Li Liangping of Fengdu Gives Up a Salary of Over 100,000 Yuan to Return Home and Raise Chickens

A young man born in the 1980s, a top graduate of a prestigious university, and also the chief engineer of a construction company, he unexpectedly gave up a job with a monthly salary of over 10,000 yuan to return to his hometown of Liyuan Village, Xumingsi Town, Fengdu County, to contract a fish pond and set up a breeding farm. At present, his farm already has 2 chicken coops with nearly 4,000 chickens, and a conservative estimate puts the profit for a single batch at close to 80,000 yuan, making him a widely known "Chicken Commander." He is Li Liangping, 35 years old this year.

Taking Risks to Start a Business Despite Family Opposition

Meeting Li Liangping for the first time, he was plainly dressed and approachable, and in conversation he made people feel especially warm, while also showing the speech and clear thinking of a top graduate of a key university. After graduating from Chongqing University in 2004, Li Liangping had always worked at the Yuechi County Electric Power Construction General Company in Sichuan Province, during which he served as chief engineer of a project (responsible for all the technology at a construction site and assisting with management), and his monthly salary had already reached more than 10,000 yuan. However, while his career was on the rise, Li Liangping was not satisfied with the status quo, because he had always kept one idea in his heart. "I had always been thinking about when I would have the chance to go back and make some contribution to my hometown."

By this time, Li Liangping already had a plan in mind. He had long had his eye on a pond near Group 1 of Liyuan Village in his hometown, and was just waiting for the right time to go back and contract this pond to develop an industry. "At that time, the government strongly supported micro-enterprises, and I was not content to spend my whole life working for others." Li Liangping said that in July 2013, despite his parents' opposition, with no experience and no technology, Li Liangping spent 30,000 yuan to contract that pond. Before that, he had settled down in the county town and bought social insurance for his unemployed parents, which used up almost all of his savings from those years.

In 2014, Li Liangping formally resigned and returned to Liyuan Village, bought fry to start aquaculture, and at the same time borrowed 50,000 yuan from relatives and friends and raised 100 sheep. It was not until this time that his wife, who had originally been kept in the dark, finally learned the truth. Opposition was useless by then, so she had no choice but to choose to support him.

In fact, how could Li Liangping not know the risks that starting a business might bring? But he still firmly chose this path. "Since I have chosen this path, I must keep going. If after ten or eight years it is still a failure, then that really proves I am not suited to do this, but all short-term failures are nothing." It was precisely this spirit and courage that kept Li Liangping from ever giving up his original dream when facing all kinds of difficulties that came one after another.

Raising 4,000 Chickens in One Year

Perhaps it really was bad luck, but when he was raising sheep, he happened to run into market fluctuations, and mutton prices fell sharply. Sheep bought at 18 yuan per jin could only be sold for 7 or 8 yuan per jin, and he nearly lost everything.

Even so, Li Liangping still did not become discouraged. He said that no matter which trade one is in, there will be risks and the possibility of failure; the key is whether one can persist, and he was the one who never gave up and bravely kept going.

Taking advantage of the geographical location, in September 2015, Li Liangping began raising chickens again. Learning from the earlier experience with sheep, this time he was especially careful, often learning technical experience from older farmers, large-scale breeders in surrounding districts and counties, and experts from the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Bureau, while also learning some breeding and disease prevention methods on the Internet. In order to save costs, when building chicken coops, greenhouses, fences, and other supporting facilities, he personally did much of the work such as mixing cement and laying bricks. "I will do what I can do myself; saving some money is a good thing."

For a period of time, the chicks in the greenhouse fought with each other and pecked at each other's bottoms, causing many chicks to die, which troubled him greatly. Only after asking around did he learn that this was caused by the chicks being too crowded, uneven greenhouse temperatures, and a lack of vitamins in the chicks. After finding the root of the problem, Li Liangping solved it in time, greatly increasing the survival rate of the chicks.

Now Li Liangping already has 2 chicken coops and raises nearly 4,000 chickens, and is currently building a third chicken coop. He is still very confident about the market and profits. He said, "Xumingsi Town is located at the junction of Fengdu County, Zhong County, and Dianjiang County, so there is certainly no need to worry about sales." At present, the profit on one chicken is about 20 yuan.

Not Forgetting to Help Villagers Get Rich

As his business gradually got on track, Li Liangping did not forget the original intention of returning to his hometown to start a business. He wanted to do something for his hometown and for his fellow villagers. His breeding base is on a mountain, but from the highway to the base there was only a narrow footpath, long unrepaired and full of potholes, especially difficult to walk. On rainy days, when you stepped on it, half your shoe would sink in. So he consulted with the surrounding villagers and took out 50,000 yuan to widen and thicken this road of a full kilometer, so that cars could drive directly to the breeding base and the surrounding villagers could also avoid some of the muddy road when going in and out. "Thanks to him, this road is finally open, and it is much more convenient for us to buy and sell," said villager Xu Denghong with a smile.

Raising chickens requires a large amount of feed. Although buying it outside might be cheaper, Li Liangping always gave priority to purchasing corn, rice, and other crops from his fellow villagers at a price five cents or even one jiao per jin higher than the market price, especially for some poor farming households, whom Li Liangping always tried his best to take care of. The villagers said, "He is a very honest person, and everyone is willing to sell grain to him."

Now Li Liangping runs his breeding business while also serving as a member of the Liyuan Village Committee, and he always feels there is not enough time. He said he is thinking about hiring several poor farming households to help with management and care at his base, so as to free up more time for himself while also increasing their income.