Reborn in 1977

Although the business deal didn't materialize, Manager Zhao still enthusiastically insisted they stay and have a meal at the company's small cafeteria.

Originally, Ye Shubao was in a bad mood and wanted to quickly find the next potential customer, not wanting to eat this meal.

However, Manager Zhao was truly enthusiastic, and with Chen Fan giving him a look from the side, he stayed and had lunch.

Even though Chen Fan knew that Manager Zhao's refusal to purchase chickens, ducks, and geese from Lujiawan was mostly to vent his anger, otherwise, with the size of the shipping company, the cafeteria could easily consume a dozen ducks every day. Would they need to use regulations as an excuse?

But he couldn't call him out on it.

It was his own fault for not giving them face in the beginning, and now they were not giving Lujiawan face. As for the favor of inviting Zhang Wenliang and Zhang Juemin to give lectures, it had already been repaid with gifts, so there was no question of owing them anything.

Tit for tat, that was the true meaning of "reciprocity."

However, it had to be admitted that Manager Zhao was truly a master of public relations, with impeccable surface-level work and comprehensive hospitality, leaving no room for anyone to find fault.

The meal included meat, fish, vegetables, and wine. The food was quite good, leaving Ye Shubao speechless, almost making him believe that he couldn't succeed.

As a result, when he came out of the shipping company, he was still lamenting, "It's only now that life is a little better, allowing each household to raise chickens and ducks. If it were two or three years ago, when each family couldn't raise more than 3 chickens, and every organization was begging for meat, would I need to come out and find sales channels for my tens of thousands of chickens, ducks, and geese? I could just sit at home and collect the money!"

"Heh, even then, you'd need to have tens of thousands of chickens, ducks, and geese! If other people couldn't raise them, why would you be able to?"

An Quan said with a smile, "You also said that was a few years ago. The year before last, you didn't even need ration coupons to buy pork; you could buy it with money. The food station couldn't even sell all its pork."

Zhang Wenliang seemed a little depressed at this time, "Alas, you say pork couldn't be sold, but the next year you couldn't buy it at all. Even the chickens and ducks of each household were snatched up. Many people went to buy chicks and ducklings to raise.

These past two years, it's back to buying pork with coupons, while you can buy chicken and duck with money without even needing coupons. It's hot and cold; I can't figure out which year there's a shortage of meat and which year there isn't."

Chen Fan walked beside him and said with a soft laugh, "Want to know which year there's a shortage of meat and which year there isn't? It's simple."

Zhang Wenliang immediately turned to look at him, "Can you calculate it?"

Chen Fan laughed, "It's not really calculating, but simple deduction. When the higher-level policies tighten and cut off the 'tails' [private enterprise], there's a shortage of meat. When the higher-ups relax, allowing production teams and families to engage in sideline occupations, and even giving rewards for breeding, there's no shortage of meat."

Hearing this, Zhang Wenliang also realized, "So this year, since sideline occupations are allowed, there will be more people raising chickens and ducks, and each organization won't have to worry about not being able to buy meat?!"

Chen Fan nodded slightly, "That's right, that's how it is."

Ye Shubao frowned and said, "I don't care whether they can easily buy meat or not. I only care about how to sell these ducks and geese as quickly as possible, and it has to be soon, because in a little over a month, the chickens will also be grown and ready to be sold. If they're stockpiled, we'll lose a lot of money."

Zhang Juemin also nodded in agreement, "The most important thing is that after the number of farmed animals increases, the risk of poultry epidemics will also greatly increase. This aspect cannot be ignored."

Ye Shubao and Zhang Wenliang nodded in agreement, "That's right."

An Quan looked at Chen Fan and asked thoughtfully, "Xiao Chen, do you have any ideas?"

Just now, he had seen Chen Fan looking calm and collected, seemingly not worried at all, and he wondered if Chen Fan had any other solutions.

As soon as he said this, Ye Shubao and the other two also looked at Chen Fan expectantly.

Chen Fan smiled nonchalantly, "There are definitely solutions, but don't rush. We've only visited one of the twenty-odd organizations in the county. Let's finish visiting the rest before we talk about it."

Hearing this, Ye Shubao certainly didn't want to leave and said angrily, "I'm already anxious, and you're still being mysterious. Hurry up and tell us."

An Quan also pointed at him with a wry smile, "What time is it, and you still won't explain clearly? Are you trying to make us anxious to death?"

Seeing them so anxious that they were almost on fire, Chen Fan could only spread his hands helplessly, "Alright, alright, I'll talk."

Then, he pointed to the big tree by the roadside not far away, "It's cool over there. Let's go there to talk."

The group quickly walked over and stood in the shade of the tree. A cool breeze blew, and their mood was slightly more comfortable.

Chen Fan looked at the pedestrians coming and going on the street, exhaled a long breath, and then said, "It's not that I want to be mysterious, it's just that Lujiawan is currently destitute and can't even scrape together a few dozen yuan. The subsequent solutions will be useless even if I say them. We must first sell some ducks and geese to raise enough capital before we can proceed to the next step."

Ye Shubao was stunned and looked at him, asking, "Still need to invest money?"

Lujiawan now owes several thousand yuan in debt for seeds and seedlings. In addition, they bought several hundred yuan worth of medicine from the veterinary station to prevent diseases in poultry and livestock, as well as keep it in reserve for treatment. Plus other investments, the production team's account is already only left with a little change.

If they had to continue investing money, they would really be powerless.

But what would they invest money in?

Chen Fan nodded and gestured, saying, "It's like this, I've seen in Nanhu Town that chickens in the farmers market are 1.1 yuan per jin, ducks are 0.5 yuan, and geese are 1 yuan. These are all the prices for live poultry. This price is fixed by the farmers market, and we can't blindly lower the price to sell, right?"

Ye Shubao nodded, "Right."

The prices of meat and vegetables in the farmers market are determined by the "Price Committee." As early as 1952, the Ministry of Commerce established the Price Bureau. Then, in 1957, local "Price Committees" were established at all levels, from the province to the special district, city, and county, to be responsible for the unified management of prices.

It was not until 1962 that the National Price Committee was established, and the national price began to enter the stage of "great unification."

However, great unification does not mean that the prices across the country are the same. There will still be slight differences in prices based on the actual situation of resources in various places.

For example, the price of rice in the south is cheaper than in the north, and the price in the northeast is cheaper than in North China, because the northeast and the south are both rice-producing areas.

In addition, even in the same place, the price is not always constant, but rather "follows the market" with restrictions.

If the quantity of vegetables or meat is relatively small during a certain period, the purchasing department of the farmers market will raise the purchase price within a certain range, and the retail price will be added to the purchase price at a fixed ratio, such as the price of vegetables in winter will be higher than usual.

This markup ratio is also strictly regulated.

In the early days, in the 1950s, with grain as the focus, it was once stipulated that the retail price could not exceed 3% of the purchase price. After deducting labor, transportation, warehousing, and other costs, this price might not even reach 1% of the profit, and would often even lose money.

Because in addition to costs, there are also losses, and the losses in this regard are completely unpredictable.

It was not until some things happened later (this paragraph is missing) that the Price Committee gradually increased the purchase and sales price difference ratio for almost all products.

However, in general, the price difference ratio for industrial products is higher. For some popular products, it can exceed 20%, while the price difference for agricultural products is generally controlled within 10%, and most even do not exceed 5%.

Taking pork as an example, within just three years, the lowest meat price could be 70 or 80 cents per jin, while the highest price exceeded 1.5 yuan, and the higher the price, the less the supply, the harder it is to buy, the lower the price, the greater the oversupply, and the more inventory the production teams have in various places.

But whether it is high or low, the selling price must be implemented in accordance with the regulations of the local price committee.

Chen Fan continued, "But according to this unified price, sometimes the farmers market can't even sell all of it. How long will it take for us to sell so many chickens, ducks, and geese?"

Not being able to lower the price on your own means you can't engage in a price war. Otherwise, if you sell cheaper than the farmers market, everyone will come to buy yours. Who will the farmers market sell its goods to? Therefore, for this kind of situation, they will definitely deal with it as soon as they discover it, and will never tolerate it.

At this time, An Quan asked strangely, "Then you still said you wanted to apply for a stall in the county farmers market? Is it easier to sell in the county?"

Chen Fan shook his head, turned to look at him and smiled, "If we directly sell live poultry, let alone in the county, even if we take it to the prefectural committee, or even the provincial capital, we may not be able to sell it.

In the end, it's still that sentence: the farmers market has a fixed source of goods, and the daily sales are maintained at a certain level. Maybe it will surge during holidays, but it's usually about the same. Residents are also used to buying things in public places. Why would they buy ours for no reason?"

Ye Shubao became more and more confused as he listened, "It can't be sold here, it can't be sold there, then what is your solution? You even said you wanted to invest money?"

Chen Fan smiled and held up two fingers, saying, "Two solutions. One is to find corporate clients, which is what we are doing now. Companies have a large number of people and a large demand. Even if one company only needs 20 per day, ten companies is 200, and they can sell 6,000 in a month."

Ye Shubao clapped his hands and said with a bitter face, "But just now Manager Zhao also said that the major organizations in the county have almost all signed agreements with the farmers market, and the farmers market supplies them. Who will buy ours?"

Chen Fan shrugged, "Let's try it. What if there is one?"

Anquan frowned slightly and asked, "What if we try and it still doesn't work?"

Chen Fan snapped his fingers and laughed, "If the county doesn't work, we'll go to the district committee. I dare not say anything else, but I still have some influence in the district health system, especially in the Yunhu hospitals. Each hospital, in addition to its own hundreds of medical staff, also has thousands of patients and family members accompanying them. Patients need to supplement their nutrition the most, and they are willing to spend money. Even if the supply in the district committee's vegetable market is sufficient, as long as the demand is large enough, we can always sell some, right?"

Although he had accepted gifts from the Health Department, which counted as settling the favor, there was still 'friendship' there. He felt he could still earn back this much face.

Hearing his words, Ye Shubao's face immediately turned from cloudy to sunny, and the corners of his mouth stretched to both sides as he laughed heartily, "That's right, how could I forget about the district committee hospital?"

Zhang Wenliang also beamed from ear to ear, "Seriously, with Xiao Chen's relationship with the leaders of the district committee hospitals, selling them a few ducks will definitely not be a problem."

Zhang Juemin also laughed, "Oh dear, why didn't you say so earlier? You had me so worried."

After a pause, he added, "Then we can go directly to the district committee, why bother running into walls in the county?"

Chen Fan pursed his lips and shook his head, "This is what I mean by needing to invest more money. There are still two public buses a day from Lujiawan, but to go to the district committee, we have to transfer in the county. We're not familiar with the drivers in the county and district committee, so would they allow us to put chickens, ducks, and geese on the bus or on the roof and get it dirty?"

He looked at the others and said seriously, "My idea is that it would be best to find a few big customers in the county first, earn some money, and then use that money to build a cooked food workshop. Then we can go by water and directly supply cooked food to the district committee."

Ye Shubao immediately widened his eyes, "A cooked food workshop?"

Anquan pondered, "Go by water?"

Chen Fan looked at the two of them and said, "There are no cooked food vendors in the Nanhua Commune's vegetable market, only in state-run restaurants. When I was eating just now, I also asked Manager Zhao, and there are no cooked food stalls in the county's vegetable market either, you have to go to state-run restaurants to buy them. This shows that this is a blank market.

I also said just now that if we sell live poultry directly, we may not be able to sell it, but if we sell cooked food in the vegetable market and sell it at a fair price, we can not only make more money, but most importantly, we can stagger with the live poultry stalls of the vegetable market company, so we won't cause their resistance, and at the same time, we can open up a part of the market."

Anquan suddenly understood, "So you want to sell a batch of live poultry first, so you have money to set up a cooked food workshop."

"Yes."

Chen Fan nodded and smiled, "The best result is to walk on two legs, delivering goods to unit customers on one hand, and making and selling cooked food ourselves on the other. This way, we can steadily and surely gradually open up the market.

But if we really can't sell it in the county, it doesn't matter.

I've also considered it just now. We can first get an old small propeller from the Nanhua Water Transport Company on credit. We'll use the diesel engine from the water pump, modify the production team's wooden boat, and turn it into a speedboat to sell live poultry directly to the district committee by water.

From the waterway to the district committee wharf, it's about 50 kilometers of river. If we paddle there, it will take a whole night, but if we drive a speedboat, it will probably only take one or two hours, and we can load more goods.

It's just that buying a propeller costs money, burning diesel also requires higher costs, and the wooden boat also needs to be modified. Live poultry is not as easy to transport as cooked food, so it's only a second choice."

Hearing this, all four of them understood Chen Fan's meaning.

First, find a way to sell live poultry. After earning money, on the one hand, modify the wooden boat, and on the other hand, build a cooked food workshop. This way, we can avoid the live poultry market and open up a sales channel.

As for whether the cooked food is easy to sell, it depends on whether the food is delicious. With Chen Fan's cooking skills, is there any need to worry about this?

Ye Shubao's worries disappeared at this time, and he clasped his hands tightly and laughed, "You plan three steps ahead for every step you take. If this road doesn't work, you immediately have the next one. You truly are Teacher Chen."

Anquan also laughed a few times, and after the laughter stopped, he said, "One last question."

Chen Fan turned to look at him, "What kind of cooked food will we make?"

Anquan nodded and smiled, "I certainly believe in your skills, I'm just curious."

Chen Fan shrugged, "Roast duck, braised duck, duck necks, duck offal, roast goose, braised goose, goose liver, soy sauce chicken, roast chicken, lotus leaf chicken, chicken offal. There are so many cooked foods that can be made from chicken, duck, and goose.

Moreover, this is not an industrial product. We can make it ourselves and sell it, which is in line with the production team's policy of developing sideline businesses, so doing this is absolutely no problem.

As for the price, we can refer to the pricing of state-run restaurants. However, cooked food is definitely not as 'exquisite' as the dishes made by master chefs, so it will be slightly cheaper. The competent department should also agree, right?"

Anquan nodded repeatedly, "Agree, we must agree. As long as it's a little more expensive than live poultry, after all, it's cooked food, so it can't be sold at the same price as live poultry. As for being cheaper than in restaurants, as long as the reason is sufficient, reasonable, and justified, the price department will also make appropriate concessions. This is definitely no problem."

Zhang Wenliang rubbed his hands beside him and smiled at Chen Fan, "Oh dear, listening to you say that we can make so many cooked foods, my mouth is already watering."

Then he looked at the others, "Then let's start, hurry up and earn some capital, sell a batch first, and quickly get the transport ship and cooked food workshop out!"

Ye Shubao was also in high spirits at this time, and waved his hand, "Let's go."

With a plan in mind, the momentum for doing things is different.

In the next two or three days, Ye Shubao seemed to have returned to the time three years ago when all the units in the commune were begging him to buy chickens, ducks, and geese. The straw hat on his head was like a top hat, the sweat shirt on his body was comparable to a shirt, and the cloth shoes on his feet were also worn into leather shoes, and he seemed to walk with the wind.

From morning to night, he shuttled between the various units in the county, talking eloquently with their leaders and discussing the bright prospects for chicken, duck, and goose cooperation.

We have meat, you have money, we supply meat, you eat more meat, how great!

Although there were only a few sentences back and forth, after a lot of hard work, after running through 27 large and small units in the county, he finally negotiated with 15 large customers.

Among them, there are 7 units in the county health system, such as the County Health Bureau, the County Health School, the County People's Hospital, and the County Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.

So Teacher Chen still has a lot of face in the health system. Look, even though they have never met him in person, this first meeting, they called on all units to add two dishes to the cafeteria.

From now on, the entire health system will order 200 ducks and 30 geese from the Lujiawan Production Team every day, which will solve most of the sales at once.

Among the remaining 8 units, the county construction company and the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau accounted for another half of the remaining quantity combined.

The county construction company goes without saying, Qiu Shifu and Ma Shifu were already insiders. After Chen Fan produced the first draft of the novel 'Steel "Dam"', the general manager of the construction company personally accompanied him, first placing a large order for 200 ducks and 50 geese in one go, and then signing a supply contract with Lujiawan for 30 ducks and 10 geese per day, and paying half a month's payment in advance, directly solving Lujiawan's urgent need for money.

One duck averages 1.2 yuan, and one goose averages 7.5 yuan. From this alone, the ducks sold for 780 yuan and the geese for 1500 yuan.

Ye Shubao, whose pockets suddenly bulged, smiled for three whole days, unable to close his mouth.

The other Animal Husbandry Bureau was so generous, which was also related to Chen Fan.

Don't forget, Chen Fan's only legitimate certificate now is the 'Rural Veterinarian Qualification Certificate', and when he was studying at the commune veterinary station, he raised many constructive questions. The Animal Husbandry Bureau summarized these questions and reported them to the District Animal Husbandry Department, which received public praise from the higher authorities.

Moreover, the breeding industry is originally within the jurisdiction of the Animal Husbandry Bureau, and now that the production team below has come to the door, they certainly have to show something.

So, in the absence of other 'competitors', the Animal Husbandry Bureau also reached a long-term supply agreement with Lujiawan. It's just that the Animal Husbandry Bureau doesn't have many people, and they are basically scattered in various communes, so the number of orders is not large, 10 ducks and two geese per day, which is a token of appreciation.

The remaining 6 units are truly good customers who 'don't hold grudges and give face'. It's just that they said that in the initial cooperation, it's not good to buy too much at once. Like the Animal Husbandry Bureau, each family only pre-ordered 10 ducks and two geese per day, to see how things go. If the employees' reactions are okay, they will add to the quantity.

Of course, what they didn't say was that if the response was not good, then they would cancel it.

This time to the county, a total of 3 days, a large order of 200 ducks and 50 geese was completed, and other daily supply orders totaled 300 ducks and 54 geese per day.

Although it was much lower than expected, the Lujiawan's breeding industry finally took a solid first step towards the market.