1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 440 The Pinnacle of Flavor: Late-Season Cabbage
Around noon, the office building of Kaopu Fresh is usually very quiet.

Chen Jiazhi sat down in his office and stared intently at Cai Lan's food review column in the newspaper.

In recent days, he has read many of Cai Lan's articles. The one that impressed him the most was "pork lard rice", and the other was a sentence written by Cai Lan: "There is nothing important in life except eating and drinking".

Chen Jiazhi may not have that mindset, but that doesn't stop him from appreciating the statement.

Cai Lan's food reviews can be sharp at times. He entered the culinary world because of a dining experience with his parents at the Xiangjiang Restaurant.

At the time, the food at the restaurant was of poor quality, expensive, and the service was bad. Indignant, Cai Lan wrote a sharp article.

Unexpectedly, this caused a strong reaction, and many newspapers and periodicals commissioned him to write articles.

From then on, there was no stopping him, and to this day he still maintains some of this sharp food review style.

However, because of its authentic style, many of the dishes it recommends are highly praised and can quickly set off a trend.

If Cai Lan could recommend Zengcheng late-season cabbage, chicken heart mustard, or Dali lettuce in his food reviews, it would be a huge boon for reliable suppliers like Fresh Produce and Tongxingtai.

This was the fastest way Chen Jiazhi could think of to promote Zengcheng late-season cabbage in Hong Kong after a period of research.

Once late-season cabbage becomes popular in Hong Kong, it can then be promoted in Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

After reading Cai Lan's food review again, Chen Jiazhi thought for a moment, then sent a message to Xia Yang via pager, and then sent one to Huang Jianyuan as well.

"Jiazhi, have some oranges, they're delicious." Li Xiu walked in, holding two golden navel oranges in her hand.

Chen Jiazhi asked, "Did Xue Jun bring it back again?"

Li Xiu nodded and said, "Third Sister and the others all said it was delicious, so I brought you two."

Li Xiu then used a knife to cut the navel orange into four wedges in a cross shape, instantly filling the office with a refreshing fragrance.

Chen Jiazhi said, "The aroma is quite nice."

"It smells good, doesn't it?" Li Xiu handed the sliced ​​navel orange to Chen Jiazhi. "Try it. This navel orange is sweet. It's the first time I've ever tasted such a sweet navel orange."

Chen Jiazhi put the navel orange pulp into his mouth, and it immediately burst with juicy goodness, a sweet and slightly sour taste, a rich orange aroma, and tender, fiberless pulp.

“It’s really delicious.”

"I didn't lie to you, did I?" Li Xiu smiled and said, "I kept some for myself. I plan to bring some back to my parents and second sister next time I go home so they can try it."

Chen Jiazhi picked up another segment of navel orange and ate it, saying, "Let me make a couple of phone calls, then I'll head back this afternoon."

"Back again?" Li Xiu asked in confusion, as the two had only returned from Zengcheng a few days ago.

Chen Jiazhi nodded and said, "Yes, the more I run around, the more at ease I feel when I see the vegetables in the fields."

“Alright then.” Li Xiu thought for a moment and then said, “I’ll go see if there’s anything else I can bring back.”

"it is good."

After eating two navel oranges, Chen Jiazhi still felt a little unsatisfied.

The aroma and taste are both very good.

Xue Jun has been quite busy lately, trying to sell various fruits at stall 113 in the North-South Market. If he can't sell them all, he brings them back to Kaopu Fresh, some for himself and more for the distribution center to try his luck.

Over time, I didn't make any money, but I ate more and more fruit.

Just then, the landline phone rang; it was Xia Yang calling back.

Chen Jiazhi asked directly, "Xia Yang, have you managed to contact Cai Lan?"

"Not yet." Xia Yang said, slightly out of breath, "Don't worry, Mr. Chen, since you've entrusted this matter to me, I'll definitely handle it!"

"As soon as possible, I'll be back in Zengcheng this afternoon. Let me know as soon as you have any progress, and I'll have someone send you a sample of the late-season cabbage."

“Uh…” Xia Yang hesitated, “Mr. Chen, could you send some samples first?”

"how?"

"I plan to stake out Cai Lan."

"Did you waste your time at the club?"

"Uh... Cai Lan doesn't need to go to clubs; many female celebrities will flock to him."

"alright."

Xia Yang sensed the slight disappointment in Boss Chen's tone, and he felt somewhat awkward and embarrassed.

Today, Xia Yang's former sense of superiority has long since disappeared, and he still feels a sense of defeat when facing Boss Chen.

Because Mr. Chen was younger than him, yet he built such a large business in just a few years.

Even now, Tongxingtai still has to rely on Kaopu Fresh.

In Xia Yang's view, Tongxingtai was being manipulated, but his father was unwilling to admit it, only saying that it was an equal cooperation.

Regardless of the circumstances, facing the pressure of potentially losing his family business, Xia Yang wanted to help as much as possible so that he could still go to the club to play with young models in the future.

After returning the call, Xia Yang rushed out of the phone booth. He was now in Whampoa New World in Hung Hom, Kowloon, with a plastic bag containing a few vegetables.

Cai Lan Food Court has opened here, with a total of 14 different food shops.

A friend told me that Cai Lan might come today, so he plans to wait for him here and then perform a live demonstration of eating raw vegetables in front of him.

If not today, then tomorrow I'll stake out the newspapers again. In any case, I'll make sure Cai Lan gets to taste our dishes, and ideally, he'll accept the invitation to try them at our partner restaurant.

The restaurant in question was naturally owned by Huang Jianyuan, and at that moment he returned Chen Jiazhi's call.

"Mr. Chen, is it really possible to invite Cai Lan to my store?"

"Are you chickening out?" Chen Jiazhi chuckled. "If you're not going to do it, just say so so I can find another restaurant to do it."

"Okay, definitely okay."

Huang Jianyuan quickly replied that Cai Lan was a famous food critic, and some people even called him the 'God of Food'.

Getting a good review on their food review column can greatly benefit a restaurant's business.

"Mr. Chen, is it possible that the Zengcheng late-season cabbage you mentioned could win Cai Lan's praise?"

"As long as your chef is good enough, you'll get good reviews."

"Mr. Chen, you also have to trust my pickiness about food. My chef's skills are definitely not a problem."

"That's enough. Let's wait for the news and get ready."

Zengcheng late-season cabbage has stood the test of time, and with the recent southward movement of cold air, it's the perfect time to enjoy its best flavor.

Moreover, Yi Dinggan provided meticulous care during the planting process, using methods such as peanut bran and wood ash to fertilize the soil.

Chen Jiazhi has every reason to believe that Zengcheng late-season cabbage will be a success.

Even if Cai Lan doesn't write a food column for me, it just means the promotion period has been extended.

After talking with Xia Yang and Huang Jianyuan, Chen Jiazhi went to call Li Xiu home, who had already prepared several bags of fruit.

There were navel oranges, tangerines, and water chestnuts and sugarcane from Panyu. The sugarcane was cut into sections and packed into bags.

"That's quite a lot."

Li Xiu said, "There are quite a few people in the family. Xiaolong and Xiaohu are at the age where they can eat a lot of fruit and grow big.

As the saying goes, a half-grown boy can eat his father to death, and Yi Long and Yi Hu's appetite has indeed increased dramatically in the past year.

With two older brothers as role models, Dou Dou never has to worry about eating and is very meticulous when she eats.

Chen Jiazhi helped load the fruit onto the car, and then drove towards the countryside.

The farther away from the city, the more relaxed she felt. Sitting in the passenger seat, Li Xiu couldn't help but hum "Sweet Honey."

In the evening, the two arrived at Lapu Village without incident and parked their car by the vegetable fields.

A frost crept quietly onto the vegetable patch, and tiny white streaks appeared on the edges of the dark green leaves, like a thin mist exhaled by the earth. Standing on the edge of the field, Chen Jiazhi could clearly feel the temperature drop.

The vegetable farmers were busy packing up their tools and heading home. Chen Jiazhi and Li Xiu went in the opposite direction and found Chen Jiafang, who was still patrolling deep in the vegetable field.

The surrounding area is filled with tall late-maturing cabbage plants.

"Second sister."

"Hey, Jiazhi and Lixiu are back. When did they arrive?"

"We just arrived, and the cars are still parked on the side of the road."

"Let's go back first, it's still a bit cold in the mountains at night."

Chen Jiafang gently touched the leaves of a late-blooming cabbage and said, "These past few days, there has been a brief frost on the surface of the leaves in the early morning, and very rarely, you can even see white frost."

Chen Jiazhi touched the leaf surface; it was icy cold.

"It should taste even better now. I'll take some home tonight and try it."

“Okay, I’ll cut a few to try.” Chen Jiafang then asked, “Have you found a sales channel yet?”

Chen Jiazhi said, "I've got it. Let's go to the Hong Kong market first."

Chen Jiafang added, "As you instructed, in addition to these 300 mu, your brother Yi also transplanted some more at Paitan Second Farm. He went to Paitan today and should be back by now."

"It's okay, I can handle it."

Late-maturing Chinese cabbage has a longer growing period, but also a higher yield per acre. Furthermore, after harvesting the main stem, the lateral stems can be harvested if necessary.

Normally, Zengcheng late-season cabbage can be available in November, but Chen Jiazhi postponed the launch to mid-to-late December to ensure the best quality.

At the same time, he was worried about insufficient yield, so he had Yi Dinggan continue planting during the autumn and winter crop rotation to ensure a stable supply of Zengcheng late-season cabbage from the end of December to March of the following year.

The yield is 3000 to 5000 catties per mu, and the overall output is still quite substantial.

After cutting the late-season bok choy for dinner, and still not seeing Yi Dinggan return, the three of them drove home first.

As darkness fell in the village lanes, smoke rose from the chimneys of every household.

When you park your car in front of your house, you can hear noises coming from inside.

Chen Jiafang called out, "Xiaolong and Xiaohu, your uncle and aunt are back! Come and help us move our things."

A short while later, the whole family came to the door and unloaded the fruit from the car.

Li Xiu held her son for a while, then went into the kitchen with Chen Jiafang, while Chen Jiazhi and his father took turns playing with the kids, and Xiaolong and Xiaohu did their homework.

Soon, a delicious aroma wafted from the kitchen, and Yi Dinggan returned on his motorcycle.

Chen Jiazhi handed him a navel orange, saying, "Have one, it's delicious."

Yi Dinggan put his hands in his pockets and hurriedly shook his head, "No, it's so cold to eat oranges, I'll freeze to death."

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "Who told you to ride a motorcycle without gloves? No wonder you're cold."

Yi Dinggan followed him into the kitchen and went to warm himself by the stove.

Chen Jiazhi also carried the baby inside, and the kitchen was soon overcrowded and in chaos.

Fortunately, only the last dish, late-season bok choy, was left to be cooked.

"Leave the late-season cabbage to me, let me show you my skills," Chen Jiazhi volunteered, taking over the head chef's position.

There was some lard rendered at home. Once the pot was hot, Chen Jiazhi scooped out half a spoonful of lard to melt and sautéed garlic slices until golden brown.

First, stir-fry the root and stem slices cut into thin pieces, add a little rice wine to enhance the aroma, then add the leaves and turn up the heat. Chen Jiazhi skillfully tosses the wok, then adds salt and a small amount of sugar.

A simple stir-fried bok choy with lard is ready to serve.

Chen Jiazhi picked up a piece to taste. The pork fat coated the bok choy heart, making it moist but not greasy, with a unique sweetness and crispness that was hard to replicate.

"Come and have a taste, my cooking skills are top-notch, definitely at the level of a five-star hotel chef."

Yi Dinggan, who was tending the fire, said, "Nonsense, it's clearly because my vegetables are better!"

Peng Guozhen shouted from outside the kitchen, "What are you arguing about? Everyone has contributed. Hurry up and eat. It's getting dark, and we'll be in trouble if the power goes out later."

People gradually sat down at the table. There was plenty of delicious food on the table, but Yi Long, Yi Hu, and Dou Dou were all focused on eating the meat, while the adults kept picking at the cabbage hearts and eating them. Soon the plates were empty.

For this one dish, the family traveled all the way from Panyu to Zengcheng.

After months of hard work, everyone finally got to taste the peak flavor of Zengcheng late-season cabbage, which has a sweetness and crispness that is hard to replicate among Lingnan vegetables, making everyone extremely satisfied and full of anticipation.

That night, Chen Jiazhi, Yi Dinggan, and Chen Jiafang discussed and wrote a grading and harvesting standard for late-season cabbage.

Late-season Chinese cabbage plants are tall, making graded harvesting essential.

Especially for late-season choy sum, which is marketed as a premium product, it is necessary to select the main stem at its peak tasting period and then cut it into different lengths for sale.

The following day, Chen Jiazhi organized a day-long tasting of late-ripening cabbage hearts and set the final standard.

The best premium late-season bok choy should have a main stem that is 15-20cm long. There are also premium packaging options available in 30cm and 45cm sizes.

The rest are aimed at the mass market.

When it got dark again, Chen Jiafang had prepared a box of samples according to the standard, and then sent them to Hong Kong by car.

Chen Jiazhi was still holding two top-grade pills in his hand, but he actually wanted to make the extra-premium pills into a gift box.

The late-season cabbage from Zengcheng that he ate in his previous life was a gift box given to him by a friend. A box of 3 catties (1.5 catties) cost 108 yuan, so he had a deep impression of it.

However, the conditions are not yet in place.

But if this is a hit, then we can consider putting more elaborate gift boxes of late-season bok choy on the agenda.

...

In the early hours of the morning, the chill could be felt at the Cheung Kong SW Market in Hong Kong.

Xia Youche finally got to see the Zengcheng late-season cabbage he had been longing for.

Aside from being thicker and longer, he couldn't see anything special about this cabbage.

But since this is a dish that Mr. Chen has been thinking about, it must be special.

In contrast, Xia Yang was much more direct. He took a top-grade late-season cabbage and bit into the root stalk.

With a crisp crack, juice bursts forth, extremely sweet and refreshing, with only a very slight astringency.

Based on Xia Yang's extensive experience of eating raw food over the past few days, he immediately gave Xia Youche a thumbs up.

"Dad, you're amazing!"

"Let me try."

Xia Youche took the piece, broke off a section, took a bite, and his eyes lit up.

"Boss Chen always manages to surprise people!"

At this moment, Xia You, a driver, holding a Zengcheng late-season cabbage heart, looked at the bustling Chang SW market and suddenly felt an aura of dominance over everything.

"Yangyang, the samples of late-season cabbage have arrived. When can you make an appointment with Cai Lan?"

"Dad, I'll definitely do it tomorrow. Cai Lan has already made a very deep impression on me."

Cai Lan is used to starting to write at four in the morning, and after finishing, he goes to the newspaper office. Today was no exception.

But as soon as he arrived at the newspaper office, he saw that young man again, and the impression he left on him was so deep that he could never forget him.

After all, there aren't many people who would eat raw vegetables in front of him every time.

At that moment, the man took out another vegetable, and with such practiced ease that it was heartbreaking, he was about to take a bite. Cai Lan quickly called out:
"Handsome, stop eating. I have some free time this morning, so I'll go try the dishes you mentioned."

(End of this chapter)