Return to 88: Starting from Marrying My Sister-in-law

Entering the 90s, with the deepening of reform and opening up.

Private enterprises are emerging as leaders.

State-owned enterprises are finding it increasingly difficult to operate.

Calls for reform are growing daily, and at this point, introducing external capital to break the deadlock has become an inevitable choice.

Reform is not a dinner party.

It's not something that can be achieved by simply making a snap decision, changing the system arbitrarily, or drafting a few management laws. Nor can it be accomplished by shouting loud slogans or drawing up a splendid blueprint.

It needs a capable leader and external capital to break the deadlock.

Replace old machines!
Replace with new equipment!
Expand production!
These things all require money, money, money, not just empty slogans.

The company can't come up with the money.

The higher-level authorities also see it as a burden and will not spend money on it!

So where does the money come from?
The only option is to look outside, and this outside can be domestic private capital or international foreign capital.

But if you had to choose a multiple-choice question...

Compared to domestic private capital, foreign capital may seem more attractive.

The reason.

Well, it's just like private capital in China. No matter how fashionable it dresses or how beautifully it's made up, it's still a country bumpkin at heart.

But international capital is different. Even if they are naked and have nothing on, they are inherently superior because they spend US dollars. Countries lack foreign exchange, and performance evaluations prioritize this aspect. Do you think this is a joke?

All right.

Without further ado.

Lu Yang never imagined that he could win against PepsiCo, a Fortune 500 company.

I just felt there was still a chance.

The reason was that he had also learned about the Arctic Ocean soda company. Its restructuring wasn't due to a lack of funds; on the contrary, over the years, Arctic Ocean had practically dominated most of the northern market. The reason they considered cooperating with Pepsi was actually because they sensed immense external pressure. With more and more foreign beverage companies entering the mainland market, especially Coca-Cola and Pepsi, these companies were financially powerful and willing to spend heavily, acquiring this one day and that the next…

That's right, their way of opening up the market is brute force. I don't compete with you for the market; I just buy your company and occupy your market directly.

Since they know that cooperation may be just a pretext and that the biggest possibility is still letting the wolf into the house, why did old domestic brands like Beibingyang still choose to cooperate in the end?

Ultimately, it is still a "appeasement" strategy.

Because I was scared!
Faced with the large-scale entry of international beverage giants into the domestic market, many people were initially confused, thinking that these giants were like behemoths while we were just small companies, so why should we compete with them in the market?

Before even fighting, I was already scared. That makes sense, since I didn't have many coins in my pocket.

So this loss was a psychological one, not a real defeat on the battlefield.

Starting in the 90s, and it wasn't just Beibingyang (which is just a microcosm), but rather a list of established domestic beverage manufacturers, such as Bawangsi Soda, Asia Soda, Tianfu Cola, Laoshan Cola, Xingfu Cola, Jinmeile Soda, Shanhaiguan Soda...

Which of these companies didn't have their brands shelved after only a few years because they first partnered with one of the foreign companies, Pepsi or Coca-Cola, to form a joint venture?

almost none.

One by one, they fell in battle.

One after another, they lined up to be acquired, then the entire management team was replaced, the company's business strategy was drastically adjusted, and all the market share of their original soft drink or cola brands was handed over to Pepsi, while Coca-Cola's own soft drink brands such as "7UP", "Mirinda", and "Sprite" were promoted.

They really only have one trick up their sleeve; they don't play any tricks at all, but even so, people still fall for it one after another.

Why?

What is the reason?
It's really just the same two words, "appeasement," that I mentioned above!

Because they felt that since they couldn't win anyway, why bother with a real fight? Why fight to the death on the battlefield? If they lost in the end, they would have nothing left.

Surrendering would only result in losing half the battle.

Look, by handing over the brands we have, we've also handed over the market, since we can't keep them anyway. We can use them to exchange for some shares in the new joint venture. Isn't that a good thing?

Lu Yang dared not say he was angry at their lack of ambition, because these days, there are indeed a lot of people who are afraid of foreign investment and who fawn over foreign things. Not to mention entrepreneurs, even old farmers in the countryside think that the moon is rounder in foreign countries than in China.

It's not one person's fault.

It was a product of the times, a necessary growing pain that had to be experienced during the reform and opening up, and the opening of the country's doors.

of course.

Now it seems there's a glimmer of hope. It's rare for someone to actually try to resist, so Lu Yang will give them a chance and see. In any case, whether it succeeds or not, Lu Yang won't lose anything.

This sister-in-law, on the other hand, is bold and ambitious. If she really succeeds in making this connection, she might switch from hosting to business and become a rising businesswoman.
Ha ha.

Never mind her.

Lu Yang wouldn't help her anyway; everything would be done according to the rules—if it worked, it worked; if it didn't, it didn't.

He left with a single sentence.

He shook off the other person's hand and walked directly towards the villa gate.

Yin Mingzhu watched Lu Yang's retreating figure, bit her lip, and finally hurried after him.

She knew in her heart that this opportunity was hard-won, and if she missed it, there would probably be no way to turn things around.

As you enter the villa, you can hear Yin Mingyue's laughter coming from the living room. She is sitting on the sofa with her pregnant belly, holding a parenting book in her hands.

When she saw her sister and Lu Yang come in together, her eyes lit up. She put down her book and greeted them, "Sister, you're finally here! I thought you would wait until I gave birth before you showed up."

Yin Mingzhu forced a smile and went over to take her sister's hand. "How could that be? I'm here now, aren't I?" Her tone was a little stiff, but her gaze couldn't help but glance at Lu Yang, as if trying to read something from his face. Lu Yang went straight upstairs to the study. "You two sisters have a private chat. I'm going upstairs to the study to relax for a while."

Once inside the study...

Lu Yang dialed the president's office: "Sister Wei... there's a business opportunity here... first, have someone investigate the joint venture between Beibingyang Soda and Pepsi, find out how far they've progressed, and whether there's any chance of them poaching our employees... also, find out Beibingyang Soda's sales data for the past two years... find out their number of workers too... yes, I like doing real business, I don't care how fast the money comes in... haha..."

"No, it was my sister-in-law who brought me news from Beijing. Some high-ranking officials within Arctic Ocean are planning to sabotage this cooperation with Pepsi, a foreign company. They probably don't want to let the wolf into their house again."

"I was thinking... is it possible... to represent private capital and invest in this Arctic Ocean soda, and then really compete head-to-head with foreign beverage giants like Pepsi and Coca-Cola in the domestic market..."

"Let's put the odds aside for now. What I mean is... as long as we can stay undefeated, it's worth a shot... What's your opinion?"

"Okay, I'll wait for your investigation results."

After hanging up the phone, he stood by the window, gazing at the cloudless sky in the distance, a slight smile playing on his lips.

As someone who has been reborn from decades in the future, he dares not underestimate the aquatic industry. These seemingly inexpensive gadgets, costing only a few dollars a bottle, contain enormous business opportunities.

Let's not even talk about Coca-Cola and Pepsi, the two world-class beverage giants.

That's a company with a market capitalization of hundreds of billions (in US dollars).

Even in our country, in the later years, even in the Internet age, there were still several people who were the richest in the aquatic products industry for several consecutive years.

People can become the richest Chinese by selling water and acting as porters of nature, so why should Lu Yang dare to look down on them?

Oh, right now, Arctic Ocean Soda doesn't sell water anymore, only beverages. But there's only one word difference between beverage and soda. If you want to add it, you have to adjust the formula, which is a bit troublesome. But if you want to remove it, it's not that simple. You can just come up with a plan. Once you have a market, you can just start doing it. At worst, you can spend more money on advertising and add a slightly sweet advertising slogan. Wouldn't that make everything okay?

Of course, for ordinary people in China to accept bottled water on a large scale and give up the low-cost lifestyle of boiling water, at the very least, their current living standards and wages need to be significantly improved. It's unacceptable for people to earn a monthly salary of a hundred or so yuan but spend one or two yuan to buy a bottle of water.
Therefore, bottled water is now destined to be a high-end luxury item, not in terms of price, but in terms of the consumption concept. On the contrary, beverages, sodas, and cola, these colored liquids, are the products that ordinary people are willing to spend money on.

Only by keeping pace with the times and producing what the people need can a company stay at the forefront of development and remain invincible. Otherwise, it will make decisions on a whim and blindly invest in things that are out of touch with reality. Otherwise, the company will not only decline, but may even become a laughing stock.

Lu Yang had plans. If he could reach a cooperation agreement with Arctic Ocean Soda this time, and ideally achieve a controlling stake, he would also want to get involved in the water industry and become a porter of nature. Of course, it would not be now, but in the future when the time was right.

Downstairs living room.

Because Lu Yang hadn't come downstairs, the two sisters, Yin Mingzhu and Yin Mingyue, were initially somewhat distant, as if they couldn't find anything to talk about.

However, as time went on, and since Lu Yang didn't come downstairs to bother them, they gradually relaxed.

For example, Yin Mingzhu is quite concerned about her sister's relationship with Lu Yang.

Yin Mingyue was also very concerned about whether her sister had a boyfriend while working in the capital.

Why don't you pay?

"Sister, you're not getting any younger. Look at me, I'm about to have my second child. Women should get married early while they're young. You can't let work keep you from getting married."

Whenever Yin Mingzhu says she doesn't have time to date, Yin Mingyue immediately urges her on, using her own pregnant belly as an example, accompanied by a happy expression.

To put it positively, women should still get married because marriage can bring them happiness.

Yin Mingzhu thought to herself, "Do you think everyone can marry a rich and loving husband like you?"

A full man does not know the hunger of a hungry man.

Whatever.

You're the one who stabbed me in the heart first, so don't blame me.

Seeing that her younger sister wouldn't let it go, she kept bringing up the topic of whether or not she should have a boyfriend, urging her to find one soon so she could get married. She kept repeating this topic over and over again.

She didn't mince words and asked Yin Mingyue directly, "Sister, have you two been arguing lately?"

Yin Mingyue was taken aback, but quickly replied without changing her expression, "No, we have a very good relationship."

Yin Mingzhu didn't believe it at all, staring into her sister's eyes, "So it was him who bullied you?"

Yin Mingyue was both amused and exasperated. "Sister, Brother Lu Yang didn't bully me. He loves me very much. Look at the kind of life I'm living now. I'm practically never lifting a finger to do housework."

I used to have to cook for myself. Lu Yang had suggested hiring a housekeeper several times, but I hadn't agreed. However, since I got pregnant with my second child, and my daughter Xin'er started kindergarten and needed someone to pick her up, I had no choice but to agree to hire a housekeeper after Lu Yang insisted.

Moreover, just look at our villa alone, we have hired three nannies: one to cook, one to clean, and one to pick up and drop off our Xin'er at school.

"It's left me, the wife and mother, with nothing to do. I'm so bored every day. Sister, isn't Lu Yang a good brother? Don't wrong your brother-in-law."

Her retaliation may have been subconscious.

However, these words did indeed touch a nerve with Yin Mingzhu, because this was a life she could have enjoyed, but she had given it up voluntarily.

I'm not angry.

I'm not angry.

No big deal.

Because of her younger sister Yin Mingyue's words, Yin Mingzhu had to give herself a mental pep talk and cheer herself up.

Otherwise, she was afraid she would break down.

She took several deep breaths, and finally her expression gradually returned to calm. She forced a smile and said, "It seems I was overthinking things. He really is very good to you. But don't blame me. It was Mom who insisted on coming back so soon. She kept urging me to book her plane ticket last night. She couldn't even wait one night. I was worried that something might have happened to you two, or that you were having a fight. And when Mom said I should come back and see you too, I immediately took leave and came back with her. Of course, it's good that you two are alright and haven't had a fight. I'm relieved, and Mom is definitely relieved too."

Didn't you say nothing happened?

Then I'll bring up Mom. She's in such a hurry to get back to Shenzhen, she can't even wait one night. We all know the real reason...

come!

We sisters continue our online rivalry.

(End of this chapter)