bookrandom Chapter 587 is of course not
Chapter 587 is of course not
After the interview, Li Xiangyang and his group returned to their booth. Manager Wang from Hualian Trading was already waiting there, with an approving smile on his face.
"Mr. Li, what you said on stage just now was excellent." Manager Wang gave a thumbs up. "We at Hualian prefer to cooperate with companies of integrity."
Li Xiangyang nodded modestly: "Manager Wang, you flatter me."
“No flattery,” Manager Wang said earnestly. “Having been in business for so many years, I’ve seen all kinds of people. Some people will do anything to make money, but those who truly achieve great things are those who stick to their principles.”
Just then, Mr. Zhang from Tianhua Foods came over: "Director Li, congratulations on winning the award! Our boss asked me to tell you that Tianhua is willing to add another 3,000 boxes of dried blueberries to the existing order."
This news excited everyone present. Feng Mingyuan quickly calculated in his mind: "This means our gains from this exhibition have exceeded our expectations."
Lin Yuqing smiled broadly: "It seems that sticking to quality was definitely the right thing to do."
But Li Xiangyang noticed that Zhao Mingyuan, who was not far away, had been observing the situation. Whenever a client came to discuss cooperation, his expression would become more gloomy.
At 5 p.m., the exhibition officially closed. Li Xiangyang and his team packed up their booth and prepared to leave the venue.
"Factory manager, our train leaves in two hours," Feng Mingyuan glanced at his watch. "How about we go to the hotel to rest?"
Li Xiangyang was about to answer when he noticed a group of people gathered at the entrance of the exhibition hall, seemingly discussing something. Upon closer listening, he realized they were talking about their products.
"I heard there's something wrong with the dried blueberries from Sanheshan Treasures. Someone even reported it last night," a middle-aged man said in a low voice.
"Really? I saw they just won an award." The woman next to her asked doubtfully.
"Who knows? There are too many things like this happening these days. Anyway, I'm not buying it; safety first."
Li Xiangyang frowned slightly as he listened to the discussions. Although the matter from last night had been clarified and the test results proved that the product was fine, rumors were spreading much faster than the truth.
Ma Qingfu said angrily, "This is definitely someone deliberately spreading rumors."
“Let’s go,” Li Xiangyang said calmly. “The innocent will prove themselves; time will tell.”
But he knew in his heart that such rumors could cause enormous damage to businesses. Especially in the food industry, consumers are particularly sensitive to safety issues, and once doubts arise, they are very difficult to dispel.
Back at the hotel, Li Xiangyang called a brief meeting with everyone.
"We gained a lot from this exhibition, but it also exposed some problems," Li Xiangyang said, looking at everyone. "First, there was the malicious sabotage by competitors, and second, the spread of rumors. These remind us that simply making good products is not enough; we also need to learn how to protect ourselves."
Feng Mingyuan said worriedly, "Factory manager, do you think these rumors will affect our existing clients?"
“Possibly,” Li Xiangyang said frankly. “So the first thing we did when we got back was to proactively contact all our clients and explain in detail what happened last night and the test results. Integrity is our greatest asset; we can’t let rumors ruin it.”
Lin Yuqing raised her hand and spoke: "I suggest we invite important clients to visit our factory for an on-site inspection, so they can see our production environment and quality control firsthand."
“Good idea.” Li Xiangyang nodded in agreement. “Seeing is believing; it’s more convincing than any explanation.”
Ma Qingfu thought for a moment and said, "I think we need to put more effort into promotion. We can't always be reactive; we need to take the initiative and let more people know about our brand and philosophy."
During the discussion, Feng Mingyuan's phone rang. He answered it and listened for a few minutes, his expression gradually becoming serious.
After hanging up the phone, Feng Mingyuan said heavily, "It was Xiao Wang from the factory who called. He said several customers called to inquire about product quality, and two of them said they wanted to temporarily cancel their orders."
The meeting room fell silent instantly. Everyone knew what this meant—the effects of the rumors were beginning to show.
Li Xiangyang took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm: "Which specific clients are they?"
"One is Deli Foods from Shenyang, and the other is Kangtai Trading from Changchun," Feng Mingyuan said, flipping through the records. "Deli Foods cancelled directly, and Kangtai Trading said they'd wait until things calm down before discussing it further."
These two customers' orders totaled over 10,000 boxes, resulting in significant losses. But what worries Li Xiangyang even more is that if this trend continues, more customers may waver.
"It seems their tactic is quite effective," Ma Qingfu said through gritted teeth. "First, they couldn't sabotage us directly, so now they've switched to spreading rumors—killing without shedding blood."
Li Xiangyang stood up and paced around the room a few times. He was thinking of a solution and trying to control his emotions.
“Alright,” Li Xiangyang turned to face everyone, “Feng Mingyuan, you immediately contact the factory and have them prepare a detailed quality control report, including all aspects such as raw material procurement, production processes, and testing procedures.”
“Okay.” Feng Mingyuan immediately wrote it down.
"Ma Qingfu, you are responsible for contacting all signed clients, proactively explaining the situation, and inviting them to visit the factory. Upon returning, immediately contact several local media outlets. We must take the initiative to speak out and prevent rumors from dominating public opinion."
Ma Qingfu nodded emphatically: "No problem!"
After arranging these, Li Xiangyang added, "Furthermore, we need to prepare for the worst. If orders drop significantly in the short term, our cash flow may become strained. Therefore, we need to prepare contingency plans in advance."
Feng Mingyuan asked, "You mean you want to apply for a loan from a bank?"
“That’s one option,” Li Xiangyang nodded, “but more importantly, we need to control costs and suspend some unnecessary investments. At the same time, we must accelerate the research and development of new products; we can’t put all our eggs in one basket.”
Just then, Ma Qingfu's phone rang. He answered it and said a few words, his expression becoming even more unpleasant.
"What's wrong?" Li Xiangyang asked.
"My family said that people are spreading rumors about our factory all over the county, saying that our products have quality problems, and that the truth about what happened last night was covered up," Ma Qingfu said angrily. "These people have gone too far!"
Li Xiangyang closed his eyes and took a deep breath: "It seems they're trying to destroy us."
Lin Yuqing said worriedly, "Director Li, should we report this to the police? Spreading rumors maliciously is illegal."
“To file a police report, you need solid evidence to prove that someone is maliciously spreading rumors,” Li Xiangyang shook his head. “And even if you catch a few people spreading rumors, it will be very difficult to trace the mastermind behind it.”
Feng Mingyuan said indignantly, "So we can only passively take the beating?"
“Of course not.” Li Xiangyang’s voice became firm. “Ultimately, a company’s life is not in the hands of its distribution channels. As long as we persist in doing the right thing and win the trust of consumers, the crisis will naturally be resolved.”