Chapter 287: Take as Much as You Can

In the retirement home, the elderly were already bustling around.

Zheng Weishi spent only a few hours to create a huge sales plan, bringing almost everyone into his camp.

The marketing efforts by the old cadres were in full swing.

The retirees were divided into three groups by Zheng Weishi. One group consisted of those who had recently retired and still had connections in their old units. Zheng arranged for them to sell products directly to their former subordinates. Another group included those who had retired longer ago but maintained good relations with former colleagues; this group was sent out to visit and promote the products. The third group consisted of those who had been idle or held no significant authority in their previous positions. They were stationed at various locations such as the entrance guard room, the guesthouse, and the director's office, tasked with calling up contacts from the forestry bureau's directory.

Zheng Weishi himself sat in the activity room with a large teacup, directing operations from the center.

Despite the aggressive approach of these three teams, the results were quite satisfactory. In just one day plus the morning of the second day, they had managed to sell over thirty boxes.

This success gave Zheng Weishi immense confidence. He made a firm decision to secure the agency for the forestry bureau.

"Old Zheng! It's done! Damn it, I went to the bureau office this morning, and those little officials didn't dare to disregard me. I got three boxes!"

As Zheng Weishi was watching a video, Zhang Guoliang, the former office director of the forestry bureau, walked into the activity room and grabbed Zheng's tea, drinking it eagerly.

"Hey!" Upon hearing this news, Zheng Weishi quickly vacated his folding chair for Zhang, "Who bought them?"

"Xiao Liu, Xiao Lao, and Xiao Jia!"

The three people Zhang mentioned were current leaders in the bureau's office—his former subordinates.

"Wow!" Zheng Weishi immediately gave a thumbs up, "Old Zhang, you're amazing!"

"Look at that!" Zheng Weishi rarely praised anyone, and receiving such praise made Zhang Guoliang very proud.

Zheng Weishi then paused, his eyes flicking, "Oh, by the way, Old Zhang, did you tell them that buying from me would make them money and earn rebates?"

"Don't worry, I said exactly what you instructed!" Zhang waved his hand confidently.

On the side, seeing Zhang completely persuaded by Zheng Weishi, Wang Lin and Leng Heng exchanged disapproving glances.

"Are you guys seriously throwing away your dignity just for a health product from Little Li? Even if these old leaders don't want to buy, they wouldn't say it out loud! Isn't this just bribery?"

Watching Zheng Weishi pulling people into this direct sales scheme and organizing them to sell the health product that was worth two months of retirement pay, Wang Lin and Leng Heng felt embarrassed for them.

He found it contemptible.

Wasn't this a crooked path?

Before Zheng Weishi could respond, Zhang Guoliang retorted, "Hey, Old Wang, how can you say that? What's bribery? Even if Xiao Liu, Xiao Lao, and Xiao Jia are young and healthy, don't they have family? This health product isn't a scam. Experts say it's effective. How can you say they're losing face? Even as an old director, your awareness is not as high as Old Zheng's, I tell you. Listen to Old Zheng—this is about spreading health!"

Zheng Weishi raised his eyebrows, proudly glancing at Wang Lin and then patting Zhang Guoliang's shoulder with satisfaction.

"Old Zhang, well said! Keep up the good work. If you sell twenty boxes, I'll talk to Little Li and get you a special agency deal."

"Got it! Old Zheng, just wait and see!"

With the sweet taste of success, the elderly at the retirement home were highly motivated.

...

At the berry research institute, after watching the continuous orders from the retirement home for two days, Wang Hongfei could no longer sit still!

"Old Xu, this is crazy! They didn't advertise or promote at all, relying solely on direct sales. In such a tiny place, they're selling more than ten boxes a day. Imagine the sales if this were in Harbin!"

Seeing Xu Mohe return with more deliveries to the retirement home, Wang Hongfei grabbed him and said, "Why don't I talk to Li Xian and get the agency for the Harbin area?"

Seeing this direct sales model working, Xu Mohe was also thrilled.

However, recalling that Wang Hongfei had been skeptical about the health product business the night before, Xu Mohe teased, "Don't be hasty. What if the product just got a sudden burst of popularity and then sales drop off in a few days? If you secure the agency and can't sell the product, that would be a huge loss."

Embarrassed by his old friend's teasing, Wang Hongfei blushed, rubbed the back of his head, and chuckled awkwardly, "How could that happen?"

Seeing Wang Hongfei embarrassed, Xu Mohe smiled and waved his hand, thinking that now was the time to push for sales. This business looked better than Wang Hongfei's Mahjong machine project. He continued, "Alright, you've always liked dealing with these medicines and drinks. You know people in this field. Give it a try. If it works, great. If not, so be it."

Wang Hongfei, encouraged by Xu Mohe's suggestion, became excited. He immediately pulled out his cell phone.

...

At the Eight-Nine Forest Farm.

Looking at the entire yard filled with cleaned and half-dried Schisandra berries and the cleaned Eleutherococcus senticosus seeds glistening under the sun, Li Xian furrowed his brow.

With no market for the health drinks, the production line at the berry factory couldn't start. The yard had already accumulated nearly thirty thousand pounds of products.

The local villagers who were collecting mountain goods were getting anxious, and rumors about the forest farm were spreading. Li Xian had hoped to prosper together with the farm, but now it seemed like it was falling apart.

Li Xian could accept the financial loss. After all, in business, there are no guarantees of success.

But the thought of losing face in front of his fellow villagers was infuriating—could he really embarrass himself in his hometown?

Just as he was seething inwardly, Aunt Ma arrived out of nowhere.

"Second Brother?"

Aunt Ma's loud voice jolted Li Xian from his thoughts. He quickly put his hands down from his waist, "Hey! What's up, Auntie?"

Aunt Ma, not carrying her big basket today, looked slightly embarrassed, "Well, Auntie just wanted to ask, now that there are so many mountain goods that even your big yard can't hold them, should we... hmm, keep collecting them?"

Faced with Aunt Ma's rare subtlety, Li Xian was momentarily stunned.

Seeing the group of neighbors in the distance, holding empty baskets and peering towards him, Li Xian smiled wryly.

"Well, it's been more than ten days."

Although Aunt Ma didn't say it explicitly, Li Xian understood her meaning.

"Aunt Ma, here's the deal. Have everyone tidy up the receipts and come to the factory to check the accounts. I'll settle the payments for the past ten days..."

Before he could finish, his cell phone rang.

Making an apologetic gesture to Aunt Ma, he answered the call.

Hearing that Wang Hongfei wanted to secure the Harbin agency, Li Xian was stunned.

"Brother Wang, why the sudden change of heart?"

"What?"

When Wang Hongfei said that the health drink was selling well at the forestry bureau, Li Xian's eyes widened in shock, and he slapped his thigh in excitement—he hadn't known about this.

Hanging up the phone, Aunt Ma looked at Li Xian with raised eyebrows and smiled, puzzled.

"What's this kid so happy about?"

Li Xian grinned, grabbing Aunt Ma's rough hand, "Auntie, I'll settle the payment for you soon, but you must keep collecting mountain goods!"

"Huh?" Aunt Ma didn't understand, "We're still collecting?"

"Yes!" Li Xian nodded emphatically, "Keep collecting! And I'll raise the price for you. Schisandra berries and Eleutherococcus senticosus will each increase by ten cents per pound. Since it's not snowing yet, take as much as you can! Pay cash on the spot!"

Upon hearing this, Aunt Ma was so excited she jumped up, "Oh, I'll bring the whole mountain to you!"

Seeing Aunt Ma happily running off to communicate the news, Li Xian laughed, "Auntie, you can just stay at home and wait for the money. There's no need to go up the mountain yourself."

"Good idea! I'll go back and call your uncle. Let's keep working hard at the forest farm!"

From afar, Aunt Ma agreed with enthusiasm.