Twenty years of cold chain

After listening to Pang Shiyou's words, Hu Shutong's plan gradually became more detailed, and he traveled between Tongxing and the city more frequently these days. In addition to attending some meetings and social engagements, Hu Shutong was also paying attention to people's opinions. Regardless of whether they were true or false, or whether there was any truth to them, sometimes the atmosphere could reveal a lot.

Predicting next year's policies and market trends is currently the hottest topic. Some say next year will be the most relaxed and easiest year for business, as the government will inject money into society and banks will not want to keep their own money, which will inevitably help companies make money. Others say this is the beginning of a new chapter, and they often talk about industrial upgrading and structural optimization, but when asked to elaborate, they can't give a clear answer and seem to have just memorized what they read in the newspapers.

Some predict that we will usher in the true "Year Zero of Cold Chain", emphasizing that the cold chain belongs to a new era, unlike the inexperienced struggles of the millennium. Today's cold chain will be formalized from the very beginning, the overall maturity of the industry is also improving, and there are a lot of practices that can be learned from.

Of course, there were also some surprising remarks. Some people said that the coming year would be a turning point for large enterprises and a pivotal point for small enterprises. Every family would have to go through a crossroads, and this was described as an era, implying that if they did not seize the opportunity, they would miss an irretrievable opportunity.

Hu Shutong has heard many different opinions, but rarely expresses his own. He extends his thoughts from a policy to a few data points to illustrate a future trend. As long as there are no logical flaws in the overall analysis, you will find that all the predictions make sense.

One weekend evening, Hu Shutong went to the city to attend a banquet. The car drove out of Tongxing and onto a straight road. After driving for more than three miles, he reached the national highway.

Aside from the refrigerated trucks coming and going, a single pedestrian stands out conspicuously; few people walk along this stretch of road.

Hu Shutong felt that he had seen this figure before, and when he looked at the thick scarf, he immediately remembered something.

Hu Shutong honked the horn, and the man suddenly jumped out. The car stopped on the side of the road, but he kept his head down and didn't look at the car. When Hu Shutong honked the horn again, the man took another step out and stood directly on the wasteland by the roadside.

"Meng Qiangqiang?"

Hearing this, he turned around and said, "President Hu!"

"Let's talk once we're in the car."

Meng Qiangqiang tugged at his backpack strap, which looked a little tight, and gave a forced smile before finally sitting in the passenger seat.

"What are you doing here?" Hu Shutong asked hurriedly.

"I...I came to Tongxing as a temporary worker, doing things like moving and unloading goods."

"Instead of studying properly, you're wasting so much time running this far to do temporary work."

"I only come here on weekends, it won't interfere with anything. Some of my classmates also go to the factories in the city on weekends. I can not only visit them, but also earn some extra money, which is great."

"You could have walked out with the car, why are you wandering around by yourself?"

Meng Qiangqiang scratched his head and smiled, "I like to walk alone. There's a highway ahead, so it's easy to run into a bus to the city. It's not much more expensive than taking the bus, so I can get back."

"How long have you been doing this?"

"I worked for ten days in total over five weeks. The college originally said they would organize a visit to Tongxing for us, but the trip was delayed because it was more convenient to come to Tongxing from the cold chain companies in the city. I had been wanting to come for a long time. On the day I arrived, I went to the warehouse first. There was a warehouse manager. At first, I thought he was the manager. He asked me if I was here to work as a temporary worker. He said I would get seventy yuan a day. I thought, 'That's a good deal.'"

Hu Shutong couldn't help but laugh. Just then, he saw Meng Qiangqiang quickly open his schoolbag, rummage through it, and take out a small paper bag. Hu Shutong looked at it and saw that the paper bag was worn rough, and he didn't know how long it had been in the schoolbag.

"Mr. Hu, this is tea from my hometown, the finest mountain tea, the first flush of dew. My father said that unless it's kept in our own garden, you can't find it on the market at all."

Hu Shutong accepted the tea leaves without hesitation, but he never expected that the moment Meng Qiangqiang loosened the tea leaves, his entire demeanor would change drastically. He suddenly felt lost, as if he had immense anxiety that he couldn't shake off, which manifested in a stiff expression.

A moment later, he stood there with his mouth half-open, his face flushed red. Hu Shutong rolled down the window on his side, and Meng Qiangqiang turned his head away. Hu Shutong couldn't read his emotions, but the scene made him realize that the carriage was too small.

As the car drove into the city, the twilight gradually faded, and the dim, fluffy shadows of the trees along the roadside became desolate, with a crisp chill in the air before winter nightfall spreading across the land.

Needless to say, Meng Qiangqiang's academic performance was undoubtedly outstanding, winning the largest scholarship in both semesters. However, he did not exhibit any of the qualities of a top student; instead, his aloofness and estrangement were quite striking.

Meng Qiangqiang felt a strange, inescapable unease, like he had stolen something. This person seemed to need immense courage to do anything, as if he were surrounded by boundaries. No one knew whether it was self-imposed or fear of others; in any case, everything seemed unusual to him.

It wasn't until the car stopped outside the gate of Qingdao University that Meng Qiangqiang finally asked a question.

"Mr. Hu, could I work part-time at Tongxing during the winter break? Not just a temporary job."

……

I've loved cold chain logistics for twenty years.