2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 27 Resolving the Awkward Situation (4K Chapters)
How can you make your competitors lower their guard and let their guard down?

During the days he worked as a translator, Tan Jincheng had already inquired about the plans he had made. He learned that these stalls only had salespeople soliciting business; there were no owners.

Not all bosses are like Cheng Yongjun, personally overseeing things. The boss of the translation company I worked with before didn't come.

Although orders are directly related to salespersons' commissions, employees are still easier to manage than bosses.

Without a direct order, a business card can be a threat, but the threat is limited.

If the opponent is an ordinary person, there are only two methods you can use. The first is verbal provocation, which involves constantly praising and exaggerating to lower their guard. The second is to use reverse psychology to provoke and divide them.

However, this method cannot be used indiscriminately, and the words should not be too excessive, otherwise it will not be good to really provoke the other party.

When things weren't going their way, they could only play the victim and flatter him. After a few rounds of praise, perhaps remembering how difficult it was for them when they first became salespeople, the other salespeople weren't so hostile towards Tan Jincheng anymore.

Tan Jincheng agreed, saying he would only post it here for one day and then move to another place the next day.

Although I still felt a little uncomfortable, the matter was over and done with.

The main reason is that there are enough customers, and everyone's resources are limited, so there's no need to make a big fuss.

When social resources are sufficiently distributed, conflicts tend to decrease significantly; this is true now, and it will be true in the future as well.

After this minor incident, Tan Jincheng encountered no further trouble and continued to shamelessly hand out business cards near several stalls.

In one morning, nearly a hundred business cards and brochures were distributed. Although no orders were signed directly, the results seemed quite good.

Around noon, Tan Jincheng finished his morning work early, ran out to buy 10 boxed lunches, and then hurriedly ran back.

I spent another 200 yuan. This time, I spent the 2 yuan I had set aside for Guangzhou. At this rate, if I wait until the exhibition ends, I won't be able to return to Beicang.

What would it be like to experience the prices of 2023 in 2004?
"Brothers and sisters, it's time to eat. I didn't know what you liked to eat or how much you wanted to eat, so I bought a few extra portions."

There were three booths that clashed with Tan Jincheng's booth. Each booth had two employees staying behind, and during lunchtime, everyone basically bought boxed lunches outside and ate a few bites while guarding their booths.

Although they didn't cause any more trouble later in the morning, they still weren't very friendly, and two employees even made sarcastic remarks from time to time.

Although he was thick-skinned enough, this feeling was never quite right, and it also affected the impression that potential customers passing by had of Tan Jincheng.

In order to make the afternoon go more smoothly, Tan Jincheng had no choice but to resort to this drastic measure.

"Oh? No need, we'll buy it ourselves in a bit."

"Yes, young man, there's no need for that. We'll go buy it ourselves in a bit."

Tan Jincheng's move left the salespeople somewhat bewildered; in the past, they were the ones who fawned over others.

In reality, they weren't much older than Tan Jincheng, and they hadn't been in sales for many years, so it was difficult for them to maintain that composure.

"Hey, we've already bought it, and I can't eat all of it by myself. We can't just let it go to waste, right?"

"Come on, everyone, let's eat together. We've worked hard all morning, so we should all take a break to help the boss make money."

Without saying a word, Tan Jincheng first pulled over the two salespeople who had shown the best attitude that morning. These kinds of people are more easily swayed and easier to get through to.

In terms of strength, Tan Jincheng was quite strong. With a casual pull, one of the thinner people was directly dragged to the lunchbox area.

Half-heartedly, the two who were pulled over first had no choice but to accept, and the others followed suit.

What this young man said is right; since we've already bought it, we can't let it go to waste.

"Young man, you don't even know your name yet? You look quite young, don't you?"

"My name is Tan Jincheng, Tan as in sandalwood, and I am 19 years old today."

"You started working at 19? That's not easy. Why didn't you go to school?"

"I didn't pass the exam, so I have to come out and find something to eat. I have to thank my older brothers and sisters for being so understanding this morning, otherwise I would have been running around everywhere."

"Hey, we were just chatting casually this morning. It's not easy for anyone when they're away from home. We've been through the same thing."

"That's different. It's the older brothers and sisters who are more generous. After getting wet in the rain, they know to hand out umbrellas to others. That's called not forgetting your original intention."

"Haha, little brother, you've got a real knack for this. You're a real salesman. I'm sure you'll succeed."

"Then I'll take your kind words, brother. Let's toast with water instead of wine."

"Okay, you know how to handle things, not bad."

As they ate and chatted, the atmosphere transformed from initial awkwardness and antagonism to harmony, and everyone even began to offer pointers to Tan Jincheng.

"In the afternoon, don't just hand out business cards. You can also try to go up and chat with the foreigners. I see you're wearing a translator's badge, so your English should be pretty good."

"Yes, these foreigners like to act like gentlemen. If you strike up a conversation with them, most of them won't refuse, but you have to be careful about how you do it."

"That's right, don't be afraid, just be shameless. You're the only one in your company who can bring in business. If you don't get a single order, you won't even be able to get your travel expenses reimbursed."

“That’s right. It was my first time going out to do business, and I didn’t make any money. When I got back, they took a long time to reimburse my travel expenses, and I ate instant noodles for a month.”

"These days, all bosses are like this: whoever can bring in big business is the boss, and whoever can't bring in business is nothing."

Before they knew it, these people started complaining about their boss. It's almost a consensus among working people that employees should criticize their boss. No matter what kind of treatment they receive, the boss will always be criticized.

Tan Jincheng couldn't handle this topic. He had never worked more than a few days in either his past or present life, so he could only silently eat his rice.

"Xiao Tan, how many people are in your company? The Canton Fair is such a great platform, why did you only send one person?"

"Huh? Our company is newly established, with only four or five people. We didn't originally plan to participate in the Canton Fair, but the boss sent us here to try our luck."

"That makes sense. For a company with only three to five people, it would be great if they could send one person over. However, you have too few products, so foreigners don't have a wide range of choices."

"It's a small company, just starting out. It's enough for us to see the big picture. When we get back, we'll tell the boss to increase the investment."

These people hadn't seen the business cards Tan Jincheng had handed out, and they didn't know that Tan Jincheng himself was the boss. Tan Jincheng didn't expose them. Over the course of the meal, everyone's relationship improved considerably, and Tan Jincheng would occasionally join them in hurling insults at the boss, dispelling the awkward atmosphere.

In 2004, on the eve of an information explosion, the working people, who had not yet been blinded by materialism, were still simple and kind.

In the afternoon, following the tips taught by his seniors, Tan Jincheng tried to strike up a conversation with a foreigner, and the results were quite good.

While there were some arrogant foreign businessmen, as the seniors had said, most of them, even those who were trying to maintain a gentlemanly demeanor, would stop and listen to Tan Jincheng's introduction.

The effect was much better than simply handing out business cards in the morning.

Compared to the morning, Tan Jincheng collected several more business cards in the afternoon, indicating that the first day's results for the sales staff were much better than expected.

This greatly encouraged Tan Jincheng.

Soon it was time to pack up and the exhibition was coming to an end. Tan Jincheng once again invited several senior figures to have dinner with him.

While there was some mercenary element to it, there was also genuine gratitude. In the afternoon, he received several business cards from foreign businessmen, which gave Tan Jincheng hope.

Since meeting Cheng Yongjun on the plane, Tan Jincheng has been quite lucky, with people offering him help in various ways along the way.

"Haha, Xiao Tan, you want to continue handing out business cards here tomorrow, right? It's fine, as long as they have no problem, I have no problem at all. But forget about treating them to dinner, you've already spent enough today."

The speaker was a man with a Northeastern accent, whose boldness was tempered with thoughtfulness.

A boxed meal costs 20 yuan. Xiao Tan bought nine extra today, along with some drinking water, cigarettes, fruit, and the like. It must have cost her at least 300 yuan.

These days, even in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, the average salary is only a little over 2000 yuan. Today, Xiao Tan spent almost a week's salary in just one day.

And this money is definitely not reimbursable. If I accept Xiao Tan's invitation to dinner that night, it would seem a bit unfair.

"Yes, Xiao Tan; there's no need to treat us to a meal. You can continue to post tomorrow. I've already looked at it today, and it doesn't have much impact on us. Anyway, our boss isn't here, so it doesn't matter."

"That's right, it's not easy for you to earn money. You've already spent quite a bit today, so there's no need to eat."

"Yes, yes, we still have to write reports when we get back, so we don't have much time to eat out. We can just grab something to eat when we get back."

The eldest brother spoke first, and everyone else, whether sincerely or not, echoed him.

For a moment, Tan Jincheng couldn't help but sigh, compared to later generations, the feelings between people in this era are indeed different.

To be honest, I was a bit unfair and took advantage of them; but it was just a meal and some nice words that made them understand me.

In later generations, in an environment where everyone is self-centered, it's unimaginable.

For a moment, Tan Jincheng didn't know what to say.

However, no matter what, we still have to invite them. We may be short of money, but we can't skimp on this expense, otherwise it will be difficult to come over tomorrow.

"Brothers and sisters, I sincerely want to thank you. You taught me a lot during lunch and made me realize many of my shortcomings. This is not for the company's business, but my personal way of thanking you."

"Give me this chance, but to be honest, I definitely can't afford anything too expensive. We can make it up later. Let's eat something cheaper today."

"Also, I'd like my older brothers and sisters to teach me some tips for being a salesperson. I hope you don't mind?"

"You little rascal, I told you not to treat me to a meal, but you insisted on spending the money. You're still young and don't know how hard it is to earn money. Fine, let's have a meal together. It's fate that we met."

The one who spoke was still that big brother from Northeast China.

"Thank you, Brother Zhang. Well then, brothers and sisters, let's pack up and go. Don't hesitate to ask if you need any help," Tan Jincheng said quickly.

Old Zhang is the oldest of the three salesmen, but he's only 35 years old. He's also the easiest to talk to and is quite enthusiastic.

While Tan Jincheng was helping with the tidying up, she quietly discussed it with the leaders of each team.

Then Lao Zhang said to Tan Jincheng, "Xiao Tan, I heard that the braised pork trotter rice here is quite famous. I've been eating boxed lunches for the past few days and haven't tried it yet. Why don't we go and try it tonight?"

"A bowl of Longjiang braised pork trotter rice reveals a man's romance."

As soon as Old Zhang finished speaking, Tan Jincheng immediately thought of this famous quote that would later become known on the internet; there certainly wasn't such a saying back then.

"Sure, no problem. I've never had it before either. Let's go try it together."

Tan Jincheng was grateful. No matter how famous it was, this place was actually similar to a certain county international hotel, very cheap, and suitable for the working class.

My older brother and sister were just trying to save themselves some money; everyone has eaten this stuff before.

Dinner was braised pork knuckle rice, but Tan Jincheng wasn't so casual. He added a few more dishes and everyone ordered a bottle of beer. Apart from Tan Jincheng, everyone present was a real salesman, and neither the men nor women were bad at drinking.

However, they still have work to do in the evening, so they can't drink too much; a bottle of ice-cold beer is enough to cool them down.

This season is the most comfortable in Ningbo, with a gentle sea breeze and pleasant temperatures; but Guangzhou is still like the sweltering heat of summer.

At the dinner table, no one talked about work; after a busy day, greeting the foreigners with smiles, everyone took off their masks and shared their experiences since starting work. Old Zhang was still the most talkative one.

At 35, he had already started a family and had a lovely child. At the turn of the century, his older brother's business shifted, so Lao Zhang followed his father and went south to work, making him one of the earlier groups to go south.

Thinking of Lao Zhang, Tan Jincheng also thought of his fourth uncle, who was in the Northeast at the time. His fourth uncle was about the same age as Lao Zhang; one went south and the other went north.

The professions they pursued were also vastly different. Differences in experience and education led to different choices for the two groups of peers from the north and south, which was common in this era.

Later generations often joked on the internet: "Those who looked down on Big Brother's actions back then, found out years later that Big Brother is still Big Brother, and ultimately sees things more clearly than others."

A group of people from all over the country and different provinces met in Guangzhou and chatted about everything under the sun. Tan Jincheng, who came from the future, was much quieter than during the day and listened quietly.

The soul, nearly 40 years old, comes from a middle-aged man in a later life. Whether in his past or present life, he has never experienced the understanding of society held by those born in the 1970s and early 1980s. However, with a mature soul, he is able to understand their expectations.

In this life, we are simply trying to make a living and seeking love.

(End of this chapter)