Merchant and doctor

Chapter 2433 Specialized Medicines

"Huai Shang Guild Hall" is a traditional-style restaurant serving southern cuisine. The menu is somewhat retro, with new dishes made in the old style, suitable for all ages, and the business has always been quite successful.

Bian Mu and his companion went to the main store, which has three floors in total. During peak mealtimes, it is usually packed with customers and bustling with activity.

The restaurant owner was very familiar with Luo Jiaming, and specially arranged a more elegant small room with a screen for the two of them on the first floor, where the best dishes were naturally served.

The two ate and chatted.

"You know, people who have been in the business world for a long time, suddenly having so much free time, I've heard they'll get sick, there's a saying about that!" After tasting a piece of braised fish, Luo Jiaming said these words with a smile.

"Hehe... Mr. Luo, please just tell me your plans. I'm all ears!"

"Just chatting casually. It's quite pleasant to accompany the two kids in their studies, but... I still have some lingering concerns. I heard you're planning to take over the entire business at 'Yuan Gu'. I wonder if you've found someone to lead it yet?"

Hearing this, Bian Mu was somewhat surprised.

“That’s a little-known factory. You’re going to be in charge there?! That’s too much of a waste!” Bian Mu immediately pointed out Luo Jiaming’s purpose.

"A small factory?! Haha... To be honest, before you came to the city... many years ago, I cooperated with them quite a bit! In general, I might know the situation there better than you do!"

"Really? But... it's really not appropriate for you to be in charge over there." Bian Mu directly rejected the idea.

"You think I'm too old?!"

"There's some truth to that. Those who will be in charge over there in the future will mostly be people with avant-garde thinking. They may not be younger than you, but their thinking system must be completely new..." As he spoke, Bian Mu briefly introduced his conversation with Factory Director Ma that day, in which he disregarded the other's feelings.

Hearing this, Luo Jiaming smiled calmly, didn't rush to reply, and used the serving chopsticks to pick up some vegetables and eat a few bites.

"That's what they say, but no one knows that factory better than me. I heard that your upcoming new drug is quite cutting-edge. Even if you had to compromise, you should have partnered with a highly integrated company like Yiyoukang! But you chose such an old and small factory. It's so contradictory... Why am I not suitable?"

"Hehe... President Luo! Although the stock price of Fengtai Liquor has fallen to a very low point, the unit price has remained at more than 800 yuan, and it is still one of the top three famous liquors in the world!" For some reason, Bian Mu suddenly changed the subject.

Upon hearing this, Luo Jiaming's mind went blank for a moment. "What do you mean?! How did this get to stocks? Are you talking about liquor production or stock market trends?" Luo Jiaming was momentarily confused.

"Here's what I mean: if we step in and persuade Fengtai Liquor Brewing Group to relocate its distillery to the vicinity of Lijin, and build a new factory using high-quality water from the Lihe River, while selling the original distillery, do you think the listed company's stock price can still maintain its current level?"

"That definitely won't work! It's a distillery! Once it leaves its original cellar and water source, it's bound to change its flavor, and the brand will surely collapse within three years... You mean... the traditional Chinese medicine pharmacy that Cao Qiling meticulously set up in 'Yuan Gu' back then is still playing a decisive role? As for me, my knowledge in this area is limited, so I'm not up to the task?!" Fortunately, although Luo Jiaming's physical condition was not good, his mind was still not completely damaged, and he quickly contacted Cao Qiling.

Nodding slightly, Bian Mu smiled and gave Luo Jiaming a lesson.

"The future of high-quality traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) products—and only those with exceptional efficacy—is uncertain. Mid-to-high-end TCM products, compared to their Western counterparts in the same category, lack any competitive advantage. We've lagged behind for many years; we certainly won't even be able to catch up anytime soon! So… where do we start with 'exceptional efficacy'? Retro methods?! Definitely not. People have already tried that, and it's easy to be at a loss when new changes occur in the patient's condition. For example, is it effective for mild cancer? Right? TCM with Westernized formulations?! You're the most qualified to speak on this. Over the years, Yiyoukang has tried countless times, right? A lot of manpower and resources have been invested, and what's the result? It's not what we hoped for. Now we're stuck in the middle, neither high nor low, just sticking to the old ways. Nobody is really optimistic about its future prospects…"

Hearing this, Luo Jiaming frowned. He felt that Bian Mu's words made sense, but in his opinion, no matter how capable Bian Mu was, could he really launch a groundbreaking and highly effective traditional Chinese medicine in such a short time?

He'd never believe it, even if you beat him to death!

Having spent half his life in the pharmaceutical industry, Luo Jiaming has seen a lot in the world. Young people who talk big are useless!
"In your opinion, where is the technological breakthrough? I certainly can't understand it!" Luo Jiaming's words carried a hint of mockery.

"The key to treating diseases with traditional Chinese medicine lies in stimulating its natural properties. In this respect, Daoist medicine has never strayed too far from the right path. You actually had many interactions with them back then, but unfortunately, the timing was not right, and neither of you was able to seize the opportunity in time. Take the production line for the specific manifestation of the properties of medicine, for example. Yiyoukang has never done very well, and other companies in the same industry have not made much progress either. The problem may be that you have been focusing on the main effective ingredients of the medicine, and you have tried to raise the purity to an unbelievable level. In the view of our new school, doing so is actually going astray..."

"Oh! That sounds interesting. I'd like to hear more about it!"

"Right now, people's lives are at their highest level in thousands of years. Take a college graduate, for example. Most of them aspire to work hard in big cities and choose to head south. They travel by high-speed rail one day and bullet train the next, trying to find a good job. They eat Western food one minute and Chinese food the next. When they're short on money, they just cook a packet of instant noodles with a braised egg and a sausage and still enjoy it. Imagine, back then, the great pharmaceutical masters, I mean Taoist doctors and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners, faced such a complex lifestyle in their time?! No way! Transportation conditions didn't allow it. So think about it! With rivers, lakes, and seas everywhere, what kind of digestive system do graduates have, eating four kinds of pungent and five kinds of spicy food all day long?! Right? Can the rigid, dogmatic approach of matching medicine properties with pathology cure diseases?" As he spoke, Bian Mu's voice involuntarily rose an octave.

Hearing this, Luo Jiaming seemed to have grasped something particularly important, but since he had not yet fully recovered, his mind was still a little slow to process it.

"Don't be impatient, think it over slowly... Nowadays, people are constantly traveling all over the country. Their bodies' absorption and breathing techniques are completely different from those of a hundred or even thousands of years ago. If you simply focus on meticulously studying the properties of herbs to make traditional Chinese medicine, you will never achieve any major technological breakthroughs in your lifetime!"

Luo Jiaming opened his mouth, but in the end, he couldn't say anything.

Upon seeing this, Bian Mu was immediately amused.