Chapter 104: A Great Harvest

“Oh, Little Cao, I really must thank you,” Wang Shiye said, not particularly concerned about the 560 yuan he spent. Instead, he appreciated Cao Shujie’s gesture of rounding down the price.

It was like when he first started his factory. Although the chemical products he manufactured were niche, there were only a few companies in the market doing the same. The high selling price and profit were justified.

After his business took off, he had tasted many delicacies, so he could discern that Cao Shujie’s kiwi fruit had a unique flavor. To him, it was worth the price.

Cao Shujie chuckled and offered, “Grandpa Wang, my apples aren’t fully ripe yet. If you come by next time, I’ll give you some to try at home.”

“Sure!” Wang Shiye replied with a cheerful nod, though he was a bit puzzled. “Little Cao, I noticed your apples aren’t bagged.”

He added, “I’ve seen in other orchards that many apples are covered with plastic or paper bags.”

“Bagged ones look nicer,” Cao Shujie remarked without criticizing the practice. Instead, he said, “But mine aren’t bad either; they taste good.”

The implication was that while bagged apples might look better, they didn’t taste as good. Wang Shiye understood this and agreed, noting that many fruits today didn’t taste as flavorful as they used to.

As they spoke, Lian Qijian and his four friends approached, each carrying two bags of kiwi fruit.

When they got closer, Lian Qijian called out, “Brother Jie, help us weigh these.”

“Are you done picking?” Cao Shujie asked them.

They all shook their heads. One of them, a young man named Tian Zihao, said, “Brother Jie, let’s stick with these for now. We’ll come back after we’ve eaten them. We still have three weeks of summer vacation before school starts, so we have plenty of time.”

“Alright, but if you plan to buy more, come early. I worry that if you come late, there might not be any left,” Cao Shujie advised.

Whether or not he could sell them wasn’t the point; he had to create some buzz.

Both Lian Qijian and Wang Shiye’s groups took his words seriously, fully believing that good products would sell themselves.

Cui Jingguo and his family of four had been watching from the side. Seeing that Cao Shujie was quite busy, Cui Jingguo said, “Boss Cao, you go ahead and take care of things. I’ll take them in to pick some.”

“Boss Cui, sorry for not attending to you properly. Please come to my house for lunch,” Cao Shujie called out.

He also told Cheng Xiaolin, “Honey, get a few bags for Brother Cui, and call Mom to prepare a few extra dishes for lunch.”

Turning back, he extended the same invitation to Wang Shiye and Lian Qijian, “Grandpa Wang, Brother Qijian, why don’t you join us for lunch?”

“No, no, we should head back. Maybe next time,” Wang Shiye declined, waving his hand. They had already received a discount from Cao Shujie, so they felt it inappropriate to impose further.

Lian Qijian and his friends also felt it was too forward, as they weren’t very familiar yet.

However, Lian Qijian offered a suggestion, “Brother Jie, I noticed you have a lot of cows. Why not raise some sheep or chickens too? With such a great environment here, you could open a restaurant nearby, grill some lamb skewers, and serve a few dishes. It would be great.”

“I see tourist spots doing it all the time. You should give it a try,” he suggested, showing his good intentions.

Cao Shujie chuckled, “I just started, and all my money is tied up in this. Maybe in the future, I’ll make the mountain even more beautiful.”

He had a comprehensive plan in mind, but he knew he had to take things one step at a time.

Wang Shiye laughed so hard his eyes narrowed, “Little Cao, if you really get it to that level, I’ll bring people here to have fun next time.”

Cao Shujie wasn’t one to be modest. He pointed to the large area of fruit saplings to the east and said, “Grandpa Wang, look over there. That’s over 50 mu of kiwi and apple saplings. There are green, yellow, and red kiwi varieties, all well-nourished from the start. I guarantee they’ll taste even better than these.”

“Oh, you’re making my mouth water,” Wang Shiye admitted, feeling tempted. “How long until they bear fruit?”

“At least two years for them to start bearing fruit on a large scale, three years,” Cao Shujie replied.

But he wasn’t in a hurry. He pointed to the empty land to the north and said, “I plan to plant improved watermelons and strawberries there. If you like them, you can enjoy them next year.”

“Wow, Little Cao, you have big ambitions!” Wang Shiye was genuinely impressed with Cao Shujie.

His plans were clear and well thought out, with both long-term development and short-term goals, much like running a business.

Curious, he asked, “Little Cao, what did you do before this? Have you always been in the orchard business?”

“No, I used to work in a research and management position at an agricultural science company in Beijing,” Cao Shujie casually replied, not going into detail.

“This place may not be big, but it’s quite refined. You must have invested a lot,” Wang Shiye observed, noticing the quality.

Cao Shujie nodded, “I invested quite a bit initially. To do it well, you have to invest. If I hadn’t exhausted my funds, I’d continue to invest more.”

“Haha, you’re doing great!” Wang Shiye said. “Do you need investment? I could invest a bit.”

Cao Shujie looked at Wang Shiye seriously, noticing the old man’s earnest expression and calm demeanor, indicating he wasn’t joking.

However, he shook his head, saying, “Grandpa Wang, I really appreciate your support!”

“But I just secured a two million loan from the bank, and they said it would be processed soon. If I need more funds later, I won’t hesitate to ask you.”

This was a polite refusal, but Wang Shiye wasn’t offended. He said, “Haha, keep up the good work. I believe in you.”

Lian Qijian and his friends didn’t rush things. When they saw Wang Shiye getting ready to load the kiwi fruit into his car, Lian Qijian even offered to help, “Sir, let me help you.”

“Thank you, young man!”

“No problem, sir, you’re too polite,” Lian Qijian replied with a smile.

“I noticed your car has local plates. Where do you live?” Wang Shiye asked casually.

Lian Qijian said, “Sir, I live in Elite Metropolis in the county town. How about you?”

“Joy Garden!” Wang Shiye exclaimed.

“Wow, that’s a great place!” Lian Qijian said with longing. “The houses in Joy Garden are spacious. The ones in our neighborhood feel a bit cramped.”

The two, despite their age difference, struck up a conversation.

Meanwhile, Cao Shujie was weighing fruit for Lian Qijian and his group, while Cheng Xiaolin stood by, jotting down notes in a notebook.

Lian Qijian and his group of five picked over 20 jin each. As promised, Cao Shujie deducted two jin as a complimentary gift, leaving a total of 113 jin. At a picking price of 28 yuan per jin, they paid 3,164 yuan.

Cheng Xiaolin, busy earlier, hadn’t noticed how much Wang Shiye paid. Now, as she collected payment from Lian Qijian’s group, she realized their kiwi fruit was selling for quite a ‘high’ price.

“Doesn’t that mean the ones we ate were wasted?” The thought crossed Cheng Xiaolin’s mind.

Then she thought, “Mengmeng even saved some for her dad. What a good child!”

As she was busy collecting money, someone at the entrance called out, “Is this Boss Cao’s Orchard?”

“I’m Cao Shujie, please come in,” Cao Shujie replied, going over to greet them.

The newcomers were a family of three. Seeing Lian Qijian’s group weighing their fruit, they felt relieved to have found the right place.

“Boss Cao, I’m the one who got your free kiwi fruit at Youth Plaza the other day,” the visitor introduced himself.

Cao Shujie was delighted. The seven boxes, over 30 jin of kiwi fruit, hadn’t been given away in vain. At least now, two customers had come on their own.

The cost was already recouped. If they enjoyed the taste and spread the word…

The visitor continued, “Boss Cao, your place was hard to find. Luckily, you mentioned Qingshi Town, Cao Family Village. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have found it.”

Cao Shujie laughed, apologizing repeatedly. “I set it up in a hurry and didn’t have time to print business cards…”

After a few words, the family of three, surnamed Zheng, took two bags and headed into the orchard.

Amidst the orchard, Zheng Huapeng inhaled the rich aroma of the fruit and said to his wife, She Wencui, “Wencui, smell how fragrant these fruits are. I wasn’t lying, was I?”

“You and your sharp nose, hurry up and pick!” She Wencui rolled her eyes at her husband and went with their daughter, Zheng Mengfeng, to pick kiwi fruit.

Grasping the kiwi fruit on the vine and pulling it off, She Wencui felt a bit regretful. “These fruits are still hard and not ready to eat. It would be great if they were ripe.”

“Don’t think that way. Good things are worth the wait. Let them ripen at home, and they’ll taste even better,” Zheng Huapeng said, shaking his head.

There were so many kiwi fruits around, all uniform in shape and size, with clean surfaces. Zheng Huapeng couldn’t help but marvel, “I said the taste was unique. Clearly, these were carefully cultivated.”

“You can’t just wait for good things to fall from the sky without putting in effort,” She Wencui replied.

Her hands moved quickly, plucking down another dozen fruits.

After loading their kiwi fruit into the car, Wang Shiye’s wife, Gan Jiaqing, admired the beautiful surroundings and suggested, “Old man, ask young Boss Cao if we can explore other areas.”

When Wang Shiye inquired, Cao Shujie readily agreed. It was no problem at all!

Lian Qijian and his group, usually spending time in the county, found the environment here refreshing and novel.

With the fruit tree saplings growing vigorously, the lush scenery was a feast for the eyes, bringing a sense of comfort.

“Let’s take a stroll too,” Lian Qijian said. After putting their kiwi fruit in the car trunk and paying, they went to explore.

The area spanned over 80 mu, plenty for them to see.

But as Cao Shujie mentioned, there was still room for improvement, with many things around needing enhancement.

After this busy wave, once he received the second loan from the bank, Cao Shujie planned to focus on refining the details.

He wasn’t afraid to spend money, as long as he achieved his desired outcome.

News of people asking for ‘Cao Shujie’s Orchard’ quickly spread in Cao Family Village.

Some privately remarked on the number of people buying kiwi fruit there, while others wondered how much he needed to charge per jin to break even, given his significant investment.

Yet some were puzzled why their orchard’s kiwi fruits were still small, like little eggs, while Cao Shujie’s grew so fast.

In the mountain orchard, Cao Shujie and his wife were still busy.

He took a moment to call his mother, asking her to prepare more dishes, saying friends would come over for a meal later.

“Boss Cao, really, there’s no need. You just keep busy, we’ll be heading out,” Wang Shiye said after their tour. Although they felt a bit tired, their spirits were high, and the fresh air was invigorating.

Upon hearing Cao Shujie’s invitation to stay for a meal, Wang Shiye politely declined and quickly left.

Lian Qijian and his group also didn’t stay after returning.

As for Zheng Huapeng and his family, although not well-acquainted, Cao Shujie still offered them a discount, rounding off the weight by one jin and two liang , leaving them with 23 jin.

She Wencui was pleased, thinking Boss Cao was savvy in business.

Cao Shujie offered to pack their purchase in a box, but Zheng Huapeng declined. “Boss Cao, we’re just buying for ourselves. No need for the fuss.”

After Zheng Huapeng’s family, two more groups arrived, purchasing a total of 38 jin of kiwi fruit after discounts.

One group noticed apples and wanted to buy some, but Cao Shujie informed them they weren’t ripe yet and wouldn’t taste good.

With this initial success, Cao Shujie was quite pleased. He wasn’t greedy, knowing more people would come later. His focus was on growing quality fruit.

Cui Jingguo and his family of four picked a total of 43.6 jin. Cao Shujie decided to waive the 3.6 jin surplus.

“Boss Cui, why buy so much?” Cao Shujie wondered aloud.

After weighing, he and his wife helped pack the fruits into boxes.

Cui Jingguo said, “Boss Cao, your kiwi fruits are really delicious. I’ll buy some more to take back as gifts.”

Hearing this, Cao Shujie felt even happier. It meant he had gained another potential customer.

As it was nearing noon, Cao Shujie didn’t let Cui Jingguo leave. Instead, he invited the whole family over to his house for lunch.

At the foot of the mountain, Cao Shujie also called his childhood friend Cao Tiemin and a few workers who were doing renovations.

The morning’s busy work resulted in selling a total of 234 jin, bringing in an income of 6,552 yuan.

This impressive income gave Cheng Xiaolin a glimpse of a different future. She felt that coming back from Beijing might have been a great decision after all.

At home, Wang Yuelan, after receiving a call from her daughter-in-law, started preparing lunch.

Thinking about how her son had mentioned that the kiwi fruits were selling well at the orchard, Wang Yuelan felt completely at ease. She had been worried that all her son’s efforts might yield nothing.

Although she didn’t yet know exactly how many jin of kiwi fruits had been sold or how much money had been made, she believed that as long as they had this good start, the rest was just a matter of time.

(The chapter ends here.)