Twenty years of cold chain

Chapter 18 All I Need Now is a Car

Hu Shutong boarded the early bus. Panzhu City is more than a thousand miles away from Mingyuan City, and the journey will take six or seven hours.

Hu Shutong had a general understanding of Panzhu City. It was a major fishing city with dozens of fishing villages scattered along the coast. In recent years, the fishing industry in Panzhu City had been developing well year after year. Hu Shutong had seen related reports on television and had an impression of the entire distribution model.

Several fishing households form a fishing team to sell their catch to a transfer center. The person running the transfer center has a group of customers outside the city and even outside the province. The transfer center basically does not transport goods; instead, these market-oriented customers send large-capacity vehicles to pick them up. Although transportation takes away a lot of the transfer center's profits, the price range for seafood is large, so all parties can make a profit.

In a parking lot at a rest area, Hu Shutong witnessed a disturbing scene: five identical refrigerated trucks were parked haphazardly, and a dozen people surrounded the truck drivers, leading to a scuffle after a few words.

These refrigerated trucks bore the large logo of "Bingneng Storage & Transportation Group." Taking advantage of a passenger rest, Hu Shutong couldn't help but move forward a few steps, as this brand of refrigerated trucks was also a product that Tianheng had purchased years ago. A little closer, he also noticed the certified Baileng Group patent logo on the corners of the trucks. This must be one of Bingneng Group's newer refrigerated trucks, indicating a collaboration with Baileng Group, which mainly produces refrigeration equipment.

Judging from the situation, the people around were clearly locals from Panzhu. The refrigerated truck drivers didn't dare to argue and kept explaining themselves as they were pushed back. The other party didn't seem to be letting it go, arrogantly pointing in the direction they came from, and muttering, "Don't let me see you again."

Before long, the drivers turned around and drove away from Panzhu City.

As Hu Shutong boarded the bus again, his heart began to race. He hoped that things were not as he thought.

After arriving in Panzhu City, Hu Shutong walked along the coastal area and visited several transfer centers, but he did not see a single fully equipped refrigerated truck.

The trucks loading cargo here are all kinds of semi-trailer containers. Some of them are beyond Hu Shutong's knowledge of second-hand containers. Some of the trailers are more than 25 meters long, and the height and width between the trailers are completely inconsistent.

So-called second-hand shipping containers are actually abandoned shipping containers, sometimes referred to as "foreign garbage." Given the location of Panzhu City, there are a lot of such items. There are specialized companies assembling second-hand shipping container semi-trailers within the city, and there are more than just a few. They not only firmly occupy the local market but also sell a large number of them to other places.

As evening approached, Hu Shutong arrived at a place called "Shuangliujiao," where things were unusually busy. Fish were jumping in the nets, and the smaller ones were left on the ground, quickly trampled until blood flowed freely. Besides being busy, the people also seemed very anxious.

According to the weather forecast, a typhoon is coming.

Before long, the warehouse entrance of the transfer center was crowded with people, each dragging a large net of fish, filled with indignation. "You think you can just stop accepting them like that? The fish are already in the nets, we've already spent our time and money! What? You dare ask us to release them back?"

A worker at the storage facility bowed and scraped, "Everyone! The storage facility is full! We really can't hold any more! We need to move some out before we can collect the fish! Please understand!"

"Do you think we don't know how big your warehouse is? Even if it can't hold everything, it can still squeeze in this little bit! We signed a contract with your transit station! Get your boss, Mr. Lin, out here to talk!"

Just then, a shirtless man emerged from the warehouse. He appeared to be in his thirties, dark-skinned and muscular, the setting sun casting a glossy sheen on his arms, and a jade Guanyin pendant the size of a thumb stood out prominently. He was practically roaring as he spoke on the phone, "Don't explain to me! How am I supposed to explain?! The car! The car! The car! I only want the car now! If you don't see the car, you'll pay me with your head!"

The call had barely ended when it resumed immediately. In an instant, the tone shifted to one of pleading, "Mr. Lu! Your car can't get here, but I've already received the goods! You're killing me! How about you offer me a price..." Before she could finish, the other end hung up.

At this moment, someone stepped forward and said, "Brother Xiang! No matter what, you can't cheat your own family! Your aunts' family is in big trouble today! How are you going to explain to the old man if you don't accept their money!"

These words only fueled the anger of the crowd. "Lin Xiang, you either take them all today, or you don't take a single fish!"

In an instant, Lin Xiang's eyes widened like copper bells, his cheeks clenched like weights, and he grabbed the platform scale from the ground and threw it at the crowd, shouting, "The fish are practically overflowing from the reservoir! How am I supposed to collect them! I'll risk my life to collect them!"

People were completely unfazed. "We'll take as much as you have! What did you say back then! What does it matter to us if you can't sell it!"

"Exactly! You lost money and suffered losses, why should we all share the blame? You made a fortune last year, why didn't you share some with us!"

Lin Xiang clenched his fist and then quickly relaxed it. His face alternated between a furious outburst and a calming expression. He slowly pointed to the warehouse behind him, "Folks, it's been almost ten days since we shipped anything. I've stockpiled over a hundred tons here, and I've already received an advance of over two hundred thousand! Please give Xiangzi a break, don't take advantage of this critical moment to destroy him!"

Lin Xiang softened his stance, and the people chimed in, "Boss Lin, we all need to make a living too. Our little bit is nothing to you. Please accept it today, and we'll put it back into the warehouse later when it's transferred out, okay?"

"Brother Xiang, just agree already. If this continues, our relatives will be coming soon."

The scene calmed down, with only the distant roar of the waves. Lin Xiang coughed, then slowly walked towards the scale he had just thrown away, picked up the weights from the ground one by one, and turned to look at the workers, "Receive the goods."

"Boss..."

"Received!"

Hu Shutong watched this scene from a distance. Ten days without being able to ship goods was definitely not a problem that could be solved by three or five refrigerated trucks, but it was very likely that the problem was caused by three or five refrigerated trucks.

Elsewhere, everything was operating normally, but in Shuangliujiao, cries of sorrow filled the air. Simply put, he was isolated because he had violated a taboo in the area. The transshipment center was extremely hostile to customers using refrigerated trucks for transport; seafood customers who wanted to buy fish from Panzhu had to buy trucks from Panzhu. This was a mutually beneficial chain, and on a massive scale.

Some things can't be started. This "alliance" can easily deal with a troublemaker. Not only can it prevent refrigerated trucks from coming, but it can also make semi-trailer trucks sit back and watch, as a warning to others.

Having just finished receiving this shipment, the roaring sound of the sea was terrifying. They hastily packed up and hurriedly returned home. As night fell, the wind shook the heavens and the earth, the roar like bullets, and the surging sea—

Bring it ashore!

"A typhoon is coming! A typhoon is coming!"

"Where's the car! Where's the car!"

Lin Xiang was still on the phone in the wind and rain.

……