Chapter 99 - 87: A Pragmatist
Chapter 99: Chapter 87: A Pragmatist
"There’s a wide mix of durian varieties here. I took a look, and there are probably a dozen or so different kinds."
Boss Huang nodded. "Boss Jiang, you can tell you’re an expert right away. There are indeed a dozen or so varieties. As for their specific names, I’m a bit hazy on the details myself."
"I see these durians have already borne fruit and seem well-managed. Why are you looking to sell the orchard, Boss Huang?" Jiang Miao asked, somewhat curious.
At these words, Boss Huang’s face soured, and he let out a sigh. "Sigh... every family has its own troubles. My son is getting married, and his fiancée wants a house in the city. I’ve noticed housing prices are relatively low these past few years, so I plan to buy one for him."
Zheng Siwen, who was standing nearby, added with a smile, "Are you planning to buy in Yuecheng, Boss Huang? The prices here aren’t cheap. I hear it’s around fourteen thousand per square meter."
"They certainly aren’t low, but it’s a bit better than a few years ago. I found an agent through a connection, and the price is twelve thousand eight hundred per square meter."
Zheng Siwen did a quick calculation. "That’s still not cheap. For a place over a hundred square meters, plus renovations and other costs, you’re looking at around two million."
"What can I do? My son is getting married," Boss Huang said, shaking his head.
Jiang Miao smiled and offered a suggestion. "I understand your devotion to your son, Boss Huang. But it’s not good to spoil the younger generation too much. You could have him write an IOU, stating that the money for the house is a loan from you. Then you can have it notarized. It might just give him some motivation to work hard."
Boss Huang froze for a moment, not quite grasping the reasoning behind such a move.
However, Li Zixuan and Zheng Siwen, who were listening, understood immediately.
Zheng Siwen quickly chimed in, "It’s just a precaution, Boss Huang! After all, you have to be careful about certain things these days."
Hearing this, the penny dropped for Boss Huang. He nodded resignedly. "You’re right. I’ll talk it over with my son later. He probably won’t object."
"Just talk it over with him privately. Young people can be rash and don’t always think about the long term," Jiang Miao said, taking a sip of his honey water.
’Looks like Boss Huang is someone who takes advice.’
After a bit more conversation, they quickly settled on a price.
In total, there were 341 durian trees. At 3,000 yuan per tree, that came to 1,023,000 yuan.
Adding the 156,000 yuan contract transfer fee, the 100,000 yuan for supporting facilities, and the 500,000 yuan acquisition fee for the 18-mu plot of lychee, longan, and wampee trees.
The grand total came to 1,779,000 yuan.
Since the property didn’t involve any residential land, the transaction only required a trip to the village committee to process the change in the land-use contract.
The contract transfer was completed that very afternoon. The lease had 24 years remaining.
Jiang Miao had Li Zixuan wire the payment to Boss Huang, finalizing the deal.
He also asked Boss Huang for a favor: to find a relatively large house for sale in Xinhe Village.
He wanted to buy a house there partly as a property investment and partly to serve as the office for the Qiongzhou Branch.
Xinhe Village was about 13 kilometers from the Yuecheng City District, with a national highway running nearby. This was much closer than Shang’s Fruit Garden in Little Jinshan Village, their first stop, which was 28 kilometers from the city and only accessible by a rural road.
「The next day at noon.」
A group of eight new employees dispatched from Shanmei Headquarters—including staff for finance, treasury, logistics, and procurement, as well as an agricultural technician and a new salesperson—arrived in Yuecheng with luggage in tow.
That evening, Jiang Miao, as their boss, naturally had to make a gesture. He took everyone out for a welcome dinner.
Late that night, after everyone had eaten and drunk their fill and returned to their hotel rooms, Jiang Miao sent a private message to Zheng Siwen via WeChat, asking him to meet in the coffee shop on the hotel’s second floor.
Upon receiving the message, Zheng Siwen’s heart was in his throat. All the way there, he racked his brain, wondering why the boss had summoned him.
At a table by the window, Li Zixuan and Ke Yong sat not far away, drinking coffee and eating small pastries.
Jiang Miao sat quietly, gazing at the street below. Even though it was past ten o’clock at night, the city was still ablaze with lights, and the flow of traffic was ceaseless.
"Boss."
Jiang Miao turned to look at Zheng Siwen, casually pulling a laptop a little closer.
"Have a seat. What would you like to drink? Order for yourself."
"Oh, no need..." Zheng Siwen waved his hands quickly, a little overwhelmed by the attention.
"You’re being too polite," Jiang Miao said with a smile and a shake of his head. He picked up his phone and ordered a cappuccino and a chocolate lava cake for him.
Zheng Siwen didn’t know how to react to the boss’s comment.
Jiang Miao didn’t get straight to the point. Instead, he started with some encouragement. "You’ve been working in Qiongzhou for over half a year now, and you’ve done a great job. Keep it up."
"It’s all part of my job," Zheng Siwen said nervously. Under the table, his hands fidgeted, twisting his fingers.
Seeing his nervousness, Jiang Miao made some small talk to lighten the mood.
Just then, a waiter approached with a tray. "Hello, here are your coffee and cake. Please enjoy."
Zheng Siwen stared at the items placed before him in surprise. He never imagined the boss would know his favorite things to eat.
What Zheng Siwen didn’t know was that Jiang Miao had a photographic memory. He had read through Zheng Siwen’s personnel file, which included a dietary questionnaire.
And on that questionnaire, Zheng Siwen had checked the boxes for chocolate and coffee.
"Thank you, Boss." Zheng Siwen took a sip of his coffee, trying to calm his nerves.
Jiang Miao figured it was time to get down to business. He set down his coffee cup and asked casually, "Siwen, what’s your take on Ah Yi and Ah Ming?"