Time Travel: Volume 1! Starting from a Small Mountain Village

"Mr. Wang, was it you who recommended me to attend university?" Long Lifan looked at Wang Hongtao, a hint of gratitude flashing in her eyes. Although she ultimately did not accept the spot, she deeply appreciated Wang Hongtao's kindness.

"Ok!"

Wang Hongtao nodded solemnly. "I think it's a waste of your talent and drive to stay in the countryside. You deserve a broader stage to showcase yourself, so I recommended you to higher authorities, hoping you could pursue further studies at university and have a brighter future. I just didn't expect you to refuse..."

Even now, Wang Hongtao's face is still full of regret and confusion. These days, going to university is an opportunity many people dream of, and he simply can't understand why Long Zhiqing would make such a choice.

“Long Zhiqing, why don’t you reconsider? There’s still time!” Wang Hongtao said, still unwilling to give up.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Wang, you've really gone to so much trouble."

Long Lifan looked at Wang Hongtao, her heart filled with gratitude, yet also with a touch of helplessness. "Being able to go to university has always been my dream. But right now, there are just too many things to do in the village, and I can't leave."

Long Lifan sighed. She couldn't very well say that she was still waiting for the college entrance examination to be reinstated in a few years, so she could only use the busy affairs in the village as an excuse to cover up her true feelings.

Little did they know that Lin Guodong and his companions would interpret these words in a completely different way. They hadn't expected that Long Zhiqing would remain unmoved by the repeated invitations for the sake of their village, and they felt both happy and guilty.

Xu Tiansheng: What did I just hear? Old Wang actually recommended Long, the educated youth, to go to university. If Long leaves, what will happen to the machinery factory? Thinking of this, a hint of resentment appeared in his eyes as he looked at Wang Hongtao.

Seeing the determination in Long Lifan's eyes, Wang Hongtao knew that further persuasion would be futile, so he stopped mentioning the matter of going to university. He thought to himself, it was truly rare to see a young educated woman like Long so dedicated to the development of the village.

So he turned to Wu Tianmu and said earnestly, "Little Wu, we must give Long Zhiqing our full support for the village. Look, we must give him a good discount."

“Of course, since Long Zhiqing has gone to so much trouble for the village, we can’t be stingy.” Wu Tianmu quickly replied, “As for the chicks, we’ll stick to the price from last time, no price increase whatsoever.”

“However, Mr. Wang, Dongwan Village is also planning to purchase piglets from the Landrace breed this time, and we still need to discuss the price. As you know, we used to sell local black pigs, and I'm really unsure about the price of Landrace pigs. Why don't you give me some advice, Mr. Wang?” With that, Wu Tianmu threw the question back to Wang Hongtao.

"this…"

Upon hearing this, Wang Hongtao frowned, his mind racing with calculations. Currently, the price of a local black pig is around 12 to 15 yuan. The Landrace pig, undoubtedly superior in breed, should logically command a higher price. However, the risks of raising Landrace pigs shouldn't be underestimated.

Perhaps raising Landrace pigs isn't difficult for Long, a educated youth, but if the goal is to promote their adoption in the future, a fair and appropriate price must be set. The price shouldn't be arbitrarily increased simply because Long has experience and therefore less risk. Such an approach would not only be unfair but also detrimental to the future promotion of Landrace pigs.

Wang Hongtao pondered how to weigh the pros and cons. Then he tentatively suggested, "How about we set it at 10 yuan?"

Upon hearing Wang Hongtao's offer of ten yuan per piglet, Lin Guodong and his companions almost burst out laughing. This price was an unexpected and delightful surprise for them. They exchanged glances, their eyes filled with joy and excitement, secretly glad they had brought Long Zhiqing along. "Look," they thought, "we haven't even started formal negotiations yet, and the other party has already offered such a favorable price because of Long Zhiqing!"

However, Long Lifan wasn't as happy as they were. She frowned slightly, clearly not satisfied with the price. "I think ten yuan is still too high."

She spoke slowly, her tone earnest: "I am well aware of the risks of raising Landrace pigs. That's why many communes below are still observing. We can't just look at the immediate benefits; we also have to consider the long term."

As she spoke, Long Lifan shook her head and looked at Wang Hongtao with a determined gaze: "Old Wang, I know you've been working tirelessly on your research, all to promote Changbai pigs so that the masses can have meat to eat. I admire your dedication. But you also know that raising Changbai pigs is much riskier than raising local black pigs. Although the bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish, we also have to consider the risk tolerance of the villagers below."

After a pause, Long Lifan continued, "Mr. Wang, I have a suggestion. Our pig farm in Dongwan Village could cooperate with the agricultural trade station to use our village's pig farm as an experimental base for Landrace pigs. This way, we can reduce our risks and also accumulate some experience for the promotion of Landrace pigs. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Hongtao's eyes lit up, clearly showing great interest in the suggestion. After a moment's thought, he asked, "How would we cooperate?"

“Since it’s a collaboration, it’s all about a win-win situation.” Long Lifan spoke eloquently, her eyes sparkling with wisdom. “The farmers’ market wants to promote Changbai pigs, while our Dongwan Village wants to raise Changbai pigs. In essence, our goals are aligned.”

“Mr. Wang, I know you’re confident because I was successful raising those two Landrace pigs last year. But to be honest, that was a small number, and some of the data wasn’t accurate or comprehensive enough. If you could lower the price a bit more, we could buy more piglets and raise them on a larger scale.”

"In this way, we can not only obtain more practical information about Landrace pig farming, but also accumulate more experience for future promotion. This is beneficial to both of us."

"Then can I have my students stay in your Dongwan Village permanently?" Wang Hongtao pondered for a moment, feeling that Long Lifan's words made a lot of sense, and made the suggestion.

Since Dongwan Village was to be used as a pilot site, someone should be sent to accompany them. Therefore, it was decided that Wang Yuan should be stationed in Dongwan Village so that he could directly obtain more first-hand information about Changbai pig breeding, which would be of great benefit to their research.

Secondly, he likes Long Zhiqing more and more the more he looks at her. If he sends A Yuan to Dongwan Village, they might just find a good match!

"No problem! Welcome, welcome!" Long Lifan replied with a smile.

Upon hearing Wang Hongtao's suggestion, Long Lifan was secretly delighted. She wasn't afraid of Wang Hongtao sending people at all! On the contrary, she couldn't wait for Wang Yuan to come to the Dongwan Brigade.

In this way, she can leave any troublesome matters to Wang Yuan to handle, which will make her life much easier. Moreover, there are always some dirty and tiring jobs at the pig farm, and now that Wang Yuan is there, she can delegate those jobs to him.

He can help with the work, and as Wang Hongtao's student, Wang Yuan must also know about breeding techniques. Why not have someone like that help out?

Hehe, isn't he just a complete tool?