Translator: Lonelytree
While the peanuts and soybeans were being harvested, Xiao Zhengyang led another group up the mountains.
The foot of the mountain was flat. There was plenty of sunlight and water. Xiao Lingyu had plans to develop these lands into vegetable farms.
Then, from the foot to the middle of the mountains, she would use these spaces to plant fruit trees.
‘As for the mountain tops, Xiao Lingyu decided to leave behind the original landscapes. The wild flora and fauna there already had great value.
At this moment, there were more than a hundred people in attendance. People held woodcutters, sickles, saws, shovels, hoes, and all sorts of tools. The saws ran on fossil fuels. They could cut down a large tree easily. It was much more convenient compared to the past.
The real problem was the tree roots. However, there was a solution to that problem too. With a tug from an excavator, the roots would be removed easily.
Xiao Lingyu heard that the excavators were available in the county, so she rented two of them. The rental was 1000 RMB each day. That was already equivalent to the wages of 40 people a day. However, the excavator was much faster compared to 40 people.
Since there were two excavators, the people were split into two teams. The development moved fast.
‘With more than 100 people and two excavators, it took two days of work to develop one of the mountains. The efficiency was simply too fast.
Of course, that was supported by money.
One excavator cost 1,000, and two excavators cost 2,000.
The men were paid 40 per day and the women 40 per day.
100 men and 20 women cost 4,600 for a day’s work.
Therefore, just the work alone cost 6,000 a day.
That did not include the attached meals and teas. If the efficiency was not fast, Xiao Lingyu had to consider if it was worth it to hire so many people.
Over a hundred people and two excavators completed the development of six mountains in around ten days. Then, they began to build fences, using thin iron nets to enclose the edges of the six mountains.
This was also a big project.
For the trees that were fallen, some could be used as firewood or building materials. Of course, since these were public property, Xiao Lingyu left them with the village chief. It was up to the village committee to decide whether to sell or give them away.
‘When the villagers saw the harvested wood piled up one by one, their eyes immediately lit up.
These things were public property, which meant that they could ea a sum of money when the wood was sold. In fact, a few villagers had the idea to buy the wood to build their houses.
They should be able to purchase them at a low price. Of course, some of them would rather go up the mountains to chop their own logs.
As for the firewood, the village chief had stated that they were off-limits. If the villagers had the need, they could go up the mountain to gather some. The firewood gathered by Xiao Lingyu’s team was public property.
Actually, the firewood gathered in the mountains was considered public property too. Therefore, they could only gather them for personal usage. They couldn’t sell them at the market. If they were discovered, they would be fined.
Thankfully, every household in the peach blossom village had some money in their hands now. Not many people had their eyes on the gathered firewood. After all, one would have to carry the firewood on carts to bring them to the market. It would notify the villagers. The villagers were not stupid. They
were not going to risk the fine.
Plus, Xiao Zhengyang was still hiring people. They could earn more working for the Xiao Family than selling the firewood. Therefore, the villagers knew what to do.
“Yu ‘Er, the mountains have been developed. I know you want to plant fruit trees, but they might not survive in this hot weather.” Xiao Jingyang said with some worry.
After Xiao Jingyang found out that Xiao Lingyu was responsible for these mountains, he asked Xiao Lingyu about the use of these mountains. That was how he knew Xiao Lingyu was going to use them to plant fruit trees.
It was not that it was impossible to plant trees in summer, but when planting trees, one had to be careful. The young shoots needed to be well-protected.
Xiao Lingyu smiled and said, “It’s true that planting trees in the summer is difficult, but it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. With moist soil, good water, and an irrigation system, the trees should thrive.
“We need to pay more attention than usual. I know the season isn’t right, but I’ve already waited for half a year. I can’t wait anymore.”
Xiao Jingyang smiled and said, “Haha, I know. What you want now is efficiency.” Otherwise, why would she hire so many people?
The mountain development, the peanut and soybean harvest, almost basically everyone in Taoyuan Village had been hired by his eldest niece.
Xiao Lingyu said with a smile, “Dad, uncle, from tomorrow onward, please help me dig pits. First, we will plant our village’s specialty, peaches. Then, we’ll continue with other fruit trees like oranges, pomelos, pears, plums, and persimmons.
“After that, I want to try to plant some northern fruits like apples.”
Xiao Jingyang was shocked. He asked, “Yu ‘Er, do we need to plant so many trees? How are we going to sell them in the future?”
The six mountains might sound like a lot, but the amount of usable space was actually limited. Normally, a fruit farmer would plant one kind of fruit tree so that they could find a large specialized retailer.
However, Xiao Lingyu planned to plant different kinds of fruit trees. The problem was they would produce too few specific fruits for a specialized fruit retailer, but they would produce too much for sales at the shop.
Xiao Lingyu said very seriously, “Uncle, I’m planning to take the high-end market route. We’ll have many fruits, but they will be few in quantity. I plan to sell them myself. I might not even need a large retailer.”
These fruits would cause a sensation in the future, just like the strawberries from before. The strawberries were sold at a high price. These fruits wouldn’t be cheap too.
Most importantly, Xiao Lingyu wanted to expand the Taoyuan Village brand across the country.
Xiao Jingyang was speechless.
However, he knew that his eldest niece was someone who was meant for big things. She must have thought about it carefully.
Although he didn’t know how sensational his second brother’s vegetables and strawberries were, he knew from words of mouth that they were sold at a high price.
Six Mus of vegetables had earned hundreds of thousands.
Six Mus of strawberries had earned millions.
Xiao Lingyu also paid five million to contract the mountains in Taoyuan Village.
These numbers were not something he could imagine.
Therefore, while he had some doubts about Xiao Lingyu’s plan, he didn’t voice them.
Then, Xiao Jingyang asked again, “Yu ‘Er, we know how to plant peaches, but what about the other fruit trees?”
‘There were no specialized technicians in this field in the Peach Blossom Village.
Now that Xiao Lingyu had planned to start a large-scale fruit farm, she needed some experts.
Xiao Lingyu, “…” She knew that she could use the spring water to help the fruit trees grow, but she forgot how she was going to explain that to the outsiders.
However, before Xiao Lingyu could say anything, Gong Tianhao said, “Uncle, how about I invite two fruit tree experts to help us?”
Xiao Jingyang’s eyes lit up, and he said happily, “Oh, Tianhao. Can you do that?”
Gong Tianhao nodded and said, “Yes, of course.”
“Well, that’s great,” Xiao Jingyang said excitedly. “It’s great to have some experts to guide us.”
Xiao Lingyy, “….” Who asked for his help?4
