After the start of autumn, the summer heat in the provincial capital gradually dissipated, the sky was high and the clouds were light, and a refreshing breeze was blowing. Lin Wanqiu's food workshop had long since expanded into a large-scale food factory. The factory area was shaded by green trees, and the machines hummed but were orderly. Shen Nian'an, dressed in light gray overalls with a "Technician" badge pinned to his chest, stood in front of the raw material warehouse shelves, holding a thick ledger in his hands. His pen was rapidly calculating on the paper, his brows slightly furrowed, and his eyes were so focused that the surrounding noise seemed irrelevant to him.
Shen Nian'an, just turned eighteen, was tall and straight, his face inheriting the handsome features of Shen Tingzhou and the delicate features of Lin Wanqiu, yet his brows revealed a maturity beyond his years. After graduating from high school, he didn't rush to apply to university, but instead took the initiative to ask to gain experience at his mother's food factory. "Mom," he said, "I want to put my math knowledge into practice and help you manage the factory more efficiently and systematically." Although Lin Wanqiu was reluctant for her son to venture into the business world so early, she respected his choice and entrusted him with the important tasks of raw material procurement accounting and production process optimization.
At this moment, he was calculating the raw material loss rate for the third quarter. The warehouse was neatly stacked with raw materials such as wheat flour, sugar, and oil, the air filled with the fresh aroma of grains and the sweetness of sugar. Shen Nian'an's fingertips traced the densely packed numbers on the ledger, his mind racing with formulas. The modern enterprise management knowledge that Lin Wanqiu had stored in his previous life's spatial dimension, absorbed from childhood, was now transforming into tangible abilities—he discovered that there were significant hidden losses in the transportation, storage, and processing of raw materials. If the process could be optimized through mathematical modeling, costs could be reduced by at least 3%.
"Technician Shen, this is yesterday's raw material receiving slip. Could you please check it?" Warehouse manager Lao Wang approached with a slip in hand, a respectful smile on his face. Since Shen Nian'an took over the accounting work, the warehouse's record-keeping accuracy has reached 100%, and the long-standing problem of losses has been resolved. Everyone is completely convinced of this young yet professional man's abilities.
Shen Nian'an took the document, glanced at it quickly, and began to work out calculations on a draft paper. Sunlight streamed in through the warehouse's high windows, casting soft shadows on his thick eyelashes. The scratching of the pen on the paper blended harmoniously with the distant sounds of machinery from the workshop. Suddenly, he frowned: "Uncle Wang, the moisture content of this batch of sugar is labeled as 12%, but based on the transportation distance and storage environment, the actual moisture content should be around 13.5%. This will cause the pastries to be too soft during baking and will also increase spoilage."
Old Wang was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized: "No wonder many pastries have tasted a bit off lately, it turns out it's a problem with the moisture content of the ingredients! But we always calculated according to the supplier's specifications, and never considered the impact of transportation and storage."
“The supplier’s specifications are values under ideal conditions, and there will be deviations in actual conditions.” Shen Nian’an took out a drawing tool and quickly sketched the moisture content change curve on the paper. “I have established a dynamic accounting model that can adjust the raw material loss coefficient according to transportation distance, temperature and humidity. In the future, procurement and storage can be based on this model to keep the loss to a minimum.”
Looking at the complex yet clear curves and formulas on the paper, Old Wang exclaimed repeatedly, "Nian'an, you're so cultured! Your math skills are truly amazing, you've been a great help to the factory."
Shen Nian'an smiled shyly, a sense of accomplishment welling up inside him. He had always felt that mathematics was more than just formulas in books; it was a tool for solving real-world problems. At this moment, this sense of accomplishment was also mixed with a hint of anticipation—he thought of Su Wanqing, the girl with bright eyes and remarkable eloquence he had met at the math competition awards ceremony. She was also a math enthusiast; if he could discuss these models with her, would she find it interesting too?
The thought had barely crossed his mind when Chen Nian'an's cheeks flushed slightly. He quickly pulled himself back to his calculations, but his pen unconsciously slowed. Su Wanqing's image lingered in his mind: her light blue dress, standing on the podium, the smile on her lips as she accepted the award, the sparkle in her eyes as she discussed math problems, and the warmth of their fingers brushing against each other when exchanging contact information…
Just then, the office phone rang. It was Lin Wanqiu calling: "Nian'an, a team of experts from the Provincial Academy of Sciences is coming to our factory to inspect and guide our green production technology. You are in charge of receiving them and focusing on introducing the process optimization plan you made. The experts will definitely be interested."
“Provincial Academy of Sciences?” Shen Nian’an’s heart skipped a beat and he blurted out, “Is Researcher Su leading the team?” Su Wanqing had once said that her father, Su Mingyuan, was a researcher at the Agricultural Technology Research Institute of the Provincial Academy of Sciences, focusing on the research and development of green agricultural technologies.
"How did you know?" Lin Wanqiu asked, somewhat surprised. "That's right, the team leader is Researcher Su Mingyuan. What, you know him?"
“I…I know his daughter, Su Wanqing. We met at a math competition.” Shen Nian’an’s voice was a little flustered, and her cheeks were burning.
Lin Wanqiu's gentle laughter came from the other end of the phone: "What a coincidence! That's perfect, it'll make things easier for you to receive them. The experts will arrive at three o'clock this afternoon, so get ready."
After hanging up the phone, Shen Nian'an's heart began to race. He was both looking forward to seeing Su Wanqing and a little nervous—the last time they met was at an awards ceremony, where they only briefly exchanged mathematical questions. This time, he was hosting her and her father as a company technician; would he seem unprofessional?
He took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and immediately threw himself into the preparations. He compiled his process optimization plan into a booklet, using precise data and clear charts to demonstrate in detail how mathematical modeling could reduce raw material loss and improve production efficiency. To make it easier for the experts to understand, he also specially created process diagrams, transforming complex formulas into intuitive charts.
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