Chapter 44: The Plan

It was past nine in the morning!
At this time of day, everyone was usually busy working in the fields.
Yet today, the villagers of Xiantao Village had only just stepped out of their homes.
A strong wind was blowing. A group of people stood by the fish ponds, watching Li Tianhu and a few others hauling fish from the water.
"We're all waiting here to work; we can't just stand around like fools!"
"Don't be impatient. The big boss has gone to the vegetable garden, let's wait a little longer!"
"Tianhu, you're an outsider from another village, yet you've managed to squeeze your way into ours. What's the big idea?"
Someone teased Li Tianhu, who was currently in the water.
"Go on with you! What outsider? Guodong and I grew up wearing the same pair of pants. I'll be in charge of these fish ponds from now on, so all of you will have to take orders from me!"
Li Tianhu beamed with a wide smile, chatting with the crowd as he fished.
No one was unhappy!
They knew these fish ponds all too well.
They had always been leased by Meng Tianming!
Every time the grass carp here were sold, they went for just a few yuan per jin, and sometimes people didn't even want them!
The ponds had changed hands only last night, and today the fish were sold at a high price of fifty yuan.
This was clearly not a matter of breeding skills, but a matter of market access.
As long as this young man Guo Dong was around, they were certain that whatever they planted would turn a profit!

When Meng Tianming arrived with Meng Xiaohan and saw everyone chatting idly, his mood soured a bit!
Just as he was about to snap at them, he caught sight of the people in the water!
"What are you lot doing?"
Meng Xiaohan was also slightly dazed, failing to understand the situation.
"Tianming, you've come at just the right time. The fish in your ponds have been sold!"
"Sold?" Meng Tianming frowned. "Sold to whom?"
"Chairman Liu, of course, who else! Guess how much they sold for per jin?"
Meng Tianming wore a very colorful expression on his face, feeling that simply getting the fish sold was already a remarkable feat.
"How much? Five yuan?"
"Five yuan? Do you really think Guodong would sell them for five yuan?"
Meng Tianming's heart skipped a beat with joy, and he asked again, "Could it be around ten yuan?"
He had indeed heard that some people managed to sell their grass carp for that kind of price.
Ha, ha...
The crowd burst into laughter!
"Your prospective son-in-law is no ordinary fellow. Those grass carp of yours—he sold them for fifty!"
Gasp!
Meng Tianming felt as though it were unreal, and he turned to nudge his daughter.
"It's broad daylight, so I shouldn't be dreaming! Fifty yuan per jin, this..."
"What per jin, that's per jin! Just as Tianhu said, poverty has limited your imagination. I'm not talking to you anymore, you uncultured man."
Standing in his tracks, Meng Tianming had no idea what to feel.
He had four fish ponds in total, all stocked with grass carp, but because they hadn't grown well, there weren't many of them.
He rarely managed them normally, simply letting those grass carp fend for themselves and grow on their own.
Even so, clearing out those four fish ponds would yield seven or eight thousand jin of fish.
The ponds were quite large, and given how long it had been since they were last cleared, seven or eight thousand jin was a conservative estimate.
Fifty yuan a jin!
Heartache!
He had been far too generous, treating these fish ponds as a dowry. Calculated this way, it was worth even more than the bride price.
"Xiaohan, you can take charge of the village matters from now on. My head is spinning, I'm going back to lie down for a bit!"
Meng Xiaohan covered her mouth with a light giggle and grabbed Meng Tianming by the arm.
"Dad, water that has been splashed out can never be gathered back up. Everyone has already signed the contract, you can't back out now!"
Meng Tianming glared at her. "Are you trying to piss me off on purpose?"
She stuck out her tongue and gave Meng Tianming a gentle nudge with her arm. "Dad, you should look at it from another angle. If you were the one selling them, you wouldn't have gotten that kind of price anyway!"
Meng Tianming said with a huff, "That Chairman Liu is a businessman, he's no fool! If these fish weren't worth that price, he'd have to be out of his mind to pay such a high amount. It just goes to show I was being swindled by those fishmongers all this time. Those murderers! Four yuan a jin, why on earth did I... No, my blood pressure is acting up, let me catch my breath!"
The more he thought about it, the angrier and more distressed he became!
Clutching his chest, he was utterly at a loss for words to describe his current mood.
"Oh, stop it. You're not the only one. Other people in the village raise fish too, and their situation is no different from yours!"
Meng Xiaohan stretched lazily and naturally looped her arm through Meng Tianming's.
"Dad, you should change your perspective. Now you can sell yours for fifty, while others still can't. So..."
"So I should consider myself lucky to have found such a son-in-law?"
Meng Tianming let out a light snort. "Don't get ahead of yourself. There's no guarantee yet; who knows who he'll end up with!"
Meng Xiaohan immediately shook off his arm.
Having regained the upper hand, Meng Tianming finally felt a bit better.
With a smile, he said, "Am I wrong? A man with money—can you guarantee he won't change?"
"I don't want to talk to you anymore!" Meng Xiaohan stomped off angrily toward the distant vegetable garden!
Watching his daughter's huffy departure, Meng Tianming laughed triumphantly.
He called out to Li Tianhu in the water, "Tianhu, how many fish does Chairman Liu want?"
"He doesn't need many today. He said he'd take a couple of hundred jin to the county town first, and send a specialized crew tomorrow."
Li Tianhu was very clear on the matter and said, "Guodong stated that we get paid per haul. Once the fish in these four ponds are sold out, we'll negotiate the price for the future."
"What's left to negotiate? This price is more than enough!"
Meng Tianming took a deep breath and said loudly, "From now on, we stick to this price. Whatever kind of fish he wants, we'll raise for him."
"Ha, ha... Uncle Tianming, your vision is too narrow. Judging by Guodong's intentions, the price of the fish we raise from now on will only go up, never down. Just wait and see, I'll show you what true fish farming is all about!"

Back in the vegetable patch!
Guodong was leading Liuyang and Xie Minmin around, inspecting the various vegetables.
Some were almost ready to be harvested, while others were just beginning to flower.
Regardless, this vegetable patch looked significantly better than the ones cultivated by anyone else.
There was no need for comparison; standing right here in this garden, the difference was glaringly obvious at a single glance.
Especially standing in this particular spot—one's spirit and vitality were instantly elevated.
It felt as though one had been cleansed, leaving both body and mind thoroughly refreshed and delighted!
"Guodong, are you still unable to cultivate these on a large scale?"
It looked like a lot, but when truly calculated, it wasn't even enough to supply a single hotel of his.
"Not yet, but things will get better gradually. It used to be just me, but now it's great—the villagers are planning to join forces and farm together."
Liuyang nodded. "If you can grow them, keep growing them. I see you have plenty of farmland here lying completely fallow, which is such a waste!"
Just as they were speaking, Xie Minmin suddenly waved downward.
"Xiaohan, up here!"
Meng Xiaohan was walking at a leisurely pace, and not far behind her, Heizi was running back and forth excitedly.
"You guys go on and chat, don't mind me. I just came here to ask Guodong. Everyone's all set, how should we arrange things for today?"
This question completely stumped Guo Dong.
He had never been in a leadership position before and had no idea how to manage people!
"Um, you can just arrange it yourself, no need to ask me!"
While they were talking, Meng Xiaohan had already reached the vegetable patch!
"I don't even know your plan, how am I supposed to arrange anything?"
"Plan?"
Guo Dong scratched his head, suddenly realizing something, and sprinted toward the little wooden cabin.