Reborn in 1981, the first to get rich start with dairy cows.

Chapter 158 Shen Nan's Letter

The refrigeration workshop isn't very busy right now. The initial plan is to start a four-shift system in June to increase production. So, recently, besides digging cellars, all we've been doing is making ice.

The large blocks of ice in the commune's cellar haven't arrived yet, so these days everyone is trying their best to store as much crushed ice as possible, and also trying to make boxes that meet the requirements.

Besides that, there's the issue of fruit procurement.

Shen Dong's plan is to launch a new product combining fruit and dairy products every month, starting in June, whether it's yogurt or popsicles.

Furthermore, considering each month—apricots in June, peaches in July, grapes in August, pears in September, and pomegranates in October—it's all planned out.

Because Baotashan Commune did not plant all varieties, Li Hu needed to take people to other communes to sign contracts in advance.

The purchases also involved the yogurt and popsicle production workshops.

For example, after mashing an apricot, the pulp is used for yogurt and the juice for popsicles; this requires the cooperation of both groups.

"We'll be quite busy from now on, so we can't let the fruit popsicle production fall behind," Shen Dong joked with a smile.

"Don't worry, as long as you make sure it's not too sweet and has a milky flavor, it won't taste bad," Wu Qingfeng said confidently.

Shen Dong patted him on the shoulder, inspected the area, found nothing worth paying attention to, and then left.

There's really nothing wrong with making popsicles, but there's one problem he thinks he needs to work on some connections for.

Due to the limitations of the times, packaging is a difficult problem to solve. Take popsicles for example, they can only use the most ordinary wax paper as packaging. Shen Dong has to go to the county to get slightly better oil paper. As for plastic bags, he doesn't even dare to think about them, as they are strategic materials.

Moreover, because it is waxed paper, it involves manual folding and packaging, which is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and inefficient.

But even if you find Chen Jianghe, you can't solve this problem. The plastic production capacity is limited, and there's no sealing equipment. So Shen Dong stopped thinking about it.

But the yogurt packaging needs to be changed.

Because Baotashan itself is a poor place and there are no glass factories, they have been using earthenware pots all along.

Fortunately, the technology is mature and the cost is extremely low, which can make up for the appearance defects.

But since the goal is to target the entire city's market, earthenware jars are definitely not suitable. Moreover, Shen Dong has even greater ambitions, so switching to glass bottles is now imperative.

Changlin County also has glass factories, but they mainly supply state-owned factories, such as soda factories and soy sauce factories.

People didn't even consider small commune factories like Shen Dong's, and since they didn't have any quotas, they were naturally not needed.

But having grown to this scale, we have to start moving around.

As he pondered this, he arrived in the county.

"Director Shen, the Party Secretary is currently receiving leaders from the Agriculture Bureau. If you have anything to say, you can tell me first, and I'll let you know when he's free," Qu Liang said to Shen Dong with a smile as he sat at the office door.

The two had met a few times, and Shen Dong knew the process.

He immediately explained the factory's predicament, raised the need for glass bottles, and expressed his determination to enter the dairy and beverage industry next year, at which time he would need even more glass bottles.

"Well then, Director Shen, you can go back first. This matter of glass bottles involves quota allocation, and even if we meet with the Party Secretary today, it can't be resolved in a short time. I'll report to the Party Secretary later. What do you think?"

Shen Dong thought for a moment and asked, "Secretary Qu, what is the current output of the county glass factory?"

"Daily production is between 4000 and 5000 pieces!" He was very familiar with the situation of the factories in the county and immediately reported it.

"So little!" Shen Dong thought to himself. With such a small output, even if it could be distributed to the dairy factory, it probably wouldn't even amount to 500.

Secretary Qu chuckled and said, "That's quite a lot. Among the surrounding counties, only Pi County has a good location. The raw material for making glass, quartz sand, is from their county, so their output is high. The output of the other counties is slightly less than ours."

Shen Dong clicked his tongue in amazement. He had considered the difficulties, but he hadn't expected the production of glass bottles to be so low.

Undeterred, he asked, "Isn't there any way to increase production?"

Hearing what sounded like movement inside, Secretary Qu turned and said, "Director Shen, how about we discuss this in more detail another time?"

Shen Dong, being very perceptive, apologized and walked away.

This is damn good; if we keep doing this, we'll end up monopolizing the entire county's light industry.

First it was the livestock station, then the agricultural machinery station, and now it's the glass factory. I never intended to do so many things!

However, the dairy factory's future plans do require glass bottles, so he could only sigh and say that he would have to do some research later.

When he returned to the factory, he was stopped by Lao Huang as soon as he reached the gate.

"Factory manager, we have a letter for you!"

"Mine?" Shen Dong was taken aback. This seemed to be the first letter he had received since his rebirth, and he immediately took it with interest.

It turns out it belonged to Shen Nan!

"Thanks, Lao Huang."

Back in my office, I opened the letter.

The letter was brief, mainly recounting Shen Nan's two months in the recruit camp—a period that was both monotonous and exciting. As the path she had firmly chosen, Shen Nan expressed her determination to continue down it.

At the same time, because of her outstanding performance, she was almost certain to be assigned to the cultural troupe, and she was full of hope for her future life.

Shen Dong smiled and nodded: It seems that our family is really going to have an entertainer. We can sing a lot of revolutionary songs, so how about we find an opportunity to write a couple for her?

After reading the letter, Shen Dong placed the envelope on the table.

Since he wrote a letter to himself, he wondered if Li Chenfeng had written one too! But he probably had, since he might be his future brother-in-law.

While thinking about it, I checked the mailing address on the envelope again.

However, due to regulations, the mailing address is vague, only locating a certain city.

At that moment, Shen Dong noticed the stamps, and a flash of inspiration struck him.

Monkey stamp!

He suddenly remembered!

The famous monkey stamps of later generations were only issued a couple of years ago. If you could collect a few sets and keep them, they could be family heirlooms.

As Shen Dong paced around the room, he pondered how to get things going with the monkey stamps.

He has a factory to manage and a bunch of other things to do, so he definitely doesn't have time to wait around the stamp market. He needs a reliable person to help him.

He thought of someone and immediately went downstairs to find Qiu Xiaoqin.

Is Xiaojun home?

"What's wrong?" Qiu Xiaoqin looked at Shen Dong with a puzzled expression. Seeing his anxious face, she thought something had happened and quickly asked, "Did Xiaojun get into trouble?"

"No, I need to talk to him about something," Shen Dong said patiently, suppressing his excitement.

Qiu Xiaoqin breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me to death! You looked so nervous, I thought Xiaojun had gotten into trouble." She thought for a moment and then said, "He shouldn't be home right now. He should be in the black market area. Go and take a look."

"The black market?" Shen Dong repeated, frowning.

Qiu Xiaoqin waved her hand: "He knew it was dangerous, so he didn't sell anything inside."

"Okay!" Shen Dong nodded, and without lingering, turned and left.