Chapter 479: Corporate Maneuvers

On the phone.

Xu Zhiquan paused for a moment and began,

“The details of the ‘Red Star Liquor Factory’ ad project need you to discuss directly with them, son.

I’ve mentioned the background a few times at home, but I’ll go over it again—it’s a bit complicated…”

Xu Zhiquan wasn’t one for long speeches, but he got straight to the point, laying out the key information for Xu Chen.

The controller of Datuo Car Dealership, Jiang Huaqin, urgently needed to smooth things over with a key leader at the Beijing State-owned Assets Commission.

But this leader was unapproachable, practically impossible to reach on a personal level.

Jiang Huaqin had learned from various sources that the leader’s son-in-law, Meng Huiyang, had been transferred to the Red Star Liquor Factory under the State-owned Assets Commission and was now serving as the product marketing director.

Conveniently, Jiang Huaqin could connect with Meng Huiyang through some contacts, and Meng was relatively easy to talk to.

Meng Huiyang was on track to be promoted to deputy general manager at Red Star Liquor Factory, but first, he needed to deliver solid project results.

The project Xu Zhiquan wanted Xu Chen to handle was an ad promotion initiative under Meng Huiyang’s management.

If they could secure this project, it would help Meng Huiyang solidify his position at Red Star Liquor Factory, strengthen his ties to his father-in-law, and settle Jiang Huaqin’s favors all at once.

Xu Chen had a general idea and replied,

“Red Star Liquor Factory only has one main brand—’Red Star Erguotou’.

If this is about promoting ‘Red Star Erguotou’, it shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”

In his previous life at the ad agency, Xu Chen had worked on liquor products for a while and had thoroughly researched various baijiu ad campaigns.

The marketing battle between Red Star Erguotou and Niulanshan was a classic rivalry in the baijiu industry.

Xu Zhiquan chuckled and said, “Hearing that from you puts my mind at ease!

Anyway, don’t stress too much. As long as you’re involved in this project, Jiang Huaqin will see our effort and sincerity.”

Xu Chen: “Still, we should aim to land the project. Since we’re diving in, let’s make it count.”

Xu Zhiquan: “That’s my boy!”

He paused. “I’ll have Guo Liang coordinate the project details with you. You can handle the rest directly.”

Xu Chen: “No problem. Just tell Guo Liang to reach out.”

Xu Zhiquan: “If it involves visiting Red Star Liquor Factory for presentations or meetings, Jiang Huaqin will likely join.

He wants to build a rapport with Meng Huiyang—maybe grab a meal together or something.”

Xu Chen: “Dad, are you coming too?”

Xu Zhiquan: “Of course I am.

Jiang Huaqin wants to dine with Meng Huiyang; I want to dine with Jiang Huaqin…

These are great opportunities.”

Xu Chen: “You business folks really go in circles.”

Xu Zhiquan laughed heartily:

“In this society, it’s all about connections. Even the biggest bosses need favors.

Everyone’s just networking over meals, trading value and building relationships—it’s the same for all.”

…

After finishing his meal, Xu Chen headed back to the dormitory and soon received a message from Guo Liang.

The matter was urgent and important, so Xu Chen called Guo Liang right away.

They skipped the small talk and dove straight in:

“Red Star Liquor Factory checked out ‘East Morning Star Advertising’ and showed keen interest in partnering.

They’re impressed with our past cases and clients, especially Jiaduobao and Kunlunshan Mineral Water—these fast-moving consumer goods are similar to their category…”

“I just connected with them at noon. They want to set up a meeting with East Morning Star soon.

To discuss project needs and see if we have solid ideas.”

They seem pretty eager about it.”

Xu Chen: “A phone meeting should work for the initial stage. I’m free today or tomorrow.

I’ll clear my schedule.”

Guo Liang: “Got it. I’ll set the time with them.”

Xu Chen: “Also, get a sense of who from their side will attend—mainly the business lines and positions—so I can prepare.”

Guo Liang: “Understood!”…

Not long after, Xu Chen got another message from Guo Liang.

The phone meeting with ‘Red Star Liquor Factory’ was scheduled for five o’clock that afternoon.

The client-side lead was the son-in-law himself, Meng Huiyang, currently the product marketing director at Red Star Liquor Factory.

The timing worked out perfectly—no need for Xu Chen to take extra leave.

He quickly notified Gu Xinxi to arrange the meeting room and prepare the documents.

…

This matter tied into ‘Chenfeng Technology’s northern market expansion, so it wasn’t just any ad project—’Young Xu Chen’ treated it with extra seriousness.

During breaks in his afternoon classes, Xu Chen researched Red Star’s Erguotou products and their past ad promotions online.

As a traditional state-owned liquor factory targeting a more downmarket audience, Red Star’s ad strategies in 2007 were still very conventional.

Xu Chen sorted through his memories, recalling the ad projects ‘Red Star Erguotou’ would undertake in his previous life and organizing his thoughts.

He quickly narrowed down the possible directions for this project.

Xu Chen felt confident. Based on the current market and Red Star’s stage, the project demands likely wouldn’t stray from these two main paths.

For both directions, he already had standard solutions in mind.

As long as no disasters hit, securing this project should be straightforward.

Helping ‘Chenfeng Electric Vehicles’ expand in the northern market this way was something ‘Young Xu Chen’ hadn’t anticipated.

…

…

Approaching five in the evening, at East Morning Star Advertising.

The large conference room was packed.

Besides Sun Aimi, Gu Xinxi, and Tang Xiaowei, there were three interns—all Xu Chen’s seniors from the same college.

This initial project meeting involved brainstorming and idea generation, so they invited more people.

The interns perked up when they heard it was a real ad pitch project, eager to jump in.

Among them was a third-year advertising senior, Zhang Yuchen…

Xu Chen rushed over after class, stepped in, gave a quick greeting, glanced at the time, and kicked off the meeting.

They first connected Guo Liang to the call, and Gu Xinxi linked up with her former mentor, her excitement hard to hide.

Guo Liang set the stage briefly, then had Gu Xinxi connect with the client at ‘Red Star Liquor Industry’.

Guo Liang hosted the meeting and introduced the key people from both sides.

“From East Morning Star Advertising, we have Creative Department’s Young Xu Chen and Sun Aimi.”

“From Red Star Liquor Industry, the main lead is the product marketing director and key figure for this project, Meng Huiyang.”

Also joining was Meng Huiyang’s subordinate, marketing manager Xia Mengxiang…

Both sides exchanged brief introductions and pleasantries.

The client side, led by marketing manager Xia Mengxiang, gave a simple overview, praising East Morning Star Advertising’s past cases and expressing delight in this discussion.

As for Director Meng Huiyang, he came across as quite aloof on the call, only offering a greeting at the start.

As the leader’s son-in-law, his background was probably solid.

Xu Chen couldn’t help thinking of Fang Jun—was this aloofness a common trait among those with good backgrounds?…

Xu Chen then gave another round of introductions for East Morning Star Advertising, focusing on core project cases.

He highlighted the fast-moving consumer goods projects related to liquor to match their interests.

He kept it concise but emphasized the company’s strength and expertise.

Xia Mengxiang asked a few questions midway, likely including some from Director Meng Huiyang, mostly about the strategies behind certain projects.

Xu Chen handled them effortlessly, sharing freely as long as it didn’t involve confidential client sales data.

Once Xu Chen finished, the aloof Director Meng Huiyang on the other end simply said,

“Thank you for sharing, Young Xu Chen.”

Then, Xia Mengxiang outlined the current project needs for ‘Red Star Liquor Industry’.

In the conference room, Sun Aimi, Gu Xinxi, and the others took careful notes.

Xu Chen listened quietly, confirming some of his earlier guesses.

In the Erguotou market, it was mainly the two brands: Beijing’s ‘Red Star’ and ‘Niulanshan’.

Historically, ‘Red Star Liquor Factory’ was established in 1949, considered the original source of Erguotou.

‘Niulanshan Liquor Factory’ started in the 1960s with technical support from Red Star, becoming a new brand.

But over the next few decades, ‘Niulanshan’ seized promotion opportunities and expanded aggressively, now sharing the market equally with ‘Red Star’.

In a way, ‘Red Star’ had created its own formidable rival.

‘Red Star Erguotou’s main competition was against ‘Niulanshan’.

This promotion project, led by Meng Huiyang, was a campaign focused on ‘youthification’.

Market research showed that baijiu and Erguotou users were mostly middle-aged and older, with past promotions targeting middle-aged men.

Meng Huiyang pushed a new market strategy: attracting a new generation of young consumers to the Erguotou category.

He and Red Star’s management agreed that competing for existing users wasn’t worth it—whoever captured the young market would dominate.

So, ‘Red Star Erguotou’ wanted to beat ‘Niulanshan’ to the punch with a youth-focused campaign, drawing more young people to notice, like, and try Erguotou, especially their brand.

Targeting young audiences, promoting ‘Erguotou culture’, and pushing ‘Red Star’ toward a younger, more upscale image were the campaign’s strategic goals.

…

Xu Chen had anticipated two possible directions for this promotion.

One was the rivalry with ‘Niulanshan’ over the ‘authentic Erguotou’ claim; the other was this ‘youthification’ effort.

As the newly transferred director, Meng Huiyang leading the brand’s youth push made perfect sense…

After Xia Mengxiang finished outlining the project background, she added,

“Does Young Xu Chen or anyone at East Morning Star Advertising have any questions about the project needs?”

Everyone in the conference room stayed silent, eyes on Xu Chen.

No one else spoke until the boss did.

Xu Chen thought for a moment:

“I’ve looked at Red Star Erguotou’s products; the main push is still the classic bottle and liquor.

For young users, are you sticking with the old product?

Or do you have plans for something more youth-oriented?”

What Xu Chen didn’t know was that on the other end, Meng Huiyang’s expression shifted slightly.

In fact, Xu Chen’s question hit the core issue—no other ad agency had brought it up before…

Meng Huiyang paused and replied,

“Young Xu Chen, you’ve nailed it—that’s the key point.

We’ve conducted several rounds of market user research and need a new product approach.

The classic Red Star Erguotou targets the original audience.

Even if we push it to younger users, they’ll see it as outdated.

For the new products aimed at youth, we have three different design schemes. We’ll send them over to you.

We’d also like to hear East Morning Star Advertising’s thoughts on selecting a scheme.”

Xu Chen: “No problem. We’ll integrate the product schemes with the promotion plans and develop a full market strategy.”

Xia Mengxiang:

“I’ll compile a document and meeting summary after this, including the requirements, product schemes, and send it all over…

Also, on the project timeline, we need to confirm with you, Young Xu Chen.

We’re in a rush here—when can you present the proposal?”

Xu Chen checked his phone calendar, thought it over, and left a week’s buffer. This couldn’t drag on too long.

After some online discussion, they set the proposal date for Friday, March 16th.

This timing had an added benefit: it left room to visit Cadillac’s shooting site in Beijing.

If schedules aligned, he could also drop by McCann in Beijing to meet Mo Kangxun in person.

…

…

Once the call ended, Guo Liang called separately.

“Young Xu Chen, we only gave ourselves a week—is that too tight?

We need a complete ad plan, including creative drafts, right?”

Xu Chen laughed and said,

“We’ll manage. Let’s hold an internal brainstorming session tomorrow and finalize the creative plan that day.

Sun Aimi and Tang Xiaowei work fast— a week’s enough to get the drafts done.”

As his words sank in, everyone in the conference room exchanged glances, a mix of surprise and uncertainty, especially the three senior interns.

Brainstorm tomorrow and lock in the creative plan the same day?

Weren’t ad agency creative meetings supposed to involve multiple rounds of brainstorming?

Though Sun Aimi, Gu Xinxi, and Tang Xiaowei found it rushed, based on past experiences with Young Xu Chen, finalizing on the spot fit his style…

Xu Chen paused and added to Guo Liang on the phone,

“Dad doesn’t want to pressure me, but I know your dealership expansion is time-sensitive.

The sooner we wrap this project, the sooner you can move forward!”

Guo Liang went quiet for a second before replying,

“Young Xu Chen, when you get to Beijing, I’ll buy you a drink!”

Xu Chen: “You’re on!”

…

With the call wrapped up, Young Xu Chen assigned tasks on the spot.

Everyone should brainstorm ideas and discuss them at the meeting tomorrow morning.

Xu Chen thought again:

“Sorry, make that noon. I’ve got classes in the morning.”

“…”