Restarting life in Siheyuan

In the back garden of the villa, under a parasol, Zhu Xuefeng and Mr. Jin were talking with a third-party investor. It would be more accurate to say that Zhu Xuefeng was assigning a task to him rather than talking. Mr. Jin looked at the third partner with mixed feelings. This white old man was by no means simple, but he obeyed Zhu Xuefeng's arrangements, which was very interesting.

"Okay, we've said everything that needs to be said. Now everyone should split up and act according to the plan. The next step is to get the funds in place. Mr. Webster, yours should be fine, right?"

"Dear Mr. Zhu, the funds on my side are already in place and can be deposited at any time."

The old man seemed to have an incomprehensible respect for Zhu Xuefeng, which Mr. Jin really couldn't understand.

"Okay, our funds should arrive starting the day after tomorrow. Mr. Jin, the rest is yours. Any questions?"

According to the shareholding system, Mr. Jin was responsible for investing RMB 400,000, accounting for 5% of the shares. This was a considerable amount of money and put a lot of pressure on him. However, since he had approved Zhu Xuefeng's plan, he naturally spared no effort to run around. Now he had a basic plan, but he still had to collect it.

Seeing that the one million from the third party was ready, Mr. Jin felt a sense of urgency, but still looked very relaxed.

"No problem. I have arranged for the funds to arrive in your account within a week."

It seems that Mr. Jin is very capable. Four hundred thousand is not a small amount of money now. It is impossible to collect it relying on Chinatown alone. This is also a small test of his ability.

Seeing Mr. Jin agreed, Zhu Xuefeng also smiled, "Then let's have a pleasant cooperation. When the funds are ready, Mr. Jin, I will have to ask you to go through the formalities."

"Of course. Leave it to me." Since Mr. Jin will be in charge of the supermarket chain in the future, it is natural for him to take on this task.

"By the way, this Mr. Webster has another identity that should be able to provide you with a lot of help. Mr. Jin, you may not know this, but I forgot to introduce him to you just now. Mr. Webster is a former rear admiral of the Atlantic Navy. I believe that with his help, you will be much more relaxed."

"Rear Admiral?!" Mr. Jin was a little confused. It was too unbelievable. If this person was a rear admiral, he would be the top boss in this city, and the chain store business would definitely be smooth sailing.

"Boss Zhu, let's put it this way. I'll go back now and secure the funds as soon as possible. I'll try to get the funds into the account within five days, yes, five days." Mr. Jin's identity as a rear admiral put a lot of pressure on him. He was no longer as calm as he seemed just now, and he quickly expressed his position.

Seeing that Mr. Jin was so eager, Zhu Xuefeng naturally did not stop him. He just reminded him, "You have to come over the day after tomorrow. We still have to discuss the logistics supply of the supermarket chain in North America. You can't be absent."

"No problem, we will be on time." Mr. Jin knew that Jiang Fangzhuo and his party came here for this matter. In the future, the chain supermarket will exist independently from Dongsheng Trading Company on the surface, but the two parties will have a close cooperative relationship. The supply of goods and overseas logistics will all depend on Dongsheng Trading Company.

After seeing Mr. Jin off, Mr. Webster spoke in a low voice, "Master, as you wished, the security company has been established, and the six captains are in place. There are currently 264 security personnel, and another 36 will join after retiring in the near future."

In accordance with Zhu Xuefeng's request, after being forced to retire early, Mr. Webster established the "Black Forest" security company and recruited a large number of his former subordinates.

"Okay, these six are absolutely reliable. They will be your right-hand men from now on. Work hard. We can continue to recruit people. Now it is August, early September. Make sure that two teams can arrive at the area I designate and be on standby."

"Yes, my master, do you have time to go to the company and give these children a lecture?"

Faced with Mr. Webster's request, Zhu Xuefeng was a little hesitant. He originally planned to meet with several team leaders in private, but now Webster asked him to meet other team members. Although there was no problem with these people, was it appropriate for him to appear in the security company?

"Not for now. Find a time to gather the six captains and we can meet together. I won't contact the others."

Including the old man in front of him, Zhu Xuefeng has only screened seven people in total to reduce the possibility of the spread of news as much as possible. The space can guarantee people's loyalty, but it cannot guarantee that there will be no unintentional leaks. These seven people are determined and have strong mental strength, and they were found after a special screening.

"In compliance with your wishes, dear master, we plan to reach a size of 2,000 people by the end of next year."

"Well, that's good. We also need to speed up the expansion of our business and realize profitability as soon as possible. Are there any problems with funding now?"

The current security company was founded in the name of Mr. Webster and several naval officers with Wu Qianqian secretly investing $500,000. The funds are not abundant, and the key is that the weapons consumption is too high.

"Master, you don't have to worry about the funds. I have some savings for emergencies, and I can also get a loan from the bank. I have good resources in this regard, please believe me."

"Well, go on, my old Webster."

Since Webster didn't need to add funds himself, Zhu Xuefeng was relieved. As Webster used to be in a high position, he had a lot of resources, especially in many cities on the East Coast. This matter was indeed not difficult for him.

Mr. Webster had already left, and because of the need to maintain confidentiality, he was not brought to a military court. Finally, after various investigations, he was forced to retire early on the pretext of his health.

All other soldiers of the Eagle aircraft carrier formation who had been examined also signed confidentiality agreements and were forced to retire. The retired General Webster was dissatisfied with the military's placement of his subordinates, so it was reasonable for him to gather everyone and start a security company.

Perhaps some senior congressmen sympathized with old Webster's experience. After all, the security company that only came into being decades later was set up in this way, and many government agencies have expressed their intention to cooperate.

In the future, we will develop security business for related companies, government agencies, and overseas institutions. In these aspects, Mr. Webster's experience has unparalleled advantages. The security company is the first in North America and has been officially registered. No one knows how huge this organization will be in a few decades.

In the afternoon, the two leaders from North America rushed to the villa and had a secret conversation with Zhu Xuefeng in the room for a long time, while Yang Zhen was whispering with her sister Yang Lei in the backyard.

"Sister, how is it, did you say it?"

Yang Lei's face was full of happiness and her face was slightly red.

"It seems he agreed, right? How did he treat you?"

Yang Lei looked at her anxious sister and shook her head slightly. Yang Zhen couldn't believe it.

"Sister, you are so beautiful and can help him with things, but he doesn't agree? Doesn't he like you?"

"Well, he said: If your sister is okay, I like her cheerful and lively personality..."

Yang Zhen was stunned, and it took him a while to realize that he was played a trick by his sister. He waved his fist and was about to stand up. Yang Lei pointed at Zhu Xuefeng's room and gestured. Yang Zhen then sat down in annoyance and lowered his voice.

"Sister, don't you have that?"

"What that?"

"It's just serving the emperor in bed. Didn't grandpa say that once you marry into the Zhu family, you are a member of the Zhu family and you have to serve the emperor in bed." Yang Lei shook her head, "No, he respects me a lot..."

"And then what? And then what? It's all over?"

"He said that tomorrow, Miss Wu will also come over, and there will be a small meeting, and he asked me to attend as well."

Yang Zhen's eyes widened, his face full of surprise, "What a coincidence?"

"Your Highness said that we need to adjust the business model in North America. This has been planned for a long time. You know this too."

"But they didn't say Miss Wu was coming. I thought it was just the two people in charge from North America coming."

Not to mention the two sisters were whispering here, the three people in the room were also communicating.

"Boss, Miss Wu's flight will arrive tomorrow morning."

"Well, you guys can arrange to pick me up then. I won't be going over."

"Ok."

Zhu Xuefeng took a sip of tea and asked, "Who of you can tell me about the investigation of North American supermarket chains?"

Jiang Fangzhou looked at the woman beside him. This woman was his deputy, Deputy General Manager Zhang Meng. Zhang Meng nodded to Jiang Fangzhou with a barely perceptible gesture.

"Boss, let me introduce you."

This woman, who is about 27 or 28 years old, was also selected from Japan and came to North America. She is an excellent female professional manager. She wears a decent professional suit, simple makeup, capable yet elegant, and has a unique temperament and taste. Her smile is warm and confident. Zhu Xuefeng liked her the first time he met her. She is indeed worthy of being admired by Wu Qianqian.

"Okay, please let Miss Zhang introduce me."

"Boss, according to your request, we have conducted a survey of well-known brand supermarket chains in major cities in North America. The most famous and largest one is the "mass market", and there are also four brands with certain regional advantages."

Zhang Meng reported the investigation results in detail. In fact, Mr. Jin also had an investigation report, but it was far less detailed than that of Dongsheng Trading Company.

There are supermarkets in all major and medium-sized cities now. Although there are not many large chains, according to the investigation of Zhang Meng and others, many small ones are also seeking to form alliances and collaborate, and those that have already become chains are also actively planning to expand.

In general, supermarket chains in North America have a trend of rapid expansion, and now is the best time to enter. If you miss out now, it will be extremely difficult to enter once other brands have completely occupied the market.

The few famous ones in later generations are only small in scale now and do not pose much threat, but the first supermarket chain has been established for more than 30 years and has grown to 11 stores. Its business items include daily necessities, food and medicine, clothing, shoes and bags, and home appliances, etc., and it has established its position as the industry leader.

The only good news is that large-scale cross-regional supermarket chains have not yet appeared. The largest one has only developed in two states. Each place is still dominated by small regional supermarkets. Chain brands have not yet demonstrated their huge advantages in centralized procurement and unified logistics.

"Boss, we believe that after experiencing rapid development, chain supermarkets will become the dominant force in the retail market. Their open sales model, centralized merchandise display, and efficient shopping experience have made supermarkets the first choice for consumers to shop."

"Well, well said. It seems you have done your homework in detail. Thank you."

Zhang Meng felt a little overwhelmed by Zhu Xuefeng's thanks, "It's my duty, boss."

"You deserve praise for a job well done, Ms. Zhang. Your investigation report has given me some inspiration, and also brought me a sense of urgency."

Jiang Fangzhuo and Zhang Meng can both understand their boss's sense of urgency. If other brands also choose to expand aggressively, the pressure on them to set up their own supermarkets will naturally be greater.

"Now the company has decided to get involved in the supermarket chain industry. My decision is that Dongsheng Company's North American Trade Branch will take on the overseas procurement business of the supermarket chains here in the future and will have to connect with the supermarket chains. This burden is heavy. Who of you is willing to take it over?"

"But boss, I missed something just now." Zhang Meng quickly expressed her opinion, and Zhu Xuefeng motioned for her to continue.

"Boss, according to our understanding, the current federal law has very strict management and control over chain supermarkets, and foreign-owned sole proprietorship is not allowed. You have to consider this issue."

"Well, that's a good reminder. We also understand this and have made some circumventions. I can tell you that now there are two other shareholders besides us. They are both legal natural persons and their shares meet the requirements."

Zhang Meng was a little embarrassed. How could her boss not consider this issue when making such a huge investment? She felt that she was being too reckless.

"Boss, I am willing. Compared with Manager Jiang, I have some gaps in market development. I think I can handle the contact with suppliers and business connection with supermarket chains."

Seeing Zhang Meng speak up, Jiang Fangzhuo chose to support him. Although he also wanted to participate in his boss's new project, he knew that he was under a lot of pressure now. After communicating with his boss last time, the boss did adjust the production capacity of heavy motorcycles, and it has continued to increase over the past year. He is now happily suffering.

Zhu Xuefeng was somewhat impressed by Zhang Meng's self-recommendation, as she was the one he had chosen.

"You two have no objection. In that case, Manager Jiang, your responsibilities in North America will not be adjusted too much for the time being, but you must operate the Dongsheng Electronics and Machinery brand stores. Different from chain supermarkets, Dongsheng's own products are high-quality products."

"Boss, rest assured. I will do it." Jiang Fangzhuo has been recharging himself over the past year. His main focus now has shifted to business management in North America, which was originally his responsibilities.

"Deputy Manager Zhang, you are responsible for the existing business and also need to connect with the supermarket chain. This is a heavy burden. Do you have confidence?"

It was the first time for Deputy General Manager Zhang Meng to meet the big boss. The market development in recent years has given her sufficient training and she has grown very fast. With wisdom, tenacity, warmth and the spirit of constant pursuit of progress, she has led her team to achieve good results. She is particularly outstanding among the women in the company and is deeply favored by Wu Qianqian. Because of Wu Qianqian's recommendation and Zhang Meng's self-recommendation, Zhu Xuefeng naturally chose Zhang Meng this time.

I looked at the manager again. She was of medium build and well-dressed. She showed the competence of a professional woman without losing the unique feminine beauty. Her long, shiny black hair was simple yet fashionable, which perfectly set off her capable and delicate face.

"Boss, please rest assured. This is pressure but also motivation. I have the confidence that with the support of the team, I will definitely achieve your wish."

"Okay, there will be a supply chain management meeting the day after tomorrow. Suppliers from several parties will be present at that time, and we will finalize the specific details."

(End of this chapter)