"You said your unit wants to buy a vehicle?"
After discussing it in a meeting, Yan Xue went to the bureau the next day to see Qu Mingli.
All their subordinate units fell under Qu Mingli's jurisdiction, so for major matters, they had to consult him first.
Hearing his question, she nodded. "Yes, we want to purchase a vehicle specifically for transportation."
However, the Cultivation Center currently only sold fungal strains within their own county and Baisong County, with an annual output of just tens of thousands of bottles—far from enough to justify buying a vehicle.
If it were anyone else, they might assume Yan Xue was getting ahead of herself after achieving some success, indulging in unnecessary extravagance.
But Qu Mingli knew Yan Xue well. He understood she wasn’t the type to act without reason, so he didn’t rush to comment.
Sure enough, Yan Xue soon handed him a map. "I’ve already consulted with several forestry bureaus in towns cultivating wood ear mushrooms. This shows their production volumes and sales coverage."
It was a provincial map, meticulously marked with different colors and lines indicating each town’s sales range.
The widest coverage was shaded with diagonal lines, stretching all the way to the provincial capital. The annotation at the bottom read: Chengshui Town.
Yan Xue tapped the map with her pen. "Currently, five towns’ forestry bureaus are engaged in wood ear cultivation. Chengshui started the earliest, with the most stable output and sales—around 100,000 jin annually."
She pointed to two other locations. "Next are Donggou Town and Baisong County’s Wugang Town. They’ve only been cultivating for three years, with an annual output of 70,000 to 80,000 jin. But Wugang adopted the bottle-cultivation method this year, which allows two harvests annually, so their numbers may rise further."
The map also marked their sales ranges, slightly smaller than Chengshui’s but still significant. The last two were another town in Baisong County and Liuhu Town, which had just started this year.
"If all five towns reach full cultivation after three years, their combined annual output will exceed 400,000 jin. But all the areas easily accessible by rail transport have already been covered."
Yan Xue had even highlighted the main railway routes. "The remaining areas require multiple transfers, and some aren’t even convenient for rail transport—yet they account for nearly half the potential market."
Indeed, there were several blank spots on the map, particularly in two distant cities.
"Rail shipments also have speed limitations. You have to wait until enough cargo is gathered for a full train car, which can sometimes take ten to twenty days for delivery."
Yan Xue looked at Qu Mingli. "So I was thinking—what if we bought a vehicle to cover these gaps within the province? It’d still be more convenient than expanding outside the province."
The biggest advantage of road transport over rail was flexibility—faster, adaptable routes, and the ability to replenish stock anytime.
Qu Mingli understood, but he still studied the map thoughtfully. "You’re suggesting the center should purchase this vehicle?"
"Yes, the center would own it, and we’d charge the towns transportation fees," Yan Xue said. "Otherwise, no single town would be willing to foot the bill, nor would they need such large transport capacity."
At the time, the most common transport trucks were the Nanjing-produced Yuejin and the FAW-produced Jiefang, with load capacities of 3 and 4 tons respectively.
Even accounting for wood ear mushrooms being lightweight and pressure-sensitive, a single truck could still carry several thousand jin. No town would invest in one just for their own shipments—especially since trucks were expensive, costing upwards of 10,000 yuan, and required hard-to-obtain purchase quotas.
But if the center owned it, everyone could rent it, eliminating transport concerns.
With distribution channels secured, the towns could expand production without hesitation, and new towns might even join in.
So, in Yan Xue’s eyes, there was no such thing as market saturation—the entire country was their potential market.
Her goal was to help these towns "grow the pie" when they thought they’d hit a limit. In doing so, her own slice would naturally expand as well.
On the surface, the center would bear the cost, but with transport fees and increased sales, they’d come out ahead—even turning a profit.
Qu Mingli could do the math. Watching Yan Xue lay out her plan with such clarity, he remarked, "You’ve been preparing this for a while, haven’t you? The data’s incredibly detailed."
If they asked the town forestry bureaus now, even they might not remember past figures this accurately.
This young woman, as usual, had likely mapped everything out in advance, waiting for the right moment to unveil her next move.
When Yan Xue just smiled without answering, Qu Mingli joked, "Be honest—how many years ahead have you planned?"
That depended on whether she’d still be involved. Yan Xue laughed modestly. "Not that far ahead. I’m just taking it step by step."
But from pilot projects to expanded production to establishing the Cultivation Center, hadn’t she always had the next step ready before finishing the current one?
Compared to her technical expertise in wood ear cultivation, Qu Mingli found her strategic mind and foresight even more remarkable.
He folded the map. "Alright, I’ll bring this up with Secretary Tang. I’ll let you know once we have a decision."
Technically, the center could decide on its own—it wasn’t the bureau’s money. But in this era of scarce resources, even buying a bicycle required a ticket, let alone a truck, which needed a unit quota.
Of course, a major bureau like theirs could secure a quota without much trouble. After hearing Qu Mingli’s explanation, Secretary Tang grasped Yan Xue’s intent.
Within a few days, he called her. "Is the Jiefang CA10 acceptable? If so, send 12,000 yuan to the bureau."
At the time, 12,000 yuan was no small sum—an ordinary worker’s annual salary was only 500 to 600 yuan.
Yan Xue agreed. "I’ll bring the payment to the bureau soon." Then she added, "There’s one more thing—could you help us find a driver?"
Back then, driving was a specialized skill, mostly learned in the military.
Since Yan Xue had proven her ability to generate revenue, Secretary Tang didn’t refuse. About a week later, a 26- or 27-year-old ex-soldier reported to the center.
But the truck hadn’t arrived yet. It took nearly another month before the Jiefang CA10 was delivered by rail.
At the time, Liu Weiguo had just returned from the provincial capital. With nothing to do, he was visiting the center when he heard the truck had arrived. Eagerly, he rolled up his sleeves to go take a look.
Compared to later trucks with load capacities of over ten tons, the Jiefang CA10 wasn’t particularly large—a military-green body with a slightly rounded front, featuring a protruding nose.
Due to the backward steelmaking technology in the country, the steel production had always been low. As a result, the truck beds were not made of iron but of wood.
However, in an era when most units still used horse - drawn carriages for transportation, this Jiefang CA10 truck was definitely a rare and valuable item.
After everyone inspected the goods at the station, the driver got into the cab and quickly started the engine, preparing to drive all the way back to the center.
The problem was that there were not enough seats in the truck. Since Yan Xue took a seat inside, Liu Weiguo had to stand in the back truck bed, becoming the most eye - catching guy on the whole street during the journey.
He seemed to enjoy it quite a bit. After getting off, he walked around the truck and said, "It seems we don't have to rely solely on the railway lines from now on."
Then he sighed with emotion, "Back then when you said that one day we'd be using trucks to transport goods, we didn't believe it. Who would have thought it would actually come true."
"Yes," Zhou Wenhui and the others also came out to have a look when they saw the truck arrive. "It's only been a few years, and we're already using trucks for transportation."
When the four of them first met and held a meeting at Yan Xue's place, they probably never imagined that one day this fungus business would grow so big.
When Liu Weiguo first tried to sell fungus for the pilot project, he probably also never thought that one day his footsteps would cover the whole province.
Five years had passed, and many things had changed. But one thing they were sure of was that they were all getting better, following Yan Xue's lead.
Qi Fang came after work in the evening, bringing his chubby little son and a can of paint.
True to his word, as soon as the weather got warm this year, he removed the child seat from his bicycle and let his son sit on the front crossbar.
The little guy seemed to enjoy sitting on the front crossbar. As soon as they entered the cultivation center, he immediately rang the bike bell to greet everyone.
"Hey, here comes our Qi Yanyu," Liu Weiguo reached out and lifted him off the bike. "Look, what's that?"
The little guy was six years old (by the traditional Chinese age - counting method) and was no longer used to being carried. He was about to struggle a bit, but when he saw the truck, he froze on the spot.
Liu Weiguo immediately carried him over and placed him in front of the truck. "Well, do you want to take a ride?"
Little Qi Yanyu immediately nodded. Then Liu Weiguo asked him, "Do you miss Uncle Weiguo? Think it over before you answer."
Hearing this, Zhou Wenhui couldn't help but give her husband a sideways look. "How old are you? Can't you be more serious?"
But Liu Weiguo insisted on getting an answer from the little guy. "What's wrong with asking? Our Yanyu is very close to me, right, Yanyu?"
As a result, the little guy looked up at him and suddenly asked, "Can Uncle Weiguo drive it?"
Well, just like his father, he knew how to ask tricky questions. Liu Weiguo was immediately at a loss for words. "Uncle Weiguo can find someone to drive it for you."
But their relationship took a bit of a hit. In the end, the driver got into the truck again and took the little guy for a spin.
After the little guy came back satisfied, Qi Fang opened the paint can, picked up a brush, and started painting words on the truck bed.
"Are you going to put your business card on the truck?" Liu Weiguo saw that he started with "XX Province, Jiangcheng City, Changshan County Fungus Strain Cultivation Center".
Qi Fang just grunted in response. Liu Weiguo immediately turned to Yan Xue and said, "Your idea is great. Wherever this truck goes, people will know about us."
It was even more effective than handing out business cards. Even the dogs on the road would know they had a cultivation center.
Yan Xue learned this idea from others. It was a pity that there were no tape recorders in this era; otherwise, she would have recorded a message to play along the way.
She smiled and said, "If you want to use it, you can paste your own information on one side, but you have to leave the other side for us."
"Sure thing. Otherwise, Qi Fang would have painted in vain," Liu Weiguo readily agreed and exclaimed that he had learned something new.
However, in Chengshui Town, the demand for this truck was the lowest because the fungus there was easy to sell, and they had had a fixed sales channel for five years.
So after the truck was put into use, Yan Xue didn't specifically inform Chengshui Town but instead called Zhuang Qixiang first.
Compared with Chengshui Town, Liuhu Town was really lagging behind. Everything there had to start from scratch.
It was okay when they sold the first batch in May. After all, the products were cheap, and the fungus from other towns hadn't hit the market yet, so they really made some money.
This made all the forest farms that had drawn the bottle - cultivation method breathe a sigh of relief. Just like in Wugang Town, they quickly placed orders with Yan Xue for the autumn harvest.
But in June, when the fungus from log cultivation came onto the market, the salesperson from the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town was dumbfounded. No matter where he asked, every place already had a supplier.
For those with longer - term cooperation, they basically started contacting and asking for the quantity even before the products were harvested. Of course, there were also some units that said they could buy from them, but the conditions were clear: the discount had to be big enough, and the kickbacks had to be generous enough.
The salesperson didn't dare to make a decision casually, so he went back to report to the bureau. Zhuang Qixiang then specifically called Yan Xue to inquire about the sales scope of the other towns.
After this inquiry, everyone in the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town fell silent. Silently, they cursed Secretary Hu in their hearts for delaying them for two whole years.
If they had started growing fungus two years ago instead of focusing on wild vegetables, back then, only Chengshui Town had a fixed market, and they could have snatched a share of it.
Now, the situation was the opposite. The cultivation center was in their own county, but they were the last to start, even later than the two towns in Baisong County, and they couldn't break into the market.
Originally, the two forest farms that had drawn the log - cultivation method were secretly happy, but now they all looked miserable. What should they do? They couldn't let all the fungus go to waste, could they?
The situation was completely different from when they drew the lots. Seeing this, the secretary of a forest farm that had drawn the bottle - cultivation method couldn't help but say, "Why don't you switch to bottle - cultivation with us next year?"
But what about the already - built fungus farms?
Just leave them empty and not use them?
Wouldn't it cost money to build new cultivation rooms?
It was obvious that this was said out of schadenfreude. Someone immediately gave him a look and said, "Do you think you won't be affected at all?"
If they could use the bottle - cultivation method, didn't Wugang Town use it too? Once other towns found that this kind of fungus was also easy to sell, wouldn't they also start growing it?
In the end, it would still come down to competing for sales channels, and they were still at a disadvantage because they started late.
The person who had made the schadenfreude comment immediately fell silent and continued to curse Secretary Hu in his heart for being so irresponsible.
Zhuang Qixiang waited until they had finished discussing and were completely at a loss before he said, "Let's sell our products in other places. We don't have to compete with them here."
They did want to sell in other places, but they needed a vehicle. For some places, it wasn't just a matter of whether they could transfer the goods; it was also a matter of whether the railway could reach there.
Everyone murmured in their hearts but didn't say it directly. However, even without them saying it, Zhuang Qixiang could guess what they were thinking. "The cultivation center just bought a Jiefang truck recently, which can help us with transportation."
There was a moment of silence in the meeting room, and then everyone seemed to come back to life suddenly. Whether they were engaged in log cultivation or bottle cultivation, everyone heaved a sigh of relief.
"The cultivation center really thought things through. They specifically bought a truck. Otherwise, where could we sell these black fungus?"
"It's also because Secretary Zhuang has a good relationship with the cultivation center. That's why we got this good opportunity."
The atmosphere became harmonious again, showing the beautiful image of the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town, united, hard - working, and positive.
Anyway, this time when the salespeople from the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town went out, they didn't go anywhere else. They headed straight to distant places that hadn't been visited by salespeople from other towns.
When they went there and said they wanted to sell black fungus, the local shops and supply and marketing cooperatives were a bit confused at first. After all, the city wasn't near mountains and didn't produce much of these things.
But after they showed the samples and the prices were really reasonable, people gradually placed orders with them, filling up most of the truck.
On the day when the truck set off to Liuhu Town to load the goods, it was really eye - catching. The simple - minded locals had never seen a truck with advertisements printed on the truck bed.
The people from the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town had never seen it either. They were really shocked. As soon as they heard that they could also put up their own advertisements on one side, they immediately found several large pieces of paper, wrote the advertisements, and pasted them on.
Then the truck, with advertisements on both sides and the hopes of the entire Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town, drove out of Liuhu, out of Changshan, and then out of Jiangcheng City.
It attracted even more attention than in the county. After all, people in the county knew about the black fungus strain cultivation center in Changshan, but not many people outside knew about it.
Whenever the truck stopped on the way, whether it was to refuel or to find a place to eat, someone would always ask, "What's this thing you've got?"
The driver had been specifically instructed before leaving. When someone asked, he was supposed to say, "There are black fungus cultivated with the strains from our center on the truck. They are artificially cultivated."
If they were asked why the two sides of the advertisement were different, they were supposed to say that their center only sold strains and taught cultivation techniques, and the black fungus was grown in another base.
When they arrived at the pre - arranged shop, even before they started unloading the goods, someone noticed. "The Black Fungus Cultivation Base in Liuhu Town, Changshan County? We're starting to sell black fungus here?"
In this era, there wasn't much entertainment. Who didn't like to see something new and exciting? The news spread before the goods were even put on display.
Originally, the shop wasn't planning to put the goods out so soon. But seeing that many people were asking, after weighing and confirming that the quantity was correct, they first took out a bag and put it on display.
Anyway, the prices were already set. They could sell this bag first, and store the rest in the warehouse and send them to other branches.
To be honest, at first, there were more onlookers than buyers. After all, it was a new product, and people didn't know if it was good or not.
But the price was really reasonable. If people couldn't afford a catty, they could still afford an ounce. After soaking it, it would expand a lot.
Then people started to come back for more, especially those who had relatives in other cities and had been given some black fungus by their relatives before and had tried it.
The people from the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town patiently waited for a while and finally received subsequent additional orders. They sent out a second truck, which was fully loaded this time.
Now they were completely at ease. Because the advertisement on the truck was so eye - catching that even a passing dog would notice it. The cultivation center also received two calls from people inquiring about black fungus cultivation.
Regardless of whether these people would actually start cultivating in the end, the fact that they called meant that the advertisement of the cultivation center was a success, and it had gained some popularity.
Every time she received a call, Yan Xue patiently and meticulously introduced the two existing cultivation methods on their side and the technical support they provided, and invited the callers to visit the center.
After she hung up the phone, Lang Yue'e pushed a glass of water in front of her. "Have a couple of sips quickly. You've been talking for a long time."
Yan Xue was really a bit thirsty from talking. She thanked her and picked up the glass. "When our scale expands in the future, we'll hire a customer service person to handle the calls specifically."
Lang Yue'e laughed at this. "Isn't this already big? Now the whole province knows about our strain cultivation center."
But in reality, only two counties under Jiangcheng City had actually started cultivating. And there were suitable places for black fungus cultivation all over the three northeastern provinces. Yan Xue just smiled and didn't say a word.
Lang Yue'e knew that she had both ambition and a plan. She just wouldn't say anything casually until the right time. So she didn't ask any more questions. "Are you still going to pick up Qi Yanyu today?"
Little Qi Yanyu was six years old in the traditional Chinese way of counting age. Although he already knew as many characters as a first - grade primary school student, officially, he was still a school - age child who hadn't started school. After discussing with Qi Fang, Yan Xue sent him to the preschool class of Lin No. 1 Primary School nearby.
Whether he learned anything or not was secondary. The main thing was that he needed to play with his peers. He couldn't always stay at home with the Second Old Lady, who was getting old.
Normally, Qi Fang would ride his bike to pick him up after work. But these days, Qi Fang had gone to the provincial capital to participate in an exchange meeting of the provincial tractor factory, so it was Yan Xue's turn.
It was hard to tell whether little Qi Yanyu would rather see his mother or would rather ride in his father's bike. Yan Xue smiled and said, "Qi Fang should be back today, but I'll still go to pick him up."
When Yan Xue arrived, about half of the children on the small playground had already left. The other half were playing while waiting for their family members to come and pick them up.
Her little one was among them. He was quite popular, with a group of little boys and girls surrounding him, wanting to play with him.
Little Qi Yanyu accepted everyone's invitations. At such a young age, he was very good at being diplomatic. His little peach - blossom - like eyes would narrow with each little scheme.
When Yan Xue went over to pick him up and leave, the kids were really reluctant to let him go. They almost followed them. Especially two little girls, who kept holding onto him.
It was good that the little guy was still young. Otherwise, Yan Xue would have to consider whether to send him to a "Male Virtue Class" taught by his father.
Qi Fang had a famous saying: "I don't know any female comrades." But her little one was just the opposite. He smiled at everyone.
When the mother and son got home, the Second Old Lady was cooking in the kitchen. She was moving around quietly. When she saw them, she put a finger in front of her lips.
The little boy had "Great - grandma" on the tip of his tongue, but he covered his mouth with his little hand. After a while, he whispered under his hand, "What's going on?"
"Your father is back and is busy." The old lady came over, took his little schoolbag, and led him directly to her room.
Yan Xue went in to take a look. She was a bit surprised that Qi Fang was busy as soon as he got back.
The man at the writing desk was writing vigorously with his back to the door. He didn't even hear her open the door. His bag that he had taken when he went out was still on the kang beside him.
This wasn't like him. With his personality, he would usually put his things away as soon as he entered the door. The fact that he hadn't put his bag away meant that he was in such a hurry that he didn't have time.
Yan Xue didn't make a sound to disturb him. She gently closed the door again. When it was time for dinner, she called him but got no response, so she sent a meal to him.
The dishes were all rolled up in pancakes by the old lady and could be eaten right away. She nudged Qi Fang's arm, indicating that he shouldn't forget to eat, and then turned around and went out without saying a word.
Qi Fang was still busy until it was time to go to bed at night. After thinking for a while, Yan Xue still didn't interrupt his train of thought. She washed up and got into the quilt by herself.
She was just about to fall asleep in a daze when Qi Fang over there seemed to notice. He came over and turned off the light, then took out a flashlight and continued his work.
Yan Xue slept until the rooster crowed outside. Only then did she feel someone approaching beside her and hugging her in his arms.
She squinted her eyes and asked, "Are you all done?" What she met was the man's gaze, which was even brighter than usual after staying up all night.
Qi Fang gave a soft "hmm". Seeing that she was awake, his peach - blossom eyes looked over, and he reached out his hand to gently stroke the corner of her lazy eyes.
Yan Xue could clearly feel the implication in his action, and even more so, she could feel something that had been absent for several days but still had a strong presence and was ready to go.
She didn't know how he could be more energetic after staying up all night. Anyway, the thin morning light filtered through the curtains, casting a hazy and ambiguous veil over the whole room, and also making the rising passion so natural.
After a while, Yan Xue let go of the short hair under her hand. She felt the man wipe his lips and lean over to her ear. "Xiaoxue, I've figured out how to deal with that last control valve."
There were still metaphorical fireworks exploding in Yan Xue's mind. At first, she didn't react. By the time she realized what he was talking about, he had already made a determined advance.
