Chapter Twenty-One Report

  "Of course we can charge a fee now, but I don't know if the current situation allows us to do so." Liang Sanping spread his hands and said, "For foreign research institutions, getting sponsorship from companies is very normal."

  But domestically, at least for now, it won't work. Xia Zhendong could only sigh, the situation in China is not quite the same as abroad. At this time, the high-pressure line of politics still exists.

  No one dares to touch this line easily, the harm caused by that disaster was too great. Even now, everyone is still not dare to be careless...

  "Never mind, it's good that we can get those machines. If there's any financial involvement, it's really hard to say..." Xia Zhendong sighed silently.

  This is the current situation, and reform is ongoing. But everyone is cautiously testing the waters, not daring to take big steps or make loud noises. They are afraid that one misstep will cause them to fall into an abyss.

  After a rest, Liu Lao and others got up in the afternoon to wash and dress, and then took Xia Zhendong directly to the Agricultural Reclamation Department for reporting.

  "Haha... Old Chen! You've come all this way, and you didn't even take a break before rushing here to report? No need to be in such a hurry..."

  In the Ministry of Agriculture, Reclamation and Water Management, Minister Gao Donglei smiled and invited Chen Lao and others to take their seats. After greeting each one individually, he patted Xia Zhendong's shoulder and said.

  "Xia Xia, I've heard reports from comrades below. You've been doing a good job all along! That's great, revolutionary work can't be slackened!"

  "Yes! I have always remembered your teachings and dare not slack off!" Xia Zhendong was extremely excited, and he slightly bowed to Gao Donglei in respect.

  Gao Donglei nodded in satisfaction and led everyone to their seats. After the secretary served tea, he quietly left the reception room.

  "Is this Little Liang?! You beat up Comrade Gou Jufeng at the banquet, and now it's all over the Imperial City!" However, Hao Donglei burst out laughing and pointed at Liang Sanping, saying: "I didn't expect you young man to have such a bad temper, but using your fists is not good!"

  Gao Donglei was also a strong man who emerged during the war years, and his figure can be found in both the War of Resistance Against Japan and the Liberation War. He had just resumed work not long ago and was transferred to be the Minister of Agricultural Reclamation Department last year.

  "Haha... This young man has a bad temper. I couldn't help it when I came..." Liang Sanping scratched his head in embarrassment, saying: "Next time I'll definitely be careful! Careful..."

  "Damn kid..." Gao Donglei cursed with a smile, then sat down on the sofa and said: "Old Liu, I've read the report and investigation results you provided, and passed them on to the top. Everyone is very concerned about this matter!"

  "Tell me specifically, what do you plan to do."

  Now that we've gotten down to business, Gao Donglei's face turned solemn. Liu Lao and the others opened their notebooks and began to present their opinions and research results one by one to Gao Donglei.

  "...Hainan Island has a unique geographical location, where the temperature is suitable for planting vegetables and fruits all year round. Therefore, we conducted research on the cultivation of various vegetables including cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, Shanghai green onions, etc. We found that they all grew very well in Hainan."

  "Of course, if it's planted on a large scale. Then we still have some need for fertilizer and pesticide inputs. But the cost is relatively low..."

  "Japan's total vegetable cultivation area is 82.08 million mu, with 3.18 million mu of greenhouse vegetables. In this regard, our country is relatively backward. Although there is a certain scale of greenhouse vegetable cultivation, the gap between us and Japan is still large."

  "Japan's vegetable cultivation area accounts for one-tenth of the country's total arable land, with an annual output of 31.1 billion kilograms and an average yield of 3,780 kilograms per hectare. Japan has a strong vegetable consumption habit, with each person consuming an average of 254 kilograms of vegetables per year, ranking second in the world after Italy, which is the largest consumer of vegetables."

  The country with the highest per capita consumption of vegetables in the world is Italy. The average person consumes 306 pounds.

  "Although Japan's vegetable self-sufficiency rate is very high, even as high as 99%, they also have times when they lack vegetables and rely on imports. According to the situation we've collected, Japan will experience a shortage of vegetables in some special months. This has become our opportunity."

  "For example, every February, Japan lacks a small amount of onions and garlic. By August, they lack a small amount of tomatoes and cucumbers. During such seasons, the vegetables they need can only be imported from abroad."

  "Taking 1976 as an example, Japan imported 86,262 tons of various vegetables that year. The transaction amount reached 8 billion yen. At the current international foreign exchange rate of 1 US dollar to 360 yen, this is over 200 million US dollars. This is also why we calculated that the Japanese vegetable import market can have over 200 million US dollars."

  After a pause, Liu Lao's gaze turned to Liang Sanping. Liang Sanping saw the old man's encouraging gaze and suddenly felt warmth in his heart. He then spoke up to High Winter Thunder Minister who was concentrating on recording.

  "We can export vegetables to Japan more importantly because Japan is now experiencing rapid development and industrialization, especially with the increasing use of fertilizers in land use, resulting in severe industrial pollution."

  "In Japan, there are already voices calling for greater emphasis on environmental protection. On the island of Okinawa, at least for now, we have not been affected by industrial pollution. This will also be a selling point for us when selling vegetables in Japan."

  Saying that, Liang Sanping flipped open his notebook and said to Gao Donglei: "Moreover, we also have the advantage of sea transportation. From Qiong Island to Japan, it is completely possible to rely on sea transportation. A part of the vegetables can be transported to Japan by sea, which greatly saves costs and ensures the freshness of the vegetables..."

  "What about planting?! How much investment is needed, and how many arable lands in Jeju Island are suitable for vegetable cultivation?! As for the handover of vegetables from Japan, how do you proceed?! How to guarantee sales situation?!"

  Gao Donglei heard this and immediately raised his own question. Liang Sanping, on the other hand, closed his notebook and said to Gao Donglei: "So, this time we came to the Imperial Capital. On the one hand, we are seeking national support so that we can try our best. On the other hand, we also hope that the country can provide us with some assistance in this regard..."

  Liang Sanping felt a bit helpless, this was not the time when translators ran all over the streets of later generations. Nor was it the time when Japanese companies were everywhere. At that time, if you wanted to contact foreign companies, you could only do so through national channels.

  Of course, with some luck you may encounter a very good opportunity. But Liang Sanping doesn't think that luck will always be on his side, and it's better to enter the industry in a reliable way.

  "As a matter of fact, we are also exporting vegetable seeds to Japan now..." Liang Sanping saw Gao Donglei lost in thought and couldn't help but sigh.

  "What?! When did we export seeds to Japan?! As the Minister of Agriculture, I shouldn't be unaware of such a thing!" Gao Donglei was extremely astonished.

  Liang Sanping heard this and couldn't help but smile bitterly: "The Japanese didn't buy the seeds directly from us. Our seeds were first sold to Xiangjiang, then the people of Treasure Island bought them, and only then did they end up in Japan..."

  "including our Qingma Ye Baicai, Xinli Mei Luobo, Jinyan 4th Huang, SC Zha Cai, Zhangqiu Da Cong, Wuhan Hong Caibei, Hami Gua, Hanzhong Dong Jiu, Guangzhou Jie Gua... etc. They are all sold in Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan."

  Gao Donglei's face sank upon hearing this, as domestically exporting seeds to Xiangjiang was done with the intention of treating them like kin. He had hoped that Xiangjiang would be able to plant these seeds and achieve a certain level of self-sufficiency in vegetable supply.

  Hei Gong sold it to Bao Dao, which is also acceptable. After all, although there are ideological differences with Bao Dao, they are still a family. Turning a blind eye can be considered as letting it go.

  But I didn't expect that they would take the seeds and sell them to the Japanese for money. Can't we sell it ourselves? Do we need you to intervene and make an extra profit?!

  "Hmph! I'll bring this up for discussion at the meeting!" However, Gao Donglei's face sank, and he coldly snorted: "Since someone has done it, then we can't be considered to have set a precedent."

  With Gao Donglei's consent, Liang Sanping finally breathed a sigh of relief. The resumption of diplomatic relations between China and Japan was during the Tanaka era. It wasn't until 1978 that after sixteen rounds of intense negotiations, the two sides finally established the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between China and Japan.

  At least for now, both sides will still try to communicate under this treaty. And it was also because he knew that the country had established this treaty that Liang Sanping dared to propose direct export of vegetables to Japan.

  "You all take a rest in the capital first, I'll make a report to the top as soon as possible. If necessary, you may need to report to the leaders in person." After Gao Donglei neatly recorded some situations on his notebook, he said, "It won't be long before there's news."

  The minister has said so, what else can you say? Everyone laughed and chatted for a while, Gao Donglei encouraged them a few words, and then sent them out of his office.

  This is also a courtesy. A minister sending someone out of the office is rare, but Liang Sanping knew that this was Gao Donglei's respect for Liu Lao and others.

  After returning to the hostel, Liu Lao and others washed their faces and called Liang Sanping and Xia Zhendong into their own room.

  "Xiaoxia, Xiaoliang, do you think our proposal will pass this time?!" Liu Lao and others were still a bit uneasy, after all, the objective difficulties mentioned by Gao Donglei did exist.

  If we contact Japanese sales, how to transport. These are big problems that require coordination with several other departments. These big bosses are not easy to communicate with.

  Liu Lao and others also had no bottom in their hearts.

  "When a cart reaches the foot of a mountain, there will be a road. When a boat reaches the bridgehead, it will naturally go straight. We've tried our best, and what happens next is beyond our control, isn't it?" Liang Sanping comforted Liu Lao and others with a smile.

  "But I believe our superiors will fully consider our demands. After all, this is related to the issue of our foreign exchange reserves, and our country is currently in dire need of foreign exchange..."

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