Even so, the farmers risk the loss of their hard-earned labor to frustrated drivers, not to mention the all-too-real threat of repercussions from angry local authorities, yet it seems every corn farmer in the vicinity hijacks a piece of the highway at harvest time. It’s all about the Benjamins – or the Chinese equivalent. When questioned, the farmers confirmed that when spread on the sun-warmed highway, newly harvested corn dries evenly in just a couple of days. At that point it can be easily packed for local sale or long-distance shipment from that point, resulting in further savings.
The farmers aren’t completely motivated by economics, however. “This road used to be our land,” explained one corn-grower. “The developers just came here and grabbed our land to build factories and compounds. We are sunning the corns on our own land, no big deal.”
No big deal for the farmers, maybe, but to long haul truckers hoping to save time and fuel by using the much-ballyhooed Kexue Main Road it’s a very big deal. No doubt the same local authorities who enabled those land-grabbing developers will find themselves under growing pressure from said developers to reign in the farmers. Better cook up a big batch of popcorn and settle back in your seats, this is one epic potboiler that’s far from done! (all images via NetEase)

