Rebirth of the Hong Kong Millennium Conglomerate

Time flies, and another week has passed in the blink of an eye. The morning mist in Hong Kong still carries its usual dampness. As dawn breaks, the deliverymen of the Hong Kong Daily are already out in the morning light, carrying heavy newspaper bags. However, the Hong Kong Daily they are delivering today has a completely different meaning than usual—this is the last issue of this old newspaper.

The fresh scent of ink, combined with the tactile feel of the paper, was delivered to subscribers in countless households immediately. Almost everyone who received the newspaper was immediately drawn to the bold, large characters in the center of the front page, with the powerful headline: "Twenty Years of Trials and Tribulations, A Letter of Gratitude for Your Kindness."

The headline carried an unmistakable sense of impending doom, causing many longtime readers to feel a sudden weight in their hearts, a sudden jolt of unease. Their hands, which had been casually turning the pages, froze instantly, and they quickly focused their attention on the main text. Between the lines, the text recounted the rise and fall of the Hong Kong Daily over the past twenty years.

From its initial widespread popularity to its heyday, and then to its recent struggles, the article is filled with the weight of time. It concludes by stating that the Hong Kong Daily is officially ceasing publication and that the newly revamped Eternal Daily will take over. The article also declares that it will shake up the Hong Kong newspaper industry with a brand new look.

After reading the main text, countless readers were filled with mixed emotions, a myriad of feelings churning within them. Those long-time subscribers who had followed the Hong Kong Daily for over a decade couldn't help but feel a touch of sadness at the impending loss of their familiar masthead, their fingertips tracing the yellowed pages with deep reluctance.

Many readers, who were already not very interested in this declining newspaper, simply treated it as an old thing leaving the stage, with indifferent expressions and even a bit of disdain, and casually put it aside after reading it.

A group of young readers, eager for novelty, were intrigued by the resounding declaration at the end of the article, and developed a subtle expectation for the yet-to-be-released "Eternal Daily News," wondering what gave it the confidence to make such a bold claim. The discussions among the common people of Hong Kong had not yet subsided, and the Hong Kong media had already caught wind of it.

In the fiercely competitive Hong Kong newspaper industry, no one dares to be complacent. Almost every newspaper subscribes to all the newspapers of its peers in bulk, firstly to learn from their layout and content selection, and secondly to capture industry trends and social hotspots as soon as possible, for fear of missing out on opportunities by being a step behind.

Therefore, the final issue of the Hong Kong Daily was placed on the desks of editors and bosses of major newspapers early in the morning.

Everyone in Hong Kong's press circles knows about the past of the Hong Kong Daily. Even though the newspaper has declined in recent years and lost its former glory, no one can deny the significant role it played in Hong Kong's newspaper scene.

Back in its heyday, it was a bestseller on both sides of Hong Kong, consistently ranking among the top sellers. Its depth and breadth of reporting were praised by its peers, and it made great contributions to the development of Hong Kong's newspaper industry. This glory and contribution have long been engraved in the history of Hong Kong's newspaper industry, and no one can erase it.

However, when the focus shifted to the "Eternal Daily News" mentioned at the end of the article, the attitudes of the entire Hong Kong press were clearly divided.

A few newspapers that had once directly competed with the Hong Kong Daily looked solemn and adopted a cautious wait-and-see attitude, sending people to collect information to find out the background of the new newspaper that was taking over.

Most newspapers, after reading the paper, merely glanced at it and tossed it aside, completely ignoring it.

After all, in Hong Kong, a fertile ground for media, the rise and fall of newspapers is as common as eating a meal.

Every year, new newspapers emerge with gimmicks, while countless old newspapers fade away in the fierce competition and close down. People have long been used to this rise and fall and have become numb to it.

If the Hong Kong Daily News weren't an old newspaper with a glorious past, and if it were any other obscure tabloid that had ceased publication and changed its name, they wouldn't even bother to give it a second glance.

As for the "Eternal Daily News," which boasted that it would shake up Hong Kong, the newspaper's bigwigs were surprisingly in agreement—to wait and see what happens.

Hong Kong's press has never lacked ambitious individuals, nor has it lacked newcomers who make grand pronouncements. Whether they truly have the ability to stir up trouble or are just empty talkers, we'll find out once they're published.

The launch date for the Eternal Daily has been set for three days from now.

Zhang Zeyang had already devised a marketing plan for the new newspaper. For the first seven days after its release, the Qian Gu Daily would be distributed free of charge, and all newsstands would be provided with free supplies so that they could simply take it and sell it.

This operation seems simple, but upon closer examination, its intricacies become apparent, and Fang Wenshan immediately understood.

The world is bustling with activity, all for profit. Free supply means that newsstands don't need to invest any costs. The more newspapers they sell, the more they earn.

This was a sure-fire way to make money, and with such a good deal right in front of them, the owners of newsstands big and small on the streets of Hong Kong had no reason to refuse.

What's even better is that, since it concerns their own interests, the newspapers don't need to waste time urging them; they will actively promote it themselves.

At the same time, send people out to ensure that the Qian Gu Daily can be seen in every street corner, teahouse, tavern, and other place with a flow of people.

With the marketing plan finalized, the newspaper's content layout is also in its final stages.

The "People's Livelihood" section focuses on the daily lives of Hong Kong residents, covering everything from small things like vegetable price fluctuations and neighborhood gossip to interpretations of municipal policies and new community welfare regulations. Vincent Fang personally oversees all the articles selected, striving to ensure they are grounded in reality and relatable.

The economics section is Fang Wenshan's top priority. He has been traveling to various universities in Hong Kong for days and has hired several well-known economics professors to write columns. The columns include real-time stock market analysis as well as in-depth commentary on hot economic events. Every word is carefully chosen and full of valuable information.

Only the novel section required no effort from Fang Wenshan from the beginning; Zhang Zeyang had already made the decision to publish his own adaptation of "The Bad Guys".

To maintain the newspaper's popularity, Zhang Zeyang set an extremely high serialization standard—20,000 words per day, a length rarely seen in Hong Kong newspaper serializations at the time, enough to firmly capture the attention of novel readers.

Zhang Zeyang worked at his desk for more than three months, accumulating a total of one million words of manuscript. At a rate of 20,000 words per day, that would be enough to support a two-month serialization.

Even with a million words of manuscript in hand, Zhang Zeyang dared not slack off in the slightest.

He knew that the novel section was key to attracting a stable readership, and that if it were to be discontinued, it would inevitably affect newspaper sales and even shake the newly established foothold of Qian Gu Daily.

Therefore, after setting the serialization plan, Zhang Zeyang threw himself into the revision of the manuscript, working day and night to finish the entire draft as soon as possible, ensuring that nothing went wrong and that the newspaper would not lose its reputation due to the novel's discontinuation.

At the same time, Zhang Zeyang also instructed Fang Wenshan to simultaneously open a call for novels and publish a call for submissions in the inaugural issue of the newspaper.

He frankly admitted, "This novel section cannot rely on me alone. Right now, I still have time to finish my manuscripts, but as the group's business expands and I become bogged down in trivial matters, I simply won't have the energy to write novels anymore. Soliciting manuscripts can not only supplement the source of manuscripts, but also discover talented people in the public and retain more readers for the newspaper."

Fang Wenshan agreed wholeheartedly and immediately accepted. He drafted the call for submissions overnight, clearly listing everything from manuscript requirements to remuneration standards, and will make them public as soon as the inaugural issue is published.

Everything was ready, just waiting for the market launch. Zhang Zeyang also gave clear instructions regarding the printing volume of the inaugural issue, directly instructing Fang Wenshan to print 50,000 copies. He also specifically instructed the printing plant staff to be on standby at any time, ready to reprint at any time, to ensure market supply and absolutely prevent any stockouts.

This number might seem too aggressive to outsiders, after all, even at its peak, the sales of its predecessor, Hong Kong Daily, were not particularly impressive, and after its decline, they were even more dismal, with daily sales of only a mere thousand copies. Fifty thousand copies is already fifty times the daily sales of the past.

Fang Wenshan, however, had no objection to this and was completely convinced of it.

Coupled with the ruthless tactic of offering seven days free, and with the resource support behind Zhang Zeyang, let alone 50,000 copies, he even had a feeling that 50,000 copies might not be enough to sell.

Immediately, Fang Wenshan followed Zhang Zeyang's instructions one by one, contacted the printing factory to finalize the printing quantity of 50,000 copies, and instructed the workers to be on standby at any time.

As night deepened in Hong Kong, Vincent Fang looked at the neatly stacked final drafts on his desk and gazed out at the myriad lights of the city, his heart filled with excitement.

Three days later, the Qian Gu Daily will officially launch in Hong Kong's newspaper scene. This hard-fought battle, which has been prepared for many days, is finally about to begin.

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