C7 Selling at Home

Why should he adhere to the market price for products from his own factory? Lee Zhi believed that with the world's sole Nebula I9 Intelligent Factory System, his products didn't need to be compared to anything else.

Dong Xiaorou didn't point out any flaws in Lee Zhi's reasoning. Instead, she inquired, "So, what price do you plan to set for the fish balls produced in your factory?"

After pondering for a moment, Lee Zhi replied, "The cost has already surpassed six dollars. In my opinion, our fish balls should be priced at no less than 60 dollars per gram."

"60?" Dong Xiaorou let out a wry chuckle and murmured, "Who in their right mind would buy them?"

Lee Zhi grinned and countered, "Well, that's the price our factory's fish balls must command."

"Each fish ball weighs 25 grams, and there are 20 in a gram. That's 60 dollars per gram, three dollars per fish ball. Are we talking retail or factory price here? If that's retail, what's the factory price? And if it's factory price, what's the retail mark-up? Have you considered any of this?" Dong Xiaorou asked, her tone even.

"I haven't," Lee Zhi admitted with a smile and a casual shrug. "But don't you agree that our fish balls taste fantastic? They're additive-free, purely natural fish meat. Selling them for just three dollars each almost feels like a loss."

Rolling her eyes, Dong Xiaorou retorted, "Why not try selling them for ten dollars each and see if there are any takers?" With that, she stood up and left the room.

In the factory's processing workshop, 200 kilograms of fresh fish were transformed into fish balls in just over two hours.

"The heat is unbearable, and without refrigeration, the fish balls will spoil quickly," Dong Xiaorou remarked with a frown.

The 200 kilograms of fresh fish yielded over a hundred kilograms of fish balls, which would spoil without proper storage in a freezer or refrigerator.

It was not yet noon, still early in the day.

Lee Zhi asked Dong Xiaorou to keep an eye on the factory while he took a portion of the fish balls and headed into the city.

He had two tasks for the day: first, to purchase a larger ice freezer for temporary storage of the fish balls, given the small factory's limited processing capacity and his lack of funds for a proper cold storage facility. The second task was to find a market for the factory's fish balls in the city.

With full production, the factory could churn out over a thousand kilograms of fish balls each day. But production was only worthwhile if the fish balls sold, turning them into profit.

Star Moon Bay Hotel!

A local five-star establishment in Sea City, the hotel was renowned not for its ambiance or service, but for its seafood. While not necessarily the best in Sea City, the seafood at Star Moon Bay Hotel was certainly top-tier.

Standing at the entrance of the Star Moon Bay International Hotel, Lee Zhi hesitated briefly before gripping the box tighter and striding inside.

He had dined here frequently in the past, so the Star Moon Bay Hotel was familiar territory. Owned by Sea City's Star Moon Group, the hotel was one of the city's elite establishments, backed by the prominent Zhao family, among Sea City's wealthiest.

The person in charge of Star Moon Bay Hotel was named Zhao Xueying, the third daughter of Zhao Sihai, the head of the Zhao family, and she was known as the 'Princess of Star Moon.'

Lee Zhi was not acquainted with Zhao Xueying, nor was she with him. However, Lee Zhi did know Zhao Xueying's niece, Zhao Mingyue—who happened to be his ex-girlfriend!

"Good day, sir, may I assist you with anything?" a server approached Lee Zhi with a warm smile.

Lee Zhi nodded. "Yes, could you please get the head chef to come out? I'd like to discuss something with him."

"The head chef?" The server paused, giving Lee Zhi a once-over before responding, "Sure, I'll check for you."

"Thanks!"

The head chef didn't make an appearance. At Star Moon Bay Hotel, the head chef's authority was second only to the general manager's. He might not have a say in the hotel's operations, but he ruled the kitchen with an iron fist.

Rumor had it that the head chef of Star Moon Bay International Hotel was a renowned culinary expert in the country, personally recruited by Zhao Sihai, the chairman of the Star Moon Group.

"Looking for the head chef?" A portly man emerged from the kitchen, squinting through small eyes. He was in his early thirties, but his sidelong glances and sour expression didn't make the best first impression.

Lee Zhi greeted him with a smile, "Yes, are you the head chef?"

"I'm the assistant head chef, Huang Youwei. What business do you have with our head chef?" Huang Youwei inquired, eyeing Lee Zhi.

Lee Zhi offered him a cigarette, but Huang Youwei declined, leaving Lee Zhi feeling a bit snubbed.

Undeterred, Lee Zhi pressed on, "Our factory has developed a special batch of fish balls, made from freshly caught fish and processed with unique techniques—no additives whatsoever..."

Huang Youwei cut him off with a dismissive wave, "Listen, we get a lot of vendors at Star Moon Bay Hotel, but you're the first to peddle semi-processed goods. Didn't you know we only use the most basic ingredients and steer clear of any pre-processed products?"

Lee Zhi chuckled awkwardly, rubbing his nose. That was news to him.

"Show me these fish balls of yours," demanded Huang Youwei.

"Right away!" Lee Zhi promptly opened the foam box he was carrying, revealing ice blocks for freshness and a plastic bag filled with fish balls.

Huang Youwei's brow creased in disapproval at the sight. 'This packaging thinks it can make it into Star Moon Bay Hotel?'

He plucked a fish ball from the box, sniffed it, and gave it a squeeze.

"How much per pound for these fish balls?" Huang Youwei asked, squinting.

"Not expensive at all—six hundred!"

Lee Zhi had meant to say sixty but reconsidered at the last second, upgrading his price to 'hundred' instead. After all, the clientele of Star Moon Bay Hotel were wealthy and distinguished; the difference between sixty and six hundred per pound was negligible to them. As long as the ingredients were of high quality, the hotel wouldn't balk at the cost. Lee Zhi recalled Zhao Mingyue mentioning that her aunt once splurged three million cash on a single chicken.

At that moment, Lee Zhi was pondering, "Three million for a chicken? What on earth did it eat to get so big?" With three million, you could buy more than just a chicken—you could probably purchase an entire poultry farm!

Lee Zhi had proactively approached the Star Moon Bay Hotel to pitch his product, holding onto a glimmer of hope. If they liked what they saw, the fish balls from his factory were sure to impress with their quality. Whether they'd catch the eye of the discerning buyer was another matter.

"Six hundred? That's a bit steep. Tell you what, leave me with two pounds to sample the flavor, and I'll give you a call later," Huang Youwei said, squinting his eyes as he tossed the fish balls back into Lee Zhi's box.

"Deal!" Lee Zhi replied with a grin. It was only two pounds of fish balls, costing a mere ten dollars. Not one to be tight-fisted, he left his number with Huang Youwei and set down the rest of the fish balls from the foam box, weighing about ten pounds.

"The kid's got some smooth moves!" Huang Youwei watched Lee Zhi walk away, squinting and muttering to himself. He estimated the box's weight—at least twelve pounds. At six hundred dollars per pound, that was over seven thousand dollars in total.

If Lee Zhi could hear the thoughts of Huang Youwei, also known as Fatty Huang, he'd be ecstatic. The cost for twelve pounds of fish balls was a trivial sixty to seventy dollars, an expense he could easily afford.