National Tide 1980.

1990 was indeed a paradise for business people.

Merchants, who have been looked down upon since ancient times, have become the most glorious new symbol of the Republic.

It took only two years for private enterprises to go from quietly emerging to springing up in large numbers.

In Beijing, Ning Weimin's investments cover almost all the most profitable industries, and each of them is a pioneer among private enterprises.

Who could blame them when they had both Ning Weimin's guidance and his financial support?

During the transition from a blue ocean to a red ocean market, seizing the market opportunity is incredibly easy.

Even with only the ability to maintain the status quo and mediocre talent, Zhang Shihui...

Because of the "private label wine" business tailored for him by Ning Weimin, his personal assets increased several times over, and he even became the fastest-rising and most profitable person among Ning Weimin's domestic partners.

It has to be said that Ning Weimin was really too good to him.

Not only did they give him the most lucrative opportunity, but the brilliant strategy they offered was a model of modern economics.

In an era where information channels are scarce and advertising is most effective, the series of liquor advertisements featuring Chen Xiaoxu, Deng Jie, and Shen Lin, starring Chen Xiaoxu, Deng Jie, and Shen Lin, became famous as soon as they aired on television, and their products quickly became popular throughout the country.

Zhang Shihui originally thought she had prepared enough goods after spending a long time, but in fact, it was not enough to sell at all.

The advertisement aired just a few days ago, less than a month ago.

He had 160,000 to 170,000 cases of OEM liquor, costing approximately 800,000 yuan each, which were snapped up by distributors from all over the country who either came to his door or called him. He got more than 3 million yuan in return.

Moreover, there are countless other people waiting to receive their goods, some even paying deposits before the deadline.

After that, Zhang Shihui produced as many as he could and sold them all.

Honestly, Zhang Shihui has never made money so easily in her life. Even the speed at which she can OEM alcoholic beverages can't keep up with the speed at which she sells them.

With this business, even if you can just relax and do nothing, you can earn in a year what others would earn in over ten years.

So for the past year, Zhang Shihui, who was almost ecstatic, mainly did two things.

First, they simply bought their own OEM factory, keeping the trademark and product packaging firmly in their own hands.

Secondly, we search far and wide for wine sources that are reasonably priced, of reliable quality, and have a stable supply, so that we can bring them back, process them, and sell them under our own brands.

And so, before National Day that year.

Zhang Shihui has achieved another crucial breakthrough in her career.

He negotiated terms with the Tongzhou County government, deciding to take on all the employees, assume the company's existing debt of 2.67 million yuan, and pay 2 million yuan in cash to buy the Tongzhou Winery, which was experiencing declining profits year after year and was almost on the verge of bankruptcy.

Furthermore, through business registration change procedures, the company and winery were renamed to "Dream of the Red Chamber".

The completion of this acquisition not only further strengthened the close connection between the company and the winery and the culture of "Dream of the Red Chamber", but also attracted widespread attention in the market and significantly enhanced the brand's awareness and market competitiveness.

More importantly, he freed his company from being a shell company, securing a relatively stable supply of liquor and truly becoming an industrial capitalist with his own factory, earning remarkably stable profits over the long term.

To put it simply, if he were to operate the Tongzhou Winery at full capacity, it could produce more than 5,000 tons of wine annually.

The average cost of grain for one ton of liquor is only five or six hundred yuan, but thanks to the big IP of "Dream of the Red Chamber", it can be sold for twelve thousand yuan.

With this kind of production capacity and gross profit margin, how many times will the profit increase?

What Zhang Shihui can clearly see now is that this factory can guarantee him and Ning Weimin at least 30 to 40 million yuan in profit per year, and he will receive half of it.

To put it bluntly, it's too easy to cash out alcohol sales by leveraging the huge IP of Dream of the Red Chamber; it's faster than robbing people.

This business not only benefits from industrial production and caters to the consumption habits of Chinese people, but also gains a special premium from culture. If he doesn't make money, who will?
So now, he's not only become arrogant, but also greedy.

On the one hand, his confidence soared, and he felt that his abilities were no less than those of others, and that he was also a chosen one of heaven, destined by heaven.

If you keep doing this, you'll become a billionaire in no time and be able to expand internationally.

On the other hand, having tasted the benefits, he still felt that these advantages were not enough.

He felt that this was the perfect opportunity he had been waiting for all his life, one that would allow him to soar to new heights.

So in order to earn money faster, he also had to spend money on advertising, hoping to speed up the sales of wine as much as possible. At the same time, he also wanted to continue to acquire wineries, continue to expand production capacity, and earn more money.

That's why on October 8th, Zhang Shihui invited Zhao Daqing, who managed Ning Weimin's advertising company, and Manager Sha, who managed Ning Weimin's liquor store, to dinner together.

First of all, as companies under Ning Weimin with related businesses, Zhang Shihui was absolutely certain that these two people could help him and would offer him the best price, without cheating him.

In addition, he also had a narrow-minded desire to show off his wealth in front of these two people.

This was to prove that his abilities and qualifications as the manager of the Tan Palace Restaurant were no less than those of the high-ranking executives who had previously worked at Pierre Carton.

Otherwise, wouldn't it be like "wearing fine clothes in the dark" and getting away with this windfall for nothing?
This may be the true nature of a nouveau riche – conspicuous consumption and a competitive mentality.

Zhang Shihui craves recognition from others by flaunting his wealth, and he is no longer satisfied with simply running the "Huimin Bookstore" to benefit the people. He seeks to gain the attention and appreciation of ordinary people through interviews with reporters and honors awarded by the government.

What he urgently needs now is for people of higher social standing to envy him, preferably those who were once on equal footing with Ning Weimin.

Perhaps this represents a kind of "progress" in his social class. However, due to his own limitations, he failed to realize that this behavior actually stemmed from his insecurity about his social status, a manifestation of his inner lack of self-confidence.

…………

At 11:30 a.m. on October 8, Zhang Shihui, Zhao Daqing and Manager Sha met at the Guibinlou Hotel next to the Jingcheng Hotel on Chang'an Street.

Zhang Shihui hosted the dinner at Mingyuan Restaurant, located on the third floor of the VIP building.

Zhang Shihui had her own reasons for choosing this location.

Firstly, the VIP Lou Hotel is a new hotel invested in by Mr. Fok from Hong Kong, which just opened on September 22.

Even though everyone was unfamiliar with the place and the environment was strange, he didn't seem that timid.

Otherwise, he would easily expose his petty bourgeois nature, wasting money and leaving flaws in his record.

Secondly, besides imperial cuisine, the most expensive food in Beijing these days is Cantonese cuisine.

As a former restaurant manager, he has a certain authority on the professionalism of Chinese cuisine. At such a banquet, he can not only be more comfortable and at ease, but also better immerse himself in the sense of accomplishment of self-realization.

Moreover, it also allowed him to showcase his talents and send a vague yet subtle signal to the two guests he had invited: he had surpassed them not only in wealth but also in style.

As expected, the luxurious decor of the VIP Lou Hotel successfully elevated the style of Zhang Shihui's banquet.

Whether it's the massive ivory carving "The Great Wall" in the lobby on the first floor, the magnificent "Jade Carvings of the Western-style Buildings of the Yuanmingyuan" on the third floor, the patterned carpets in the restaurant that showcase Chinese culture, the Ming-style rosewood furniture with silk cushions, or the ink paintings of pine trees and cranes symbolizing longevity, all are pleasing to the eye and worthy of admiration, living up to the saying that "In ancient times there were imperial homes, now there is a VIP building."

Especially for these few people, it immediately reminded them of the former Tan Gong Restaurant, thus creating a common topic of conversation. Zhang Shihui naturally talked about it all the way, just like a true expert.

Zhang Shihui had reserved a private room on the second floor by the window.

Dining here not only allows you to enjoy a tranquil and pleasant atmosphere and savor fine wines and delicacies, but also lets you appreciate the beautiful scenery of the garden hall outside the window, immersing yourself in the beauty of green trees and red flowers. This is true leisure and enjoyment, a feast for the eyes and the palate.

Of the two guests, Manager Sha was the most observant and perceptive, noticing Zhang Shihui's change as soon as they met.

One glance at his gray Pierre Cardin suit and you know it's not made in Japan, but imported.

A second glance at his gleaming Rolex gold watch and enormous gem-encrusted gold ring on his wrist, along with the Goldlion wallet he casually carried, made people look at him with even greater admiration.

So as soon as he sat down, he said with deliberate flattery, "Brother, you're really something. You've made it so fast. Looks like drinking baijiu (Chinese liquor) is more profitable. Compared to you, I'm far behind."

Zhang Shihui was very pleased with these compliments and felt quite pleased with herself.

But not wanting to immediately boast, he feigned modesty, saying, "Oh, not at all, it's just so-so. Your imported liquor business isn't bad either. Lately, your ads are everywhere; you see them on TV and radio. Sales must have increased quite a bit, right?"

Manager Sha is quite adept at interpersonal relationships. When he tries to be humble, he appears more sincere than Zhang Shihui, and he also flatters her by going along with the flow.

"Oh, I owe it all to Mr. Zhao's help. Without Mr. Zhao, how could I have increased my brand awareness? And let me tell you, the results are really good. As soon as we started advertising, sales went up visibly. It's all thanks to Mr. Zhao."

Despite working in advertising, Zhao Daqing is a very down-to-earth person. Upon hearing this, he immediately became humble, and he meant it sincerely.

"No, no, no, I wouldn't dare take credit for that. I'm just the one who does the work. If we're talking about real talent, it has to be our General Manager Ning. What a brilliant advertising slogan! 'Good poetry with good wine, good wine with good poetry, savor the ultimate Hennessy.' With those two lines from General Manager Ning, everything's perfect. Otherwise, how could we compete with 'When Rémy Martin is opened, good things naturally follow'? They rely on good luck, we rely on taste. Otherwise, how could we possibly compete with Rémy Martin, which entered the Beijing market much earlier? Old Sha, don't you think so? I'm not saying this to be mean, but the reason why French XO, Martell, isn't selling well is precisely because they don't have good advertising slogans. Oh, by the way, General Manager Zhang, your advertisement was also General Manager Ning's doing. Well, three beauties from 'Dream of the Red Chamber' are advertising for you, who else has such good fortune? Isn't your gain even more obvious?"

However, Zhang Shihui did not like to hear these words.

He hadn't expected that even though Ning Weimin wasn't in Beijing, people would still be praising him at any time. He was slightly provoked and couldn't help but retort, "Mr. Zhao, so you're saying that a good advertisement is all it takes to secure business? That makes business too easy, doesn't it? Let's not be too certain. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, I'll hold you responsible..."

This statement is not only obviously sarcastic, but also lacks easily understandable logic.

After all, the three people present belonged to the same camp, and they were having a good chat. Why did this sudden unpleasantness happen?

Zhao Daqing was stunned for a moment, genuinely puzzled.

As for Manager Sha, he did see through her intentions, but he mistakenly thought that Zhang Shihui was trying to compete with him, so he quickly changed the subject and praised Zhang Shihui instead.

"Hey, brother, you're right. Actually, if you want your business to be successful, advertising alone isn't enough; you also need good products. Take your business for example, everyone knows that your 'Twelve Beauties of Jinling' and 'A Dream of Red Mansions' are selling like hotcakes all over the country. Now, many people are comparing your wine to our traditional top ten famous wines. My wine shop's future is like a firefly; at most, it will only occupy a corner of the capital. Your prospects are incredible; you're destined to have your sights set on the whole country."

In fact, those last few words were pure flattery.

Zhang Shihui's wines are all private label wines, and the wines he uses are all mid-range. No matter what, they can't compare to the top ten famous wines.

Zhang Shihui thought it sounded great, and this time she really wanted to show off.

He feigned nonchalance, but was actually quite smug as he boasted, "Hey, Lao Sha, you're a true expert. I won't lie to you, I recently bought a winery with an annual output of about 5,000 tons. Next year I plan to build another one, and then the output will exceed 10,000 tons. Right now, I'm managing both production and advertising. So, the reason I invited you two here today is twofold: first, I want Mr. Sha to help me find out which wineries in Beijing are suitable for me to acquire; second, I want to ask Mr. Zhao to help me film another advertisement. This time, I'm going to go all out, gathering all twelve beauties of Jinling. I even want to get a commercial slot on national television. You two won't disappoint me, will you?"

Manager Sha and Zhao Daqing were both taken aback by Zhang Shihui's words; they really hadn't expected this kid to make such a big fuss.

"I'll inquire about the winery for you first, but you have to ask if General Manager Ning knows about it?" Manager Sha said.

“That’s right. The advertisement you’re shooting will cost at least 500,000 to 600,000 yuan, even if the time slot isn’t right. Shouldn’t you talk to President Ning about it?” Zhao Daqing also had concerns.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Shihui smiled and said nonchalantly, "You two are just too rigid. You've tied your own hands and feet; how can you shoulder important responsibilities like that? Who is President Ning? He's like the Jade Emperor, far away in Japan, where he's content to hold balls and receive the worship of millions. He entrusted us with specific tasks because he trusts us, so don't bother him with trivial matters. Who are we? The pioneers who created the world, like Pangu. If you can handle these tasks, do them yourselves first; otherwise, when will you ever truly share the boss's burdens? Don't you agree?"

Manager Sha and Zhao Daqing exchanged another glance, and this time they both sensed that something was amiss.

The Jade Emperor and Pangu—what kind of metaphors are these? Who is greater and who is lesser?
They even said they were sharing the boss's burdens; that sounds nice.

Has Zhang Shihui developed a rebellious streak? (End of Chapter)