Food Intelligence King

Chapter 186 Buying Goods, Picking Up the Kids with Old Zhang
"Master, shall we go to Hongdingdi?" Chen Zhou asked, pretending to be serious.

Old Zhang grinned after hearing this: "Get in the car!"

He then noticed the thermos in Chen Zhou's hand.

"Wow, that's quite a health-conscious thing, Uncle Chen."

"I got this for you," Chen Zhou said, shaking the small bowl of pear soup inside. "It's still warm."

Old Zhang took it and unscrewed the cap.

A warm steam, carrying the gelatinous texture of tremella and the sweet aroma of snow pear, wafted out.

"The flavor is really good."

Chen Zhou tried to fasten his seatbelt but found a buckle inside, preventing it from going in. He muttered, "Enough with your nonsense, hurry up and try it."

While Old Zhang was drinking pear soup, she pulled out the small clasp.

Re-fasten your seatbelt.

He cautioned, "Not wearing a seatbelt is a bad habit."

"Okay, Uncle Chen."

Old Zhang carefully tasted a sip of the pear soup, then squinted his eyes slightly.

He seemed to be enjoying it, but his expression was even more frightening.

Old Zhang commented:

"This pear soup tastes so good! The pear flesh has melted in the soup, and the white fungus is soft and chewy. The sweetness is just right, not too sweet, and it's so soothing!"

Chen Zhou smiled and steered the conversation toward today's main business.

"Let's go check out these premium snow pears later. Now you have a better idea of ​​what to expect, right?"

"Yes, absolutely." Old Zhang nodded. "To be honest, after that sip of your small bowl of pear soup, my palate has gone up dramatically. I can't even look at ordinary pears anymore."

Chen Zhou gave him a thumbs up.

"Yes, that's the effect we want. Today's goal is clear: the premium snow pears from Zhaozhou."
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"With this standard soup as a base, there's definitely nothing wrong with it."

As the two chatted and laughed, the car turned a corner, and the bustling rooftops of Hongdingdi came into view.

Before us lies the largest fruit wholesale market in Haibin City.

More than half of the fruit is distributed from here to the rest of the city.

Once the two entered the wholesale market, it was like a drop of water dripping into the ocean.

There were many people and many stalls, selling not only fruits but also all kinds of agricultural products.

This isn't even the busiest time of the morning yet.

Chen Zhou and Lao Zhang decided to split up.

We'll meet at the main gate later.

Chen Zhou quickly found the nearest fruit vendor and scanned the fruit.

The wholesale prices here are basically consistent with those mentioned in the intelligence report. However, since Chen Zhou doesn't seem to be buying in bulk for a discount, the stall owner is still quoting prices of six yuan and fifty cents or higher.

Chen Zhou immediately demonstrated his sincerity in making the purchase.

He'd take as many as he could as long as the snow pears were guaranteed to be of good quality, from the right place, and fresh.

The other party laughed and said, "You said it yourself."

Then he actually found the purchase receipt and the place of origin label, and promised Chen Zhou that he would peel a premium pear for him to try.

The premium pears do look much cleaner and neater.

They are large and plump, and almost all the same size.

Chen Zhou tasted it, and the taste was actually not much different from ordinary ones.

But things are valued for their rarity, and a neatly arranged box like this looks like a respectable item.

It is a great gift.

Chen Zhou checked the dates; they were all delivered within the last few days.

He then said to the stall owner:

"I'll take them all. I'll come over to pick them up in a bit."

Upon hearing this, the stall owner immediately greeted him with a smile, "Does the boss own a company? These pears are perfect for giving to clients."

Chen Zhou smiled but didn't say anything more.

Let's move on to the next store.

Soon, Old Zhang's group also circled around to several other vendors.

He had acquaintances at the Hongdingdi Market and got the bottom price of 6.2 yuan.

It was even lower than the information Chen Zhou had provided.

But after Zhang Jinsheng checked the number of goods they could pick up today with Chen Zhou, he scratched his head:

"There don't seem to be as many premium snow pears as I expected. Today, this whole market probably has about two thousand catties."

Besides intelligence, Chen Zhou had indeed checked the data. He explained, "There's nothing we can do about it. The total annual output of Zhaozhou Snowflake Pears is only a few hundred thousand tons. It would be good if the premium pears accounted for 10%. Moreover, they have to be shipped all over the country, not just sold here."

As the old saying goes, greed knows no bounds.

If we really want to sell several tons of pears, the warehousing and logistics costs will be very high.

The two small business owners alone may not be able to complete this task.

Of course, Lao Zhang already has a deep understanding of this.

He's learned his lesson and been fooled before, so he's trying it out on a small scale, which carries less risk.

I strongly agree with Brother Chen's statement.

Chen Zhou then instructed, "Since we're selling premium pears, we must be very careful about their quality and origin. It would be best to try them. Let's not be picky today, just divide the pears as we see fit."

The two then discussed the upcoming freight and warehousing arrangements.

Old Zhang provided the car and his nephew to help transport the goods.

He recently got a new car that he hasn't used yet, and he's using it to transport pears without any food safety concerns.

Chen Zhou provided the location:

"Just leave them in my shop. I'm renovating these past few days, and there's plenty of room for the more than 2,000 kilograms of pears."

There are actual snow pear packaging boxes in front of you.

With simple calculations, one can get a rough estimate.

A pear has a density similar to water; two thousand catties (approximately 1000 kg) is only about one ton.

In terms of actual volume, it is one cubic meter, which is one meter in length, width, and height.

The carton filling rate is calculated at half, and ventilation is considered when stacking them.

A space of ten cubic meters is more than enough.

Each individual room in the shop is fifty square meters in size, and two thousand kilograms of snow pears can be stored at Gate No. 2.

The initial location of the community canteen still required kitchen renovation.

Neither aspect will be neglected.

After listening to Chen Zhou's analysis, Old Zhang nodded and said, "I'll call my nephew over right now."
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"This is troublesome, Lao Zhang."

"Why are you being so polite with me?"

Chen Zhou laughed and said, "We'll be relying on you, brother, to contact the downstream fruit suppliers in a few days."

"Don't worry." Old Zhang's expression turned serious. "If I hadn't known what I was doing from the beginning, I wouldn't have caused you any trouble."

The next step is buying pears and packing them.

Xiao Zhang drove over to help, and everything went smoothly.

That day, they purchased less than 2,000 jin of premium pears, spending nearly 12,000 yuan.

They split into two vehicles, one carrying people and the other carrying goods, and drove together to the community canteen.

Halfway there, Chen Zhou checked the time.

There's still time to pick up Chen Taotao.

He smiled and said to Old Zhang, "Shall I take you to see my daughter? I can pick her up from school on the way."

Old Zhang really likes the little girl in Chen Zhou's family.

Firstly, she saw a reflection of her own daughter when she was young in her.

Secondly, Chen Taotao is indeed adorable.

However, because of his affection for this little girl, he became a bit hesitant.

His face showed a troubled expression.

Chen Zhou couldn't help but ask, "Brother, what's wrong? Are you traumatized by picking up the kids?"

Chen Zhou remembered being scolded for being late to pick up his daughter.

Old Zhang explained:
"I'm afraid my car will smell."

Chen Zhou patted his shoulder.

"Stop it, my daughter isn't that delicate. You should be worried about scaring other children."

Old Zhang grinned.

To be fair, Chen Taotao later went to the vegetable market with her mother to sell vegetables, and occasionally ran into Uncle Zhang.

Uncle Zhang is always very hospitable, giving you things and gifts.

Now, when she sees Uncle Zhang's face, she no longer shrinks behind the adults.

I guess I got to know Uncle Zhang a bit.

Chen Zhou then directed Lao Zhang to park the car in a place where it wouldn't get in the way.

"Let's go, let's go, my daughter loves cars, all kinds. She's been collecting stamps lately."

(End of this chapter)