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

Three days passed in a flash.

To be honest, the sight of Yin Mingzhu flying back to Beijing from Shenzhen that day was rather desolate.

The reasons are self-evident.

Part of it stemmed from her family. When she left that day, although she appeared strong on the surface, her mother's words still wounded her heart.

In addition...

What's left is a lack of self-confidence.

Could a small invitation really give her enough confidence to persuade the giants of the northern soft drink market?
The key point is that it's a state-owned enterprise.

The key point is that they already have a primary partner.

The key point is that their primary partner is even a Fortune 500 foreign beverage giant.

The key point is that the majority of people in this Arctic Ocean soda company are actually surrenderers, while the resistance faction is in the minority. The person who contacted her was just a vice president of this state-owned beverage company.

With so many unfavorable factors combined, she could only carry a small invitation letter and had to go north alone to face them, and then persuade this old domestic giant in the soft drink industry to agree to and meet all her demands.

To put it nicely, it was about assembling a team, flying across most of China, to Shenzhen to discuss private capital investment in Beibingyang Soda.

Actually?

It's basically asking for help.

They sought help from the private capital represented by Lu Yang to resist the capital invasion of foreign beverage giants.

That seems reasonable, since we need their help.

Of course, we should take the initiative to visit them.

But let's not forget that in the current national situation, state-owned enterprises still have a much higher status than private enterprises. How would it make some people put their faces if the heads of state-owned enterprises had to lower themselves to seek help from private capital bosses?
Especially considering that there are already differing opinions within the Arctic Ocean, with the surrender faction currently in the lead, it's easy to imagine how high the chances of Yin Mingzhu succeeding in returning alone, not to mention the potential for humiliation.

According to her estimate, the success rate of this trip should be pitifully low, but even if it is pitifully low, even if there is only a 0.1% chance, she still has to try.

But the result?

This was completely unexpected!
When she cautiously and prepared for humiliation, she went to visit them with the invitation. Not only did the original resistance faction within the company give her a warm welcome and excitedly discuss the possibility of cooperation, but even after the truth came out, those who had surrendered and came to block their door, upon hearing the name of Pengcheng Century Group, behaved unusually. There was no fight between the two groups, nor did they show any hostility towards her, an outsider, or try to drive her away. Instead, they even held a small internal meeting...

Discuss its feasibility.

The results of it?
She could never have guessed that the CEO of Beibingyang Soda had once publicly stated that since they couldn't win anyway, they might as well surrender and lose half. Introducing foreign investment was a national policy, after all. As for whether our own old domestic brands could be preserved in the future, we should trust the wisdom of future generations and not worry unnecessarily.

These are things that people said in public.

But now, they've publicly stated that if the Century Group in Shenzhen is interested in their old domestic soda brand, Beibingyang, then in principle, they agree to give it a try.

What does "give it a try" mean?
Naturally, this indicates that they have agreed to the competition between Pengcheng Century Group, a private capital entity, and PepsiCo, a Fortune 500 beverage giant, to take over their Arctic Ocean soda factory.

This is a good thing, indicating that there are no obstacles ahead, and that the surrender and resistance factions within the Arctic Ocean Soda Factory have reached a consensus.

Whose credit is this?

Yin Mingzhu privately pondered that these should all belong to Lu Yang's functions.

"This guy has quite a reputation!"

"He runs a company in Shenzhen, and even the head of a state-owned enterprise at the provincial level in Beijing has heard of him. He even praised him in front of me in public, saying he's young and promising... and wants to get to know him... Sigh, if that guy finds out, he'll be so arrogant!"

"What a shameless fellow... You used to be quiet and unassuming... How come you've changed so much over the years?"

"Oh dear, why am I thinking so much... Humph... He's no one to me... Even if he causes a huge upheaval, it's my silly sister's business to worry about."

"oops!"

"No, that's not right. I still have some connection with him. He's my brother-in-law, after all. We're family. Besides, if this collaboration goes smoothly, then... his business focus... will gradually shift to the north...? Then what about me and him...? No, how can I think like that...? I need to sleep. If I don't sleep now and keep thinking like this, my little sister will definitely hate me in the future..."

During the two days and three nights that she stayed in the capital, Yin Mingzhu had a lot of wild thoughts and couldn't sleep at all.

There was excitement, but also setbacks and anxieties, and also anticipation for the future.

In any case, if everything goes smoothly this time, she will gain not only wealth, but also a bright future, and even the love she lost all those years ago may have a chance to be rekindled.

The negotiation team for this trip south was not formed until the Arctic Ocean Soft Drink Company completed its internal work.

Her first instinct was to tell Lu Yang, who was in Shenzhen, the good news.

"Success."

"We'll come tomorrow."

"You're really something. They heard of you and quickly agreed to let your Century Group compete fairly with foreign companies..."

Unlike the loss of composure of the Yin people.

Her joy did not reach Lu Yang, who was in Shenzhen, when he received her call.

Instead, after receiving his call, Lu Yang's first thought was, "What's this woman up to? Calling me? Why doesn't she call the CEO's office? Pshaw, it's not like we don't have the CEO's office's phone number."

why?
Naturally, it's because the woman couldn't distinguish between public and private matters.

Lu Yang had finally managed to get rid of all his work at the company and enjoy life. This was his private phone, and a certain woman actually called his private phone to discuss the company with him. Guess why he was unhappy?
As for the claim that her trip went smoothly, that she successfully persuaded Arctic Ocean Soda, and that even within Arctic Ocean Soda, a high-ranking executive praised Lu Yang for being young and promising... Bullshit, isn't that normal?
What's wrong?
Pshaw, what's so great about something as normal as this that's something to be happy or surprised about?

As for the end of the call, this stupid woman even said that they had agreed to let him compete fairly with foreign capital. What a load of bull! Is she just popping champagne halfway through? If there really were a fair competitive environment, he would have eaten the shrimp in front of him and gotten himself killed.

That's right.

He's currently making plans to go fishing at sea with Mu Qizhong and Xiao Jun.

The three are having a competition to see who can catch the most, the biggest, and the most valuable fish while sea fishing.

The shrimp Lu Yang just mentioned was a dead shrimp. He planned to use it as bait and throw it into the sea to catch big fish later.

After hanging up with Yin Mingzhu, Lu Yang cursed as he hooked the shrimp, then vigorously swung his fishing rod, casting the bait into the deep sea in front of him.

Xiao Jun immediately sidled up as if he'd smelled blood, "You little rascal, are you planning something bad again?"

Lu Yang curled his lip, "Get lost, and take good care of your own float."

"do not!"

Xiao Jun was reluctant to leave. "Good brother, I heard everything. If there's a good opportunity, you can't keep it to yourself. If you don't agree, I'll call for help."

So what if you watch the float carefully? So what if you catch a big fish? So what if you lose? At worst, you can treat everyone to dinner on the way back.

But if I could persuade this kid in front of me to hand over that new, lucrative project he mentioned on the phone, and include him in it so we could all get rich together, wouldn't that be awesome?
what?
Since it's a new project, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll make a fortune.

Pshaw, do you think Xiao Jun is stupid?

Since his debut, this kid has never lost money in business, according to his knowledge. Whenever he has a new project, he invests in it casually and the return rate is frighteningly high.

"Stop pretending, I heard it too. Shu Dao San, confess honestly, or I'll push you into the sea, fabricate a story that you're dead and can't prove it, and make your wives cry themselves to sleep and remarry."

Mu Qizhong wasn't much slower; he joined them from the other side, while also cracking a joke.

Lu Yang scoffed and chuckled, "You two, your noses are even sharper than a dog's these days. Alright, I'll tell you, but I suspect there will be some twists and turns, and the chances of success are slim..."

Taking them out to play isn't out of the question; Lu Yang has his own plans.

"Arctic Ocean soda?"

Mu Qizhong said with a strange expression, "You actually have designs on it...tsk tsk tsk, how brave you are! Our CEO Lu has really gone all out!"

"How to say?"

Xiao Jun looked like a completely curious child.

"What else can I say? You haven't even heard of this old domestic brand? It's a behemoth in the northern soft drink market..."

"Tch, so what? Isn't our CEO Lu good enough for him? How about we add me to the mix?"

Xiao Jun patted his chest smugly, "President of a nationally renowned science and technology innovation company, valued at 1.5 billion. What's wrong? Can't afford a soda anymore?"

Mu Qizhong, somewhat exasperated by his son's ignorance, said with a wry smile, "You brat, can't you wait until I finish what I'm saying?"

Xiao Jun rolled his eyes at him, "Then why don't you say it!"

Mu Qizhong rolled his eyes at him, too lazy to pay him any more attention, and turned to Lu Yang, saying, "As far as I know, PepsiCo, a giant among foreign beverage companies, has also announced that it is willing to invest 800 million to acquire 51% of the shares of this Beibingyang soda factory. Now you want to interfere, aren't you going against them? Aren't you worried about angering this Fortune 500 foreign giant?"

Lu Yang held the fishing rod, watching the bobber bobbing on the sea surface.

He said calmly, "Old Mu, you don't need to test me. If I were afraid, would I have sent someone north to contact them?"

Mu Qizhong laughed and said, "Then I'll tell you another secret you don't know. Behind this matter is the shadow of a vice mayor in the north who is in charge of the economy. He has made this his top priority this year. Although the amount of foreign investment of 800 million US dollars is not large, it is still a considerable achievement. Aren't you worried that you will offend people by ruining his good deed?"

Lu Yang said calmly, "Do you think I'm afraid?"

Mu Qizhong stared at his hands, which weren't trembling at all, and said, "It seems you're quite bold. So tell me, how do you plan to deal with this afterward?"

Lu Yang continued calmly, "No need. Whether I succeed or not, my only opponent will be Pepsi, this foreign beverage giant. As for your concerns, they are actually quite easy to resolve..."

"oh!?"

Mu Qizhong looked surprised.

Lu Yang chuckled and said, "The so-called 'foreign capital is more attractive than our own' money' is actually just due to our country's lack of foreign exchange. It's because the US dollar is more cost-effective. But what if... hehe, we also use US dollars to invest?"

A word to awaken the dreamer.

Mu Qizhong looked incredulous and asked, "You mean...?"

Lu Yang stood up and swung the pole forcefully, instantly taut the rope, and a powerful force surged forth...

"Damn, there's a big one."

Xiao Jun quickly stepped forward to help.

While holding the fishing rod steady and maintaining the winch, Lu Yang said loudly, "Don't forget, my group has its own overseas sales channels and has accumulated a lot of foreign exchange over the years. The money is deposited in HSBC in Hong Kong. It's only 800 million US dollars, which is not something I can't come up with. If needed, we can also pretend to be foreign-invested enterprises. All we need to do is register another company overseas. How about it? Are you interested?"

He brought in Mu Qizhong. It wasn't because Lu Yang was particularly short of money; it was just a mere 800 million US dollars. Even if he was currently facing financial difficulties, it wasn't like he couldn't afford it.

But having one more person means having one more ally.

Lu Yang dares to say that he has no rivals in China, but he cannot be too careless when facing foreign capital giants who have accumulated wealth over a century.

As for Xiao Jun...

This kid is really a double-edged sword; having him one more or one less won't make a difference. However, if we include Lao Mu in the conversation, but don't count this kid as a member, since we're all good buddies, then it's a bit unreasonable.

After a lot of effort, the three of them finally managed to bring the big fish ashore.

I'm just too exhausted.

They then lay down on the deck in a starfish shape to rest.

"Whether this deal goes through or not is not up to me. Even if it costs $200 million more than Pepsi, I'm willing to do it, provided that the final terms are the same and Arctic Ocean Soda agrees to give up at least 51% of their company shares..."

"Isn't this okay?"

“I told you, the problem couldn’t be with me… It’s possible this is just a smokescreen, and they never even considered us…”

"What should I do?"

"Don't they have the backing of leaders from Beijing? Then let's invite the leaders from Pengcheng to the table too, and let them compete... Whether it succeeds or not doesn't matter, but since they want to take advantage of me, Lu Yang, I have to find a way to annoy them..."

(End of this chapter)