Reborn in 1994, escaping from marriage and going sea fishing, I won!

Liu Yibang looked at the crowd and said, "As village cadres, you are all well-known in the village for your insights, knowledge, and Party spirit. Perhaps my arrival has disrupted the original balance in the village, but let me be honest with you. I am not here to compete with anyone, but to sincerely do something practical for the local people."

These people were not stupid. When they heard this, they immediately understood. He was sent down from above and would leave sooner or later. He would not occupy the position of village party secretary forever.

Thinking of this, Xu Zhiqiang felt relieved and asked, "Mayor Liu, what can we do in this remote and poor village?"

Liu Yibang took out the plan he had written yesterday and handed it to everyone, "Take a look... Let's discuss it together."

After reading it, Xu Zhiqiang was the first to raise an objection, "This is nonsense! How can we cultivate pearls without the ocean?"

Others also took it and took a look. Although they were not as direct as Xu Zhiqiang, they were also not optimistic.

Liu Yibang smiled slightly. "Hearing is believing, seeing is believing. Let's put it this way. Director Xu and the veteran Ma Baojian, after lunch, we will go to the county town and take the train to the Provincial Capital Animal Husbandry College to find Professor Su, who specializes in this research."

"Going to the provincial capital?" Xu Zhiqiang was stunned. "Then the round trip..."

Liu Yibang chuckled and said, "I'll pay for it, right? Just think of it as me inviting everyone out for a walk and broaden their horizons. Technology is developing rapidly these days, so let's work hard and plan a way out for the next generation."

"Our area is full of saline-alkali land, but we don't lack water. We can grow some salt-tolerant plants and raise sheep and cattle. Over the course of a year, if every household raises a few more sheep and a couple more cows, the extra income will be considerable."

Tang Jianguo muttered quietly, "This... the expenses are not small!"

Liu Yibang couldn't say he would pay for it himself. "The school might sponsor some salt-tolerant plant seeds, and each household will get some. If the risk is too high, you could start by raising a sheep. Most households in the village do that anyway. Once they see the economic benefits, the villagers will naturally be willing to spend money to buy them."

After a brief meeting, Liu Yibang took Xu Zhiqiang, Ma Baojian, and Chen Feng on a train to the provincial capital that afternoon. They found a guesthouse to stay in, and the next day, Liu Yibang and the others went to the school to visit Professor Su.

Professor Su attached great importance to the elder brother of his financial sponsor. "Mayor Liu, welcome to our inspection."

The school has achieved successful experience in cultivating seafood by storing water on saline-alkali land in its experimental fields, but when it comes to promoting it outside, no one believes it.

Some people rightly say: "If we can raise seafood here, then what is the point of having the sea?"

Professor Su was furious at this. Those in his unit, jealous of his ample funding, were constantly complaining.

Liu Yibang smiled and said, "Professor Su, you're so polite. Our village has a lot of saline-alkali land, so we'd like to invite your team to Baxiang Village to promote seafood farming. We can also plant suitable salt-tolerant plants for livestock breeding based on local conditions."

Professor Su had already received information from Liu Meilan and was naturally happy to help. "Okay, I'll take you to see the results."

Led by Professor Su and several students, Liu Yibang and his colleagues arrived at the experimental base. They were surprised to see prawns, sea bass, blue crabs, and salmon.

Xu Zhiqiang reached out, dipped his hand in the water, and then put it in his mouth to taste it, "Oh, it's really salty."

"Ah?" Liu Yibang was stunned. "Director Xu, how can you taste it with your mouth?"

"Why can't I taste it?" Xu Zhiqiang asked. "This is the water used to farm seafood. If you can't even taste it, how can you eat the food that was farmed there? Besides, I only dipped my finger in it a little bit. It won't kill me."

I have to say that what Xu Zhiqiang said makes some sense.

"If we really want to farm them, we have to adjust the water quality to a level suitable for seafood farming. It's not that simple. This is where the seeds are raised. When the weather warms up and the seedlings grow up, we can move them into the pond."

"If you really want to do this, I'll apply for an experimental base for your village. We'll cover all the expenses, but if you need to contribute, your village must cooperate. If there's any profit, the school and the village will each split it half."

Xu Zhiqiang touched his chin and asked, "We'll split the profits in half. Is this the way it's going to be this year, or will it always be like this?"

Professor Su replied, "If you were buying seedlings and feed from us, you wouldn't have to share. But this year, you don't want to take the risk, and our costs are high, so we have to recoup them. Actually, it's not just about the money; the most important thing is that we can teach you the technology."

Xu Zhiqiang looked at the lively fish and shrimp, thought for a moment and said, "Mayor Liu, can this be done?"

Liu Yibang nodded and said, "Of course I can do it. If you succeed, it will provide our descendants with another way to make money. If you fail, you will just lose some energy, which is not a big loss in reality."

After discussing the project with several members of the village committee, Xu Zhiqiang agreed it was feasible. That same day, he applied to the university for permission to establish an experimental base, which would include not only seafood farming but also livestock grass farming.

Unexpectedly, they accomplished such a big thing in just one day.

Liu Yibang treated everyone to a meal in the provincial capital. "We all know that everything we do involves risks, but if we don't change and use science and technology to increase our income, our descendants will continue to suffer poverty on this land!"

"If everyone was poor before, and everything was the same, that would be fine! But now it's different. Eastern coastal cities, like my hometown of Shenzhen, are developing rapidly, with tall buildings everywhere. The standard of living is also very high."

"I've also inquired about it. As long as you can raise seafood, you can also raise sea pearls. Once we're ready here, we can ship some small pearl oysters from the south and give it a try."

"Changes like this can't be accomplished overnight; they require everyone's concerted efforts. If everyone is unwilling and drags their feet, then even if I gather more resources, I won't be able to lead everyone."

"So I thought, if we work together for two years, maybe we can succeed! Then the young men and women in the family won't have to go out to work. They can earn money right here at home!"

Liu Yibang filled the glasses of wine for each village cadre. He understood that when dealing with town leaders, he needed to be respectful and strive to secure valuable resources so they could present themselves to their superiors. And when dealing with villagers, he needed not only to show them the benefits of future change but also to be open and honest with them. Only in this way could he unite all possible forces and overcome challenges together.

Xu Zhiqiang picked up his wine glass and said, "Mayor Liu, I was narrow-minded before, always feeling resentful that I didn't become the village party secretary! But now I've given up. If I became the village party secretary, the most I could do was get more fertilizer from the town, but it wouldn't fundamentally improve the situation in the village. But you can!"