I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 234 Is he going to cause trouble again?
"Has the customer left again?"

"Well, what they mean is, if we sell it for around 9, they'll buy it..."

"9 can only buy a mid-range model..."

"..."

5 month 11 day.

【Qinzhou Motors G1】

Liu Fusheng sat in his office, silently smoking one cigarette after another.

In November 2003, Qinzhou Automobile underwent a comprehensive overhaul of its production lines.

In December 2003, the Qinzhou G1 automobile officially went into production, but sales were mediocre. By around April, only about 20 units had been sold nationwide. Of these, about 12 were purchased by Mr. Zhou's company, and the remaining 8 or so were barely considered to have been bought by other customers...

The airing of the TV show "Love Rollercoaster" and Mr. Zhou's frequent appearances with the Qinzhou G1 generated considerable buzz online, increasing awareness of their vehicles. However, this didn't seem to significantly boost sales. Many people inquired about the car each month, but upon seeing the high-end price of 130,000 yuan, they ultimately shook their heads and opted for Japanese or German cars instead…

In 2004, in China, an average family might only be able to afford a car after saving for more than ten years. Therefore, they were extremely cautious in their choices. Domestic cars lacked reputation and technological accumulation, so consumers preferred to buy imported or joint venture brands, even if they were more expensive, for peace of mind. In addition, the Qinzhou G1 itself was not cheap.

The imported German EA121 1.6L naturally aspirated engine costs 6000 euros per unit, which is equivalent to about 5 yuan.

If the quantity is large, or it's from a major brand, the engine price can naturally be cheaper, even half off. But when you factor in all the various parts and molds, the factory price of a car is close to 9 RMB...

The Qinzhou G1 lacks core R&D technology, and all core components are purchased. To put it bluntly, apart from the body shell and some minor parts, the Qinzhou G1 is currently just an assembled vehicle pieced together from various sources. Although Liu Fusheng uses only the best materials and steel and guarantees 5 years of free after-sales service—more extravagant than other domestic car manufacturers—sales remain sluggish.

Last month, the release of "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Rings" became a huge hit, and the internet seemed to explode with discussion.

The marketing department's phones were ringing off the hook, receiving thousands of calls almost every day. Customers flocked to the store to look at cars, and there were also many media people taking photos with the dealership. However, the sales volume was completely disproportionate to the hype. From mid-April to May 11, only 8 cars were sold in total, and the prices were generally not ideal. After deducting costs, each car only made about 8000 yuan in profit, while the dealership spent a lot of money on free drinks and tea, which was not enough to maintain normal factory production and wages.

The early morning wind caressed Liu Fusheng's face.

As of today, the online buzz surrounding "Qinzhou G1" remains astounding, with nearly 10,000 users on the forum. However, the mockery from competitors continues unabated, mirroring the sheer volume of attention...

Everything……

It all seems to be pointing to the same thing.

Their transformation of Qinzhou Automobile seems to have been a complete failure.

He is about to pay the price for his stubborn actions...

After extinguishing his last cigarette, Liu Fusheng sat down in his chair and looked at the factory in the distance.

“Mr. Liu, most moviegoers are young people, and young people have very limited money. They want to buy cars, but their financial ability is simply limited. Moreover, most of their families are working-class families, and the trial-and-error cost of buying a car is just too high for users… Perhaps we need time to wait for these young people to grow up, and more importantly, we need time for the first batch of customers to prove the quality of our cars…”

"But what happens after the hype dies down?"

The atmosphere in the office gradually became somewhat oppressive, and he looked into the distance.

Without sales, there is no real feedback from the mass market; without real feedback from the mass market, they cannot improve the car's defects, nor do they have enough funds to invest in so-called research and development...

Everyone knows that time will tell, but what can sustain time is a continuous stream of investment and funding. A few months might be enough, but who can withstand an investment that lasts for a year or even several years?

Moreover, while Qinzhou Motors is stagnating, other Japanese, German, and even domestic car brands backed by large capital are making progress. This shift in momentum will only exacerbate Qinzhou's competitive disadvantage, ultimately leading to a complete break in its cash flow and bankruptcy.

The future doesn't look promising!

"Lowering prices should only be a last resort!"

After a brief silence, Liu Fusheng closed his eyes.

"The report for this month is due. Should we send it to General Manager Zhou?"

"Send it... Oh, and by the way, also prepare a report on our current situation and send it to President Zhou. By the way..." Liu Fusheng silently looked at the documents on the table. When he saw the news about "Audi", his originally somewhat depressed mood briefly rippled, and his gaze gradually became serious.

"What else?"

"I wonder if Mr. Zhou's collaboration will actually sell well..."

..........................................

5 month 12 day.

Audi China's Yanjing Office.

The morning sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows and shone on the computer on the table.

Kevin leisurely took a sip of coffee and slowly opened the documents his secretary had sent him on his computer.

He moved the mouse, and the data reports on the screen were scrolling.

After Zhou Yang returned to China, "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Rings," whose daily box office had plummeted to 1 million, was revitalized by the immense popularity of the series, achieving an astonishing 9.6 million in daily box office revenue. This propelled the film's total box office from 110 million before Zhou Yang's return to 130 million...

He opened another encrypted file, which was the "User Profile Analysis" report that the marketing department had just completed.

The first item shown in the picture didn't surprise him: 65% of their young customers who bought the red Audi A6 had posted photos on social media imitating Zhou Yang's "car-posing photos"...

The second item concerns the Audi A8: Among potential customers recently inquiring about the Audi A8, a staggering 32% proactively mentioned the car chase scene from *The Lord of the Rings: The Two Rings*, and asked if their A8 would have Zhou Yang's autographed version…

"Sir..." The secretary knocked and entered, "I just received news that within 48 hours of Zhou Yang's return to China, the advance payments from partner brands exceeded 4 million yuan. Even competitors like Suzuki Motors have spent 5000 million yuan to vie for the endorsement, and..."

"And what?"

"Zhou Yang publicly stated that 'competing brands must terminate their cooperation with Tianyu Media before they can sign contracts with him'... This statement significantly damaged Tianyu Media's brand image and endorsements, and even directly affected the stock market. Hong Kong stocks opened lower today, even declining for some periods, until 9:45 AM when Tianyu Media officially announced the import of the Hollywood film 'Disaster,' which barely lifted the stock price..."

Kevin nodded after listening: "Have you contacted Zhou Yang?" "I still can't get through. Zhou Yang has been extremely busy these past few days. He doesn't seem very interested in our custom sports car invitation, probably due to his loyalty to the car brand behind him..."

"【Qinzhou G1】?"

"Yes, he invested in [Qinzhou G1], which generated a lot of buzz, but the sales were, to put it mildly, dismal..."

"That's normal. Cars need to be built on a solid foundation. These assembled cars from various parts in China have no technological content whatsoever..."

Kevin shook his head.

Just then, the secretary's phone rang.

The secretary answered the phone instinctively!

After finishing the call, the secretary looked up at Kevin.

"Zhou Yang has contacted us! They're downstairs at our company right now..."

Upon hearing this, Kevin instinctively stood up: "Invite them up. I'll wait for them in the conference room."

"it is good!"

The secretary nodded, then subconsciously looked down, and after taking a look, she was somewhat shocked.

Below is a dark mass!
They were all media outlets that suddenly appeared out of nowhere!

..........................................

In front of the Audi China headquarters building.

The entrance was already completely blocked by a huge crowd of media reporters.

Cameras with long lenses and short lenses were aimed at the slowly approaching Qinzhou G1, flashes went off wildly, and shutter clicks echoed one after another.

A few hours ago, a mysterious document labeled "[Zhou Yang's Itinerary for Today]" suddenly went viral in media circles!

The document ended with a hastily written annotation: "[Qinzhou G1 vs Audi Huaxia]", along with the three large, blood-red characters "Big News".

Reporters, who were just looking for juicy scoops, were immediately abuzz when they saw this document of dubious origin.

Regardless of whether it's true or not, I just ran over there to grab a spot!
If it's true, I'll be rich!
In fact...

Zhou Yang did not disappoint them!

On the way, media outlets that had been staking out the entrance of [Xuanshi Entertainment] actually managed to capture footage of Zhou Yang's team driving a [Qinzhou G1] out of the company and heading towards Audi's headquarters!

Seeing this, countless media outlets were thrilled!
They remembered Zhou Yang's "breakthrough work" from a year ago!
They sneaked into the premiere of "Superman 2" and went so far as to plaster the bathroom with "Superman 2" ads!
And now!

This troublemaker who never plays by the rules!
Is the classic scene of "driving a domestic car to provoke an international brand" going to be staged at Audi headquarters?
"Zhou Yang is here! He really drove the Qinzhou G1 to Audi headquarters, he's here, it really is a Qinzhou G1, holy crap!"

"Is this going to cause trouble? It's definitely going to cause trouble, damn it, quick, take pictures, hurry, hurry, get a good spot, hurry!"

"I heard that the sales of the [Qinzhou G1] are so-so. I reckon this guy is going to do something outrageous to boost sales!"

"President Zhou! Look this way, President Zhou, look this way!"

As the car in the distance got closer and closer!

Reporters who had been waiting there for a long time rushed in frantically!

Security personnel tried desperately to stop them, but this only plunged the scene into chaos!

The media watched with excitement as Zhou Yang got out of the car…

Zhou Yang took off his sunglasses and smiled at everyone.

but!
After getting off the bus, Zhou Yang did not respond to the media in a high-profile manner as usual, nor did he say any surprising things!

Instead, he maintained a polite smile and, escorted by security guards, walked straight to the building entrance.

This scene……

This left the media somewhat stunned!

"Strange, why isn't Zhou Yang saying anything this time?"

"Something's not right. According to his style, shouldn't he have just started making threats?"

"Could they really be here to discuss cooperation?"

"How is that possible! Damn it, who talks about cooperation by driving a competitor's car!"

"What competitors! You must be joking, how could the [Qinzhou G1] possibly compete with Audi..."

"Holy crap? Are they going to pull off something even bigger?"

"..."

Zhou Yang's unusual behavior left the media looking at each other in bewilderment, but their professional instincts made them realize that what happened today was probably not so simple.

They all stared at the Qinzhou G1 building not far away, speculating about what Zhou Yang was up to...

(End of this chapter)