Chapter 71 : Purchase Price

After seeing enough, Su Mo went home, put on her canvas bag, rode her bicycle, and headed for the commune. Ma Xiaojuan thought there were too many people and didn’t go to join in the fun.

When they arrived at the commune, Su Mo parked her bicycle in front of the supply and marketing cooperative, asked Lu Xiaolan to help look after it, and then walked to the purchasing station.

At this time, the purchasing station was checking the public grain used by the Lujia Village Brigade to pay agricultural taxes.

Su Mo sneaked in and soon found Geng Changqing, who was talking to a man who looked like a cadre.

Su Mo hurried over and waited until the cadre-looking man left before leaning over and saying, “Uncle Geng.”

Geng Changqing was somewhat helpless. This girl really came. It was as busy as a war here. He didn’t know what this girl thought was beautiful.

Seeing that Geng Changqing looked haggard and his lips were dry and peeling, Su Mo reached into the canvas bag and pretended to take out a white pear.

“Here, Uncle Geng, have a pear to moisten your stomach.”

Geng Changqing saw that the pear looked very fresh, so he took it and took a bite. The flesh was crisp, sweet, and juicy, and he couldn’t help but take another bite.

“These pears are great. Where did you buy them?”

“Hehe… I bought it from an older sister I know.” Su Mo laughed.

Geng Changqing guessed that it might be the black market and tapped her forehead, saying, “Be careful when you go to those places.”

This girl, after not seeing her for a few years, has become much braver. But if she wasn’t brave enough, she wouldn’t dare to walk on the mountain road in the dark in the middle of the night.

It’s really hard for her!

Su Mo smiled and nodded, “Uncle Geng likes to eat them. Next time I go shopping, I’ll buy some for you too.”

Geng Changqing finished the pear in a few bites and nodded.

This pear is indeed delicious. He had never had a good appetite, but after eating it, he actually wanted to eat more.

“Let’s go, follow me.” Geng Changqing said.

Su Mo saw that he had a rolled-up piece of paper in his hand. She seemed to have noticed that there was a price list or something, so she asked, “Uncle Geng, what are you holding in your hand?”

“This year’s purchase price list for agricultural and sideline products.”

“Can I see it then?”

Geng Changqing handed her the price list and said, “Look, it’s not a secret. Everyone knows it.”

Su Mo took it and followed Geng Changqing as she looked at it. The prices listed were all calculated in units of 100 kilograms. Wheat: 26 yuan per 100 kilograms, Rice: 19 yuan per 100 kilograms, Soybeans: 32.52 yuan per 100 kilogram, Mung beans: 40 yuan per 100 kilograms, Peanuts: 56 yuan per 100 kilograms, Corn: 10 yuan per 100 kilograms, Sweet potatoes: 5 yuan per 100 kilograms

Pigs were divided into three levels, and the purchase price of each level was different. Pigs weighing more than 160 jin were level one, pigs weighing more than 140 jin were level two, and pigs weighing more than 120 jin were level three. The purchase price for level one pigs was 0.52 yuan per jin, for level two pigs it was 0.5 yuan per jin, and for level three pigs it was 0.47 yuan per jin.

In principle, the purchasing station would not accept pigs weighing less than 120 jin, and they had to be sent back to be re-raised. Goats: 80 yuan per 100 kilograms, Chicken: 132.4 yuan per 100 kilograms, Eggs: 129.6 yuan per 100 kilograms

These prices were posted prices. The purchase price for collected grain and task pigs would be 20% lower than the listed price.

What surprised Su Mo was that the purchase price of Coptis chinensis was as high as 1,600 yuan per 100 kilograms.

In terms of economic benefits, growing Coptis chinensis was much better than growing grain. However, it took 3 to 4 years for Coptis chinensis to be harvested, which was probably unrealistic in an era when grain was the main source of income.

“Uncle Geng, is there a team in our commune that grows Coptis chinensis?” Su Mo asked.

“No, the harvest cycle of Coptis chinensis is too long. But there are wild Coptis chinensis on the mountain. The members can dig it up, process it, and then sell it to the purchasing station,” Geng Changqing said.

“The country doesn’t have enough food right now, so farmers are not encouraged to use arable land to grow these crops. These specific crops are usually only planted on the Corps farms.”

Su Mo understood that things are valuable because they are rare, and naturally, they are expensive.

After wild ginseng, she now had another crop that could be used to induce growth with high economic benefits. When she returned, she planned to go up the mountain to look for wild Coptis chinensis and dig it up to induce growth.

When each brigade came to pay the public grain, Geng Changqing would visit each purchasing outlet to check the quality of grain and agricultural and sideline products from each brigade and address any issues on the spot.

At each purchasing outlet, he arranged two commune cadres to assist and serve as a communication bridge between the members and the grain purchasing station staff.

Ordinary people were instinctively a little scared of people who dealt with government food. Sometimes, quality inspectors at the purchasing station were deliberately picky, and the farmers dared not argue, suffering in silence. With these commune cadres around, the people at the purchasing station were more restrained.

Geng Changqing first went to the grain crops.

The grain crops were under the supervision of team leader Lu Baoguo. The harvest was good this year, and Lu Baoguo was so happy that he smiled.

When he saw Geng Changqing coming over, Lu Baoguo hurried to greet him. “Secretary Geng, we’ve exceeded our target this year. Even the quality inspectors praised the good quality of the public grain we handed in.”

It was not easy to get praise from the quality inspectors at the grain station.

Geng Changqing also picked up a shovel used for spot-checking grain and examined a few bags. The results were indeed good.

“The output and quality are both good. Thank you for the hard work of your brigade leadership team.”

“No, no, it’s all thanks to the good leadership of the country and the secretary.”

This year, the secretary secured a lot of fertilizer quotas for their commune, and it wasn’t just their team that saw an increase in production, but the entire commune.

Geng Changqing waved his hand and continued to inspect the rest.

Only then did Lu Baoguo notice Su Mo following Geng Changqing, and he said in surprise, “Su Zhiqing, you’re here too.”

“Yes, captain, our team had a good harvest, so I came to take a look as well,” Su Mo said with a smile.

Liu Guangying, who was helping the weigher, was startled when she heard the name Su Zhiqing and immediately looked up.

The woman following Geng Changqing was so graceful and beautiful that it was no exaggeration to say she was a peerless beauty. Just based on her appearance, her niece couldn’t compare.

What’s more, she was Secretary Geng’s niece.

When Liu first heard about it, she was quite shocked. No wonder the secretary scolded her like that. If she had known she was the secretary’s niece, she wouldn’t have dared to have any thoughts.

After hearing the news, she went to tell her brother and sister-in-law that same day, hoping that her eldest niece wouldn’t get into any trouble.

In addition to Geng Changqing, the team accountant Lu Xingjun was also on duty at the entire purchasing station.

He was really busy today. He had just checked the accounts with the accountant at the purchasing station and collected the money when he was urged to hurry over.

But he was happy with his busy life because the money could be settled in person without delay. This way, when the work points were settled, everyone would receive their pay on time.

This year, both agriculture and sideline businesses had good harvests. He conservatively estimated that the net value of their brigade’s work points this year would exceed ten cents.