Miaoling Brothers Return Home to Start a Business and Get Rich Together
Lush vegetation sways in the wind among the mountains, and tinkling springs flow merrily in the streams. Driving along the winding mountain road, we saw signs for "Aoshan Baishun Sheep Farm" lined up all the way, and finally caught sight of it in the flesh at the foot of Ping'ao Slope, opposite the outlet of Sanbanxi Power Station.
"I just finished preparing a table's worth of packed mutton." Sheep boss Jiang Zeyao said while cleaning up. This was the first sale of the day, earning 360 yuan.
Jiang Zeyao is a villager of Ping'ao Village in Pinglue Town. Aoshan Baishun Sheep Farm was founded by him and his younger cousin Jiang Zezhen at the end of 2015. It is located at the foot of Ping'ao Slope in Pinglue Town, about 20 km from the county seat.
In 2003, after graduating from junior high school, the Jiang brothers did not continue their studies, nor were they content to follow their elders and farm that five mu and three fen of land. One after another, they went out to work.
After more than ten years of working away from home, although they did earn some money, they spent just as much. "Expenses outside are high, one person earns and the whole family spends, and even the bus fare to come home for festivals is a real burden. By the end of the year, there is hardly any money saved, and we cannot even take care of the old and young at home." Speaking of their working life, the Jiang brothers were full of bitterness, and the idea of returning home to develop something gradually ignited in their hearts.
While they were working away from home, their hometown was changing with each passing day. The village gate was erected, solar streetlights lit up, and clean tap water became available. The most inspiring change was the hardening and opening to traffic of the village road in 2011. Seeing the changes in their hometown, the Jiang brothers' desire to return home and develop was completely stirred up.
Relying on their hometown's good natural ecological environment and the continuous improvement of transportation conditions, in early 2013 the Jiang brothers, without prior discussion, both started ecological goat farming at the foot of Ping'ao Slope, investing a total of 150,000 yuan and introducing about 100 goats, beginning their dream of getting rich by raising goats.
For more than two years, the brothers learned while doing, their breeding techniques gradually matured, and the flock developed steadily. At present, the flock numbers more than 200. However, the growth of the flock did not make the brothers happy. How to solve the sales problem became a headache for them.
"A goat costs around 1,000 yuan, which is hard for an ordinary family to afford." Jiang Zezhen pointed out the current difficulty of selling the goats.
In recent years, as the local Party committee and government continued to develop Ping'ao's ethnic cultural tourism, Jiang Zezhen saw that more and more people were going to Ping'ao, and the number of tourists visiting the Sanbanxi Reservoir area also increased year by year. A thought suddenly formed in his mind. At the end of 2015, Jiang Zezhen, who had worked as a chef, discussed it with his older cousin and decided to "upgrade" the farm by opening a farmhouse restaurant near the breeding site, named Aoshan Baishun Sheep Farm, to solve the sales problem for the goats. Once they made up their minds, the brothers immediately took action. Leveling the ground, building the house... after a month, a farmhouse restaurant full of mountain village character rose from the ground.
"Running a farmhouse restaurant lets me use my expertise. Most importantly, the people who come here to eat mutton can all afford it, and the sheep farm's income has increased." Jiang Zezhen said that in the first five months of this year, the "upgraded" sheep farm achieved 60,000 yuan in income.
In order to provide more dishes for the sheep farm, the Jiang brothers also raised more than 100 free-range chickens and planted vegetables around the sheep farm, so that tourists coming to the sheep farm could eat more original ecological food.
Because the goats are raised ecologically on open range, Baishun Sheep Farm's ecological goats have won a good reputation and continue to attract more and more tourists and buyers. "Many of those who come to visit Sanbanxi and those who come to visit Ping'ao Village eat here." Jiang Zezhen said. In order to ensure the sheep farm's stable and sustainable development, the Jiang brothers set aside a certain amount of income every year to guarantee the goat stock and the sheep farm's basic infrastructure.
With the development of all-for-one tourism, tourist attractions such as Sanbanxi and Ping'ao Village will become more and more popular. The Jiang brothers believe Aoshan Baishun Sheep Farm will also become smoother and smoother. They are also carefully planning the sheep farm's development: "Through continuous development, gradually expand the scale, slowly build our own brand, and let 'Happy Sheep' resound throughout Aoshan."
The Jiang brothers also widely sent out the sheep farm's "business card" through their respective WeChat Moments, letting more people come and experience their "Happy Sheep," because just a few days ago, they successfully obtained two tables' worth of orders through a WeChat group. The internet let the two of them feel the real benefits brought by big data.