Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence-Chapter 107: Assembly Line Production

Three days passed, and Li Xu’s phone remained silent.

He checked for missed calls from time to time, but aside from a few consultation calls from patients, not a single eye drop company had contacted him.

"Strange..." Li Xu muttered to himself. He finally couldn’t take it anymore and dialed Gu Xiaoya’s number.

"Dr. Gu, are you sure those companies were going to contact me? It’s been three days, and there hasn’t been a peep."

On the other end of the line, Gu Xiaoya was just as confused. "That can’t be right... Logically, a patent for a product this effective should have been noticed, and they should have contacted you the same day."

She thought for a moment. "Let me ask around for you."

As an associate chief physician of ophthalmology at the City People’s Hospital,

she had many professional connections.

For instance, the president of the Feng City Ophthalmology Association and a committee member of the Jiang Province Ophthalmology Association.

She also had contacts at some ophthalmology companies.

After hanging up, Gu Xiaoya immediately contacted a former university classmate.

However, the reply she received left her stunned.

"What? You’ve already tested it? And the effect was ’just average’?" Gu Xiaoya’s voice rose in disbelief. "How is that possible? I’ve tested its effects myself!"

Her classmate replied helplessly from the other end of the line, "We strictly followed the formula and process in the patent and produced three batches of samples. All the test results showed it’s just a regular cooling eye drop. Its effect on relieving fatigue is even worse than our own product."

Gu Xiaoya didn’t give up. She contacted acquaintances at several other eye drop companies, but the feedback she received was surprisingly consistent: this so-called "miracle eye drop" performed poorly in their actual tests and wasn’t worth putting into production at all.

"Doctor Li, something isn’t right." Gu Xiaoya called again, her voice tinged with obvious frustration. "Almost all the companies that tested it said the effect was just average. They don’t believe the results described in the patent."

Li Xu suddenly understood. ’So that’s what happened. No wonder no one contacted me.’

’It turns out those companies made a batch themselves.’

Li Xu knew exactly why.

’They don’t have the mutated foxtail grass. It’d be a miracle if they could produce Mao Dudu Eye Drops.’

These eye drops could only be produced using the raw materials he provided.

Gu Xiaoya was still completely baffled. "There must be something going on here."

"Dr. Gu, it’s perfectly normal that the eye drops they formulated had no effect," Li Xu revealed a little. "It requires a special kind of foxtail grass, and I’m the only one who has it."

"Ah." Gu Xiaoya sounded thoughtful. "I see..."

She quickly grew excited. "In that case, we don’t need to look so far afield."

"What do you mean?"

"If we partner with those big corporations, their terms won’t be very good. Since that’s the case, we can find a contract manufacturer to help with production. We’re not in a hurry to cash in anyway. We can sell it slowly, and once we’ve built a reputation, we’ll definitely be profitable by next year." The more Gu Xiaoya spoke, the more excited she became.

Li Xu raised a question, "Where are we going to find a contract manufacturer?"

Pharmaceutical manufacturing is different from other industrial products. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

It requires strict procedures, processes, and inspections.

You can’t just set up a production line and start manufacturing.

"Hehe, we have a ready-made production line right here in Feng City," Gu Xiaoya said with a laugh. "Do you know of the Ding Group? They have a pharmaceutical company under them that’s preparing to go bankrupt because it can’t compete with other enterprises."

"The Ding Group?"

Li Xu smiled. "What a coincidence. Not only do I know of them, but I’m also very familiar with their chairman."

After hanging up,

Li Xu immediately dialed Ding Aiguo’s mobile number.

"Doctor Li, congratulations! I passed by the District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine the other day and saw their banner. You’ve been appointed as a consultant for them."

Ding Aiguo said with a laugh, "I knew it. With your level of skill, Doctor Li, it was only a matter of time before you were recognized."

"Thank you,"

Li Xu said politely.

"Doctor Li, is there something I can help you with?" Ding Aiguo asked.

"Chairman Ding, I heard your company’s pharmaceutical factory is preparing to halt production?" Li Xu got straight to the point.

Ding Aiguo was a little surprised. "You’re well-informed, Doctor Li. We do have such plans. Our company’s factory is relatively small and not competitive. It’s been operating at a continuous loss, so we’re planning to file for bankruptcy and liquidate."

"I’d like to ask you for a favor, Chairman Ding." Li Xu briefly explained the situation. "I’d like to commission your company to produce a new type of eye drop. I will provide the raw materials."

After listening, Ding Aiguo agreed without a second thought. "Doctor Li, you saved my wife and my granddaughter. What’s a small favor like this? Use the production line as you please!"

After hanging up, Ding Aiguo called his son over. "Kaifang, don’t shut down the pharmaceutical factory just yet. Doctor Li wants to produce an eye drop. Give him your full cooperation."

Although Ding Kaifang was full of doubt, he still nodded in agreement.

After all, helping Doctor Li...

...was worth it, even if it meant forgoing the processing fee.

The next day, Li Xu brought Song Sisi to Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory.

When Ding Kaifang saw a bag full of foxtail grass, his jaw nearly dropped.

"Doctor Li, are you sure... this is the raw material for eye drops?" Ding Kaifang fought back a laugh. "And not for feeding rabbits?"

Although the Ding Group had a pharmaceutical factory under its umbrella,

it mainly produced Western medicines.

Moreover, foxtail grass was a relatively obscure ingredient,

so it was perfectly normal that Ding Kaifang was unaware of its effects.

Li Xu wasn’t annoyed. He simply smiled and said, "You’ll know once you try it, President Ding."

Following the formula and process provided by Li Xu, the workers began production.

Ding Kaifang wasn’t busy during this period, so he decided to supervise the entire process to show how seriously he was taking it.

But the more he watched, the more absurd it seemed. This completely overturned his understanding of pharmaceuticals.

"Extraction at a constant 78 degrees? Timed to the exact second?" he muttered under his breath. "This is too precise. Is this still traditional Chinese medicine?"

Generally speaking, only Western medicine required such precision.

The first batch of samples soon came off the line.

The workers in the filling workshop looked at the transparent liquid and whispered among themselves.

"I heard this is made from foxtail grass?"

"No way, right? My hometown has mountains full of this stuff. How could it be so miraculous?"

Ding Kaifang picked up a sample bottle. After a moment’s hesitation, he decided to try it himself.

’It’s gone through the patent application process anyway, so it’s not harmful.’

He had stayed up late with a client the previous night, and his eyes were dry and gritty.

’I guess I’ll humor Doctor Li.’ He squeezed two drops into his eyes.

At first, there was just a cooling sensation.

Ding Kaifang blinked, unimpressed.

But three seconds later, his expression froze.

The burning sensation in his eyes felt as if it had been doused by a basin of ice water, and the dryness vanished instantly.

It felt incredibly comfortable.

"This... this effect..." Ding Kaifang looked around and called the quality inspection director over. "Old Liu, you try it!"

The quality inspection director tried it dubiously and was also left speechless with shock.

Soon, the entire workshop was abuzz with discussion.

The workers scrambled to try it, and cries of astonishment rose one after another.

"My red veins are gone!"

"Oh my god, I can see so much more clearly!"

"This is a hundred times better than imported eye drops!"

Ding Kaifang’s eyes lit up with excitement.

A businessman’s intuition told him that this wasn’t just an eye drop—it was a gold mine!