Chapter 511: Business and Ambitions

The ‘You Le Mei’ project for the ad shoot is moving forward steadily, but Xie Bingran’s schedule hasn’t been finalized yet.

Director You Yuhui has tentatively confirmed the filming studio in Shanghai’s Minhang District, at a small film base with ready-made sets resembling ‘European street romance scenes’ that just need some fine-tuning.

Of course, whether to film there ultimately depends on submitting detailed set designs and shooting plans for approval from East Morning Star Advertising’s Young Xu Chen.

When Xi Zhilang’s chairman Li Yongjun and market director Kuang Lili visited East Morning Star Advertising, they could tell that Xu Chen and Xie Bingran had a special personal connection—otherwise, they wouldn’t have teamed up for Ran Bing Sports.

Kuang Lili specifically asked Xu Chen about Xie Bingran’s schedule:

“We’re working with Director Li Yue on this, but he hasn’t given us a specific answer on the endorser’s availability yet.”

“We’re really getting anxious. Without a confirmed schedule for the endorser, we can’t move forward.”

“I wonder if Young Xu Chen has any updates… or other channels to communicate through?”

Xu Chen thought for a moment and replied:

“I figure Xie Bingran’s schedule will be around late May or early June.”

“By June, she’ll be in intensive training for the Olympics, so coordinating anything after that will be tougher.”

“Since you’ve already signed the contract with Director Li Yue, he’ll make sure to arrange it.”

“So, the only feasible window right now seems to be late May or early June.”

Kuang Lili: “Alright, hearing that from Young Xu Chen gives us a clear picture.”

She paused briefly. “But that doesn’t leave much time. Will we get the ad shoot preparations done in time?”

Xu Chen: “We will. The storyboard scripts and shooting plans are mostly wrapped up already.”

“The director team we’ve got is experienced and efficient.”

“Now, it’s just about scouting the location and finalizing the shoot site.”

“Then, we’ll coordinate with the two actors ahead of time on the scripts.”

Chairman Li Yongjun chuckled:

“Our little star doesn’t need to worry too much—she’s been practicing in front of the mirror every night!”

In the blink of an eye, it was the 15th of the month, a Tuesday.

Zhou Junjun showed up at the Shanghai company office again to work.

“Vice President Zhou” thoughtfully brought some Fujian Province snacks like dried plums, dried meat, mochi, and green bean cakes, filling up the office fridge.

More importantly, she brought a brand-new pair of ‘Ran Bing X’ shoes for everyone.

Like before, these were actually ‘flawed’ items.

But Lifeng factory’s quality standards are high, so those minor flaws are negligible.

‘Ran Bing X’ comes in men’s ‘Phoenix’ version and women’s ‘Phoenix Queen’ version.

Interestingly, many at the company mix and match them.

For example, Tang Xiaowei from the creative department specifically asked for a ‘Phoenix Queen’ pair.

And Nana went even bolder—one foot in ‘Phoenix’ and the other in ‘Phoenix Queen’.

You’ve got to say, it actually looks pretty trendy.

Jiang Yuze frowned in thought:

“This style could be a marketing angle—turn it into a trend and hype it up!”

Everyone found it amusing, and Jiang Yuze, looking thrilled, turned to implement the plan right away.

‘Ran Bing 001’ and ‘Ran Bing X’ production is now on track, with capacity at a reasonable level.

Mainly, online store orders are building up, so they’ll need time to stockpile inventory.

Of course, for Vice President Zhou and Lifeng, this is a sweet burden.

Vice President Zhou finally met the new colleagues in the office, especially the charming Pan Mengting from East Morning Star Advertising’s client department, which sparked another round of her attentiveness.

Gu Xinxi has high emotional intelligence; seeing Pan Mengting’s shyness and discomfort, she gently used humor to hold Vice President Zhou back.

Overall, having the lively Zhou Junjun around the office lightens the atmosphere and makes everything more fun.

Normally, guys like Jiang Yuze, Sun Lingfeng, and Liu Wei are all serious.

Gu Xinxi and Sun Aimi are deep into their work, while Tang Xiaowei is more reserved.

With Zhou Junjun wandering around, there’s a lot more laughter.

Wu Feifei has that same vibe, but unfortunately, her studies keep her away.

Xu Chen is even thinking about hiring someone with a similar lively personality later to boost the office’s ‘happy energy’.

At lunchtime, Xu Chen and Nie Fei hosted Zhou Junjun separately.

Vice President Zhou didn’t hold back and picked an expensive Japanese restaurant in Wujiao Square.

Xu Chen hadn’t had Japanese food in a while, so he enjoyed it thoroughly…

During the meal, Nie Fei and Xu Chen asked more about the factory situation, especially future production plans.

With the production line in Fujian Province, even though Zhou Junjun is capable and trustworthy, Xu Chen and Nie Fei still need to know the real business status.

Zhou Junjun usually seems carefree, but when talking about the factory, she’s all business.

After discussing it, she said casually:

“Don’t worry, Fei Jie and Young Xu Chen! I’ve got the factory under control—nothing will go wrong.”

Then, she suddenly remembered something and added:

“There’s this situation—some people from factories around Lijiang City are probing about ‘Ran Bing’.”

“They did it last year too; it’s just a few competitors asking around, and we ignored it.”

“But recently, especially after Bing Ge’s win and ‘Ran Bing X’ launch, the inquiries have picked up.”

Xu Chen thought for a second: “Can we find out exactly which company or who’s behind it?”

Zhou Junjun: “I’ll track it down; leave it to me.”

Nie Fei, sipping barley tea, said:

“We were playing it low-key before.”

“Now, with Bing Ge’s first world championship boosting momentum, ‘Ran Bing 001’ and ‘Ran Bing X’ sales and buzz are obvious to everyone…”

“In this situation, hiding is pointless.”

She paused:

“And lately, competitors are ramping up against ‘Ran Bing’ directly.”

“For example, that domestic XX company has released a knockoff of ‘Ran Bing 001’.”

“I’ve already contacted our legal guy, Si Daqing, to handle it.”

Xu Chen:

“If we can’t hide it, then let’s not bother.”

Nie Fei nodded and said:

“I was going to discuss this with you two anyway.”

“So far, ‘Ran Bing Sports’ hasn’t done any major promotions—it’s all been organic traffic from Bing Ge’s fame.”

“The 2008 Olympics are coming up, and Xie Bingran’s popularity will peak before the games.”

“What happens after depends on Bing Ge’s results…”

“My thought is, riding the Olympic wave could be ‘Ran Bing Sports’ big breakout moment.”

She looked at Xu Chen:

“Now, sports brands worldwide are pushing ‘Olympic marketing’.”

“‘Ran Bing Sports’ should consider a big proactive push too.”

“We might not get official Olympic partnerships, but with Bing Ge, we’ve got a huge edge.”

Xu Chen: “Do we have enough money?”

That’s the core issue.

Nie Fei smiled: “I crunched the numbers with Fang Jun; based on current sales and revenue, we’ll have solid cash flow by year-end.”

“We can afford promotional investments as long as we don’t overexpand.”

She glanced at Zhou Junjun:

“But Lifeng’s payment terms might need extending by about eight months.”

Zhou Junjun furrowed her brow but sighed and said:

“No problem! It’s all for ‘Ran Bing’ to soar!”

“I’ll figure out the Lifeng side when I get back!”

Xu Chen and Nie Fei raised their glasses:

“Thanks, Vice President Zhou!”

Zhou Junjun beamed and clinked her tea cup with theirs.

She recalled something: “I went shopping on Huaihai Road yesterday afternoon—Bing Ge’s Louis Vuitton ad is splashed across the whole building facade. It’s incredibly eye-catching.”

Nie Fei: “That building’s ads are locked in with Louis Vuitton for ten years; Bing Ge’s one will probably run for at least half a year.”

Zhou Junjun: “Weren’t we talking about opening a ‘Ran Bing Sports’ offline display and experience store in Shanghai?”

“How about right under the Louis Vuitton ad or on the same street?”

“That way, Louis Vuitton is basically advertising for us.”

Nie Fei pondered:

“That’s a solid idea…”

Xu Chen: “Let’s tie it into the big promotion and turn it into an offline PR event.”

Nie Fei nodded:

“I’ll have the team meet today and put together a full plan.”

“But there’s one issue: we don’t know Bing Ge’s upcoming competition schedule.”

“If our promo hits a high-profile match of hers, it’ll be twice as effective.”

Xu Chen: “I’ll check with Coach Cheng Hong, but no schedule’s out yet.”

“The General Bureau has sent experts to work with Head Coach Sun on the training and competition plans.”

Zhou Junjun:

“The General Bureau sending people directly? That won’t clash with the head coach, will it?”

Xu Chen: “I was worried about that too, so I asked Coach Cheng Hong. She said it’s fine.”

“Everything still follows Head Coach Sun’s decisions.”

On the way to afternoon classes, Xu Chen stopped by the school south gate newsstand and picked up a copy of ‘Oriental Morning Post’.

In this era, newsstands like this still exist, but Xu Chen couldn’t remember how long it’d be before they vanished.

Flipping to the front page, there was a full-page color ad for Cadillac.

“The decline of masculinity is this era’s tragedy—good thing there’s Cadillac.”

With mid-month here, it’s also the day Cadillac’s ads hit the streets.

Besides print and posters covering subways, buses, and outdoor spaces, TV spots will air on major channels.

Xu Chen had seen Cadillac’s media schedule; their promo budget and scale are bigger than last year’s Jeep campaign.

After all, Cadillac has more models, and their scale dwarfs Jeep’s, which only had Grand Cherokee and Wrangler…

As Xu Chen walked to class, he flipped through the ‘Oriental Morning Post’ and spotted more news on Xie Bingran in the sports section.

This was an interview feature where a reporter from Oriental Morning Post talked to the support team at Xin Zhuang Base.

It seemed to cover the logistics for the national and Shanghai athletics teams, but most of it focused on Xie Bingran.

Even a kitchen staff member mentioned that their steamed buns were Xie Bingran’s favorite.

Xu Chen found it funny, thinking his little foodie wasn’t picky at all—this chef was just riding on Bing Ge’s coattails.

In the afternoon class, Gu Xinxi compiled a final report for Cadillac and emailed it to the client.

It covered not just East Morning Star Advertising’s ad production but also post-launch public opinion and feedback.

Soon after, they got a reply from Cadillac’s market VP, Lian Shang En.

It was an English thank-you note praising the East Morning Star Advertising team.

Market director Hua Shao Jie followed up, expressing thanks and mentioning interest in ongoing collaborations.

Seeing the timing was right, Xu Chen messaged Hua Shao Jie privately.

After some polite chat, Xu Chen invited him to visit East Morning Star Advertising.

What Young Xu Chen had in mind was recruiting a reliable marketing VP for Chenfeng Technology.

From his observations, Hua Shao Jie fit the bill perfectly.

Even if Hua Shao Jie wasn’t interested, he might recommend other candidates.

After chatting with his father Xu Zhiquan, Xu Chen figured pulling someone from the auto industry for marketing and branding was a smart move.

Besides promoting Chenfeng Electric Vehicles, they could support Ran Bing Sports projects if needed, especially since Nie Fei was planning a big push.

Hua Shao Jie is straightforward; he thought it over and replied:

[This week’s packed with project launches. Will Young Xu Chen be in Shanghai next week? I can drop by then.]

Xu Chen: [Yes, I will be. Just come over anytime, Jack.]

Hua Shao Jie: [Let’s tentatively set it for next Monday! I’ll let you know if anything changes.]

Xu Chen: [Sounds good! We’ll talk next week!]

In the evening, Xu Chen headed alone to the 8th-floor studio, poured himself a glass of red wine, and enjoyed some quiet time.

Handling work and pondering thoughts here was peaceful and private.

Most of the time, Young Xu Chen relaxed here, sipping tea, having a drink, playing games, or watching shows.

As he browsed forums leisurely, he suddenly got a message from Director Li Yue.

It turns out the ‘Omega’ brand partnership is confirmed—they’re ready to discuss commercial deals with Xie Bingran.