Li Haochen was not a novice entering society, so naturally he wouldn't blindly rush into action fueled by passion alone. The matter of transplanting coconut groves was highly important, and it involved his own secrets, leaving no room for oversight. Therefore, a very thorough plan was necessary.
It was good to care for one's hometown, but it was utterly unwise to risk exposing his secrets for the sake of developing it.
The matter was too significant to sort out in a short time, so Li Haochen didn't dwell on it too much.
This trip back was estimated to take about a week. Since he needed a considerable amount of sea snails, Li Haochen gathered his tools and net and plunged into the sea.
These conch snails were easier to collect than periwinkles, water snails, or sea snails; they often clustered together, with dozens or even hundreds in a group. A single net could scoop up several kilograms.
Floating up and down, it took three to four hours to gather enough for a week. The more than twenty nets looked like small hills.
After calling Gu Xiaonian, Li Haochen entered the space again to gather mussels. This was much more convenient; in less than half an hour, he had collected nearly a thousand kilograms, piling up so much behind the sluice gate that there was no room to stand.
"Reverse be careful..."
The catchy jingle was clearly audible even across the beach. Li Haochen opened the sluice gate, and Gu Xiaonian came running.
"Holy cow, so much?" Gu Xiaonian asked, puzzled. "Brother Li, your Butterfly Bay isn't that big, how did you find so many snails?"
"How could that be? I have several brothers who work as divers. They explore dangerous places every day and bring me any goods they find. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to run this shop, hehe!"
Li Haochen wasn't surprised by Gu Xiaonian's question. Given the small size of Butterfly Bay, anyone would be suspicious if so many sea snails appeared daily.
Li Haochen recounted the excuse he had prepared, attributing it all to his fictitious good brothers.
"By the way, how was business today?"
"About the same as yesterday. Also, those two guys came back yesterday to badmouth the shop. Before we could even react, our regular customers shut them down. Our sea snails are still very well-received by customers."
"Oh, so that happened? Then next time they come to buy snails, give them a discount, hehe!"
Li Hao patted Gu Xiaonian on the shoulder and said with a serious expression, "In the future, don't act impulsively. No business is more important than you guys. Go buy some pepper spray or something to keep at the shop, and install a high-pressure water gun."
"Brother Li..."
Li Haochen's words touched Gu Xiaonian, who was deeply moved.
"Hurry back. Also, don't sell all these sea snails in one day. Just sell about the same amount as today each day."
There were too many sea snails. Even though the Shenpai electric tricycle could be overloaded, it couldn't carry them all at once. An hour later, the large batch of sea snails was finally delivered to the shop.
With people causing trouble for two consecutive days, Li Haochen had a guess: it had to be the Hong and Li families.
Li Haochen looked out at the vast, boundless sea, his gaze deepening. "Hmph, Hong and Li families, we'll see about this."
Since the feud had begun, and given that both families were meticulously trying to harm Murong Yanran's hotel, Li Haochen naturally wouldn't let them off the hook. However, as he was now, trying to contend with them would undoubtedly be like an egg hitting a rock.
But despite their massive scale, they weren't a monolithic entity. The Li family's primary industry, coconut planting, was a breakthrough point.
"It seems the transplanting of the coconut groves is inevitable."
"Gurgle gurgle~"
At this moment, a strong sense of hunger struck. Li Haochen quickened his pace towards home and smelled food as soon as he arrived.
"Dinner is ready, go wash your hands."
"Okay, where's Mom?"
"Aunt Lian said she had something to do and won't be back for dinner." Murong Yanran came out with bowls and chopsticks, a slight oily stain on her lips, indicating she had secretly eaten some cured sausage.
Dinner was simple: baked rice with preserved meat and sausage, a vegetable dish, and a slow-cooked dried vegetable soup.
Murong Yanran's cooking skills had improved greatly recently. She finally understood to soak the dried vegetables overnight before boiling the soup, unlike last time when she just rinsed them and threw them in, resulting in the dried vegetables being as tough as chewing grass roots.
"You should buy more preserved meat, sausage, and dried vegetables tomorrow; we're almost out."
"Uh... so soon?"
"They're delicious, of course, they're gone fast,嘻嘻!"
As Murong Yanran spoke, her chopsticks swiftly snatched the last piece of preserved meat from the plate, then playfully stuck out her tongue.
"Of course, they're delicious. All the ingredients are top-notch, the process is complex, and every step is meticulously crafted. These are exquisite products made with care."
"If they're so delicious, why not make and sell them? Those so-called old brands from supermarkets are much worse."
"We make them in the village and sell them to whom? Hehe!"
"To me,嘻嘻!"
Li Haochen was stunned, then suddenly realized, and asked with a hint of joy, "The hotel's demand shouldn't be that large, right?"
"You're so stupid. If the demand isn't large, can't you create demand? Just introduce preserved meat rice and slow-cooked dried vegetable soup. Do you think all my hotel's customers are rich people eating abalone, shark fin, and bird's nest every day? Most of them are ordinary working-class people. Ordinary home-style dishes make up the largest proportion.
"Moreover, I can designate a small area to set up a sales booth. Customers who have tried the taste will definitely buy some to take back."
Murong Yanran's words made Li Haochen ponder. It sounded simple, but when it came to food, there were many considerations, such as production factories, raw material sources, and employee health, and so on.
Although Murong Yanran's hotel was large, even if they introduced related dishes like preserved meat rice and dried vegetable soup, the daily demand wouldn't be very high. Investing heavily in a factory for such a small sales volume was clearly an overemphasis on the trivial and neglect of the essential.
Caring for one's hometown was a good thing, but one shouldn't do foolish things that lose money. A win-win situation for both parties was the path to long-term success.
What's more, his hometown was unlike Binhai; he had no connections there. Getting all the necessary documents and licenses would take at least half a month or more.
Li Haochen had money now, but money wasn't everything. Finding the right path made things smooth, but choosing the wrong one could lead to criticism or even a complete downfall.
"I need to think carefully about this matter; it involves too many things."
"Indeed, when it comes to food, quality control must be rigorous. Oh, by the way, I bought some health supplements. You should take them back for Uncle and the others tomorrow."
"It's not a whole truckload, is it?"
Recalling the large container of goods Murong Yanran bought last time, he felt apprehensive.
"No, just over ten gift boxes. They're all prepared for family."
"You're already planning so far ahead even before we're married... Ouch, ouch, ouch..."
"What, you want to disown me after getting what you wanted?"
"I haven't even eaten yet... Ouch!"