this man is not calm

Chapter 529 Killing Multiple Birds with One Stone

Freight logistics has become increasingly complicated, especially emergency air freight, which involves drones and even issues related to cargo airports, requiring extensive coordination.

Even if Huang Zhengkuo wanted to accomplish it, it wouldn't be an easy task. It would require Jin Shang to work hard, coordinate with all parties, and finally get Huang to open the key channels and make the final decision in order to achieve a satisfactory result.

There are some things that even Kim Sang finds difficult to handle.

For cargo transportation with low time sensitivity, the Yangtze River waterway and short- and medium-distance coastal shipping are sufficient. With the addition of the restored Grand Canal and several important tributaries, ships of several hundred to several thousand tons can pass through, and even ships of two thousand tons can pass through during the high-water season, which is enough to meet the needs of water transportation.

Railway transportation is of paramount importance for enabling large-capacity, long-distance transport across a vast territory while maintaining a balance between convenience and speed.

However, resources are limited, making it difficult to obtain sufficient transportation capacity.

We're almost in the 21st century, and while railway transport capacity has grown rapidly, logistics demand has increased even faster, making it increasingly difficult to find enough railcars.

The obvious reality is that the western and northern regions have an absolute advantage in terms of mineral resources and energy abundance, while consumption and use are concentrated in the central and eastern regions, especially the southeastern coast.

Before ultra-high voltage technology matured, a large portion of railway transport capacity was used to transport coal.

Electricity cannot be transported over long distances for the time being, but petrochemical energy can, especially since coal-fired power is the main source of electricity in China, making coal transportation a top priority.

While there is a good supply of high-quality coal imported from overseas, it is not enough to power generators. Steelmaking, metallurgy, coal chemical industry, and boiler heating also account for a large portion of the consumption.

Therefore, a large portion of private freight companies rely on road transport, which inevitably leads to significantly higher costs. The key to profitability lies in how to reduce costs and increase efficiency.

In the era when e-commerce was fully developed, most online purchases were not transported by rail or air. Only large and stable supply chains were suitable for freight trains. The long-distance land transport across Eurasia, which was inconvenient for water transport, also met the needs of users. For urgent transportation, air transport was faster.

After a long while, the meeting ended. Kim Sang asked his secretary and assistant to tidy up, and then he comfortably nestled in his executive chair to relax.

Holding the steaming hot tea, I took a sip and immediately felt most of my fatigue disappear.

Just then, there was a knock on the office door. Before anyone could answer, the door was pushed open, and Li Xuan walked in carrying a lunchbox.

"Is it lunchtime?"

"We arrived a long time ago, more than half an hour ago."

"Oh!"

Given Jin Shang's mindset and work efficiency, it's rare for him to need to work overtime.

They put aside the small stack of documents on their desks that hadn't been processed yet, sat down opposite each other at the small reception table, opened the box, and ate a steaming meal together.

"Winter melon and pork rib soup!"

The broth, simmered slowly over low heat, is filled with the aroma of fat and purines. Eating too much of this stuff may not be good for your health, but it is indeed very effective in replenishing energy.

"The pork ribs were cooked to a fairly good level of flavor, but the winter melon wasn't cooked properly; it was overcooked and a bit mushy."

"It's quite fresh, and tastes great! Your cooking skills have improved..."

"Just follow the recipe, anyone can do that!"

“That’s hard to say!”

Li Xuan eats very politely, but at a very fast pace. She opens and closes her mouth and chews incredibly quickly, yet this doesn't affect her conversation. It seems she has already adapted to this rhythm.

"Sister Gui's cooking is getting better and better, with a bit of the flavor of Laobian. I've only learned a little bit and I feel like I can show it off."

"Your cooking skills are definitely top-notch!"

In her previous life, she was a very famous Filipino maid in the Asia-Pacific region. She was known for her attentive and comfortable service and impeccable manners, and she almost became a pillar of the country's foreign exchange earnings.

The tradition of loving to make soup is almost universal in the southeastern coastal areas, especially in Guangdong and Guangxi. This tradition stems from the local climate and soil, which have nurtured the local customs and traditions. Being good at cooking, making delicious soup, and brewing tea are highly sought-after skills. Many people make a living from these skills, or even pass them down as family traditions. Various secret recipes have emerged one after another. As long as you have the real skills, someone will be willing to pay to hire you.

"Will I also have to serve tea to my mother-in-law in the future?"

"It's just a formality at the wedding; who has the time for that at other times? Most of my family members love tea, but my mother is a bit different; she prefers mellow black tea and delicate white tea!"

"One style is intense, the other is delicate; the two are very different!"

"It depends on my mood! My grandmother likes oolong tea; she prefers the rich, mellow flavor of light tea. My father and I like green tea, which has a fresh aroma and a sweet, strong taste. Of course, these are just preferences; we don't mind other types..."

"Not very picky?"

Jin Shang smiled and replied:
"Actually, my family doesn't care too much about gimmicks like origin, process, or vintage. As long as it tastes good and we like it, that's all that matters. It's mostly Lao Bian who arranges everything. It's just that... people often send us local specialties. If we accept them, they'll think we like them and will send them to us more often in the future."

"So the outside world spread the rumor that they liked a famous tea from a certain place, and everyone who visited them gave it as a gift? It turns out it was all just hearsay, and everyone believed it?"

“Your family is well-off, and you're not as picky about food as some people say, are you? We ‘second-generation rich kids’ don’t really live such a rigid life. Paying too much attention to details and so-called quality of life is just creating trouble for yourself and trapping yourself in a cocoon. As long as you’re comfortable and convenient, that’s enough.”

The two chatted and ate, and soon their lunchboxes were empty.

Having just eaten, it's not a good time for a nap. So, while the winter sun is still warm, I'll go for a walk and soak up some sunshine.

On weekdays, there are quite a few elderly people strolling around the nearby park, as well as many young mothers pushing strollers, and the sounds of playful children can be heard from a distance.

"From what I've observed, the birth rate seems to have been steadily increasing..."

Kim Sang casually replied:

"The growth rate is limited, and there is no possibility of significant changes in the short term. We expect to break through one billion next year, or at the latest the year after."

"After half a century of recuperation, the population has increased 2.7 times, as reported in the news..."

Li Xuan glanced at the young mother who was walking past the two of them, holding the hands of two little girls, one big and one small, and said...

"The topic of food self-sufficiency rate keeps coming up."

"It's nothing serious, don't worry."

With global warming over the next two decades, the East Asian rainfall line will continue to shift northward, turning the severely arid Northwest, Central Asia, and the Loess Plateau green, resulting in a significant increase in arable land area and making increased grain production almost a certainty.

In addition to the traditional major grain-producing bases, there will be no need to worry about food shortages for at least a hundred years. The extent to which industrialization will support agriculture will become apparent in a decade or so.

The widespread adoption of heavy agricultural machinery, electrification, genetically modified organisms, and the promotion of drones will help reduce farming costs and increase yields, which are all good things.

For a country with a complete industrial chain, which is gradually shifting from insufficient production to insufficient demand, the advantages of a large population are numerous.

If demand is strong, production is not lagging behind, and there is even surplus capacity to export, then that would be ideal.

Even if there are obstacles to the export-oriented economy, domestic demand is enough to maintain the basic foundation, allowing for both offensive and defensive maneuvers.

This is the true strength of a great power.

"Humans... are the most precious resource!"

The logic of society's operation is the pattern generated by the activities of groups composed of individuals.

However, as a big boss who directly and gradually controls the livelihoods of tens of thousands of people, one cannot only consider the benefits and ignore the drawbacks.

"Resources... also depend on how they are used."

Thanks to the "golden touch," Jinxi Culture and its subsidiaries are slightly more efficient, which puts the group in a relatively advantageous position when competing with its peers.

Often, the outcome of a business battle hinges on a negligible one percent, or even less, a difference in efficiency.

Life and death are separated by a fine line.

However, some problems cannot be simply attributed to whether the employees are "cooperative" enough.

"So, you replaced Wei Shuangping with Jiang Long in order to manage her more effectively?"

After glancing at his fiancée with surprise, Kim Sang answered quite frankly.

"It's not just about that; it's a multi-pronged approach!"

"Just as I thought! In fact... the offline lifestyle business I manage has changed a lot as more and more people have gotten involved."

Profit-driven commercial companies, after growing large and strong, often use a series of gimmicks such as corporate culture, philosophy, goals, values, or social contributions to "imprint their thinking" on their employees, thereby reducing management costs.

Every great company naturally has its lofty ideals and goals, and the root cause of its decline is basically that it no longer believes in what it proclaims from top to bottom.

If it were an ancient feudal lord or monarch, they could use propaganda about the well-being of the people, the legitimacy of the Mandate of Heaven, and the popular will to maintain their status and authority, thereby indirectly strengthening control from top to bottom.

But what about a modern company?
Ultimately, bosses, shareholders, directors, senior executives, as well as middle and lower-level managers and grassroots employees, are all in it for profit, to make a living, and for their future, which can be quantified into real money.

As for how to achieve other goals after making money, that's another matter.

When Jinxi Culture had a relatively small number of employees, some problems were not obvious. However, when the number of full-time employees, outsourced workers, temporary workers, and interns reached tens of thousands, plus the number of employees in affiliated companies, the number became uncountable.

With so many people, large and small "factions" have formed, coming together for common interests and engaging in open and covert struggles for the benefit of their small groups.

That motto that's been hanging at the company entrance for almost five years, probably only a little over a thousand people have actually seen it.

The logistics truck drivers, couriers, barcode scanners, cleaners, and security guards scattered across the country, even though more than half of them are full-time employees who have paid social security, have basically never been to the group company headquarters. They are just there to make a living, and they may not even know who the actual controller of their company is, or even know the boss's name.

In this situation, it is impossible to expect to strengthen the bond through some kind of "corporate culture" and instill in them the mindset of "treating the factory as their home".

Ultimately, even with the help of his family's "golden touch," Jin Shang can only directly manage one or two thousand people at headquarters. The rest will have to rely on senior executives and middle managers at all levels to make a difference.

Li Xuan nodded knowingly and said:
"Sister Wei is good in every way. She is very capable, proficient in her business, has outstanding intelligence, and high professional ethics. The only shortcoming is that she was promoted quickly and became a senior executive almost in one step. She may have had a good grasp of the situation at the grassroots level in the past, but in less than five years, the business scale and number of employees have expanded several thousand times. Some problems were not corrected at the beginning, and now they are difficult to deal with."

“Yes! Jiang Long is different. He may lack the education and wisdom of Wei Shuangping, but his experience and ability to solve practical problems at the middle and lower levels are what Jinxi Mall needs.”

For example, the timeliness of online shopping logistics is very important. In the actual transaction process, a certain amount of returns and scrap will be generated. How should these goods be handled?

Is it to be sold as a free gift or benefit, or to be sent directly to offline outlets and sold at a discount as near-expiry or defective products to recoup some funds?

Laymen might think that they could simply return the money to the merchant or manufacturer.

In reality, the cost of returning or changing the item is higher than simply throwing it away!
This makes things more difficult.

If we don't get rid of them, the inventory costs will keep increasing.

Wei Shuangping, who lacks grassroots experience, may be rather rigid in managing this kind of situation.

The experienced Jiang Long is different; he can turn a blind eye when necessary and be decisive when it's time to stand up for himself.

For example, many cola drinks, near-expiry food, and defective goods that had nowhere to go were eaten or drunk by warehouse management personnel, or even sold at a discount for their own use or given to relatives and friends.

Such losses are actually within a controllable range. As long as they are not too blatant and do not exceed the cost-to-profit ratio, there is no need to worry about them. In fact, it is understandable to treat these small favors as benefits that some employees cannot openly enjoy.

However, if it is clear that all the goods are of good quality, and someone uses special means to fabricate facts, forge documents, resell genuine products for personal gain, causing significant losses, then that is unforgivable.

The balance and degree of these matters, the employee rotation system, management regulations, and the allocation of resources all require experienced senior executives to grasp the overall situation. If done well, it will benefit everyone, but if something goes wrong, the consequences could be dire.

After chatting for a while, Jin Shang concluded:
"Don't treat your employees like mindless, stupid tools. Water that is too clear has no fish, but never do anything that invites thieves in."

"To put it simply, business is about balancing costs and profits. The more people you manage, the higher the costs go."

Li Xuan echoed in agreement.

"The behavior of a specific employee no longer has a significant impact on the group company, but the overall bias is still very damaging."

In comparison, Wei Shuangping is more suitable for designing the "superstructure" of the group company, while Jiang Long is better at filling gaps in the middle and lower levels, achieving goals subtly and quietly, and even "sternly" disciplining others without making a fuss.

Higher wages and better benefits have boosted everyone's work enthusiasm. With the help of a "golden touch," everyone is in a positive atmosphere. However, even in the best environment, there are bound to be some "wage thieves" who slack off, take advantage of the situation, or pretend to be busy while doing nothing. The number of such employees has gradually increased.

"The turnover rate is too low. Running water doesn't stagnate, and a frequently used door hinge doesn't rust. How can we weed out the weak and select the strong instead of doing the opposite? We need Jiang Long to step in now."

(End of this chapter)