Rebirth 70: I am a Koi

The early morning sunlight shines into the room through the curtains, and a new day begins.

I took a deep breath and put the revised business plan into my bag.

Bai Hanchuan was already dressed. He looked at me with a hint of encouragement in his eyes: "Are you ready?" I nodded, trying to make myself look confident, but I was still a little nervous.

On the way to the bank, Bai Hanchuan held my hand, and the warmth of his palm gave me a sense of strength.

"Don't worry, just do your best," he said softly.

I know he was trying to comfort me, but he wasn't feeling relieved either.

When we arrived at the bank, President Wang was already waiting for us in his office.

He still had that serious look on his face, making it hard to figure out what he was thinking.

After the greetings, we began to introduce the new development plan of the base to President Wang.

I tried to keep myself calm and spell out every detail of the plan clearly.

President Wang listened carefully, flipping through the plan from time to time, with a frown on his face. The atmosphere in the office was a bit depressing, and my palms began to sweat.

"The plan looks good," President Wang finally said, and I felt a little relieved. "But the funding gap is still large."

His words were like a bucket of cold water poured down on me, and my originally ignited hope was instantly extinguished by half.

Even if the problem of weekly suppliers is solved, it will still be difficult to realize all the plans.

My head started to ache. Funds, funds. Where could I raise enough funds?

Bai Hanchuan also fell silent, his brows furrowed, as if he was also thinking about this question.

At this time, President Wang picked up the phone on the table and said, "Xiao Sun, come here for a moment."

I looked at Bai Hanchuan in confusion, and he shook his head gently, signaling me to stay calm...

After a while, a young man wearing glasses walked in.

He was wearing plain work clothes, looked a little stiff, and was holding a thick notebook in his hand.

"President Wang, you're looking for me?"

President Wang pointed at us and said, "These are Director Mu and Director Bai from the Jinxiu Planting Base. Please tell them about your recent research and development results."

The technician named Xiao Sun pushed his glasses, opened his notebook shyly, and began to explain to us his newly developed planting technology.

I didn’t have high expectations at first, after all, technological innovation doesn’t happen overnight.

But as Xiao Sun explained, I was gradually attracted by his research results.

The new planting technology he developed can not only greatly increase crop yields, but also effectively improve crop quality and reduce the occurrence of diseases and pests. It is simply good news for our base!

I looked at Bai Hanchuan excitedly, and he couldn't hide his excitement either. Isn't this a perfect breakthrough?

Bai Hanchuan immediately seized this opportunity to incorporate Xiao Sun's technical achievements into our business plan, and emphasized the advantages and prospects of this technology to President Wang.

President Wang's originally furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and his eyes sparkled.

He kept asking about the details of the technology and had an in-depth discussion with Xiao Sun.

Seeing President Wang so interested, hope rekindled in my heart.

After some discussion, President Wang finally made a decision: "In view of the new technology and development prospects of your base, I have decided to relax the loan policy and increase the loan amount."

Hearing this, Bai Hanchuan and I were stunned. We were so surprised that we were speechless for a moment. This was simply a huge turning point!

Coming out of the bank, Bai Hanchuan and I held hands tightly, and we could each feel the sweat on each other's palms and the excitement in our hearts.

When I got back to the base, I immediately gathered all the employees to announce the good news.

Everyone was whispering excitedly, speculating on the outcome of our trip.

Bai Hanchuan cleared his throat and was about to speak, but was interrupted by an abrupt voice: "Wait, I have something to say!"

It’s Lao Zhang, an old employee of the base. He has been farming all his life and is a very upright person.

"Regarding this loan issue, I think we should first consider the welfare of our employees. Everyone has worked so hard for the base for so long, but their salaries have not increased much. Now that we have money, shouldn't we solve this problem first?"

His words resonated with many old employees, and they nodded in agreement.

The young technician Xiao Sun immediately stood up and retorted: "Uncle Zhang, this money is used to develop new technologies. Only with new technologies can we increase production and increase income. At that time, everyone's welfare will naturally improve. If we spend the money on welfare now and fail to keep up with the technological upgrades, what will we do in the future?"

The two sides were arguing with each other.

I took a deep breath and said, "I have heard everyone's opinions. What Lao Zhang said about employee benefits is very important, and what Xiao Sun said about technological innovation is equally important. We can't focus on one and lose the other." I turned to look at Bai Hanchuan, who gave me an affirmative look. I continued, "My idea is to use part of the loan to improve employee benefits and the other part to promote technology. We will discuss the specific proportion in detail."

Bai Hanchuan added: "Technological innovation is an ongoing process and we cannot achieve it overnight. We will gradually improve everyone's welfare benefits, and we hope that everyone can understand and support the development of the base." His words were steady and powerful, gradually calming everyone's debate.

After the meeting, Bai Hanchuan came to me and gently put his arm around my shoulders: "Thank you for your hard work." I leaned on his shoulder, feeling the warmth of his palm, and my heart felt warm.

"It's a good thing you're with me." I raised my head and met his gentle gaze, and we smiled at each other.

It was late at night, but the lights in the office were still on.

I looked at the pile of documents on the table and suddenly felt a little uneasy.

Bai Hanchuan came over and handed me a cup of hot tea.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Although the loan issue has been resolved and there have been new technological breakthroughs, but..." I paused, "I always feel like something else is going to happen..."

Bai Hanchuan's fingers gently kneaded my shoulders with just the right amount of force, dispelling some of the fatigue.

"Don't worry, there will always be a way out when you reach the mountain." His voice was low and reassuring, like a warm current flowing through my heart.

I sighed, put down the pen in my hand, and rubbed my sore eyes.

"I know, but... the scale of the loan this time is larger than ever before, what if..." I didn't continue speaking, but Bai Hanchuan understood my concerns.

"I know what you are worried about," he pulled over a chair and sat down next to me. "It takes time to promote new technology, and the market also needs time to accept it." He picked up the document I had just put down and quickly glanced through it. "I have read Technician Sun's improvement plan. It is very promising, but..." He paused and frowned slightly.

"What's wrong?" I asked quickly.

"Although the improved varieties have high yields and strong disease resistance, but..." He handed me the document and pointed to a page of data, "the taste may be slightly different from the previous varieties."

My heart sank.

In the 70s, supplies were relatively scarce and people were particularly picky about the taste of food.

If the taste changes too much, even if the output is high, it may not be accepted by the market.

The uneasy feeling in my heart became stronger.

"Let's go to the experimental field tomorrow," Bai Hanchuan suggested.

The next morning, we went to the experimental field with Technician Sun.

The improved crops are growing well, and the branches are bent with heavy fruits.

Technician Sun took one off and handed it to us.

"You guys have a taste."

Bai Hanchuan and I looked at each other and each picked up one to taste.

Sure enough, the taste is slightly inferior to the previous varieties, with a slightly lower sweetness and a slightly rougher texture.

"This..." I looked at Technician Sun with some concern.

Technician Sun scratched his head and said, "I am aware of this problem as well. I am trying to make further improvements to improve the taste while ensuring yield and disease resistance."

After returning from the experimental field, I felt even more uneasy.

The loan has been received and technological innovation is underway, but the biggest unknown, the market, weighs on my heart like a huge rock.

In the evening, I stood by the window in the office, watching the sunset gradually sinking to the west and dyeing half the sky red.

Bai Hanchuan walked behind me and gently held me in his arms.

"Li'er," his voice rang in my ears, "don't worry, we will succeed."

I turned around and looked at his determined eyes, and I felt a little more at ease.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the office door...