Chapter 143: Company Grand Opening

Over the following three or four days, Wang Qiang made another trip to Shenzhen to deliver the four-piece bedding sets to Boss Ding and his associates.

The remaining 70% of the payment was successfully deposited into his account.

His only lingering regret was that Boss Ding’s previously mentioned relative in Hong Kong had still not made a move, which likely meant the potential deal had fallen through.

Truth be told, Wang Qiang was quite keen on securing that business. Boss Ding had mentioned earlier that his relative was planning to open an exclusive boutique specializing in four-piece bedding sets, which would naturally generate a high demand for premium merchandise. In the bedding industry, the more high-end the product, the greater the profit margin. However, since Boss Ding's relative remained unresponsive, there was nothing he could do.

Thursday, September 22.

The day after the Mid-Autumn Festival, the seventeenth day of the eighth lunar month.

Today was a momentous occasion for Wang Qiang—their company was finally opening for business!

Actually, they had already collected their official invoices two days prior. The reason they delayed until today was because Old Zhu had consulted a fortune teller, who calculated that today was an exceptionally auspicious day.

Wang Qiang still vividly remembered what the fortune teller, distinguished by a large prominent mole on his left cheek, had proclaimed: In the Jiaxu year, the Guiyou month, the Xinhai day—Xin shall not seal the sauce or the master shall not taste, Hai shall not wed or it bodes ill for the groom; favorable for gathering wealth, conducting transactions, moving into a home, and opening granaries.

Look at that. The prediction had been so specific and thorough.

It would have been inexcusable not to launch the business today.

...

Huaihai Road.

Paris Rhythm Three Gold Mansion, a Grade-A office building located not far from the Oriental Mansion.

Had anyone paid attention, they would have noticed a grand red banner hanging from the eastern office suite on the twenty-second floor, bearing the golden characters: "Warmly Celebrating the Grand Opening of Guoxing (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd." Right beside it hung the company sign, surrounded by festive decorations, awaiting only the auspicious hour to ignite firecrackers and announce the grand opening.

These preparations were entirely the handiwork of Old Zhu and Wang Baoguo.

Wang Qiang stood near the table in the lobby, chatting with his father. The families of Old Zhu and Old姚 were all present. This was Wang Qiang’s first time meeting Old Yao’s daughter, Yao Qianqian. She had inherited the features of Old Yao’s wife, Shu Yue, and was quite a pretty sight with her flowing long hair.

The boss's wife hurried over, addressing the group, "The auspicious hour is almost upon us. Let's head outside to get ready." With that, she turned to the elderly, short-statured gentleman with pristine white hair in his sixties whom Old Zhu had invited, offering a radiant smile, "Uncle Chen, we will have to trouble you shortly."

Uncle Chen smiled faintly. "It's no trouble at all." He then walked outside with his hands clasped behind his back.

Generally speaking, ribbon-cutting ceremonies would feature local government officials or prominent public figures. This Uncle Chen had formerly served as a leader in government agencies and was now retired, making him quite a prestigious figure in society.

Wang Qiang had familiarized himself with this information beforehand and walked outside alongside the others.

Outside.

No sooner had Wang Qiang stepped out than he noticed several office building staff members busy preparing strings of firecrackers and small celebratory explosives.

As soon as everyone caught sight of Uncle Chen emerging, they rushed forward to crowd around him, showering him with flattery: "Director Chen, please this way," "Director Chen, it is a rare honor to have your esteemed presence grace our building," "Director Chen, I want to bear your children"—well, that last line was entirely a product of Wang Qiang’s imagination, as the enthusiasm of the crowd gave him the surreal illusion of fans encountering a superstar.

Wang Qiang was not particularly fond of inviting high-profile celebrities for ribbon-cutting ceremonies, but since Old Zhu enjoyed this sort of pageantry, he went along with it, raising his hand to check his wristwatch. "Brother Zhu, it's 8:55. Shall we do the ribbon-cutting in five minutes?"

Old Zhu’s face was a mixture of excitement and nervousness. "Yes, yes, five minutes to go."

Just as Wang Qiang was about to say something, a motorcycle pulled up not far away. He looked over to see Sun Weixing approaching while carrying a floral basket.

"Brother Zhu, Brother Yao, Little Wang," Sun Weixing called out and waved from afar.

Old Zhu and Old Yao burst into hearty laughter. "Old Sun, you're a true friend, coming all the way out here to show your support."

The boss's wife hurried over to take the floral basket and set it aside. As the group chatted and joked, Uncle Chen, having been hired for a specific role and paid accordingly, refrained from getting too involved in their casual banter.

After exchanging a few words, Wang Qiang checked the time and realized it was almost time. He was about to remind Old Zhu and the others to prepare the firecrackers when several unfamiliar individuals arrived in sedans and motorcycles to show their support—they were all friends of Old Yao and Old Zhu.

"Old Cui!"

"Brother Gao, thank you for coming to support us!"

"Sister Mei, thank you so much, please come right in and take a seat."

"Oh, Station Chief Lu, you have honored us with your presence as well?"

Old Zhu and Old Yao busied themselves welcoming the guests, introducing them to Wang Qiang one by one. In the span of just a few moments, another five or six supporters had arrived, all of them showing tremendous courtesy and giving them face.

Recalling the modest opening of their video game arcade previously, Wang Qiang couldn't help a brief wave of nostalgia. Back then, the only people present were pathetically just himself and Old Zhu's father-son duo. Although the supporters today only numbered six or seven, it was already a massive step forward compared to last time.

Suddenly, the roar of an engine echoed from ahead.

Wang Qiang didn't think much of it at the moment and was about to tell Old Zhu to light the firecrackers.

However, a white sports car sped from the distance and screeched to a halt with the sound of tires scraping against the pavement. Liu Guiyi stepped out of the vehicle, wearing a long black dress. She hauled two slightly warped floral baskets out of the car and walked over slowly in her characteristically favored red high heels.

Old Zhu and the Old Yao couple acted as if they hadn't seen her, each continuing to converse with Uncle Chen.

Wang Qiang could not pretend not to see her, so he quickly stepped forward, covering the distance in two strides. "Sister Liu, you've come to show your support as well?"

"Mmm," Liu Guiyi gave a slight nod. "I came specifically to support you." She placed heavy emphasis on the word "you," as if purposely saying it for Old Zhu and Old Yao to hear. Once she finished, she added indifferently, "And Boss Wang asked me to bring a congratulatory floral basket on his behalf."

Hearing this, Old Zhu and Old Yao could no longer remain indifferent. They immediately stepped forward to receive the floral basket from Liu Guiyi's left hand with utmost reverence. Wang Qiang glanced over as well. Logically speaking, floral baskets would bear the names of those who sent them, but Boss Wang's basket bore only the two characters "Congratulations," with nothing else.

How mysterious.

Checking the time and seeing that the moment had arrived, Wang Qiang politely addressed Uncle Chen, "Uncle Chen, it's time for the ribbon-cutting. We would be grateful for your assistance."

He received no response for a long moment. Puzzled, Wang Qiang looked up, only to find Uncle Chen staring blankly at Liu Qingcheng, stammering, "You... you know President Liu?"

Finding this rather strange, Wang Qiang nodded and said, "That's right."

Uncle Chen let out a wry chuckle and chided, "This little Zhu, knowing President Liu and yet asking me to cut the ribbon—isn't that making a fool of me?"

The middle-aged manager of the office building nearby seemed to recognize Liu Guiyi as well. He glanced repeatedly at Wang Qiang and Old Zhu's group, looking somewhat startled. Even a figure as significant as President Liu had come in person? What on earth was the background of this newly opened Guoxing Trading Company?

Wang Qiang was completely oblivious to the implications. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Uncle Chen, he patted Old Zhu on the shoulder. "Brother Zhu, go light the firecrackers. It's time."

"Oh, oh." Old Zhu immediately averted his gaze from the floral basket sent by Boss Wang, scratching his head with a smile, "I never expected Boss Wang to even know the opening time of our company. I never mentioned it to him."

This instead left Wang Qiang puzzled. If they hadn't publicized it widely, how on earth did Boss Wang find out about their company's opening date? Furthermore, just who was this mysterious Boss Wang, capable of making even Uncle Chen—a former government agency leader—feel inferior by comparison? It seemed likely that this Boss Wang truly possessed powers reaching the heavens. Uninentionally, Wang Qiang felt the urge once again to meet this legendary heavyweight figure.

Zhu Xiaofeng and Yao Qianqian held the red silk ribbon taut, waiting only for the crack of the firecrackers to signal Uncle Chen to cut it.

Bang-pop!

The first firecracker soared straight up into the sky.

Immediately followed by the crackling roar of the firecrackers, filling the air with the scent of gunpowder. Wang Qiang narrowed his eyes and smiled broadly; after so much hard work, the company was finally officially open!

Until the sound of the firecrackers began to subside, Uncle Chen raised the scissors, made a clean cut through the red ribbon, and then announced in a booming voice, "I wish Guoxing Trading Company a prosperous opening!"

With a rustle, everyone present broke into enthusiastic applause. They were genuinely happy for Wang Qiang, Old Zhu, and Old Yao.

Wang Qiang, Old Zhu, and the others promptly invited everyone upstairs to tour the company premises.

The company was officially open, and joy filled his heart.

...

The twenty-second floor of the building.

The modern office area on the eastern side.

It was already 10:30. Wang Qiang and Old Zhu had just finished seeing off Uncle Chen, Sun Weixing, and the others, and had returned to the company entrance. The boss's wife and Shu Yue had already left earlier, leaving only the four of them remaining.

On the wall beside the main entrance hung a brownish-yellow sign with red lettering reading: "Guoxing (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd."

Wang Qiang pushed open the pristine glass door and smiled, "Brother Zhu, business opening is business opening, but we need to sit down and discuss our future development."

Near the entrance was a reception desk, currently unmanned as no employees had been hired yet.

Old Zhu waved a hand dismissively. "Whatever you say we should do, we'll do."

Walking further in was an open-plan office area of about forty square meters, furnished with five or six desks and nothing else. Wang Qiang glanced at the three partitioned offices: the middle one was the general manager's office, another was the finance room, and the remaining one was the personnel department. Although the sparrow was small, it had all the vital organs. Pulling back his gaze, he said, "It doesn't work like that. The company belongs to all of us; we need to discuss how to proceed from here. Let's sit down and talk."

The four of them gathered around a desk near the window in the open office area.

Wang Qiang went straight to the core issue. "Our only true clients right now are Cheng Weihong and a few others, so we must secure more clients as quickly as possible. Otherwise, if Cheng Weihong and his group are snatched away by other suppliers one day, we'll be left with nothing to drink but the northwest wind."

Old Zhu let out an exclamation. "You think so? I don't think Old Cheng is that kind of person."

Old Yao retorted impatiently, "What kind of person or not that kind of person? If someone else offers a lower price than us, it'll be a miracle if Old Cheng doesn't walk away." He wore a solemn expression as he added, "I agree with Little Wang. We need to secure clients as soon as possible; relying solely on Cheng Weihong and his group is not a long-term solution."

Although Wang Baoguo held the title of general manager, he actually didn't understand much about the business, so he wisely chose to remain silent.

Indeed, aside from a few regular clients like Cheng Weihong, the company currently lacked a stable source of revenue. They were not short on sources of supply; what they lacked entirely were clients.

Wang Qiang took this matter very seriously.

Now that they had started a company, a massive customer base was indispensable. While trading companies sounded very simple—buying and selling goods to earn the price difference, seemingly without any difficulty—the reality was quite different.

What a true trading company lacked most was information gathering, followed closely by business channels, which referred to sources of supply and sales targets.

Why was information gathering considered the most important? Because when you buy and sell goods, you must supply according to market demand. In other words, you have to understand what will actually make a profit. This was precisely what many trading companies lacked the most, and they had to hustle desperately to gather information.

Yet for Wang Qiang, information gathering was his greatest strength. Because he understood what kind of goods the current era demanded, and since he was a time-traveler, he could say with absolute confidence that no other trading company possessed such long-term vision and profound understanding of market shifts as he did.

The only things he lacked were sales targets and supply sources.

Actually, the issue of supply sources was relatively easy to resolve. Once Wang Qiang knew which goods were profitable, he could find ways to track down the manufacturers. What made him anxious were the sales targets, which needed to be addressed promptly. Even if you could acquire the goods, you at least needed clients willing to take them off your hands.