Chapter 1607 - 1574: Countless Salted Fish

"How much are those goldfish selling for?" Adena asked with her eyes gleaming.

Marcus Quinn saw her looking like a little money-grubber, and his gaze contained a faint smile as he said in a deep voice, "The price was set by Minister Li. Although the goldfish are priced like gold, we can’t actually sell them at the price of gold. So, fish over three pounds are sold for two hundred thousand, and those under three pounds are sold for one hundred thousand. To protect their ability to reproduce, we can’t catch more than sixty in a year."

Hearing this, Adena’s expectations were surpassed. Plus, Marcus had set a limit on the fish sales. The ones not caught would all stay at the Holiday Village, and she happily said, "Marcus, you’re amazing."

Marcus blushed at her compliment, though it was hard to tell due to his tan complexion, only his eyes showed a more intense emotion.

"That’s right, Marcus, now you don’t have to worry about the investment funds borrowed through your grandfather’s connections. This year, catch sixty, sell forty, and keep the rest for breeding. Forty fish make four million, which not only pays off the debt but leaves some extra for the New Year," Irving Spencer said with excitement, his eyes squinting in delight.

Irving’s wife and Oliver Zolotov also looked cheerful. Joy Zachary was a bit dazed throughout the day; besides meeting the county head and the mayor, they also met leaders from the Imperial City. And just by moving their lips, they earned four million? The Holiday Village had only been open for three days, and just over a month ago, Marcus said he wanted to build it, and now it’s already turning a profit?

Joy looked at Marcus and Adena with a peculiar gaze, took a deep breath, and thought luck is truly mysterious. She decided not to stop her in-laws from following Marcus in building the Holiday Village. It’s clearly a money-making project, having recouped the cost in just three days of operation.

"Yes, the four million from this year’s forty goldfish will be collected tomorrow when Minister Li and Dean Mo send someone to transport them. It counts as money in the bank, but within a year, the institute’s research will undoubtedly have breakthroughs, and then the situation will be different. So we can’t just rely on selling goldfish to make money," Marcus said thoughtfully, looking at Adena. "Adena, when drafting the agreement, Dean Mo insisted we can’t disclose having goldfish, and the research is being conducted secretly. The newspaper article you had Mr. Weng publish has been retracted, so the Holiday Village can’t use goldfish as a promotional gimmick."

Adena’s little face fell instantly. They were a bunch of old foxes, using four million to both research goldfish and make money selling them.

But Adena was always carefree. Thinking of having no debt and still some assets now, she was happy and considered it a contribution to the country.

With this four million, everyone held a meeting to discuss how to further improve the construction of the Holiday Village.

Of the four million, Marcus returned five hundred thousand to the city finances, leaving three hundred thousand to do some more work.

"The sheep pen and cattle barn can be finished in these two days. With more than ten cows and sheep, by next spring, we’ll have lambs and calves. We planted three greenhouses of vegetables. Last month, we cleared one hundred acres of rice paddies and eighty acres of dryland. Next year, we can plant rice, cotton, wheat, and rapeseed, which will be sufficient for the Holiday Village’s self-sufficiency, with some surplus. We can also raise some pigs," Irving Spencer said with a beaming smile.

"Marcus, we need to buy a vehicle. Borrowing cars is inconvenient; we should at least have a truck," Oliver Zolotov suggested.

"It’s best to hire some helpers; we’re short on hands," Irving’s wife felt hiring was a priority.

"Irving and his wife are getting old, and Marcus can’t always be cooking, so we need to hire a chef and cleaning staff. We can partner with a cleaning company to outsource that, and then hire some front desk staff," Adena initially thought of hiring security but felt it unnecessary upon looking at Marcus.

Marcus nodded, accepting almost everyone’s suggestions, and said in a low voice, "Everyone’s ideas make sense. Oliver, the vehicle purchase is up to you; go buy it tomorrow. As for the kitchen, we do need to hire help. Let’s hire locals; this will be up to Irving’s wife. Irving can take charge of the land matters, as he’s more experienced. This week, two construction teams will be coming in to enclose the entire lake and build high bridges and enclosed water pavilions. Dean Mo and Minister Li will provide the technology and construction teams, and I’ll be responsible for this. I’ll also contact the cleaning outsourcing tomorrow."

Everyone nodded eagerly upon receiving their tasks and then dispersed.

The next morning, Minister Li and Dean Mo carefully transported twenty goldfish with dedicated equipment. The remaining ten or so goldfish were all released back into the lake by Marcus. Oliver Zolotov paid three months’ rent in one go, and two assistants moved in with him, all of them staying in a standalone house with a yard.

Old Mr. Weng, having deep pockets, paid six months’ rent upfront, continuously cozying up to Adena. He wanted to live in the Holiday Village year-round as a technical advisor. Seeing that he was an expert from the Agricultural Institute and many seeds in the village came from him, Adena nodded and offered him a fifty percent discount on accommodation for the long term, waiving all other fees. Mr. Weng was overjoyed, immediately calling his assistant to bring his institute’s equipment over, as he planned to retire and continue his research here while being neighbors with Old Zhou.

Now that the Holiday Village had started receiving guests, the cleaning was outsourced to a chain housekeeping company. Irving’s wife hired two quick-witted village women as canteen staff, and Oliver bought a small truck. Combined with his own car, the village’s vehicles were barely sufficient.

Marcus was negotiating with the county and city about opening a bus route to the Holiday Village. The county was easy; the existing bus to the scenic area just needed to add a stop for the Holiday Village. The city didn’t have a bus route to Green County yet, nor was the metro extended. Though it was challenging to implement, they were increasingly valuing Green County’s scenic areas and planned to develop its tourism industry.

Seven days later, the National Day holidays were long over. Adena counted the earnings for the seven days. After the holiday, people gradually decreased, but in ten days, total earnings were 240 thousand. All expenses, including staff salaries and costs, amounted to 30 thousand, resulting in a net profit of 210 thousand, excluding the goldfish sales.

Sales at the Green Meadow Wonderland Orchard were booming. Half of the ugly mandarins had been sold, and fish sales were also substantial. As fish became too abundant over the following days, and every household in the village had some, Marcus took half to sell at county restaurants, leaving a portion which was made into salted fish. Now, the back of the canteen was hung with rows of salted fish.

Another 40 thousand was made from fish sales. Adena didn’t concern herself with the expenditure from the four million; she was simply calculating that in ten days of trial operation, the Holiday Village had earned 280 thousand, making her smile every day.

When the National Day hustle was over, everyone heaved a sigh of relief, and Marcus decided to take this opportunity to go hiking with Adena behind the orchard.