Chen Lishu: "You should also seize this time to learn more. Once the factory is built, you'll have to take charge of sales for me."
Zhao Xingwang was obviously taken aback by her words. When he understood the meaning behind them, he felt a surge of excitement and a burst of energy.
He was just someone who resold ration coupons. He had made some money, but no one truly looked up to him, and his education level was not high. He had thought his life would remain that way.
But he met Chen Lishu, who not only didn't look down on him but also trusted him so much. He was determined not to betray that trust!
After his excitement subsided, Zhao Xingwang suddenly thought of a pressing issue: "But the current policy from above is 'seven up, eight down.' If we build a factory, wouldn't that violate regulations?"
If they violated regulations, the approval procedures would be impossible to complete.
Chen Lishu: "It's hard to say about the current policies. They suppress and encourage at the same time. There are quite a few private entrepreneurs who have become successful, but many who want to start businesses need to be affiliated with collective enterprises, village collectives, or find a neighborhood committee to attach to."
Zhao Xingwang: "Then should we find an affiliation?"
Chen Lishu shook her head: "Let's not bother with that. As long as we help the higher-ups solve their problems, all problems might not be problems anymore."
Zhao Xingwang: "Problems? What problems could the higher-ups have?"
What he didn't dare to say was that how could their problems be solved by people like them?
Chen Lishu: "If nothing else, the employment problem for the large number of educated youths returning to the city is a major challenge."
Currently, the efficiency of city enterprises was generally not good, and available positions were limited. A large number of educated youths were unemployed. These were all young and strong individuals. Once they had nothing to do, it bred a large group of disreputable hooligans, leading to social instability. Robbery and theft were secondary; worse still were assaults and murders. This was why there was a severe crackdown in '83.
Moreover, the higher-ups had more than just this one issue to worry about. By building a factory now, she could not only solve the problem of surplus labor but also increase tax revenue. The higher-ups had no reason not to support it.
After listening to her analysis, Zhao Xingwang was immensely impressed with Chen Lishu, and his conviction that he had chosen the right person grew stronger.
To build a factory, location was critical.
Currently, besides state-owned factories, the entities with large-scale land use rights were village and town collectives. If they chose a location within the city, not only would land prices be high, but the city's development speed was fast, and in the future, it might be designated for demolition and relocation.
Therefore, Chen Lishu set her sights on villages and towns around the provincial capital.
Not only was transportation relatively convenient, but most importantly, the price was definitely affordable.
However, after visiting for two consecutive days, they couldn't find a suitable location.
Either some township leaders were hesitant to approve land, or the areas willing to transfer land were too small.
On this day, Chen Lishu and Zhao Xingwang rode their bicycles to a commune called Sanjiazi in the south of the city. It was about five kilometers from the urban area and about twenty kilometers from the county town.
Upon hearing that they wanted to contract land to build a factory, the commune leaders personally received them.
"According to your requirements, our commune does have a place that fits. However, it was formerly a slaughterhouse, and the place has been vacant since they moved. If you are interested, I'll take you to see it right away."
Building a factory was a good thing. It not only increased local tax revenue but, looking at the current situation, once the factory was built, it would definitely need to recruit people, and surrounding villagers could increase their income. Besides, the place was empty anyway, so it was better to add some income for the commune.
The slaughterhouse mentioned by the leader was located less than two hundred meters behind the commune.
The exterior was surrounded by a red brick courtyard wall about a person's height. Due to years of disrepair, there were already several gaps.
Entering through the main gate, they found a rather large courtyard. It had been vacant for a long time, and weeds had grown all around. Opposite the main entrance were dozens of single-story buildings. The weather was hot, and since it was originally a slaughterhouse, a pungent odor emanated as they approached. Many flies and insects also flew out from time to time.
Seeing this, the leader quickly said, "The buildings are all brick. They are a bit dilapidated, but you don't need them for building the factory. The bricks salvaged can be used to build courtyard walls and pave the ground. Moreover, the area is not small, over twenty thousand square meters. It's definitely enough for a garment factory."
Although Chen Lishu didn't say anything, after looking around, apart from the environment being a bit poor, everything else truly met her requirements.
It was not far from the city, and transportation was relatively convenient. After all, if it were too far and the roads were bad, transportation costs would increase. Furthermore, there were residents nearby, which would at least lower labor costs significantly.
She didn't have much money. Including the earnings from that batch of T-shirts, she had only a little over 150,000 yuan. Besides buying land, there were also expenses for constructing factory buildings, equipment, and raw materials, all of which were considerable.
Fortunately, land prices were cheap now. If she had waited a few more years, her current amount of money wouldn't even be enough to buy land, let alone build a factory.
After negotiation, Chen Lishu finally purchased the land use rights of the slaughterhouse for 80,000 yuan.
After both parties signed the contract, there were still a series of procedures to complete. They agreed to handle them together the next day, and then Chen Lishu and Zhao Xingwang prepared to return to the city.
On a summer afternoon, the towering crowns of the poplar trees lining the streets cast dappled shadows on the ground, blocking much of the heat.
Zhao Xingwang pushed his bicycle onto the gravel road, with Chen Lishu following behind. Just as she was about to get on, she suddenly saw a man riding a bicycle approaching from the opposite direction and called out, "Second Brother?"
Gu Xingmin turned his head. When he saw it was Chen Lishu, the hand holding the handlebars trembled unconsciously. He quickly applied the brakes and dismounted from his bicycle. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to do some things." Chen Lishu: "Second Brother, what about you?"
"Your second sister-in-law found it troublesome and expensive to buy vegetables from the market, so she asked me to come down and take a look. There's a village below that has been growing vegetables in greenhouses year-round, and their vegetables are cheaper than those from the market. I just finalized the deal. It will be a bit more tiring from now on."
Chen Lishu: "How has business been at the store lately?"
Gu Xingmin: "It's okay. Not as good as the previous two months. Otherwise, I wouldn't have to travel this far to buy vegetables."
"Mom mentioned yesterday that you and your second sister-in-law haven't been home for a long time."
As they spoke, they both got on the bicycle and headed towards the city.
Upon arriving in the city, Gu Xingmin said, "I think it's about time. I still have to pick up the three children. I'll be going ahead. Tell Mom to bring them over this weekend."
After parting ways with Gu Xingmin, Chen Lishu asked Zhao Xingwang to go ahead first, and she returned home by herself.
Zhao Qiuyue had gone to pick up Rui Rui. Only Li Xiulan and the two little ones were at home.
The two children were sitting on the play mat, each playing with their own toys. Suddenly, Xiao Chengzi reached out and snatched a toy from Xiao Bai's hand.
Xiao Bai didn't cry or fuss. Instead, he smiled at his brother and then turned to crawl to another spot and picked up another toy to play with.