Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 310 Promoting Cigarettes

I went to the cigarette factory and found the factory manager using the contact information Chen Hui had given me, and explained my purpose.

"This batch is twenty pieces. Our factory has a heavy workload, and this is the maximum we can produce." The factory manager led Xiaowei to the warehouse area, where Xiaowei saw his custom-made Anji special cigarettes in a corner.

The cigarette factory had production quotas, special supply quotas, and military logistics quotas. To be honest, it was really a favor that they managed to squeeze out a few dozen units to produce. Xiao Wei repeatedly expressed his gratitude.

The factory manager said, "Mainly because it's the beginning of the year, the supply and demand tasks are quite large. If you put this into a regular production line, it won't fit in, which will affect production. We can only squeeze in some work here in the spare time. It will be fine once this batch of tasks is completed. Generally, it won't be this busy in the second half of the year."

Xiao Wei asked, "Brother, what should we do if we want to market our cigarettes?"

The factory manager was taken aback for a moment and said, "Aren't these just freebies from your own restaurant? Are you going to sell them in the market? Selling them in the market won't work. It seems illegal for individuals to do this, right? You need to apply for a license to set up a tobacco sales company, and I don't think individuals can do that."

Xiao Wei said, "It's not about making money by selling cigarettes. It's just, how should I put it, it's a kind of 'GG' (a euphemism for something else). These cigarettes aren't just for our restaurant. If they're sold on the market, it's like we're going to lose money."

The factory manager nodded, looking enlightened, and patted Xiao Wei on the shoulder, saying, "Alright, you're smart enough. If we really want to enter the market, we can just go directly from here. What price are you planning to set?"

Xiao Wei said, "It should be at least twenty-one boxes."

The factory manager thought for a moment and said, "It's alright. From your perspective, this price is reasonable. But let me tell you, if we can't sell more than a few boxes, I doubt many people will dare to take the goods."

Xiao Wei said, "Brother, how about this? You guys help with the paperwork, and then we'll figure out how to stock some goods ourselves. You know these don't sell for much, it's just the idea."

The factory manager considered it for a moment and said, "It's a bit of a hassle. The problem is, who's going to check on these things? It's not worth the trouble. Where are you planning to send them?"

Xiao Wei said, "Let's go to Fengtian. If we want to open a branch here later, we'll just expand here. We'll just follow the restaurant's lead. There's no point in having a place without restaurants."

The factory manager thought for a moment and said, "How about this, I'll give you a mandate. I'll authorize you to store and transport goods within the Fengtian area, limited to this one type of cigarette. Is that alright? If your territory expands in the future, we can discuss it further, okay?"

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Okay, thank you so much. When you go to Fengtian, you must try the bones from our restaurant. Our chef's family recipe has been passed down for over a hundred years."

The factory manager said, "Really? Over a hundred years? Oh, then it'll definitely work. Okay, I'll definitely try it next time I'm in Fengtian."

Xiao Wei said, "We definitely have to come. The restaurant is right at the intersection of Sanhao Street, it's easy to find."

The factory manager scratched the back of his head a few times and said, "You guys should know better. These cigarettes don't have batch numbers; they're just trial production and sales. Don't make a big fuss about it."

Xiao Wei said, "No, it's not even certain whether we'll actually put it on the market. It's just a suggestion. How much does a pound of meat cost these days? Twenty-one boxes would probably drive people crazy."

The factory manager laughed heartily and nodded, saying, "That makes sense." In 1991, the most expensive domestic cigarette on the market was Tashan, which cost ten yuan. Imported cigarettes were a bit more expensive, with Marlboro costing twelve yuan and 555 costing fifteen yuan a pack, which were already the most expensive cigarettes on the market. Back then, fifteen yuan could buy five jin of good meat.

The so-called entrustment is just a letter of introduction stamped with the cigarette factory's red seal.

Then Xiaowei stuffed four boxes of cigarettes, two hundred cartons, into the car, and waited for the cigarette factory to send the rest.

After saying goodbye to the factory manager, Xiao Wei drove out of the cigarette factory to find a place to eat. At this time, Meigouying City was still a small city, not as sprawling as it would be in later years, with its urban area stretching all the way to the sea. It wasn't very big, there were no tall buildings, and it wasn't very prosperous.

Xiao Wei randomly picked a restaurant along the street, locked his car, and went inside to eat.

This is a seaside location, which became a treaty port in 1861. Maritime transport is very mature, and the local cuisine is mainly seafood.

Stir-fried eggplant strips with clams (freshly braised), stir-fried clams with scallions, and mixed jellyfish skin—three hot dishes and one cold dish, plus two meat pies—Xiao Wei ate until he was stuffed. He drank a cup of hot water to calm himself down, then drove off towards Fengtian. Leaving the city, he passed through Dashiqiao, Haicheng, Anshan, and Liaodongcheng, arriving at his apartment building a little after 8 p.m.

I took two packs of cigarettes upstairs, opened the door and went inside. Although it's springtime, the temperature difference between day and night is quite large, and it's still quite cold at night.

As soon as I entered the house, I found that the heating was still on. The power company is really something! So comfortable.

Hearing the door open, Xiao Hong ran out of the house and exclaimed, "Who is it? Xiao Wei? Why are you back?" She immediately greeted him with a radiant smile, wrapped her arms around Xiao Wei's neck, and kissed him on the lips. Before Xiao Wei could react, she quickly let go, wiping her mouth in disgust and spitting out a mouthful of saliva, saying, "What did you eat? It smells like sea chestnuts. Go brush your teeth."

Xiao Wei, both amused and exasperated, put the two packs of cigarettes on the table and went to the kitchen, saying, "I went to Meigouying and ate something there. Is there any food left? I'm hungry." He lifted the lid to check.

Xiaohong said, "There were some vegetables in the refrigerator, but no rice. I ate the leftovers from yesterday, and they were just enough to finish."

Xiao Wei nodded, opened the refrigerator, and glanced inside. There was stewed pork ribs with potatoes, a large bowl of stewed sauerkraut, and a few scallions. He asked, "Don't you usually eat vegetables?"

Xiao Hong said, "It's already four o'clock after school, and I'm too lazy to walk to the market. Xiao Xiao brought me some pickled cabbage, already chopped up, hehe."

Xiao Wei turned to look at Xiao Hong and said, "Why do I feel like you're getting lazier the higher you go to school? Can you even walk a few more steps to the market? Can you really eat this every day? You should at least see some vegetables every few days, right?"

Xiao Hong said, "The older folks say that you have to follow the seasons and eat whatever the weather gives you. They say that the vegetables sold now are all grown out of season in greenhouses and that they're bad for your health. I think they're right."

Xiao Wei paused for a moment and said, "Then the sky in the south isn't the sky either? They even bloom and bear fruit there in winter, can't we just throw it all away and eat it?"

Xiao Hong thought for a moment and said, "We're in the North, the South doesn't count." Xiao Wei laughed and said, "That's a good reason. Let's go buy some fish tomorrow, I'll clean it and freeze it for you, you can stew it yourself. It's better than eating potatoes and pickled cabbage every day." He reached out and took out the pickled cabbage, put it in the steamer, added water and turned on the stove, saying, "Are there no steamed buns left?"

Xiao Hong pointed to the refrigerator and said, "There are noodles up there."

Xiao Wei looked up and took down the half-eaten sheet of noodles. He turned around to find a pot to boil water and asked, "Do you want some more?"

Xiao Hong patted her stomach with her right hand and said, "I'm a little hungry. How about you make some sauce?"

Xiao Wei nodded, took out a few eggs, reached for a bowl, and asked, "Do you have any soybean paste at home?"

Xiao Hong said, "Yes, it was given to me by Xiao Xiao's mom." She ran to the cabinet and took out a jar.

Xiao Wei took the pot of boiling water off the stove, replaced it with a spatula to make soybean paste, first scrambled the eggs as usual, and then added half a spoonful of soy sauce and soybean paste when the eggs were golden brown. He took out some chopped scallions from the refrigerator, threw them into the pot, stirred a few times, and then served it. Next, he switched to a pot to cook noodles, while the steamer next to him hissed and steamed.

Xiao Hong leaned against the door frame and watched. She waited until Xiao Wei cooked the noodles, rinsed them, and served them on the table with the sauce before going over to get her chopsticks. She then happily picked out the sauce and mixed the noodles with a sweet smile.

(End of this chapter)