Siheyuan: I am a trader in both worlds!

Upon hearing that the various equipment that the people of Beijing had been longing for had been brought back by Ximen Lang and was now placed in the area that had been specially designated for him, they were just waiting for him to inspect it.

He couldn't wait even a moment longer; Lao Luo jumped up from the sofa in a flash.

On one hand, it's like that old scallion in Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons, constantly complaining.
"Why didn't you say so sooner? Why didn't you say so sooner? Why didn't you tell me something so important?"

On one hand, she grabbed Ximen Lang's arm, eager to rush over there.

You know, he had just told Ximen Lang that he had grasped the essence of giving up, and in the blink of an eye, it turned out like this.

How could Ximen Lang, who had already transcended the ordinary and reached the level of a god of the art of "playing it safe," possibly agree with this?

Therefore, seeing that Lao Luo hadn't even finished three minutes, he immediately lost his composure.

Ximen Lang was speechless.

"Old Luo, how can you do this? We clearly agreed that we'd all slack off together, but you turn around and do this... This won't do. You won't get my approval!"

I can't get your approval?

"Who wants your approval?!"

If Ximen Lang hadn't been so important, Lao Luo would have definitely thrown those words right in Ximen Lang's face!
But he can't.

There was nothing else he could do but patiently explain.

"I'm serious about not worrying about useless things and not wasting my energy on unnecessary things. You can tell from my current refreshed and energetic state. But as I just said, the reason I'm like this is entirely to conserve my energy so that I can be fully engaged in the work ahead with even greater enthusiasm."

"In other words, all my previous negativity was for today, for this very moment. Now that the equipment has been delivered, of course I have to quickly adjust my mindset and actively throw myself into the work ahead! This doesn't go against my original intention, don't you think?"

That's actually true.

Although Lao Luo's act of "playing it off" wasn't entirely pure...
“But you’re still new to this field, and you’ve already done a great job. I can’t ask you to do more in a short time. So, I agree with what you’ve said.”

"Approved? Then what are we waiting for? Let's get going! The sooner we arrive, the sooner we can build the factory and make use of these coastal fishing grounds."

Having just expressed his approval, Lao Luo became impatient again.

He left with a strange expression.

"Look at you, you're in a hurry."

His pretentious manner made Lao Luo want to punch him hard in the face.

But Ximen Lang ignored him and continued speaking in a self-absorbed manner.

"We definitely need to go see it, and we definitely need to receive it. But before that, I've been busy all day and haven't eaten yet. Sharpening the axe won't delay the work of chopping wood, so let's eat first, and we can go after we finish eating."

Even at this critical juncture, Ximen Lang still wants to eat.

Old Luo was so anxious that he wished he could take a knife and cut off a piece of his own flesh so that the other person could eat his fill at once, so as not to delay important matters.

However, when he saw the several cans of food in Simon Lang's hand...
Once Lao Luo realized why Ximen Lang insisted on having a meal at this critical juncture, he immediately stopped worrying.

With eyes shining, he dropped a sentence.
"This...this is the canned food that the food factory will be able to produce after it's built?"

As if he had found a treasure, Lao Luo quickly took the can from Ximen Lang's hand, rubbing his fingers on the can as if caressing a beloved little lover, and carefully examining it.

Seeing that Lao Luo was really taking his time touching her, Bai Ling and Hao Pingchuan immediately came over.

Looking at the lifelike mud carp printed on the can...
"The brilliant Hao Pingchuan couldn't help but exclaim in surprise."

"Fermented black bean and mud carp? Is this the canned food that the food factory can produce after it's built? I know mud carp; there are plenty of them in this lake. They're not only plentiful, but they also grow very quickly and are very easy to raise. But what is fermented black bean? What is it? I've never heard of it."

Upon hearing this, all around fell silent.

Everyone, including Ximen Lang, immediately turned their attention to Hao Pingchuan, who was still asking what Dougu was.

Seeing that Hao Pingchuan was truly outrageous, Ximen Lang couldn't hold back any longer and said...

"Dougu? Douchi, it's douchi! That character is pronounced 'chi,' the 'chi' in douchi, not 'gu'! You can't even tell the difference between 'chi' and 'gu'? Didn't you learn that in elementary school?!"

In fact, Ximen Lang only understood the difference between fermented soybeans and drums after he grew up.

When he was a child, because the two characters looked so similar, he always called this classic canned food "Dougu Lingyu" (a type of fermented black bean sauce).

It wasn't until he made a rather embarrassing mistake that Ximen Lang found himself in, like what happened now, that he finally understood the difference between fermented soybeans and drums.

So, from the moment he received these canned food samples, Simon Lang had been trying to find someone who also couldn't distinguish between the two words, to recreate the classic scene that was still etched in his mind, and to pass on this embarrassment.

And the first person he chose was Xia Yiyi, who had a higher education than him!

The result, of course, was exactly as expected.

Not only did people recognize him, but they also deduced from Ximen Lang's act of specifically giving him the item for her to recognize that he had been ridiculed for this incident.

This is very embarrassing.

Just as Ximen Lang was about to give up, to avoid further humiliation at Bai Ling's hands...
Just when you're about to fall asleep, Hao Pingchuan appears.

Isn't this just walking right into a trap?
Without a word, Ximen Lang immediately began to ridicule Hao Pingchuan as much as he could.

Then, Ximen Lang awkwardly discovered...

Hao Pingchuan is in the legendary state of being unable to be captured or selected!
Because primary school is such a luxury, Hao Pingchuan really never attended one!

Moreover, the reason he never served was entirely because he joined the army at a very young age and went to fight the Japanese invaders!
With him being so helpful, what could Ximen Lang possibly say?

You can't say anything!
Not only could he not say it, but Ximen Lang even had to turn around and give him a thumbs up.

This is truly beyond awkward.

Especially when she saw Bai Ling beside her, just like Xia Yiyi, with a gleam of wisdom in her eyes, and also beginning to look her up and down meaningfully.
They didn't dare to delay even for a moment.

He patted Hao Pingchuan on the shoulder, who seemed a little embarrassed, and offered a few words of encouragement.

"Although your education level is relatively low, it's not your fault. After all, you fought the Japanese, which is glorious. So, don't underestimate yourself, okay? Overall, you're really good. But you need to work harder in the future, otherwise you'll have to rely on others to explain things when you watch movies." Then, without giving Bai Ling a chance to expose him, Ximen Lang immediately changed the subject to trying the canned food.

结果
It is absolutely delicious.

So delicious was it that Bai Ling didn't even bother to expose Ximen Lang.

Of course, it's also possible that she disdained to do so and was too lazy to argue with the childish Ximen Lang.

Fortunately, Ximen Lang escaped a disaster.

Hearing the continuous praise around him, Simon Lang opened a can and joined the queue to taste it.

Then Simon Lang discovered that these canned foods actually tasted really good.

Especially that can of dace with fermented black beans, it's a true classic.

It's been so many years since I last ate it, but it's still as delicious as ever.

But that's it.

Because this stuff is just like instant noodles, you can't eat too much of it.

At least you can't eat them in a row.

"Eating it once or twice occasionally, like now, after not having it for years, is indeed a rare delicacy. But if you eat it for too long, after that initial novelty wears off, it becomes just like instant noodles, tasteless and bland."

"While I don't recommend eating it all the time, it's perfectly fine to use it to supplement the protein that the people of Beijing are desperately short of! Plus, it's really cheap; you can buy a bunch for just a few cents. Once it's widely available, at least night blindness, which isn't really a disease, will definitely be effectively controlled!"

This was truly unexpected for Bai Ling and Lao Luo.

It's not that I'm shocked that eating canned fish can effectively improve the symptoms of night blindness, but rather that these canned foods are so cheap!
"You can buy a whole bunch for just 80 cents? Really? Is it really that cheap?"

Seeing that Bai Ling still didn't believe him, Ximen Lang simply pulled out the receipt from the supermarket where he bought these canned goods.

Speaking directly with facts left Bai Ling with mixed feelings, and for a moment she didn't know what to say.

Luo Yonghao was also filled with emotion.

"Our ordinary canned yellow peaches, the ones we produce ourselves, sell for 6 or 7 cents! If they have some flesh in them, don't even think about buying them for less than a dollar! And even then, you might not be able to find them! But you guys are supplying them in unlimited quantities! And at such a low price, this..."

Seeing Lao Luo, I was incredibly envious.

Ximen Lang looked beyond the surface to the essence, succinctly revealing the key to the matter.

"That's the power of industry. Take those cans of yellow peaches you mentioned, which sell for 60 or 70 cents a can, while in our area they cost 6 to 7 dollars a can, it's like robbery. What's it like here? In the production process, not only is a large number of people involved, but the output is also low. With the costs set in there, the price is bound to be extremely high."

"But what about us? Once the production line is up, you can just keep producing as many cans as you want! The biggest cannery here, even if you work yourself to death all day, can only produce a few thousand cans at most. If you can break ten thousand, that's an amazing achievement."

"But what about us? A single automated production line can easily produce 8 to 10 cans of food per day. Even a semi-automated production line can produce at least several thousand cans per day!"

"By spreading out the prices like this, we can certainly make a profit even at such low prices. But you, if you lower the prices even slightly, you'll only lose money. That's the biggest difference between us."

Ximen Lang explained it this way
Don't you feel even more envious now?
Fortunately, their cannery is about to be built.

And you can build many at once!

So, after a brief moment of envy, Lao Luo and Bai Ling immediately started agonizing over whether a semi-automated production line or a fully automated production line was better.

Without a doubt, from a cost perspective, a fully automated production line is better.

However, from an employment perspective, semi-automatic production lines are clearly more advantageous.

After all, whether it's cleaning, steaming, filling, sealing, or sterilization, all of these require human intervention.

The key point is that operators don't need to have a high level of education; with just a little training, they can start working immediately.

This is absolutely delicious!

As for the fact that the workforce in the Four Nine City World area is also about to run out.
"Even if it's not enough, we can still squeeze out some more labor!"

In addition, working in a cannery these days is truly a respectable job. It's a genuinely good job that's both prestigious and fulfilling. And there are other reasons as well, such as the high cost of fully automated production lines and the fact that they might not be able to operate them effectively.
It's quite obvious which choice Lao Luo and his team will make.

So, almost immediately after steer the conversation toward the soon-to-be-opened cannery, Lao Luo immediately took notice of the issue.

Then, Lao Luo was looked down upon by Ximen Lang.

"Old Luo, don't always think of people as so stupid, okay? If you can think of something, do you think I wouldn't? Even if I really didn't think of it, do you think Yi Yi wouldn't? She's already thought of everything for you!"

"So, you don't need to worry about this at all. Instead of wasting your time worrying about this, you should think carefully about how to train these people. And this too."

As he spoke, Simon Lang pulled out several booklets related to hygiene and prevention in canneries, including a manual for safety management in canneries and food factories, hygiene operation guidelines for low-acid and acidified low-acid canned foods, a manual for hygiene and operation guidelines in food production workshops, and a GMP employee handbook.
They had everything imaginable, and even the national food safety standards were brought to them in detail by Simon Lang.

Lao Luo and Bai Ling were stunned. Holding the thick stack of booklets, they were completely at a loss.

Ximen Lang then continued.

"Looking at these, these health and prevention-related pamphlets, and the safety standards, these are the key points we really need to focus on! Especially the national safety standards, these are of paramount importance! There can be absolutely no mistakes!"

Upon hearing Ximen Lang's words, Bai Ling and the others quickly found the national security standards and began to read them carefully.

The annotations on this thing are incredibly detailed and rigorous.

At least from the perspective of Beijing, this is indeed a bit too much.

Holding this safety standard book, Bai Ling asked in bewilderment.

"No, is this really necessary? Cleanliness is enough, why be so strict? Is this really necessary?"

Seeing that Bai Ling still didn't take it seriously, Ximen Lang affirmed.

"Of course there is, and it's absolutely necessary! Food hygiene and safety are of paramount importance; even a small mistake could lead to serious problems! Furthermore, if you don't strictly adhere to these standards in your production, you won't be able to sell a single can of your canned goods to us!" (End of Chapter)