TL: Etude
The components factory was still a state-owned enterprise, and due to its rigid production system, business was not going well.
According to Chen Jianghai's memories from his previous life, the factory would close down by the end of this year, leaving many workers unemployed and even causing some disturbances.
Currently, the factory was in disarray, with a severe backlog of products.
For the enterprise, this was an unfortunate situation.
However, from another perspective, this might not necessarily be the case for Chen Jianghai.
Why pass up an opportunity?
Half an hour later, Chen Jianghai, carrying two packs of Da Qian Men cigarettes and riding a 28-inch bicycle, hurriedly arrived at the components factory in the north of the city.
As Chen Jianghai walked in, he raised his eyebrows slightly.
He saw several workers lazily sitting in a corner, enveloped in a haze of smoke, shouting and yelling.
My goodness, these guys were quite audacious.
Not only were they playing cards in broad daylight, but they were also daring enough to smoke in the warehouse!
"Cough cough, may I know who's in charge here?" Chen Jianghai cleared his throat and asked.
Hearing someone speak, the workers were momentarily startled.
However, upon seeing that he was a stranger and a young one at that, they relaxed.
"Who are you? Who sent you here?" One of them, after discarding a pair of sevens, took a deep drag from his cigarette and gruffly asked.
Chen Jianghai, who had lived two lives and was savvy about human nature, quickly pulled out the prepared Da Qian Men cigarettes. As he distributed them to the group, he said:
"My name is Chen Jianghai, and I repair electrical appliances. I have a favor to ask."
A favor unasked is a favor denied. Seeing the Da Qian Men cigarettes that Chen Jianghai offered, the man's face visibly softened.
A man in his thirties, slightly overweight, stood up, sniffed the cigarette, and then said, "Alright, what do you want?"
Chen Jianghai glanced at him, understanding that this man must be the one in charge here. He quickly stepped closer, stuffed the remaining cigarettes into the man's pocket, and said with a beaming face, "Brother, may I have a word with you?"
The man looked at Chen Jianghai, waved his hand at the remaining people, and said, "You guys keep playing."
"Brother Dong, be quick about it!" The others looked enviously at him and responded with laughter.
"Brother Dong, may I ask your surname?" Chen Jianghai moved to one side, took out a match, and lit the man's cigarette before asking.
Graciously accepting Chen Jianghai's courtesy, the man took a deep puff and said, "I am Xu Dong, and you?"
"My name is Chen Jianghai, and I'd like to buy some stuff from you."
Hearing this, Xu Dong immediately became alert. "What do you mean? What stuff do you want to buy from me?"
Chen Jianghai was not surprised by Xu Dong's reaction. Smuggling was rampant in the '90s, and Xu Dong probably thought along those lines.
"Brother Dong, I repair electrical appliances. As you know, with these appliances, there are all kinds of faulty parts, many of which are not available in the market," Chen Jianghai explained.
Hearing this, Xu Dong looked a bit relieved and interested, "Ah, I see, you're here to stock up, aren't you? What do you need?"
"I need the heating tubes your factory produces," Chen Jianghai got straight to the point.
"How many do you want?" Xu Dong followed up.
"Just one for now," Chen Jianghai smiled.
"One?" Xu Dong's face tightened, and he looked at Chen Jianghai skeptically.
Are you kidding me?
Chen Jianghai calmly responded, "Brother Dong, business always starts small. Besides, I am a repairman who just started; I'll need more once I'm established. And I have to see the quality of the goods first, right?"
'One day, I'll definitely take over this components factory,' Chen Jianghai thought to himself.
Xu Dong eyed him closely, as if assessing Chen Jianghai's true intentions.
Chen Jianghai muttered inwardly, "This guy won't make a move until he sees an opportunity."
"Brother Dong, here's the money."
Chen Jianghai pulled out a two-yuan bill from his pocket and placed it directly into Xu Dong's hand.
The retail price for a single thermal conduit was at most three yuan, but Chen Jianghai was willing to pay two yuan just to cultivate a good relationship with Xu Dong, aiming to conveniently source goods from him in the future.
At least for the moment, it was an opportunity to benefit.
Xu Dong glanced at the money and hesitated for a bit before saying, "Alright, wait here."
With that, Xu Dong walked away on his own.
After about five minutes, Xu Dong returned, tossing a slim, long conduit to Chen Jianghai.
Selling a thousand was business, and selling one was still business.
After all, who else would he do business with?
"Take it, go!"
"Thanks, Dong Brother!"
Chen Jianghai waved a brief goodbye and hurried off.
"Young man, did you get the part?"
Upon seeing Chen Jianghai return, Old Man Hu, who had been eagerly waiting, quickly stepped forward to ask.
"I got it!" Chen Jianghai nodded, lifting the thermal conduit he was holding to show Old Man Hu.
"Then hurry up and fix it!" Old Man Hu pointed at the refrigerator and urged.
Chen Jianghai waved his hand, calmly saying, "Old Man Hu, let's agree on the cost first, as per the rules!"
Old Man Hu glanced at Chen Jianghai and sneered, "We don't even know if you can fix it yet, talking about money now seems a bit premature, doesn't it?"
Chen Jianghai smiled slightly, "Old Man Hu, I'm not asking you to pay now, just agreeing on the price to avoid any haggling later. It's the rule in our repair industry."
"Young man is right, he's right," Old Jiang also nodded in agreement, giving Old Man Hu a meaningful glance.
After pondering for a moment, Old Man Hu finally said, "Alright, name your price."
"Fifty," Chen Jianghai didn't hesitate as he stretched out a palm.
Hearing the price, Old Man Hu's eyes widened instantly, "That expensive?!"
Old Jiang frowned in agreement, "Young man, this price is indeed a bit high."
Chen Jianghai calmly responded, "Gentlemen, as far as I know, there's nowhere in our county town that repairs refrigerators. If you send it to the city, you'd have to hire a vehicle, make two trips, spend more money, and waste time."
Hearing Chen Jianghai's reasoning, both men looked at each other.
Chen Jianghai seemed to make a lot of sense.
"Grandpa, the longer the seafood is left outside, the more likely it is to go bad. And that's also money!" Chen Jianghai immediately added fuel to the fire.
"Are you sure you can fix it?" Old Man Hu seemed a bit tempted and looked up to ask.
Chen Jianghai patted his chest, full of confidence, "As long as the cost is not a problem, I'll start working on it right now."
"Fine!" Old Man Hu gritted his teeth, "I'm telling you now, no pay if you can't fix it!"
Smiling, Chen Jianghai nodded and went over to the refrigerator.
Once he had the thermal conduit in hand, the repair process became much easier.
He removed the back cover of the refrigerator and took off the damaged thermal conduit.
As he disassembled the thermal conduit, a burnt smell wafted into the air.