much. The most 500,000 RMB. You don’t stare at me like dad. I will show you the potential of the pig farm, and within 2 to 3 years, I can recoup my investments. After that, we will be enjoying the profits every year!”
In Feng Yu’s heart, even if the investment failed, after the Provincial Government build the highway a few years later, the value of the piece of land would increase over ten folds!
Author notes:
PS: Many readers reflected to me that they do not like the Song Laosi part. The later part of the story will have nothing to do with them anymore, but Song Xiaofeng will appear again. Thanks for supporting my story.
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