My Realistic Simulation Game

Chapter 136 The end of 1990 exploded in 1991.

The ruble will naturally continue to fall.

Qin Yuan understood this better than anyone else.

Furthermore, the memories in his mind became increasingly clear.

In November 1990, the ruble's exchange rate underwent its first major change, which led to a rise in prices.

It was during this period of rising prices and ruble devaluation that Qin Yuan completed his first major expansion in the Soviet Union.

It should be noted that prior to this, prices in the Soviet Union were virtually rock solid.

Food was cheap, and transportation costs were also very low at the time.

Whether it's the subway, buses, trolleybuses, or trams, the public transportation fare is a flat 5 kopek.

Until 1990, the 5-kopek coin was the heaviest.

Because it served as a bargaining chip for the subway for more than a decade.

Other prices have remained unchanged for decades.

The taxi fare is 20 kopeks per kilometer.
Long white bread (approximately one pound) 25 kopek
Beef (kg) 2 rubles
Chicken (kg) 3.4 rubles
Butter (kg) 3.5 rubles
Potatoes (kg) 10 kopeks
Chinese cabbage (kg) 20 kopek
Orange (kg) 2 rubles
Prices remained stable for over forty years after the end of World War II. (Prices are one thing, supply is another; this was a planned economy. Later price increases were intended to use market forces to regulate supply, but that was pure wishful thinking.)
In daily life, people are unaware of what "price increase" means, nor do they have any concept of it.

Of course, wages remain largely unchanged.

But since then, transportation costs have tripled, and food prices have also increased more than threefold.

From then on, the rock-solid prices ceased to exist, and the Soviet people's frequent complaints about "prices rising again" began.

The tiger of the market economy was released from its cage, much to the surprise of the Soviets who had never dealt with it before.

This is the economic and monetary reform that the Soviet Union was undertaking.

But it's not over yet.

Qin Yuan had already heard that on the black market, the exchange rate of the US dollar to the ruble had risen to one to nineteen.

Although it was only a black market exchange rate, it still caused panic in the Soviet government.

If Qin Yuan remembered correctly, in January of next year, the Soviet Union took some measures to curb the decline of the ruble.

而其中，最有代表性的措施，即从1991年1月22日起，宣布在1962年发行的50元卢布和100元卢布纸币全部废除。

People can exchange these high-denomination banknotes within a specified time.

However, the bank only accepts currency exchange from retirees, and each person can only exchange 100 ruble banknotes.

Ordinary employees can only exchange banknotes for large denominations equivalent to one month's salary at their workplace.

In other words, this was a plundering of ordinary Soviet citizens.

Although this policy dealt a heavy blow to those who hoarded large amounts of rubles and were speculators, it also freed the Soviet government from a burden of 70 billion rubles.

However, this created an opportunity for the ruble to slide into the abyss.

This greatly diminished the Soviet government's credibility in the eyes of the Soviet people.

Why did no one stand up in the winter of 1991?

It's hard to say that this series of events didn't have a connection to it.

Therefore, Qin Yuan had no psychological burden whatsoever about taking out a loan from a Soviet bank.

He intended to use the money to further expand production, exchange it for more industrial assets in the Soviet Union, and then repeat the cycle.

Thus, everyone reached a consensus under Qin Yuan's autocratic decision.

Natasha and Elena were responsible for accounting for and registering Ochakov's assets, and then submitting the relevant documents to the bank to obtain a huge loan.

Meanwhile, Qin Yuan began to resume production following Elena's suggestions.

That evening, Ivan summoned several members of Ochakov's management team and informed them that all workers would return to work starting the next day.

The Tsarist Kvass, which used to be bottled secretly, is now being bottled directly on the production line.

The next morning, when Qin Yuan arrived at the Ochakov factory for inspection.

It is clear that this huge factory area is radiating a long-lost vitality.

Perhaps because they had returned to their jobs and received their back wages, the workers were all beaming with long-lost smiles and enthusiasm as they busied themselves at their respective posts.

Under their guidance, the production line started running again!
Cleaning, filling, capping, labeling... Bottles of brown glass bearing the gold "Tsar Kvass" logo flow continuously from the production line!

Seeing this, Qin Yuan nodded slightly: "Ivan, if we start production at full speed, how many bottles of Tsar Kvass can we bottle in a day?"

Ivan estimated in his mind and said a number: "About 800,000 bottles. If Khabarovsk provides enough kvass concentrate or if new equipment and strains are transported from Ice City, then the production will increase further."

"80 bottles?" Even though Qin Yuan was mentally prepared, he was still taken aback by this number!
These are all Tsarist Kvass packaged in glass bottles, and the market demand far exceeds supply.

Compared to the previous clandestine night shifts for bottling, the efficiency has now increased tenfold.

"Excellent." Qin Yuan fully affirmed Ivan's abilities and instructed, "Prioritize supplying this batch of goods to the Ministry of Trade! Their demand is huge."

"In addition, a separate batch will be reserved, packaged, and ten train cars will be sent to the Kuibyshev Aircraft Manufacturing Plant every month!"

He was secretly planning a huge deal with the Crown Prince: "canned goods for airplanes".

The Crown Prince was responsible for 500 wagons of supplies, and he promised to provide 300 wagons.

Including Tsarist Kvass, ordinary Far Eastern Kvass drinks, Jeanswest clothing... all had to be continuously shipped to Kuibyshev!

This deal is highly profitable and cannot be missed!

As for whether Kuibyshev intends to use these supplies internally or resell them to other departments through internal channels, that is none of his business.

He has already made a fortune from these seven aircraft orders.

And so, thanks to Ochakov's efficient daily operations, batches of Tsarist kvass were loaded onto trucks and transported to warehouses designated by the Moscow Ministry of Trade.

Then, through the Ministry of Trade's distribution network, they were distributed to major state-owned stores and supply and marketing cooperatives.

The landscape of Moscow's beverage market is quietly changing.

The iconic red and blue of Coca-Cola and Pepsi no longer seem so dazzling on the shelves.

Far East Kvass is rapidly gaining market share thanks to its unique Slavic flavor, relatively low price, and the psychological suggestion brought by the "special supply" halo!
Meanwhile, Tsar Kvass is also eroding the mid-to-high-end market share held by Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

The market share of Coca-Cola and Pepsi is gradually declining.

Seeing this opportunity, Qin Yuan made a decisive decision to develop a cola of his own for the Soviet Union.

Coca-Cola isn't complicated, even though Coca-Cola markets its formula as incredibly valuable.

However, the raw materials are just a few things: sugar, carbonated water (carbon dioxide and water), caramel, phosphoric acid, and caffeine.

However, back in 1984, the price of sugar soared because the U.S. government imposed high tariffs on imported sugar.

In order to reduce costs, Coca-Cola decided to replace the sucrose (white sugar) in its cola formula for the U.S. market with cheaper corn syrup (high fructose syrup).

To this day, only markets such as Mexico and the United Kingdom still use cane sugar.

There have been ongoing calls for Coca-Cola to switch back to cane sugar.

In terms of taste, sucrose has a long-lasting and mellow sweetness that can create a sweet, enveloping sensation in the mouth, and when combined with carbonation, it produces a "refreshing and sweet aftertaste".

Corn syrup has a sharp and short-lived sweetness, with an early peak and a quick decline, leaving a sticky residue after drinking.

These two sugars also have very obvious differences in metabolism.

Although sucrose is absorbed relatively slowly, it can be broken down into glucose and fructose in the intestines.

Corn syrup contains about 55% free fructose, which will directly enter the liver and be converted into fat.

Studies have shown that people who drink corn syrup beverages for two consecutive weeks experience a 4.7 times higher rate of visceral fat accumulation compared to those who drink sucrose.

This metabolic burden is even more pronounced in middle-aged and elderly individuals.

Therefore, fatty liver disease, a modern ailment, is directly linked to the consumption of fructose-containing beverages.

Of course, no one in the Soviet Union cared about any of this.

But the difference in taste is real!
Moreover, Qin Yuan could easily use the media to associate "sugar cola" with "health," "tradition," and "better taste."

Describing Western Coca-Cola as "corn syrup Coca-Cola" is associated with "cheap," "industrial," and "health risks"!
Given the complex mindset of the Soviet people, who both longed for and were wary of Western products, this move was bound to be extremely damaging!

Just as Qin Yuan decided to wage a "Soviet version of the Coca-Cola War".

News of the Crown Prince has arrived!

(End of this chapter)