money player

Knock on the door and enter Zhou Ruoyun's office. Xian Yaowen sees Liao Kexin sitting opposite Zhou Ruoyun.

He stepped forward and said, "Sister-in-law."

"Yaowen".

After the two greeted each other, Zhou Ruoyun said, "Master, from today onwards, my sister-in-law will be my secretary."

Upon hearing this, Xian Yaowen looked at Liao Kexin and asked, "Sister-in-law, does my brother know?"

"He doesn't have time to concern himself with my affairs," Liao Kexin said expressionlessly, then made a standing up gesture. "You must have something to say, I'll go out first."

Xian Yaowen waved his hand, "Sister-in-law, please sit down. Ruoyun and I are discussing business. Since you are Ruoyun's secretary, you can listen in as well."

Liao Kexin sat back down, and Xian Yaowen sat down next to her, looking at Zhou Ruoyun's face and asking, "Have the funds arrived yet?"

Zhou Ruoyun stated bluntly, "After the $200 million was transferred out, two more sums of money arrived in succession: the first $400 million and the second $200 million. Currently, Jin Fugui Holdings has a total of $1000 million in its accounts, but the funds are under supervision and cannot be used for more than $600 million. You know why."

What's the progress in Singapore?

When Zhou Ruoyun heard Xian Yaowen ask this, she understood that he meant there was no need to hide it from Liao Kexin, so she said, "A letter of intent for the acquisition of the tin mine, with a total value of £1071.4 million, has been signed. HSBC will be responsible for the subsequent transfer of ownership."

"Be prepared to disclose information to the public, and disclose it to the public immediately when I give the order."

"Should it be announced to the public?"

"Yes, Jin Fugui Holdings will continue to raise funds from the outside in the future, and disclosing its performance is a matter of course."

"Okay, I will prepare in advance."

How are the press conference preparations going?

"The 8th is an auspicious day for the opening, and the press conference will be held on that day. I have already started sending invitations to newspapers and foreign companies."

"As I told you before, Li Zhiqing will attend the press conference, but her investment amount has been changed from US$400 million to HK$400 million. In addition, the publicly disclosed shareholding structure is 52% for London Golden Fortune Holdings, 3% for you, and 10% for me. The identities of the other shareholders will remain confidential."

"I also have shares?" Zhou Ruoyun asked in surprise.

"It's held on behalf of the family, and the dividends don't go to you personally."

"I said so."

"At the press conference, you should announce that Jin Fugui Holdings is carrying out a huge investment plan: the plan is in a critical stage and it is not convenient to disclose more details. The details will be announced to the public two months later when the plan enters a stable stage."

That's roughly the idea; please try to phrase it yourself.

Zhou Ruoyun took out a notebook and wrote it down, "Is two months too specific? Should we be more general?"

"You can decide for yourself."

"Hmm." Zhou Ruoyun nodded. "Anything else?"

Do you know who Venerable Qide is?

"That Englishman from Hutchison?"

“I ran into him by chance at the Repulse Bay Hotel a few days ago and found out that he was an old acquaintance of mine. We chatted that day and he told me that Philip Cassidy plans to retire next year and will gradually sell his Hutchison shares. He is interested in the shares but lacks funds.”

I've already promised him financial assistance. You'll be in charge of following up on this matter. You'll not only provide him with financial support, but also help him connect with both the elder and younger Madden brothers.

"Maden of Wheelock and Company?"

“Yes.” Sin Yiu-man nodded. “Half of Hutchison’s shares are held by Wheelock.”

"Should we introduce Qi Dezun to Song Wenjie?"

How do you know Song Wenjie?

"Pepe told me."

"Oh, not for now. I haven't met Song Wenjie yet. I'll meet him when I come back next time." As he spoke, Xian Yaowen looked at Liao Kexin and said, "Sister-in-law, since you are willing to come out to work and help Ruoyun, then please bear with us. Given Ruoyun's current health condition, we can only ask you to share more of the workload."

Liao Kexin smiled faintly and said, "Ruoyun is the boss, and I am the secretary. I take orders from her."

Xian Yaowen chuckled and said, "Sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll keep whispering in your ear and get Ruoyun to give you extra pay."

Liao Kexin covered her mouth and laughed, "Boss Dad, I'm counting on you."

Sin Yiu-man patted his chest and said, "Leave it to me."

The meeting ended with a joke, after which Zhou Ruoyun went about her work at Yunwen Real Estate.

Actually, there's not much to do. Yunwen Real Estate's business is buying land. The money Zhou Maochen gave them has been almost spent, and they don't have the money to buy new land. Zhou Ruoyun's energy is mainly focused on the construction of Ruoyuan and Yunyuan.

She took out a planning map of Ruoyuan and introduced to Xian Yaowen what flowers to plant here, what trees to plant there, and the architectural layout of the core manor of Ruoyuan. Then she talked about the entertainment facilities in Yunyuan, what Zhen could play when he was a certain age, and so on.

Xian Yaowen felt a chill run down his spine. Ruoyuan and Yunyuan were gifts he had prepared for Zhou Ruoyun. He had tried to treat them equally, as all the women in the family had their own gardens, estates, or mountains. However, according to Zhou Ruoyun, the construction of Yunyuan was centered around the children's needs, and Yunyuan had suddenly become the children's asset. He had to consider treating the children equally again.

If every child needs a playground, it's impossible to keep it low-key. If one child has one but the others don't, it's hard to explain. This is a bit of a headache.

Fortunately, this matter wasn't urgent, so he put it aside for the time being and would deal with it later.

After sitting in Zhou Ruoyun's office until 10:30, Xian Yaowen crossed the sea to Beihe Street and sat in Su Lizhen's office.

Zhou Ruoyun's office is decorated in a purely Western style, while Su Lizhen's office is decorated in a purely Chinese style. The tables, chairs, benches, ornaments, and calligraphy and paintings are all from the Ming Dynasty. Even the telephone on the desk has a custom-made casing, which is consistent with the overall style.

Su Lizhen sat in a northern-style official's hat chair with cushions and pillows. The large desk, which she had acquired from who-knows-where, had an antique feel and subtly exuded an air of officialdom. Opposite the desk were two southern-style official's hat chairs, seemingly placed intentionally.

The desk and official's hat chair were newly purchased; Sin Yiu-man hadn't seen them the last time he visited.

He sat in a southern-style official's hat chair, looked at Su Lizhen sitting in a northern-style official's hat chair, and said, "Do you understand the symbolism of the northern and southern official's hat chairs, or do you not?"

Su Lizhen smiled slyly, "We only received one Northern official's hat chair, so we'll use a Southern official's hat chair to make up the number."

Xian Yaowen pointed at Su Lizhen, "You're just trying to be clever. Hurry up and change it."

Su Lizhen said nonchalantly, "It doesn't matter. Not many people understand this, and those who do won't care too much."

Xian Yaowen said calmly, "Being too sharp is not good. Don't let the current success of Jinzhao Group blind you. Jinzhao Group does business by going with the flow. Anyone in your position would do no worse than you. There's nothing to be complacent about."

Su Lizhen pouted, "Master is so annoying, he can't even compliment me."

"What's so great about it? You just stand on my shoulders, sit on my official chair, and business will automatically come knocking on your door. You can make hundreds of thousands or millions without lifting a finger. Real business isn't that simple."

Sin Yiu-man patted the armrest of the chair. "The Southern official's hat chair has rounded corners and the backrest and armrests don't protrude at both ends, which is considered bad luck and signifies difficulty in getting ahead. The Northern official's hat chair has four protruding corners and the backrest and armrests, which is considered good luck in getting ahead in officialdom. The North is superior to the South, and the chair is supposed to be superior to the guest. It's aggressive. What are you trying to do?"

Sin Yiu-man spoke in a low tone, yet it silenced Su Lai-chun.

Seeing Su Lizhen's reaction, Xian Yaowen said no more, simply saying, "Hurry up and change it."

"Ah."

"Shipping records".

Upon hearing this, Su Lizhen took a stack of account books to Xian Yaowen, pulled one out and opened it.

Xian Yaowen carefully examined each item, and after finishing, he said, "The items that have been sold are all currently popular goods. If you have stock, you don't have to worry about selling them. There's almost no business in handicrafts. This won't do at all."

Take tungsten for example. The United States is already implementing alternative programs and will soon mandate a reduction in the tungsten content of cemented carbide cutting tools, replacing some or all of tungsten with molybdenum, promoting cobalt-based cemented carbide and ceramic cutting tools, restricting and replacing tungsten in lamp filaments, replacing welding electrodes and contacts with silver-cadmium and copper-tungsten composite materials, establishing a mandatory recycling system, and urgently purchasing large quantities of tungsten concentrate from other countries.

Once the alternative is fully implemented, the United States will be free from its dependence on Chinese tungsten, and the self-deceptive practice of importing from Taiwan will cease.

If the United States stops importing, other Western countries will follow suit, changing the supply-demand imbalance. China's tungsten industry will then be left with only one customer: the Soviet Union. With the demand side in a strong position, the supply side will suffer losses.

At that time, the mainland will naturally hope to have more export channels so that there is room for negotiation.

Do you have any solutions for this impending situation?
"Next year, will you be able to continue exporting tungsten ore? Or is your plan to switch to other products if they just won't sell?"

Sin Yiu-man tapped the table. “Hot goods, you can sell them, but others can too. The mainland has its own trading companies in Hong Kong. Right now, everything is for the war, and they can’t spare the time. But what if the war ends?”

A maid is a maid. No matter how good your food, clothing and daily necessities are, you are still a maid. Remember your status and never act like a young lady.

"A maidservant is lucky enough to earn money without kneeling, but you, with your two plump buttocks unable to hide your arrogant tail, become arrogant when you gain power. The slender gold script is too delicate to write your fat, Wei stele-like character for 'death.'"

Su Lizhen leaned against Xian Yaowen and said coquettishly, "Master, I know I was wrong."

"You know you're wrong my ass." Xian Yaowen slapped Su Lizhen's fat buttocks twice. "The official's chair can't hold your big ass. I'll go to the Forbidden City and steal the dragon throne tomorrow. That chair is much more satisfying to sit on."

"I don't want to sit, I just want to sit on Master's lap." Su Lizhen sat on Xian Yaowen's lap and snuggled into his arms. "Master, have I gained weight again?"

Sin Yiu-man stroked the belly ring around Su Li-zhen's waist, "She's gained another pound or two. She can't gain any more weight, or she'll become a fat woman."

"Ah."

"Focus more on handicrafts, don't sell them directly, otherwise you'll end up as a middleman. Design your own packaging, market your own brand, and make the brand name broad, don't tie it to China, so it's easier to do business with handicrafts from other countries."

"Handicrafts don't sell well, and you don't make much money."

"Take it slow. You can't get fat in one bite. With the quick money you've made in the last two years as a safety net, you can confidently extend the timeline of your various plans. It's okay to have a longer investment period. Good things that fall from the sky can be taken away at any time, but good things that you create yourself can last."

"Will Jinzhao Group mainly produce handicrafts in the future?"

"Since Jinzhao Group is positioned as a group, it naturally engages in diversified operations. Handicrafts are only one aspect. It is foreseeable that the industrial strength of the mainland will not be very strong for a long time to come, and the industrial products produced will not be very competitive in the international market. If we want to earn foreign exchange, we still have to rely on agricultural products and minerals."

However, not all industrial products need to be of high quality; for some, price is the decisive factor. In mainland China, the exchange rate is not determined by the market, so its actual significance is limited. Foreign exchange, on the other hand, is of great importance. As long as more and faster foreign exchange can be obtained, significant concessions can be made on the pricing of industrial products.

Today Group can obtain industrial products of the same level from the mainland at a retail price lower than the cost price in the West. What you need to do is to select low-priced, non-sensitive industrial products and build sales channels.

I'm trying to invite a few elderly American men to become shareholders of Jinzhao Group to avoid political repercussions.

"Sir, which agricultural and industrial products do you think will sell well in the future?"

Xian Yaowen gently stroked Su Lizhen's belly, "Actually, you shouldn't have asked about agricultural products. I've already sorted them out for you. There are six items in total: tea, raw silk, pig bristles, eggs, sausage casings, and tung oil."

Tung oil exports have declined, so there's no need to continue. Lu Yansu will be in charge of tea, and the other four items are already in the Jinzhao Group's product catalog.

Su Lizhen thought for a moment and said, "Should we add preserved eggs to our egg products?"

Do you know the main target market for preserved eggs?

Su Lizhen counted on her fingers and said, "Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cuba, the United Kingdom, and Canada—80% of the preserved eggs are transshipped through Hong Kong."

How much is produced in a year?

"About 4 million last year."

Xian Yaowen grasped Su Lizhen's soft hand, "Do you know where preserved eggs come from?"

"Seventy percent come from Nanhai, Shunde, and Dongguan, and twenty percent come from Nanchang in Jiangxi and Wuwei in Anhui. Nanhai has the largest volume."

"Through unofficial channels?"

"There is no unified purchase and sale system for preserved eggs in mainland China."

Have you ever eaten preserved eggs when you went to the mainland?

"Eat."

How much is one?

"I ate it in Shanghai, and it cost 2000 yuan."

“If Hong Kong sells them for 2 cents each, 4 million pieces would be worth 1400 million US dollars. If the price is halved, it would be 700 million US dollars. This is roughly the foreign exchange value of preserved eggs, which is not a small amount. The mainland will not turn a blind eye to this. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, preserved eggs will be subject to unified purchase and sale, the water in the private market will be drained, and preserved egg merchants will have nothing to do.”

At that time, on one hand, there will be people with preserved eggs but no buyers, and on the other hand, there will be people who need preserved eggs but no sellers. Small vendors have low profits and little capital, so if they can't make preserved eggs, they'll have to do other things instead of waiting in the same place.

"You mean the demand for preserved eggs will decline once the mainland begins to implement a system of unified purchase and distribution?"

“It’s a precipitous drop.” Sin Yiu-man glanced at the calendar on the desk, but couldn’t see the date, just staring at the blank space. “There are still thirteen days until the Mid-Autumn Festival. It’s not too late to contact the preserved egg merchants in Hong Kong. If you really want to make preserved eggs, you can contact them. You can take orders at break-even. If you can raise enough for ten million, you can place an order with the Guangdong Import and Export Corporation.”

Remember, only do this one order, then immediately close up shop and wait for the sales of preserved eggs to decline.

Su Lizhen immediately understood, "Wait for the import/export company to contact us on its own?"

"We're also waiting for the price of preserved eggs to skyrocket."

Su Lizhen nodded. "What about industrial products?"

"If a large oil field is discovered in the mainland, crude oil, wax oil, and asphalt can become heavy industrial products that generate large amounts of foreign exchange."

Reading Xu Xiake's travelogues reveals that karst landforms are ubiquitous in inland China. Karst landforms, also known as rock formations, are essentially formed by the dissolution of soluble rocks by water, and limestone is the most typical and widely distributed type of rock.

It can be said that without limestone there would be no karst landforms.

The mainland has no shortage of limestone, making it easy to form a large-scale cement production capacity, but the production technology is inadequate, so it can only produce low-grade cement.

Wrenches, pliers, files, hammers, and reamers—these hand tools require little technical skill; anyone can make them well with a little care. Inland China has the capacity to produce them in large quantities, and manufacturers likely have the determination to drive prices down to near-loss levels, creating a dumping-style competitive advantage.

Sin Yiu-man gently rubbed Su Li-zhen's soft hand, "Today Group can register a brand. When the production capacity of hand tools in the mainland is formed, we can select the best of the best and choose a few factories to cooperate with for OEM manufacturing, thus creating a hand tool brand."

"If mainland companies can secure orders on their own, why let Jinzhao Group take a cut?"

"Broaden your thinking. Don't limit yourself to the role of a middleman. If your orders have high unit prices and stable demand, why wouldn't manufacturers accept your orders?"
Since your payment is the country's foreign exchange earnings, and manufacturers and workers don't get much benefit from it, you can take a small portion of the profits to buy some things that are scarce in the mainland, such as a machine that the mainland urgently needs and donate it to the country, some slightly more expensive gifts to the directly managed departments and factory leaders, and candy and chocolates as welfare for the workers.

With everything in place from top to bottom, there won't be any problems with your order.

Parrot will provide you with patent and technical support, ensuring a steady and reliable approach, controlling quality, and focusing on product iteration and upgrades. For twenty years, they've maintained this consistent approach, requiring no excessive marketing. You will naturally own a renowned hand tool brand.

"Twenty years, that's a long time. How many twenty-year periods does a person have in their lifetime?"

"Three years of consistent effort is explosive power; it's not too difficult for a person with a strong will to pretend for three years. Twenty years of consistent effort is endurance, which is human nature. If a bad person pretends to be a good person for twenty years, then he is a good person."

A brand that doesn't survive more than twenty years doesn't qualify as a brand at all; it's just a random cat or dog, merely a marker to distinguish itself from others.

Many things cannot be rushed; they require the passage of time and experience. Otherwise, what you see is mostly pretense and illusion.

Su Lizhen asked suspiciously, "Sir, you seem to be implying something."

"Hmm, I'm calling on you. Do you know that Lin Keping is pregnant?"

"I heard your belly is unusually big; it might be twins." Su Lizhen touched her lower belly. "Master, I've recovered completely. When are we going to have a baby?"

"I haven't recovered yet, let's talk about it in a few days."

Su Lizhen shifted her body slightly. "You're always busy. When will you ever recover?"

"Soon, soon." Sin Yiu-man silently took a boomerang and steered the conversation back on track. "Enamelware, such as basins, bowls, cups, spittoons, and lunch boxes, are just like hand tools. It's not difficult for them to create a dumping-style competitive advantage. Moreover, the mainland has a natural advantage in terms of pattern design. Mainland enamelware is both beautiful and functional."

For household foot-operated sewing machines, the technology for manufacturing human-powered sewing machines in mainland China is already quite advanced. A comparison between mainland Chinese brands and Japanese brands is as follows:

The machine head produced in mainland China is made entirely of cast iron with a cast iron support frame, weighing approximately 12 kg. The machine head produced in Japan is made of cast iron with aluminum alloy components, and there is a growing trend of using aluminum alloy, weighing approximately 9 kg.

The domestically produced parts are made of 100% cast iron and high-carbon steel, with almost no plastic; the Japanese-made parts are made of cast iron, zinc alloy, a small amount of aluminum alloy, and phenolic resin.

Domestic production uses thick cowhide belts and all-metal gears for transmission, while Japan gradually adopted rubber belts...

Basically, mainland-made sewing machines are far superior to those from Japan. If mainland China can maintain the current quality of its sewing machines, they can last a lifetime. If they break down, it's just a matter of replacing a belt and grinding the shuttle, which any blacksmith can easily fix.

With its superior quality and competitive price, sewing machines from mainland China have no trouble selling. Moreover, this business can continue until sewing machine technology undergoes a radical transformation, such as the emergence of compact electric household sewing machines—at which point you should be wary.

"Mainland sewing machines sell very well in Hong Kong. Should I become the sole distributor in Hong Kong?"

After a moment's thought, Sin Yiu-man said, "There are three treasures for a daughter's wedding: a sewing machine, an enamel basin, and a kettle. If you want to do retail in Hong Kong, you need to register your own brands. Register three brands for the three major items. You can use 'Tianluo Girl' for the sewing machine, 'Shuangxi' for the enamel basin, and 'Zhulongfu' for the kettle."

Once you're ready, spend some money to make a Cantonese film, telling a story around the three essential items for a daughter's wedding, and market these three products as the three standard necessities for a daughter's wedding.

"Can a single movie really popularize the 'Three Treasures of Marriage'?"

"Since the brand is in your hands, you can spend more money and work with department stores, Shanghai Street and Sai Yeung Choi Street retail stores to do marketing and make a bigger splash."

"If you act quickly enough, I'll discuss it with Yaowu's two in-laws. The Xian family will throw all pretense of honor around, and we'll have Sanbao (a famous concubine) used as part of the dowry. They'll be carried on stilts and paraded throughout Hong Kong for everyone to see. The newspapers will report on it for three days straight, and everyone will know about Sanbao's wedding."

Su Lizhen's eyes lit up, and she said excitedly, "This is a great idea! For Uncle's wedding, I, on behalf of Jinzhao Group, will sponsor 2... no, 5 yuan for each wedding."

“Not bad, quick reaction.” Sin Yiu-man kissed Su Li-zhen on the cheek. “The industrial products that can be sold in the mainland include bicycles and parts, ceramic tableware and daily-use porcelain, and matches that are not worth mentioning.”

"What about minerals?"

"As mentioned before, with the US alternative plan, the export route to the West is basically blocked. The West's import direction will change to Portugal, Bolivia, Brazil, South Korea, Australia, and Myanmar. The price of tungsten concentrate is bound to skyrocket. You can find a powerful country to cooperate with and secretly disguise the tungsten concentrate from the mainland as that country's tungsten concentrate."

"That must be difficult, right?" (End of Chapter)