Chapter 55: A Free Ten Million?

Chapter 55: A Free Ten Million?

In the rest area, Zhang Lin observed that quite a few tourists were constipated and were drinking the honeysuckle tea. He instructed Zhao Lin, “When they start lining up, take some videos. Also, have Liu De and the others dig a few holes and surround them with waterproof fabric.”

Although these tourists seemed rebellious, he still needed to be prepared; he couldn’t let them soil their pants, right? However, the footage would definitely be entertaining.

After making the arrangements, Zhang Lin invited Chen Shengfei and Zhao Han to sit at a table in the rest area. He then went to wash a plate of blueberries from the game and said to Chen Shengfei, “Gentlemen, try these blueberries. They’re a test product in the confidential phase!”

Chen Shengfei’s interest was piqued, and he immediately picked one up and tasted it. “Hmm, really good, excellent flavor!”

Zhao Han had been observing Zhang Lin all along, trying to understand what kind of young man could silently build such a farm and gain so much online attention.

While luck might play a part, the service center was built with such style and perfection, making people feel at ease. The beautiful rapeseed flower fields were a testament to his artistic vision and capability.

So, this young man was indeed talented and capable.

Zhang Lin also thanked them, “Thank you, Mr. Chen, for your support earlier.”

“That’s nothing, I just can’t stand people like that,” Chen Shengfei waved it off, then looked around at the bustling tourists and remarked, “I must say, Mr. Zhang, your farm has genuinely surprised me. To have this level of traffic in just three days, you’re definitely the first in the entire province.”

“It’s all luck!” Although Zhang Lin agreed internally, he remained humble.

Chen Shengfei and Zhao Han chuckled, knowing it was Zhang Lin’s modesty.

Chen Shengfei then noticed Zhao Han’s frantic signals and laughed, “Mr. Zhang, I came to the farm today at someone’s request, actually my cousin, who is the Tourism Bureau Director of your city.”

“Director Zhao!” Zhang Lin immediately recognized the name.

They had spoken on the phone before, and Zhao Han had introduced himself.

When they met earlier, Chen Shengfei only mentioned that his cousin was surnamed Zhao, and Zhang Lin hadn’t made the connection.

After all, it’s just a surname; who could have made such a leap?

Zhao Han then smiled, “Mr. Zhang, it’s finally nice to meet you in person. I’ve been admiring your work from afar and wanted to clear up the misunderstanding between you and our Tourism Bureau. Chen Ting has already been removed from his position, and I sincerely apologize for the trouble he caused.”

With his opening statement, he had already addressed the conflict and the resolution.

“Director Zhao, if the misunderstanding is cleared, then there is no misunderstanding,” Zhang Lin said politely.

Since Zhao Han had personally come to visit and had removed Chen Ting, Zhang Lin knew it wouldn’t be wise to hold a grudge. After all, in a small place, there were many people like Chen Ting, but it wasn’t fair to judge everyone by the actions of one.

Zhao Han smiled, “That’s right, no misunderstanding. Regarding the subsidy for Linyuan Farm, I have brought a document for you to review.”

Saying this, he took out a document from his briefcase and handed it to Zhang Lin.

Zhang Lin had already decided he didn’t need the subsidy, so he was about to refuse. However, when he saw the title, "Discussion on the Ten Million Unconditional Subsidy for Linyuan Farm," he swallowed his "no" and took the document to read it.

Given the other party’s sincerity, it was only polite to look at the document and not to refuse outright.

After all, it was always better to have a friend than an enemy.

The content was straightforward: the Tourism Bureau had decided to provide the remaining 10 million subsidy for the new quarter to Linyuan Farm unconditionally. The document was already stamped, so it would be effective if the Tourism Bureau continued to implement it.

Zhang Lin understood that this was the Tourism Bureau’s way of showing sincerity and making amends.

“Director Zhao, I assume there are conditions to this unconditional subsidy?” Zhang Lin didn’t believe in free lunches, so even if it was a genuine offer, he would need to know the catch.

Zhao Han nodded without hesitation, “The condition is that the Tourism Bureau hopes to receive promotional support from Linyuan Farm. There are two simple tasks: placing promotional signs for our city’s other attractions at the entrance of Linyuan Farm and distributing free ticket packages for other attractions at the ticket office, which we will provide for free.”

Hearing these conditions, Zhang Lin understood the Tourism Bureau’s intentions.

The first condition was essentially free advertising, and the 10 million subsidy also seemed like an advertising fee, albeit a generous one.

Zhang Lin had no issue with this since none of the other attractions in Youcheng were similar to his farm, so there was no threat. If placing the signs could draw more visitors, that was their skill.

However, the second condition would truly benefit Youcheng’s attractions.

Distributing free ticket packages.

The idea was that visitors to Linyuan Farm would receive a free ticket package for other attractions in Youcheng with their ticket purchase.

Sometimes, free things were the most expensive, much like the free games that advertised heavily.

While the tickets were free, the attractions made money from other sources once visitors entered. They would spend on food, accommodation, and other activities, and the increased foot traffic would enhance their promotional videos and data, making them more attractive to outsiders.

When tourists receive free admission tickets to attractions, many of them will feel like they're getting a good deal and will want to stay and check things out!

"Director Zhao, I agree to those two points," Zhang Lin said with a smile.

Zhao Han nodded and continued, "There's one more thing. This money must be supervised by our Tourism Bureau and can only be used for the development of the farm attractions. Of course, Boss Zhang can write an application to ensure we can report it to our superiors. After all, we definitely don't know as much about farm development as you do."

Zhang Lin didn't find this strange. After all, 10 million yuan couldn't possibly be given without any oversight.

However, from Director Zhao's final words, it was clear that the supervision wouldn't be too strict. As long as it looked good on the surface, even if a 1 million yuan project was reported as 2 million, it would be fine.

This kind of tacit understanding was a given.

After the terms were agreed upon, Zhao Han immediately pulled out a contract.

Zhang Lin hadn't expected them to have the contract ready, which showed how eager they were.

Of course, Zhao Han was eager. The Linyuan Farm was currently very popular, and who knew how long this trend would last. The faster things were handled, the better. He had even arranged for the promotional billboards at the entrance of Linyuan Farm to be ready.

After all, 10 million yuan had been invested.

Zhang Lin quickly scanned the contract and then pulled out his phone to send the relevant clauses to a former classmate from university who studied law. They met in a club.

Reviewing the contract took time, especially the detailed clauses.

While waiting, Zhang Lin chatted with Zhao Han and Chen Shengfei. Once his classmate confirmed there were no issues, he felt relieved and transferred 2,000 yuan as a consultation fee. Then, he signed the contract with the Tourism Bureau.

"Boss Zhang, it's been a pleasure to work with you," Zhao Han said, relieved that his goal was achieved.

"Director Zhao, it's been a pleasure," Zhang Lin replied with a smile.

After that, Zhao Han eagerly took the contract and left, but before he went, he added, "Boss Zhang, don't worry about the Price Bureau. I've already spoken with their director."

Zhang Lin smiled. While he wasn't concerned, it was still good to have the support of the Tourism Bureau and the Agriculture Bureau. This would at least help avoid some trouble, and even if issues arose, he wouldn't have to handle them himself.

After Zhao Han and Chen Shengfei left, Zhang Lin thought about the Agriculture Bureau. Lin Mengxi had asked Fu Yao to help shoot the first promotional video for the farm that afternoon.

So, he needed to inform Fu Yao about it.

As soon as he opened his WeChat, he saw a message from Fu Yao: "Uncle, is something wrong with your farm? Someone is exposing it online."

The message included a video link.

Zhang Lin clicked on the link and saw a popular Xiaoyin video.

"This Linyuan Farm is selling sky-high prices for honeysuckle tea. A pound of the stuff, which can be brewed into a cup with just 1 gram, is being sold for 200 yuan. And they even mocked me for not being able to afford it!"

"The Linyuan Farm not only sells overpriced honeysuckle tea but also sent two shills to bully me..."

The video quickly showed an elderly woman's indignant voice.

Zhang Lin was surprised by this popular video.

Was this like someone bringing a pillow when you're about to fall asleep?

He had planned to use this incident to gain some negative attention, which could still increase his popularity and traffic.

Moreover, he wasn't afraid of the negative publicity, especially with the support of the Yucheng Agriculture Bureau and the Tourism Bureau.

He could easily turn the tide whenever he wanted, but the increased attention was real.

However, the comments on the video were filled with malicious intent:

"Haha, the Linyuan Farm must be desperate for money. How long have they been popular?"

"Honeysuckle tea is just herbal tea. I'm a poor dog, I can't afford 200 yuan per cup. I wonder if I should even go to this farm."

"I've seen people who try to make money, but never someone who does it so brazenly. The Linyuan Farm is going to fail as soon as it opens."

"@Yucheng Tourism Bureau @Yucheng Agriculture Bureau, please investigate the Linyuan Farm!"

Zhang Lin, seeing the comments, casually gave the video a small dou+ boost to increase its popularity.

On the other side, Liu Xiumei was watching the video. The higher the video's popularity, the more people were cursing the Linyuan Farm, and the happier she was.

At that moment, she received a WeChat reply: "Mom, what's going on? I was in a meeting, and my phone was in the office."

Seeing her son Lin Da's message, she replied immediately, "I took your son to the Linyuan Farm, and they were selling overpriced honeysuckle tea, 200 yuan per cup, and even tried to trick your son into buying it. It was terrible. You must punish them."

"Is that true? Mom, don't worry, I'll look into it," Lin Da said, feeling agitated. He worked at the Yucheng Price Bureau. How dare someone in Yucheng sell overpriced items and rip off his family?

But just as he hung up, another department head, a close friend, rushed in, "Lin Da, the director has called a meeting. Something serious has happened."

"What happened?" Lin Da asked, puzzled.

The other person smiled, "It seems someone didn't do a good job with their family's behavior. A family member caused trouble, and the Tourism Bureau director was there. He personally contacted our superiors, saying it severely damaged Yucheng's image. Many of us have a hard time, and we can really be harmed by our brainless families."

"Who's the unlucky one?" Lin Da nodded in agreement.

The other person replied, "I don't know, but it seems to be an elderly woman with her grandson. She was being unreasonable and even threatened to have her son fine the other party. She was quite haughty."

"???" Lin Da was suddenly stunned.

...

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end