Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The sun was shining bright and Chen Zheng was bringing the president of the DG Asia-Pacific region and his people to survey the production base of SMQ in the eastern suburbs of Lin City.
It was a warm afternoon. The factory’s machines were working in full gear and the staff in their blue uniforms were hard at work, painting a scene that was bustling with activity. Hence, the bunch of foreigners were nodding their heads and conveying their satisfaction after looking at it.
With regards to the SMQ, Chen Zheng was also more satisfied. One had to understand that there was no such thing as rendering timely help in this world, only such a thing as embellishing what is already beautiful. After news got out that SMQ had been bought by DG, the suppliers and partners whose relationships with SMQ had become stale were gradually changing their attitudes. Everyone was still waiting to see what would happen. At least they did not dare to offend him anymore.
Meanwhile, consumers obviously had a mindset of worshipping foreign goods. Ever since SMQ morphed into a foreign brand, the sales in his stores had seen an increase. And after they obtained investments from DG, his factory was able to start operating once again.
Such a good, virtuous cycle. Without these people, these greedy and prideful foreigners, he would be unable to achieve these heights.
However, there is a saying that willing the deities to come is hard but willing them to go is even harder. Chen Zheng thought that after today’s inspection had been completed, he would completely have fooled these foreigners. Who knew that the moment they took a step out of the factory, the DG Asia-Pacific region president would question him. His attitude was very strict, exploding directly at Chen Zheng, “Ben! Can you explain the goods that are placed in the fifth warehouse? What’s going on?”
Ben was the English name that Chen Zheng had given himself in the past couple of days to ease communication with them. At this moment, his heart skipped a beat but he still did not admit, saying, “Mr Charles, that is our casual bags series.”
Charles was an Australian man who was just over 40 years old and was tall and well-built. He had a pair of extremely big, blue eyes, a high nose bridge, and extremely smooth and shiny skin, which made his appearance look slightly childish.
At that moment, he shook his head and said, “Ben, you didn’t tell me the truth. I saw the examination report for that batch of products before and the product failure rate was very high. A lot of the pieces had off-colored fabric and the internal stitching is messy. There are even a few that used materials that are not in line with the product description and its quality is a lot worse than usual. I’m guessing… this batch of goods were rushed out. Am I right?”
When he finished, everyone fell silent. The people on Chen Zheng’s side were shooting one another glances.
Chen Zheng felt waves of uneasiness. That batch of goods were indeed rushed out.
Half a year ago, when New Bori’s market for casual bags shrunk, Chen Zheng took a loan from the bank and created a new series of product. Back then, because SMQ had already fallen to its all-time low, the drain on the staff was very serious and they were having difficulties with cash flow. Of course, this led to lower product quality.
This batch of bags had been mostly made using very good materials, and a great deal of investment had gone into it. At least from their outer appearances, consumers would be absolutely unable to spot any obvious defects.
Today, since Charles and his people were surveying the place, he even specially instructed the staff in the warehouse to place some pieces that were of better quality on the top.
The documents for the transfer of the company was so long that it would fill several houses. Chen Zheng thought that a strategic leader like Charles would not read through them in detail. Who knew where he had seen the examination report?
Chen Zheng started to fret internally. He had been careless.
Just then, the other foreigners started to discuss fervently. They hailed from different countries and were speaking in English with a variety of accents which made it so noisy that Chen Zheng’s head ached a little.
“Hi, everyone.” His smile was not genuine as he cut them off, “Can I explain?”
They all quieted down.
Chen Zheng smiled as he said, “This batch indeed has some problem with its quality, so we are not prepared to sell it on the frontline markets. Rather, we are planning to drop the prices and place it up for sale in the less developed markets…”
He had not completed his words but Charles had already begun to shake his head once again, “Ben! How can you think like that? Good quality has been the prioritized goal of DG since our founding. Even product lines that are low priced should maintain a certain standard. This won’t do, I disagree.”
Chen Zheng tried to bear with it and continue maintaining his smile while saying, “Charles, can you finish hearing me out?”
Charles looked at him with his eyes wide.
Chen Zheng said, “When we first collaborated, the reason why you were interested in SMQ was because in one sense, we have the widest and most evenly distributed online stores in China. We are also China’s most influential enterprise. Before Aida and New Bori had even set foot into the more undeveloped cities, and even the countryside, we already had export agents. This is very crucial for DG to become number one in China’s market in the future.
“On the other hand, because we are a local enterprise, we have a better understanding of China’s national sentiments. China is different from America and Australia. Our society’s development is extremely unbalanced. The rich areas have their own requirements and expectations; the poor areas have their own spending habits. Based on my experience, these products that you think are average in quality will have no problems at all selling in the more underdeveloped cities and states. They will even sell very well, bringing in abundant profit. And this will not hinder our sales of our mid-tiered to high-end products that is simultaneously ongoing.”
He said it like a serious vow but the external investors that were headed by Charles all still had their eyebrows furrowed.
“Oh, no, Ben!” Charles said, “You are speaking with a lot of sense, but these products go against the aim that DG has pursued for hundreds of years. If such products are sold under DG’s name, we simply have no way of explaining to our headquarters in America, and it will also seriously damage the image of our company. Hence, we feel that this batch of products should be removed from the market immediately. We absolutely cannot give up on our principles just for a moment of profit. This issue has no room for discussion, please…” He said in awkward Mandarin, “Settle it immediately.”
This was the first time since DG had taken the helm of SMQ that the two parties had to settle such a big difference in opinion about management methods.
Of course, such a situation arose many times afterwards. This was the pain that almost every local enterprise had to face after “selling themselves” to foreign investors.
And now, Chen Zheng could feel this pain deeply.
In front of him, a few foreigners were still whispering to one another, discussing in low voices and even glancing at him directly with disapproving looks. Sometimes, foreigners just didn’t know how to carry themselves, and were so stupid that he felt like vomiting blood.
Meanwhile, the few Chinese subordinates behind him were all silent because their boss had been embarrassed and they were also afraid to make any sound.
Chen Zheng smiled after a moment of silence, “Alright, I agree with this point of view. I will get someone to settle it immediately.” Heard the commitment, Charles immediately had a smile on his face and happily kneaded Chen Zheng’s shoulder.
“Ben, thank you for being so understanding and decisive!” Charles was brimming with enthusiasm, “I believe we will work very well together!”
Chen Zheng erupted with laughter, “Of course! Is there even a need to say it?”
As they laughed, all the surrounding people laughed as well. Chen Zheng followed him and was pushed to continue forward by the crowded clusters of people surrounding him. Internally, he vehemently cursed “F*ck”!
To comply in public but oppose in private had always been a part of Chen Zheng’s personality.
This afternoon, when sending the foreign investors to the exit of the factory, he conveyed that he would “solve the problem immediately” before he turned around and returned to the facility.
After several hours, he and several of his confidantes stood by the door of the factory watching as the products that were deemed “failures” in the foreigner’s eyes were transported outside.
The confidantes also felt their hearts ache a little. One of them opened his mouth to speak, “Mr Chen, if we sort through this batch, there is at least 60 to 70 percent that we can sell!”
Another said, “This batch is our investment, and the losses will also be ours. During the year end, if the company’s profits do not look satisfactory, your management rights will be stripped according to the investment agreement. Could it be that those Australians have such a plan in mind?”
Chen Zheng’s expression was also very sullen.
He thought back to a few months before when he had personally stood in front of these products with utter complacency. From what he thought back then, the casual bags market was an unwanted fresh piece of meat that was spat out from some other’s mouth. Whoever had the quickest hands would be able to take the steal.
But reality was cruel.
Li Zhicheng’s casual bag series, Aier, had neither been launched too early nor too late. It had to be launched just when his products had all been sent to the production line and had only a few days left to being launched. If it had been slightly earlier, he would not have to swap his stock; if it had been slightly later, it was hard to say but he may have already monopolized the market.
The past had become nothing but a memory and now, he looked at the blood red sunset as he replied coldly, “Would I not know what Charles is planning to do? Don’t care about them, we will transport this batch of products over today and put them up for sale in the distant stores as planned. Send a few people to watch them closely and if there are any movements, just get the stores to take the products off the shelves first and deal with them!”
The next morning, after getting the news that Chen Zheng had already “started to completely clear the second-grade products”, Charles was very happy. Simultaneously, he had gathered all of the high-ranking executives including Chen Zheng to hold a meeting to define the next step of their battle plan.
The large meeting room was filled to capacity. Charles sat at the head of the table, excitedly saying, “Chinese people have a saying, ‘look at the horse’s head which takes the lead’. Right now, Li Zhicheng is the China bag industry’s horse head.”
The entire meeting room was silent as everyone knew that his metaphor was very apt.
Aida rejected the acquisition and New Bori’s stance was still unclear. Hence, DG’s acquisition business in China had been entirely hindered. Everyone was clear that New Bori was looking towards the big boss of the industry, Aida.
If DG wanted to complete their plan of acquiring all the companies, they first had to deal with Aida.
Based on the conventions of widespread foreign acquisitions, if direct acquisitions are unsuccessful, they would have to launch a direct attack in the market.
They would use their innate abilities to utterly knock out the Chinese enterprises and finally buy them over at an even lower price.
“China also has another saying, ‘if a soft approach doesn’t work then a hard approach is required’.” Charles was immersed in his own joy as he said those words, as if he thought his speech was really not bad. Meanwhile, the Chinese representatives led by Chen Zheng who were all seated downstage were expressionless.
“In view of SMQ’s sales channels as well as China’s consumer situation, I have discussed with Ben, and we want to first launch the lower-tiered brands under DG out into the Chinese market.” When Charles talked about this, he suddenly became serious and calm, “These few brands are also the ones that have contributed the most to DG’s profits. I believe that they will definitely be widely accepted by the Chinese consumers.”
The audience gave a round of applause and Chen Zheng smiled as well. Indeed, those few brands were very strong in their quality and external appearance. One had to admit that an international tycoon was indeed an international tycoon; their products were clearly different. Once they are launched, they would no doubt defeat the likes of Li Zhicheng and Ning Weikai. His SMQ would also be able to conveniently take the opportunity to snatch back its position in the market.
At that moment, Charles turned his head to look at Lin Mochen who was beside him and representing the investors. He had been invited to take part in today’s meeting and provide input when formulating the battle plan. It was surprising that he had not said a word.
“Jason!” Charles was extremely affectionate in his tone towards him, “Do you think our plan will be possible?”
Lin Mochen smiled and interlocked his fingers, balancing them on his legs. He lifted his head and scanned his surroundings, saying, “I’m in investment so I don’t give my opinions on management.”
“Come on!” Charles smiled, “Jason, everyone knows that before you went into investment, you had your own enterprise that even made it to the NASDAQ exchange. You may have left it in the hands of your managers for now. Give me your opinion, alright?”
After this pronouncement, all the Chinese representatives, including Chen Zheng looked at this Chinese investor in a different light.
Lin Mochen did not evade, but nodded his head and said, “My understanding of this enterprise is not deep, so I can’t represent more specific viewpoints. However, being locked on the lower-tiered products is indeed a more profitable business in China. In Chinese words, it is a ‘hotbed that attracts all the competitors’.”
The translator conveyed the message to Charles and his eyes lit up, saying, “You have said exactly what I was thinking. Jason, why were you in charge of the acquisitions of SMQ and New Bori but not that of Aida? If you handled it, I believe the outcome would be better.”
Once the words were said, everyone looked towards Lin Mochen, and Chen Zheng sized him up.
At that moment, Lin Mochen seemingly felt Chen’s prying look and suddenly lifted his gaze to shoot him a glare. This glare made Chen Zheng’s heart go cold as it was penetrating, showing no regard for him, and even more so like a… warning.
In an instant, Lin Mochen had already shifted his glance and said smilingly to Charles, “Personal reasons. Moreover, I have limited energy since I’m only one person so it’s more suitable to let my colleague handle it.”
It was Friday night again.
Lin Qian wore a blue uniform and stood at the front of an assembly line. Beside her were four or five supervisors who were currently displaying the various designs of fabric.
Lin Qian took a look at one, and shook her head once, “No way. This is too thick. This one ranks too low in its wear-resistance. This fabric…really does not look good…”
After four or five fabrics, the head worker became a little helpless, “Ms Lin, just what kind of fabric do you want?”
Lin Qian thought for a while and said, “I want to produce the market’s lightest, most wear-resistant and prettiest fabric, which women will like at first glance.”
The worker was speechless, “…”
Lin Qian giggled and said, “I’m speaking in too of general terms. Tell you what, I will pick out a few colors and production styles, you all try and improve them. This is my personal request. I will give you a bonus that’s guaranteed to be satisfactory, but remember to keep it a secret.”
The workers all laughed, telling her a bonus was unnecessary, and if she needed something done, all she had to do was ask. Everyone knew that ever since Ms Lin took over Mind’s production in mainland China, her management style had always been skilled and affectionate and she would always deliver what she promised. If she said that the bonus would be satisfactory, it would definitely be extremely substantial. Such a request did not require too much work but it wouldn’t have been possible if it was just an average person making the request!
After talking to the workers again for a bit, Lin Qian left the workshop. Just as she had taken a few steps, her phone rang. Every week at this time it rang, and there was no doubt that it was Li Zhicheng.
Lin Qian’s heart started to soar. “Have you reached Changsha?” she asked him.
Who knew that this time however, Li Zhicheng left her disappointed, “I’m still in Lin City, about to go on my business trip.”
“…Oh.” Lin Qian replied, “Alright, see you next week then.”
Even though he had promised to meet every week, when he got really busy, there were also times where he was unable to keep to his promise.
On the other side of the line, he laughed.
“No.” His deep voice seemingly had hints of bewitchment, “You come over.”
Lin Qian replied, “Huh?”
“I’ve already booked you a flight to Beijing tonight and if you immediately leave for the airport you’ll still be able to catch it,” he calmly said.
However, Lin Qian had lost her cool, “Now?! I haven’t even packed a bag!”
“Everything’s at home.” He said succinctly, “I have already helped you pack.”
Lin Qian’s heart started to thump fast. Why did he make it seem as though they were eloping?
“Are you coming?” he asked.
How could she possibly not go?
When she arrived in Beijing, the night was already dark.
Lin Qian simply carried her gloves in her hand and wore her white shirt with a suit and high heels. While walking through a crowd where most were dragging their luggage, she appeared very out of place. At a glance, she spotted Li Zhicheng standing in the arrival hall.
He was slightly better. He had changed out of his suit and was wearing casual attire; his hands were in his pockets as he calmly looked at her. Lin Qian walked over, “Why are you in such a rush?”
Li Zhicheng extended his hand to wrap around her waist, “Spring is short.”
Lin Qian couldn’t help but smile. She lifted her head to look into his sparkly eyes under the light which made it apparent that he was very successful recently. He was in a good mood for him to say such wanton things.
The hotel he had booked was very close to the airport, which surprised Lin Qian a little, “Why are we not staying downtown?”
Li Zhicheng replied, “We still have to fly elsewhere tomorrow.”
It became apparent to Lin Qian.
Early the next morning, after a night of desires, Li Zhicheng who “had his fill” pressed her below his body as his hands traced along her naked back, slowly touching her. Meanwhile, Lin Qian was lying on the bed, her head lowered looking at some information on fabrics on her phone.
After a while, she turned her head to look at him, her eyes sparkling, “Husband, I have a thought.”
“Hmm?”
“I want to start my own brand.”
Li Zhicheng lifted his gaze to look at her.
They looked into each other’s eyes and Lin Qian laughed, a little embarrassed, “Are you thinking that I’m too ambitious? I know this market is already very mature and it will be difficult to introduce a new brand. But…” She stole a glance at him, “Although I’m not you, I still want to give it a try and create an entirely new brand that belongs to me based on my own merits…”
“Alright,” he straightforwardly cut her off.
Lin Qian blinked her eyes and looked at him without saying a word.
“You can do it.” He flipped her over, his hand supporting the side of her body as he lowered his head and stroked her face, “Does my woman also want a share of the market? Then as the leader of this market, should I kill off this new brand or not?”
This sentence was “cruel” and powerful, teasing Lin Qian such that her heart tremored.
“You dare!” She glared at him, “From today on wherever Lin Qian’s brand is, Li Zhicheng please quickly retreat at least 3 feet and you’re not allowed to break the rule!”
Li Zhicheng lowered her head and kissed her, “Let me take charge of the stock.”
Lin Qian stretched out her hand to push him away, “I don’t want! This is a brand that I am creating by myself that has nothing to do with you. Moreover, once I set it up, you are also not to give your opinions as I want to rely on myself entirely to create a new brand. If it fails, I will accept it; if it succeeds…” She looked at him smugly, “you don’t have to be jealous about my profits as I will let you join as a shareholder then.”
What Lin Qian did not vocalize was that since her brother had told her that “you are his only weakness”, she had been rather uncomfortable. Admittedly, her talent could not be compared to Li Zhicheng’s whose talent is only comparable to higher powers. But she wasn’t too bad either.
Indeed, she had always looked up to Li Zhicheng and stood by his side but she had never once beaten herself up over it. But her brother’s words had hooked out a feeling that had been buried deep within her heart. When one stood in another’s shadow for too long, she would begin feel tired, inferior, lost and afraid that she would lose herself one day.
Hence, the idea of creating a brand that belonged to her started to slowly fester and take shape in her heart.
It was not for the money but rather to find a more distinct version of herself.
This process was completely unrelated to Li Zhicheng.
His woman having the ambition to create a startup, and who would only give him the rights to being a shareholder shocked Li Zhicheng. He felt as though his normally stable and calm heart had been lightly pinched by her hands.
It was a little uncomfortable. She would never be completely under his control, but it was as if he saw a more vibrant and liberated version of her.
Then, it dug out and even more intense desire to possess her from the depths of his heart arrived.
“Alright.” He lowered his head and kissed her red lips, “We’ll wait and see. But I cannot guarantee that I will not acquire it in the future.”
Lin Qian replied, “…B*stard!”
Early the next morning, Lin Qian was carried off the bed by Li Zhicheng.
“Such an early flight?” She was a little confused as she thought they were spending the day in Beijing and only leaving at night.
Li Zhicheng smiled gently and carried both of their luggage as he held her hand and went out the door.
When they were going through the procedures of the flight, Lin Qian was taken by surprise, “We’re going to Europe?”
Alright, she could understand that someone took care of her visa without letting her know. Her passport had always been left at home and she had already obtained Schengen visa in the past, and therefore renewing a Schengen visa did not require in person application and could be done by someone else on her behalf. She also knew that he had plans for a business trip in Europe and was a key step in his plans.
However, he had actually “kidnapped” her without a word, just so she could accompany him.
Of course, even if they were there for business, the two of them going to Europe would turn it into a road of bliss. But…
Lin Qian tilted her head to look at his cold and handsome side profile.
He was a rather clingy person after all.
