C4 Buying Raw Materials

The ringtone jolted Lee Zhi awake from his slumber.

"Got it, I'm on my way!" he said, hanging up and rolling out of bed. With no time for morning ablutions, he snatched his jacket and hurried out the door.

"Zhi, I made breakfast. Join me?" Aunt Wang, his landlord, called out as he was leaving.

Lee Zhi offered a grateful smile and shook his head. "Thanks, Aunt Wang, but the equipment I ordered for the factory just arrived. I've got to get over there now."

"Well, don't let me keep you. This sounds important—go on!" she urged.

Arriving at the factory, Lee Zhi found Dong Xiaorou already there, keys in hand, but clueless about where to store the equipment. It was clear Lee Zhi needed to handle this himself.

"Put this one over here," he directed.

"Careful with that!"

The delivery included six machines, none too large, and once the driver had offloaded them, he was off.

Dong Xiaorou eyed the new arrivals. "What's the plan for these machines?"

"Fish balls!" Lee Zhi replied with a chuckle.

He had it all figured out when he made the purchase. These machines were selected to meet the minimum requirements of his envisioned Nebula I9 Intelligent Factory System. His next step was to assemble them and start churning out fish balls.

Dong Xiaorou held her tongue. As the boss, Lee Zhi's word was law, but privately, she wasn't sold on the fish ball venture.

She knew the snack was commonplace, with fish balls going for around ten dollars a catty in the market—hardly a lucrative price point.

Lee Zhi had sunk nearly 100,000 dollars into the factory space and this equipment. He'd need to sell an ocean of fish balls to recoup the investment.

Lee Zhi toiled alone in the factory all day, only pausing to eat the lunch Dong Xiaorou had brought in a lunchbox. The work was so engrossing he barely noticed his hunger.

He was determined to showcase his capabilities.

His mind was a repository of ideas that no one else could execute.

Finally, with everything set up, Lee Zhi collapsed on the floor, too exhausted to move.

"All done?" Dong Xiaorou surveyed the six machines, which looked unchanged despite Lee Zhi's efforts. He had connected them with a tangle of wires, resistors, circuit boards, and transformers, all culminating in a USB data cable linked to an old laptop.

Could this haphazard setup really be managed by a laptop?

"Yes!" Lee Zhi confirmed with a weary grin, tossing his tools aside and lying flat on the floor. This was the most rudimentary version of his Nebula I9 Intelligent Factory System—a far cry from even an entry-level setup.

Lacking funds for anything better, Lee Zhi had made do with what he could afford.

Dong Xiaorou watched him, her brow furrowed in concern. She approached and tugged at him. "Get up, why are you lying on the cold floor?"

Lee Zhi was hoisted to his feet, surprised by Dong Xiaorou's strength.

"It's after ten. Why haven't you gone home?" he asked, checking the time on his phone—it was nearing 10:30.

Releasing her grip, Dong Xiaorou replied evenly, "I'm heading out now."

Watching Dong Xiaorou stride away, Lee Zhi shook his head in confusion. Had he said something wrong? It wasn't that he wanted her to leave; in fact, he was concerned. It was getting late, and Dong Xiaorou still hadn't gone home—weren't her family members worried about her?

That night, Lee Zhi didn't return to Aunt Wang's farmhouse. The adjacent room had a bed with a mattress but no blanket. Thankfully, the weather had warmed up. He had just finished setting up the new machines himself. With no one else in the factory, Lee Zhi felt uneasy leaving it unattended.

When he awoke the next morning, the daylight was streaming in. A blanket with a light, pleasant scent was draped over him—it had to be Dong Xiaorou's doing; no one else would come to the factory.

Lee Zhi rose and found Dong Xiaorou tidying up. The place was spotless, yet she busied herself with cleaning. Observing her from the side, Lee Zhi couldn't help but admire her figure. To him, she was the epitome of perfection.

Dong Xiaorou paused and looked up with a furrowed brow. "The machine's been purchased. When do we start production?"

Running the factory meant paying for water, electricity, rent, and wages. Every day of delay meant more money spent, increasing his losses.

Lee Zhi replied with a grin, "We'll start today! But first, let's have breakfast. Once we're done, we'll head to the village to gather our raw materials."

"What kind of raw materials are we looking for?" Dong Xiaorou inquired.

"The main ingredient for fish balls is, of course, fish," Lee Zhi explained.

Dong Xiaorou gave him a quizzical look. "Fish balls are made out of fish?"

Surprised by her question, Lee Zhi responded, "Aren't they?"

"You could always look it up on your phone," Dong Xiaorou suggested, her tone a mix of frustration and disbelief. How could her boss not know how to make fish balls?

Lee Zhi might not have known other recipes, but his Nebula I9 Intelligent Factory System required fish meat for production. Since fish was the primary ingredient, he didn't see the need to add anything else.

Ignoring Dong Xiaorou's skeptical look, they finished breakfast and set off for the village. The fishing village bustled with boats and fishermen, and at Fish Head Island Village, there was a dock where local and neighboring fishermen docked and traded. Each morning, boats returned with their catch, and traders from nearby villages flocked to buy seafood, creating a bustling marketplace.

Even city dwellers would drive down for the fresh, affordable seafood.

"What kind of fish should we buy?" Dong Xiaorou asked, well-acquainted with the dockside market.

Different fish meant different prices, and the seafood costs here were subject to change.

Scratching his head, Lee Zhi admitted that the Nebula I9 system hadn't specified a type of fish—just that fish meat was needed, suggesting any fish, large or small, would suffice.

"Any fish will do, as long as the price is right—the lower, the better!" he declared.

"How much do we need?" Dong Xiaorou pressed, still unclear on Lee Zhi's plan for the fish balls.

"Let's start with two hundred pounds," Lee Zhi decided. Owning a processing plant, he wanted to begin with a manageable amount to get the hang of the production process.

Dong Xiaorou didn't need Lee Zhi's assistance; she made her way to the dock and efficiently secured two hundred pounds of fresh fish.

"Five hundred dollars!" Lee Zhi exclaimed, quickly pulling out the cash from his pocket and passing it to her.