Chapter 1333
The cadre who came to inspect was a fishing enthusiast
Chapter 1333 The cadre who came to inspect was a fishing enthusiast
When Li Yuhe, who was sent by the Department of Agriculture to conduct the report acceptance, arrived in the county, Li Long was in the drip irrigation tape factory, watching the workers plastering the walls.
These workers were quite familiar with Li Long. He Junxian, holding a trowel, was chopping bricks while smiling and said, "Mr. Li, to be honest, we're really a little reluctant to finish this job."
"The food we eat here is much better than what we ate at the road construction site."
Other workers chimed in, saying, "Yes, yes, although we eat meat every day on the road construction site, after a while, it feels like our head chef is just making pig swill."
It's different here; the food cooked by those old men is truly something special.
These workers are building a factory here. Li Long felt they were busy rushing to meet the deadline, so he discussed it with Uncle Luo and suggested they eat at Lao Ma's restaurant.
Of course, the old men couldn't possibly cook that much at once, so one of the workers had to help with the cooking.
Uncle Luo and his family eat so well! They have meat at every meal, and Old Ma's place has a vegetable garden where they can now grow leeks and celery.
Every day, Yang Laoliu would go out to herd sheep and bring back some wild vegetables such as elm seeds, alfalfa, and wild thorn flowers. It wasn't a very lavish meal, but at least he never ate the same thing twice.
It may not look as oily as stewed pork slices with vermicelli or cabbage, but it's a home-cooked meal that's nourishing.
He Junxian joked that he had gained weight from working these past few days, and that since the precast concrete roof of the factory was completed, they hadn't been in the sun much, and had even gotten a bit fairer.
“After we return to our unit, Lao Meng and the others will definitely envy us.”
Li Long laughed along with their teasing and jokes. He was there as a part-time supervisor, mainly to ensure both quality and quantity while also wanting to finish as quickly as possible.
Once this is finished, we need to quickly get Director Du to send over a set of drip irrigation production equipment so that the boasts I made in the report can be realized.
Unexpectedly, before his factory was even fully completed, the people from the autonomous region who came to inspect the report had already arrived.
Li Yuhe first reported to the Agricultural Bureau, and then was accompanied by officials from the Agricultural Bureau to Li Long's purchasing station.
Since Li Long was not home, the old man Li Qingxia called Li Jian's family.
Liang Yuemei answered the phone. Li Jianguo wasn't there; he had driven his tractor to cultivate the fields.
Liang Yuemei then asked Li Junhai to drive to Lao Ma's place to find Li Long. Several cars at home were idle, and Li Junhai and the others all knew how to drive.
Li Long was also surprised when he received the news. He immediately drove back to the county and met Li Yuhe at the purchasing station.
Besides his luggage, Li Yuhe also carried a long cloth bag, which Li Long thought looked a bit like a gun pouch. This was because his family had sewn similar pouches for his original Type 56 rifle.
Did this person really bring a gun to hunt in his spare time while working here?
He Xiaohua, an official from the Agriculture Bureau, introduced Li Long: "Comrade Li Long, this is Comrade Li Yuhe, a leader sent by the Agriculture Department of the Autonomous Region."
Li Yuhe was a bit of a social butterfly, and with a smile, he took the initiative to extend his hand to Li Long: "Hello, Comrade Li Long! I read your report in detail, and to be honest, it's really well written."
Of all those of us who came to the autonomous region to apply for support, yours is the one I feel shows the most sincerity and the most desire to make this project a success.
To be honest, my trip here was a bit of a whirlwind tour, or rather, a fleeting visit. Well, neither is quite right. Just consider it as me making a brief appearance.
I'm just here to read through what you wrote in your report, and then I'll write my own report, and that'll be it.
Li Long was pleased to hear this. After shaking hands with Li Yuhe, he said with a smile, "Welcome, leaders, to come and inspect. We will definitely cooperate fully. Everything written in the report is true. We are as good as gold, and we will definitely withstand the inspection."
The officials from the Agriculture Bureau went back after introducing the man. Li Long originally wanted to arrange for Li Yuhe to stay at the county guesthouse, but Li Yuhe said no.
“Even if I’m just here to go through the motions, I still need to actually walk around the site. Take me to your village, I’m free this afternoon, so I can take a look at your land. Tonight, just find me a place in the village, I can’t see everything in one day, I need to stay in the village for two days.”
Since that's what they said, Li Long didn't refuse. He drove him to the village and then went to the cooperative's land.
Looking at the cotton seedlings that had already sprouted in the field and the machinery that was cultivating the land, Li Yuhe nodded and said, "Not bad. This is a large piece of land, it must be more than 1000 mu."
The land area is not a problem. According to your report, such a large plot of land needs three pump houses and filter beds. Have you considered how to set them up?
As Li Long led Li Yuhe forward, he said, "These are the three locations at the south end of the plot: one at the far east end, one in the middle, and one at the west end. Each pumping station manages 500 mu of land, and all three pumping stations can operate simultaneously during irrigation."
Li Yuhe was also an expert. As he walked along, he asked, "The experimental field you set up, with two plots totaling 20 mu, doesn't require rotation for watering from the pump station."
This is different now. One pumping station needs to manage 500 acres of land. Have you thought about how to handle irrigation?
Li Long knew this was a test, and he said with a smile, "Of course I've considered it. The water pressure in the pump house, using current common methods, can only irrigate a maximum of seventy or eighty acres at a time."
Therefore, if land needs to be modified, a valve needs to be installed every 70 to 80 mu (approximately 4.7 to 5.3 hectares) along the main pipeline. After 70 mu (approximately 4.7 hectares) are irrigated, the next 70 mu (approximately 4.7 hectares) can be irrigated. This ensures water pressure, guaranteeing that every plot of land has water until the drip irrigation system reaches its final stage.
Li Yuhe nodded: "That's right, it seems you have indeed considered this issue. Considering the current length of this strip of land, seventy or eighty mu is indeed a suitable figure."
Li Long smiled but didn't reply.
As Li Yuhe followed him, he continued to ask, "Your report has two options: one is to drill wells on-site, and the other is to renovate the irrigation canals. It's impossible to do both. Which one do you prefer?"
Li Long said, "We'll renovate the irrigation canals."
"Why?" Li Yuhe asked.
Li Long pointed in the direction of Xiaohaizi and said, "There's a reservoir over there that I've contracted. If it's just about modifying the irrigation canals, the water from there won't cost us any water fees for irrigating the land, which will save a lot on farming costs." Li Yuhe gave a thumbs up and exclaimed, "Great idea! Drip irrigation is quite water-intensive. If we can save on water fees, it'll be at least several tens of yuan per mu."
Li Long agreed, saying, "Yes. Given the current situation, even with the support from the autonomous region and a significant reduction in expenses, it's difficult to make a profit at the current cotton price after accounting for the remaining costs."
Li Yuhe nodded without saying anything.
Upon reaching the southern end of the field, Li Long began to explain his plans: "We will build the first pumping station here, and the irrigation canal will be dug directly from the main canal at the southern end. It would be best to pave the canal with precast cement slabs, which would save a lot of trouble, and we wouldn't have to clean the canal every spring."
Li Yuhe looked south and asked, "If we calculate it this way, how long of the canal would need to be modified in total?"
Li Long thought for a moment and said, "Three kilometers, at least three kilometers. Two kilometers of that is the main canal, and a little over one kilometer is a branch canal."
Li Yuhe lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then looked up and said, "In that case, the autonomous region's funding might not be enough."
Li Long smiled and said, "If it's not enough, I'll make up for it. Since we've already started preparing for this project, we can't leave it half-hearted."
We've been running this cooperative for two years now. We haven't earned a lot, but we've built up a foundation. Repairing this canal, while not a permanent solution, will save us a lot of trouble later, making the expense worthwhile.
Li Yuhe was somewhat surprised, but then praised Li Long's boldness. This was the kind of person who truly dedicated himself to his work, not relying entirely on superiors, nor trying to embezzle state funds.
With this kind of background, it's no wonder they're so rich.
He hadn't originally intended to delve too deeply, but now that he found Li Long increasingly agreeable, he couldn't help but ask, "Comrade Li, you and I both know that even with the autonomous region's funding to upgrade the pump house, canals, filter beds, and main pipelines, based on a yield of 350 kilograms per mu, the cost of just the drip irrigation tape and fertilizer alone wouldn't be enough to make you much money. What are your thoughts on this?"
Li Long didn't expect Li Yuhe to be so forward after only a short acquaintance. Since he asked, Li Long didn't mind sharing his thoughts: "Boss, let me put it this way. I mentioned something in the report, which is that I want to set up a drip irrigation tape factory."
In the initial stages of our drip irrigation cotton planting, I plan to sell the produced drip irrigation tape to the cooperative at cost price. I don't know if you're familiar with the production process of drip irrigation tape, but some waste plastic can be mixed into the raw materials.
This stuff can be obtained very cheaply from scrap yards, so the drip irrigation tape that sells for a little over a dollar per meter on the market actually costs around 5 cents at normal cost. If I mix in some waste materials, the cost price can be reduced to 3 cents.
A drip irrigation tape of about 1 kilometer is needed per mu (unit of land area), costing about 300 yuan. Water is not charged. The cost of picking cotton is about 70 or 80 yuan. Adding up the costs of fertilizer, seeds, machine tillage, and labor, the total cost is about 100 yuan. The total cost is around 500 yuan.
At current cotton prices, a yield of 250 kilograms per mu (approximately 0.16 acres) is enough to break even. Our experimental field in the township yielded 350 kilograms per mu, which translates to 700 yuan per mu, a profit of 200 yuan per mu. That's how we make money.”
Li Yuhe suddenly realized: "Setting up a drip irrigation tape factory and being able to reduce the cost of drip irrigation tape to such a low level? Hey, I really underestimated you. Now that you say that, I feel relieved. To be honest, all of us who came down to inspect are considering this issue, because if we don't make money or even lose money, there's no point in doing this project. Now that I've heard your analysis, there's money to be made, and a lot of money at that, so this project really has great potential."
Li Long smiled and said, "The production of drip irrigation tape is a cyclical project. The drip irrigation tape used this year is taken out, cleaned, and handed over to the factory at the end of the year. It can be crushed and used as raw material for new drip irrigation tape. Although some new plastic pellets need to be added, the amount added will not exceed half, so the cost can be kept down."
"If cotton prices rise, we'll make even more money."
In Li Long's memory, the price of cotton would gradually increase over the next few years, from the current two yuan to four yuan in 1997. 1998 was a crucial year because the price of cotton suddenly jumped to more than six yuan that year, and many cotton farmers made a fortune.
After learning how Li Long made money, Li Yuhe became more talkative and started discussing topics other than cotton farming.
"Comrade Li, are there any fish farms or bodies of water with a lot of fish around here?" Li Yuhe asked a question that surprised Li Long.
Li Long pointed in the direction of Xiaohaizi and said, "I just told you, I contracted a reservoir. There are a lot of fish in that reservoir, including big carp, grass carp, silver carp, and black carp. By the way, in the first two years, I also released some crab and shrimp larvae into it. Now, at this time of year, you can catch crabs at night."
Li Yuhe suddenly grabbed Li Long's arm and asked excitedly, "Really? Are there many fish? Are they easy to catch?"
Li Long was taken aback for a moment before realizing that this person was a fellow angler. He smiled and said, "I've never fished before, so I don't know if it's easy or not. But I've used nets before, and it's very easy to catch fish there. Casting nets also work."
Li Yuhe hurriedly waved his hand: "Using nets and casting nets are too basic. Fishing is much more interesting. By the way, I brought fishing gear. Can we go take a look when we have some time?"
Li Long looked at the sun and said, "Okay, we can go take a look now."
Li Long didn't comment on the anglers' view that net fishing was a low-level approach. It's a matter of opinion; everyone has their own logic. He simply didn't have the patience for fishing; nets were much more convenient.
However, he didn't comment on fishermen; it's a personal hobby. Now he knows what was in that gun-like bag Li Yuhe was carrying. He'd even wondered if Li Yuhe, like Director Qian, had a hunting hobby.
Li Yuhe didn't look at the rest of the land, pulled Li Long back to the car, and headed straight for Xiaohaizi.
Upon arriving at Xiaohaizi, Li Yuhe immediately fell in love with the water. After getting out of the car, he opened his fishing bag and, while assembling it, introduced his equipment to Li Long.
Li Long was completely clueless. In the village, when people fished, they would just tie a fishing line to a tree branch and bring a fishhook. This guy, on the other hand, had completely modern equipment.
Li Long took a shovel from the car, cleared the grass on both sides of the fishing spot that Li Yuhe had chosen, and then put a straw hat on Li Yuhe's head.
Li Yuhe started fishing, and Li Long didn't disturb him. He drove back to the team and got a net cage from home.
Judging from this, Li Yuhe planned to stay in the village, and Li Long arranged a guest room for him in the cooperative's office compound.
Then he drove to Xiaohaizi, thinking that if Li Yuhe was in the air force, he could cast a few nets so that he wouldn't go hungry that night.
Unexpectedly, Li Yuhe was quite capable. When Li Long arrived again, he was already excitedly waving to Li Long, showing him his haul.
Looking at the fish thrashing its tail in the fish basket, Li Long exclaimed, "Boss, your technique is excellent! This five-striped blackfish must weigh at least two kilograms. These fish are not easy to catch."
Li Yuhe laughed triumphantly.
The float bobbed on the water, and another fish took the bait!
(End of this chapter)