Chang You reluctantly repeated it again at the warm request of everyone. "A really good brand, a really good cell phone..."
This time, the audiences below instantly gave a round of warm applause and cheers when Chang You spoke. There were a few shrill whistles.
"You're really something!" "Alright!" "Another one!"
"Right, encore, encore! I want to listen to it again!"
The news conference instantly became a crosstalk show.
The bottle of mineral water Pei Qian held was nearly smashed in anger.
What the hell!
I told you to concentrate on the advantages in five minutes, is this how you do it? Huh? And now you really repeated it! Pei Qian was speechless. He could almost see Chang You appearing on hot searches in Weibo...
Someone in the audience was shouting 'encore' as though it did not seem to matter if the cell phone was revealed or not. Everyone would be very happy if Vice President Chang just repeated this part of his speech. Chang You smiled apologetically. "Sorry everyone, It was already an exception to repeat it. I have to get on with the program now; if not, I would not be able to answer my boss."
"The advantages of this cell phone are as mentioned. Next, we are going on to the disadvantages of this cell phone!"
Chang You forcibly started continuing to the next stage without any regard for the audience's opposition.
The media in the front row took out their cell phones to take photos of the slideshow on the screen, but it was too late. They could only beat themselves up and sigh.
"Did you get it?" "No!"
"It switched over too fast; I only managed to bring out my cell phone!" "What advantage did this cell phone have? I did not notice it since I was too engrossed in the crosstalk just now."
"Wasn't the crosstalk talking about the advantages of the cell phone?"
"I did not listen carefully."
"But you clapped so hard just now?"
"I only felt that Vice President Chang's speech was pretty neat..."
"He'll probably reiterate it again later?"
"He might not repeat it again going by the strangeness of the news conference during the previous stages..."
Chang You ignored these noises and continued to follow Boss Pei's instructions to introduce the shortcomings of this phone.
A huge word appeared on the screen. Expensive! "Our cell phone sells for as high as 8,199 yuan. I've made a table of comparison to let everyone better understand what can be bought at this price."
"This price could get you a mid- to high-end Alienware, a relatively good desktop, a relatively cheap set of air conditioner, refrigerator, and washing machine. You might even be able to buy a secondhand car..."
Various products were listed on the screen. Of course, there were no commercial logos on it, but they could definitely know which brand it was if they were to compare the price. They were not cell phones so he was not comparing different specifications.
Chang You spared no effort in introducing the purpose of these items. For example, a secondhand car could fetch people and things around. Moreover, no one would dare touch it while walking on the road because no one knew if a group of big guys holding newspapers would suddenly jump out after touching it.
He worked very hard to complete the task that Boss Pei gave to him. However, the audience below did not take him seriously. They burst into laughter from time to time.
"What the hell do you mean by no one would dare touch a secondhand car on the road? Vice President Chang, wake up, this is not a party but a news conference!"
"I thought that the crosstalk was over, but it apparently did not?"
"Hahahahahaha, Vice President Chang, what are you trying to emphasize listing home appliances and secondhand cars of the same value? Are you trying to say that you can buy a noble OTTO cell phone for the price of a home appliance or a secondhand van? I understand now, it seems like it's really worth it then!"
"Strange, I thought it was expensive at first, but why do I not feel that way anymore? 8,000 yuan doesn't seem to be too much now..."
The 'expensive' disadvantage was explained in no time. Chang You began to speak about the 'heaviness' advantage.
"Our cell phone weighs 247grams. It is in all literal sense a 250-gram machine! Everyone might not have much of a concept how heavy 247 grams is. It is equivalent to a carton of milk or half a bottle of mineral water... or five eggs!
"If you are a girl, you can use this mobile phone as a self-defense weapon when you travel. If you are a man and are bored at home, you can use this phone as fitness equipment!"
The audience laughed happily. "A weapon for self-defense? Fitness equipment? Isn't this phone conference too casual?"
"Can't you just introduce the advantages of your own phone nicely? Why does it feel like a
joke?!"
"Why didn't I realize earlier just how humorous Vice President Chang is? My stomach is hurting from all that laughing!"
"It's less than 250 grams with such a big battery? It's just half a bottle of water. No problem my strong arms can totally hold it!"
"Yeah, I thought this phone would be over 300 grams, but it was only 247 grams, not a big deal!"
"The disadvantage of this mobile phone is that it is expensive and heavy. Isn't it the whole definition of a valuable item?"
"Say no more, buy! Buy every last one of them!"
Pei Qian sat in the audience, listening to the waves of laughter at the scene. He never felt worse. What's so funny?!
Chang You was speaking the truth. We told you how expensive and heavy this phone is; how could you laugh out loud?
Pei Qian was speechless. The atmosphere was totally out of his and Chang You's control. It was developing in a very strange direction...
The two disadvantages 'expensive' and 'heavy' were introduced vividly by Chang You in no time. He continued to introduce other shortcomings of the cell phone.
"Our OTTO OS is more similar to the native system. Many operating systems have no customization functions. This is a huge disadvantage! We should consider providing users with two versions of the operating system next one. A simplified version and a feature-rich version for users to choose!
"There are many functions on our cell phone that many people may not use at all or are overpowering. For example, dual speakers, vibration, and custom-made cooling systems. Many customers do not need these functions at all, and these useless functions jacked up the price of the cell phone. It is similarly a large disadvantage! "In addition, we did not research enough on our cell phones. We lack the core technologies and solutions..."
"In short, these are areas that we are not doing good enough. We have to continue working harder in the future!"
Chang You introduced the disadvantages of this cell phone very sincerely.
Boss Pei told him to find as many disadvantages of this cell phone as possible to talk about it for at least half an hour.
Chang You thought hard. Apart from being expensive and heavy, he really could not think of any other points.
However, Chang You had a 'eureka' moment when he was sorting out these advantages of the cell phone.
There was a saying: one's meat is another's poison.
It was the same for cell phones. Everyone's needs were different. How they thought about the advantages and disadvantages were naturally different.
Take the operating system for example. Chang You liked this refreshing feeling for a while, but it was undeniable that many people still liked the minus-one screen and various functions of the domestic mobile phone system. This OTTO E1's operating system was a disadvantage! Therefore, Chang You began to analyze in earnest the type of people not suitable for the OTTO E1 mobile phone. He could be said to be sincerely dissuading all other potential users except the targeted group. The joking atmosphere among the audience gradually disappeared which was replaced by a sense of warmth.
"Vice President Chang is really well-meaning. He's dividing the people suitable for the mobile phone in advance so that they would not regret buying the cell phone. It's the first time I've met such a conscientious manufacturer!"
"Is he trying to find shortcomings even if there isn't?"
"Furthermore, many problems that Vice-President Chang raised such as insufficient self-research and lack of core technology is simply too harsh! However, doesn't that prove that Otto Technologies have a never-ending enterprising spirit?"
"Yes, other mobile phone manufacturers only talk about the advantages at the press conference-not the disadvantages-while OTTO Technology is totally different. It has its own advantages but clearly recognizes its own shortcomings and constantly pushes itself..."
"Too sincere! I can tolerate this shortcoming. Give me one!"
"Give me one set!"
"I'm serious; I really want one now!" "I mean it!"
The atmosphere at the press conference suddenly became enthusiastic. Many people began to clap and cheer uncontrollably.
Chang You's eyes were also moist on the stage. Unexpected, really unexpected! He did not expect such a reaction from the audience!
He originally thought that this slideshow was done very outrageously. He also did it to complete the task from President Pei headstrong
Right now, he realized just how perfect the process of the entire conference is in combination with the audience's reaction!
First, he had to discredit himself and completely break the psychological expectations of the audience. He designed a dark humor style for the news conference.
After that, it would be mandatory to introduce the advantages of the cell phone within five minutes. This would instantly ignite the atmosphere of the audience through a passage!
Then, he would have to talk about the shortcoming of the cell phone and change the atmosphere of the conference into one of dark humor!
Therefore, the audiences did not think that this cell phone was expensive anymore!
It seemed as though such was the magic of a totally different approach.
If one first introduced the advantages of their cell phone and brag about it, everyone would definitely resist the 8,199 yuan price tag no matter how good it was.
What if it was done in the opposite way?
First, one should announce an 8,199 price tag and 1,000 stocks, and let everyone watch it as though they were watching a joke. The audience would feel that this 8,000 yuan seemed to be worth the money as well?
The advantages of the cell phone and its price were at two ends of the balance.
If someone were to put advantages on one side of the scale and 8,199 yuan on the other end, then the audiences' expectations would be completely overwhelmed in that instance.
However, if that person put the price first and then slowly put the advantages at the end of the scale little by little, then the price would not seem so unacceptable! These advantages would have more weight!
Chang You looked for Boss Pei in the sea of people and sighed in his heart.
Boss Pei really is a Great Master at Psychology! Who else could come up with such a maverick news conference apart from Boss Pei?
At this time, Pei Qian was frantically kneading the empty mineral water bottle in his hand at a corner.
No words went past his lips, and yet he was sprouting millions of MMP(1.MMP is a local vulgarity in Sichuan, similar to f*ck.) in his heart.
Are you guys mad? It's a cell phone for a freaking 8,000 yuan!
Aren't you the ones who usually fight over 20-yuan coupons? Now, you don't think an 8,000-yuan cell phone is expensive?
You still want to buy even though we spammed its disadvantages to you?
What the hell are you thinking?! Which part of it went wrong?! Pei Qian had a bad premonition even though it was not officially opened for sale yet.
The 1,000 cell phones wouldn't be sold out in a matter of days, right?
Chapter 441 Did It Mean I can only Mass-Produce in Tears?
"Alright, that is all I have for the news conference today. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone here today!
"Everyone, please leave in an orderly manner. You can collect your small gift at the entrance.
"You can log on to the official website of Otto Technologies if you are interested in our cell phone to place an order. Upwind Logistics will deliver it to your door as soon as possible!"
Chang You looked at his watch and heaved a sigh of relief as he prepared to step down. He had successfully controlled the event to be within an hour.
However, someone started shouting as he walked halfway down the stage.
"This was it?"
"You've not said anything!"
"Tell me more specifics; I want to buy it!"
"Don't shout, go and order it now; otherwise, there will be no more stock!"
The audience was in a mess. There were all sorts of shouts. Chang You kept Boss Pei's advice in mind and resolutely controlled the duration of the news conference within an hour. He, therefore, ignored the strong demands of some people and continued to exit the stage, forcibly ending the conference.
Many quick-witted people below the stage had taken out their cell phones and logged on to the Otto Technologies' website to purchase the phone.
There were only 1,000 units; wait any longer, and there would be none left!
That was not only a competition among the people at the news conference but also among the 20,000 to 30,000 viewers on the livestream website!
Those who were not very interested in mobile phones started to exit the show orderly and went to the door to receive the gifts. It seemed as though the number of people who left the conference was only about 60% of the people who attended.
Many people had no plans to move at all!
Obviously, most participants in this news conference were loyal Tengda users. They were closely connected to Tengda's items in their daily lives. Their desire for this cell phone was much higher than that of ordinary consumers!
Therefore, the proportion of people who stayed to grab it was relatively high! Pei Qian sat in the corner, looking anxiously at this scene. Go! What are you still waiting here for?! Pei Qian looked at the guy on his left, only to see his fingers quickly tapping his screen, filling in the delivery address on the Otto Technologies, and then confirming payment all at once.
He did not forget to clutch his fist after the payment went through. "YES! I snatched one!"
The others seemed to be doing the same action!
There was no need to even think about what these people at the news conference could do staying at the news conference event. They were, of course, snapping up the products!
Pei Qian wanted to scream at the top of his lungs: 'Don't buy! Don't buy them!'
However, the scene seemed to be out of control...
Pei Qian hurriedly opened his cell phone and logged on to the Otto Technologies website. He went to the OTTO E1 cell phone product description page and saw the remaining numbers on the page.
327! Refresh, 116! Refresh again, sold out! Pei Qian heard a resounding 'f*ck' exclamation in the venue with the appearance of the 'sold out' label.
"This was it?"
"Sh*t! I just filled in my address!" "The importance of hand speed..." "I'm so happy I managed to grab one!" "Is there anyone willing to give theirs up? I'll pay more; give me one set!"
Someone was already starting to pay a premium.
Pei Qian nearly vomited blood. What the hell was this?!
Crazy, they were all crazy. He originally planned for these 1,000 cell phones to be placed in the storage until the next cycle. Now, they were sold out before two minutes!
That included the time everyone spent typing on the screen. The 'sold out' sign would probably be even faster if it was not because they had to fill up the address. Everyone reluctantly prepared to leave while sprouting vulgarities. "Hunger marketing! F*ck!"
"What can 1,000 units in stock do? I'm so pissed off!"
"Damn, I should have just gone to the website when the news conference started when they announced such limited stocks! I did not react
well!"
"When will it be restocked?"
"They are really blinded by money. What's wrong with the cell phone producers nowadays? Do they have to engage in hunger marketing before they can sell?" Pei Qian was pulled along by the crowd. Now, he felt miserable.
It really wasn't hunger marketing!
Hunger marketing was indeed hunger marketing, but I did not have any plans to sell!
I planned to produce 1,000 units with little losses, but you bought all of them. I didn't expect this to happen! I did not blame all of you even though you've bought all the goods, and yet you are blaming me?
Pei Qian had nowhere to vent his anger.
So... what could he do next?
Pei Qian grew worried.
A staff member saw Boss Pei as soon as he walked to the door and quickly pulled him aside. "Boss Pei, come quickly, Vice President Chang is waiting!"
Pei Qian was dragged to the preparation room next to the venue with a dazed expression. As soon as he entered, he heard a 'bang'.
Fireworks and ribbons are flying in the air, it seemed like... there was also a champagne cork?
Chang You held the champagne with the employees of Otto Technologies gathered around and applauded warmly.
"Boss Pei, this cell phone news conference you arranged is a classic marketing case that has never been seen in the entire cell phone industry. It will definitely make it to the annals of history and be studied repeatedly by major cell phone brands!
"Through the method of wanting and suppressing, the price and limited stocks were raised from the beginning which aroused the interest and tension of consumers for the scarce stocks. Explaining the advantage of the cell phone within five minutes instantly ignited the audience. It formed a hot topic on the net.
"Finally, emphasizing on the disadvantage of the cell phone and showcasing the impressive attitude of our company so that we firmly grasp the hearts of target users and greatly strengthen their desire to buy it!
"I really didn't expect that the 1,000 units would be sold out just after the press conference. That meant that Otto Technologies' strategy to enter the high-end market had achieved initial success!
"This is all because of Boss Pei's wise guidance!"
Pei Qian was feeling tipsy in the warm applause even though he had yet to take a sip of the champagne.
What do you mean it's all because of my wise guidance? You mean this is all my fault? "Everyone, look at this, Vice President Chang's crosstalk video is bursting the popularity charts! It's going viral everywhere on the internet, and many people are learning from it!"
"Our cell phone is going viral, too! Many people are discussing it in the tech circle!" "We've sent the media sets of cell phones, their evaluation videos will be out in about three to four days."
"F*ck, someone has already resold it on the second-hand website? That's too fast, right? Was there a scalper at our news conference?"
"It can't be. The tickets to the news conference were given out randomly. They are all given to the clients of Tengda's other business units. It just so happened that we met scalpers."
"Don't forget about the livestream users. Some scalpers might have made their way in through that channel."
They discovered some stuff that made them less happy when they were happy and excited.
Of course, scalpers were all around as long as there was limited edition. They were like flies
—unable to be driven away, making people sick to their core.
People were selling at high prices on the second-hand website less than 10 minutes after the news conference ended. That speed caught the employees of Otto Technologies off-guard.
Chang You sighed with emotion as he poured the champagne. "This is the characteristic of a fan scalper.
"Perhaps the fan initially intended to use it for himself, but he found that he could earn 300, 500, or even 1,000 yuan if he were to sell it without paying anything at all. He would naturally sell it.
"There is no way to avoid this. We have relatively few stocks. A buyer is willing to pay more; a seller is willing to part with it to earn some cash. We are not able to stop it.
"Anyway, let's not worry about it for the time being. Let's celebrate with a toast!"
Some employees were already helping in the distribution of the champagne. Pei Qian, of course, had one, too.
"Come, cheers!"
Pei Qian toasted silently and downed it all in the warm atmosphere.
"I have to stop the scalpers from reselling whatever the cost!" Pei Qian said firmly.
He was very unhappy that the phones were all sold out at the cell phone news conference. He was even more unhappy about the scalper!
Pei Qian hated the scalpers the most. A group of blood-sucking assh*les! He would rather not lose any money than to let the scalpers make money!
Pei Qian felt the effects of a scalper previously when the limited edition guns from 'Ocean Stronghold' were sold. Pei Qian would rather grit his teeth and make more money to put an end to these scalpers.
Facts had proven that watching a scalper deflate was a lot more fun than losing money!
Chang You was shocked upon seeing Boss Pei's gloomy face after taking a sip of his champagne.
Sh*t, he seemed to have said something wrong just now! How could Boss Pei sit around with the scalpers profiting from him with his disgust for them?
Boss Pei was definitely angry with him for saying that he would deal with them later. Why else would Boss Pei look so angrily at him?
Moreover, his expression seemed rather complex? That showed just how serious it was!
Chang You hurriedly said. "Boss Pei is right! We have to stop the scalpers at all costs! ...Uh, what should we do though?"
"I know now, Boss Pei! You hope to be able to mass-produce immediately and to directly guarantee the supply on the spot. That is so that the scalpers would not make speculations and make the money in their hands!"
Pei Qian, "..."
How could I mass-produce now? Do you think I did not make enough money!
However, he had to say that Chang You's idea is normal. The cell phone news conference was a huge success, and it sold out immediately at the conference. They should obviously continue to mass-produce immediately, right?
Who in the world would not make money if there was a chance to?
Pei Qian was speechless for a while. Yes, he had to continue producing since the phone was sold out. Otherwise, it would not make sense to the system as well.
Since he was going to mass-produce, he would have to sell them, too. Selling them would definitely make money. If he were to limit the amount and the scalpers were to snatch them, wouldn't that make it even more profitable?
Pei Qian was utterly speechless. How did things turn out this way?!
"Uh, Boss Pei?" Chang You felt surprised seeing Boss Pei fall into deep thought. What was there to hesitate to mass-produce a phone that is so successful?
Could it be that... Boss Pei had a different type of thinking again? Pei Qian was in a state of melancholic. He could only choose the lesser of the two evils.
It was now a fact that the cell phone was a hot item now. He could only think of a way to stop the losses. He had to eliminate the influence of the scalpers as much as possible so that the number of cell phones sold would be lesser.
Perhaps the model he used with Ocean Stronghold could be used again. He could determine the credit value for each customer, use the credit value to determine the priority of purchase, and then sell them in limited quantities every month or every week...However, he realized that he should not after another thought!
This model had hidden dangers as well. Ocean Stronghold dug its own grave the other time!
Then, the players who could not obtain the limited edition weapons bought Red Kilin frantically to get credit. As a result, the income from Ocean Stronghold skyrocketed!
It was the same this time. If he were to sell his mobile phones this way, the consumers would be able to spend their money on other industries related to Tengda and do everything possible to increase their credit value.
There was still a lot of money to be made and even more hidden dangers!
The popularity of Ocean Stronghold was not decreasing even until now. The players were extremely sticky; a large part of the reason was this consumption model.
Pei Qian was in despair. This was also a dead-end!
Did it mean I can only mass-produce in tears to stop the scalpers in their tracks?
Chapter 442 New Password
Calm down, I cannot lose hope at any time. There must be a better way to solve this!
Pei Qian's brain was running fast, lost in thoughts.
There were only two ways of making limited edition items. Either everyone snatched them up depending on their hand speed, which was tantamount to surrendering to the scalpers. Pei Qian would rather make more money than to make it easy for these blood-sucking assh*les.
Otherwise, it was the use of 'credit value'. Tengda's consumers could obtain higher purchasing authority. Once they had it, they could only be bound to the benefits and not be able to resell them. This was also possible to wash the scalpers away.
This route had been used in Ocean Stronghold. It could indeed fend off the influence of scalpers to a large extent, but it could not make him less profit. It would cause consumers to consume more in Tengda's other sectors.
Anyway, it seemed as though both methods could not work!
He could only mass-produce then. Scalpers wouldn't be able to play with the prices and would naturally disintegrate without him doing anything However, how was he to produce to earn less?
Or perhaps, could there be a possibility to make a loss by producing more?
"I said before, the profit margin of the cell phones should not exceed 5%..." Pei Qian looked directly at Chang You.
Chang You replied immediately, "Yes, Boss Pei. We did it exactly to that standard. We could not achieve this through stockpiling so I got the other Tengda departments to add on various benefits!"
Pei Qian, "..."
Sh*t, seems like the extra benefits were his mistake as well.
However, it was obviously not the time to be worried about this at this point.
If the profit margin of this mobile phone was only 5%. It meant that it was by the merits of concessions of the other departments.
It was profitable but not too much.
The current 1,000 sets of cell phones were sold out only because there was too little stock available.
The biggest advantage of this cell phone was the various benefits to the Tengda Corporation. It held a huge appeal to the locals in Jingzhou.
The attendees of the news conference this time were all locals from Jingzhou. They were also Tengda's clients from other industries. These benefits obviously were very attractive to them, especially the unexpected news conference...
That was what caused the phenomenon of the sell-out at lightning speed!
However, this cell phone seemed to be less attractive to users not in Jingzhou. The various benefits of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, Ming Yun Private Kitchen, Upwind Logistics, etc. would not be available to them if they were not in Jingzhou and Lincheng, right?
Many people were desperately rushing because the news conference was very attractive coupled with the factor of limited quantity.
However, once they calm down, they would definitely regret buying a cell phone that was so heavy and expensive and had such a crude operating system.
What was more, the media evaluation did not say many good things about the cell phone. Mass-produced cell phones could only eat cannon fodder in the storage as long as the tide turned
Therefore, he must mass-produce!
Profits would not be able to chase up to him as long as the production was fast enough to keep goods in the storage!
Moreover, once the market became saturated and the small number of ballers in Jingzhou obtained them, the others would gradually see the shortcomings of this mobile phone. Naturally, those stocks would not be able to be sold. They had formulated a strategy of never reducing their price so these cell phones could only rot in their warehouse!
Of course, Pei Qian was not overly optimistic. He was considering double insurance, at least to ensure that he would not make any profit for this cycle.
Chang You and the others were quietly waiting for Boss Pei's orders.
Everyone knew that the next step was definitely mass production, which should be a natural answer. However, there must be another level that they did not take into consideration since Boss Pei was now in deep thought.
Therefore, everyone was still waiting for 'Boss Pei in Good Times' to give a perfect plan.
Pei Qian sighed in melancholy after considering it for a while. "Let's mass-produce then.
"When can we get the next batch?" He looked at Chang You.
Chang You hurriedly replied, "Boss Pei, the production line at the factory is rather fast. Some large factories can produce 100,000 units a day without any problem. We don't have so many production lines, but a few thousand units from the OEM is completely possible." Pei Qian, "..."
F*ck, so fast? How suffocating.
However, it was right. The other brands could sell their cell phones in hundreds of thousands within three minutes through hunger marketing.
OTTO's cell phone sold out 1,000 units in three minutes through hunger marketing.
This was not an order of magnitude...
Pei Qian thought about it. "Today is 6th March. We'll start stocking up for mass production on a large scale. We'll sell twice a week, on every Wednesday and Sunday.
"You must log in to your Tengda account when you purchase and fill up your identification number. Every person is limited to one set. You must show your ID when it's being delivered to you. You have to ensure that everything is in order—the person, the order, and his identity-before you can deliver into his hands. Otherwise, the order will be canceled, and a refund would be given to him.
"We'll sell 2,000 units next Wednesday, 4,000 units next Sunday, 8,000 units the following Wednesday. Put the money back into production once they are sold and carry on with this model.
"Use all the funds at your disposal to keep stock level even if they are not sold out. Just let me know if you don't have enough working capital. Tengda has funds to advance."
"But Boss Pei, the profit-sharing with the other departments of Tengda..." Chang You started.
Pei Qian waved his hand. "You don't need to care about it for the time being."
He was very clear that the raw material cost of the OTTO mobile phone was only 4,000 yuan, which cost about half of its selling price of 8,199 yuan. The other half was supported by the concessions the other Tengda departments gave.
Chang You planned to return these concessions to the other departments once the cell phones were sold.
However, with a wave of Pei Qian's hand, this money would not be returned to the various departments but would be used in keeping stock.
A cell phone was sold at 8,199 yuan and the cost price of its production was only about 4,000 yuan. That meant to say that the quantity sold every time could double with each purchase.
They would sell 1,000 units this time, 2,000 the next, and allow the quantity to grow rapidly.
That would mean no more than these two situations: If everything went as planned and the market became saturated, these cell phones would become unsellable in no time. There would be a huge stock backlog and profits would not be able to be shared with the other departments. Boss Pei would succeed in losing money.
If it did not go well and the cell phones were sold out every single week, then there would be about 100,000 stocks left by the 30th of the month.
When the time came, numerous stocks would be left in the warehouse. He would earn less as long as they were not sold out.
Of course, if he were to directly use the surplus funds of the other departments to stock up, but then he would have a higher risk. After all, he could not not-sell them once they were produced. There would then be a possibility of crashing the cycle on the spot this week.
Extending the stocking cycle to one month from a week would at least ensure there would be no major problems in this settlement cycle.
Chang You was very moved.
Boss Pei was temporarily transferring all the profits from the other departments to ensure the funding and supply of the OTTO cell phones in Chang You's opinion!
It seemed to be telling him that Otto Technologies was a very important link in the industry chain and also showed that he was being trusted by Boss Pei!
Also, such a move dissuaded the scalpers and also took care of the emotions of the general consumers.
If it was limited to one set per person and could only receive the goods when their identity was matched, then it greatly increased the cost of reselling the cell phones to the scalpers.
It would be sold every three days, and the quantity doubled every single time. That means that the consumers would rather wait three more days and not be so anxious to buy from the scalpers at high prices.
"Boss Pei... I will not fail the expectation of all other Tengda departments. I will definitely guarantee the supplies even if it means I have to go to the production line to screw the screws in myself!"
Chang You was instantly motivated.
Pei Qian leaned back on his chair when he got back to his office, feeling miserable.
Really terrible!
He might have thought of remedies, but the success at OTTO's conference gave Boss Pei a heavy blow, making him very uncomfortable. He switched on his computer and went onto the forums.
He saw yet another nightmare.
That puzzle had been solved by the player!
PYFFDEWHVJ.
This string of password might not look like there is any pattern to it, but it was actually a natural code for double pinyin.
Double pinyin was a special type of pinyin typing. Assign the vowels of the Chinese characters to the keys. This way, each Chinese character could be spelled out by pressing only two keys.
For example, if 'F' represented the vowel 'en', then typing 'FF' in the double pinyin input method would be equivalent to spelling out 'Fen'.
Therefore, the password would become 'pingfendewangzhan' to those who know how to use the double pinyin!
That was obviously referring to TPDb.
Therefore, a large number of players flocked into the TPDb website and checked the various sections and clicked on various buttons, but they were stuck at this point and could no longer find any useful information on the website.
"There are users of double pinyin even though this input method is not very widely used. Therefore, it is no surprise that it has been found out.
"This puzzle should be able to hold up until settlement, right?"
Pei Qian suddenly felt nervous.
March 8st, Tuesday...
Qiao Liang and his fans were battling in other Tengda Games. Qiao Liang searched the TPDb for clues like a mad man previously but found nothing
Some players even went to other rating sites, which was obviously a completely wrong direction.
Again, from Teacher Qiao's understanding of Boss Pei, it was absolutely impossible for him to link with the other games or websites.
Therefore, this "pingfendewangzhan" must refer to the TPDb website.
However, why didn't anyone find any clues until now? It had been three days.
Was it hidden too deeply on the website? It was possible.
However, there was also another possibility... that this "pingfendewangzhan" information was not complete!
Qiao Liang realized that everyone's attention had been focused on this puzzle and TPDb when they found the clue in The Lonely Desert Road. No one continued searching for clues in other Tengda's games.
Could this be a diversion trap?
Perhaps, there was more than one clue hidden in Tengda Games?
The players might all be entangled in the TPDb website but forgot to look back into the game again. They might have fallen into a trap!
Therefore, Qiao Liang decided decisively to mobilize his fans to search for it in the other Tengda Games!
Many others have searched for them before, but it was clear that they did not look carefully. There must be many hidden clues.
Qiao Liang was going to the previous levels in Ghost General. He wanted to see if there was any special information hidden in this old game.
His fans suddenly became lively at that moment. "I found it! In Game Designer!" Qiao Liang quickly looked at the screenshot sent by this fan.The picture was a step before a certain ending of the Game Designer. Qiao Liang had an impression of this ending. It was called 'Lose all our hard-earned money'. That was that the player launched the game, but no one cared and there was no sales volume. The player then reluctantly left the game industry.
The scene in this picture was a step before the ending, which is the scene where the game sales were determined.
In this scene, there were disappointed fans, screaming players, reports of low sales, and low media criticism...
On the floor in the corner of the room, there was a stack of papers. Among them was a small piece of paper with a long string of numbers written on it.
2210211021110211101012011021210101202110212 101021210111102121021110212102111
"As I expected! There are other clues in the game! My direction is right! What did I say? I'm definitely Boss Pei's confidant!"
Qiao Liang couldn't help to get excited.
This password seems to be simpler than the previous one!
Chapter 443 What to Enter on the Input Fields
With everyone in the group putting their heads together, the code was cracked quickly.
The string of numbers was formed with the numbers 0, 1, and 2. What's more, o did not appear more than once at a time. One could see it as a separator. Naturally, people thought of the Morse code.
Taking the o's as the separators, the 1's as dots, and the 2's as dashes, one would be able to form a Morse code.
-.-..-...-..... -..-.-...
.-.-..-.-..... — .....-...-.-.-...
This could be converted to a string of English alphabets. GDBBEAICEADCECHCHBCB.
This could be converted to numbers, in the same way as the string of alphabets in The Lonely Desert Road.
74225193514353838232.
Compare those numbers to the keypad on a cell phone.
SBJYJILVUE.
Its double pinyin was 'soujingjilvshe'. It didn't take long for the gamers in the group to reach this stage because they had already gotten the right answer for the previous code. Moreover, the Morse code used for this string of alphabets was a common method of encryption. Thus, it had not been difficult.
Qiao Liang's heart raced. It was very exciting to work on the riddle together with so many other people who were in the same situation as he was.
"There are only two additional steps for the second code. The other encryption methods did not change. You still have to convert the alphabets to numbers, use the cell phone keypad, and then derive the double pinyin.
"Why didn't he try to use more encryption methods?
"Is it because Boss Pei has limited knowledge and he only knows about those few encryption methods? Or is it because he was lazy?
"Oh... no, no, no... it seems overboard to think that way. "Boss Pei must have shown everyone mercy by reducing the difficulty of this code, given that it was hard enough to obtain the code from Game Designer, right?
"Was this a form of grace towards gamers as they tried hard to crack the code?
"Yes! It must be!"
Qiao Liang did not overthink. He quickly opened TPDb and located the search bar.
Putting the two codes together, he got 'pingfendewangzhan, soujinjilvshe'.
Thus, Qiao Liang typed 'jingjilvshe' in TPDb's search bar, and then hit 'enter'.
There were no results.
He typed 'jyjilvue' and still got no results.
"It looks like... I have to type the Mandarin characters."
After some thought, Qiao Liang realized that the double pinyin could have been pointing to different Mandarin characters. Each one of them had the same double pinyin.
Of course, Qiao Liang could have tried all the possibilities, but that would have been stupid.
At that moment, Qiao Liang recalled the poster that he had seen earlier.
There was a special, red logo behind the bloody handprint. It was an obtuse, triangular steeple with the words 'Thriller Hostel' at the bottom!
'Thriller's double pinyin was 'xinji'. That made the name of this hotel clear; its double pinyin would be jingjilyshe!
'Thriller' implied 'being frightened without cause or reason' or 'a heart suddenly racing'. In other words, the fear might not come from jumpscares or a horrifying atmosphere. Instead, it would arise out of an unknown ominous feeling invoked by an ordinary-looking environment!
Qiao Liang was elated. He was a few steps away from cracking this code!
He quickly entered the Mandarin words for Thriller Hostel into the search bar. Indeed, the webpage changed at once!
All of the information that had been on TPDb's website disappeared. Black circles appeared one by one... until the entire website was dyed black.
After that, two input fields appeared in the center of the screen, at eye-level.
There were no hints around the input fieldsjust two empty rectangles.
Qiao Liang typed both answers to the codes into the fields and then clicked 'enter'. However, there was no reaction.
After some thought, he typed his Tengda account username and password and clicked 'enter' again.
Still no reaction!
Qiao Liang, "..."
He tried many other things such as the two earliest series of alphabets, the two double pinyin, the Mandarin words, and the like. Yet, nothing happened.
Thinking that he should not have clicked 'enter', he tried the spacebar, CTRL, Tab, Shift, and other keys... but to no avail!
He typed his account's username and password in reverse, but that didn't work either!
eve
After half an hour of trying, Qiao Liang felt lightheaded.
He had tried so many combinations, but the two input fields remained on the website. No matter how hard he tried, he could not get past them!
Qiao Liang calmed down and read through his fan's chat group. Indeed, no one else could find the right answers as well. Everyone was stuck at the two input fields.
Nobody knew what to type there!
Qiao Liang stopped trying and pondered hard instead.
Obviously, until now, everyone was on the right track.
However, they were stuck at this point because they were still missing some critical information. As for what exactly they should enter, no one had any clear direction. Qiao Liang frowned, thinking about all of the possibilities.
"Are there more clues hidden in other games? Are there clear instructions for what we should type into the input fields?
"Or am I missing something?
"Until now, not a single gamer has passed this step. Obviously, this is another puzzle for everyone to solve..."
At that moment, Pei Qian sat in his office, reading forums about how far the gamers had gone in solving the riddle.
"...What the f*ck? They've found the clue in Game Designer so quickly?" It was a huge blow for him.
He had thought that he had hidden the clue in Game Designer well enough. He had thought it would take a long time for the gamers to find it.
That was because there were many endings in Game Designer. Few people ended up losing everything. Most would only have to make a few right choices to avoid it altogether.
Coincidentally, that was the ending that Pei Qian liked and looked forward to the most. That was why he hid the second series of codes in the corner of the second last scene of that ending.
Yet, not long after the first series of codes had been solved, the second had been found and cracked at the speed of light!
Of course, that was mainly because Pei Qian had not used other encryption methods. There was only one additional step that was relatively simpler to solve—the Morse code.
Gamers who cracked the first code would just have to apply what they had learned to the second code.
Pei Qian had wanted to make it more complicated at first, but time had been too tight and Pei Qian had not had enough knowledge. Since he refused to ask for help, he had decided to slack off, in the hopes that people would not find the second series of codes so quickly.
However, he had ended up slapping himself in the face. The gamers were too crazy!
On the bright side, there was still one-third of the riddle left. That was the last line of defense.
"It has to hang on!"
Pei Qian glanced at the calendar. There were still three weeks to settlement. It would be impossible to stop all gamers from buying Be Quiet, but as long as the riddle could prevent some gamers from purchasing the game before settlement, Pei Qian's work would not be wasted!
After that, Pei Qian went online to see what the public had to say about Otto E1.
Two days had passed since the news conference. The first batch of reviewers' videos and reports had been published, and the news conference's popularity hit its peak yesterday.
The long script that Chang You had recited had become a hot topic of discussion. Many netizens were challenging themselves to recite the same script, and a good number had also recorded themselves and uploaded their videos on Aili Island. They had many views.
The original video of the news conference had also been uploaded on Aili Island. Now, it was already among the top three videos in the digital channel and had also risen through the homepage.
Ordinarily, news conferences by tech brands would not make it to the top of the charts.
That was because the content of other brands' news conferences normally had low information density, regardless of whether they were releasing computers, cell phones, or other digital products. Most of what was said in the news conference was part of marketing and could be summarized in just a couple of sentences.
What's more, huge manufacturers would livestream their news conferences. Those who were interested would already have watched it live and would not need to watch the video again.
Thus, videos of news conferences normally had very few views.
On the other hand, diss-type videos that could summarize the content in news conferences in three to five minutes were more popular.
Yet, the situation was entirely different for Otto Technologies' news conference.
Firstly, the news conference had been very brief. Everything had been condensed into an hour. What's more, it was funny and entertaining and had high-information density.
On top of that, many people online had not even paid attention to the news conference. They had only found out about it after Chang You's recitation became a hot search. Then, they watched the video to find out what the fuss was all about.
Thus, the news conference's video gained many views. The problems of low interest during the livestream and low visibility online had been solved!
Additionally, none of the huge manufacturers had held news conferences lately. UP Masters in the digital products channel could create videos reviewing Otto E1. Thus, the cell phone became the center of attention of a lot of lovers of digital products!
Pei Qian carefully watched all the reviews of Otto E1. He had mixed feelings about it. The downside was that the reviewers had said a lot of good things about the cell phone!
While recommending the cell phone, many reviewers explained its merits in full detail. They said that the cell phone had 'solid hardware' and then went on to explain all the advantages mentioned.Those were probably withdrawal symptoms of Tengda providing them with food, lodging, and gifts during the news conference.
The upside was that the cell phone's popularity was inducing effects of reverse psychology on netizens!
Although reviewers had good things to say about the cell phone, its bad points had also surfaced: it was expensive, heavy, and difficult to snatch!
Its price and weight went without saying. The cell phone was undoubtedly worthy of being called 'a 250-gram machine'. At the same time, it was being referred to as a 'cell phone for the rich' and a 'product with an IQ tax'. Although it was a misunderstanding, it still confused some bystanders.
However, Chang You had already fully and comprehensively explained both of those problems during the news conference. Thus, the dissing taking place online was insignificant now.
Neither of those points caused much of a reaction. Instead, it led to Otto E1 being labeled as a 'very valuable[1] product'.
The most important flaw was that it was hard to snatch. Many netizens took this as a sign that the sales event had an ulterior motive!
[1] The word 'valuable' combines the words 'expensive' and 'heavy' in Mandarin.
Chapter 444 He Desheng, the Expert at Bargaining
Most people online were debating about how only a thousand cell phones were available for sale. There were many complaints.
"I've seen many resort to hunger marketing, but this is the first time I'm witnessing a company be so open about it!"
"That's right. Others prepare tens or hundreds of thousands of cell phones even if they're employing hunger marketing. Yet, this company is only preparing a thousand cell phones. It even gave the impression that their cell phones were 'extremely popular' during the news conference. It's a trap for sure!"
"Even the audience at the news conference was probably hired, right?"
"I don't think it's just the live audience. The reviewers were probably paid as well!"
"The manufacturers could have allowed scalpers to order the cell phones in advance, so that they can act like the cell phones 'sold out on the spot'. The scalpers would then raise the prices of the cell phones. That'll be the perfect plan! They're colluding to cheat fools; the manufacturer and the scalpers would profit!" "They're engaging the help of scalpers!" "Forget it, forget it. The cell phone's obviously not really for sale. Please, don't tell me news about it anymore!"
"Let's watch and see. The company will continue to employ hunger marketing for the cell phones for sure. Each time, they would only sell a thousand cell phones and act like they ran out of stocks. That would create the illusion that everyone's fighting for the cell phones, so that its high price can be justified.
"Once they prepare adequate stocks, people would quickly realize that the cell phones weren't worth the price after all. Then, the company would collapse at once!" "Many people must be coming to their senses now, right?" "Don't say that. I can trust Tengda's reputation. What's more, Vice President Chang has already said this... they're trying to manufacture more stocks as quickly as they can. They'll sell two thousand cell phones tomorrow."
"Haha, two thousand? They're manufacturing two thousand cell phones as quickly as they can? Are you kidding me? And you dare to deny that this is hunger marketing?".
Pei Qian's heart filled with warmth as he read those comments.
Indeed, consumers were bright. They understood what was going on!
Remain this way. You have to remain this way! As long as your precious suspicions remain until the end of the month, I will take you as my benefactors!
Buzz... Buzz...
Just as Pei Qian was thinking, his phone started vibrating. Pei Qian picked it up and saw that it was He Desheng.
"Eh? Is this about the 'Top Student, Come Quick' app?"
Pei Qian quickly accepted the call. He had already instructed He Desheng to spend all the money that he had earned earlier! Had He Desheng completed his task?
"Boss Pei, we've bought the 'Top Student, Come Quick' project back! We have all the shares!" He Desheng sounded excited. "That's right. We've also hired the man who was in charge of the project at Xude Education. We didn't even have to poach him. He was fired!" Pei Qian was stunned. Did everything really go that smoothly?
They got the shares just like that?
If his memory served him right, Xude Education had only bought the 'Top Student, Come Quick' project less than a month ago.
Yet, He Desheng had gotten it back so quickly. He must have spent a great deal, right?
Pei Qian could not curb his excitement. "How much did you spend?".
He Desheng answered, "Boss Pei, we spent more than five million yuan!"
Pei Qian, "?"
Just five million yuan?!
They had earned fifteen million yuan from the sale of their shares before. They even kept the last twenty percent.
Now, they had gotten everything back for less than one-third of that sum?
Was Xude Education sick in the head? They had spent over forty million yuan on the shares before, and they were only selling them for five million yuan now?!
Couldn't you have asked for more?! Huh?!
Hearing no response from Boss Pei, He Desheng thought that the former was unsatisfied with the price. He quickly tried to explain himself.
"Boss Pei, this price is already very low.
"When Xude Education bought the project, it spent a lot of money organizing events. For instance, it forced its own students to register and sell lessons on the application. However, the company soon went under fire, and the project collapsed!
"What's more, the project could not generate profits. Its value was falling by the day!
"Many members of Xude Education's higher management became very unhappy with this investment. Conflicts arose, and a few members of the higher management took the opportunity to revolt. They forced those who had decided to acquire this project out of the company and abandoned the project altogether...
"After they abandoned it, the project could no longer draw on Xude Education's resources. Thus, it steadily deteriorated until it became an unsalvageable mess. "To avoid incurring more losses, Xude Education decided to cut it off completely. It was just as well that we had 20% shares in the project, and we had the right of first refusal. That was why Xude Education approached me first.
"Of course, they proposed a high price at first, in an attempt to cheat me.
"Yet, how could I be cheated? I had been in charge of the project the entire time. I know it inside-out. With just a couple of sentences, I shut them up!
"At that moment, they thought about selling the shares to others. That was why I hinted that I knew the project too well. I only had to leak a bit of information to make sure that nobody would buy their shares for a high price! "Thus, after several negotiations, they lost their patience. I slaughtered the price and offered five million yuan!
"I made it very clear. The project is only worth that much now. If they wanted to delay it any longer, they would not even have gotten five million yuan!
"If we waited longer, we may have gotten a lower price. However, I thought that you were in a bit of a rush, Boss Pei. I didn't want to hold you back. I guessed that the price was good enough, and so I finished the deal.
"Oh, that's right. The man who was in charge of this project at Xude Education took the blame for the entire situation, together with the other members of higher management. That was why he was fired. Boss Pei, I remember you saying you wanted to poach him. That's why I contacted him and invited him over.
"If you want to meet him, you can do so at any time!
"That's about it. What do you think, Boss Pei? I dealt with it all quite decisively, right?"
Pei Qian had no idea what to say.
"You did... really well," said Pei Qian sorrowfully and through gritted teeth. At the other end of the line, He Desheng smiled, embarrassed. "Don't mention it, Boss Pei. You had clear directions. I was just doing as you told me. That's how I achieved those results!
"If you didn't keep some shares on hand and instruct me to buy all the shares back, I would not have thought about doing this!"
Pei Qian, "..."
Alright, it's my fault again. We've already bought them back. What else can I say?
Pei Qian grieved for a while and then said, "Tell the man in charge to meet me at Dream Realization Ventures at 2 PM. I want to see him."
He Desheng replied, "Alright, no problem, Boss Pei!"
After hanging up, Pei Qian felt worried. He could not tell that He Desheng was that good at bargaining
However, that was the most useless skill in Tengda Corporation!
Still, since they had already obtained Top Student, Come Quick'—the mess of a project that could keep incurring losses-back, he now had a bottomless pit. He could probably lose the ten million yuan again sooner or later.
Yes, that was still better than failing to get the shares back!
At 2 PM in the afternoon, Pei Qian arrived at Dream Realization Ventures. He Desheng and the man in charge were already waiting there.
"Hello, Boss Pei!
"Boss Pei, this is the man who was in charge of the 'Top Student, Come Quick' project in Xude Education. His name is Yu Pingan. "This is Tengda's Boss Pei."
He Desheng introduced the two men.
Pei Qian grabbed Yu Pingan's hand and shook it. "Hello! Thank you for coming."
Pei Qian looked very honored to meet Yu Pingan. Xu Pingan felt overwhelmed by Pei Qian's favor. "Boss Pei... I... Don't mention it."
Pei Qian sized him up. He looked honest and obedient. He was probably the type to mess things up silently.
"Come, have a seat.
"Let's be upfront with each other. I want you to keep working on 'Top Student, Come Quick'. We will pay you according to Tengda Corporation's standards, and you'll enjoy various benefits as well. How does it sound?" Pei Qian asked expectantly.
Yu Pingan looked even more overwhelmed. "Boss Pei... I... I won't let you down for sure!"
Pei Qian nodded, satisfied. "Hmm, what are you planning to do?".
After some thought, Yu Pingan said, "Xude Education's higher management is stupid! They were blindly working on the project! They insisted on forcing people to register and even added advertisements for various classes on the application. The entire application became foul!
"Once I take over, I'll get rid of all of those stupid things once and for all!
"I'll restore the 'Top Student, Come Quick' application to its pure and original form, and I'll regain the users' trust!"
Pei Qian did not say anything.
Xu Pingan is doing a good job of shifting the blame as much as he could. However, if he really undid what Xude Education had done, wouldn't the application revert to its original problematic form?
That wouldn't do. I would have earned ten million yuan for nothing, then.
The current situation has to remain. Don't mess it up for me!
Pei Qian pondered for a moment and said, "That's inappropriate. Leave the application as it is. Don't get rid of anything inside, understand?
"Of course, that doesn't mean you should add new functions either.
"Let's seek stability first. At a time like that, inaction is better than any move."
Yu Pingan was stunned. He subconsciously looked at He Desheng.
He Desheng frowned and whispered, "What are you looking at me for? Over here, we follow whatever Boss Pei says, regardless. Don't overthink and don't ask too much, understand?"
Yu Pingan quickly nodded. "Yes, yes. Boss Pei, I'll do as you say!"
Pei Qian nodded, satisfied. Yes, Yu Pingan looks obedient and honest, and he has a good attitude as well. He'll probably be the next Lu Mingliang with some nurturing.
It would be perfect if he could do whatever Pei Qian asked of him well and incur losses without causing anyone to suspect anything!
"Alright, that's all for now," said Pei Qian. He stood up and got ready to leave.
He Desheng quickly said, "Boss Pei, there's another thing! "There's still close to ten million yuan in the company's bank account. What do you think we should do with this sum...?"
Pei Qian, "..."
Pei Qian had intended to spend all the money on 'Top Student, Come Quick'. However, He Desheng had ended up slashing the price and obtaining all the shares for five million yuan.
The rest of the funds were sitting in Dream Realization Ventures' bank account. That was probably embarrassing for an investor...
Pei Qian felt sorrowful. Should he pour all of the money into 'Top Student, Come Quick'? No, it had not been easy for the project to reach this state from what it was before. What if Pei Qian made it popular again by pouring so much funds into it?
He could not be careless before ensuring that the project would incur losses. Should he use the ten million yuan to manufacture more cell phones?
It was an option, but Pei Qian had to see how well the cell phones were selling tomorrow before making a decision. If nobody was buying them, he could consider manufacturing more stocks. If they were sold out, then he would have to rule out this option.
Even after much thought, Pei Qian could not find a project that would still continue to fail if he invested this sum. Thus, he had no choice but to say, "Leave it first. Remind me in two days."
He Desheng quickly nodded. "Alright, Boss Pei."
After walking Boss Pei out, He Desheng began to assign tasks to Yu Pingan. From today onwards, Yu Pingan would officially be in charge of the 'Top Student, Come Quick' application.
"Er, I have a question," Yu Pingan finally said after some hesitation.He Desheng asked, "Yes? Go ahead."
Yu Pingan chose his words carefully. "Boss Pei said not to add or take away anything on the application and to maintain its current state... does that include all the advertisements for Xude Education's courses?"
He Desheng smiled. "What do you think? Since Boss Pei said to 'maintain its current state', he means we should do that as much as possible."
Yu Pingan looked pained. "But... there are many advertisements for Xude Education's courses on the application. It won't be right for our application to advertise their courses! Xude Education would probably not let us use their content as publicity either. If we keep all information related to Xude Education, we might run the risk of getting into legal trouble."
He Desheng pondered for a while and answered, "Yes, that's true. Still, we have to do as Boss Pei says.
"How about... We keep the spaces and replace the advertisements with a few from Tengda Corporation's other businesses? We can replace them with content that is related or somehow connected to the application.
"That way, we wouldn't be getting rid of any functions. We'll be fulfilling Boss Pei's requests and avoiding legal trouble. That's killing two birds with one stone."
Yu Pingan nodded. "Yes, that's what I was thinking! I'll do that, then!"