An illiterate peddler, in the wave of China's reform and opening up, became a well-known capitalist in the country with his small business of selling melon seeds, which is not a TV series, but a real occurrence. He is Nian Guangjiu, a man known as "Fool Melon". What can he tell us?
Born in Huaiyuan, Anhui Province in 1937, he is an ordinary farmer's child. At that time, China was in the midst of internal and external troubles, and life was a challenge for many people. The young Guangjiu never set foot in school due to his family's poverty, and his cultural knowledge was almost zero. But this did not stop him from writing his legendary life in the later years.
What changed his fate was that at first it was just a simple business selling fruits. In Wuhu, he set up a stall with his father and fought for survival. Unlike other vendors, Hirohisa never plays tricky, and he adheres to a seemingly "silly" principle: fair trade, let buyers taste before they buy. This practice made him famous in the local area, and people affectionately called him "The Fool".
Unexpectedly, the name of "fool" has become a golden sign in his business. Hirohisa not only sells fruits, he also tries his hand at selling chestnuts. Unfortunately, during the three years of natural disasters, it was illegal to sell chestnuts because they were food, which led him to jail twice and for more than a year.
After being released from prison, Guangjiu did not choose to give up, but changed his strategy and began to speculate on melon seeds. Unlike chestnuts, melon seeds are not counted as grain, which provides legal space for his small business. With a good service attitude and fair trade principles, his melon seed business gradually improved.
In 1980, the spring breeze of reform and opening up blew across the land of China, and Guangjiu had insight into this historical opportunity. He used the accumulated funds to open his own melon seed factory in Wuhu and registered the trademark of "fool melon seeds". At that time, it was not easy to dare to open a factory in the name of justice, after all, no one was sure whether it would be labeled as capitalist.
But Hirohisa was not bothered by these complex issues. He focused on doing his job well, and the launch of the fool brand quickly caused a sensation in the market. Soon, his factory developed from a small workshop with a few people to a scale enterprise with 100 people, becoming a very rare "million-dollar household" at that time.
Just when his career was in full swing, Guangjiu was unexpectedly involved in a turmoil. In 1991, a manager took Guangjiu to court for personal vendettas, accusing him of mismanagement. The lawsuit lasted for a while, and it had a big impact on Guangjiu and his business. But in the end, Hirohisa's innocence was proved to be true, and he once again won people's respect and trust with his integrity and hard work.
In 1993, when the third volume of "Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping" was published, Guangjiu and his "fools" unexpectedly became the focus of the whole country. His deeds are mentioned in the book, which made the simple melon seed merchant known throughout the country, and his career and spirit were recognized and praised like never before.
Success is not all smooth sailing. With the continuous expansion of the enterprise, Guangjiu is also facing new challenges in management. He realized that there is a limit to the power of one person, so he began to try to gradually hand over the management responsibilities to a more professional team, and also began to train his own children to prepare for the inheritance of the company.
Time flies, and today, at the age of 85, he decided to hand over the business he founded to his son. This is not only a trust in his son, but also an explanation of his own life journey. Although the years have left traces, Guangjiu still maintains the original intention, the "stupid" spirit that made him persist in the wind and rain.
Years are not only about success, but also about persistence and integrity. From a poor farmer's child to an entrepreneur named and praised by Deng Xiaoping, he proved with his practical actions that no matter how the external environment changes, perseverance and unremitting integrity are always the only way to success. In a world full of uncertainties, Nian Guangjiu used his life to interpret the profound connotation of "foolish people have foolish blessings". And this may be the truth that each of us needs to remind ourselves of from time to time in our busy lives.