Chapter 801
The road is too narrow; it's either you or me.
"Honest business practices are elegant. There are always those who don't recognize a treasure and are just sitting on a cudgel. It's fine to passively pick up some bargains from them and make a profit by taking advantage of their lack of knowledge. You can feel at ease doing so. But it's not elegant to actively create such opportunities."
At this time, Jing Shu Zhai opened its doors for business, and there should have been many sellers who were in a hurry to sell their goods because of the typhoon. They were hungry and needed to eat, and their houses had collapsed and needed to be repaired. They didn't have the confidence to ask for prices.
You shouldn't try to drive down the price too aggressively. It's okay to accept the benefits of the times, but don't be too greedy.
"I'm not a heartless person, what do you think I am?" Tang Yiying retorted.
"It's not the best, but I still want to say something. Jing Shu Zhai was originally intended to help Bao Shu earn some pocket money at the right time. Now, with you added to the mix, it's the same. If you manage it to make a fortune, I won't praise you. On the contrary, I'll hold you accountable later."
Xian Yaowen pinched Tang Yiying's chin, "Keep your little schemes to yourself. I won't abandon you. You don't need to hoard food like a field mouse. Besides, don't you know your own personality? It's no wonder you can't save money."
Why can't I save money?
Xian Yaowen patted Tang Yiying's little belly, "This used to be filled with the people's hard-earned money, now it's filled with delicacies. Even the typhoon didn't stop you from going out to eat and drink to your heart's content, did it?"
Tang Yiying smiled and said, "You're the one who's eating like a glutton. I'm always particular about what I eat."
"The refinement he learned from the palace goes without saying. Emperors who know how to eat only exist in plays. When Qianlong left the palace, he was curious about everything. He even wanted to scoop a spoonful from a latrine to taste. He thought it was the Han people under his rule making him tribute soy sauce."
Tang Yiying shoved Xian Yaowen, "If you had dared to say that a couple of years ago, you would have lost your head."
"Alright, the banners on the city walls have changed several times, and you still can't let go of your Manchu noble status? Your aunt really ruined your plans back then. If you had married Puyi, you would have had the status of an empress... Oh dear."
"If you keep talking nonsense, I'll bite you."
"Okay, okay, I won't say anymore." Xian Yaowen picked up his book. "I'll continue reading."
In the last few days of July, Taipei was hit by another typhoon. The wind was not strong, but the rain did not stop, which not only affected travel but also radio waves, forcing the close connection with Hong Kong to be interrupted.
Sin Yiu-man hardly ever went out, staying at home reading and tending to his potted plants, treating it as a way to cultivate his mind and body.
On August 3, the sky finally cleared up.
There was no rush to leave; the fax machine and radio were running simultaneously, receiving messages from Hong Kong.
Sidney Kosack from Los Angeles left a message saying that he has decided to invest in Jorge Guinness, on the terms of which are as previously agreed: a $4000 million investment at a valuation of $200 million, acquiring 5% of the shares, and another 10% at the same valuation.
Of course, a five-year performance-based agreement must be signed.
Thus, Sin Yiu-man quickly earned $400 million, but this money could only be used to buy stocks in order to legally avoid taxes. Using it for other purposes would be too costly. No matter how you look at it, you would still have to pay around a million dollars in taxes.
In addition, with two shareholders with Mafia backgrounds, the Bufalino family and the Chicago Mafia, Buffalo will avoid some trouble caused by unions in the future, but will also face some trouble caused by getting too close to the Mafia.
The YMCA was officially formed, the blonde bombshells entered the rehearsal stage, and the McQuail sisters were working on recording a new album.
The project "Roman Holiday" has been approved, and the production team is being assembled.
In New York, Tongqu "developed" a frisbee based on Morrison's Flyin'Saucer. The frisbee's shape was the same as the plastic frisbee of later times, but it also resembled the pie jars of a "Frisbie" pie factory.
When the pie jar is inverted, it forms a wing shape. With practice, it can be thrown in various different trajectories. This game is popular in some schools, and even students at Yale University play it. In its popularity, it has become known by convention as "Frisbies".
After learning about this, Jessica Clark found the patent certificates that Sin Yiu-man had given her and discovered "Frisbee" on one of them. She changed the order in which Tongqu launched new toys and put the Frisbee in the priority position.
Sin Yiu-man had to send a telegram to Jessica explaining the origin of the newly coined word "Frisbee" and offering marketing suggestions.
Then, he sent a telegram to Qi Longdao, asking him to send the best frisbee player to New York to demonstrate how to play frisbee.
Frisbees were made into physical models some time ago and became one of the training tools at Dragon Path, used to train both humans and dogs. The training content was reorganized and the difficulty was reduced to create the basic gameplay of Frisbees.
After sending the telegram, Sin Yiu-man pondered how much sales revenue the frisbee could generate at this time. His prediction was still optimistic. Frisbees were simple to make, and the production cost could be controlled below HK$0.2, or at most US$3.5.
Even with marketing costs and profits for wholesalers and retailers, once things are on track, the retail price can be kept below 50 cents, which is quite attractive and within the range of children's pocket money, making it very beneficial for word-of-mouth marketing.
Tongqu used $600 million in its account to buy 17.2 shares of Boeing, representing 1.43% of the company, at a cost of $311.4 million. The remaining funds were used to purchase shares in Lockheed Martin, Douglas Airways, North American Aviation, and General Motors.
I sent a telegram to Su Lizhen, telling her about the frisbee manufacturing contract and asking her to register a company to handle toy patents. Tongqu's profits and profit margins are too high, so we don't plan to go public. The data is too good to be true. Starting with frisbees, Tongqu should increase its spending on patents and R&D costs.
Based on the sales potential of frisbees, the patent transfer price could reach $120 million. With a $120 million investment, one could potentially earn over ten million in the long run, which would be perfectly acceptable to the IRS.
Tongqu will take out a loan from HSBC to acquire the frisbee patent from the "new company." The cash raised will not be distributed as dividends, but will be used as Tongqu's unrelated reserve funds. In short, it is to hide a sum of money for unforeseen circumstances. Tongqu cannot only have its own tricks up its sleeve. If it is too successful, it will attract attention. It is time to prepare for the future.
However, he doesn't need the money right now. He plans to borrow it at an annual interest rate of 5%, so he writes a letter to Jessica explaining the whole arrangement and asking if she has any objections to the loan.
Juliet Brand Management, Donald Kendall reported on the company's recent developments:
Romeo successfully invested in Hugo Boss in Germany, acquiring a 40% stake.
Color-S established a branch office in West Berlin and submitted its first report, hoping to build a brand targeting the West German market based on the current fashion aesthetics of West Germany.
Kennedy expressed dissatisfaction with the current OEM costs and planned to find a suitable jeans manufacturer to invest in, and then set up production overseas in order to reduce costs.
They have officially entered the Roman market and are preparing to open a flagship store there.
Sales of FreeStyle leather jackets and blazers have been disappointing, so Kendall is preparing a major marketing campaign ahead of schedule, the details of which will be submitted later.
The Power Set has gained popularity among some women, garnering a small but loyal following, and the brand's operations are seeing a glimmer of hope.
Kendall suggested that Goodluck shift its focus from Hong Kong to New York for haute couture shoes, and develop bundled marketing strategies with shirts.
Princess & Gentlemen has already established a stable customer base at its New York haute couture boutique. The next step is to open a branch in Los Angeles, start operating the designer's personal brand, and explore celebrity brands.
Fan marketing is still a new concept, and there are no precedents to follow. Before we actually start, we must clarify the marketing logic and then improve as we go.
Sin Yiu-man can only provide the general framework; he has no experience with the micro-management aspects and can't explain them clearly. He'll have to learn by doing at the Friendship Film Company's celebrity merchandise store, which will require some effort to explore.
Bald Eagle Mail Order's marketing has expanded beyond New York State, reaching Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont. They also plan to test the waters in Quebec and Ontario, Canada, which border New York State and are not too far away, with relatively low postage costs.
After reviewing the report, Xian Yaowen wrote comments and replies to each point and also wrote a letter to Zhou Zhilan explaining the situation.
Sin Yiu-wu is a stallion, having won three consecutive championships. Chow Chi-lan is pregnant and should not leave Hong Kong for the next two or three years. The high-end shoe business needs to find another person to take over management, and Chow Chi-lan is developing her skills in a more technical direction.
After processing the telegram, Long Xuemei began her report.
"Sir, Manager Lu is flying to Taipei. Taifeng (Taiwan Pineapple Company) has invited her to come and discuss export business of canned pineapple and longan."
"Is the longan also produced by Taifeng?"
"Besides bananas, Taifeng's business covers most fruits."
Xian Yaowen accepted the teacup handed to him by Quan Danru. “It’s rare. This month is the main season for longan production in Tainan and Taichung. Taifeng is actually planning to export longan ahead of time.”
"We have no choice but to bring it up in advance. This year, Taiwan's longan production is estimated at around 4 metric tons. With the frequent typhoon season, we definitely can't process all the fresh fruit. Most of the longan can only be dried into dried longan."
"Oh." Xian Yaowen nodded. "How many kilograms of longan are needed to make one kilogram of dried longan?"
"With shell and pit, it weighs five or six jin; without shell and pit, it weighs 20 to 25 jin."
“That would be around 5000 tons. Longan can only be sold to places with Chinese populations. Japan can also consume some, but it can’t be eaten as a staple food. People who know how to eat it can only buy two or three catties a year, so it will be a bit difficult to sell.”
"Sir, longan is used in Singaporean and Malayan dishes such as Bubur Cha Cha, Qing Liang Bu, Longan and Red Date Tea, and Bak Kut Teh."
“Some may not put longan in them, and even if they do, it’s just for decoration and not much is needed. When Manager Lu comes, you can talk to her about it. If she doesn’t realize the problem, bring it up, and while you’re at it, mention the sweet dried fruit brand and the banana chips.”
"Like we discussed yesterday, should we launch the 'So Sweet' English brand first?"
"Yes, the US and Canada consume a significant amount of bananas each year, and there's a large consumer base who appreciate the taste of bananas. Fried banana chips would have a good market, and..."
Sin Yiu-man's gaze sharpened. "By paying attention to the changes in banana export volume and export destinations in recent years, we can roughly analyze that Panama disease is currently in a full-blown outbreak period. Perhaps in a few years, the Giant Mac banana will face extinction, and finding another alternative variety is now urgent."
"Sir, you want to seize the opportunity presented by the transition between old and new varieties?"
“It takes time for new varieties to be planted across the board. It is foreseeable that banana prices will soar due to reduced supply and increased transportation costs. Banana chips can be preliminarily processed by drying at the place of origin, with negligible transportation costs, and they can take advantage of the supply gap in bananas.”
Long Xuemei nodded. "Manager Lu and I will discuss this matter thoroughly. Sir, are you not planning to meet with Manager Lu this time?"
Sin Yiu-man took a sip of tea. “Whether you meet her or not, you’ll be the one to talk to her about it. You’ll be in charge of the specifics from now on. I’ll just be the one to talk to her. Find yourself a personal assistant. No matter how busy you are, you still need to make sure you get proper nutrition. I can’t afford to take responsibility for you going through menopause at the age of 23.”
Long Xuemei rolled her eyes. "My last medical check-up report showed that I was very healthy."
Sin Yiu-man chuckled and said, "Health alone is not enough. You also need to be energetic at all times. I hate the idea of working while sick. In the future, when recruiting or promoting people, we need to pay attention to health issues. No matter how capable a person is, it is not advisable to rely on them too much."
"Does that mean Hong Kong is going to increase the number of doctors on the job?"
“When you were still on the embankment, I had already instructed Zhong Lin to do this: HK Consulting will increase the number of people with TCM skills and expertise in psychology. The TCM diagnostic methods of observation, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation are quite useful in recruitment, at least in terms of low-cost elimination of candidates with hidden illnesses.”
Long Xuemei said irritably, "Does the doctor's dental work fall into this category?"
"It's both yes and no. Examining teeth is a skill that senior executives must master. When conducting business, you will encounter all kinds of people, and it's inevitable to encounter fraud gangs. A conman from humble beginnings can pretend to be an aristocrat, and everything else can be imitated, but his teeth can't fool anyone."
"When facing a customer, there's hardly a good opportunity to see their teeth clearly."
"It's not like the police are looking for evidence, needing irrefutable proof. Suspicion is enough. In your spare time, think about how to provide this kind of training for the current senior executives. I will arrange the lecturers."
Examining teeth and mouths has long been an essential skill for armadillos and mosquitoes. Through practical experience and refinement, it has become systematic and professional. One elite member is qualified to be a lecturer.
"it is good."
"continue."
"Manager Lin of Huaguang Garment submitted a report stating that a female worker recruited from Tainan was robbed and sexually assaulted while out at night. She was robbed of 12 yuan. During the assault, she managed to escape but tripped and fell, sustaining abrasions on her hands and feet. Manager Lin asked if they should reimburse the female worker for her medical expenses?"
"Let's put the medical expenses aside for now, have they caught the person?"
"Manager Lin went to the police station to report the case, but there are no results yet."
"Tell Lin Xingliang to have Lin Baocheng put in some effort at the police station to make sure the person is caught. Don't make an exception for reimbursing medical expenses for injuries sustained outside of work. Have Lin Baocheng pay for the female worker's medical expenses and subsequent nutritional expenses in his private capacity."
Also, consult with Wu Huoshi before doing anything. Matters concerning Huaguang Garment cannot bypass Wu Huoshi; sufficient respect must be shown to the shareholders.
"clear."
"Let's make an appointment with Wu Huoshi. I'll treat him to drinks. Let's meet next week."
"it is good."
"Anything else?"
"Gone."
"What are your plans for today?"
“I made an appointment with Zhao Tingzhen yesterday to discuss the business of Prince Chemicals.”
“Perfect timing, I’m also going to Prince Enterprises, let’s go together.”
The two went out together, but sat in the back seat of different cars.
Four more jeeps were added to the family: one for Fei Baoshu's exclusive use, one for Tang Yiying and Jin Jingyan to share, one for Long Xuemei's exclusive use, and one for the family's general use. The original two jeeps were no longer shared and became Xian Yaowen's exclusive vehicles.
Mo Changfeng, who had worked as a security guard at Jin Manfu for a period of time, was sent over by Qi Longdao to serve as a full-time driver. Whenever they went out, his responsibilities were to drive and watch the car. This made things a little easier for the Xie siblings, as they didn't have to thoroughly check the car before each trip.
Van Fleet rode in the same car as Xian Yaowen, while Quan Danru rode in Mo Changfeng's car.
On the bus, Sin Yiu-man reviewed some documents from Prince Enterprises, showing one to Van Fleet after each review, so she could familiarize herself with the subsequent work.
Even a "decorative" secretary is still a secretary, and secretaries still have to do their proper work.
To be honest, he never really had a proper secretary. The work that Long Xuemei and Valerie Hobson did went beyond the scope of a secretary, and they didn't really do much of the actual work of a secretary.
A short while later, upon arriving at the entrance of Prince Enterprise, as soon as he got out of the car, Xian Yaowen saw Jiang Lizhi, the eldest daughter of Yongguang Tea, get out of a Nissan 70 sedan. She also saw him, and the two looked at each other. She gave him a look, and he nodded slightly and turned around.
Then, he turned to look at the other side, where an identical Nissan 70 sedan was parked in front of Jin Hai's house. If he wasn't mistaken, it should be the car he had suggested for Jiang Shanmei.
He smiled faintly, indulging in his own wicked humor, "The tea-making girl under my command now owns the same car as me. I wonder what this young lady thinks about that?"
He paused for a moment, and as Long Xuemei approached, he gestured towards the car with his chin, "Has it become a beautiful story?"
"The gentleman achieved his goal of spending a thousand gold pieces to buy horse bones, but it can't be called a good story; it's just that everyone knows about it."
“Oh?” Sin Yiu-man thought for a moment. “Because of Jack?”
Long Xuemei nodded. "The Jiang family may have exerted some influence. Jiang Shanmei's reputation outside is mixed."
"A lackey of foreign devils? A traitor?"
"almost."
Xian Yaowen glanced at the Yongguang Tea building and said, "The remaining business opportunities for Taiwanese tea are too limited. It's impossible for us to move forward hand in hand. Jiang San has taken it, so there's no place for Xian Si."
"Once it starts, it's either you die or I live. I don't know how strong Jiang San's mentality is."
"Sir, are you going to take drastic measures against Yongguang Tea?"
"Even a centipede with a hundred legs will not die easily. Once we face it, we will go all out. We will kill Yongguang Tea and leave the Jiang family with a mountain of debt that they can never recover from."
“If Jiang Axin can’t handle it…” Long Xuemei hesitated.
"We can only hope he's broad-minded." Xian Yaowen looked up at the sky. "Shouldn't Xia Cha from Beipu be killed by now?"
"It's time to market, and the autumn tea will be harvested soon."
"Oh, the weather is nice. The British tea merchants are probably already on their way to Taipei."
Long Xuemei looked reluctant. "Sir, are you setting a trap for Yongguang Tea?"
"Yes, but not as despicable as you think. Snakes have their ways, cats have theirs. Business warfare isn't about fighting and killing; it's about deception and treachery. I wouldn't blow up Yongguang Tea's tea-carrying ships; I just want the Jiang family to misjudge the situation. Jiang Lizhi has a fiancé?"
Long Xuemei turned to look at the Bank of Taiwan building. "I graduated from the Department of Economics at the College of Law of National Taiwan University last June and was assigned to work at the Bank of Taiwan at the beginning of this year."
"Your surname is Liao, right?"
"Correct."
"It's easy to get a loan if you have connections at the bank." After saying that, Xian Yaowen walked into the building.
Long Xuemei followed, and the two entered the building, heading to different floors. (End of Chapter)