After rebirth, I became a great master

Chapter 466 Sharing happiness is worse than enjoying it alone
The only downside to the cancellation of "Everyone's Art" is that it disappointed its sponsors.

In the dead of winter, it's the peak season for thermal underwear sales.

The suspension of broadcasting could be a significant loss for Antarctic.

Zhou Haoran took the initiative to meet with Mr. Zhang of Antarctic, wanting to explain things to him clearly.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Yongxiang was very excited!

Upon meeting, he thanked her repeatedly!

This left Zhou Haoran completely bewildered.

Zhang Yongxiang said excitedly, "Mr. Da, the program you recommended is really great, it's called... what's it called, the one where we come together."

Zhou Haoran said, "《Everyone's Artistic Awaits》".

"Yes, that's it." Zhang Yongxiang gave a thumbs up. "I don't have time to watch TV anymore, but my parents, wife, and kids all love watching it and say the program is great. It's even caused a surge in sales of Antarctic products!"

"Really?"

Zhou Haoran's negative emotions vanished instantly.

Zhang Yongxiang laughed and said, "Really, it's great! Just a few days ago, this Monday, I held a local order fair in the harbor... Hey! It was a huge success! Sales exceeded 3000 million!"

"What about the competitors?"

Zhou Haoran didn't know much about the industry and couldn't assess whether 3000 million in sales was a lot or a little.

Zhang Yongxiang laughed and said, "They opened yesterday. I sent someone to check it out, and it wasn't nearly as lively as ours. Their transaction volume was probably less than half of ours. I don't know if it's because of the economic crisis, but the market isn't as hot as it was last year."

"That's good!"

Zhou Haoran breathed a sigh of relief. Taking other people's money and not doing the job is against the spirit of business.

Now that the publicity has been effective and Antarctic has achieved results, that would be the best outcome.

Of course, this is also related to the brand name "Nanji Ren".

In the thermal underwear market, the competitor "Yu Zhaolin" is simply no match for "Nanji Ren" based on brand name alone. Once advertising is launched and brand awareness is established, Nanji Ren's sales explosion is inevitable.

The "Nanji Ren" brand in the south and the "Beiji Rong" brand in the north—these brand names, which are able to grab consumers' first impression, destined these two companies to be the dominant players in the thermal underwear industry, one in the south and one in the north.

Zhang Yongxiang added, "I heard... I heard that this program is going to be canceled?"

Zhou Haoran nodded. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about."

"what happened?"

Zhang Yongxiang still wants to take advantage of this momentum to reach even greater heights.

Zhou Haoran sighed, "Didn't the entertainment channel launch a competitive program called 'Happy Family'? If it's normal competition, 'Happy Family' is definitely no match for it."

Zhang Yongxiang's eyes widened. "If you can't compete, you can only resort to dirty tricks? To make 'Everyone's Art Up' stop airing for rectification?"

"Correct."

"I told you long ago, that Yi Changping is a scoundrel! I've asked around, and he has connections with Yu Zhaolin!"

"is it?"

Zhou Haoran narrowed his eyes.

This is not surprising at all. These days, who has clean hands? Either you don't investigate at all, or when you do, you're sure to find someone guilty. As the saying goes, if you line up these people and execute them all, some will be wrongly accused; if you execute nine out of ten, there will definitely be some who slip through the net.

Zhang Yongxiang sneered, "This winter, the Antarctic people's core strategic task is the local port. I've been sending people to keep an eye on Yu Zhaolin's side. I've discovered several times that Yi Changping accepted banquets from Yu Zhaolin's side, and then they went to high-end places together, and the girls they called were all from the Russians."

Zhou Haoran's eyes lit up. "I heard that things are very chaotic in Russia right now. Their light industry has collapsed, and everything is in short supply."

"Canned food for an airplane!"

Zhang Yongxiang laughed heartily; this matter has even made the news.

There are many other examples, such as exchanging liquor for tanks, and exchanging various light industrial products for Russian guns, missiles, artillery, warships, etc., but it is inconvenient to report on those involving arms.

The Soviet Union, with its united people, developed for decades, but the lives of ordinary citizens became increasingly miserable. All the money was used to develop heavy industry and engage in the Cold War with the United States. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, it could only exchange heavy industrial products for light industrial products.

Zhou Haoran analyzed, "We're not considering airplanes or cannons; the risks are too great, and you can't afford them. However, it's so cold over there in Russia, with winter temperatures dropping to minus forty or fifty degrees Celsius. If we could sell Antarctic thermal underwear there, it would definitely be a market."

"Can it really be done?"

Zhang Yongxiang was so excited he almost jumped up.

Who doesn't know that foreign trade is the most profitable?

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "I'll ask around."

Zhang Yongxiang said with difficulty, "The foreign trade of textiles is a restricted foreign trade, and it cannot circulate freely. Our country has not joined the WTO. It will probably not be easy for thermal underwear to go overseas."

"I'll ask around, and if it doesn't work out, so be it. But if I do find a way, the Antarctic people will have a much better time."

Zhou Haoran naturally knew that before China joined the WTO, textiles could not be freely traded. There were fixed quotas every year, and they all had to be approved in batches by relevant departments.

Therefore, some people with connections have the opportunity to seek rent and make a lot of money without doing anything.

They went to get the permits and sold them to merchants who needed them.

They earn more than legitimate businessmen who run real industries.

However, all of this is trade with Europe and the United States.

There's no need to trade with the Russian bear.

The situation in Russia is very chaotic right now, with no order whatsoever.

The effectiveness of an official permit is far less than that of a bribe.

Therefore, most traders who travel to Russia for trade do not need permits or any procedures; they simply load their goods onto the train and set off. Upon arrival, local Russian traders immediately begin snapping up the goods.

This includes the "canned food for airplane" deal.

There's no need for approvals.

"Just get the goods and set off." "Sir..." Zhang Yongxiang was somewhat moved. Regardless of whether the foreign trade deal could be completed, the fact that the sir had thought of him was touching. "Sir, if you have any instructions in the future, just let me know!"

"You're too kind," Zhou Haoran smiled, very generously. "Sharing happiness is worse than enjoying it alone. Earning money alone is far less joyful than earning it together with everyone. That's the duty of the Red Mansion Teahouse!"

"Sir, when will the Red Mansion Teahouse open?"

Zhang Yongxiang had already decided that once the teahouse opened, he would definitely send a generous gift. Putting aside everything else, the fact that Nanji Ren's market share in the local harbor had surpassed Yu Zhaolin's was inseparable from Mr. Da's planning.

Zhou Haoran said, "Wait for news!"

The new Dream of the Red Chamber Teahouse has already been renovated.

A temporary team has also been seconded over.

We're just waiting for the final date to be set.

Finally, the news has arrived!
Du Jiayun, president of Microsoft China, visited Hong Kong again and met with Zhou Haoran.

"Dr. Zhou, I have some very bad news for you!"

Du Jiayun's tone was heavy.

Zhou Haoran rented a ferry, and the two of them enjoyed the scenery on the Huangpu River. Holding onto the railing, he said casually, "For me, there's no bad news."

Du Jiayun said in a deep voice, "President Ballmer has reached an agreement with Hotmail!"

"Oh? How much?"

"do not know."

"do not know?"

“Uh…” Du Jiayun hesitated for a moment, “It’s estimated to be between 4 million and 5 million US dollars.”

Zhou Haoran scoffed, "As expected of a big company, they're really rich. They won't accept a $2000 million cooperation, but instead want to spend hundreds of millions of dollars. Mr. Du, do you think there might be racial discrimination here? They don't want to pay us just because we're Asian. But they don't even blink an eye when it comes to Americans, spending hundreds of millions of dollars."

Du Jiayun was startled. "No, absolutely not!"

"It's fine if you don't."

Zhou Haoran nodded.

After a long silence, Du Jiayun sighed, "Dr. Zhou, I'm actually on your side."

"Really?"

Zhou Haoran smiled.

Du Jiayun frankly stated, "Promoting your cooperation with Microsoft will be my achievement. And your future interactions with Microsoft will inevitably involve me. If Microsoft acquires Hotmail, this will have nothing to do with me."

Zhou Haoran nodded. "That's the truth."

Du Jiayun said, "Bill Gates' trip to China has been arranged."

"Oh?"

This was the time Zhou Haoran had been waiting for.

Du Jiayun whispered, "Ballmer and Hotmail have reached an agreement, but the deal still needs board approval. Bill Gates can represent the board. If you can get along well with him, there's still a chance to turn things around!"

Zhou Haoran asked, "Which day?"

Du Jiayun said, "From December 18th to December 21st. He will finish his arrangements in the capital at 4 pm on the 21st of this month, and then fly to the port. He wants to see you in the evening, and I hope you can make the time."

"Number 21?" Zhou Haoran's eyes lit up. "What a coincidence!"

"how?"

Du Jiayun was puzzled.

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "It's like this, I opened a teahouse over there..."

He reached out and pointed towards the riverbank.

"teahouse?"

Du Jiayun found it somewhat amusing, thinking to himself, "Why would an academic bigwig like you open a teahouse?"
Zhou Haoran said, "There will be a cocktail party on the opening day, the 21st. You and Bill Gates can come directly there."

Du Jiayun paused for a moment, "Is this convenient?"

“It’s no problem, it’s very convenient.” Zhou Haoran looked completely harmless. “It’s just about email. I can make a final decision after a ten-minute talk with Bill Gates.”

Driven by his own interests, Du Jiayun sincerely hoped that Dr. Zhou could cooperate with Microsoft, and kindly suggested, "Dr. Zhou, Gates's special trip to China to see you this time shows his great sincerity. His purpose in coming to China is to..."

Because of the classified nature of the information, he couldn't say much: "During this trip to China, he met with high-level leaders, but you were the only exception. Bill Gates is very sincere in wanting to cooperate with you. If they can't reach an agreement this time, he will definitely approve Ballmer's proposal after he returns to the United States. Microsoft will then completely abandon its cooperation with you and instead acquire Hotmail."

Zhou Haoran smiled and said, "Okay, I know."

He's not thinking about cooperation right now.

It was a staged accident.

This is a common product approach in the internet industry.

If you make a phone, it's not enough to just showcase its power.

To truly challenge the iPhone, you need to conduct a comprehensive comparison with it... Even if you lag far behind the iPhone, as long as you succeed in this comparison, you'll have the qualifications to "benchmark against the iPhone," and your status will be established.

……

new week.

Monday.

Zhou Haoran arrived at work around 11 a.m.

Then, I heard some shocking news.

Song Yongjun, director of the lifestyle channel, was taken away for questioning by the disciplinary inspection department of his superior authority.

(End of this chapter)