"Look, they give large bonuses to the staff regularly. No wonder that employee was all smiles," Jia Fuhai showed the information he had found to Zhen Linna, muttering to himself.
"No wonder the employees don't mind the real-time livestreaming. They're definitely paid well, and the boss must treat them decently.
Otherwise, this kind of setup would've been exposed with all kinds of scandals, and Xiangjin Shiji wouldn't have lasted for over a decade."
"But why hasn't their factory expanded?" Zhen Linna pressed on, keen to find the reason.
"Probably because it steps on too many toes. A few years ago, they tried expanding to other regions, but..." Jia Fuhai pointed to information he had found about Xiangjin Shiji's past attempts to grow.
However, the company had since retreated back to its original base in Hong Kong, showing no signs of further expansion.
Nobody knew the real reason behind Xiangjin Shiji's decisions, and online speculation ran wild.
"Maybe it's because their products are expensive? They seem to focus on high-end customers," Zhen Linna suggested after checking out the prices, which were indeed far from cheap.
Ring, ring, ring!
"Well, let's go talk to the owner later. Time to go pick up the cleaning crew," Jia Fuhai said, answering his phone and then quickly getting up.
He hired a crew of over a dozen people, planning to get the factory cleaned up in one go.
After a busy afternoon, they finally had the place sparkling clean.
The most time-consuming part had been dealing with the leftover inventory, but the rest of the cleaning had gone smoothly.
"Let's go clean ourselves up now," Jia Fuhai said, glancing at their clothes. He had originally planned to visit the neighboring coffee factory but decided they needed to freshen up first.
"Hey, Brother Hai, the owner of the coffee factory just arrived," Zhen Linna said, glancing at her phone.
The factory's website had photos of its key personnel, and she had immediately recognized the owner.
"Let's finish cleaning up first. Their factory is sterile," Jia Fuhai replied, taking Linna to a nearby temporary rental to buy new clothes and freshen up.
He also called home to check in. Apparently, no meal could be served without him, and they insisted on waiting until he got back to cook dinner.
"Hello, we're here to see your boss," Jia Fuhai said after cleaning up, arriving back at the coffee factory with Zhen Linna.
"This way, please. I'll take you to him," the receptionist greeted them with the same friendly smile as before.
"Thanks," Jia Fuhai and Zhen Linna followed her.
This boss is easy to meet, thought Jia Fuhai. Then again, why wouldn't he be? His business is completely open. He's not the type of guy hiding in the shadows.
The two followed the receptionist into a lounge area. The room wasn't very large, and several employees were chatting casually.
The receptionist went straight to a middle-aged man and said, "Boss, these two are here to see you."
"Okay, I'll take it from here," the boss said, standing up with a smile and extending his hand to Jia Fuhai.
"Hello, how can I help you?"
"Hello, Mr. Zhou. I'm Jia; just call me Xiao Jia. This is my wife, Zhen. We run the factory next door, Number Three, and we wanted to get to know you," Jia Fuhai said, shaking the man's hand and introducing himself.
"Oh, you're from the Number Three factory! Come on, have a seat," Mr. Zhou said, quickly inviting them to sit down.
"We'll be heading out now, boss," said a few employees who were getting ready to leave.
"Alright, take care," Mr. Zhou waved them off.
"Mr. Zhou, you seem to have great relationships with your employees," Jia Fuhai noted. He had seen how relaxed and playful the workers were around their boss, creating a great atmosphere.
"Oh, it's the employees who bring in the money. Would you prefer tea or coffee? Our coffee is pretty popular here in Hong Kong," Mr. Zhou offered, gesturing to the tea leaves and coffee on the table.
"You're too modest. Coffee, please. I'd love to try it," Jia Fuhai replied with a smile.
"I'll have coffee too," Zhen Linna chimed in.
"Alright, here you go." Mr. Zhou quickly brewed the coffee and handed it to them, pointing to the assortment of sweeteners and creamers on the table.
"Feel free to add whatever you like."
Jia Fuhai decided to try the coffee plain, wanting to taste the original flavor. Zhen Linna, a lover of sweet treats, added honey.
"So, what kind of business are you planning to start?" Mr. Zhou asked after taking a sip of his tea.
Jia Fuhai took a sip of his coffee and found it quite good—rich and flavorful. He raised his brows in appreciation and replied,
"The original flavor is excellent. We're planning to make bread and cakes, and we were hoping to learn a bit from your experience."
Surprised, Mr. Zhou hesitated before responding. "That's tough market. The big brands dominate, and there aren't many openings left. Have you done this before?"
"No, that's why we came to learn from you," Jia Fuhai said optimistically, feeling confident with his special advantage—his son's guidance. There was no way they could fail.
"Well, I'm not sure what to say. After all, coffee and baked goods are quite different industries," Mr. Zhou said, a little exasperated by how carefree and bold the young man seemed. Was he really diving into this without any experience? The food industry was not an easy one.
"Food is food. As long as it tastes good, that's all that matters, right?" Jia Fuhai replied, not entirely agreeing with Mr. Zhou's cautious approach.
Mr. Zhou gave a meaningful smile and said, "Food safety is the top priority."
Since they didn't know each other well yet, Mr. Zhou didn't say too much but offered a gentle reminder.
"I'm fully aware of that. What I wanted to learn from you is your real-time livestreaming experience," Jia Fuhai said.
"Are you serious?" Mr. Zhou was visibly surprised. Real-time livestreaming had been a desperate measure for him at the time, not because of any fear of scrutiny but to fend off certain troublemakers.
Going public with live footage had caused him to fall out with many of his competitors. He hadn't expected someone would actually want to follow in his footsteps.
"Of course. It seems like a natural trend for the future," Jia Fuhai said. He didn't want to be stuck physically overseeing the factory all the time—if everything could be monitored remotely, it would give him much more freedom.
"Well, it's doable. But be prepared for backlash from your competitors," Mr. Zhou chuckled. Does this guy know why my business hasn't grown much? Does he think I don't know how to expand it?
"Wait, why would that happen?" Zhen Linna asked with innocent curiosity. "Wouldn't livestreaming make things more transparent? Isn't that a good thing? Why would anyone protest?"
"Because they don't want to be scrutinized!" Jia Fuhai answered with a wry smile.
"Exactly. In a sea of dirty water, a clear stream sticks out and gets pushed aside," Mr. Zhou said with a sigh, his voice tinged with sadness.
Zhen Linna sensed that there was a lot of behind-the-scenes complexity here but decided to leave it for her husband to handle.
"But you're doing fine, Mr. Zhou. By livestreaming your process, no one can accuse you of cutting corners or hiding anything," Jia Fuhai said, thinking that full transparency would leave no weaknesses for others to exploit.
This young man is still too naive, Mr. Zhou thought. The factory might be untouchable, but individuals can still be targeted. All it takes is one small mistake, and dozens of news outlets will be ready to pounce.
When you can't beat the factory, you take down the person.
Mr. Zhou wasn't sure if Jia Fuhai would be able to grow his business. If it stayed small, people might just see it as a joke. But if it grew large enough to threaten the big players, that's when they'd strike.
Still, Mr. Zhou explained the key points of livestreaming and shared some practical advice, like keeping personal phones separate from those used in the factory.
He appreciated seeing a young entrepreneur willing to take such an unusual approach. After all, only a handful of food factories worldwide were willing to operate under such open scrutiny.
Mr. Zhou ended up sharing even more tips than usual, helping guide Jia Fuhai on the potential pitfalls of running a transparent operation.