PCJ – Chapter 351 Set a Small Goal First

Not long after, Ji Jiaxin surprisingly came back on her own and even apologized to Zhang Jiaohua. “I’m sorry, my mom said that kids should not force others to accommodate their own wishes.”

Zhang Jiaohua looked at Ji Jiaxin, who had returned, and found it strange. City kids are really different from village kids. If his cousin Run Tian got upset, she wouldn’t talk to him until the next day. But this Ji Jiaxin changed her mind so quickly?

“Brother Jiaohua, will you forgive me?” Ji Jiaxin’s eyes twinkled, filled with tears as if they could overflow at any moment.

Zhang Jiaohua could only nod. “Alright.”

Ji Jiaxin immediately smiled sweetly, “I knew Brother Jiaohua would forgive me.”

Ji Jiaxin kept talking nonstop, and Zhang Jiaohua couldn’t get a word in, so he just quietly listened, though his thoughts had wandered far away.

“It’s really nerve-wracking flying for the first time. If you get nervous later, just hold my hand, and you won’t be scared. I was so nervous my first time flying, afraid the plane would fall from the sky. But when my mom held my hand and told me to relax, I wasn’t scared at all.” Ji Jiaxin liked to take charge and make everything about herself.

“I’m not going to be scared,” Zhang Jiaohua didn’t think flying would make him nervous at all.

When they boarded the plane, Zhang Jiaohua didn’t feel nervous, but instead excited. He was finally going to fly!

Zhao Jinyuan thoughtfully swapped his window seat with Zhang Jiaohua, who stared out the window. Suddenly, the plane began to move, and everything outside quickly receded. Then, the plane shot upward, and Zhang Jiaohua felt a powerful force pulling him back into his seat.

Zhang Jiaohua was reminded of the time he broke through at Heiyan Ridge. The feeling was very similar to fly, you first had to overcome this resistance. Once the plane was in the air, his whole body relaxed. Others might feel uncomfortable, but Zhang Jiaohua felt fine.

“Jiaohua, are you okay?” Zhao Jinyuan was still worried that Zhang Jiaohua might feel unwell on his first flight.

“I’m fine, it feels great,” Zhang Jiaohua said calmly, not showing any signs of discomfort.

Zhao Jinyuan gave a wry smile, remembering how nervous he’d been his first time flying. Zhang Jiaohua, in contrast, seemed completely at ease.

Shen Jinmao also smiled, “My first flight was a mess, Jiaohua is doing way better than I did.”

Zhao Jinyuan nodded, “Well, Jiaohua’s not ordinary, after all.”

Zhang Jiaohua noticed where Ji Jiaxin and Shen Bing were seated. Shortly after takeoff, Ji Jiaxin had already fallen asleep, as if this wasn’t her first time flying.

“Jiaohua, if you’re tired, you should take a nap. It’s a long flight,” Shen Jinmao suggested, noticing how Zhang Jiaohua’s eyes kept darting around excitedly.

“I’m not tired at all,” Zhang Jiaohua was far too excited to be sleepy. This experience of looking down on the world from the window was completely new to him.

After flying for over ten hours, Zhang Jiaohua still didn’t feel tired, even though it was already dark. When the plane finally landed, he was as energetic as ever.

“You really can’t compare yourself to a kid,” Zhao Jinyuan remarked. “Jiaohua has been awake for over ten hours, and he’s still bouncing around like it’s nothing.”

Shen Jinmao laughed, “That’s Jiaohua for you. Look at that little girl, she’s been asleep for ages.”

Zhang Jiaohua glanced over at Ji Jiaxin, who was still sleeping in her mother’s arms, even as the plane was preparing to land.

“Jiajia, wake up, we’ve arrived in London. Daddy is coming to pick us up,” Shen Bing gently shook the sleeping Ji Jiaxin, but she only squirmed and didn’t open her eyes.

“Just a little longer, just a bit more,” Ji Jiaxin mumbled sleepily.

Shen Bing could only sigh and carry Ji Jiaxin, while also struggling to gather their belongings. Zhao Jinyuan stepped in to help. “Let me carry those for you.”

“Thank you so much. I’m sorry, Jiajia is such a heavy sleeper,” Shen Bing said gratefully.

“Don’t mention it, we’re traveling light anyway,” Zhao Jinyuan smiled.

Shen Bing glanced back at Zhang Jiaohua, “Wow, this little guy didn’t even sleep at all.”

“It’s his first time abroad, so he’s too excited to sleep,” Zhao Jinyuan laughed.

Zhang Jiaohua stayed by the window for a while, gazing outside. The airport looked flat and far from the bustling city, not much different from airports back home. There wasn’t any of the foreign charm he had hoped to see.

“Jiaohua, time to go,” Shen Jinmao called.

Zhang Jiaohua quickly grabbed his things and followed the group.

The delegation was well-organized, and all the attendees simply had to follow along. Everything else was taken care of. While it might seem like they were going abroad, aside from the fact that everyone around them now had blonde hair and blue eyes, it wasn’t much different from traveling domestically.

At the exit, someone was already waiting for them — the father of the little girl, Ji Jianming, was there to greet them.

When Ji Jianming finished coordinating with his colleagues to receive the delegation, he quickly turned his attention to his wife and daughter.

“Is Jiajia asleep?” Ji Jianming asked as he took his daughter from his wife’s arms.

“She fell asleep as soon as we got on the plane. When we landed, I had to carry her and all the luggage. Luckily, Zhao and his team helped out, or I might have dropped your precious daughter!” Shen Bing jokingly complained.

“You’ve worked hard, dear. I’ll treat you well later,” Ji Jianming reassured his wife before thanking Zhao Jinyuan and the others. “Director Zhao, thank you so much. I’ll make sure to properly thank you all at the consulate.”

“Please, no need to be so formal. It was no trouble at all,” Zhao Jinyuan responded with a smile.

“Is that your child?” Ji Jianming asked, noticing Zhang Jiaohua.

Shen Bing quickly pulled her husband aside. “No, that boy is actually the young boss of their factory.”

Zhao Jinyuan chuckled, “I wish I had such a capable son, but I don’t have the luck. We’re a private company.”

“A private company invited to this exhibition? That’s impressive,” Ji Jianming was surprised. He hadn’t expected Zhao Jinyuan to be the director of a private company, though he could tell the man was no ordinary factory boss.

Bamboo tube black tea had already gained some influence in their province, especially in high-level circles. However, outside the province, it was relatively unknown. Shen Bing herself had never heard of it before. So, while she found Zhang Jiaohua’s tea intriguing, she wasn’t too surprised since she didn’t know much about the tea industry.

Tea, despite its large export volume, was in a somewhat awkward position. Famous teas like Longjing and Tieguanyin had enormous reputations, but these were just categories of tea, not well-established brand names. With thousands of tea factories in the country, annual exports from any one factory rarely exceeded 20 tons, meaning most of the export market was low-end.

High-quality tea was reserved for domestic consumption, a common practice within the industry. It was a frustrating reality because this high-grade tea couldn’t command high prices abroad.

However, Zhao Jinyuan didn’t feel inferior to the larger tea producers. In fact, he felt proud. While those big factories might produce famous teas, they lacked a unique product. His factory in Meizi’ao might be small, but they had something no one else in the world could offer — bamboo tube black tea.

Bamboo tube black tea wasn’t a brand name, though. Zhao Jinyuan had long decided not to use “bamboo tube black tea” as a brand name for fear that it would end up like the other famous teas, stuck in the low-end market. Instead, they had registered the brand name “Biyu Xianyin” (Jade Fairy Drink), which they planned to heavily promote.

This time, many companies were aiming to break into the high-end international tea market, but few held out much hope. It was an ambition often expressed but rarely achieved. The main obstacle was that China’s tea market, though large, was extremely fragmented. Each province and region had its own vested interests, making it difficult to consolidate and build strong brands. Famous teas like Biluochun and Tieguanyin were produced by thousands of small factories, with production techniques almost transparent, leaving no room for added value. As a result, they were stuck competing in the low-end market, making only slim profits. Some companies didn’t even bother with exports due to the high production standards and costs required, which often meant less profit than domestic sales.

But Zhao Jinyuan and Shen Jinmao were different from the other company representatives. They were here specifically to break into the export market, and they weren’t interested in low-end markets. They had their sights set on the high-end tea market.

“As long as our bamboo tube black tea wins a gold medal, or even a special gold medal, it will greatly help us in opening up the international high-end market,” Zhao Jinyuan said.

“That’s true, but it’s not going to be easy. Our competitors aren’t just domestic companies,” Shen Jinmao added, his expression serious.