Chapter 187: The Importance of Mr. Zhang! Good News!

Chapter 187: The Importance of Mr. Zhang! Good News!

Zhang Lin stepped out of his car, surprised to see County Magistrate Liu and a group of people approaching. The scene was quite a spectacle, making him feel like a high-ranking official.

He had arrived quite early, but he hadn't expected Liu and his group to be waiting so early.

It was clear that those who got things done were different from the high-minded office workers who just talked big.

Zhang Lin hurriedly got out of the car, "Magistrate Liu, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Liu immediately smiled, "Mr. Zhang, we just arrived ourselves. Since you're here, let's head out. We'll all be taking the bus today."

"Sure," Zhang Lin nodded.

Since it was a county-organized inspection, he naturally followed the arrangements.

Following Liu to the bus, he was greeted by familiar faces like Zhao Han and Wei Yuan.

Liu then introduced him to three more people from the county office. As for the others, they weren't important enough to introduce or remember.

After all, Mr. Zhang only needed to know these key people.

However, those who weren't introduced knew that Mr. Zhang didn't need to remember them, but they needed to remember him.

Once on the bus, Liu led Zhang Lin to the last row of seats, with Zhao Han and Wei Yuan sitting on either side, making it convenient for conversation during the journey.

As the bus started and left the county government building, Liu smiled, "Mr. Zhang, congratulations. The zoo opened successfully yesterday, and it was a huge success."

Liu's smile was genuine.

The zoo's opening meant that Liyuan Farm could now handle 20,000 visitors per day, which was the total capacity of all the other tourist attractions in Youcheng combined.

Moreover, with Luyuan Farm giving away free tickets to other attractions, the total number of visitors to other attractions had also increased.

All of this was thanks to Luyuan Farm.

Wei Yuan suddenly asked, "Mr. Zhang, I heard from Mengxi that your farm is creating a sea of rapeseed flowers?"

"That's right, Director Wei!" Zhang Lin didn't hide it. Although the 500 acres were currently fenced off, the rapid growth of the seeds from the game meant the flower sea would soon be open to the public.

Wei Yuan's face lit up with joy, "The previous rapeseed flower sea could handle 5,000 visitors. With this new one, Luyuan Farm's capacity will reach 25,000 visitors a day."

Zhao Han added with a smile, "Not only that, Mr. Zhang is also building a mountain spring health resort. I've seen the construction progress, and it's moving very fast. It should be ready soon and can handle 2,000 to 3,000 visitors, targeting high-end tourists."

"If that happens, Mr. Zhang, with a bit more effort, Luyuan Farm could soon handle 30,000 visitors a day."

The more he spoke, the wider his smile grew. After all, the more visitors Luyuan Farm attracted, the more benefits it brought to him and the Tourism Bureau.

This sparked a quiet buzz among the bus passengers, their voices filled with surprise.

Liyuan Farm handling 30,000 visitors a day meant 900,000 visitors a month and over 10 million visitors a year. That was an astounding number.

Even without considering Luyuan Farm's own revenue, if each of those 10 million visitors spent an average of 400 yuan on food, accommodation, and entertainment in Youcheng, that would amount to 4.08 billion yuan.

No single enterprise in Youcheng could achieve such economic stimulation, not even when combined.

This was the immense benefit of the tourism economy, which was why many cities wanted to develop it. However, not every city could succeed.

Youcheng had become a lucky city, thanks to Luyuan Farm.

So, the importance of Luyuan Farm to Youcheng was evident, as shown by Magistrate Liu's attitude towards Mr. Zhang.

The bus passed through a small town in Youcheng County, situated on either side of the national highway.

With the new expressway, the national highway saw fewer travelers, and the town had become somewhat quiet, with many residents working elsewhere.

However, with Luyuan Farm's popularity, many visitors within a four-hour drive from nearby cities chose to drive themselves, often taking the national highway. This led to the emergence of many rural restaurants and guesthouses in the town.

The parked cars showed that business was thriving.

Youcheng's accommodation capacity was limited, so many who couldn't find rooms in the city opted for these town guesthouses.

"Mr. Zhang, this town is called Meixing Town. Thanks to the influx of visitors to Luyuan Farm, many residents have returned, making the town lively again. Many are turning their old houses into guesthouses and earning a living at home," Zhao Han said with a smile.

This observation resonated with everyone on the bus.

The changes were evident to anyone who had lived in Youcheng for a while.

The planting of whitening sweet potatoes had a significant impact on the rural areas, reviving the local economy.

To put it bluntly, if Mr. Zhang didn't push forward, the county would have to push him.

The county was more concerned about Luyuan Farm's well-being than Mr. Zhang himself. They feared any issues with the farm or Mr. Zhang's health, as his absence would be disastrous.

Luyuan Farm couldn't function without him. No one else could manage the farm's projects, as evidenced by Kaolin Investment's failure.

The county secretary's attempt to support Kaolin Investment and maintain a balance ended in embarrassment.

Moreover, the most popular project at Luyuan Farm, the Bamboo Forest Maze—Bagua Array, had attracted television shows and sparked constant online discussions.

The complexity of the Bagua Array was well-known. Without a deep understanding of the Bagua diagram and the principles of the I Ching, no one could create it.

In short, only Mr. Zhang could achieve this.

It was a highly advanced and specialized skill.

Liu was well aware of this. After learning about the Bagua Array, he had even tried to study the Bagua diagram and the I Ching but found it too complex to understand.

"Mr. Zhang, how is Ma Jun doing?" Liu suddenly asked, recalling the conflict Mr. Zhang had with South China University over this person. He had used his provincial connections to intervene.

Although he trusted Mr. Zhang’s judgment, he still had little confidence in this Ma Jun.

Zhang Lin smiled and said, "Ma Jun is a great guy. He’s only been at Liyuan Farm for a short while, but he’s already come up with something truly remarkable. It won’t be long before everyone can see it."

The multicolored mutant hibiscus, once developed, would definitely cause a sensation.

"That’s something to look forward to," Liu Xian said immediately.

He didn’t press further, knowing that this was enough information.

Soon, the two buses arrived at their destination, Xiachuan Village. As soon as the bus entered the village, they saw a large banner welcoming the county officials and Luyuan Farm for their inspection of the whitening sweet potatoes.

After Zhang Lin got off the bus, he noticed that there were people from Youcheng TV in the other bus. The cameramen and reporters were already filming the banner.

He knew that this was the county’s propaganda department at work, eager to publicize their achievements. After all, when you’ve accomplished something, you want everyone to see it, including the higher-ups.

But would they film him?

Especially with the group of people waiting for him in front of the county government building, wouldn’t that make him the center of attention online?

Liu Xian clearly noticed Zhang Lin’s concern and said with a smile, "Mr. Zhang, don’t worry. I’ve already spoken to them. They know you prefer to keep a low profile, so Youcheng TV won’t film you."

This made Zhao Han and Wei Yuan chuckle.

They had never met a boss as low-key as Mr. Zhang before.

With such significant achievements, no other entrepreneur in Youcheng could match him. Yet, he didn’t seek any limelight. His mindset was more like someone who had seen through the superficialities of fame and fortune.

Perhaps only someone like that could achieve such success. Only by remaining humble and focused could one create such a breathtaking flower sea, a culturally rich bamboo maze, and delve deeply into the study of the Eight Trigrams and the I Ching to create the Bamboo Maze-Eight Trigram Array.

If another Youcheng entrepreneur were in his place, they would be more worried about not getting enough screen time, constantly circling around Liu Xian, posing and smiling for the camera. Once it aired, they would likely boast, "Let me tell you, during the county’s inspection, Liu Xian and I... you know what I mean!" as if they were afraid the whole county wouldn’t know.

The village leaders had been waiting for them. As soon as Liu Xian’s group arrived, they hurriedly came forward to greet them.

For them, this visit by the county officials was a huge event. Normally, they wouldn’t have the chance to meet someone like Liu Xian, even when they went to the county office, the highest they could hope to see was a department head.

Liu Xian also exchanged a few pleasantries with them, saying some polite words, and then asked them to lead the way to the whitening sweet potato fields.

After all, that was the main purpose of their visit.

"Mr. Zhang, let’s go!" Liu Xian invited Zhang Lin as the others led the way.

This caused the village leaders to look at Zhang Lin with curiosity. Who was this young man that even Liu Xian treated him so respectfully?

Clearly, neither Liu Xian nor Zhang Lin needed to explain much to them. The village leaders understood and quietly led the way, knowing that some things were not for them to question.

Later, they could speculate about this young man and share the mysterious tale: "Let me tell you, there was a young man who came to our village, and Liu Xian was very respectful to him. I don’t know who he is, but it must be someone important."

Soon, Zhang Lin and Liu Xian were led to a field where they could see a dense patch of whitening sweet potato seedlings. The vines had already grown a bit, and the leaves were lush and green.

Zhang Lin knew that the +1 growth rate attribute was working; otherwise, they wouldn’t have grown this much in such a short time since being transported from Luyuan Farm.

"Mr. Zhang, the growth is excellent," Liu Xian said, squatting down to inspect a few seedlings.

"Yes," Zhang Lin nodded. "This batch of sweet potatoes will be ready soon, which will help alleviate the farm’s supply shortage."

Hearing this, Liu Xian smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang, speaking of the supply issue, the county has something to discuss with you. Once the night market town is built, we plan to set up a Youcheng Specialty Pavilion to promote local products. We hope to introduce your sweet potatoes as well, to attract tourists and boost the sales of other local specialties."

There was no way around it; since the ownership and sales rights of the sweet potatoes belonged to Luyuan Farm, they had to negotiate with the farm.

"Of course, our farm supports this," Zhang Lin smiled, knowing that they had already supported the agricultural bureau’s promotion of Youcheng specialties at the Bamboo Maze, so there was no reason to refuse this time.

Soon, the farm workers were called over, and Liu Xian, following the routine, shook their hands and asked, "Brother, how is the sweet potato cultivation? Have you encountered any difficulties?"

The farmer immediately became excited and said, "These sweet potatoes are very easy to grow, and they grow quickly. I’m eager to harvest them and sell them to Luyuan Farm so I can earn money to fix up my old house... Thank you, the county, and thank you, Liu Xian, for thinking of us poor households."

Hearing the last part, Liu Xian looked at the village leaders with a speechless expression. He didn’t believe for a second that they hadn’t coached the farmer to say that. It felt like they were just there to make a joke.

In the end, he looked at Zhang Lin with a slightly awkward expression, wanting to explain that he wasn’t that shameless.

Zhang Lin found it amusing and could guess what had happened. The county officials wouldn’t have taught such low-level flattery; it was purely a case of sycophancy gone wrong.

At noon, the village provided a nice meal at the village office, serving excellent rustic dishes.

Liu Xian, Zhao Han, and Wei Yuan continued to chat with Zhang Lin about Luyuan Farm, probing for information about new projects and repeatedly mentioning the breakthrough of 30,000 tourists.

Zhang Lin felt a bit helpless. The mountain spring health resort was still under construction, and the rapeseed flower sea wasn’t ready yet. There weren’t that many good projects to work on, and it all depended on what the game system would provide.

He wasn’t in a hurry, really.

Suddenly, Wei Yuan received a call, stepped aside to answer it, and then came back excitedly to Zhang Lin, saying, "Mr. Zhang, I have some good news for you!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end