Chapter 218: 218: Meeting
"President Zhang, today's event is quite a coincidence. I had just hung up your call when Zhang Songxuan, the owner of Yonghui Supermarket, called me. He asked me out for dinner tonight. I'll talk to him about it this evening," Xu Yang said.
"What, Zhang Songxuan personally called you for a dinner invitation?!" Zhang Qiuxue was incredibly shocked.
It must be known that Zhang Songxuan is undeniably a business magnate, only slightly below the level of tycoons like Wang the billionaire.
He is much more powerful than Xu Yang, at least for now.
Such a magnate personally called Xu Yang and invited him to dinner.
It seems that Xu Yang is even more formidable than she had imagined.
"President Zhang, there's no need to be so shocked. Regardless, I will bring up the issue you mentioned tonight, and I will inform you of the outcome, whatever it may be," Xu Yang said.
"Okay, President Xu, I trust you," Zhang Qiuxue said.
"President Zhang, I will do my best, but I still hope you won't hold out too much hope. The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment," Xu Yang said with a wry smile.
He himself had little confidence.
"All right, regardless of the result, I am very grateful to you," Zhang Qiuxue said sincerely.
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"President Zhang, you're being too formal. I'm a shareholder of Qianjiao Company, and it's only right that I do this," Xu Yang said.
The two exchanged a few more words and then ended the call.
Having confirmed dinner with Zhang Songxuan for the evening, Xu Yang called Zhao Yuxin and told her to arrange her own dinner.
"Husband, even if you hadn't called me, I would have called you at noon. Tonight, some colleagues and I are having a dinner gathering, so I won't be able to cook for you," Zhao Yuxin said with a laugh.
"That's perfect," Xu Yang laughed.
After chatting for a while, they ended the call.
Xu Yang wasn't busy, but Zhao Yuxin had to work, and it was a bit hectic at this time.
In the blink of an eye, it was past six o'clock.
Xu Yang drove his Rolls-Royce Cullinan to the Top-Notch Private Kitchen restaurant and headed straight to the private room agreed upon with Zhang Songxuan.
Inside the private room, Zhang Songxuan was already waiting.
"President Xu, you've arrived, please have a seat," Zhang Songxuan stood up and made a welcoming gesture, striking just the right note of cordiality.
Since he had invited Xu Yang for dinner, it was natural to show a certain level of respect to him.
It wouldn't do for him to remain seated and not move when Xu Yang arrived.
This also demonstrated the importance he placed on Xu Yang.
Favorable for the forthcoming conversation he intended to have with Xu Yang.
"President Zhang," Xu Yang nodded, his demeanor neither servile nor overbearing, and took his seat opposite Zhang Songxuan.
The private room was small, with a four-seater square table.
"President Xu, this private kitchen was recommended to me by a friend. It's my first time here as well. I've heard the food here is quite delicious, so let's try it together," Zhang Songxuan said with a smile.
"President Zhang, could your friend possibly be President Shen Wanpeng?" Xu Yang asked.
"How did you know?" Zhang Songxuan was a bit surprised.
"Yesterday, President Shen invited quite a few people to dine here, and I was one of them," Xu Yang said with a smile.
"I see," Zhang Songxuan said, suddenly enlightened, and then added, "I truly didn't expect that you, President Xu, would know President Shen."
He didn't ask Xu Yang who else Shen Wanpeng had invited yesterday.
This kind of thing is fine if Xu Yang brings it up himself, but if he asks proactively and the other party doesn't want to talk, it could be very awkward.
The two chatted casually, and before long the dishes were served.
After a few rounds of drinks and a variety of dishes,
the two sides had become quite familiar with each other.
Zhang Songxuan spoke up, "Mr. Xu, your Fengcai Guild is now the largest guild on Douyin, and many businesses want to cooperate with Fengcai Guild. I was wondering if my Yonghui Supermarket might have a chance?"
Xu Yang was startled, "Mr. Zhang, does your Yonghui Supermarket also want to get into live-streaming sales?"
Zhang Songxuan nodded, "Yes, if we don't do live-streaming sales now, we'll fall behind. The wave of the internet has a huge impact on physical stores. I have to say that our Yonghui Supermarket is already trying live-streaming sales, but doing it on our own hasn't been very effective. Later I thought we needed to find a partner and seek cooperation with internet celebrities.
Douyin is already the leader of short videos, and it occupies 70 percent of the market share in live-streaming sales. Your Fengcai Guild is the number one guild on Douyin, with an excellent reputation. I had people research it, and every business that has worked with you has been very satisfied, whether it is in terms of sales volume or brand power. You are the best partner to work with."
Yonghui Supermarket was struggling to keep up with the impact of live-streaming sales.
Despite trying many strategies like issuing coupons and offering better services, the results were negligible.
This sales trend is an irresistible force, beyond the power of human resistance.
One can only survive and continue to develop by adapting to the trend.
So, he had to seek cooperation with a guild for live-streaming sales, and after some investigation, Fengcai Guild was the first choice.
Therefore, through a convoluted path of friends of friends, he managed to get Xu Yang's contact information and asked him out to dinner.
Xu Yang said, "Mr. Zhang, your Yonghui Supermarket has always had a great reputation and meets the cooperation requirements. However, you must ensure that the quality of the goods you provide is the same as that in your supermarket."
Zhang Songxuan hastily replied, "Of course, we will ensure the quality. Without you mentioning it, I would demand it myself. After all, it relates to the reputation of our Yonghui Supermarket. If people find out there's a difference in product quality between our live-streaming sales and our physical supermarket, it would be a fatal blow to Yonghui Supermarket."
Xu Yang nodded, "Okay, no problem. I'll have someone from the guild contact you tomorrow."
The two of them were bosses of their respective companies.
All that was needed was to confirm the intention to cooperate, and let their subordinates handle the specifics.
As for the negotiation details and profit sharing, Fengcai Guild would conduct an evaluation on different brands, classify them, and come up with a fair distribution plan.
In this type of cooperation, Fengcai Guild holds the initiative.
They offer a proposal, and if the other party is willing to collaborate, great; if not, no problem.
After all, Fengcai Guild is not short of partners, with businesses calling every day wanting to cooperate.
Due to the limited number of streamers, they prioritize the best, and have turned down many brands.
So even when faced with a big player like Zhang Songxuan looking to collaborate, Xu Yang wouldn't interfere with the specifics of the deal.
He wouldn't sacrifice the benefits just because Zhang Songxuan approached him personally.
The fact that Zhang Songxuan sought him out just proved how much Yonghui Supermarket needed Fengcai Guild.
Therefore, there was even less need to be courteous.
"Good, Mr. Xu, here's to our cooperation," Zhang Songxuan said happily, raising his glass in invitation.
He had high hopes for this collaboration, hoping it would help Yonghui Supermarket out of its slump.
"Here's to a pleasant cooperation," Xu Yang smiled and raised his glass in return.
After emptying the glass and taking a couple of bites of the dishes, Xu Yang said, "Mr. Zhang, I have something I'd like to talk to you about."
Now that Zhang Songxuan's matter had been dealt with, it was time to discuss his own.
Zhang Songxuan put down his chopsticks and asked, "Mr. Xu, what is it?"