What wealth secrets are hidden in giant loofahs?
Highlights: In 2005, he had just taken over his father's processing factory when disaster struck. The factory was gone, and he was a million yuan in debt. With no money to his name, he started over. In half a year, he rebuilt the factory and sales grew 4-fold. He made his mark with big loofahs - the bigger the loofah, the more money he made, with a single loofah growing over 1 m long. Thanks to giant loofahs, his 2014 sales exceeded 50 million yuan. See how Huang Wenjiang used big loofahs to turn his fate around and build his fortune.
When the reporter went to interview Huang Wenjiang, he and the local farmers were busy preparing for an important event.
Huang Wenjiang: Come out here a moment.
Reporter: Hello.
Villager: Hello.
Huang Wenjiang: This is Reporter Zhang from CCTV.
Villager: Hello.
Reporter: Hello. What are you doing?
Villager: I'm looking for the biggest loofah.
Reporter: You want to pick the biggest loofah?
Villager: Yes, I'm preparing for the contest tomorrow.
Reporter: Let's go, we'll help you pick one. The loofah is huge.
Villager: That's not big.
Reporter: That's not big?
Villager: This one isn't big.
Reporter: There are even bigger ones, right?
Villager: Yes.
Loofahs are common, but this was the first time the reporter had seen giant loofahs over 1 m long and very thick like these. The farmers were busy finding the biggest loofah in their own homes to enter the Dongxiang County Loofah King contest. If they won the championship, they would not only get the title of "Loofah King" but also a prize of 3,000 yuan for a single loofah. Wu Meigu was last year's Loofah King, and this year he was determined to defend his title, picking out the biggest loofah to compete.
Wu Meigu: Exactly 98 cm.
Reporter: This one is 98 cm. To me it already looks very long. Do you feel satisfied with it? Are you entering this one?
Wu Meigu: This one won't do, no way.
Reporter: It won't do?
Wu Meigu: It's still a bit short.
How big the loofahs grow is a concern for the farmers, and Huang Wenjiang pays especially close attention too. The Loofah King contest was organized by his company, and this was already the second year it had been held. The goal was to motivate farmers to grow bigger loofahs, because this was closely tied to his wealth.
Huang Wenjiang: When they get bigger, it turns into money. I dream of making them bigger and longer. Their length and size have a direct relationship with my wealth, so I especially hope they can grow bigger and longer.
The bigger the loofah, the happier Huang Wenjiang is. So what wealth secrets are hidden in these big loofahs?
Actually, these big loofahs are not for eating. In the past, locals used the loofah sponge to scrub pots, and they were not worth anything at all. But in Huang Wenjiang's hands, big loofahs multiplied in value. Now he buys up all the big loofahs from more than 10,000 mu in Dongxiang County, and his company's annual sales exceed 50 million yuan, which makes the locals admire him greatly.
Villager: This one is long.
Huang Wenjiang: Be careful.
Reporter: So heavy.
Huang Wenjiang: Take it out and compare it.
Reporter: Okay. This trellis is really low, hard to get through.
Villager: Right. Let me measure it.
The loofah Wu Meigu won the championship with last year was 1.2 m long. This loofah was longer than last year's, which gave him a bit more confidence.
Reporter: How likely do you feel it is now that you'll win a prize tomorrow?
Villager: About 60 or 70 percent.
Reporter: 60 or 70 percent?
Villager: Yes.
Reporter: It really is quite long. Look, I'm 1.68 m tall, and see, this already reaches almost to my shoulder. It really is very long. Okay, let's go.
Villager: Okay, let's go. Let me carry it.
Reporter: Lift it up, it's fine, I'll help you carry it.
Villager: Okay, here we go.
Although he was very satisfied with this selected loofah, Wu Meigu was not fully confident, because more than 5,000 farming households in Dongxiang County grow loofahs, and with so many experts gathered, there were plenty of people who wanted to snatch the championship from him.
This villager, named Huang Guoxing, grows 8 mu of loofahs. To select the most competitive entry, he had already been walking back and forth through the field picking for 2 days.
Reporter: What was your result last year?
Huang Guoxing: Last year I got third prize. I wasn't satisfied.
Reporter: So what result do you want this year?
Huang Guoxing: A big prize, first place.
Reporter: You're going for the championship, right?
Huang Guoxing: Yes.
Everyone wants to be champion. Who will be this year's Loofah King?
On August 30, 2015, the Dongxiang County Loofah King contest was about to be held in Cimei Village. Early in the morning, many people from Dongxiang came here to watch the excitement, and some tourists even made special trips from out of town. Each township in Dongxiang County had selected 20 skilled loofah growers to compete. The contestants were all very confident, and none of them was willing to yield to another.
Reporter: This contestant is holding a pretty big one too, let me take a look. Number 4, right?
Villager: Yes.
Reporter: How do you feel, are you confident?
Villager: Yes.
Reporter: Do you feel confident today about taking the championship for the longest loofah?
Villager: Yes.
Reporter: Confident?
Villager: I'm just confident.
Host: Please give a round of applause.
At 10 a.m., the contest began. As soon as the contestants came out carrying their big loofahs, they drew cheers from the audience.
The contest had 2 awards, for the longest loofah and the biggest loofah. The longest loofah competition compared length. The biggest loofah competition compared thickness, measuring the circumference like this. This year the loofahs grew very well, and both length and thickness surpassed previous years. As soon as Wu Meigu's loofah appeared, it became the focus of the whole venue. After measurement, its length reached 1.32 m.
After more than 1 hour of competition, the results were finally announced. Last year's Loofah King, Wu Meigu, won again, taking the championship for the longest loofah, while another farmer won the championship for the biggest loofah. Some contestants who had come for the championship but did not win looked on with great envy.
Villager: A bit of regret.
Reporter: A bit of regret, you didn't win a prize?