Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 104 In full swing
You never know which will come first, tomorrow or an accident.

Tomorrow is something that will inevitably happen; as for unexpected events, we don't know if they will occur.

Chen Xuebing's tomorrow will be a successful stock trading career.

After being tormented by the stock market so many times, he finally got his MVP award.

On the second day after adding to his position, an unprecedentedly large positive line appeared, surging a full four points, bringing the index to 1041.2. This wave of sentiment caused stocks that had been suppressed for two weeks to surge wildly, and Lao Hong's 600 million yuan investment earned 34 yuan in one day.

On the third day, the market began to fluctuate widely again.

The national team pulled the market up, causing it to surge. Timid investors, seeing the rise, rushed to sell, causing the market to fall again.

In the days that followed, the trapped positions fluctuated around 1000 points.

This market situation is a huge boon for Chen Xuebing.

No one was more certain than him that the stock market wouldn't fall below 1000, so he reduced his holdings when the market dropped, and went all in when it reached around 1000, essentially doing calisthenics on the surging waves.

In one week, he ate a 12cm (12%) piece of meat and earned 73.

Eating until I'm stuffed is even better than a bull market.

However, his mood has recently been affected by something else.

the University.

The college entrance examination results were released at the beginning of the month.

Chinese 114, Math 72, English 113, Humanities 206.

505 points!
It actually reached 500! According to Yu Chunyan's excited words, "The Chen family has produced a literary star!"

Chen Xuebing was initially excited, but his excitement vanished when he saw the admission cutoff scores.

This year's exam questions were more basic. The cutoff score for liberal arts students was 549 for first-tier universities and 487 for second-tier universities, which is more than ten points higher than last year.

His original goal was to get into a second-tier university, but after half a year of "training" by Ren Ying, his aspirations became higher.

A score of 505 is not very high; in fact, it could be said that the score was not good.

Chongqing Jiaotong University is very popular because it is about to be upgraded to a four-year university.

Yu Chunyan originally intended to show off and even host a banquet for relatives and friends, but Chen Xuebing told her to calm down and not to rush to publicize it.

What if I don't pass the exam? Why should I treat everyone?

He filled in all three majors at Chongqing Jiaotong University as his three choices. Chongqing is not a traditional province for college entrance examinations, and there is no such thing as accepting adjustments. If the school does not admit him, he will fail to get into college.

Fortunately, Ren Ying had left him a backup plan when he was filling out his major application.

His first choice was economics, his second was English, and his third was tourism management as a backup.

Ren Ying was the one who advised him on choosing the tourism management major.

The most popular major is "Tiankeng" (a type of major in Taiwan), which is characterized by numerous and difficult courses that are detached from reality. In terms of civil service exams, there are no relevant options other than the tourism bureau. Choosing this major means that you are likely to be unemployed after graduation.

Ren Ying said that if you're just aiming for a good school, then choose this major. As long as you meet the admission cutoff score, you're guaranteed admission, and even if you're below the cutoff score, you might still get a chance to be admitted through supplementary admission.

Ren Ying also suggested that he cancel his second choice and switch to a weaker second-tier college.

But Chen Xuebing dismissed the offer, only accepting a change of major, not a change of school.

And now...

The enrollment process started on July 6th, and now it's July 15th, a full ten days have passed.

He received no message and checked the admission results via SMS, but was also not admitted.

Ren Ying said that her first choice is definitely out of the question now, as she probably hasn't been admitted to any English majors. The only chance is the Tourism Management major.

She also helped Chen Xuebing check the news every day, and she would get anxious every time she checked the admission results and found that he had not been admitted.

Chen Xuebing could only accept it and comforted Ren Ying: "Anyway, if you can't study the major you want, you can just not go to school."

Ren Ying told him not to give up, and to go to school if he could. As long as he had a student status, he could change his major. Now, college students are encouraged to start their own businesses. Once his company is successful enough, it will be no problem for him to get the school to change his major. If he becomes a millionaire, it will be normal for him to receive an award as an outstanding alumnus upon graduation.

It's hard to imagine that Ren Ying could say such cynical things.

Distinguished alumnus? He's never even received a labor award since he was a child!

Thinking in this direction, he suddenly felt hopeful again.

Meanwhile, an unexpected event is unfolding.

Several cars from out of town stopped on Huaqiangbei Outer Street. Seven or eight men and women, each carrying a briefcase, got out of the cars, looked around, and went straight into the Huaqiang Electronics Market.

Ten minutes later, a group of people hurriedly came out again and headed towards the Yuanwang Market, following the same route that Chen Xuebing and Huo Xiaowen had taken.

An hour later, Chen Xuebing's phone rang while he was trading at the close.

When the call connected, Huo Xiaowen's voice was extremely excited:

"Three million! A group of people came in, judging from their accents they should be from Fujian. They came to our counter, selected several mobile phones, and want three million worth of goods at once! Should we sell them?"

Chen Xuebing was also quick-witted.

"A group of people from Fujian? Was it a group of people looking to buy from you, or just one person?"

"Hmm...it should be two or three of them! Some of them probably thought our price was too high! They chatted for a bit and then went to look at other counters! But there aren't many counters in the entire Yuanwang that can supply this much stock at once, based on the quantity they want! If you want me to poach the others as well, I can figure something out!"

"That's not what I meant! You mean they're ordering a particularly large quantity of goods?"

"Yes! The entire C area was bustling with activity this afternoon!"

What price did they offer?

"Anyway, the total profit is about 10%, but wholesaling several thousand units definitely doesn't earn as much as buying individual units."

"Ask the factories that supply these phones how many they can produce in a week."

"What do you mean?"

"We'll sell to you as much as the factory can compensate us at the original price."

"Damn... you have 1500 million in inventory, why aren't you releasing some of it, instead of keeping it piling up?"

"No leakage. Keep the total volume of other mobile phones unchanged. We can stock up on the newly selected products in large quantities. Stock up as much as we can before I call a halt."

"I understand, I'll contact them right away!"

"Be careful with your wording, and don't reveal too much to the manufacturer."

“I know, no one dares to steal orders from us! Unless they don’t want to ship anymore!”

"Don't be too arrogant. Soon the market won't be about sales volume anymore. Everyone will have sales volume. Just maintain good relationships with these factories."

"...Okay, I understand."

……

……

No one expected that the arrival of a group of Fujianese, and their impulsive purchase of 2500 million yuan, would become a turning point for the Huaqiangbei mobile phone market.

The shop owners who used to be able to easily pull out hundreds of thousands of yuan worth of inventory were spending an entire afternoon swapping stock among themselves to fulfill incoming orders, and then they discovered a problem:
Everyone's inventory is dwindling.

After months of price cuts, everyone is taking precautions and avoiding risks.

The total stock is actually running low!

In the evening, when Yuanwang closed, the owners of the four sections on the third floor were all holding their own meetings.

The entire Huaqiangbei area is a dense network of information, and overnight, mobile phone prices in Huaqiangbei began to rise.

A price increase indicates a seller's market.

In the following days, distributors, realizing the shortage of goods in Huaqiangbei, flocked to the market and began to buy and stockpile goods.

When prices rise in Huaqiangbei, prices across the entire supply chain begin to catch up.

It was right after the college entrance exam results were released and parents received their children's acceptance letters. Parents were excited and generous when they received their children's acceptance letters, and a wave of buying mobile phones for their children swept the country.

Multimedia knock-off mobile phones have entered the field of vision of many parents and children for the first time. Preparatory college students, compared with the foreign mobile phones they used to admire, suddenly discovered that the current domestic brands actually have MP3 functions, can access the Internet, can download games, and some even have cameras... The functions and styles are dazzling. Compared with the honest and simple mobile phones of the past, they are like products from a fairy tale town, and they are all fascinated.

Parents also found that these phones were much cheaper than brand-name phones, far from the several thousand yuan they had expected. Their children liked them, so they readily bought them.

The kids bought cell phones, they have to show them off!
Won't this make other kids swoon?

"Mom, I want it!"

"Dad, I want one too!"

High school students who haven't graduated yet have finished their final exams, and college students have gone home. They all drag their parents to shopping malls to look for more dazzling and cool multimedia and multifunctional mobile phones.

The vibrant colors brought about by the complex design of MediaTek chips are beginning to shine this summer.

Counter owners in various places sold off their inventory and began to restock, only to find that the purchase price had been inflated by more than 20% by distributors at all levels. As a result, people kept inquiring about the sources of goods behind the distributors, trying to find the source price.

Huaqiangbei?
Huaqiangbei!
Hurry up and go to Huaqiangbei!
……

"Aren't you going to sell?"

"Aren't you going to sell?"

"Aren't you going to sell?!"

During this period, Huo Xiaowen asked Chen Xuebing more than three times a day.

Chen Xuebing always answered casually, "We sell in small quantities. We don't do orders of more than 100 units because the price is too low."

If they don't do it, it will be difficult for others to do it as well.

Although factories in Huaqiangbei have started operating again, the price of their source of supply—components—has also increased.

Display screens have gone up in price, PCB circuit boards have gone up in price, and the prices of cameras and casing materials have all increased.

Who's slower?

More importantly: MediaTek's stock price increased.

MediaTek has suddenly announced a reduction in market supply, which will lead to price increases.

The phone lines at our Shenzhen office have been ringing off the hook.

Manufacturers began to calculate costs and raise their prices.

As a result, the Yuanwang and the newly opened Feiyang Market were also engaged in heated price negotiations.

"800! Any higher and I won't buy from you again!"

Huo Xiaowen had just hung up the phone and started cursing when someone appeared in front of him, pointing to a red flip phone with a large screen displayed in the counter.

"Boss, how much is this phone?"

Huo Xiaowen sized up the newcomer, found his face unfamiliar and not like a wealthy person, and said impatiently, "I don't sell loose goods!"

The man laughed and said, "Your goods are the same as those at that counter over there, right? If they are, I'll take two hundred units."

Huo Xiaowen remembered Chen Xuebing's instruction not to sell at a low price, and this phone was delivered by the same manufacturer he had just hung up on and was going to raise the price of. So, he reluctantly quoted a high price.

"One thousand and fifty!"

He sells this machine for 900 to 950. If he sells a small number, it's 950; if he sells more than 100, it's 900.

The man hesitated for a moment: "Boss, don't try to fool me. I want three hundred units, half red and half white. You can give me a discount of fifty, one thousand, okay?"

Huo Xiaowen was taken aback.

The previous shipping price was 750, the new price is 800, an increase of 50.

The buyers here have also raised their prices by 100!

There's still a 50 yuan profit to be made!

"Okay! I'll give you the invoice, come pick up the goods this afternoon!"

Huo Xiaowen quickly filled out the form, and as soon as the person left, he immediately dialed the number he had just called and then spoke with a pretentious air.

"Old Xu, I'll just ask you once, is 780 okay? Give me three...five hundred units!"

"... "

"Okay, okay, 800 it is! Send me 500 units!"

"... "

"What? 810? In just a few minutes, you've raised it by another 10 yuan?!"

……

July 23rd, the 7th day of the sixth lunar month, is the Great Heat.

The scorching sun is no match for this scorching market.

According to statistics, the daily pedestrian flow in Huaqiangbei has recently reached one million. Taxi drivers will raise their fares when they hear that they are going to Huaqiangbei. No matter what time of day, this is the most congested road in Shenzhen.

Several transactions are made here every second, gradually draining the inventory in Huaqiangbei. Some mobile phone manufacturers that had closed down are now carrying trains back to resume production, but they can't keep up with the speed of ordering.

Soaring high!

Major markets are also preparing to raise prices, aiming to further increase the value of a one-meter counter.

Chen Xuebing, with one hand in his pocket, led Qi Guangming into the property management office of Feiyang Building with an even more arrogant attitude.

"Hello, Manager Wang."

Qi Guangming immediately introduced the man in the suit sitting next to the desk: "Manager Wang, this is our General Manager Chen!"

The man in the suit gave a formulaic smile: "Oh, Mr. Chen, hello! Mr. Qi and I are old friends. He told me about your situation. You want to rent our two-meter counter?"

Chen Xuebing chuckled: "It would be best if there were even bigger ones. Our counters at Yuanwang are 3.5 meters long, and there's also an inner room."

"I know! But even two meters won't do, that's a real problem... There are only two two-meter counters left, and the annual rent would be at least 35 yuan, let alone any bigger..."

"Manager Wang, the rental price is not a problem, and your tea fee is also negotiable. I heard that many of the stall owners in Feiyang Market are newcomers, and many of them can't get goods right now, right? No matter how many people come to your market, you can't close many big deals. In terms of popularity, can you compete with Yuanwang?"

"Mr. Chen, you mean... you have a lot of goods on hand?"

"It's alright. I have 20,000 machines in my warehouse, all of them high-quality machines equipped with MediaTek chips, and I also have priority agreements with more than 20 other factories."

"hiss…"

"Wait a moment, let me report to my superiors."

……

Two hours later, Chen Xuebing walked out of Feiyang Building with a three-year contract for a three-meter counter.

20 per meter, 60 per year, plus 30 for "tea money" (a form of payment for tea and other services).

As soon as he came out, Qi Guangming said urgently:
"Mr. Chen! Why not sign a five-year contract? The current price isn't high, and Huaqiangbei is getting more and more popular; the price will definitely go up in the future! For the same amount of 'tea money,' you should sign a long-term contract!"

Chen Xuebing looked back at the crowded building and remembered the half-eaten apple.

The first Apple phone to officially launch in China was the 3GS in 09.

But the original iPhone and iPhone 3G, which came before them, had already created a two-year frenzy around the world and were known as "God's phone".

This product not only disrupted Nokia's plans, but the resulting smartphone wave also wiped out Huaqiangbei, a city with extremely poor chip self-development capabilities.

If he continues to indulge in the Huaqiangbei model, he may be able to make a lot of quick money, but his mobile phone industry will also be easily overturned by the tide of the times.

This summer, he will make a lot of easy money, but after this summer, he will start making money that is hard to earn.

However, he couldn't easily share these thoughts with others.

"Director Qi, do you know what else I do besides making cell phones?"

"Oh, I've heard Mr. Huo mention you! You're also in engineering! You were busy with projects recently, weren't you?"

"Yes, so we don't need to sign such a long contract. Three years from now, we want to build our own skyscraper here, a skyscraper even taller than Bige."

(End of this chapter)