Chapter 139: Family Business Strategies

Xu Zhiquan downed half a glass of baijiu, his face glowing red.

“I’m planning to head to Jiangsu Province next week.”

He had already lined up friends there to connect him with local electric vehicle factories for some hands-on research.

“Technical partnerships and introducing production lines might be tough to negotiate at first, so I’ll start by feeling out the opportunities…”

“I mentioned this to Fang Jun, and she’ll come along.”

“Then there’s Director Yang from the Mechanical Factory—the one who introduced Fang Jun. He’s a reform advocate inside the factory and led the effort on electric tricycles before.”

“This trip to Jiangsu Province, I’ll bring him along…”

Xu Chen laughed:

“Dad, you’re really something!”

“We haven’t even discussed the acquisition yet, and now you’re taking the factory’s tech experts on trips?”

Xu Zhiquan: “Director Yang is just taking leave under the radar; everything still needs to stay confidential.”

“This Director Yang is trustworthy—someone who’s eager to get things done.”

“I’ve evaluated him for a while and checked his character from the sidelines before sharing the basics with him.”

“He’s a university grad from the 90s, studied mechanical engineering, and has real skills.”

“He’s just not great at networking, a bit stubborn, and after over a decade at the Mechanical Factory, he’s felt unfulfilled. It’s not the right fit for that old state-owned environment.”

“Now he’s itching to make a big push!”

Xu Zhiquan took another sip of wine and said:

“I saw the news about Xie Bingran; I didn’t realize that girl had such talent.”

“No wonder the deputy mayor went to visit her…”

“Son, give me the inside scoop—how are you planning to handle ‘Chenfeng Ice Power’ and that ‘Ran Bing’?”

Xu Chen chuckled:

“Dad, let me explain ‘Ice Power’ first.”

“When we launch our electric vehicles, we’ll need promotion and marketing, but at the start, we won’t have a big budget for ads.”

“Xie Bingran’s become a national champion and is being positioned as Tiancheng’s sports star—her fame will only grow.”

“So, when our first electric vehicle model hits the market, we’ll leverage her popularity.”

“That’s why the first model’s name is set—it’s the ‘Chenfeng Ice Power’ you registered earlier…”

Xu Zhiquan pondered for a moment and nodded seriously:

“My son is truly ahead of the game, planning steps far in advance.”

“You’ve already sorted everything out for me…”

“But how did you know that girl would win the championship?”

Since he couldn’t explain his rebirth, Xu Chen just smiled and said:

“I sat next to her in middle school, so I knew her talent early on.”

Old Xu nodded; he never doubted anything his son said.

He took a sip of wine and added:

“That girl’s family situation isn’t great; she’s on her own and it’s tough. If she’s endorsing for us, I need to give her some compensation!”

Xu Chen laughed:

“Once she’s famous, her fees won’t be cheap—hundreds of thousands or even millions.”

Xu Zhiquan frowned:

“That much?”

Xu Chen: “Don’t worry, Dad, I’ve already signed an endorsement contract with Xie Bingran—no fees needed.”

“But you’re right; her situation is modest, so we should still offer some payment…”

Xu Zhiquan: “Actually, at her grandmother’s funeral last time, I wanted to give her some money to help out.”

“But I didn’t discuss it with you first and thought it might not be appropriate.”

Xu Chen thought for a moment: “Let’s hold off for now; I know Xie Bingran well.”

“With her personality, it’s hard for her to accept help.”

“She’s joined the Provincial Team now and will move to the National Team later, so her living situation should be secure.”

Xu Zhiquan: “Then, when we shoot ads with her, I’ll make sure to give her extra.”

He took another gulp of wine:

“Of course, that’s only if we successfully acquire the Mechanical Factory and get the electric vehicles rolling!”

Xu Chen raised his glass again:

“Dad, you’ve got this!”

Xu Zhiquan laughed and clinked glasses with his son, downing the rest of his wine.

“Dad, I’ve got something for you. Wait a second!”

With that, Xu Chen headed upstairs.

When he came back down, he had a Seiko watch in his hand.

“Brought it back from Shanghai—same as what Li Ka-shing wears…”

Xu Zhiquan took the watch, examined it closely, and liked it more with every second; he put it on his wrist right away.

“Thanks, son! This must have cost a pretty penny!”

Xu Chen smiled:

“A few thousand bucks—not too bad.”

“It’s for safety too; wearing something flashy like a Rolex might attract thieves.”

“This one’s understated but elegant, and it’s the same as the tycoon’s…”

Xu Zhiquan chuckled:

“The tycoon’s model—good luck charm!”

Xu Chen thought for a moment and said:

“Dad, take Li Rui with you on your trip.”

“Li Rui’s sharp and reliable; he can drive and keep you safe.”

Xu Zhiquan: “Sure, Li Rui’s a good kid—clever and steady…”

……

That evening, back in his room, Xu Chen sent a message to Fang Jun:

“Fang, are you free tomorrow at noon? I need you to help hold things together.”

“Whatever you say, Xiao Xu, I’m all yours.”

“We’ve got an ad client coming to the Jinfeng Business Tower office tomorrow. Could you meet them first? I might be a bit late.”

“No problem.”

……

After putting down his phone, Xu Chen thought things through a bit.

“Tomorrow’s meeting with Jiaduobao needs to be treated seriously.”

“Wang Laoshun’s slogan contest should go smoothly.”

“And Jiaduobao as a brand partner is key for building connections and resources.”

“What I need to do tomorrow is establish my ‘professionalism’ in their eyes.”

“Basically, make them see me as an expert with real value, so they view me as an important contact in return…”

“Most importantly, don’t let them think a high schooler like me came up with the ‘Afraid of Getting Fired Up? Drink Wang Laoshun’ ad just by luck…”

……

……

Early the next morning.

Xu Chen stepped out of the car and spotted the banners at the school gate from afar.

“Congratulations to our school’s Xie Bingran for winning the National Youth Championships in the women’s 100-meter hurdles and breaking the national record!”

“Congratulations to our school’s Xie Bingran for breaking the national youth record in the women’s 100-meter hurdles!”

The second line carried even more weight.

As the Five Star Sports Channel host put it, Xie Bingran has no rivals under 18…

Once inside the gate, the school had set up a massive LED screen in the most prominent spot.

It was looping videos related to Xie Bingran.

Clips of her winning and receiving awards, plus reports from various TV stations.

A group of students just entering school crowded around the screen, watching and chatting.

“Bing Ge’s already a national champion!”

“Haven’t you seen it on TV the last couple of days?”

“Who knew our school would produce a sports star!”

“Bing Ge… could she really make it to the Asian Games?”

“Should’ve gotten her autograph earlier!”

Xu Chen found it amusing and snapped a few photos, sending them to Xie Bingran via multimedia message.

……

……

After classes ended at noon, Xu Chen skipped lunch and hurried out of school.

He hailed a taxi at the gate and headed straight for the Jinfeng Business Tower.

Luckily, it wasn’t far; they arrived in a few minutes.

He took the elevator to the 8th floor; the door to East Morning Star Co.’s office was open, lights on.

Stepping inside, he saw Fang Jun already explaining things to four or five guests.

Xu Chen said as he entered:

“Sorry, everyone, I came straight from school and I’m a bit late…”

Fang Jun turned and quickly introduced:

“This is our East Morning Star Advertising’s general manager, Xu Chen…”

The four or five guests froze at the sight of Xu Chen walking in.

They were all in dark professional suits, exuding a business elite vibe.

They looked Xu Chen over, their faces showing surprise.

Xu Chen was used to it and had expected as much.

He stepped forward with a smile:

“Hello, everyone, I’m Xu Chen. Which of you is Chen Xinyi, the one I spoke with yesterday?”

A woman with glasses raised her hand and spoke in accented Mandarin:

“I’m Chen Xinyi…”

“Mr. Xu, sorry about this.”

“We thought you were a teacher…”

Xu Chen laughed:

“That’s what people usually think. Actually, I’m still in high school and running this ad company on the side.”

Chen Xinyi paused, looking a bit stunned.

A colleague nudged her, and she said, “Oh,” introducing:

“This is our Jiaduobao Group’s deputy general manager for market channels, Nie Fei—Fei Jie.”

Nie Fei stepped forward, extending her right hand:

“Hello, Mr. Xu, I’m Nie Fei.”

She was perfectly polite, with no hint of awkwardness.

Xu Chen shook her hand.

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Nie!”

As they shook, he caught a whiff of her fresh, subtle perfume.

Nie Fei was in her early thirties, with a refined face accented by light makeup, wearing a sharp business suit.

Her short hair was neat and professional, earrings sparkling; he couldn’t tell the material.

Her eyes were deep-set, nose perfectly shaped, and lips bold with lipstick…

Most striking was the beauty mark at the corner of her right eye.

Xu Chen smiled and shook her hand confidently, without any hesitation.

At her age, reaching deputy general manager for the brand meant she had her own edge.

……

Nie Fei looked at Xu Chen and said:

“We thought Mr. Xu was a teacher at that high school; we really didn’t expect…”

Xu Chen didn’t show any unease or rush to explain; he just smiled and said:

“Let’s head to the meeting room!”

He gestured and led the group to the spacious meeting room.

As they walked, Xu Chen gave a quick overview, mainly about how East Morning Star Co. and East Morning Star Advertising were connected through his father.

Once in the meeting room, he invited everyone to sit casually on the sofas.

Fang Jun was on top form, brewing a pot of Pu’er tea with the fine set and pouring small cups.

Chen Xinyi adjusted her glasses and said:

“We’ve just finished our national market survey, focused on Wang Laoshun’s new slogan.”

“After covering the country, both the quantitative data and qualitative reports show your line ‘Afraid of getting fired up? Drink Wang Laoshun’ scored the highest.”

“On our way back, we passed through Tiancheng, and Fei Jie suggested we stop by.”

Xu Chen smiled; this was exactly as he’d anticipated.

But he didn’t jump in right away; instead, he waited for Nie Fei to speak.