Chapter 93

For these professors, Meng Hu Ling was a treasure trove; they knew that if it were developed chaotically and polluting enterprises were introduced, this treasure trove would be destroyed, just like other mountainous regions.

This scenario was precisely what the professors wished to avoid, so they specifically advised Zhang Kaishan, hoping he would develop Meng Hu Ling rationally.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Kaishan paused thoughtfully, then smiled: "Could the three professors accompany me to Ye Zhugou? I want to inspect the special livestock farm and bamboo weaving factory there."

The three professors all nodded and agreed.

This time, Zhang Kaishan brought two cars: his Santana and a Jeep from the Agricultural Office; he had Chen Hongfu, Dong Jianshu, and Su Xinghui get into his car, while the other staff boarded the Agricultural Office's Jeep.

The three professors rode in their own Jeep; as for the other leaders of Meng Hu Ling Township Government, they naturally wished to accompany County Chief Zhang, but they could only take the township's dilapidated Jeep themselves—if there wasn't enough room, they'd have to ride bicycles, since Ye Zhugou wasn't far away.

Jin Taihe was also among those accompanying them; when he saw Zhang Kaishan personally call out for Su Xinghui to get into his car, he was utterly stunned, clearly taken aback.

Since Su Xinghui had beaten Luo Ming'an and humiliated Jin Taihe last time, Jin Taihe had harbored a deep hatred for him and had been plotting revenge.

But now, seeing County Chief Zhang's attitude toward Su Xinghui, Jin Taihe realized he must carefully reconsider how to retaliate—angering Zhang Kaishan might make his own life far from easy.

The car drove no more than ten minutes before arriving at Ye Zhugou, where Fang Youcai and other village cadres led dozens of villagers to greet them at the entrance; as soon as the Santana appeared, they all shouted in unison: "Welcome! Welcome! A warm welcome!"

Zhang Kaishan frowned and said to Chen Hongfu: "Tell the village not to stage such empty formalities in the future; doing real work and ensuring the people live in peace and prosperity matters more than anything."

Chen Hongfu smiled awkwardly: "County Chief, this is just the villagers' heartfelt gesture."

Zhang Kaishan frowned but said nothing; after getting out of the car, he refrained from embarrassing the village cadres, shook their hands warmly, and headed straight for the livestock farm construction site.

Most of the livestock farm's buildings were already completed; since it was a farm, no interior finishing was needed—the wild boars, wild chickens, and bamboo rats were simply moved in.

During this period, the village organized villagers to capture more wild animals, and the farm was now bustling with chickens flying and pigs jumping.

Under the guidance of the village cadres, Zhang Kaishan inspected the pig pens, chicken coops, and rat enclosures one by one, while Professor Rao explained everything from the side.

Zhang Kaishan asked detailed questions: How many times a year do these wild animals breed? How many offspring per litter? What feed do they eat? What's the annual cost? What price can they fetch?

In his youth, Zhang Kaishan had worked in the countryside for several years and was not unfamiliar with raising pigs or chickens, but he didn't yet know how to raise these wild animals; yet his questions were still quite professional.

Professor Rao answered each question in turn; Zhang Kaishan calculated that if the farm operated well, its annual profit would be substantial.

The farm introduced several superior female breeding pigs—Landrace pigs—and mated them with robust male wild boars; within less than a year, they could give birth to one litter, each producing around ten piglets, which would become the final product—special wild boars.

These special wild boars have varied diets: all kinds of green grasses, sweet potatoes, corn, even sweet potato vines, corn stalks, and corn cobs can serve as feed, with only small additions of concentrated feed and additives to supplement trace elements.

Calculated together, total costs would not exceed three yuan per jin; yet the Jiangcheng Huimin Trading Company had signed a contract agreeing to purchase them at ten yuan per jin—more than double the profit.

Each special wild boar could be slaughtered in under ten months, averaging about 180 jin in weight, meaning the profit per animal could reach nearly a thousand yuan.

With the farm currently slaughtering fifty special wild boars per year, just this segment alone could yield a profit of forty to fifty thousand yuan.

As the farm's scale expands further in the future, this profit will naturally grow even higher.

The profit margins for wild chickens and bamboo rats would be no lower than those of wild boars—possibly even higher—because their reproduction rates are far greater and their growth cycles much shorter; they breed faster, reach market faster, and their meat sells for far higher prices than wild boar meat—how could the profit not be high?

Moreover, the pelts of wild chickens and bamboo rats are also quite valuable; after processing, their added value is substantial, representing another significant source of profit.