Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 246 The Right to Refuse

"Please arrange production first. We'll come back and sign the contract after we finish eating," Yan Hui said earnestly. "Director Xiang, we must make this clear upfront: I have very high standards for quality. I will be coming to inspect production tomorrow or the day after. I hope you won't mind."

"The inspection is fine, the contract can be signed now! There's no rush to eat!" How could Director Xiang let the fat meat that was already in his mouth escape?

There was a ready-made contract with the factory manager. Yan Hui checked it, filled in the numbers, and directly gave the factory manager a deposit of 10,000 yuan.

The process was quick; neither of them dawdled, and they finished everything in half an hour. During this time, the factory manager received two or three phone calls, all urging him to hurry up and have lunch.

Yan Hui rode in the factory manager's van and soon arrived at the restaurant, chatting and laughing along the way.

"Let me make this clear first, Director Xiang, I won't be drinking tonight." Yan Hui still had to ride his motorcycle home that night.

"Oh, how much is it on the hour?" Factory Manager Xiang was in a good mood. Yan Hui's profit on this order was pretty good, and the deal was negotiated so easily!

No banquets, no gifts, no favors, just cash! What an amazing customer!
"I really can't drink. I have a pretty big warehouse that I need to keep an eye on at night, so I can't drink." Yan Hui shook his head.

"Huh? You still need to watch over the warehouse yourself? Can't you just find someone?" Factory Manager Xiang asked, somewhat puzzled.

His warehouse never needs to be watched; it's full of bulk commodities, making it very difficult to steal.

If these were steel billets from a steel mill, they would just be piled up there, and you could take them if you wanted!

"It's not wood. Anyway, I really can't drink alcohol. In fact, I was hospitalized because of drinking before and almost didn't recover!" Yan Hui sighed.

"Alright then, let's have some beer." The factory manager sighed. How could they not drink?
People from Shandong province believe that drinking alcohol can enhance relationships, and there's some truth to that. After drinking, a person's self-control and judgment decrease, sometimes leading them to speak the truth, though that's not the most crucial point.

People who don't drink don't understand why others drink, because the saying "truth comes out when one is drunk" is not true.

In reality, drinking can lower a person's guard. Your willingness to drink more with others demonstrates your trust in them; drinking is a way of opening up, showing a willingness to build a deeper relationship, and trusting the other person. Many situations require a drinking session to put people to the test. (Also, there are many who are simply heavy drinkers who enjoy drinking.)
Yan Hui doesn't need it. To put it bluntly, he doesn't trust Factory Manager Xiang enough. This shipment will definitely not have any major problems, but if there are any minor issues that are difficult to fix, he will leave without hesitation. There are plenty of manufacturers out there.
"I can't drink beer either. Director Xiang, maybe I shouldn't go to this dinner." Yan Hui expressed his thoughts when they arrived at the restaurant entrance.

"Huh? You really don't want to drink? Okay then, have some food, have some food. It's mealtime, you can't not eat!" Director Xiang pulled Yan Hui into the restaurant and then went up to the second floor.

As soon as he pushed open the door, the room was filled with smoke. Yan Hui looked around and saw that there were five men and one woman in the room. The woman looked like the mistress of a boss.

"Old Xiang, you've only been gone a short while, and the dishes were almost all arranged. Where did you go? You didn't even answer your phone!" The boss, who was with a woman, was a little unhappy.

"Mr. Li, come, come, let me introduce you. This is Mr. Yan, my big client. It's our first time working together today, so I have to go! I'm so sorry, where is your drinking party? Come, come, I have to catch up with the drinks!" Factory Manager Xiang picked up a bottle and glass and poured himself some. "Mr. Yan? This is a boss from out of town, right? He looks really young!" Mr. Li remarked, neither with goodwill nor malice.

"Come, come, Mr. Yan, please have a seat," Factory Director Xiang immediately pulled out a chair for Yan Hui and arranged for him to sit down, then poured himself a full glass of baijiu.

"I'm so sorry I'm late! Let me drink this first to apologize to all the bosses!" Director Xiang raised his glass with both hands.

Most of the people were quite familiar with Director Xiang, so they all stood up and picked up their cups.

"You guys just need a sip, I'll finish mine!" Director Xiang frowned, downed more than two ounces of baijiu in one go, then turned the glass upside down to indicate that there was nothing left.

"Great job, Mr. Xiang, this quantity is really good!" someone complimented.

"Mr. Xiang, no problem. But Mr. Yan, why didn't you pour him any wine?" Someone noticed something was wrong. "Mr. Xiang, your hospitality is really something. You're only thinking about drinking yourself. Aren't you taking care of Mr. Yan?"

"He's not in good health. He went to the hospital after drinking, there was really nothing we could do," the factory manager explained.

"Yes, I drank too much last time and spent two or three days in the hospital. I almost didn't recover." Yan Hui exaggerated the situation a bit.

“That’s understandable! Everyone has to go to the hospital when they drink too much! But Mr. Yan is so young, he’ll recover quickly, so he’ll definitely be fine. Here, waiter, bring a case of beer! Mr. Yan, you don’t need to drink too much, just pour yourself a glass and keep us company! That’s the custom here in Jinan, you have to have at least one drink on your table! Otherwise, we’ll have wasted our meal!” A man who was on good terms with Factory Manager Xiang stepped forward, took the beer from the waiter, and with a bang, as if by magic, opened the bottle instantly, using something like a bottle opener.

Before Yan Hui could refuse, a glass of wine was poured for him.

"It's alright, Mr. Yan, just leave it here, this one bottle is fine," the factory manager said.

“You,” General Manager Li pointed at the factory director, “General Manager Yan was just being polite. Look how young he is. If he really raised his glass, none of us might be able to handle him!”

"President Li, President Xiang, everyone, I really can't drink any more," Yan Hui calmly put his glass aside. "If drinking is necessary for this gathering today, then I won't disturb you any longer."

"Huh?" President Xiang had never encountered a situation like Yan Hui's before. Usually, people would give each other some face at the dinner table.

If it were the old Yan Hui, he would definitely have drunk some. But having come to Shandong Province, he knew some of the local rules and customs; he had witnessed them firsthand and heard about them from his brother-in-law. The rule was: once you raise a glass, there will always be more glasses to drink. Most people don't have the right to refuse; if you must refuse, you must refuse on the very first glass.

"Oh dear, Mr. Yan, why are you saying that? You've come all this way; you're a guest. Here, the wine is right here. It's alright if you don't drink it! Waiter! Get Mr. Yan two cans of Jianlibao!" Manager Xiang quickly salvaged the situation. He realized that Yan Hui genuinely didn't follow those etiquette rules at drinking parties. And in this particular situation, Yan Hui had the right to refuse.

(End of this chapter)