Chapter 129: Heart Beyond Heaven and Earth, Joy Found Within a Single Cup

Guizhou, hit by a wave of intense heat.

"It’s really sweltering today!" Li Changfu twisted his sleeves, sweat dripping down incessantly.

For this long-distance trip, Stone had decided to bring along the brothers Cheng Yuan and Cheng Hao, plus the "hulking giant" Li Changfu. While the Cheng brothers were formidable fighters, they didn't look particularly intimidating and lacked a deterrent presence for strangers. Li Changfu, however, was a different story—a total muscle-bound man with a fierce look on his face. He was the kind of guy who could make a child cry just by looking at them.

"Brother Kun, look over there," Cheng Hao said, his eyes sharp as he pointed toward a pickup sign not far away.

"Heh, finally, we don't have to keep searching," Lu Kun laughed heartily. He had previously been in contact with the Maotai distillery, and they had arranged for someone to meet them.

***

Maotai liquor comes in two trademarks: "Five-Star" and "Feitian" (Flying Fairy). The Five-Star label has always been for domestic sales, while the Feitian label is specifically for export. Many people believe that the quality of Feitian Maotai is superior to that of the Five-Star version, but that is not the case. There is no difference in quality between the two.

In the packaging workshop, the same batch of liquor is often blended, and then in the morning, they package the "Five-Star" labels, while in the afternoon, they switch to "Feitian," or different teams package the two simultaneously. Despite the identical quality, Feitian Maotai is far more popular in the domestic market.

This is merely the subconscious of some domestic consumers at play. In this era, a trend of consumer consciousness has formed: the belief that products destined for export must be of higher quality than those sold domestically. This mindset is quite prevalent right now. Even decades later, people would still be making headlines for traveling to Japan to buy up domestic-made toilet seats or flocking to the United States to purchase clothes manufactured back home.

***

Outside the gate of the Maotai distillery.

"Brother Ji, I heard you were recently promoted. Congratulations!" Lu Kun stepped forward with a smile.

"Hi! Life is full of ups and downs. I’m the type who has to be pulled along, but I’ve ended up circling back to take charge of the Maotai distillery again." Ji Keliang’s eyes sparkled as he laughed.

Ji Keliang had served as the director of the distillery years ago, but due to excessive interference and constraints, he had resolutely stepped down. He was not a native of Guizhou, but hailed from Nantong, a thousand miles away.

"Brother Lu, let's go inside to talk; it’s too hot out here," Ji Keliang said, patting Lu Kun on the shoulder.

"Right," Lu Kun replied with a smile.

As they walked into the factory, Lu Kun was truly taken aback. It wasn't that he was amazed by advanced equipment; it was that the place was so damn dilapidated! Aside from the large land area, it was barely better than the small hardware factory Lu Kun had worked in during his previous life. It looked like a shady, back-alley workshop.

"Brother Ji, this is..." Lu Kun swallowed, struggling to find the words.

"Hahaha, forgive the poor state of things, Brother Lu." Ji Keliang didn't seem embarrassed or inclined to hide anything, saying candidly, "Don't look at our fame and our brand; just look at our production environment and equipment. Does this look like a renowned liquor conglomerate to you?"

Ji Keliang seemed like the type to strike up an immediate rapport, and he spent the entire walk venting his frustrations to Lu Kun. Guizhou was a place defined by the saying: "Not three feet of flat land, not three days of clear sky, and not three cents of silver to a person." The transportation infrastructure couldn't even be described as poor—it was truly abysmal.

Lu Kun followed Ji Keliang into his office and saw a plaque hanging on the wall with the words "Be diligent in action, cautious in speech." Beside it were photos of Ji Keliang working alongside his fellow laborers—pouring ingredients, steaming, preparing the koji, and managing the fermentation process.

"Brother Lu, take a seat. Try our newly blended Maotai," Ji Keliang said, taking a bottle from his desk cabinet and pouring a small cup for Lu Kun with his chin held slightly high.

Lu Kun took a sip and smacked his lips. It was decent, but compared to the authentic Maotai of his future memories, it still lacked a certain something.

"How is it?" Ji Keliang watched him with expectant eyes.

Lu Kun hesitated for a moment before deciding to be honest: "It's a bit spicy, but not overly so. The aroma is quite rich, and after swallowing, it feels like a warm current flowing down like a thread. To put it simply: it’s delicious."

"That’s good, that’s good! I’ll send you a few cases of the Maotai I’ve been cellaring for years later. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied, haha."

Ji Keliang was a connoisseur of alcohol. When he first arrived at Maotai, he couldn't even drink, but in order to improve the spirit, he trained himself to have an almost invincible tolerance. The legendary figure of the Chinese liquor industry, Mr. Qin Hanzhang, once said, "Ji Keliang is an all-around talent." The frontline workers would say, "He has worked every part of the production process with us; the old man knows everything. You can't fool him."

Ji Keliang was most famous for his aquiline nose. Lu Kun had heard of it before. Once, a prankster poured seven different types of white spirits into glasses for him to identify. He simply swirled each glass, took a sniff, and a tiny sip, and he was able to name each spirit, its origin, and its ingredients.

"Brother Ji, you remind me of someone," Lu Kun said, wiping the corner of his mouth.

"Oh? Who?" Ji Keliang asked curiously.

"Your fellow townsman, the master calligrapher and painter, Fan Zeng!" Lu Kun laughed.

"Oh?" Ji Keliang raised an eyebrow, puzzled.

"The heart hangs beyond the heavens, the joy lies within the cup," Lu Kun noted.

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. I’m just a common man," Ji Keliang said, waving his hands hurriedly.

"Why wouldn't you dare? In the entire Chinese liquor industry, who doesn't respect you?" Lu Kun poured him a glass and handed it over.

"Sigh..." Ji Keliang downed the drink in one go. His expression turned weary, his lips curled, and he said bitterly, "If I really could, I’d want to just quit and go back to Nantong."

"Oh?" Lu Kun was surprised. Logically, as the man now holding the reins of the Maotai distillery, he shouldn't be feeling this way, even if he wasn't exactly riding high on success.

"Brother Lu, you’re a businessman, so let me put it to you this way," Ji Keliang leaned in and lowered his voice. "I’ve only been director for a few months, and provincial leaders have already visited several times. They start by telling me how hard I’ve worked and how I’ve been wronged... and then?"

"Is someone trying to get their hands in the till?" Lu Kun asked, his expression tightening.

"Not exactly," Ji Keliang sighed, his expression helpless. "In this part of Guizhou, there are no real enterprises, and we can't collect much in commercial tax. As for agricultural tax, don't even mention it—the farmers can barely feed themselves. With no funding from the central government, all the provincial departments are struggling to make ends meet. The leaders of these departments come to inspect us every few days, urging us to increase production and boost performance to help the province's tax revenue... They don't stop to think that the craftsmanship of Maotai is so complex that we can't just ramp it up whenever we want. They’re driving me crazy..."