The Birth of Shanghai's First Conglomerate

Xiao Jiye went to Hong Kong with An'an for three days and then came back.

If he stays any longer, he'll be reluctant to pay the rent. To be honest, his family isn't really poor.

After all, in a top-tier city like Shenzhen, people live in two-story detached houses, some even five or six hundred square meters.

By all accounts, their conditions are quite good; it's just that Xiao Jiye has always had a habit of being reluctant to spend money.

He probably firmly believed that his grandfather had always been the one to earn money and support the family.

Grandpa is already so old, yet he still works so hard. He wants to grow up quickly.

In fact, their family has always maintained a high standard of living in terms of food and drink.

Tea is a collectible item at auctions, circulating only among the wealthiest individuals.

Aside from occasionally taking Xiao Jiye to the market to buy food, the meals have always been supplied by Tengnong Livestock Farm.

That is, the kind of pure green vegetables that are free of pesticides and any additives.

The same goes for fruit; it's all specially supplied.

Only those who have worked as vegetable vendors know that many people use various methods to preserve or store vegetables in order to sell them at a good price.

Fruit is even better.

Illnesses often enter through the mouth, mostly due to unhealthy eating habits.

Xiao Jiye is still chubby and healthy. In July, he will take his whole family on a trip back to the countryside to return to farming.

This event is held regularly, every one or two years, and aims to remind the wealthy Chen family members not to forget their roots.

On the last two days of the short holiday, Gao Hu came to see him and said that his son Gao Feng wanted to start his own business after graduating from university.

He came to ask Chen Pingsheng for his opinion.

What's there to object to? His son wants to start a business, that's a good thing, just support him.

Unlike his son Chen Lu, who had no entrepreneurial ideas after graduation and just did whatever his parents arranged for him.

He's fine with anything as long as it's not too strenuous.

“Old Chen, you know I don’t have the same foundation as you, and I don’t have much to leave Gao Feng to inherit. I will definitely support him if he wants to start a business, but I’m afraid his ideas are a bit too far-fetched.”

Starting a business as a second-generation rich kid is a huge pitfall, and there are plenty of cases where they do even better than their parents.

It's just a pitifully small number.

Chen Pingsheng said, "Since you're worried he won't do a good job this time, why don't you just give him less money?"

Gao Hu thought about it and agreed. After discussing it with Xiao Chun, he decided to give Gao Feng 50 million yuan to start his own business.

His current wealth mainly comes from what he accumulated through his previous work in live-streaming e-commerce and new media companies.

The catering industry has long been in decline; the competition is too fierce. Even he, a former catering tycoon, failed miserably when he tried to enter the catering business again.

Opportunities of this era wait for no one.

All in all, the Gao family's assets are only a little over a billion yuan, including cash and all other assets.

Giving Gao Feng 50 million to try it out wouldn't be a big deal.

The person who is having an even bigger headache than him is probably Changfu now.

Yang Qian's meaning was very clear: since the man surnamed Chang couldn't raise their son well, she would take the son with her and train him for a period of time.

She also forbade Chang Fu from giving Chang Dalin another penny, and she herself strictly controlled Chang Dalin's expenses.

The maximum is no more than one million per month.

Frankly speaking, it seems a bit too late to start thinking about strict control when you're already in your twenties.

Each of the three brothers had their own affairs.

In the early years, Chen Pingsheng would often visit Zhang Tao's two sons, Zhang Tai and Zhang Hu.

I haven't been there since, mainly because those two kids were too willful and even blamed their father's departure on them.

I don't know who told them this nonsense.

They have absolutely no manners when they meet people. It's truly worrying that these children, raised by their grandparents in the countryside, are like this.

Chen Pingsheng now only sends money regularly every year and doesn't care about their daily lives.

When he went back to work, Song Yaoyao had resolved her parents' medical issues and no longer deliberately dressed herself up as a socialite.

Instead, she reverted to her previous personality as a girl next door, somewhat playful and cute.

She was still very grateful to Chen Pingsheng, but she also had to repay the money she owed him.

He would often treat him to lunch at noon. Chen Pingsheng said, "Hey Yaoyao, with your looks, you must have a lot of guys pursuing you at your company, right?"

"There are indeed many."

Song Yaoyao replied, "I never dared to ask my colleagues for help before, mainly because I was afraid of dragging them down. You know, my parents' condition is so serious, it would definitely cost more than a million yuan to cure them, but who among ordinary people can easily come up with that kind of money!"

"That's right."

Chen Pingsheng nodded, "Now you don't need to worry. Find an outstanding and ambitious ordinary person, and if you two work hard together, your future won't be too bad."

"Yeah, I'll think about my marriage after I've sorted out my parents' issues. By the way, Lao Chen, are you going to keep looking for a rich woman?"

"No way, I'm just a driver. I don't have the skills to handle such delicate tasks."

"That's true. It's really not easy to get into the circle of the rich. My senior has come to terms with it now. She'll save up a little more money and then leave the circle too."

After resolving her parents' issues, Song Yaoyao never wanted to get involved with wealthy people's circles again.

According to her, it was very dark.

As for her senior, she must have made a million or two after attending several events.

This is a job that relies on youth; rich people use their money to buy their looks and youth.

These people have a very extravagant lifestyle, but it's actually quite normal when you think about it; rich people have seen all kinds of beautiful women.

Having seen too many beautiful women, some people develop a taste for excitement, and some even have psychological abnormalities.

With someone like my senior who can be summoned and dismissed at will, she could accumulate at least several million in two years.

When she quits, she can just pack up her bags, take the money, and go home to open a clothing store or something. She'll still be the goddess that the whole village can't even dream of.

Unintentionally, Chen Pingsheng also saved a down-on-her-luck girl.

Another small act of merit has been added.

In the afternoon, Sun Jiahui asked him to go to a charity auction together.

The main reason for attending the auction was not anything else, but that there was a painting there that was very popular with a prominent figure in Shenzhen.

That important figure didn't have a high income, but wielded immense power.

Without a doubt, anyone in this situation works in an office within the system.

Sun Jiahui wanted to use this painting to please him.

It's perfectly normal for businessmen to be scheming and maneuvering.

There are many talented people who discuss art and romance.

Sun Jiahui didn't send the painting to ask for favors immediately; she just wanted to leave a good impression on the important person.

You never know when you might need it.

Charity auctions are common in high society circles, and there are quite a few such auctions in the entertainment industry as well.

Everyone can contribute some good items for auction, and the proceeds can be used for charity. This way, you can gain fame and do good deeds at the same time. Why not do it?

Sun Jiahui seems to have inherited her grandfather's talent for interpersonal relationships; she is very adept at maneuvering.

This is also the main reason why Chen Pingsheng was unwilling to talk to her too much. As a businessman who makes a living through politics, he has spent his whole life studying interpersonal relationships and drinking culture.

Instead of focusing on making good products, they are not doing so. This auction is held in a high-end club, and those who can attend must be worth at least hundreds of millions.

Birds of a feather flock together; the wealthy, whom ordinary people rarely see, often gather in groups.

Chen Pingsheng has never liked collecting cultural relics, let alone ancient calligraphy and paintings.

In his opinion, these things have a pitifully low actual value, which is why many pretentious people like to hang them in their homes.

He was just a driver who came with Sun Jiahui. Sun Jiahui got her wish and bought the painting she had her eye on for nine million.

Pack it up and put it away, ready to find a suitable opportunity and a suitable excuse to send it out.

It's easy to find a reason; it could be a family member's birthday or any kind of holiday.

People who want to give gifts can always find all sorts of reasons.

Chen Pingsheng also saw a decent pen at the auction, but after thinking about it, he didn't buy it.

Let's buy it for Xiao Jiye when he starts kindergarten.

When they returned, Liu Qingqing was playing hide-and-seek with some children in the urban village with Xiao Jiye.

Xiao Jiye hid very well; no one found him even after searching for a while. By the time he was discovered, everyone was already going back for dinner.

Chen Pingsheng thought to himself that he probably wouldn't be able to be a driver for long, and he might as well open a small restaurant in the urban village.

Just like before, I can still watch Xiao Jiye grow up every day.

Thinking about it, I immediately went to find someone to take care of it.

When his wife, Song Yanxi, came back, she was also riding a small donkey. When she heard him say that he wanted to open a restaurant again, Song Yanxi said, "This is also an old person's ailment. You can't do any job for long."

"Isn't this normal? I want to see Xiao Jiye grow up every day. By the way, you're doing a pretty good job as a teacher. I haven't heard you complain at all."

"What's there to complain about? I've always loved being a teacher, and this is just fulfilling a past dream. As for you, you never needed to be a driver in the first place."

It seems so... Chen Pingsheng just bought a small shop of over 200 square meters nearby.

He doesn't plan to cook stir-fries this time; he plans to open a barbecue restaurant, although barbecue restaurants usually do good business at night.

With his old arms and legs, he can't stay up late often; he can only stay open until 8 p.m. at most before closing.

Chen Pingsheng went to tell Old Sun that he had introduced him to the job, and that he would be leaving soon. Out of respect, he should let Old Sun know in advance.

Someone like Sun Jiahui could do quite well even if she joined the government system.

There's a reason why her company can earn tens of millions a year.

When his barbecue restaurant was officially under renovation, he had already told Sun Jiahui in advance that he wanted to resign.

Sun Jiahui had no objections; it's easy to find someone to be a boss's driver.

If you do the math, he's already fifty-four years old this year. Time waits for no one.

Tong Zhelan called him to announce that she wanted to hold a global meeting for Tencent Holdings in Hong Kong.

To put it bluntly, these major shareholders are further defining the group's future development direction.

To be honest, each of the seven chiefs is already at the point where the second generation is handing over the reins.

Whether the handover can proceed smoothly and how it is done at this point is entirely related to whether one's family and business can continue the glory of the previous generation.

Chen Pingsheng took An'an, Erpiya, and Su Xiaoxi with him to participate.

An An often met with these senior figures in the group, and Er Pi Ya also followed Tong Zhe Lan and Shen Nan Peng abroad, learning for a long time.

This was Su Xiaoxi's first time attending such a high-level group meeting.

All of them were early supporters of the Tencent Group's development, and they supported each other all the way to get to where they are today.

However, decades have passed, and each person has developed differently in their respective fields.

In the process of the second generation taking over, Chen Pingsheng adopted a more modern corporate personnel mechanism.

In other words, the principle is that the capable should rise, the average should step aside, and the mediocre should be dismissed.

Even his only son, Chen Lu, was unable to inherit the family's technology business.

That's how he did it; others didn't.

Among the seven leaders, the first to be succeeded by the second generation was a giant in the automotive industry, who was also a giant in the beverage industry.

His son inherited the family's car business five years ago, and his daughter took over the family's beverage empire three years ago.

Both of them were ambitious second-generation rich kids, and they both called Chen Pingsheng "Uncle Chen" when they met him.

In less than five years since his son and daughter took over the company, the automotive sector has seen its market value plummet from a peak of over 300 billion to just over 60 billion, not to mention sales figures.

The company suffered a net loss of 280 billion yuan over five years.

Young people still have ideas. In order to surpass their fathers and put their ideas into practice, they created a whole bunch of trendy car models.

The names were all distinctive, and later all the car models that the father was proud of in his time were renamed.

When the times abandon the second generation, they don't even say goodbye.

This guy originally wanted to retire and enjoy his old age, but now he has to pay the price for his own son.

The son has turned out like this, and the daughter isn't much better.

The beverage empire launches new products every month and advertises everywhere, yet its profits are declining faster and faster each year.

When I took over, the annual profit was no less than 4 billion; now, it's less than 1 billion a year at most.

After three years of hard work, they successfully transformed their company from a top-tier domestic beverage group into a second-tier one.

If they keep working this hard, they might disappear from the market completely in less than two years.

This guy is a stubborn old man. When Chen Pingsheng suggested that he implement a selection mechanism, he refuted it with a single sentence.

If you don't hand over the empire you built yourself to your children, who else can you entrust it to?
His son and daughter became presidents after working for the group for less than two years, taking over the entire group.

Now look what's happened; they've made him the weakest of the seven chiefs.

If this continues, he'll be eliminated.

It has to be said that it's a huge pitfall for the second generation to try their best.

If you don't inherit the family business, you don't want to surpass your father.

Over the course of a few years, no matter how much money you spend, things will remain the same.

Many of these people hold traditional views, believing in the idea of ​​sons following in their fathers' footsteps.

The father retired, and the son took over.

This guy used to brag about how well he raised his son and daughter, but now that he's a CEO and has come home to inherit the family business, he's dumbfounded.

The second generation goes back directly to take over as president and manage their own group.

According to statistics from the Economic Research Institute, maintaining the status quo means that the business will not regress after the succession.

That person is already a chosen one; they can go even further and develop the group even better.

One in a million.

According to big data statistics, after more than 80% of second-generation entrepreneurs return home to take over the business, the group's market value shrinks by more than 50% within three years.

Many more are in grave danger.

Even so, many old guys still handed over their companies to their children without hesitation.

This is the passing down of knowledge from generation to generation.

This also forces these aging business leaders to take it seriously.

(End of this chapter)