Era: Starting from divorce from female college student

Chapter 321, Summary at the end of
November 1971, Skunk Works, Burbank, California.

The Skunk Works, the officially recognized nickname for Lockheed Martin's advanced research and development projects, is a top-secret unit responsible for secret research programs.

For example, the famous U2 reconnaissance aircraft and Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft were independently developed by this unit, and the outside world was completely unaware of the entire development process.

One day in November, a dark figure came to the vicinity of the Skunk Works in the dark of night, but the security personnel of the Skunk Works had not noticed it yet.

The Skunk Works was originally located in an unknown circus tent. Now it is surrounded by residential areas, factories, etc., but these are just a cover.

In fact, it was because of the cover of these residential areas and factories that Zhao Mancang was able to easily pass the outer security check and successfully enter the Skunk Works.

"Where is the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft?"

After entering the Skunk Works, Zhao Mancang began to check the situation.

At first, he didn't want to come in person, after all, he thought that US dollars should be able to speak for him.

Later he learned that the arms dealer he had consulted had no idea about the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft.

The initial number of the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft project was Q12. The entire project was top secret, and its funds were not provided through public channels. It was funded by a top secret project fund of the SAM Air Force.

It is impossible for the outside world to know about such a project. Even if some arms dealers know about it, they are only Q12.

So he had no choice but to come in person.

Who made him boast in front of his superiors that it was possible to bring the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft back to the mainland?

Such an advanced high-tech drone should of course be taken away.

After searching for a while, Zhao Mancang still couldn't find the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, but instead saw the research and development of many top-secret projects.

"Hey, is this the Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft production workshop? Holy shit, are these all the relevant technical data?"

When Zhao Mancang arrived at a large production workshop, his eyes suddenly lit up.

If he was not mistaken, then this was the famous Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft production workshop.

There is also a completed Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft parked in the workshop, but it seems that it has not yet undergone the final equipment test, so it is still in the production workshop.

There are many engineers busy working nearby.

Sam's statement about not working night shifts is, haha, a lie in a capitalist country.

How is it possible not to work overtime?

You know, the competition between Sam and Moscow in the aerospace field is so fierce. How could it be possible without working overtime to produce?
Even though the Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft is now almost useless and dares not fly to the University of Tokyo or Moscow, it is still Sam's most advanced reconnaissance aircraft, without a doubt.

Although the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft is also very powerful, it is a drone and is very different from the Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft.

"Hey, now that you've met me, you can't go back empty-handed!"

Zhao Mancang chuckled and then slowly retreated.

He did not alert the enemy immediately. After all, his purpose of coming this time was the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. He had to figure out the primary and secondary relationships and not mess them up.

Next, Zhao Mancang spent some time before arriving at the production workshop of the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft.

However, there are no drones in this workshop now, only the parts that have just arrived.

It seems that the previous drone has been assembled and transported away for test flight, and now the assembly of the next one has begun.

"Damn, so rich!"

The cost of a D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft is about million US dollars, which is not very expensive, but far less than the famous Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft.

It is equipped with a self-destruct mechanism that will automatically destroy itself after completing its mission, preventing the technology from being captured by the enemy.

The D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft that crashed near the Dongda Shaya laboratory area has been destroyed, so the leaders are so angry.

Such an unmanned reconnaissance aircraft can indeed cause great harm to people.

Zhao Mancang has been searching for such a long time and finally found it, so he certainly cannot return empty-handed.

However, before taking action, Zhao Mancang must make relevant plans and arrangements to maximize the results of the battle as much as possible, otherwise, his trip would have been in vain.

Perhaps the outside world doesn't know that anyone can find the Skunk Works. After all, no one would have thought that the Skunk Works would be hidden in such an ordinary place.

After spending some time making the relevant arrangements, Zhao Mancang began to take action.

There were three production workshops for the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. Zhao Mancang found them all and then robbed them all away.

If I don't take it away, it will definitely stay here and be sent to other places by Sam and the others.

Who knows, they might continue to be sent to the University of Tokyo to cause trouble.

All the production technical data, tools, parts, etc. in the three workshops were stored intact by Zhao Mancang into the system space.

The technicians were all knocked unconscious. After all, many of these people were just ordinary people, and it would be too cruel to kill them all.

Anyway, when the time comes, just let the people from Mario Airlines make the recruitment calls.

Zhao Mancang believed that after this incident, the Skunk Works might really be completely ruined.

Starting from the unmanned reconnaissance aircraft workshop and then to other workshops, Zhao Mancang did not intend to let go of any of them. The Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft project was the most expensive, so he had to take it away.

However, when he harvested the eighth workshop, a large group of people had already surrounded him.

There are too many people. Although there is a residential area nearby and he can hide away, they are not fools. Once they really form a closing-in trend, he may have to put in some effort to escape from the encirclement.

So he evacuated first.

In fact, at this time, the Skunk Works had been surrounded by the Fobole department, and a special forces battalion nearby also rushed over after hearing the news.

As one of Sam's top laboratories and production bases, the Skunk Works has too many top-secret projects and cannot afford to lose anything.

Even Richard Milhouse, who was in charge of the White House, knew about this incident at the first time. He then personally called many people and issued orders, demanding that the person who caused the trouble be arrested.

In addition, he was required to protect the scientists in the Skunk Works as much as possible, as they were one of Sam's most important assets.

At this time, at the Lockheed Martin headquarters, a group of major shareholders all returned for a meeting.

"Could it be that Zolan Lake and his people are behind this?"

A voice rang out in the conference room.

Zoran Lake is one of their competitors of Lockheed Martin. If this person wants to destroy their Skunk Works, then this matter will be difficult to handle.

"No, from the intelligence I've gathered so far, this is a premeditated robbery. A large number of people have come, and they've already taken over several of our Skunk Works' production workshops, including the cooking pots. All the production tools and equipment have been taken away."

Shareholder Harlin Garcia, who had received the first report of the results from the Skunk Works management, spoke up.

Hearing this, the other shareholders nodded repeatedly, but immediately frowned again.

If not their competitors, then who is it?

Moreover, these people have been lurking for so long that once they take action, it will be like a landslide and the earth will crack.

Before they could figure it out, another call came in from the management of the Skunk Works.

This phone call told everyone the bad news that the enemy had disappeared in the vast crowd with the spoils.

Harlin Garcia and others were in an uproar, their faces pale as paper: God, how is this possible?
It took less than an hour, how could the thief escape from Burbank so quickly?
What does the Fobole department do?

And that special forces soldier, are they dead?

At this time, Richard Milhouse and other people in the White House office, as well as the shareholders of Lockheed Martin, also deeply felt the madness of Khrushchev, Brezhnev and others.

The task that Zhao Mancang had to do personally was definitely not that simple. It could be said that not a single blade of grass would grow.

He took away the production tools, technical drawings, etc. from eight workshops and destroyed about five workshops. The entire Skunk Works was almost ruined.

The city of Burbank is not very big, and the Skunk Works occupies a huge area, but so what?

It was easily cleaned up by Zhao Mancang, resulting in heavy losses.

After leaving Burbank, Zhao Mancang immediately came to Medford and called a meeting with the executives of Mario Airlines!
"Lockheed Martin has a laboratory that was just attacked, so we must be more careful and do a good job of security."

Hearing Zhao Mancang's words, the executive in charge of security immediately trembled.

All the executives present were insiders, and almost all of them had heard of the Skunk Works.

Whether it is the U2 reconnaissance aircraft, the Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft, or the D21 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, the outside world knows about these aircraft. There is no reason why the executives of Mario Aviation would not know about them.

Since they all know this information, they must have heard of the laboratory under Lockheed Martin.

Everyone knows that this laboratory is very hidden, and the outside world doesn't know where it is.

And one thing that can be confirmed is that this place is very well protected.

But I heard from the boss that this place was actually attacked, which is simply ridiculous.

"Boss, could this be fake news? I know the Skunk Works, but it's unlikely to be discovered."

Leonard Asvid asked with a frown.

Zhao Mancang heard this, glanced at the other party, and said in a deep voice:
"I guess the management of the Skunk Works is just like you. They all think that their company's confidentiality is good and their protection is first-class. The outside world has no idea that the Skunk Works exists, so they think they can rest easy."

"Haha, you're still too naive. When the enemy wants to kill you, will they report it to you in advance?"

"Don't dwell on these trivial matters all the time. Do your job well. That's better than anything else."

"I warn you, don't have any fluke mentality. I am here to remind you that if you don't take it seriously, then I don't mind replacing people. Do you understand?" Hearing this, Leonard Esvid and others felt a tightness in their hearts and quickly expressed their loyalty loudly.

After all, Zhao Mancang has said it so bluntly. If they still don’t know what to do, they may really be replaced.

Who made Mario Airlines Zhao Mancang’s private company?
He is the only shareholder, so whatever he says goes.

The management has simply been in that position for too long and thinks they can "rest easy" and that the big boss, Zhao Mancang, will not touch them.

Ha ha!

Seeing that they all lowered their heads obediently, Zhao Mancang's expression looked a little better.

Sam and these white people are so cheap!
He insists on challenging the authority of his boss, how can he die?

"Secondly, there should be a lot of scientists and engineers at the Skunk Works who are anxious. If you can contact them, please contact them immediately and ask them to come work at Mario Aviation. You can even double their salary."

Zhao Mancang raised two fingers, looked around at everyone and said:

"My request is simple. You must treat these engineers who join our Mario Aviation well. If I find any losses caused by internal disputes or fights, I don't mind replacing you all."

"Most of you here have transitioned from technical positions. You all understand technology, and I hope you'll be able to handle it well!"

After warning again, Zhao Mancang ended today's short meeting.

Mario Airlines still has a long way to go, and can only silently accumulate strength and move forward.

He has many companies under Sam's Club, whether it is an aviation technology company like Mario, or a sales channel company like Wanjia Supermarket, they are all important members of the business map.

Although Mario and Wanjia Supermarket are completely different things, for Zhao Mancang, such an enterprise is of great use.

With control over so many companies and continued expansion and development in the future, one day these companies will become top giants in their respective industries.

By then, to a certain extent, it will affect Sam's homeland, and even have a greater impact.

Zhao Mancang does not have much ambition for Sam, and his goal is not Sam, but to build a good domestic market.

Of course, the current situation in the country is still not very clear, and Zhao Mancang can only wait silently and accumulate strength silently.

Zhao Mancang came to the Wanjia Supermarket headquarters for inspection.

"The year is almost over. Have the current revenue, profit and other data been released?"

It is already December, and there is only one month left this year. So we can already have a rough idea of ​​how we have done this year.

At this time, in the executive meeting room, Dogana Isulivan, Femi Marchioni, Dennis Calderon, Leonard Gray and others all looked at Alan Newman when they heard it.

Alan Newman is the financial chief executive of Wanjia Supermarket, so he certainly knows the matter best.

"Boss, we've already compiled the relevant reports for November, but they haven't been fully summarized yet."

Zhao Mancang nodded and said, "Then we'll talk about the November data first, and then report the data for the previous ten months."

It is now the end of 1971, and twelve years have passed since Wanjia Supermarket was founded.

In November 1959, Wanjia Supermarket opened its first store in San Francisco.

Now, in Sam's Club alone, the number of Wanjia supermarket stores has exceeded 800, of which more than 300 are large stores.

The so-called large stores are stores with a business area of ​​more than 10,000 square meters.

These large stores are usually located in places with high traffic or near residential areas.

Eight hundred stores may seem like a lot, but in reality, they are not.

Judging from the data from the previous ten months, on average, each store’s monthly revenue exceeded US$470,000.

In other words, with 800 stores and a revenue of US$3.76 billion over ten months, the profit margin is not high, at only 2.8%.

That is to say, Wanjia Supermarket’s net profit in Sam’s home country is only US$105 billion.

how?

Not much at all, or even very little.

There is no way, there are too many stores, that's it.

Such profit data is not only comparable to companies like Robot Computer Company, but also inferior to Hollywood giants such as Paramount.

Even so, Zhao Mancang is still full of confidence in Wanjia Supermarket.

Because if you only look at the store's profits, then this company is indeed a complete failure.

Wanjia Supermarket is just one part of the group's business. There are also Stephen Farm Group and logistics and transportation companies, which are the main sources of profit.

Wanjia Supermarket is only a giant in terms of revenue, but its profitability is really not good.

Stephen Farm Group's profits are terrifying because its costs are only fertilizers, pesticides, labor, etc., and the rest is pure profit.

Moreover, when delivered to Wanjia Supermarket, the price is still relatively high.

So, all the profits went to Stephen Farm.

On the other side is the logistics company, which also intercepts a lot of profits.

In fact, Wanjia Supermarket is not a listed company and does not need to make its profit data so low.

But to be honest, except for some products, the prices of goods in Wanjia Supermarket are indeed very low.

For example, mushrooms such as matsutake and truffles, as well as movie-related products, the cost of these products is indeed relatively high, and the profits are taken away by the movie giants.

After listening to Allen Newman's report, Zhao Mancang nodded:

"The group must continue to work hard. Sam's Club must ensure that food hygiene and safety are particularly important in its home market. If our competitors discover our non-compliance, it won't just be consumers who will be at risk, but also your jobs."

"With the advancement of technology, once many things are made public, the impact on us will become increasingly greater."

"Overseas companies also need to make further progress and do a good job of controlling costs."

Zhao Mancang had already looked at the data for Wanjia Supermarket's overseas business, but the data for November had not yet been compiled, so he could only wait.

After leaving Wanjia Supermarket, Zhao Mancang came to Hollywood.

Hollywood is a bit depressed right now.

The economic crisis caused poor box office performance in November. Compared with the same period last year, the box office dropped by 20%.

Twenty percent may not seem like a lot, but the box office revenues of four companies, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures, and MGM, were reduced.

After all, in today's Hollywood, more than 80% of the annual box office revenue comes from these four giants.

November is traditionally the off-season for movies, but horror films can be released at this time and should be able to get decent box office results.

Universal Pictures released the movie "Sadako 2" in early November, but as of December now, the total box office of the movie is only million US dollars.

Compared with the box office of the first film of 750 million US dollars, it is more than half.

The most important thing is that the daily box office of "Sadako 2" has dropped to only one million, and no one knows how long it can last.

In fact, as a sequel, it is already incredible that "Sadako 2" can achieve such box office results.

But there is no harm without comparison. The total box office of "Jurassic Park 2" reached billion US dollars, although this box office record was broken by "ET the Extraterrestrial".

But there is no doubt that the "Jurassic Park" series has become a complete hit, and the third sequel is already in full swing, and it is estimated that it will be released next summer.

Thanks to the dinosaur movies, 20th Century Fox has become the world's top film company in terms of revenue this year, and no other company can rival it.

In terms of movie box office, 20th Century Fox earned 2.9 billion US dollars, while movie peripherals earned 3.89 billion US dollars.

Such revenue data is much more impressive than that of Wanjia Supermarket.

Even Paramount earned $3.3 billion at the box office this year, but only $2.2 billion from movie-related sales.

It can be seen from these data that the peripheral products of the dinosaur movie are extremely popular.

In the future, 20th Century Fox will also have revenue from theme parks, and the data will be even more explosive.

"During the Christmas season, aren't you planning to give it a try?"

At the MGM headquarters, in the high-level conference room, Zhao Mancang came here for a meeting after changing into disguise, and asked with a smile as he looked at the executives.

Among these executives, producers, directors, etc. were all here, but they were just tools.

The popular movie scripts of the four Hollywood giants were all provided by Zhao Mancang, and even the storyboard scripts were provided, so whether it was the director or the producer, they were actually just tools.

Otherwise, given the arrogance of these intellectuals, they would have been fighting for power and profit long ago.

Zhao Mancang really disliked this kind of thing, so as long as someone dared to bring it up, he would immediately agree to the other party and get them out.

The Christmas season is a popular time period, so MGM has certainly prepared some great movies.

But Paramount, 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures will definitely not let it go.

Now it’s a matter of each of them showing off their skills, and it depends on who can get better box office results during the Christmas period.

Due to the economic crisis, Zhao Mancang is not sure whether the Christmas season will also be cold.

(End of this chapter)