2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 226 A New Industrial Plan? (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
The video begins without introducing any information about FlashDrive Technology, featuring a beautiful scene of the seaside on Weizhou Island in Beihai.

A dozen seconds later, the two men and two horses appeared on screen, followed by Li Qiangzhong's voice and subtitles.

"Today is February 12th, the Lantern Festival. I wish everyone a happy Lantern Festival. Today, my assistant Xiao Li and I will set off from Beihai and spend two months traveling along the coast using Flash Electric bikes."

"The visuals are great, the scenery is beautifully photographed," Gu Qingqing said to Tan Jincheng.

Tan Jincheng smiled. Compared to the megapixels of mobile phones in later generations, these were top-tier megapixels in the civilian field of this era. He bought the latest models of small-scale brands for shooting equipment such as SLR cameras.

There's nothing we can do; these days, these things really can't compare to what others have.

“It’s really well shot. Where did you find these people? You can use them for my costume shoot later,” Zhang Xupeng added.

"We met while shooting an ad. If you want to use it, I'll introduce you to the equipment later. I bought all the equipment myself, so you can use it too."

“This is good, this is good.” Zhang Xupeng nodded.

In fact, since Flash Technology became increasingly popular, Zhang Xupeng also had the idea of ​​having his own clothing brand. However, he also knew that the clothing industry had been developing for more than 10 years, and there were many clothing brands in Ningbo alone.

There are also many brands in Wenzhou and Fujian Province. It would be difficult for him to create a new brand on his own. The best way would be to acquire or invest in them. He has already started to pay attention to this area.

Jinpeng Trading is ultimately just a shell company without its own brand. When the market environment changes, it loses its competitiveness. Only by having its own brand, like Youngor and Shanshan, can it last.

The development of Flash Technology also made him understand Xiao Tan's original intention: career and money are inseparable, but career is obviously more important than money.

Look at Xiao Tan's current status. He can make appointments to enter the district government at any time, and he can also connect with the research institute. If people from his hometown city come, he doesn't need to pay them any attention if they are not of a high enough rank. This is the true meaning of making money.

Without the support of Xiao Tan's newly established Flash Technology, Zhang Xupeng could imagine that, given the development speed of a shell company like Jinpeng Trading, even if it had hundreds of millions of yuan in cash in a few years without contributing to employment or any real industry, it would easily attract the covetous eyes of some people, no matter how good the business environment was.

FlashTech can be seen as Xiao Tan's new business, or as Jinpeng Trading's protective umbrella. It is because Xiao Tan still owns 30% of Jinpeng Trading that he is able to be so relaxed now.

Imagine if it were just Jinpeng Trading, a few years later, Xiao Tan and I would have nothing but cash and a shell company, and no so-called backing. I'm afraid even a slightly larger businessman would dare to covet us.
Let alone others, if Zhang Haiping were a little stronger, he would dare to mess with him.

"Hey, Xiao Tan, when are you going to show me around your clothing business?" Gu Yuxin came here specifically for this, and had absolutely no interest in the so-called cycling video.

"Go find him, or you can ask Qingqing if you don't understand anything. I'm not involved in the clothing business right now," Tan Jincheng said, pointing to Zhang Xupeng.

Gu Yuxin came over today, and Tan Jincheng could probably guess his intention. He invited Zhang Xupeng over for dinner because of this, as the two might have some opportunities to cooperate.

Although Gu Yuxin only does some wholesale business in the Sijiqing Market, he has been in the clothing industry for many years and has some business experience. Zhang Xupeng, on the other hand, was trained by Gu Yuxin and had not experienced the underlying business logic.

This is what he lacks in his life. If he were to lie down like this, it would be fine, since Jinpeng Trading's profits over the past few years would be enough for him to lie down for the rest of his life. But if he has other ambitions, then the underlying business logic is what he lacks.

The biggest taboo in doing business is having money but being ignorant of the hardships of life; such thinking is often very empty.

Gu Yuxin's shrewdness, mercenary nature, and experience of struggling at the bottom of society can perfectly complement this aspect. If the two are compatible in terms of personality, they could actually be a good business partner thanks to their relationship as intermediaries.

“He and I grew up together. We went from elementary school to high school together, then somehow ended up on a ship together, and later we did business together.”

Gu Yuxin's eyes flickered, understanding Tan Jincheng's meaning: "Mr. Zhang, then please give me your guidance."

“Brother Gu, just call me Xiao Zhang. You should call him Xiao Tan. It’s not appropriate for you to call me Boss Zhang,” Zhang Xupeng said with a smile.

“It’s different. He’s my brother-in-law. If I call him Boss Tan, it would be too formal. We’re meeting for the first time, so calling you Xiao Zhang would be disrespectful.” Gu Yuxin winked at Gu Qingqing.

Gu Qingqing rolled her eyes at him and ignored him.

Of the five people interacting tonight, Gu Yanning was the quietest. The main reason was that she had witnessed Tan Jincheng's domineering nature during the business negotiations over the past two days. To be honest, she was now a little afraid of her brother-in-law.

He genuinely doesn't understand technology; he can't read a single line of code. He also didn't really know the market rate or pricing for customized software before we started negotiating. However, he is very good at doing business.

Having only reviewed a few previous quotes, he was able to completely control the leader who came to discuss business. In the leader's words, there was money to be made, but making money comfortably wouldn't be so easy. Another thing that Gu Yanning found amazing was that her brother-in-law didn't understand technology and had only a superficial understanding of the internet, but his occasional suggestions always managed to be insightful and open up new avenues of thought.

This is quite outrageous. It's hard to believe that a layman could "guide" an expert.

"Sigh, it's a pity there are no bullet comments. If there were, we could know how popular it is," Tan Jincheng suddenly said while staring at the computer.

Gu Yanning keenly noticed something and quickly came to her senses, asking, "What are bullet comments? Why do people say that you can tell how popular something is by looking at them?"

Tan Jincheng then realized he had misspoke. Watching the cycling video his company had filmed suddenly gave him the feeling of spending three years at home watching cycling videos on Bilibili.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just like displaying your comments on the video screen so that everyone can participate in the interaction."

When was Bilibili founded? In 2009. When was the bullet comment feature launched? Should we snatch it away?

"Doesn't that block everyone out? How are we supposed to watch the video?" Gu Qingqing asked blankly.

"I don't really know much about it either. I think it's possible to avoid blocking people with technology. I was just saying it casually." Then Tan Jincheng turned to Gu Yanning and asked, "Cousin, would you be interested in coming out and working with me?"

"What do you mean? I'll work for you and join Flash Technology?" Gu Yanning asked in surprise.

The others in the room also looked at Tan Jincheng with curiosity, especially Zhang Xupeng. This must be the second time that Xiao Tan has taken the initiative to ask someone to work for him. The last time was Sun Yuming. Could it be that Xiao Tan is planning to start a new business?
Only Gu Qingqing had a rough idea of ​​what was going on. On the day of the confession and afterwards, her brother had talked about his ideals and mentioned the internet, saying that he would start a company when the time was right.

"It's not about joining Flashpoint Technology, it's about starting a new company. But there's no rush. It will be at least six months before it's successful. That's all I wanted to tell you."

"You can work at your company first, and make some programmer friends along the way. If you're interested in coming over later, help me poach some people," Tan Jincheng said with a grin.

In the years leading up to the widespread adoption of smartphones between 2007 and 2011, there were still many opportunities in the internet industry, and since capital had not yet formed a monopoly, excessive investment was not necessary.

Hire a few programmers to develop some small games. If you're lucky, you might catch one or two hit games. Whether you operate them yourself or sell them, that's enough to support the team. Then, develop apps for Android and iOS systems and monetize them through technical means.

When capital enters the market, it's always frenzied. If the opportunity is right, a lot of funds can be accumulated, and then some internet media can be controlled through investment.

"What are you planning to do now?" Zhang Xupeng couldn't help but ask.

"I haven't thought about it yet, but I do have some ideas. I'll organize them slowly when I have time later."

After saying that, Tan Jincheng winked at Gu Qingqing, and Gu Qingqing smiled back.

Gu Yanning didn't have so many concerns. She hadn't graduated yet and hadn't thought about it, so she readily agreed, "Okay, if Boss Tan ever needs me, be sure to call me. Just pay me the full salary."

"That's for sure. I'll definitely need my cousin's help then."

Compared to Gu Qingqing, who studied computer science midway through her studies, Gu Yanning clearly has an advantage. With money, she can make use of her fellow students, mentors, and even the school's resources.

However, there is indeed no time for that right now. First, Gu Yanning is involved in the development of Flash Technology's enterprise management system, and second, she has to go to the capital for a business trip after the weekend to work on the lithium battery project.

Compared to the internet, the lithium battery project is the most important part of FlashDrive Technology. In terms of time, it will be many years before lithium battery technology achieves a true breakthrough. The mass production of lithium batteries will only begin when the domestic new energy vehicle industry chain truly matures.

For the lithium battery industry at present, the most important thing is not the products, but lithium mines in addition to technological accumulation. Securing a sure-fire upstream industry and then waiting for the right time is the best option.

The currently undervalued lithium mines represent the most important breakthrough for FlashDrive Technology's lithium battery business segment in the future.

Compared to the internet, this is the most important new industrial plan in Tan Jincheng's mind.

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(End of this chapter)