stjorthotic Chapter 31: All Freshly Produced Directly! Which One Would You Choose?
Chapter 31: All Freshly Produced Directly! Which One Would You Choose?
Lin Chen did not answer immediately. He glanced at the group of men behind him who had just straightened their backs.
He knew that Zhang Meng had fallen, but Zhang Tiejun, who was behind Zhang Meng, was still there.
This matter cannot be left unresolved.
"Can."
Lin Chen nodded, without crying.
"The fishermen of Huangni Village rely on the sea for their livelihood. What they fear most is not the wind and waves, but people blocking the dock and buying their fish at half the market price."
"If you don't sell, we'll kick over your basket and tear your net apart."
"We just want to earn money through our own abilities and sell at a fair price, but some people won't allow it."
His words, though not naming names, made it clear to everyone how the village bully exploited smallholders by driving down prices.
A van and a three-wheeled motorcycle carried a group of people back to Huangni Village.
Before the car had even come to a complete stop, many villagers had already gathered around, eager to hear what was going on.
Lin Chen ignored them and led everyone back to his own courtyard.
"Clatter".
He carried a black combination lock suitcase out of the house.
The lid of the box was lifted, revealing stacks of brand-new banknotes inside.
"Uncle Guowang, this is the money for fixing the internet, three thousand. Please count it."
Lin Chen took out three stacks of money and handed them to his uncle, who was carrying a tattered fishing net.
Lin Guowang's eyes immediately reddened when he looked at the thick stack of money.
Then, Lin Chen turned to Uncle Li and Wang Fuhai.
"Dear uncles and brothers, I apologize for delaying your voyage today. Here is a compensation for the lost work time, five hundred each."
"In addition, these are the profit sharing from the previous sales. The accounts are all here, not a penny less."
He personally handed stacks of cash to each fisherman who stood up that day.
Those rough, large hands trembled slightly as they took the money.
"Tatsuko..."
Wang Fuhai held the money, his voice choked with emotion.
Liu Dahai kept grinning foolishly.
The villagers watching were all wide-eyed.
That's real cash.
Zhao Defa pushed through the crowd and approached with a broad smile.
"Oh, Chenzi, you've really made something of yourself. Look, there are still several families in our village struggling to make ends meet. Could you help them out?"
Some villagers who had been observing earlier also chimed in, their faces filled with envy and regret.
Just then, a sharp and sarcastic voice came from behind the crowd.
"Don't be fooled by him."
Zhang Cuihua put her hands on her hips and shouted at the top of her lungs.
"I just heard that it's all over Boss Zhang's place. Lin Chen borrowed all the money to buy the big ship from loan sharks in the city."
"Once this money is distributed, his cash flow will be cut off. If you work for him, sooner or later the debt collectors will come knocking on your door."
Upon hearing this, Uncle Li, who had just received the money, trembled so much that he almost dropped it on the ground.
Those villagers who were originally queuing to join instinctively took several steps back.
Zhao Defa, seeing the wind blowing, immediately changed his tune.
"That's right. He's just a migrant worker who was laid off from his job in the city. Where would he get 80,000 yuan to buy a boat? The money is of dubious origin, and we can't get our hands on it."
Faced with this sudden reversal, Lin Chen's face remained expressionless; he even smiled.
He leisurely took his phone out of his pocket, plugged in the data cable, and turned on Bluetooth.
"Buzz".
Lin Chen directly projected and enlarged the mobile banking interface.
On the screen, you can see restaurants like Haiweiju, Xianzhidao, and Yuge Restaurant...
Behind each familiar name lies a daily, unwavering record of payments ranging from eight thousand to tens of thousands of yuan.
The water kept flowing down, eventually settling on that glaringly obvious available balance.
"Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands... tens, hundreds of thousands?"
Everyone stared wide-eyed at the six-digit number on the screen, feeling as if their hearts were being gripped tightly.
Zhang Cuihua's smug expression froze instantly.
Zhao Defa was filled with remorse and wished he could slap himself twice on the spot.
Lin Chen unplugged the data cable and coldly glanced at those who had just backed down.
"Want to join my alliance? Sure. But today, I'm only taking in five more households."
"Those who backed down just now, those who were swayed by rumors, can forget about ever getting on my ship again."
His words effectively shut out opportunistic people like Zhao Defa.
In the end, he only recruited a few honest fishermen who stood still the whole time and didn't move an inch.
Just as things were beginning to settle down in the village, Lin Chen's phone suddenly vibrated.
Caller ID: Su Jianming.
Lin Chen answered the phone.
"Lin Chen! Something terrible has happened."
Su Jianming's anxious voice came through the receiver.
"That bastard Zhang Tiejun made his move ahead of time."
"He has joined forces with Haifeng Cold Chain in the city and just issued an ultimatum to all the restaurants that cooperate with them."
"Either we immediately cut off all cooperation with you, or Haifeng will cut off all our goods, not even a single block of ice."
"Wang Hao's Fresh Way restaurant is in an uproar. Half of their dishes rely on cold chain logistics. Without ice, the restaurant can't survive a day."
Inside a private room at the Fisherman's Song Restaurant.
The ashtray was overflowing with cigarette butts, and Wang Hao paced back and forth.
"It's over, it's all over. Zhang Tiejun's move was too ruthless, it's going to kill us."
Su Jianming smoked one cigarette after another.
"Bang."
Lin Chen strode in and, without saying a word, took a document out of his bag.
"What's the panic?"
At the very top of the document were several bold words: Supply Guarantee and Guarantee Agreement.
Su Jianming and Wang Hao were both taken aback.
Lin Chen pulled out a chair and sat down, then opened the document and pointed to one of the pages.
"These are the blueprints for the live water tank modification of my Pioneer. Within three days, my ship will be able to achieve automatic seawater circulation, temperature control, and oxygenation within the tank. It can carry more than 500 kilograms of live seafood at a time, with a survival rate of over 95%."
He then took two palm-sized blue ice packs out of his bag and threw them on the table.
"These are high-efficiency ice packs for keeping food fresh. I got them through special channels. They keep food cold three times as well as regular ice, and they can be reused."
"Is Zhang Tiejun trying to strangle us with frozen food?"
Lin Chen smiled.
"Then let's completely abandon frozen food."
"Starting tomorrow, my alliance will only do one thing—direct supply of all live seafood."
"All fish, shrimp, crabs, and shellfish must be alive when they are caught from the sea and delivered to your kitchen. Dead ones will not cost me a penny."
The private room was deathly silent for a full ten seconds.
"Oh shit."
Su Jianming suddenly roared, grabbed the Haifeng Cold Chain cooperation agreement on the table, and tore it to shreds in front of Wang Hao's shocked gaze.
"Done."
"I'm going to go crazy with you today, Lin Chen. If I had to choose, I'd pick you."
The news quickly reached the town's seafood wholesale market.
Upon hearing his subordinate's report, Zhang Tiejun overturned the expensive mahogany coffee table in his office.
Late at night or early morning.
[Intelligence 1 (High Risk Warning): The commercial strangulation has failed; Zhang Tiejun has gone completely insane.]
He illegally hired three high-powered, modified trawlers at great expense, planning to physically ram and surround your Pioneer vessel at 4:00 AM tomorrow in the waters off Qingshui Island where the tide is strongest.
Objective: Ship destroyed, crew dead.