Chapter 90 This contract has never been seen before

According to conservative estimates, at least 70,000 to 80,000 taels will be earned tonight.

Thinking about it this way, there doesn't seem to be any harm in selling the recipe.

But after training with Xu Qingying these days, he has somewhat developed the ability to remain calm. He tensed his body, was highly alert, and observed.

The three people who were called walked in one after another. Mrs. Luo glanced at Old Man Lin and cursed in her heart: Old man, you are really unreliable.

Fortunately, she took into consideration how crazy Old Man Lin was when he was young in doing business, and temporarily doubled the price, and only then did she barely get the qualification to enter the room for a chat.

Seeing that Mrs. Luo had caught up with him, Old Man Lin smiled and said, "It seems that we can't believe everything Mrs. Luo says. Fortunately, I didn't believe you, otherwise this opportunity to make a fortune would have slipped away."

Mrs. Luo was speechless, but she only managed to shoot herself in the foot. She snorted coldly, "You old man, you're also secretly raising the price. You're so fickle!"

Old Man Lin, however, was not angry: "Madam Luo, I remember that the old man did not promise to match your price. We both know the value of the soap business. Besides, Young Master Xu has already said that the decision will be based on the highest bid. How can we play dirty and cheat young people?"

Sure enough, the person had already entered the house. Old Lady Luo secretly glared at Old Man Lin, thinking that this old man was really good at talking. He said one thing in front of Young Master Xu and another behind his back. He was simply despicable.

The two of them walked into the house, and the maidservant beside Miss Qi Er closed the door, completely blocking out the sounds from outside.

This posture aroused the curiosity of the two men, and they wanted to see what tricks this young Master Xu was playing.

Another maidservant was waiting outside with Master Zhang. She carefully brought over some tea and said, "Master Zhang, please wait here. If the people in the inner room are not satisfied with the conversation, you can go in again."

Master Zhang couldn't stand Xu Qingying's arrogance. Although he was angry, he could only hold back when he thought about the soap business and said, "This little Master Xu is so arrogant. I'm afraid even the Lord would be ashamed if he came here."

The maid smiled slightly, not feeling apprehensive. Instead, she said, "After all, this is a business involving hundreds of thousands of dollars. Shouldn't we be more cautious?"

Master Zhang snorted coldly and said nothing, but his eyes would occasionally glance at the figure in the room.

And now inside the house.

"Please take a seat, both of you." Miss Qi and Xu Qingying sat in the main seats together. After tea was served, all the maids and servants left, leaving only Feng'er by Xu Qingying's side.

"There's no need to taste the tea. Just tell me how you want to cooperate, Mr. Xu. Don't keep us in suspense." This was said by Old Madam Luo. Her eyes were sparkling, and she had obviously noticed the quotation for the wooden boxes.

"In that case, I'll get straight to the point." Xu Qingying sipped her tea as she soothed her throat. Everyone in the room fell silent as she spoke. "In the first round of bidding, Boss Lin bid 48,000 taels, Boss Luo bid 38,400 taels, and Young Master Zhang bid 32,000 taels."

When these words came out, the two people had different expressions.

Mrs. Luo, in particular, glared at Old Man Lin fiercely.

This old guy has such a big hand. Fortunately, he added some more when he put pen to paper at the end, otherwise he would not be able to enter this room tonight.

Mrs. Luo glanced at Mr. Zhang's figure outside the door again. He was so young, yet he dared to be so bold and aggressive in doing business.

It seems that there are many talented people among the younger generation.

"Honestly, this price isn't that high. To be honest, this recipe of mine is making a fortune every day. If you really want to sell it, it could easily fetch 200,000 taels. I think you all know that even with the copy I have, the total estimated value of this recipe is only around 130,000 taels."

Xu Qingying shook her head and sighed, deliberately pretending to be somewhat dissatisfied.

Miss Qi Er quickly advised, "Thirteen thousand taels is not bad. These three bosses are wealthy and trustworthy. And since they are doing business together, the price will naturally not be higher than if they just sold the child. Master Xu, this deal is not a loss."

Old Man Lin also said, "Young Master Xu, you just said it yourself. This isn't about selling a son, but about seeking a partner. The threshold for cooperation is quite high. I, an old man, paid 50,000 taels for an entry ticket and didn't even complain about losing out, yet you, a little kid, are talking about losing out. Since you've coaxed us in, if you can't come up with a way to make money, I won't even touch this cup of tea!"

Mrs. Luo didn't say anything, just looked at Xu Qingying.

Xu Qingying had no choice but to pretend to pinch her nose and admit it. "Alright. Now that everyone is here, I'll tell you my plan. But let me be frank. There were so many people here just now, so some things were difficult to say directly. I'm telling you now: the money you bid only buys the right to produce soap, not the right to sell it."

"What do you mean?!" Old man Lin stood up first.

Mrs. Luo's eyes flashed. "Boy, are you saying that we spend so much money and you only let us make soap but not sell it?"

Old Man Lin waved his sleeves, frowning, and spoke in a rather harsh tone, "Boy, what do you mean? If you won't let us sell soap, then why should we buy your recipe? If you can't explain it clearly, don't even think about leaving this door today!"

"What's the point of petty fighting? If you want to profit, you have to fleece the big guys." Xu Qingying was not afraid at all. She didn't even change her posture. She just raised her eyelids and said, "Please be patient, both of you. Let me finish my words first."

"Okay, let's see what you can say. If you can't come up with something concrete today and waste my time, I can't guarantee that you'll leave Xingyuan Mansion unscathed!"

As Old Man Lin spoke, he glanced at Qi Er who was sitting next to him. Qi Er could only smile apologetically, "Uncle Lin, don't be anxious. Listen to Young Master Xu's story first. He came all the way here, and we won't go back empty-handed."

Xu Qingying cleared her throat. "Here's what I think. Based on the bids, Boss Lin, Boss Luo, and I now form a company. I own 36% of the shares, which means I own the most of the three, and naturally have the management decision-making power and sales and operation rights."

Although these words are difficult to pronounce, they are not difficult to understand when put together.

The three people heard her speak in an orderly manner, thinking that she had at least put some thought into it and was not just talking nonsense. Old Man Lin's brows relaxed a little.

Forget it, let me listen to what nonsense he has to say first.

"You only have the production rights, which means you can only recruit people to make soap. And you will be divided into two branches, north and south, each responsible for soap production. We can specify in the contract later that the soap manufacturing rights can only belong to the two of you and your family. There will not be a third subsidiary."

Upon hearing this, Old Man Lin and Old Lady Luo looked at each other, both of them a little unsure.

They really had never seen business done this way.

“If we don’t buy or sell, how can we guarantee profits?”

"Of course, business comes to you, not you looking for business."

Hearing this, Old Man Lin finally put away the coldness on his face and sat up straighter. "Tell me about it."

"Do you see the people outside?" Xu Qingying pointed at them. From inside the room, one could even hear the clinking of bowls and plates. "These are potential customers."

Xu Qingying's voice was incessant. Her voice was not loud, but she spoke with such clarity that everyone could hear her clearly. Her speaking speed was neither fast nor slow, which gave people just enough time to think.

"My sales strategy is to avoid retail customers and only target major clients. I call these major clients first-tier distributors. They must pay three thousand taels of silver each year to pick up goods from us. To enhance their experience, we advertise them as VIP customers. Those who pay five thousand taels are considered top-tier VIP customers. Those who pay three thousand taels have the right to pick up goods. Those who pay five thousand taels have priority. As for retail customers on the market, I leave them all to the first-tier distributors."

"Retail buyers have limited purchasing power and love to bargain. I'm too lazy to invest energy in capturing the lower-tier market. Our southern and northern subsidiaries all offer fixed prices to first-tier dealers, implementing a unified pricing strategy."

Old Man Lin seemed to be lost in thought, and quickly asked, "Mr. Xu, can you tell us the truth? How much does this soap cost?"

"The cost of what I make can be controlled at around 20 wen. But if we set up a production line, strictly control the price of raw materials, and manage the personnel, I think we can reduce it to 10 to 15 wen per bar of soap."

"Fifteen cents?!" Old Man Lin and Old Lady Luo looked at each other in shock.

Nowadays, the price of soap in the market has been hyped up to three taels of silver per piece, but the cost is only a dozen cents?

If this could be mass-produced, the profit would be enormous.

This time, the two of them finally put aside their contempt and began to concentrate hard to listen carefully to every word Xu Qingying said.

"But," Xu Qingying paused, "I know the current price of soap is high, and you think there's a huge profit to be made. However, the spending power of wealthy people is limited. Instead of targeting the wealthy in the Great Zhou Dynasty, it would be better to make this soap affordable for all the common people in the Great Zhou Dynasty. Only then can sales of soap be greatly increased."

Mrs. Luo immediately followed up with, "Of course, but the price of this soap must be adjusted down."

Old Man Lin did a rough calculation: "The Great Zhou Dynasty currently has a population of nearly tens of millions. If we use the lowest estimate, that is, ten people per household, that would be 10 million."

"Soap is a daily necessity. A family of five will use up a bar of soap in a month at most. So we shouldn't set the price too high. We need to make soap quickly accessible to ordinary people!"

At this point, Old Man Lin seemed to finally not dare to look down on Xu Qingying, who was so young but had such a sharp eye. He pondered for a moment, "According to Young Master Xu's idea, we should develop first-tier distributors. The first-tier distributors will pick up the goods and then sell them themselves. How do we control the price?"

"We go by volume, and the first-tier distributors set the price. If the cost of soap, including labor, space, and raw materials, is finally calculated at 15 wen, then we'll set the ex-factory price at 20 wen."

Mrs. Luo said quickly, "Isn't twenty cents too little?"

"Quite a lot!" Old Man Lin's eyes sparkled, having quickly grasped Xu Qingying's point. "Don't forget, Young Master Xu just said our factory relies on volume. If we have a monthly volume of one million, and the interest on a bar of soap is five cents, that would be a net profit of five thousand taels."

Xu Qingying nodded, glancing in appreciation at Old Man Lin's quick understanding of the situation. "What's more, since we don't get involved in the sales, we don't have to bear any costs for transportation, stores, or manpower. These costs will all be passed on to the first-tier distributors. Our factory price is fixed, and they can mark it up based on market conditions. How much they earn is up to them."

The more Old Man Lin thought about it, the more he felt that this method was extremely ingenious.

They are only responsible for production, so the investment is fixed, and the sales channels have already been opened up, so they don’t need to train people to find business.

It's just like what Mr. Xu said, don't go looking for business yourself, let the business come to you!

Seeing Old Man Lin's inscrutable expression, Madam Luo felt her mind was a bit lost. She quickly asked, "I think I understand what Young Master Xu means. We're only responsible for making soap, and the rest will be sold by our first-tier distributors. They can decide how much to sell, but our price is fixed. So, why can't we also sell to retail customers? What if they come to us? Even a penny is money. How can we refuse a business that comes to us?"

"If you don't turn away retail investors, how can you make the delivery fees paid by large investors feel worthwhile? If everyone can come and take delivery, why should large investors pay this fee?"

Old Man Lin stroked his beard and quickly sorted out Xu Qingying's thoughts in his mind.

Finally, I have to sigh that this young Master Xu is really not simple. He can actually come up with a method that everyone thinks is profitable.

For them, this is a foolproof method.

As long as they have the soap recipe, they have nothing to worry about. Even if all the first-level distributors disappear, they can still train their own people.

But now these people all have ready-made sales channels. If they are asked to pay to buy the soap, the family cannot afford it. So, no one would be unhappy if they paid a few thousand taels and started the soap business together, right?

After figuring this out, Old Man Lin finally took a closer look at Xu Qingying.

This kid looks like he did back then!

After listening to Xu Qingying's explanation, Mrs. Luo suddenly understood and said, "I understand. This sounds like it will make more money than buying and selling soap myself."

Old Man Lin snorted disdainfully, "Luo Cuiping, you're really getting old and confused. It's not just about making more money, it's a huge profit. You can make soap yourself for a few dollars, buy a piece of land, hire a few dozen workers, and you can easily make it. But if you sell it yourself, you have to rent a shop, hire a manager, and find people to transport it all over the country. All the costs are included!"

"But..." Old Man Luo looked at Xu Qingying again, "What should we do with the money they paid?"

Very good, now we get to the point.

"They all apply to the head office for the right to pick up the goods. That's me, since I won't be able to show up in person anymore, so all this will be handled by Second Miss Qi. First-tier distributors pay their fees to Second Miss Qi, who will then sign and seal the receipts. With these receipts, first-tier distributors can pick up the goods at either of our northern or southern subsidiaries. As for the money they pay, it will be temporarily kept by Second Miss Qi pending year-end settlement. I'll have someone audit the accounts at year-end. If the accounts are clear and there's no suspicion of fraud, the money will be divided equally among the three of us. If anyone falsifies the accounts, sorry, they won't get the fee for the right to pick up the goods."

Seeing the two men remain silent, Xu Qingying naturally guessed that they were not very happy with this plan, so she continued, "I'm sorry, if I don't do this, I won't be able to check and balance you. If you work together to falsify the accounts and deceive me, then I won't be able to protect my own interests. We are all businessmen, so please be more tolerant."

Old Man Lin was the one who figured it out. He waved his hand and said, "I have no objection. I trust Young Master Xu anyway. It's not like they won't pay her, they're just holding it back until the end of the year. All the profits from the soap sales are in our hands. Are you afraid she'll run away?"

"If that's the case, then I have no objection." Old Madam Luo agreed, but she was a little anxious as she thought of something else. "But Young Master Xu just mentioned the two branches in the north and south. Who is in the south and who is in the north?"

Xingyuan Prefecture is located in the south, so Mrs. Luo naturally hopes to build a factory in the south. After all, she is familiar with the people and the place, and it is convenient to do anything under her nose.

"I've already said that the one who bids the highest will be given a preference." Xu Qingying looked at the confident Old Man Lin and said with a smile, "Boss Lin's bid is higher, so he can choose to build the factory in the south or north first."

"No!" Madam Luo stood up immediately, a little excited. "I can raise the price. Didn't he offer 1,200 taels per share? Then I'll offer 1,300 taels!"

Nonsense, there is a huge difference in building factories in the north and south.

Not to mention that there was still a war in the north and there were many refugees, but just being far away from the place he was familiar with, his connections, resources, and relationships with local officials all had to be re-managed.

Calculated this way, it's probably many times higher than the final bid.

Old Man Lin sneered, "Luo Cuiping, don't regret your move. This is not the place for an old woman like you to play dirty!"

Seeing the two about to quarrel, Miss Qi Er quickly grabbed Madam Luo and said softly, "Madam Luo, the matter is done. The rules have been set before, and it's not easy to change them. The north is not bad either. Your property is all in the south. Go to the north to test the waters. Wouldn't that mean your property is spread across the country?"

Xu Qingying walked over to Madam Luo and whispered to her, "Madam Luo, risks and opportunities coexist. The situation in the north is not good, but there is one huge advantage, and that is the border with the Chen Dynasty."

Xu Qingying stopped there.

Mrs. Luo's eyes lit up instantly!

Yes, there is also the Chen Dynasty, where the population is no less than that of the Zhou Dynasty. If we can use soap as a breakthrough point, we can open up the trade route of the Chen Dynasty.

Mrs. Luo rolled her eyes, afraid that Old Man Lin would notice something. She immediately pursed her lips, still pretending to be angry. "Alright, in that case, I'll give you, Young Master Xu, this face."

Old Man Luo narrowed his eyes, somewhat puzzled as to why Old Lady Luo's expression suddenly changed.

He felt a little uneasy in his heart, and looked at Xu Qingying again, but saw that the person was smiling and he couldn't tell anything.

Boy, this guy is hiding too well.

Xu Qingying finally raised her voice and asked, "In that case, do the two parties have any objections to this cooperation?"

The two decided, "No."

"Okay, let's take a look at the contract."

Xu Qingying clapped her hands, and Xu Huiming walked in holding two thick stacks of papers. Old Man Lin took a glance and stood up in shock, stunned, "Is this a contract?"

Madam Luo also asked, "So thick?"

Xu Qingying smiled and said, "I have a strong sense of law, so the contract is a bit thick. You two may want to take a look at it first. We can discuss any questions later."

Isn't this just a little thick?

It's almost as long as a book.

The two of them had been doing business for most of their lives, and the contracts they usually came across were only about ten pages long, but Mr. Xu's contract was dozens of pages long!

Old Man Lin flipped through it and was deeply shocked. He no longer had the contempt he had at the beginning.

He had only one feeling in his heart: Isn't this contract too detailed?

From the equity ratio of the three persons, definitions of terms, rights and obligations to the distribution method, deadline, and compensation for breach of contract, everything is written clearly!

The more Old Man Lin read, the more his back soaked with sweat. He was now somewhat impressed by the young man. He pointed at one of the notes and said, "Young Master Xu, what does this mean? All three parties involved in the partnership have a confidentiality obligation. If soap appears on the market that isn't made by either of the North or South subsidiaries, both subsidiaries must cooperate with the investigation and compensate Party A."

"This rule is designed to restrict you from developing production lines outside of our company. For example, if Boss Lin decides the soap business is lucrative and wants to run it on his own, he could start making and selling soap outside without telling us. This would severely infringe upon the rights of the other two of us. If we discover such behavior, we have the right to demand substantial compensation from you."

Mrs. Luo glared at Old Man Lin meaningfully and said with a smile, "This is a good rule. It will prevent any of us from betraying our partners out of greed for money."

Old Man Lin ignored Old Lady Luo, holding up the contract and squinting his eyes to read it carefully under the light. The contents of the contract were really detailed. Look at the words used, such as "including but not limited to", "right to pursue liability", "amount of compensation within a time limit", and "final right of interpretation". Each and every item was stipulated so clearly that there was no room for the judge's discretion.

Old Man Lin has thought more deeply.

I must study this contract carefully when I get home. It will be safer if all business contracts at home are replaced with this version.

"If everyone is okay with this, please place your handprints along the edges." Xu Qingying sent for ink and slightly staggered the edges of the contract. "This way, every page will have a handprint, preventing anyone from replacing the contents of the contract."

Old Man Lin was shocked and astonished. "This is a good idea. We don't have to worry about someone stealing the contents."