Link returned home, and there was no one at home. He sat on the couch in the living room and dialed John Eco's phone.

"John, I've decided to just buy Marina Farm for the time being. The other two are temporarily abandoned. ”

"As long as you don't cut our commissions, you decide. John wasn't polite when he talked about money. "You know, we've done a lot of work on two other farms as well. ”

"The commission you should be given, the number in the check will never be less than a penny. Link said with a smile. "But I want you to help me get as many water rights as possible. ”

John still laughs. "I have good news for you. I just consulted with the relevant authorities. Marina Farm can't raise cattle on a large scale, but they can't be stopped by herding, and of course you have to make sure that the herd doesn't enter the lake. Grazing farming is permitted. Now there is no one to raise it, mainly because there is no pasture and intensive farming is not allowed. ”

"That's great. This is indeed good news. But I hope you can bring me another piece of good news soon. ”

"Of course, Marina Farm has eight miles of lakeshore, and there are also three miles of riverside that belongs to the Moody River. The right to water should be no less. If you're just buying Marina Farm, I guess the right to water is enough. There is no need to purchase a separate right to water. ”

Link heard that it was exactly that, "Great advice!" he said, standing up and pouring a glass of water. "And when will I take ownership of Marina's farm?"

"The basic framework, our company has negotiated with the other party. You can either give us carte blanche to make the transaction, or you can personally hand over the hand to the owner of the farm at Marina Lane. John said with a smile. "Of course, if you have to deal with it yourself, we will not refund the corresponding fee. ”

Link didn't want to complete the deal himself, either. He had already visited Marina's Farm, and John said the price was lower than the price limit he had given. All he had to do was sign the sales agreement, so he didn't have to worry about it.

"I've decided to leave this transaction to your company. ”

"In that case, I will send you the prepared contract first. If you think it's okay, both parties can sign it. John laughed at his decision. "You can choose to sign up at Marina Farm or somewhere else. ”

Link didn't even think about it, and said, "Of course, it's better to be at Marina's Farm." You send me the contract by email first. I'll contact you after I've seen it. ”

"Okay, I'll have someone send it to you. ”

After hanging up, Link took a glass of water and called Professor Charles again, telling him that he was planning to buy only one farm, and that he hoped his team would revise the renovation plan.

Listening to his latest request, Professor Charles said: "Of course that's fine. I asked Kate to go to Overtown to meet with you. If the changes are not significant, it may be possible to determine them in person. If it's more complicated, I'll ask her to bring your requirements back and redesign the solution. ”

Of course, Link has no objection to this: "OK, then I'll wait for her tomorrow." ”

After that, Kate called and agreed to meet. It wasn't long before Cox and Alice returned from school. I was very worried when I saw him. I was relieved to hear that he was fine.

In the evening he read the contract from John Eco and forwarded it to a Las Vegas lawyer's mailbox. When the lawyer sees it and says there is no problem, the next step is to sign the contract.

The next morning, Kate came.

At this time, there was no one else in the family except Link. So Link invited her to talk in the living room of the house.

Kate took out the prepared satellite map of Marina's farm, with contour lines on it. "The part enclosed in red is the extent of Marina's farm, which has a total area of 18,363 acres," she said. Of course, that's the size of Lake Mead during the wet season, and if it's the dry season, the farm will be a lot bigger. But let's do it based on the multi-year average. You don't have a problem with that. ”

"Of course not. "During the flood season, parts of the lakeshore are submerged, and the land that may be underwater is not unusable.

Kate smiled, took out a pen, and said, "Okay, let's talk about what you have in mind for the operation of this farm." ”

"First of all, of course you have to grow some corn or wheat and maybe some cotton on such a large piece of land," Link said. ”

"Mechanized farming requires flat land, and sprinkler irrigation systems can be used for corn and wheat and cotton, all of which are drylands. It does not need to be very flat, and the area suitable for it is quite large. But there is still some grading to be done on these grounds. Kate said what she thought and asked again. "How much arable land do you plan to cultivate?"

"Four thousand acres, what do you think?"

"Four thousand acres?" Kate drew three circles of different sizes on the small map. It is basically drawn along the contour line. "These three plots of land add up to about 4,000 acres, and they are relatively flat, and although they have to be leveled, the work will be relatively small. ”

Link nodded and said, "I also plan to build five hundred acres of aquaculture pond water." ”

"Then be in this area. Kate drew a square on the east side of the farm, near the lake, and said. "The terrain here is more complicated, and the low-lying places can directly build ponds, which can reduce some of the engineering costs. This area is about 800 acres, and if you go out to the pond base, you should be able to dig up a pond with 500 acres of water. ”

"I'm also going to build a winery of 1,000 to 1,500 acres. ”

Kate looked at the map for a moment, hesitated, drew a square near the western border of the farm and the road, and said, "Although the terrain here is not rugged, it is also undulating, but if you grow grapes, it will not make a difference." We can dig a large pond here to store water, which can be used to ensure the irrigation of the winery's grapes. Of course, grapes can only be grown with drip irrigation. Irrigation systems can be costly. Also, it will be more troublesome when harvesting. ”

"That's not a problem. Link remembered that the area was indeed not suitable for cultivated land. "In addition, I plan to grow some fruit, and the area is not too large, one or two hundred acres is enough. I mean, those fruits, I'm not going to sell them exclusively. ”

Kate didn't draw circles on the map this time, just said, "If that's the case." You can plant anywhere, just have to lay out the irrigation system before planting. ”

She paused for a moment, and then asked, "And the rest of the land, you plan to use it all for pasture grazing?" She looked at Link, the corners of her mouth curled, with a hint of childish playfulness.

Seeing her like this, Link couldn't help but smile a little more on his face, and said, "Most of them." I'm also going to grow some pumpkins, which I don't think will need much space. ”

Kate's smile was soft and she said, "As long as there is enough water, pumpkins can be grown anywhere on the farm." ”

She looked back at the map and said, "I have two suggestions. Do you want to hear it?"

"You say. ”

"Here, here, and here. She drew small circles in four places on the map and said. "These are low-lying places where water flows during the rainy season. I suggest you build large reservoirs in these places to store rainwater. That will make your grass grow better and give your cattle a place to drink. ”

"This advice is good. What else?"

"Nevada's high altitude and abundant sunshine make it a great place for photovoltaic power generation. I suggest that you have an earlier photovoltaic power station that can at least meet the needs of the farm itself. I think a few acres should be about the same size. ”

Link remembered that he had made this suggestion in the previous plan, but it was far beyond the scale of what she was proposing now.

He thought for a moment and said, "If I'm going to build a 100-acre photovoltaic plant, how much will it cost?"

"Solar panels are based on power, and the cost to build is about one dollar per watt. If you're building a 100-acre power station, you're going to be able to install at least 70 acres of photovoltaic panels. That's equivalent to 250,000 kilowatts of installed capacity. It will cost about $250 million to build. Usually the lifespan of photovoltaic panels is 25 to 30 years. The government has certain subsidies for photovoltaic power stations to generate electricity on the Internet. The current grid-connected electricity fee is 0.56 cents per kilowatt-hour. In the end, there is not much profit. So, I don't recommend that you build a power station that big. It's best to build enough power for your own use. ”

Link blinked, and suddenly smiled and said, "The power station that the previous plan suggested to me to build wasn't you who proposed it?"

"I offered to build it, but it wasn't that big. My advice has always been that it is sufficient. Kate said with a shrug. "Of course, your decision is the most important thing. ”

"Then do what you suggest. Link smiled and said. "As long as it's enough. ”

Kate heard this and smiled brightly, which made Link a little dazzled. Just hear her say, "I'll make you satisfied." ”

She leaned down to look at the map and said, "Actually, I think you can grow fruit in this area." Fruits are planted in a large area, and the benefits are still quite good, and the planting area can be larger. The topography of this area is relatively gentle and adjacent to the arable land planning area. Some small rails can be laid for transportation. If the planting area is small, the cost of laying the guide rails is not cost-effective. ”

She said and looked at Link. only to find him touching his nose and turning his head to the side: "Hey, Link, did you listen to me?"

Link had just seen her spring light from the side, and he had been staring at her for a while, only to turn his head to avoid embarrassment when he saw her look up. Hearing her say this, he turned around and said, "I think that's a good suggestion." ”

"Oh well. I will make a budget table for the programme in accordance with what we have just said. I'll send it to you when it's ready. ”

Link shook his head and said, "I should be able to buy Marina Farm in the next two days." However, the renovation plan is not urgent. ”

"That's our job. It is our job requirement to complete the plan as soon as possible. Kate said with a smile. "If you don't have anything else to ask, then I'll go first. If you have any questions, we'll get back in touch. ”

Link invited her to return to Las Vegas after lunch, but she politely declined.