So I am your assistant now?
Pei Qi was cleaning the meeting room of the village committee when the village party secretaries of several nearby villages called out to him at the door: "Old Pei, why are you sweeping the floor here?"
Pei Qi raised his head and smiled, "I'm old now, and can't help much. I'll do something within my ability to relax my muscles."
Chen Jiadong snatched the broom from his hand, pulled him to sit down, and said, "Don't sweep yet, we have something serious to discuss with you."
"What's the matter?" Pei Qi stood up and walked to the water dispenser, took out a disposable cup and poured water for them.
Wang Zhou asked: "We heard from people in your village that this year's mangoes will not be sold to buyers. Selling them yourself will have a higher profit. Is that true?"
Pei Qi placed the water cup in front of them and said, "Pei Xu and a few other young people are planning to engage in e-commerce. We don't understand it, but we can't go against the money. They are doing things in a good manner, so we can leave it to them with confidence."
Liu Xian said anxiously: "Xiaobao from our village said that their mangoes will also be given to Pei Xu from your village this year, so why not take our village with you!"
Li Rongshui looked solemn and said, "This year's fruit harvest is good. I can tell with my fingers that the purchase price is definitely low. The labor costs are too hard to make up for the loss. Please discuss with a few young people and bring our village with you! We are all rural fruit farmers. Old Pei, you can understand our feelings. It's not easy for us!"
Pei Qilue said with some embarrassment: "The mango production of several villages combined is not small. Can e-commerce sell so many?"
Chen Jiadong said: "With so many fruits, we will sell as many as we can, and we won't put pressure on young people. We can also learn how to sell goods through e-commerce, and maybe next year we can sell them ourselves."
"Old Pei, I'm worried!" Wang Zhou pushed the water cup away and moved his chair to sit closer to him: "You say, a pound of fruit is sold for 10 cents, more than one dollar, what's the point!"
Liu Xian patted his hands and asked, "Old Pei, please help me."
"Okay, I'll go back and discuss it with the kids."
After Pei Qi finished speaking, the teenagers looked at each other, not knowing how to respond for a moment.
Pei Xu said, "Seventh Master, this is about the villagers' revenue. Let's discuss it and then give us a reply."
It was not yet the summer solstice, and the insects were chirping noisily. The young men were having a meeting around a square table. On the table were emerald green plums. When Xiang Chuzhe took a bite, the plums were so sour that he revealed a mask of pain.
Pei Xu said: "Let's discuss the sales of mangoes. Our village and several nearby villages mainly grow mangoes, and this year we will have a bumper harvest, with high yields and low prices. Let's think about whether there are any practical ways to help them sell their mangoes."
Li Xuran said: "Live streaming is one way to sell goods. We now have three accounts with a certain fan base. At the same time, we can upload our company's business license and open an online store for simultaneous sales."
Jiang Lin suggested: "I have an idea. Mangoes will gradually enter the ripening period in mid-May. We can use this time to shoot a few interesting and spooky mango promotional videos for our show fans and attract some passers-by. When we achieve the expected effect, we can start pre-sales."
Everyone agreed with his idea and said to Chuzhe, "Leave the script and filming to me."
Cheng Enyue said: "We can also expand offline sales channels. The show is popular now, so we can take advantage of it. For example, we can go to offline supermarkets and distributors to discuss cooperation."
Pei Xu looked around at them, his eyes sparkling with happiness, and said, "Okay, Jiang Lin and I will go to Yunnan to learn how to make flower cakes. At the same time, I will purchase the necessary equipment. I have some ideas for packaging, and I will post them in the group when the time comes. Everyone can brainstorm, and finally I will have to trouble Chuzhe to finalize the first draft."
He made an OK gesture to Chuzhe.
Li Xuran said: "Leave the outer packaging of the mangoes to me. You can tell me what ideas you have and I will implement them."
Song Yifan stretched lazily and said with a smile: "I will be responsible for counting the money for everyone."
Cheng Enyue reached out and flicked the back of his hand: "Starting tomorrow, you and I will discuss offline cooperation. You still have to negotiate the price."
Jiang Lin said, "Okay! If there's anything, please notify us in the group in time. I need to hurry up and get some sleep." He stood up and sighed, "In order to save money, a certain chairman booked an early morning flight. It takes two and a half hours from the village to the city. I have to get up at three in the morning to fly away."
The car drove slowly into the city. The light and shadow in the back seat were dim. Pei Xu tilted his head to look at his profile, from his eyebrows to his lips.
Warm, moist and soft, Pei Xu had also tasted it before, but that person seemed like a drunk playboy who flirted with others, heartless and forgetful.
The car passed over the speed bump and Jiang Lin was awakened by the shock. He rubbed his eyes and Pei Xu quickly withdrew his gaze.
The moment they landed and walked out of the airport, a cold wind blew, revealing their smooth foreheads.
Jiang Lin shrank his body slightly, half squinting his eyes due to the wind, and said, "As long as it's not raining back home, we can wear short sleeves. Why is it still so cold here?"
Pei Xu put the suitcase on the ground.
Jiang Lin suddenly stopped and asked: "What are you doing?"
"Every day, I just want style, not temperature." Pei Xu opened the suitcase, took out a sweatshirt and handed it to him: "I've already expected that someone doesn't have the habit of checking the weather forecast before going out, and won't bring thick clothes when going out."
Jiang Lin put on his clothes guiltily and said in defense, "I used to fly to different cities for announcements. I would take a nap whenever I had time. How could I have time to check the weather forecast? My assistant also packed my luggage, so I didn't have to worry about it."
Pei Xu teased him: "So I am your assistant now?"
"The chairman has misunderstood." Jiang Lin pushed the suitcase consciously, "I am the chairman's dog."
Pei Xu was amused by him and reached out to take the suitcase from his hand.
The production workshop is shrouded in the rich fragrance of dark red roses, with clean stainless steel worktops, traditional hand-kneading of dough, and a wooden rolling pin covered with white powder. The dark red rose petals are manually removed of the calyx and impurities, then manually kneaded to release the floral fragrance. The filling is then evenly mixed with a manual filling mixer, and a filling spoon is used to quickly scoop out an appropriate amount of flower filling and place it on the rolled dough. It is then skillfully kneaded into a pancake shape, and the brand name is engraved with a traditional wooden printing mold, placed on a baking tray and baked in a preheated large oven.
Jiang Lin watched the whole process and was stunned: "I finally understand why manual work is so expensive? Because the process is complicated and meticulous. Just the process of kneading the dough, after a day, my arms are so sore that I can't sleep at night."
Pei Xu said: "Traditional handmade flower cakes are time-consuming and laborious, but the taste is completely different from those made on an assembly line. Relying on superior taste and flavor is conducive to building a personal brand, which is why Teacher Su recommended us to learn handmade production."
The workshop auntie said, "Xiao Jiang, Xiao Pei, today you will first learn how to clean the petals. In this process, remove the calyx and remove impurities. This step is crucial. If the work is not done carefully, it will directly affect the taste of the flower filling. Remember not to damage the petals."
Pei Xu suggested cautiously: "Teacher, excuse me, can we study separately today? We can each learn the same steps, but I have a lot of work to do at home and time is a bit tight."
The aunt said, "That's fine. Young people are quick learners. You can assign one of you to learn how to knead the dough and roll it out. Remember, don't be careless."
Jiang Lin said to Pei Xu in the tone of his aunt. "Did you hear that? Little Pei, you must study hard and don't ruin your aunt's reputation."
Pei Xu smiled and nodded: "I see, Jiang Shao. So are you cleaning the petals or kneading the dough?"
Jiang Lin rolled up his sleeves to show off his slender biceps and said, "I'm a tough guy, so of course I have to do the hard work of kneading dough and rolling skin." He smiled and sought Auntie's approval: "Don't you agree, Auntie?"
The aunt smiled and shook her head, "You can't do it. You are as thin as a frog and have no strength." The aunt pointed at Pei Xu who was watching the show on the side and said, "Little Pei looks much stronger than you and can work."
Jiang Lin was assigned to wash flower petals by his aunt amid Pei Xu's laughter. He said to his colleague unconvincedly, "I'm really good at work! I can carry two 80-kg bags of organic fertilizer at home without any problem. I can also run all over the mountains chasing after the Xiayan chicken without even taking a breath."
The aunt smiled and said, "You are tall and pale, you don't look like someone who can work."
"Auntie, I was born with pale skin!" Jiang Lin wailed, "Otherwise I'll go get a tan some other day to prove my strength."
Pei Xu kneaded the dough while supervising, "Don't stop working while you're talking. Auntie has already washed a whole basket of dough, and you're dawdling."
The petals were floating in the pool. After being washed with clean water, they became more and more beautiful. The calyx and impurities were cleaned into the trash can nearby. The aunt repeatedly reminded us to remove the calyx.
Jiang Lin asked: "Auntie, the calyx is also part of the flower, why do we have to remove it?"
The aunt patiently answered the question: "The calyx is rich in bitter flavors such as tannins and quercetin, which will produce a strong astringent and bitter taste when heated. This destroys the sweet taste of the flower cake. In addition, the fiber of the calyx is coarse and hard, and the texture is tough and not easy to soften. After the finished product is made, biting into the calyx fragments will have a taste like chewing confetti, which destroys the fusion of the pastry and the filling."
Pei Xu listened carefully to the aunt's explanation and added: "From a biological point of view, the calyx wraps around the base of the flower, which is easy to deposit sprayed pesticides, especially organophosphates. The pesticide residues will be higher than the petals. In addition, the wrinkles of the calyx are easy to hide insect eggs and dust, which is not conducive to food safety."
The aunt was pleasantly surprised and showed an appreciative look, nodding repeatedly: "Xiao Pei is very professional!"
Jiang Lin was proud of it and introduced it to his aunt happily: "Aunt, Pei Xu is a doctor of agriculture. He is an authority in this field. He personally takes care of the dark red roses, fertilizes them, and takes care of the equipment. We just follow him."
"Wow! A doctor, what a high degree." The aunt admired Pei Xu even more and gossiped, "You are so outstanding, do you have a girlfriend?"
Pei Xu subconsciously looked in the direction of Jiang Lin, who was bending down to remove the calyx.
Jiang Lin noticed that the gaze had moved away from him, and he looked up at him slightly.
Pei Xu said calmly: "No, I'm in the initial stage of starting a business now, so I'm very busy."
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