56: Chapter 56 Soybean Mill Profits

The other enterprises were the same; the Machinery Factory, the chemical plant, and even several office canteens kept increasing their orders.

This also caused the daily shipment volume of the Bean Products Factory to soar from the initial 10,000 catties to over 30,000 catties.

This not only kept the workers at the Bean Products Factory incredibly busy but also invigorated the entire Guantian Township.

"Old Li, have you heard? That Bean Products Factory in Zhengjia Village can sell over 30,000 catties of tofu a day!"

In the township market, people whispered to one another.

"Isn't that the truth! My nephew works there, and he says the wages are even higher than working in the city!"

"Sigh, it's a pity we aren't from Zhengjia Village..."

Seeing Zhengjia Village's life becoming more and more prosperous, villagers from other villages could no longer sit still. They urged their own village cadres to go to the township and find the leaders to seek a way out for their own villages.

"Party Branch Secretary, our village has to find a way too; we can't just watch Zhengjia Village get rich!"

The villagers surrounded their village Party branch secretary, all talking at once.

"Exactly! Every household in Zhengjia Village has someone working at the Bean Products Factory now, earning hundreds of yuan a month!"

Consequently, the Party branch secretaries of each village kept running to the township every few days, hoping that Li Dakang could provide some guidance.

This resulted in queues often forming outside Li Dakang's office, with the Party branch secretaries waiting with expectant eyes for the township head to meet them.

Li Dakang had long planned to make Zhengjia Village a model point for Guantian Township, so seeing everyone's enthusiasm, he naturally wouldn't refuse.

He carefully studied the geography, resources, and population of each village to tailor development plans for them.

"Party Branch Secretary Liu, your village has a reservoir, which is suitable for aquaculture..."

"Party Branch Secretary Wang, your village has a lot of mountainous land, which is suitable for planting traditional Chinese medicinal herbs..."

When he had free time, Li Dakang would also go to the road construction site to check on the progress.

Standing on the newly laid roadbed and watching the workers sweating profusely, Li Dakang was filled with anticipation.

Once this road was open, the isolation of Guantian Township would be completely broken, and there would be a convenient channel for the transport of bean products and other agricultural goods.

...

Even though he was incredibly busy, Li Dakang was always concerned about the Bean Products Factory.

Yesterday was the agreed-upon settlement day for the major enterprises and the factory. Li Dakang specifically had Zheng Shijun notify Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian to come to the Township Government today to report on their achievements during this period.

Early the next morning, Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian stepped into Li Dakang's office with a glowing face.

He walked with vigor, a completely different person from the gloomy village Party branch secretary of a month ago.

After settling the accounts with the large enterprises yesterday, the figures on the books stunned him for a long time; having lived for decades, he had never seen so much money.

Even without Zheng Shijun's notification, Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian would have definitely come to report today.

"Party Branch Secretary Zheng, sit down quickly and have some water. Look at you, covered in sweat." Li Dakang smiled and poured him a glass of water.

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian took the glass, drank it in one gulp, wiped the corners of his mouth with his sleeve, and said impatiently, "Township Head, I've come to report on the results of our Zhengjia Village Bean Products Factory for this past month!"

"Looking at your expression, the results must be quite good, right?" Li Dakang asked with a smile.

"More than just good, it's simply unimaginable!"

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian excitedly slapped his thigh: "I really didn't expect our tofu to be so popular! Yesterday, after settling the accounts with several large enterprises in the city and deducting all expenses, we netted over 110,000 in just one month!"

"That much?"

Li Dakang was also a bit surprised. This figure exceeded his expectations.

You have to realize that 110,000 yuan in 1993 was equivalent to sixty years of wages for an ordinary worker.

"Yes, Township Head!"

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian rubbed his hands, his eyes shining with tears of excitement: "I was so excited last night that I didn't sleep all night; every time I closed my eyes, I was thinking about how to spend this money."

"Our village has never seen so much money before!"

"Party Branch Secretary Zheng, this is just the beginning."

Li Dakang's tone was steady but carried strength: "Future development will only get better. Since the factory is already unable to meet demand, expanding the scale is the most important thing to do right now."

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian nodded repeatedly, responding like a chick pecking at rice: "Township Head is right! We will follow your arrangements entirely!"

"In that case, after you go back, start recruiting workers, and pick people from the few villages that worked on building the road together earlier."

Li Dakang thought for a moment and added: "I will have people send machines over from Mingzhou, and work on the new factory building must also start immediately."

Speaking of this, his expression tightened, and his tone became solemn: "But there is one thing you must remember: quality is the lifeline of the factory."

"The scale must be expanded, but quality must be maintained even more."

"Once the taste changes, the foundation of this Bean Products Factory will collapse."

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian suddenly straightened his back, guaranteeing with every word ringing with conviction: "Rest assured, Township Head! I will personally keep an eye on quality control! If anyone dares to have crooked thoughts about this, I will be the first one not to spare them!"

"Additionally, the factory currently only has one product, tofu, which is too singular."

Li Dakang continued to analyze: "No matter how good something is, people will get tired of it if they eat it too much. If you want to continue for the long term, you must introduce new varieties."

"Oh my, Township Head, these words have enlightened me!"

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian slapped his forehead, suddenly realizing: "Why didn't I think of this aspect!"

"Otherwise, why is it called a 'Bean Products Factory' and not a 'Tofu Factory'?" Li Dakang explained patiently.

"As long as it's made from beans, you can try it."