Chapter 13: Meticulous Calculations

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Inside the food factory on Cheung Sha Wan Road, Chen Bingwen’s fingers tapped lightly against the stainless steel steaming pot. The annual rent of thirty thousand Hong Kong dollars was indeed higher than expected. However, the condition of the factory’s environment and equipment exceeded his imagination. Chen Bingwen quickly ran the numbers in his mind. With an eighty-thousand-dollar bank loan, bidding for all four cooked food stalls at the Victoria Park Lunar New Year Fair would require at least fifty thousand reserved. That left thirty thousand to cover raw materials, labor, and stall setup costs for the fair. Yet, the factory before him brought him great satisfaction; it would be a pity not to rent it.

“Brother Qiang, could you discuss with your boss about paying the rent monthly?” Chen Bingwen asked.

“Well… I’ll have to ask him. Feel free to look around; I’ll make a call,” Zhong Qiang replied, somewhat hesitant. It was better to ask the boss directly about the rent. After speaking, Zhong Qiang turned and left, leaving Chen Bingwen alone.

Watching Zhong Qiang’s hurried departure, Chen Bingwen didn’t wait idly. Instead, he began mentally arranging the equipment layout according to the dessert production process. Scaling up from a home workshop to a factory demanded a well-organized production flow; otherwise, efficiency would suffer and product quality could falter. Chen Bingwen was well aware of this, having toured many modern food factories and understood the importance of assembly line design.

Soon, Zhong Qiang’s voice called from the doorway, “Ah Wen, the boss says monthly payments are okay, but with one month’s deposit upfront.”

One month’s deposit meant Chen Bingwen needed to pay only five thousand Hong Kong dollars to secure the factory for a month’s use. This eased his financial burden considerably.

Chen Bingwen nodded. “Thanks, Brother Qiang. Please notify your boss to come sign the contract. I accept these terms.” Although the loan hadn’t arrived yet, he could manage five thousand now. Taking over the factory early meant he could begin equipment testing and prepare for production as soon as possible.

“Brother Qiang, since you worked here before, would you be interested in coming back? The salary’s a thousand a month, still in charge of equipment maintenance,” Chen Bingwen invited, eyes shining. He had learned during their chat that Zhong Qiang’s previous role was maintaining the equipment. Now that Chen Bingwen had rented the factory, he needed someone familiar to keep the machines running.

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Rather than hiring someone new, it made sense to find someone who already knew the setup.

“I’d be very happy to. Thank you, Ah Wen… uh, Boss Wen,” Zhong Qiang quickly agreed, switching his address from Ah Wen to Boss Wen.

Once the boss arrived and the lease was signed, Chen Bingwen would officially hold the factory’s operating rights.

Back at the dessert shop, when Chen Guofu and Wang Qiaozhen heard the factory was secured, they were naturally thrilled. Chen Guofu flipped the lease contract over and over, unable to get enough of it. Wang Qiaozhen kept murmuring, “My Ah Wen has really made it… renting a factory at eighteen…”

Though the money came from a loan, the sudden prosperity left them overwhelmed with emotion.

Seeing this, Chen Bingwen took his parents to visit No. 38 Cheung Sha Wan Road to see the factory in person, calming their excitement.

The next day, at the crack of dawn, Chen Bingwen stood outside the factory at No. 38 Cheung Sha Wan Road. He wanted to quickly fine-tune the equipment and put the factory into operation as soon as possible.

“Brother Wen, you’re up early,” Gao Zhenhai’s voice came from behind.

Chen Bingwen turned to see Gao Zhenhai riding a modified tricycle, its cargo bed piled with tools and raw materials moved from the dessert shop.

“Ah Hai, perfect timing,” Chen Bingwen gestured, “Today, we’re transforming this place into a dessert production workshop.”

Together, they unloaded the items from the tricycle. Chen Bingwen pulled out a hand-drawn floor plan—his design from the previous night.

“The steaming area goes here, raw materials should be stored near the water source…” Chen Bingwen walked the factory floor, marking spots with chalk.

Gao Zhenhai scratched his head, watching the different zones drawn on the ground. “Brother Wen, we’re just making dessert syrup. Do we really need to be this meticulous?”

Chen Bingwen stopped and looked seriously at Gao Zhenhai. “Ah Hai, back when we were a small workshop, we could be casual. But now it’s different.”

He gestured at the spacious factory. “With this place, our daily output can be more than ten times what it was before.”

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“If we don’t establish standard procedures, quality won’t be guaranteed.”

Gao Zhenhai nodded, half understanding. Chen Bingwen knew it would take time for his childhood friend from Sham Shui Po to grasp modern production management.

With his parents running the shop, Chen Bingwen didn’t need to worry there. He planned to have Gao Zhenhai manage the factory, so he needed to bring him up to speed on the importance of modern management quickly.

“Come on, let’s start with cleaning,” Chen Bingwen picked up a mop. “Hygiene is the most important thing in a food factory.”

Following Chen Bingwen’s example, Gao Zhenhai didn’t hesitate and started cleaning alongside him.

Not long after they began, Zhong Qiang arrived, accompanied by two former colleagues from the factory. The day before, Chen Bingwen had asked him to introduce some skilled workers.

Zhong Qiang had found his old coworkers overnight and asked if they were interested in working at the factory. Both Ah Chang and Ah Bing hadn’t yet found jobs and came with Zhong Qiang early that morning.

“Boss Wen, these are Ah Chang and Ah Bing—experienced hands,” Zhong Qiang introduced. “I heard you’re hiring; they want to give it a try.”

Chen Bingwen studied the two honest-looking middle-aged men and nodded. “One-week probation. If all goes well, the salary is eight hundred a month, with two meals included. Interested?”

“Yes! Yes!” Ah Chang and Ah Bing eagerly agreed.

With new help, Chen Bingwen had Zhong Qiang lead Ah Chang and Ah Bing to clean and test equipment while he took Gao Zhenhai to update the food hygiene license.

The original license was for producing cured ducks. Since they now planned to produce dessert syrup, they had to apply for a modification at the Department of Health.

In front of the gray Department of Health building, Gao Zhenhai swallowed nervously, fingers clutching the edges of the file folder.

“Brother Wen, I… I’m a bit nervous…” Gao Zhenhai’s voice trembled. “I heard the health inspectors are toughest on small vendors…”

“Remember, we’re a legitimate food factory, not a street stall,” Chen Bingwen said firmly, patting Gao Zhenhai’s shoulder. “Stand tall.”