Chapter 50: An Unexpected Surprise! Vitamin VPP! Anti-Aging?

Chapter 50: An Unexpected Surprise! Vitamin VPP! Anti-Aging?

There was a large open space in the backyard of the hall.

Qin Lin was holding a book, carefully cultivating bougainvillea seedlings according to the instructions. He performed a series of actions on a pot—adding soil, transplanting, covering...

Beside him, Chen Dabei was watering the watermelon seeds with a watering can.

“Boss, do these watermelon seeds really sprout? It’s already winter,” Chen Dabei asked skeptically, but he still carried out the tasks assigned by his boss efficiently.

Qin Lin smiled and didn’t explain much. He planted a bougainvillea cutting into a pot, then picked up the watering can to water it.

This cutting came from the seven-colored symbiotic bougainvillea produced in the game. Like the grade 2 watermelon seeds he was planting, he wanted to see how these game-derived items would grow in reality.

Just then, Gao Yaoyao hurried in with two people following behind.

Seeing Qin Lin, she quickly said, “Boss, these two say they’re from the Tourism Bureau and want to see you.”

“Hello, I’m Chen Li, the director of the Tourism Bureau,” Chen Li introduced himself as soon as he saw Qin Lin and extended his hand.

“Director Chen, what brings you to our resort?” Qin Lin shook his hand in surprise.

Since Chen Li’s credentials were proper, there shouldn’t be any problem.

Chen Li smiled and said, “Boss Qin, we’re here for research, to learn about how you manage this resort. You must be aware that our county is currently focusing on building an integrated demonstration zone for all-region tourism industry development.”

“I’m somewhat familiar with it,” Qin Lin nodded.

He studied tourism management, so naturally, he knew about the development of tourism in his hometown.

In recent years, the county has been promoting the concept of “the scenic area is my home,” pushing for the integration of tourism with the primary, secondary, and tertiary industries to boost the overall strength and competitiveness of high-quality development throughout the region.

Simply put, they rely on tourism to attract visitors and promote other industries. Hence, the county has been vigorously developing tourism. Within the county town, several temples have been renovated and expanded into foundational tourist spots, and various other locations are also being developed.

The most famous are the Hero Valley, Milky Way Scenic Area, Terraced Fields Scenic Area, and Zhuzi Cultural Park Scenic Area.

There are many other small and large scenic spots scattered across villages and towns; even a ginkgo forest has been developed into a somewhat well-known destination.

Over the years, the county’s tourism numbers have surged from about 700,000 visitors annually to over 7.5 million, with growth continuing.

Of course, Qin Lin had also heard rumors that the vigorous tourism push was not only for development but also because the county might be upgraded to a city, which would change the current awkward situation of low wages and high housing prices.

As for the truth, he wasn’t sure, and it wasn’t something ordinary people should pry into.

Still, although You City faces the dilemma of low wages and high housing costs, it has many advantages.

Firstly, it is known as an ancient county with a thousand-year history. Secondly, it is renowned for kumquats, tea oil, and green bamboo. It also lies within the Central Soviet Area and boasts well-developed transportation facilities like high-speed rail stations and expressway entrances.

If managed well, an all-region tourism industry city can certainly boost the economy and increase the income of the people.

Take his resort, for example. Gao Yaoyao and the others used to earn only 3,500 yuan in salary. Now that business is good, naturally he can raise their wages, and with commissions, their income would far exceed before.

Only now did Qin Lin realize that his resort had become extremely popular, with nearly 1,000 visitors just yesterday. At that rate, the resort could attract close to 300,000 visitors annually.

This was already about two-thirds of the daily visitors to Hero Valley—and the number was only increasing.

This had undoubtedly caught the county’s attention.

He couldn’t help but press his forehead in frustration. How could he have forgotten? He had even been worried about the complicated procedures for the rafting project.

He could completely apply for the tourism project support funds designed by the county in recent years.

With such visitor numbers, the county would probably take the initiative to help him handle the paperwork and even provide matching planning support.

For a first-time business venture, this was embarrassing.

“Boss Qin, I just toured your resort. This sea feature can definitely become a huge highlight of You City, attracting a lot of visitors,” Chen Li sincerely praised, then shifted tone. “However, your resort’s supporting facilities are too few. One sea isn’t enough to disperse crowds; the capacity is limited. Have you considered expanding with other types of supporting attractions?”

“I noticed the resort covers 500 acres, most of which is still wasteland. Have you thought about adding another themed sea? Also, there’s a river next to the resort with potential for visitors—it could be developed into a regular rafting attraction for the scenic area.”

Chen Li grew more urgent, as the resort had already welcomed nearly a thousand visitors yesterday, and today’s number would be even higher. If the resort could break through and stabilize at 2,000 visitors per day, it could host about 750,000 tourists annually.

The key advantage was that the resort was just a 30-minute drive from the county seat, something other scenic spots couldn’t match.

Just imagine, over 750,000 visitors. If they only came to see the sea and left, that would be a huge waste. But if the resort offered more projects, it would earn more and pay more taxes.

After seeing the sea and enjoying rafting, when night falls, surely they’d stay overnight. Wouldn’t they also dine and entertain themselves in You City? The economic boost would be tremendous.

They could fully tap into these visitors’ wallets.

What they feared most was a decline in the resort’s popularity.

Chen Li would return to the bureau to hold a meeting, thinking about how to offer suggestions to keep the resort’s momentum going.

Opportunities like this didn’t come often.

Hearing Chen Li’s words, Qin Lin couldn’t help but admire him—no wonder he was the head of the Tourism Bureau. His insight was excellent.

After reflecting, Qin Lin also roughly understood Chen Li’s purpose. It seemed the resort’s booming popularity would bring him unexpected benefits.

Chen Li then handed Qin Lin a document and said, “Boss Qin, take a look at this. If you want to expand your resort, the county can provide interest-free support funds or tourism subsidy funds to assist with construction.”

Qin Lin had already guessed most of this, but he knew the tourism support fund and tourism subsidy fund were different—the former was repayable, the latter was not, and the amounts differed.

The tourism support fund provided loans or equity-based financing to the tourism industry, though equity investments were less commonly used.

Simply put, the government loans you money that you must repay. Of course, if it’s equity investment, you wouldn’t have to repay, but you’d lose much control.

Many scenic spots in You City currently opt for this support fund method.

Tourism subsidy funds, on the other hand, were non-repayable aids for the tourism industry, usually funded by the government through financial allocations, interest subsidies, or tax rebates.

These grants were smaller and subject to various government audits, such as resort income, tax payments, and valuation of the sea bougainvillea.

Although these subsidies were free, Qin Lin was clearly reluctant to accept them, fearing the scrutiny.

“Director Chen, if my resort qualifies, I’d prefer to apply for the interest-free tourism support fund,” Qin Lin expressed his thoughts. Though it had to be repaid, it felt more secure and meant getting the money upfront.

“Good!” Chen Li was pleased with the response and smiled. “I’ll head back to the county and hold a meeting. After we finalize the plan, we’ll discuss the details with you.”

“Alright, I’ll await your good news,” Qin Lin said with a smile. Government support would naturally come with certain requirements; they’d negotiate those later.

As for the paperwork, he needn’t worry—the Tourism Bureau would handle it.

After Chen Li left, Qin Lin was in high spirits. This was truly an unexpected surprise.

At that moment, a notification appeared in his mind from the game: [Xiangshui Tribute Rice is ripe!]

Qin Lin looked at the virtual screen in his mind, then controlled his game character to harvest the paddy fields and store the rice in the storage room.

Driving to the warehouse and entering the game, he immediately saw the message:

[Xiangshui Tribute Rice: Quality 1 (100 jin)]

[A specially cultivated rice, extremely rare, with rich nutritional value: Nutrition +1, Taste +1, Aroma +1, Deliciousness +1, Vitamin VPP anti-aging +1.]

[Xiangshui Rice: Quality 2 (5 jin)]

[A specially cultivated rice, extremely rare, with rich nutritional value: Nutrition +2, Taste +2, Aroma +2, Deliciousness +2, Vitamin VPP anti-aging +2.]

Vitamin VPP?

Anti-aging?

...

(End of chapter)