After the divorce, he settled in Northwest China and became a Shennong (a legendary Chinese farmer).

Chapter 0023 Agricultural Machinery Service Agreement, First Payment

"I retired from my original workplace and now I'm participating in the 'Pegasus Cultivation' program here. My wife used to be a teacher, and neither of us is good at farming, so we have to ask for help."

I'd like to ask what kind of agricultural machinery services you provide? And how much do you charge?

After entering the house, the guests and hosts took their seats.

Professor Mao gave a brief self-introduction and then asked about the price of agricultural machinery services.

Gu Tong and Dong Jun exchanged a glance, and then he answered:

"Professor Mao, your land is in a similar condition to mine. There are a lot of stones in the field, so the first thing to do is to clear the stones. Then you can turn the soil, clear the stones again, prepare the land, and sow the seeds."

Since Dong Jun had not discussed the specific details with Professor Mao beforehand, Gu Tong provided a detailed explanation of the entire agricultural machinery service process.

As for the prices, they are all transparent.

捡石每亩地收费200-400元，铧式犁翻地每亩收费40-60元，旋耕/整地每亩收费30-50元，播种每亩收费50-60元。

This is the standard for local agricultural machinery services.

"Alright, I'll ask you to help me with everything from collecting stones to planting the seeds. Could you give me a discount on the fees?"

Professor Mao was clearly not good at bargaining, and he was a little uneasy after he finished speaking.

Gu Tong nodded. He didn't need to consult Dong Jun, since Dong Jun was the one who provided the main agricultural machinery services.

"Sure. However, the stones in our fields are plentiful and large, so the fee for stone collection cannot be less than 300 yuan per mu, since it includes two stone collection sessions. In addition, material transportation is charged separately. Taking Brother Dong's tractor as an example, the transportation fee for one trip is 50-100 yuan."

Of all the services, stone collecting is the most expensive, and the price varies greatly depending on the number and size of the stones, as well as whether they are located on the surface or deep in the soil.

Given the local conditions, the price of 300 yuan per mu for collecting stones is not high.

Professor Mao had obviously done his homework beforehand and knew that the other party was not asking for an exorbitant price. However, he still felt a pang of regret that the cost of 24000 yuan was just for picking up stones.

Of course, collecting stones is a one-time investment, which is common in the Northwest region.

"Sigh! I thought I got 80 acres of land for free, but now I realize it's all a trap. Fine, I'll do it your way. I'm not expecting to make much money, just enough to break even at the end of the year."

Professor Mao sighed and approved Gu Tong's proposal.

Gu Tong then wrote a detailed fee schedule based on the prices of 300 yuan per mu for stone picking, 50 yuan per mu for plowing, 40 yuan per mu for rotary tillage/land preparation, and 55 yuan per mu for sowing.

The total amount reached 35600 yuan, which does not include the cost of transporting the stones, which is charged per trip (vehicle).

"Thank you, Xiao Gu! Shall we sign an agreement or contract to avoid disputes later?"

The two parties reached a preliminary verbal agreement, but Professor Mao then proposed to sign a contract.

Gu Tong never expected his first business deal to go so smoothly, and he also believed that an "Agricultural Machinery Service Agreement" should be signed.

Professor Mao has a computer, internet access at home, and a printer.

This is very convenient. Just download a template for an agricultural machinery service agreement online, adding details as needed. After printing it out, both of them reviewed it, found it satisfactory, and signed it.

The heavy responsibility of transporting the stones fell on Dong Jun's shoulders. Since the distance was not far, he charged 50 yuan per trip.

After finishing their business, Gu Tong and Dong Jun got up to say goodbye.

"Okay, then I'll leave it to you two. I've already prepared farmyard manure, chemical fertilizer, rapeseed, and alfalfa seeds. You can come and pick them up anytime. Just have Xiao Dong give me the transport volume; I trust him."

Professor Mao escorted the two to the outside of the courtyard, and Gu Tong and Dong Jun got into the car and left.

After lunch, the two went to Professor Mao's field and began collecting stones.

This land is very close to Gu Tong's land, and the geological and soil conditions are similar. The fertile land is in better condition, but the saline-alkali land is in a very bad state.

The first stone-collecting operation involved picking up stones from the surface of the land. Soon, the roar of the tractor, the vibration of the stone-collecting machine, and the clatter of stones falling into the truck bed all blended together to create a unique "field symphony".

The assignment went smoothly until the two of them discovered a problem.

From loading the truck to Dong Jun driving the tractor to unload it and then returning, the entire trip takes 27 minutes. This is only because the location where the stones are dumped is very close; otherwise, the time would be spent on the road.

"Basically, it's two truckloads per hour, and at most eight truckloads in the afternoon."

During their break, Gu Tong and Dong Jun did some calculations and realized that their work efficiency was a bit slow.

That works out to about 3-5 acres per hour. It would take about 16-27 hours to finish all 80 acres.

"Yes, it takes three days just to collect the stones."

Dong Jun was also having a headache. The only solution was to add another tractor for transportation, but he hesitated about whether to share half of the money he had received.

"I estimate it won't take more than 3 days. There are many stones in the saline-alkali land, but the remaining 30 acres of normal farmland don't have that many stones."

Gu Tong smiled, understanding Dong Jun's thoughts.

Dong Jun and I are working together just to earn more money, right? If we had to split the transportation costs in half, he would feel the pinch too.

However, the account just now was calculated based on the progress of the saline-alkali land; there are fewer stones in the other 30 mu of land.

Taking everything into account, the entire construction period is estimated to be two or two and a half days.

After the sun set, Gu Tong and Dong Jun prepared to wrap up work.

They have been working continuously for 5 hours. Even if the people are not tired, the vehicles and machinery need to rest.

Thanks to their seamless teamwork, they cleared 16 mu of saline-alkali land in the afternoon. With a little more effort, they aim to completely clear the remaining 50 mu of saline-alkali land in one day.

"Brother Gu, why don't you come to my house for dinner?"

The two packed their things and got on their respective tractors.

Dong Jun invited Gu Tong to come home for dinner with him, but Gu Tong shook her head and said, "I'm not going. I've been busy all day. I'll just grab a quick bite when I get home and come over for breakfast tomorrow morning."

"Okay, see you tomorrow morning."

Dong Jun did not force the issue, and the two parted ways, each returning to their own homes.

When Gu Tong got home, she first rinsed off, then took out some meat bones from the refrigerator and stewed a pot of bone soup.

He then prepared a cold dish and invited Xiao Shitou to eat together.

Although the day was very busy, Gu Tong did not feel very tired.

The main credit should go to the Body Strengthening Pill, and it is also closely related to his regular schedule and increased nutrition during this period.

However, his expenses during this period were not small, including building a farm machinery shed, purchasing fertilizers, pesticides and composting materials, fuel costs, and daily expenses. The money in his bank card was less than 120,000 yuan, to be precise, only 117,000 yuan remained.

Fortunately, he soon received 35600 yuan, which greatly relieved his financial pressure.

The first income from agricultural machinery services, after deducting depreciation, fuel costs, and maintenance, yields a net profit of approximately 25700 yuan. Income from agricultural mechanization is exempt from value-added tax, and income earned by individuals from mechanized farming is exempt from income tax.

However, I still need to make time to go to the tax bureau. In accordance with Gu Tong's style of doing things, we must ensure that nothing goes wrong.

After finishing her meal, Gu Tong sorted out the recent miscellaneous matters before getting up to clean up the mess.

night.

Gu Tong sat at the table editing videos, while Xiao Shitou chased a small ball around the room, neither disturbing the other.

He edited the video, reviewed it, and then clicked upload.

Afterwards, he went to wash up, and after he finished washing up, he lay in bed and received a message from Xu Zejun.

"Looks like you're doing well over there. I'm really happy for you. If there's anything I can help you with, just let me know. We don't do that 'out of sight, out of mind' kind of thing; we're still brothers."