Chapter 165: The Sentimental and Righteous Boss Zhang!

Chapter 165: The Sentimental and Righteous Boss Zhang!

Lin Tuo overheard their conversation and hurriedly took out his phone to log into the official website of the Department of Agriculture.

There was a dedicated section for agricultural projects. With just a click, he found the billion-dollar cooperative planting project.

Since the Department of Agriculture had allocated a large space for this project and increased the font size, it was easy to spot.

He clicked on it immediately and read the details of the cooperative project.

Liyuan Farm was promoting a new type of whitening sweet potato. They were now opening a cooperative planting project for this sweet potato, with a total planting capacity valued at 1 billion yuan. Those interested could fill out the required forms and submit them to the Department of Agriculture's email.

Just as Lin Tuo was reading the requirements, his phone rang.

It was an unknown number.

He instinctively answered.

A voice that surprised him came from the other end: "Mr. Lin? I am Wei Yuan, the director of the Department of Agriculture in Youcheng. If you have time, you can come to the Department of Agriculture to fill out the necessary documents for the whitening sweet potato planting project."

"Sure, sure!" Lin Tuo replied excitedly.

He hadn't expected the director of the Department of Agriculture to personally call him. Of course, he understood that this must have been due to Zhang Lin's influence, who had put in a good word for him.

After hanging up, he couldn't help but feel excited.

It felt great to have connections.

Others would probably have to compete fiercely for this opportunity, but he had secured it before the competition even began.

He was glad he had approached Zhang Lin when he was selling fruits with a tricycle at the market entrance.

In the empty fruit store in Nanan District, Zhang Dong had already cleaned everything up.

Since Zhang Lin was no longer supplying fruits, there was no need to keep the store open.

At that moment, he was also checking the Department of Agriculture's official website for information about the whitening sweet potato planting project.

Zhang Ergen walked in from outside: "Xiao Dong, have you finished handling the fruit store?"

"Yes, it's all done. I just need to return the keys to the landlord and get the deposit back," Zhang Dong nodded.

Zhang Ergen took out a card and handed it to his son: "This is the money from selling the house. Since we only paid the down payment, the mortgage wasn't fully paid off. We had to borrow money to pay it off before selling the house. There's only 300,000 yuan left!"

"Thank you, Dad!" Zhang Dong nodded.

"Brother Dong!" Liu Li walked in and handed him a bank card: "This is 200,000 yuan I borrowed from Grandpa!"

"Xiao Li, what are you doing?" Zhang Dong asked, feeling a_bit_moved_by her gesture.

After all, if any man needed funds for his business and his girlfriend helped by borrowing 200,000 yuan, wouldn't he be touched?

"Support you, take it!" Liu Li placed the card in Zhang Dong's hand.

She had initially only_planned_to_borrow_50,000_yuans, but when she mentioned it was for her boyfriend, her grandpa initially hesitated. However, upon learning that her boyfriend had connections with Liyuan Farm and was involved in the whitening sweet_potato_project, he readily gave her 200,000 yuan.

Liyuan Farm was truly influential in Youcheng. Just having a connection with them made her grandpa look_upon_zhangDong_with_higher_regard.

Her grandpa had such high regard for ZhangDongs, yet her sister still complained about him_b eing_hishim_in_front_of_her, saying_he_had_been_to_jail_and implying she should break up with him. Such pettiness!

With 200,000 yuan from_his_father, he_now_had_a_total_of_700,000 yuan, which should be_enough.

At that_moment, his_phone_rang_with_an_unkown_number.

"Hello, this is Zhang_dongs, who_is_this?" ZhangDong_pressed_the_answer_button_and_asked.

The voice on the other end_s_aaid: "Mr. Zhang, hello, this_isWei Yuan, the_direct_or_of_the_Department_of_Agriculture_in_Youcheng. IF_you_have_time, you can come to the Department of Agriculture to fill out the necessary documents for the whitening sweet potato planting project."

"Sure, sure, thank you, Director Wei!" ZhangDongs_face_beamed_with_excitement.

After hanging_up, ZhangErGen_immediately_asked: "ZhangDong, what's_going_on?"

Zhang Dong quickly explained: "The Department_ofAgriculture_has_invited_me_to_come_and_fill_out the documents for the whitening sweet potato planting project. Zhang Lin has put in a good word for me, so I'll head over to the Department of Agriculture."

With that, he hurriedly left the store.

The Department of Agriculture was nearby, and he could reach it on his scooter in a short while.

Upon arriving, he_noticed_a_large_sign_atTheEntrance_of_the_Department_ofAgriculture_announcing_the Liyuan farm whitening project cooperation.

He directly approached a staff member and explained his purpose. He was then led_to_an_office, where_a_beautifulWoman_was_sitting.

"Hello, I'm Zhang Dong, here to sign the documents for the whitening sweet potato planting project," Zhang Dong_stated_directLY.

"Hello, Mr. Zhang," Lin Mengyao_immediately smiled_and_handEd_him_a_document."Please_review_this_document_first. It contains information about the cooperation and the relevant procedures. If you have any questions, you can ask me."

She was also very polite to Zhang Dong, after all, this was someone Zhang Lin had specifically mentioned.

Before long, Zhang Dong emerged from the Agricultural Bureau with a document, his face brimming with excitement. He hurried back to the fruit shop.

Liu Li and Zhang Ergen were still at the shop, waiting for his return.

As soon as Zhang Dong returned, he handed Liu Li's card back to her: "We don't need as much capital this time. Take this back to your grandfather."

"What happened?" Zhang Ergen immediately asked.

Zhang Dong explained, "This collaboration has limits. Each participant won't get much land. Because of Zhang Lin's connection, I managed to secure 50 acres. Other farmers will get even less, maybe just 10 acres if they're lucky."

"That little?" Liu Li was clearly disappointed. She had hoped for hundreds or even thousands of acres, which would have guaranteed a fortune.

Zhang Dong quickly reassured her, "It's not that little. With 50 acres, each acre can produce over 1,000 pounds of sweet potatoes, and each pound can sell for 200 yuan. That's a total value of 10 million yuan. Farmers get 40% of the profit, which is 4 million yuan. After deducting costs, just think about how much profit that is."

"Really that much?" Liu Li was now wide-eyed with surprise.

"Yes, once the sweet potatoes are harvested, we'll get married," Zhang Dong said with a smile.

Liu Li blushed and nodded.

Zhang Ergen was also overjoyed. Once they harvested the sweet potatoes, they would be rich.

As news of the billion-yuan collaboration project spread through You City, the entire city seemed to come alive. The Agricultural Bureau was especially busy, with more and more people coming in to inquire about how to secure a spot.

Smart people quickly figured out how much money this project could make. Essentially, anyone who secured a spot was guaranteed a profit.

The Lishan Farm was also busy, but they were preparing for the visit from the People's Daily.

Lin Muxue handed Zhang Lin a detailed plan, covering everything from the reception, accommodations, to dining arrangements.

It was no wonder they were so thorough. Even though Lishan Farm had been popular online, it was still just a trendy spot, lacking any official recognition. While it had the support of You City, it was only local recognition.

Now, with the People's Daily's visit, they would finally get some national attention.

"Senior Sister, let's follow your plan!" Zhang Lin said after reviewing the document, which was already very detailed.

"Alright." Lin Muxue nodded and left the office with the plan after Zhang Lin signed it.

Just then, Zhang Lin received a call from Lin Mengxi at the Agricultural Bureau.

He answered, and her voice came through, "Mr. Zhang, I have a situation to report. A few people came to the bureau asking about the planting collaboration project, claiming they know you and are from your hometown. I checked, and they are indeed from your village."

"Send me their names." Zhang Lin frowned.

A moment later, he received the message from Lin Mengxi, listing some names. He recognized them, but he wasn't familiar with them.

As the owner of Lishan Farm, it was no surprise that people in his village knew about his success. It seemed these people had decided to use his name to their advantage.

At first, he thought they might be relatives who had helped his family, but it turned out they were just acquaintances with no real connection.

To be honest, he didn't feel much of a village connection. He grew up in the county town and only visited the village during holidays. To him, the villagers were almost strangers.

The only people he knew well were the relatives who had helped his family.

Thinking about it, he instructed over the phone, "Miss Lin, I don't know these people. If they want a spot, they should follow the proper procedures. No special treatment."

"I understand." Lin Mengxi got the message.

It was clear that these people were just trying to benefit from Zhang Lin's success, but he was not pleased with such behavior.

After hanging up, Zhang Lin thought about whether the relatives who had helped his family might want to plant the sweet potatoes.

After all, anyone with a brain would know that planting these sweet potatoes would be profitable. They might want to plant them but were too shy to ask.

With this in mind, he found Lin Yan, "Mom, I need your help with something!"

"Xiao Lin, what is it?" Lin Yan asked, eager to help. She had always wanted to do something for her son.

Zhang Lin explained, "Mom, can you ask the relatives who have helped our family if they want to plant the sweet potatoes? Especially Uncle Shuisheng, his family is under a lot of pressure."

Uncle Shuisheng, whose real name was Zhang Shuisheng, came from a poor family. He earned only 7,000 yuan a month, but his wife kept having children.

Twins twice, and now another single birth, adding another mouth to feed.

In simple terms, a man earning 7,000 yuan a month has five sons. After his wife gives birth, she can't work for a long time, meaning 7,000 yuan has to support five children, and he can only rely on his father-in-law's financial help.

It’s as if he’s heartless, acting like having children means he can ignore them.

"Okay, I'll ask!" Lin Yan nodded, understanding her son's meaning.

In a small 90-square-meter house, Zhang Shuisheng looked at his noisy children with a sense of helplessness.

Everyone hopes for many children and grandchildren, but he was genuinely afraid.

His son's ability to score goals was too strong, and to prevent more "goals," he even bought condoms for his son and made sure he used them.

Five boys, five dowries, five houses.

How could he afford it with just 7,000 yuan a month?

Even with the subsidy, how long could it last? He had no idea.

His wife, seeing their grandson crying again, said helplessly, "Why don't we ask Xiaolin for help? Everyone says that if we can get a spot to grow the whitening sweet potatoes, we'll definitely make a lot of money."

Zhang Shuisheng thought about it but frowned, "Wouldn't that be a bit like asking for a favor in return for past kindness? When we borrowed money from his father, he already paid it back. I can't bring myself to do it."

Wife Liu Fen sighed, "What about these five boys? What can we do? Just look at your son."

Zhang Shuisheng sighed as well. Just then, Liu Fen's phone rang, and seeing it was Lin Yan, she answered immediately, "Lin Yan, why are you calling me today?"

"Xiaofen, I have some good news for you," Lin Yan said quickly. "Xiaolin asked me to check if you want to grow the whitening sweet potatoes. He can put in a good word for you to get a spot."

"Of course, we definitely want to," Liu Fen's face lit up with joy. She had just been talking about this.

"Great, I'll let Xiaolin know. I need to call others too," Lin Yan said and hung up.

Zhang Shuisheng saw his wife's joyful expression and asked, "What's going on? Why are you so happy?"

Liu Fen huffed, "You were too embarrassed to ask Xiaolin, but now Xiaolin's mother came to us. Xiaolin is a good kid with a sense of righteousness!"

"Really?" Zhang Shuisheng's face brightened. He was just embarrassed, not unwilling to grow the sweet potatoes.

His wife was right; Xiaolin was a much better person than their son, who had no sense of responsibility.

Both were 26, but look at what Xiaolin was doing compared to their son, who only cared about having children.

Time passed quickly.

Evening soon arrived.

Zhang Lin received a message from his mother. His uncles and aunts all wanted to grow the whitening sweet potatoes, but they were too decent to ask for special treatment.

He smiled, organized the information about his relatives, and sent it to Wei Yuan, along with a phone call.

At the Agriculture Bureau, Wei Yuan was looking at a map on his computer, a map of You County's rural areas.

After the cooperation agreement with Linyuan Farm was finalized, the county held a meeting to attract migrant workers back to You County, aiming to revitalize the rural economy.

Mr. Zhang planned to cultivate 50,000 acres of land, and each farmer would be given a plot of 5 to 10 acres, potentially creating 7,000 to 8,000 farming households.

Even with just 5 acres, a farmer could earn over 250,000 yuan.

He knew what this meant for You County, where the average wage was only around 4,000 yuan.

These farmers would kneel and thank Mr. Zhang without hesitation, even offering three kowtows.

However, there was a problem: how to allocate the farming spots. Each village needed a specific number of spots, and deciding who should get them was a challenge.

Just then, he received a message from Mr. Zhang. Before he could read it, Mr. Zhang's phone call came through.

He answered immediately, "Mr. Zhang, I was just about to look at your message."

Zhang Lin smiled, "Director Wei, these are some of my uncles and aunts. They have helped me, and I can't forget their kindness. Could you please give them the same treatment as Zhang Dong and the others?"

"Sure, I'll take care of it," Wei Yuan responded with a smile, and after hanging up, he immediately read the message. It contained only a dozen names, requiring the allocation of about 500 acres. He decided to give all the spots in their village to these people.

Mr. Zhang was a man of gratitude and righteousness.

In this cooperation, Mr. Zhang had clearly shown his goodwill towards You County, giving up a significant portion of the profits. Otherwise, someone else might have squeezed every last bit of profit.

But because of this, he and County Governor Liu trusted Mr. Zhang and supported him wholeheartedly.

Because Mr. Zhang was worth it!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end