Chapter 19 Leasing of Land

  More than half an hour later, Xiao Ping's bag had twenty stacks of 100-yuan bills. Although it was more convenient to use cash checks, he still felt that these stacks of banknotes looked more satisfying. However, this also created a problem. On the way to the bank to deposit the money, Xiao Ping thought everyone looked like a robber and held his bag tightly until all the money was deposited before letting out a sigh of relief.

  The account suddenly had an additional deposit of 200,000 yuan. Xiao Ping was overjoyed and beaming with delight. However, when he thought that it could have been 300,000 yuan, he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. Fortunately, Xiao Ping has always been an optimistic and open-minded person, so he quickly stopped dwelling on the matter and instead consoled himself: Since I've already given it away, let's just consider it a gift. After all, there are still many other participants left. Giving away such an expensive gift with ease doesn't make me look particularly generous?

  Although he thought so, Xiao Ping did not plan to sell all the other Yeshan roots immediately. Everything is valuable because of its rarity, and that's why wild mountain ginseng is expensive. If Xiao Ping were to take out dozens of wild mountain ginseng to sell at once, the price would quickly plummet, and he wouldn't do something that would undermine his own interests.

  This was the most Xiaoping had ever earned, but he didn't plan to buy jade. After absorbing several pieces of jade, the Alchemy Cauldron could now produce ten drops of spiritual liquid at a time, which was temporarily sufficient. At present, Xiaoping's main problem to solve was the issue of land, which had become the main factor limiting his development.

  Xiao Ping didn't have any reliable connections, and on his own, he couldn't find a suitable piece of land. Fortunately, Xiao Ping's good friend Zhou Jun had been running a transportation business outside and had accumulated many connections, so he entrusted this matter to him. Zhou Jun was very supportive of Xiao Ping's plan to start a new venture and worked hard to help him ask around, and soon they got results.

  Zhou Jun found a place at the foot of Baiyun Mountain in the suburbs, where there is a place called Xiao Zhou Village. It is said that some land wants to be contracted out. Zhou Jun also finally heard this news and immediately came to report it to Xiao Ping with excitement. Xiao Ping was also very happy when he knew the news and immediately let Zhou Jun make an appointment with the other party for a face-to-face talk.

  On the day of their meeting, Zhou Jun personally drove to take Xiao Ping to Xiaozhou Village. The village is located at the foot of Baiyun Mountain, with half being farmland and the other half being mountainous terrain, and it's less than a two-hour drive from the city center, so transportation is still quite convenient.

  Xiao Ping was immediately captivated by the environment of Xiaozhou Village. The White Cloud Mountain has a gentle terrain, dense vegetation, and in front of it lies vast flat farmland, with a river winding its way through the village, truly a great place with both mountains and water. The village is sparsely populated with over a hundred households, the air is fresh, birds sing and flowers bloom, developing a career in such a good environment is much better than being crowded in the city center breathing in turbid air every day.

  Even Zhou Jun, a worldly person, couldn't help but praise this place, patting Xiao Ping's shoulder and saying: "Brother, if you really settle down in such a great place, I'll come over and hang out with you too. The air here is just too good!"

  "Alright." Xiao Ping slanted a glance at Zhou Jun and said, "You really can bear to part with those sisters of yours in the city, and move to this rural place with me?"

  After hearing Xiao Ping's words, Zhou Jun also hesitated and said after a moment of hesitation: "I can bring them here to play on weekends in turns, you won't be unwelcome, will you?"

  Xiao Ping nodded sincerely and said: "Of course, you're welcome, but there's a fee!"

  "Get out, you money-eyed guy."

  "That's still better than you, a gluttonous guy!"

  The two men were arguing with each other, and soon they found the village committee. In the village chief's office, a middle-aged man with a big bun and swollen eye sockets was already waiting for them. The staff of the village committee introduced both parties, and Xiao Ping only knew that this person named Zhong Shengli was the secretary and village chief of Xiaozhou Village, which means that Xiaozhou Village is controlled by him alone.

  After a few pleasantries, Zhong Shengli got straight to the point: "There are about 10 mu of land in the village that need to be rented out, but if you want to get this good land, you have to take on the contract for an equal area of mountainous land at the same time. You should know this condition, right?"

  This matter Zhou Jun had indeed mentioned to Xiao Ping in advance, so he nodded without surprise: "I can accept this condition, can I take a look at the place first?"

  "No problem." Zhong Changsheng agreed to Xiao Ping's request and had a staff member from the village committee take him to see the land.

  The land to be rented out in Xiaozhou Village is located on the edge of the village, with Baiyun Mountain to the north and the river that Xiao Ping saw before to the south. The staff member told Xiao Ping that he could rent the mountainous area connected to the land, so that more than 20 mu of land would be connected into a whole piece, which would be much more convenient for management in the future.

  Xiao Ping was very interested in this suggestion and was also very satisfied with the land. There are mountains and water here, and the land is relatively fertile. If it is well constructed in the future, it will definitely be of great use. Xiao Ping expressed his satisfaction with the land, so after he returned to the village committee again, he directly discussed the issue of rental fees with Zhong Shengli.

  As soon as the issue of money was mentioned, Zhong Shengli seemed to have changed into a different person. His small eyes gleamed with greed, and he firmly stated that the rental fee for farmland was 3,000 yuan per mu per year, and 1,000 yuan per year for mountainous land. The rent had to be paid once a year, and an additional deposit equivalent to one year's rent had to be paid as well. Zhong Shengli wouldn't budge on these issues, and he also declared that he only accepted cash, not even checks.

  This price is considered high in Su City, but for Xiao Ping, as long as there is a place to plant vegetables, spending a few more tens of thousands each year doesn't matter, so he readily accepted Zhong Shengli's terms.

  The contract states that the farmland is 12 mu, and the mountain land is 15 mu. Including one year's rent and deposit, Xiao Ping had to pay over 100,000 yuan at once. After paying out a thick stack of 10,000-yuan bills, Xiao Ping finally got his hands on a rental contract stamped with the large red seal of the Xiaozhou Village Committee, which specified a lease period of 20 years.

  After getting the 100,000 yuan, Zhong Shengli smiled with his small eyes narrowed into a slit. However, he soon put on a concerned expression and said to Xiao Ping: "Mr. Xiao, now that the contract has been signed and the money has been paid, there's something I need to remind you of. The 10 mu of land originally belonged to three households, and you'd better resolve their compensation fees as soon as possible. Otherwise, I won't guarantee that you can enter the site smoothly!"

  "What?! Zhou Jun was annoyed as soon as he heard this and immediately stood up saying: "Isn't the compensation fee supposed to be the village's responsibility?"

  "I never said that!" Zhong Shengli suddenly changed his expression and said: "Our Xiaozhou Village has always had this rule, the compensation fee is the responsibility of the lessee!"

  Zhou Jun wanted to say more, but Xiao Ping pulled him back and asked: "Secretary Zhong, how much is the compensation?"

  Zhong Shengli said calmly: "It's just 3,000 yuan per household per year. Mr. Xiao, you've already taken out over a million, so you shouldn't mind this small amount of money, right?"

  Zhong Shengli's words were very clear, if Xiao Ping didn't take out the 100,000 yuan, then the more than 1 million he had previously spent would be in vain. Looking at Zhong Shengli's smug expression on his fat face, Xiao Ping really had the urge to punch him hard. However, he controlled his anger and nodded: "Okay, I'll pay!"

  Xiao Ping agreed readily, and Zhong Shengli's eyes rolled over as he continued: "By the way, there is a three-story building on that land, which is the old house of the village committee. If you want to use it, I can lend it to you for 5,000 yuan per year. How about it?"

  "Alright!" Anyway, Xiao Ping didn't care about this small amount of money, so he simply agreed to everything. After all, he also needed a place to live, and having that house would indeed save him a lot of trouble.

  Succeeded in getting tens of thousands of dollars more from Xiao Ping, Zhong Shengli was finally satisfied and said: "Mr. Xiao, it's a pleasure to cooperate! From today on, that piece of land is yours, you can come over at any time."

  "It was a pleasure doing business!" Xiao Ping shook hands with Zhong Shengli and put away the contract, then left the village committee with Zhou Jun.

  "That dead fatso is really greedy!" Zhou Jun said indignantly on the road: "The compensation should have been included in the rent, why did you agree to his terms?"

  Xiao Ping said calmly: "They are local snakes, what can I do if I don't agree? Forget it, let's just consider it as spending money to buy peace!"

  "You say that fatty took that money, will he really compensate those few families?" Zhou Jun expressed his skepticism towards Zhong Shengli's words.

  Xiao Ping sneered: "Compensation? Don't make me laugh! I bet that money will definitely end up in his own pocket!"

  "What a bastard!" Zhou Jun said with great disdain for Zhong Shengli.

  Xiao Ping said lazily: "I can't control these things either. As long as they don't give me trouble, it's fine to take out some small money."

  "Wow, you've got the air of a big boss already!" Zhou Jun smiled and said: "Brother, I wish you success in your career and a bright future!"

  "It will definitely be!" Xiao Ping nodded vigorously, and since he had the Lian Yao Hu, he was full of hope for the future.

  Horizontal line

  Thank you for everyone's support, Hai Ma has climbed to the seventh place in the new book ranking list, but we can't slack off, and still need to continue working hard. Let's see what our best achievement will be this week. Also... there are not many recommendation tickets, please move your mouse a bit after reading the book and give Hai Ma more support, thank you!

  PS: Today is the third watch, there's still one more watch tonight.