Rebirth 70: I am a Koi

"I know what you are worried about," Bai Hanchuan held me in his arms and patted my back gently, "but we can't give up. This is not only related to our dreams, but also to the hopes of all the employees and villagers in the base."

His embrace was warm and strong, and I felt like I had found support. I took a deep breath, tried to calm myself, and kept thinking of a solution in my mind.

"Oh, right," I suddenly looked up as if I remembered something, "We can try to contact the agricultural product exhibition in the city! If we can participate in the exhibition, maybe we can open up sales channels!"

Bai Hanchuan's eyes lit up, and he touched my head in appreciation: "What a good idea! Why didn't I think of it? Jinli, you are really my lucky star!"

Seeing the hope on his face, I felt relieved. In the next few days, Bai Hanchuan ran around to contact the exhibition, while I devoted myself to the production management of the base. I strictly controlled the product quality and led the workers to work overtime to prepare the best products before the exhibition.

However, fate always seems to like to play tricks on us. Just when we were making the final sprint for the trade fair, Bai Hanchuan brought back a piece of news...

"Is there anyone willing to invest in us?" I looked at Bai Hanchuan in surprise, my tone full of disbelief.

Bai Hanchuan's expression was unusually solemn. He nodded slowly and said in a deep voice, "But the other party put forward a condition..." He paused, took a deep breath, and seemed to be organizing his words, "They want a controlling stake."

"Controlling the company?!" I exclaimed, my heart sinking. If we agree to their request, the base will be owned by someone else, and everything we have worked so hard to build will fall into the hands of others.

"I know this is hard to accept," Bai Hanchuan held my hand, his tone heavy, "but this may be our only hope. Jinli, we need to think carefully about whether to stick to our dream, or..."

I closed my eyes helplessly, my mind was in a mess. At this moment, I suddenly remembered the ancient book in the space. Maybe... I flashed into the space, opened the yellowed ancient book, and searched carefully page by page. Finally, in an inconspicuous corner, I found a folk remedy that is said to greatly increase the growth rate of crops, but it also comes with certain risks.

I clutched the pages tightly, struggling internally. On one side were my dreams and dignity, and on the other were everyone's hopes. What should I do?

"Jinli, what's wrong with you?" Bai Hanchuan's voice sounded in my ears, pulling me back from my thoughts. I took a deep breath, hid the ancient book in my arms, forced a smile, and said, "I'm fine, just a little tired, let's go out."

Then, I took his hand and walked straight to the depths of the planting base. Under the setting sun, the crops that should have been green and lush now looked sickly, and my heart gradually sank like the twilight.

"I've thought of a way..." I stopped and turned to face Bai Hanchuan. My tone was firm, yet there was a barely perceptible tremor in it.

The afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on the fields, giving the drooping crops a golden edge, but it could not cover up their sickly state. I took a deep breath, tried to ignore the annoyance in my heart, turned my eyes to Bai Hanchuan, and said in a calm tone: "I have an idea that may temporarily alleviate the urgent need."

A glimmer of hope flashed in Bai Hanchuan's eyes, and he asked anxiously, "What's the solution?"

I didn't answer directly. Instead, I took out a piece of paper from my pocket and handed it to him: "This is a new planting plan I compiled overnight. If you adjust the planting methods and ratios according to this plan, maybe you can..." I paused and didn't continue, but we all understood that this was only a stopgap measure and the real test was still to come.

Bai Hanchuan took the plan and read it carefully, his brows gradually relaxed. He raised his head, his eyes full of admiration and trust: "Jinli, I believe you."

In the next few days, we began to adjust our planting strategy according to the new plan, and the atmosphere in the base also changed subtly. Lao Li is the most experienced farmer in the base. He was the first to stand up and support us, and he also took the initiative to help us persuade other employees who had doubts.

"I believe in Director Bai and Technician Mu, they are all doing this for the good of our base!" Lao Li's words were simple but powerful. Gradually, the employees' emotions began to ease and their work efficiency improved significantly.

What is even more gratifying is that there is also good news from the raw material supplier. Previously, due to rising raw material prices, we had to reduce the purchase volume, which led to a stalemate in the relationship with one of the suppliers. But just when we were in a state of panic, the person in charge of this supplier took the initiative to contact us.

"Lao Bai, I heard that your base has encountered some difficulties recently. We just got the news." The supplier Lao Wang's voice was full of concern on the other end of the phone. "Our factory has also been adjusting its business strategy recently. The previous price was indeed a bit high. How about this? From now on, your raw materials will be supplied at the original price. This is our small contribution."

When we heard the news, Bai Hanchuan and I were stunned. This was like timely help! I held the phone, so excited that I couldn't speak for a long time. Finally, I could only say with a sob: "Thank you, Lao Wang, thank you!"

Things seemed to be turning around, but we all knew that this was only a temporary respite. We still had a long way to go to get out of this predicament. I looked at the piece of paper in my hand that I had repeatedly stroked, which had the bank's contact information written on it. I took a deep breath and said to Bai Hanchuan, "Let's go to the bank."

When I came out of the bank, the sunset had already dyed half the sky red. Bai Hanchuan's face was not looking good, his lips were tightly pursed, and his eyebrows were twisted into the shape of the Chinese character "川".

I gently held his hand, and his palm was cold. I understood that the negotiation with the bank was not going well.

"How is it? What did President Wang say?" I tried to make my tone sound relaxed, but I understood that the answer to this question was of vital importance to us.

Bai Hanchuan took a deep breath, held my hand tighter, and said in a heavy tone: "The bank is willing to reconsider our loan application, but the premise is..."

He paused before continuing, "They require us to solve the yield problem caused by the new planting standards within a month, otherwise..."

"Otherwise the loan will be reclaimed, right?" I took over his words with a wry smile, my heart feeling heavy as if a huge rock was pressing on it.

One month is no easy task! The new planting plan has just been implemented and the effect has not yet fully emerged. Can we really turn things around in one month?

I took a deep breath, suppressed the feeling of powerlessness in my heart, and tried to make myself look calm and determined: "It doesn't matter, we still have time. As long as we work together, we can definitely overcome this difficulty!"

Bai Hanchuan looked at me, his eyes full of heartache and encouragement: "Jinli, thank you for your hard work."

I didn't say anything, just gave him a firm look in return.

In addition to funding issues, poor sales channels are also a major problem we face. In order to expand sales, I tried some new marketing methods, such as setting up stalls in places with high traffic in the city to conduct product tasting and promotion; contacting supply and marketing cooperatives, hoping to put our products on the shelves for sale; I also asked someone to design some promotional posters, hoping to attract more customers' attention.

Although the effects of these methods were not obvious, there was some improvement. Some customers began to pay attention to our products, and some small vegetable vendors and restaurant owners came to consult us, which gave me a glimmer of hope.

"Jinli, look!" One day, I was sorting out customer information when Bai Hanchuan suddenly ran in excitedly with a few orders, his face filled with a happy smile, "These are the new orders signed today. Guess who placed the order?"

I took the order and was stunned when I saw the official seal on it... I took the order and was stunned when I saw the official seal on it: "County Food Factory? How could they..."

Various thoughts flashed through my mind quickly. The county food factory is a large state-owned factory. If we can reach a stable cooperative relationship with them, our sales problem will be solved!

"Yes, it's the County Food Factory!" Bai Hanchuan rubbed his hands excitedly. "I asked someone about it. They are currently developing a new canned product that requires a large amount of high-quality vegetables as raw materials. It just so happens that our vegetables are of good quality and the price is right, so..."

I suppressed my joy and carefully checked the contents of the order, and found that the order volume was as high as five tons! This is the largest order our base has received so far!

"Great! This is really great!" I stood up excitedly and hugged Bai Hanchuan, my excitement beyond words.

Bai Hanchuan also hugged me tightly, with an expression of joy and relief that he couldn't hide: "Jinli, we succeeded! Our efforts were not in vain!"

The arrival of this order undoubtedly gave us a shot in the arm and also gave us hope.

However, we were not carried away by victory. Bai Hanchuan and I both understood that this was just the beginning, there was still a long way to go, and we still had many challenges to face.

"Hanchuan, although we have made some progress now, many problems are still pending and we can't take it lightly." I calmly analyzed the current situation. "The bank's loan problem has not been completely resolved. The new Chief Liu doesn't seem to be optimistic about our project. We must find a way to get his support."

Bai Hanchuan nodded, his expression becoming serious: "You are right, I will continue to follow up on the bank's matter and try to resolve the loan issue as soon as possible."

"Also, the scale of our base is still too small, and the output is limited. If we want to develop for a long time, we must find a way to expand the scale." I continued, "In addition, we must also seize the time to develop new planting techniques to improve yield and quality, so that we can be invincible in the market competition."

Bai Hanchuan agreed: "I have noted down everything you said. I will formulate the next development plan as soon as possible."

He knew that in order to convince Section Chief Liu, who was skeptical about the planting base and put forward harsh conditions, he had to come up with more powerful data and plans. So, Bai Hanchuan decided to go to the city in person to collect more data that would be beneficial to the development of the planting base... The next morning, Bai Hanchuan packed his bags and prepared to leave.

I was a little worried, so I chased him to the door and handed him a thick coat: "Hanchuan, the weather has been unpredictable recently, please bring some clothes and be careful on the road."

He took the coat, with a smile and determination in his eyes: "Don't worry, I will be back soon."

As I watched Bai Hanchuan disappear into the morning mist, I suddenly felt uneasy...