Twenty years of cold chain

After the people had gone far away, Hu Shutong threw the loudspeaker aside.

A man squatted under a big banyan tree, his throat almost hoarse from shouting, and he was furious.

But after calming down and thinking about it again, this is not a strange thing. In essence, it is the same as what happened in my hometown of Qujiaying and at school.

The long road ahead for cold chain logistics is due not only to hardware issues and management software, but also to unavoidable conceptual problems. Back home, the prevailing attitude was, "So what if it's not fresh? It's not a big deal." But here, it's more like, "Why spend so much money for freshness? It's worth more money."

The situation is at a standstill. If we had just arrived a few days ago and then left when things weren't going well, that would have been fine. But everyone has put in a lot of effort during this time.

Colleagues managing the equipment drove the equipment truck into the village, repeatedly showing off the sandwich-panel corrugated steel sheets and machines. Pang Shiyou made use of the village bulletin board, posting information about the practicality of the cold storage and how to increase income. The bulletins were torn down at night and reposted the next day. He also went to the homes of fruit farmers to mobilize them.

The village chief's term was about to expire, and at this time he had no desire to cause trouble. He simply wanted to provide the expert team with as much assistance as possible in terms of village information, food, and accommodation.

Back in the courtyard, Hu Shutong had just sat down when he saw Xiao Wu walking back from outside, looking rather impatient.

It was obvious that he had gone to "central liaison" again. Cell phones couldn't make calls from the village, and the only way to contact the outside world was through the landline at the convenience store. Pang Shiyou was already burdened with many trivial matters, and there were far too many things, big and small, that required his involvement.

The matter of Lianghuzhuang is not a trivial matter concerning a single village or a cold storage facility; it relates to the promotion of an existing model, which is why Pang Shiyou went deep into the field. The initial plan was for this to take three weeks to a month, and at the time, it seemed that everything would be settled no matter what. However, it now appears that the initial steps are still a long way off.

"Shutong, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

"Angkor, just say it."

"Professors need to have regular medical checkups, and this place is very inconvenient. If something like what happened before happens again, no one can bear the responsibility. The original plan was to have it done within a month at the latest, but it's almost New Year's Day and there's still no real progress."

Hu Shutong immediately nodded, "Brother Wu, the teacher's health is the most important thing. Leave this to me."

Xiao Wu felt somewhat ashamed. The professor had always disagreed with placing Hu Shutong here, which was why the matter had been delayed again and again, but now it couldn't be delayed any longer.

"Shutong, you know Professor Pang's schedule isn't flexible to begin with, and the pressure from later on has been really intense. The most challenging issue is that the China Cold Chain Network project is scheduled to be established next year, which requires a lot of data. We've already invited Professor Pang more than ten times."

"China Cold Chain Network?" Hu Shutong's eyes lit up when he heard this term.

"Let me speak." Just then, Pang Shiyou came out of the house.

"Teacher, are we setting up an online platform?"

Pang Shiyou nodded. "This project was initiated by the Food Industry Association. The goal is to create a public information service platform for the cold chain logistics industry, a comprehensive, systematic, and timely online portal. Over the years, we've talked about so many different industries, but in reality, we've all been operating independently. Only by establishing an online platform can we achieve comprehensive interoperability. This is just the first step. In the future, we will also build a database and implement more comprehensive measures."

"Teacher, this is great news! Practical, instructive, and informative content can all be put on the website, and there's also a communication platform for businesses."

Pang Shiyou had long anticipated that Hu Shutong would try to get him to leave once the topic of this came up. Compared to the immediate situation, the importance of the China Cold Chain Network, in its macro and concise form, was something Hu Shutong and he both understood perfectly well. It's no exaggeration to say that this integration was a landmark achievement.

"It's hard to feel at ease having you here all alone."

"Don't worry, I have a plan. The warehouse will be ready before the New Year!"

Looking at Hu Shutong, Pang Shiyou wondered how much of his words were true and how much were just comfort.

"Teacher, we've already wasted so much time, we can't let it go to waste. Leave me here, there will be a solution, you can trust me!"

After a long while, Pang Shiyou slowly nodded, "Things here are different from what we expected. Wills are the hardest to change. Just do your best and don't put too much pressure on yourself."

"I see."

"The website has a lot of demand for academic papers, and you have quite a few in that area, so I'm just letting you know in advance."

"You can decide."

Before leaving, Pang Shiyou asked Xiao Wu to leave some money at the village store as a running fee, so that he could easily find Hu Shutong in the future.

Sitting in the car, Pang Shiyou kept looking back. Lianghuzhuang Village gradually receded into the distance, yet he seemed to always be able to find Hu Shutong in the exact same spot, until he finally came to his senses after crossing the hillside. Pang Shiyou wiped his glasses, and a scene suddenly flashed through his mind of himself repairing cellars alone in the village years ago.

The implementation of policies at the grassroots level requires such frontline guidance to dispel misunderstandings and open the first channel. Coupled with the unique characteristics of the cold chain industry, this is the experience and ability that Pang Shiyou believes researchers must possess.

Similarly, he knew that Hu Shutong's staying was not just to see things through. Unbeknownst to them, the master and disciple had developed many unspoken understandings.

Hu Shutong gazed at the banyan tree in the courtyard. This tree could "form a forest from a single tree," not only because of its thick trunk but also because of its extensive root system. It wasn't just one person, but countless people in the cold chain industry, many root systems like Hu Shutong's, that would one day grow as strong and vigorous as this great banyan tree!

He tore off the last page of the 2002 calendar.

The following year, 2003.

What kind of year will it be?

……

I've loved cold chain logistics for twenty years.