Chapter 104: Chinese Instant Noodles

Director Huang took the first bite.

He picked up his chopsticks and scooped up some noodles from the large bowl. The rich aroma of the instant noodles intensified, prompting everyone nearby to instinctively take a deep breath.

It smelled amazing.

This time, they were convinced—even foreigners would definitely enjoy eating it.

Their confidence in earning foreign exchange through exports only grew stronger.

Director Huang slurped a mouthful into his mouth and chewed slowly, savoring the taste. Everyone, except for Zhou Yimin, watched him eat the instant noodles.

After a while, Director Huang sighed and said, “No wonder they’re called fast food noodles, and no wonder they’re popular abroad.”

In his view, these were no different from canned food—both considered high-end goods. Using them for export made perfect sense.

That’s right! Currently, almost all canned goods produced domestically were exported to earn foreign exchange. And to many people, anything that could be exported was automatically seen as high-grade.

If these instant noodles were exported too, they’d naturally be added to the list of high-end goods.

In the future, if anyone wanted to eat them domestically, it wouldn’t be so easy.

Only Zhou Yimin knew the truth—whether it was canned goods or instant noodles, they weren’t actually nutritious. In fact, eating too much was unhealthy. Instant noodles had very limited nutritional value; eating them long-term just wasn’t good!

Factory Director Yang and the other leaders all took turns sampling the noodles.

In the end, everyone present gave unanimous approval of the instant noodles Zhou Yimin had brought.

“At that time, the seasoning can be packed separately in a small packet and placed inside, with a larger outer packaging,” Zhou Yimin suggested, explaining the classic packaging design of instant noodles.

Director Huang nodded, feeling this was a great idea.

“Do you want to name it?” he asked Zhou Yimin.

After all, Zhou Yimin had come up with it. It was only right to let him name it.

Zhao Zhenguo chimed in: “How about Zhou’s Instant Noodles?”

Clearly, he wanted to help Zhou Yimin gain recognition.

But Zhou Yimin didn’t let it get to his head. He knew that in a few years, even some century-old brands would be forced to change names—Quanjude would have to rebrand as “Beijing Roast Duck Restaurant.”

Starting a brand called Zhou’s Instant Noodles? That would be way too flashy.

Zhou Yimin shook his head. “How about Chinese Instant Noodles?”

Everyone immediately looked serious and respectful.

That name instantly elevated the status—it was flawless. They also admired Zhou Yimin for not chasing fame. He had such a good chance to make a name for himself and turned it down.

But—why not call it fast food noodles? Why instant noodles?

“Instant noodles?” someone asked.

Zhou Yimin explained, “Foreigners eat this mainly because it’s convenient. Think about it! They don’t like cooking. After work, they just grab a packet, pour in hot water, and it’s ready in a few minutes. So convenient!”

“That’s why I call it instant noodles. Of course, fast food noodles works too—it’s easy to understand.”

In later years, people even called them cup noodles!

“Mm! That name’s great—Chinese Instant Noodles. Perfect. I’ll report it exactly as is. On behalf of the organization, thank you, Comrade Zhou Yimin.” As he spoke, Director Huang shook hands with him warmly again.

Zhou Yimin said righteously, “It’s all for the country and the people!”

“Well said! Very well said!” Director Huang led the applause.

In an instant, everyone joined in clapping.

After that, Director Huang got ready to return to his department—it had been quite a long visit already.

Zhou Yimin left behind one finished product and let Director Huang take the rest. Seeing how thoughtful Zhou Yimin was, Director Huang gave him his home address and invited him to visit sometime.

Factory Director Yang and the others were filled with envy!

After escorting Director Huang out, Director Yang looked at Zhou Yimin with eagerness.

“Yimin, how about transferring to the noodle factory? I’ll make you a workshop director. Don’t worry—once our product is approved for export, the factory’s status will rise for sure. Maybe not to the scale of the steel factory, but with me here—”

Before he could finish, Zhou Yimin shook his head. “Uncle Yang, forget it for now. I’m not planning to leave the steel factory.”

What was so great about being a workshop director? Would he still be able to skip work often? If not, then he wasn’t interested.

At that moment, Zhao Zhenguo pulled Factory Director Yang aside.

“Uncle Yang, how about this—let him hold a nominal post at our factory. He doesn’t need to come in daily, but he can offer us valuable suggestions.

Also, our factory will expand hiring, right? Yimin would like a few job slots.” Zhao Zhenguo was advocating on Zhou Yimin’s behalf.

It sounded better coming from him.

Factory Director Yang thought it was a great idea. A nominal post would technically make Zhou part of the noodle factory staff. Holding multiple roles wasn’t uncommon either.

“Yeah, sounds good. The job slots aren’t a problem—I’ll handle it,” he agreed. Giving a few positions to Zhou Yimin? No big deal.

Of course, this couldn’t be made public—bad optics.

The two returned, and Factory Director Yang said to Zhou Yimin, “Yimin, how about a nominal position at our factory?”

“Is that even allowed?” Zhou Yimin wasn’t too familiar with the current rules.

“Why wouldn’t it be? It’s settled then—technical advisor.”

“Alright, sure.”

Seeing Zhou Yimin agree made Factory Director Yang very happy. They all started discussing how to upgrade machines, build new production lines, and more.

Truth be told, Zhou Yimin was still someone from the future. He wasn’t exactly a specialist, but he often offered surprising and valuable insights.

“Come on, the cafeteria made a full spread. Let’s eat and chat.”

Zhou Yimin replied, “Uncle Yang, we’re all on the same team, no need to be so formal. I still need to head back to the steel factory—maybe another day. I’ve also got more ideas I want to share then.”

For example, launching cup noodles—pairing noodles with a paper cup and plastic fork to make them even more instant.

No rush. One step at a time. Also, develop more flavors tailored to different countries. As someone from the future, Zhou Yimin knew instant noodles inside and out.

As for the folks in Japan—they were just getting started. What could they possibly compete with?

“Alright, we’ll talk next time,” Factory Director Yang didn’t push it. After all, Zhou Yimin had agreed to the position—no need to monopolize him. Sharing talent was also an option.

Zhao Zhenguo walked Zhou Yimin out and brought up the job slots again.

“Cousin, thanks a bunch!”

Zhao Zhenguo laughed and gave Zhou Yimin a pat on the shoulder. “What are you talking about? I should be thanking you.

If the steel factory gives you trouble, you don’t have to put up with it. Just come to our noodle factory.”

Zhou Yimin was speechless.

The steel factory, give him trouble? He’d invented two products for them already. At this point, there was no way they’d make things hard for him. Director Ding even set up a dedicated R&D department just to keep him.

He didn’t say much more and headed back to the steel factory.

At the same time, the steel factory finally confirmed the rewards for his invention of the solar stove. The package was generous—bonuses, prizes, promotion in work rank, and more.

Keep in mind—Zhou Yimin had only been employed for barely a month!

(End of chapter)