Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

You should know that the value of a secret recipe is immeasurable. Not to mention making a living, even the survival of many large companies depends on just a thin page of secret recipe.

However, it was precisely because Wang Chengpeng was willing to share something so important and worth a fortune that Liu Dajun was shocked.
He immediately said with heartfelt admiration, "Technician Wang, come with me."

"We can't talk about making progress together. Please don't be soft-hearted just because I'm old. Criticize me harshly for the things I did wrong."

Liu Dajun is now feeling a great sense of crisis, after all, he only hired the brewer temporarily, and he is not sure if he can keep the brewer's job.

If he can't make good enough wine from beet pulp, he's afraid he'll lose this job that others consider a secure, stable position.

In addition, he did indeed enjoy brewing wine, and he did not look down on Wang Chengpeng, who was able to come up with such a secret recipe and brew such fine wine. His eyes were full of seriousness when he looked at Wang Chengpeng.

Seeing Liu Dajun's serious expression, Wang Chengpeng knew that the other party was genuinely seeking advice, so he didn't hesitate to ask questions and directly inspected the brewing room.

Upon entering the brewing room, Wang Chengpeng couldn't help but exclaim:
"It seems you really put your heart into keeping the temperature above 20 degrees Celsius in the dead of winter."

At this point, Wang Chengpeng asked another question:
"Do you have any wine that has recently started fermentation? I'd like to check what's going on."

"This way!" Upon hearing Wang Chengpeng's instruction, Liu Dajun immediately led him to the other side and said:
"This vat of wine was just brewed; it was sealed less than half a day ago."

Although opening the vat would change the internal environment and cause problems in the brewing process, Liu Dajun was willing to go all out to get Wang Chengpeng's guidance.

Moreover, with Wang Chengpeng's guidance, this jar of wine might even become better.

With a push, Wang Chengpeng managed to open the lid of the wine jar slightly. He then tore off the mulberry paper sealing it and sniffed the jar thoroughly near the opening.

Although fermentation has only just begun, complex chemical changes have already occurred in the wine vat due to the action of microorganisms.

In addition to the rich beet flavor, it also has a strong fermented aroma.

Although the aroma is complex, experienced winemakers can use it to determine the fermentation process of the wine.

Clearly, Wang Chengpeng was among them; he had a vague idea of ​​the answer simply by sensing the taste.

However, in order to get a more accurate answer, he asked Liu Dajun to bring over a wine spoon, dipped it in some fermentation liquid, held it in his mouth, and closed his eyes to sense it.

When Wang Chengpeng opened his eyes again, he saw Liu Dajun's expectant eyes:
"Technician Wang, please tell me quickly, what exactly is wrong with this brew?"

With a sigh, Wang Chengpeng slowly and deliberately gave his answer:
"I think it's a problem with the ingredients, or perhaps a problem with the brewing method."

"Winemaking is a very complex craft. Even with the same type of wine, the steps involved are completely different depending on the brewing time."

"My secret recipe is fine, and your brewing method is fine too."

Hearing this, Chen Xiaohu couldn't help but ask curiously:
"Technician Wang, what exactly is going on?"

"If everyone is fine, then why is there such a big difference in the quality of the wine produced?"

Liu Dajun, being a seasoned brewer, began speaking on his own before Wang Chengpeng could reply:

"No problem, yet another problem arises; that means something has changed."

"Since the temperature has stabilized, it can't be a temperature issue. The problem must be with the raw materials."

Wang Chengpeng nodded in agreement and said with a smile:
"Engineer Liu is indeed clever. I only gave you a brief hint, and you have already figured out the key to the problem."

“When I was researching how to brew wine using beet pulp, the factory was still in production, and I was using the freshest beet pulp.”

"When you started researching the beet pulp brewing method, the factory had basically stopped production and was using beet pulp left over from before."

"Although they are both beet pulp, their composition changes significantly due to differences in freshness."

“If you try to do the same thing again at this point, you will naturally not get the same wine.”

"Therefore, by simply improving the sugar-making method of beets, one can easily obtain a jar of qualified beet wine."

Hearing Wang Chengpeng's words, Liu Dajun not only didn't relax, but became even more worried, saying:
"Technician Wang, you're right, the problem lies with these materials."

"We couldn't figure it out even after thinking about it for a long time, but we never expected that you would find the reason in just a short while."

"No wonder you became a technician, while we can only be brewers."

"It's easy to say that we're just trying to improve the sugar production method of beets, but you really can't do it without a certain level of expertise, at least I can't."

At this point, Liu Dajun's smile grew increasingly bitter, and he said:

"In fact, I have considered that it might be a problem with the materials, and I have tried to improve the formula."

"But the improved recipe not only failed to improve the beet wine, it got worse and worse, so I eventually gave up on improving the recipe."

"Technician Wang, the formula you provided is simply too powerful. With my abilities, there's no way I can improve it!"

"I don't know how long you researched and developed such a perfect formula. I am truly ashamed of my own abilities."

Looking at Liu Dajun's convinced face, Wang Chengpeng decided that he should not tell him the truth, so as not to discourage this master brewer who had been brewing wine for many years.

After hesitating for a moment, he finally decided to help the brewery one last time, saying:
"Well, what can I do? I'm the technician in the factory, so this matter will ultimately fall on my shoulders."

"Do you have any processed materials that haven't been brewed yet?"

"I'll demonstrate to you directly how to brew wine using beet pulp in this condition, and I hope it will be helpful to you."

"However, don't even think about copying it. Just like the previous secret recipe, copying it will only limit your thinking and won't help you grow."

"Only by truly understanding the principles of winemaking can you internalize the knowledge contained in this recipe and create wines that are even better than the samples."

Upon hearing that Wang Chengpeng was going to demonstrate the steps of the improved brewing process, Liu Dajun and Chen Xiaohu were so excited they almost jumped for joy, nodding eagerly and saying:
"Yes, these materials are available at the brewery."

"Technician Wang, I can get you as many as you want."

Although they had never formally witnessed Wang Chengpeng's brewing techniques, the samples he provided and the way he instantly identified the problem were enough to convince them that Wang Chengpeng was definitely a master who was well-versed in this art.

This was a rare opportunity to observe a master brewer brewing wine up close, a chance that money couldn't buy, yet it had appeared before them so easily, giving them a feeling of a windfall. Whether they took Wang Chengpeng's last two sentences to heart was not Wang Chengpeng's concern.

He will do what he is supposed to do, but he won't meddle too much.

Nodding slightly, Wang Chengpeng followed the two to the materials room.

Considering that the brewing was only for demonstration purposes, Wang Chengpeng did not choose a large vat, but used the smallest one.

After filtering out excess water from the blanched and sterilized beet pulp, and then mixing it evenly with the yeast, Wang Chengpeng did not rush to seal the jar. Instead, he placed the jar in hot water to heat it up.

The very simple water-cooled heating device allows the temperature contained in the hot water to be evenly transferred to the beet pulp and yeast through the tank wall, providing a good growth environment for the microorganisms contained in the yeast.

With sufficient nutrients and temperature, the microorganisms in the tank began to multiply rapidly, quickly creating a dense array of small bubbles.

This process lasted for about an hour before Wang Chengpeng sealed the wine jar with mulberry paper and yellow mud and placed it in the most suitable place in the brewing room.

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Wang Chengpeng offered a brief explanation, saying:

"At this point, the brewing process is basically complete. All that's left is to keep the room temperature above 20 degrees Celsius."

"It will take about a week for this jar of wine to ferment. Then all you need to do is remove the impurities to get beet wine."

"Since it hasn't been distilled or purified, the alcohol content probably won't be too high. However, it can retain the flavor of beets to the greatest extent possible, so it's a trade-off."

"Alright, I'll come back in seven days. I'm sure this jar of wine will not disappoint us."

Nodding blankly, Liu Dajun patted his chest and assured him:
"Don't worry, Technician Wang, even if the two of us don't sleep, we won't let your wine have any problems."

After seeing Wang Chengpeng to the door, the two returned to the brewery.

But as soon as he returned to the brewery, Chen Xiaohu couldn't contain his doubts and asked:

“Master, although Technician Wang demonstrated the brewing process to us, it was no different from the method described in the secret recipe. He didn’t tell us the most crucial amount at all.”

"Do you think Technician Wang is wary of us, afraid that we'll steal his techniques?"

After giving Chen Xiaohu a sharp rap on the head, Liu Dajun shouted a reprimand:

"They're still on guard against you, are you going to be on guard against them too?"

"Given Technician Wang's unguarded movements, even if he didn't tell us the weight, we could figure it out after a couple of tries."

"The reason they don't tell us the exact amounts is so that we won't be misled by the so-called formula and lose our drive to explore, just like before."

"Someone meant well, but you, with your pig brain, took it all for granted. It's really unreasonable."

"Technician Wang is a very busy person. Do you really expect someone to break down every piece of knowledge and feed it to you? Don't you even know if you're qualified?"

"Keep a close eye on Technician Wang's wine vat. If the temperature goes wrong, I'll hold you responsible!"

As he spoke, Liu Dajun walked toward the storage room where the materials were kept. He also planned to learn from Wang Chengpeng's method and brew wine according to the new proportions.

It's not a simple copy, but an attempt after making certain adjustments based on my own understanding.

He felt that Wang Chengpeng was right. If you want to brew good wine, you can't stick to the so-called brewing secret recipe. Instead, you have to absorb the knowledge contained in the brewing secret recipe and brew your own fine wine.

The thought that he might be able to brew an even more delicious wine than the sample provided by Wang Chengpeng filled Liu Dajun with excitement, and he threw himself into the brewing process.

As for Chen Xiaohu, he was still too young to grasp the true meaning of it.

Fortunately, he was obedient enough to start monitoring the temperature of the brewing room, which meant he did what he was supposed to do.

After leaving the brewery, seeing that there was still enough time, Wang Chengpeng went to the production workshop to check on the equipment.

He received the same treatment as when he went to the brewery, and was warmly welcomed by the workers.

However, Wang Chengpeng came here to do practical work, and immediately asked everyone about the equipment:
"Hello everyone, I'm the new technician at the factory. If you have any questions about the use and improvement of the equipment, please feel free to ask me."

Since they were all from the same village, it was natural that everyone was familiar with Wang Chengpeng, and soon a few scattered voices rose from below.

However, contrary to Wang Chengpeng's expectations of receiving feedback, everyone was talking about how good the equipment was, and no one offered any suggestions.

"Problem? The equipment in the factory has no problem; it works too well."

"Yes, when I first came here, I thought I would have to process the beets by hand, but I didn't expect that the factory had already introduced such advanced equipment."

"As long as you swing your hips, the machine roars and finishes a job that would normally take several hours in a flash. These lumps of iron are amazing."

"Wow, Technician Wang is really capable. He actually managed to get to know people from the equipment manufacturer and even learned some repair skills from them."

"Don't even mention asking me to repair these devices. Even if you take them apart and put the blueprints next to them for me to see, I still wouldn't be able to figure it out."

"Yes, these machines are fantastic."

……

Listening to everyone's chatter, Wang Chengpeng felt a surge of pride; it was the feeling that his design had been recognized by everyone.

The workers in the factory are all honest people. Although what they say may be a little exaggerated, it shouldn't be too much.

In other words, the equipment designed by Wang Chengpeng was indeed excellent and received high praise from everyone.

Just when Wang Chengpeng thought he had nothing to do that day, he saw Wang Tieshan step forward and walk towards him.

Scratching his head, Wang Tieshan said somewhat embarrassedly:
"Hey, Technician Wang, if you have some free time, could you come and take a look at this equipment for me?"

"He's fine, just not as good as he used to be." (End of Chapter)