Chapter 134: Bottling Mountain Spring Water for Nationwide Sale, the Path to Wealth Widens

"Mineral water plant?"

The villagers looked at each other in bewilderment; the idea was pure fantasy to them.

Liu Fugui scratched his head: "Brother Qingshan, can this mineral water make money?"

Lu Qingshan looked at the puzzled expressions and felt a warm surge inside. In his previous life he had seen the rise of many mineral water brands and knew this was definitely a sunrise industry.

"Yue E, what do you think of the water in our mountains?" Lu Qingshan turned to his wife.

Lin Yue'e thought for a moment: "Very sweet; I've been drinking it since childhood and never had an upset stomach."

"That's right!" Lu Qingshan's eyes flashed with excitement. "Our Shanwan Village leans against Changbai Mountain; the water sources are all mountain spring water, far better than the city's tap water by many times!"

Zhao Tiezhu said naively: "But Brother Qingshan, isn't water everywhere? Who would pay for water to drink?"

Lu Qingshan walked to the construction site, picked up an empty bottle, and said: "Tiezhu, think about it—what water do city dwellers drink?"

"Tap water, of course."

"Is that tap water clean?"

Zhao Tiezhu shook his head: "I heard it has a hint of bleach smell."

"Exactly!" Lu Qingshan patted Tiezhu's shoulder. "So what we need to do is bottle the best mountain water and sell it to city folks!"

At that moment, Qian Jin came over, thoughtful, and said: "Qingshan, this idea is very forward-thinking. When I was at the plant, I heard that such an industry does exist abroad."

Yao Bai'nian also nodded: "The mountain spring water is indeed special; I use it to brew medicinal herbs, and the results are far better than with ordinary water."

Seeing the experts all voice support, the villagers' attitude began to shift.

"How much will the equipment cost?" Zhao Yongnian, concerned with practical matters, asked.

Lu Qingshan already had a rough budget in mind: "The mineral water equipment is relatively simple—mainly filtration, disinfection, bottling, sealing—and will require about 150,000 yuan."

"150,000!" The villagers inhaled sharply, "Do we have enough capital?"

"We saved over 20,000 on equipment procurement, and with part of the Liquid Capital, it should be enough," Lu Qingshan calculated. "The key is to seize time; the mineral water market is virtually blank now, and whoever moves first gains the advantage."

Just then, Li Ming spoke up: "Director Lu, our plant does have a mineral water production line!"

Lu Qingshan's eyes lit up: "Really?"

Li Ming nodded excitedly: "Absolutely! And the price is very favorable—120,000 yuan gets the whole set of equipment!"

120,000! That's 30,000 less than the budget!

The villagers, ignoring their fatigue, swarmed around.

"Brother Qingshan, can this mineral water really make money?"

"Of course it can!" Lu Qingshan said firmly. "Think about it—each bottle costs only a few cents, sells for at least 0.5 yuan, and the profit is higher than that of jerky!"

Half a yuan per bottle! To the villagers it sounded like pure fantasy, but seeing Lu Qingshan's serious expression, everyone began to feel hopeful.

"Representative Li, how is the quality of your mineral water equipment?" Lu Qingshan asked carefully.

Li Ming immediately pulled another document from his bag: "Director Lu, this is the mineral water production line we built for a company in Dalian; its daily capacity is 10,000 bottles and it fully meets national health standards."

Lu Qingshan took the document, examined it closely, and silently calculated. At a daily output of 10,000 bottles, with a net profit of 0.3 yuan per bottle, that's 3,000 yuan a day—90,000 yuan a month!

"Qingshan, are we really going to set up two factories?" Zhao Yongnian asked with some worry. "Is this venture perhaps a bit too big?"

Lu Qingshan understood the village chief's concern, but his past-life experience told him that opportunities are fleeting.

"Village chief, here's my thinking," Lu Qingshan surveyed the crowd. "The jerky factory targets the provincial market, while the mineral water plant can reach the whole nation. The two factories complement each other, and the risk can be shared."

At that moment, the sound of a car came again from the village entrance. This time it was a military-green jeep, and Lu Qingshan recognized the license plate.

The door opened, and Chen Zhiguo stepped out briskly, followed by two uniformed men.

"Brother Zhiguo, why are you here so late?" Lu Qingshan greeted as he approached.

Chen Zhiguo's face turned serious: "Qingshan, there is an important matter to report. The Li Jianye we just apprehended disclosed some information during interrogation."

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere on the spot instantly grew tense.

"What matter?" Zhang Xincheng also walked over.

Chen Zhiguo glanced at the crowd, lowered his voice and said: "There are people behind Li Jianye, and they have a big backing. They have not only targeted Shanwan Village but also several similar projects."

Lu Qingshan felt a tightening in his chest: "You mean..."

"Someone is systematically sabotaging," Chen Zhiguo's eyes flashed with anger. "They are targeting rural wealth-creation projects, either to wreck them or to buy them cheap."

The news hit like a heavy bomb, leaving everyone stunned.

Li Ming's face turned pale as he heard: "Director Lu, what about our cooperation..."

"The cooperation continues!" Lu Qingshan declared firmly. "The more people try to bring us down, the more we must achieve results!"

Chen Zhiguo nodded: "That's right! But Qingshan, you must be careful, especially regarding capital and equipment procurement; you must be prudent."

Lu Qingshan took a deep breath; his past-life memory told him that such commercial competition did exist in the early reform era. Some people specifically target emerging projects, sabotage them by any means, and then seize the opportunity to profit.

"Brother Zhiguo, what else might those people do?"

"Hard to say," Chen Zhiguo shook his head. "But according to Li Jianye's confession, their next move may involve meddling with equipment and raw material supplies."

Li Ming, hearing this, quickly responded: "Director Lu, the reputation of Shenyang Heavy Industries is flawless! Moreover, I can guarantee the equipment will have no hidden tricks!"

Lu Qingshan looked at Li Ming's sincere expression and made a decision. Rather than be timid, he would go all out.

"Representative Li, here's the plan: we want both sets of equipment!" Lu Qingshan's words left everyone stunned. "The jerky processing equipment and the mineral water production line—sign the contract for both!"

"This..." Li Ming was so excited he couldn't speak, "Director Lu, are you sure?"

"Confirmed!" Lu Qingshan's eyes glittered with resolve. "However, I have several conditions. First, all equipment must be delivered within fifteen days; second, you must send technicians to supervise installation on site; third, any quality issues, you will bear full responsibility."

Li Ming nodded repeatedly: "No problem! Absolutely no problem!"

Zhang Xincheng, listening nearby, was thrilled: "Comrade Qingshan, your boldness is truly admirable!"

Just as everyone was excited by Lu Qingshan's decision, Lin Yue'e suddenly spoke up: "Qingshan, I have an idea."

Lu Qingshan turned to his wife; in the moonlight her eyes sparkled with wisdom.

"Yue E, go ahead."

Lin Yue'e walked to the crowd, her voice crisp and firm: "Since someone wants to sabotage our project, why don't we take the initiative to strike?"