"I am essentially a cultured person."
Additionally, regarding the color of the kidneys, there are distinctions between darker and lighter shades. Some appear ashen white, others grayish red, with most falling somewhere in between. Generally speaking, the color of the kidneys correlates with the fat content of the carcass; if the lean meat is darker, so too will be the kidneys, and vice versa for lighter shades. In terms of quality, both overly dark or light kidneys are not ideal. A deep brown may indicate water-injected meat, while grayish red could suggest meat that has been adulterated with water. This was reported by journalist Liu Jing on July 26th, 2003, in Huashang Daily under the title "Peking University Beauty Sells Meat on the Streets," making Lu Buxuan a focal point of media attention. In May 2008, through introductions in Guangzhou, he met an old classmate from Peking University who was also in the meat-selling business.
Another important aspect is family. Initially, Lu and his wife discussed saving enough money to cover their children's education abroad after some years of hard work. Now that they've accumulated a decent amount, they no longer wish to overexert themselves. With regular working hours now, Lu pays more attention to his children's educational issues.
In his community, Lu Buxuan is well-liked and respected. Coupled with his professional expertise, he stands out as a key figure in his field.
Lu Buxuan said that if given more time to refine certain issues, after revisions and additions, this 110,000-word textbook could be published by a publishing house. It could be titled "Teaching You How to Buy Meat Without Being Deceived."
Lu Buxuan: I don't want to. Theoretically, I am a cultured person. My business acumen is average, and it is through honest operations that I have reached this point today.
History
Reflecting on the past, Lu Buxuan said, "The period before gaining fame was the hardest. Some things have changed in life, others remain the same."
Two shops, two apartments, no car.
After becoming famous, Lu Buxuan owned two shops and two apartments but did not buy a car. The two apartments were purchased around 2005. Both were about 100 square meters, one multi-story and the other high-rise. Besides the original location of the "Glasses Meat Shop," the branch faced relocation issues. On December 16th, he paid 593,000 yuan in full for a new storefront of about 90 square meters.
After Lu Buxuan became famous, his wife Chen Xiaoying once worried that her husband might leave her. For this reason, she had a conversation with one of Lu Buxuan's friends, earnestly instructing him to gently remind Lu Buxuan not to abandon her after becoming famous. When the reporter asked Lu Buxuan about this, he laughed and said, "Is there such a thing? Definitely not."
Lu Buxuan never relies on others for purchasing goods. Lu Buxuan believes that the quality of the meat sold depends on the quality of the returned goods. "I am quite picky about choosing meat: first, the pig must be healthy; second, it must be slaughtered within an hour of arriving, without blood or hair before slaughter; additionally, the tail fat of the meat must be thick, and the vehicle transporting the meat must be clean."
Regardless of whether it is his own "small family" or the "larger family" including brothers and sisters, Lu Buxuan's position remains unchanged.
Record
In the small family, Lu Buxuan, who graduated from Peking University, is the most authoritative among his four siblings. Lu Buxuan rented a booth for his younger brother, encouraging him to also sell meat; his sisters' fathers-in-law and sons-in-law, under Lu Buxuan's "contact list," went to the mature company in Guangzhou to learn management.
Busy Still, But Content Has Changed
On July 26th, 2003, Huashang Daily published an article titled "Peking University Scholar Sells Meat on the Streets of Chang'an," making Lu Buxuan a focal point of media attention. In May 2008, through introductions in Guangzhou, he met Chen Sheng, an alumnus of Peking University who was also in the "meat-selling" business.
Speaking of his experiences and feelings over the past eight years, Lu Buxuan sighed deeply.
Photo by Ning Feng
Photo taken in July 2003 when Lu Buxuan was selling meat, by Li Jie.
Subsequently, Lu Buxuan began to fade from public view, returning to an ordinary life. Although life flowed like still water, Lu Buxuan, who worked as an editor for local chronicles and yearbooks, recounted these years in an orderly manner: getting up at around 5 every morning, going to get meat for the shop, and dropping off the two children at school on the way; before 8, reaching the office of the Local Chronicles Office of Chang'an District to start work. The meat shop was managed by his wife, while he handled procurement channels and had apprentices helping in the store.
He became famous, and his wife once worried she would be abandoned
Now earning about 200,000 yuan per year
Life remains busy, but the main content has changed. His two meat shops are managed by his apprentices and younger brother, and he occasionally goes to supervise. He spends more time on his current job.
Huashang Daily: What do you think makes you different from ordinary butchers?
Huashang Daily: Is it appropriate to describe you as a businessman?
Lu Buxuan: No. Essentially, I am a cultured person. Business acumen is just average, and it is through honest operations that I have achieved what I have today.
Dialogue
Huashang Daily: What does your textbook teach?
Textbook teaches how to choose kidneys
Following the identities of "Peking University scholar," "meat seller," and "civil servant," Lu Buxuan is about to "cross boundaries": towards the end of this month, he will take his self-written "Pork Marketing" textbook, which took him four months to write, into the "Butcher School" in Guangzhou to teach.
Huashang Daily: What does your textbook teach?
Textbook teaches you how to choose kidneys
The planned book "Small Business" has yet to be written
After becoming famous, Lu Buxuan mentioned to the media that he was planning a new book called "Small Business." On the 16th, when the reporter asked him about its progress, Lu Buxuan said that although the first book sold very well, due to being extremely busy, "Small Business" has not yet been completed.
He said that his habit of drinking Maotai every day prevented him from buying a car, believing that having a motorcycle was sufficient. His hobbies of smoking and playing Go have remained unchanged for over a decade.
December 15th was Lu Buxuan's father's 79th birthday. At around 11 in the morning after finishing the store's business, Lu Buxuan headed to the village of Gaodazhai in Changle Street, Chang'an District, where his parents live.
In 2004, transferred out of the Chang'an District Archives Bureau.
Lu Buxuan said that around 2002 was the hardest time. There were only he and his wife in the meat shop, getting up at 4 in the morning to hustle. Because at the time, the meat shop relied entirely on thin profit margins and high sales volume, with a particularly large daily output, selling 12 to 15 pigs a day. He had to finish cutting up 7 or 8 pigs before dawn to meet customer needs.
This textbook summarizes my many years of experience selling meat
The planned book "Small Business" has yet to be written
He said, "Every day, I must have a drink of Maotai," which kept him from buying a car, believing that having a motorcycle was enough. His habits of smoking and playing Go have remained unchanged for over a decade.
At 11 in the morning on December 15th, after finishing the store's business, Lu Buxuan went to the village of Gaodazhai in Changle Street, Chang'an District, where his parents live, to celebrate his father's 79th birthday.
In 2004, transferred out of the Chang'an District Archives Bureau to work elsewhere.
Lu Buxuan: It contains the summary of my many years of experience selling meat, introducing pork quality and varieties step by step, and teaching people how to identify 'water-injected meat' and 'swill meat' at a glance, accompanied by many comparative pictures.
Journalist's impression of Lu Buxuan always lingered on his neatly dressed appearance while cutting meat at the counter. Meeting him again, a middle-aged man of medium height, with a square face, wearing a jacket and slacks sat before us, completely dissociated from the word "butcher." The present-day Lu Buxuan exudes more maturity. After welcoming the journalist into his home, he immediately "instructed" his family to boil water and prepare fruit. The "young birthday celebrant" nearby just looked on silently.
Later discussing size. Smaller kidneys indicate that the animal’s kidneys are vigorous, the body is strong, and smaller kidneys can adequately perform detoxification functions; whereas larger kidneys suggest that the kidneys' functions are less developed, requiring a larger organ to carry out detoxification and waste removal. From this perspective, smaller kidneys are relatively healthier.
Opening stores, taking breaks, writing books
How did the idea come about to write a textbook on live pigs?
Lu Buxuan: Writing the textbook came about through friends in Guangzhou. He is also a "meat seller," now operating on a large scale with hundreds of direct-operated stores, and specifically invested 1.1 billion yuan in Guangzhou to establish the People's Republic of China's first "Butcher School." He asked me to write a textbook on pig slaughter and marketing, to be used for guiding practice.
Initially opting to sell meat, never imagined reaching this point
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In August 2009, Chen Sheng invited Lu Buxuan to Guangzhou and proposed founding a "Butcher School." The two "meat sellers" quickly agreed. Funded by the classmate, Lu Buxuan wrote the curriculum for the butcher school, involving subjects such as marketing, nutrition, etiquette, and cooking, and also required students to understand scientific pig farming at the farm, aiming to "cultivate high-quality butchers proficient in the entire industrial chain."
In July 2003, due to media reports on "Peking University scholar selling meat on the streets," Lu Buxuan gained fame and became a focal point of media attention. In May 2008, through introductions in Guangzhou, he met Chen Sheng, a fellow Peking University alumnus and also a "meat seller."
In July 2003, Huashang Daily published an article titled "Peking University Scholar Sells Meat on the Streets of Chang'an," making Lu Buxuan a focal point of media attention. In May 2008, through introductions in Guangzhou, he met Chen Sheng, a fellow Peking University alumnus and also a "meat seller." This alumnus opened nearly two hundred "Number One Native Pig" chain meat shops in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Foshan, encountering expansion bottlenecks due to a shortage of butcher talent. Lu Buxuan conducted specific research on the situation. During his time in Guangzhou, Lu Buxuan received warm hospitality from this alumnus who had made his fortune in real estate, and the two shared many common experiences, leading to numerous discussions.
Lu Buxuan, originally from Chang'an, was born in 1966. In 1985, he entered Peking University with the top score in science from Chang'an County (now Chang'an District of Xi'an City). After graduation, he was assigned to work at the Chang'an Diesel Engine Factory, later venturing into business and trying various professions. In 1999, he opened the "Glasses Meat Shop" in Chang'an.