Chapter 189: A Plum Blossom Standing Proudly in the Snow

The war between Old Wu and Old Zheng continued. Although the two old men didn't openly fight, they were constantly at odds, even to the extent of spitting toothpaste at each other during their morning routines.

Li Xian, stuck in the middle, couldn't say much and had to let them handle it themselves. As long as Wang Lin and Old Qin were around and no physical altercations occurred, he was content to let them bicker.

With Zhu Feng and Old Zhu overseeing the factory, Li Xian didn't need to be at the site every day, and found himself with plenty of free time. He became a seasoned idler, sleeping until late in the morning and leading a laid-back life.

However, there was someone even more idle than him in the mansion.

That was Li Daoyun.

Ever since the old man arrived at the mansion, he had been completely conquered by Old Zhu's homemade liquor, drinking it excessively every day. When in high spirits, he would even hold a stick of firewood and ask the heavens for guidance, a sight to behold.

Zou Ni and Li You had originally tried to restrict the old man to one cup of alcohol per day. But seeing how the once insomniac Li Daoyun now woke up with Li Xian, snoring loudly, they simply reminded him to take care of his health and left him to his own devices.

The consequence of this was that Su Ma had to cook a separate meal for these two old men every day—by the time they got up for breakfast, it was almost lunchtime.

In the courtyard, seeing Li Daoyun drinking pickles and congee while his eyes wandered aimlessly, Li Xian cleared his throat and said, "Grandpa, moderation is key. It's fine to drink a little at night, but why start drinking first thing in the morning?"

Li Daoyun knew his grandson had a point, scratching his neck and grinning foolishly.

Seeing the old man acting like a child, Li Xian was both amused and exasperated. He shifted the topic to the matter of Wu Shengli and Zheng Weishi, asking, "Grandpa, do you think Su Ma has a chance with Old Wu and Old Zheng?"

"Who knows?" Li Daoyun said, pushing some rice grains off his beard with his chopsticks, and mumbled, "Little Wu came to me wanting a fortune-telling, but the fortunes of the world are just about ups and downs. Matters of the heart between men and women are harder to predict. Some things that seem unrelated may end up connected by fate. Conversely, a seemingly perfect match might be disrupted by sudden infatuations. Times have changed; people no longer accept multiple marriages. So, it's hard to predict or make sense of such matters. I didn't bother with it."

Listening to the old man's analysis, Li Xian found it quite reasonable and nodded in agreement.

It seemed that even the expertise in fortune-telling had its limitations in today's world...

While pondering this, the old man suddenly approached with a sheepish grin, "Grandson, since I've explained things so clearly, shouldn't you reward me with some wine?"

My dear grandpa!

Seeing the once-great fortune-teller reduced to such a state, Li Xian firmly refused, "Old man, for your health, don't even think about it!"

Seeing that his favorite second grandson wouldn't relent, the old man looked disappointed, "I told you, Old Zhu is such a rip-off. Why make that cheap wine? I said, son, you should raise the price of that wine. Two bucks a bottle is too cheap for those who just want to drink."

Hearing this, Li Xian's mind was stirred.

Indeed,

It was too cheap.

Such good wine shouldn't be sold at such a low price.

Now that sales were up, it was time to raise the profile!

Li Xian grinned, put down his bowl, and clapped his grandfather on the shoulder, saying excitedly, "Grandpa, I'll let you have a couple of drinks at noon!"

With that, he put on his clothes and shoes and quickly left the mansion.

Watching his grandson disappear beyond the courtyard wall, Li Daoyun placed his chopsticks down slowly.

"Which of my words hit the mark?"

...

Arriving at the distillery, Li Xian gathered Old Zhu and several key staff members. He expressed his desire to set up a production line dedicated to high-end products on top of the existing standard liquor.

The distillery staff were puzzled; the factory was already running at full capacity, and there was no spare line to allocate for this new venture. Moreover, Old Zhu had used his finest techniques in making the current standard liquor, and creating high-end products seemed challenging.

Although there were ways to make good wine, such as aging it in new cellars to enhance its flavor and aroma, time was not on their side. Waiting three to five years for a new product? That would be too late.

Li Xian had anticipated these issues on his way to the factory.

The previous basic construction used the most primitive methods of brewing. Nowadays, people valued the consistent quality of industrial production lines. But in Li Xian's view, the traditional, handcrafted methods were where true craftsmanship lay.

There was soul in it.

Now that the factory technicians had mastered the production line process, Li Xian wanted Old Zhu to personally handle the small-batch distillation, producing purer liquor as the high-end offering for the distillery.

Old Zhu had no objections to this idea.

So it was settled.

Over the next two days, Li Xian handled the registration, designed a paper package at the county printing factory, and had ceramic bottles made at the pottery factory, featuring simple landscape designs.

Once Old Zhu produced the first batch of handcrafted liquor, it was bottled with anti-counterfeiting black clay caps and then distributed to the market through channels.

The pricing...

The standard Bangye white liquor was priced at two and a half dollars per bottle, while this "premium edition" was priced at twenty-five dollars. It was aimed at high-end hotels and gift-giving customers.

The best-selling gift liquor on the market was Kongfu Family Liquor, which had a low alcohol content of only forty-two degrees. Compared to the traditional high-alcohol clear spirits at fifty to sixty degrees, this was the only low-alcohol liquor.

Before Old Zhu's small-batch liquor, Li Xian had also tried Kongfu Family Liquor. While it was unique due to the long-standing alcohol culture in Shandong, to true connoisseurs, such low-alcohol liquor was considered a joke. Especially in regions like Northeast China, where high-proof liquors like Moutai and Wuling Chun were common, low-alcohol options were not well-regarded.

Therefore, Li Xian believed that with the solid customer base established by Bangye white, the premium Bangye would surely succeed.

After launching the premium Bangye white, Li Xian eagerly awaited feedback from distributors for reorders.

Every time he thought about the cost of a bottle being just over three dollars, and the profit margin for distributors, he hoped that even if Bangye white achieved just a third, a fifth, or even a tenth of the sales, the factory's revenue would double next month!

One day.

Two days.

Three days.

Four days.

As the days passed, Li Xian, who stayed at the distillery waiting for reorders, became increasingly despondent.

"Xianzi… cough cough,"

Every day, Zhu Feng came to report on sales, and seeing Li Xian with a face marked by sleep, Zhu Feng felt a bit awkward.

"It's the same as yesterday."

Hearing this, Li Xian threw the pile of sales reports in front of him into the air!

The reports fluttered like feathers in the office, landing on Li Xian's head and face.

"Damn it!"

Li Xian punched the office wall.

Outside the window, the factory workers played the song "A Plum Blossom in the Snow" on a tape recorder.

"True love is as vast as the grassland, layer upon layer, wind and rain cannot block it~~~~"

"Ah! Xianzi, don't be like this! It's just that there are no reorders for a whole box, right?" Seeing Li Xian's disheartened expression, Zhu Feng quickly grabbed his hand to check for injuries.

"Don't mention it!" Li Xian slammed his fist against the wall again, his agitation frightening Zhu Feng.

"Snowflakes flutter, the north wind howls. The world is vast. A plum blossom stands proudly in the snow. Only for, the fragrant lady~~~"

"I'm so frustrated!" Under the background music of "A Plum Blossom in the Snow," Li Xian bowed his head.

"Since I started in business, none of my products have failed, but now my premium liquor has broken that streak! Five whole days, not even a single box of reorders, not a bit of the distinguished entrepreneur or enthusiastic party member demeanor!"

"No!"

"No!"

"No!!!!"

Amid the flurry of sales reports and the melodic flute accompaniment of "A Plum Blossom in the Snow," Li Xian let out a long cry to the heavens.

"Love what I love, without regrets.

This feeling, this feeling. Forever, forever. In my heart~~~~"

Outside the window, "A Plum Blossom in the Snow" continued to play.