In June 1977, the early morning air on Hong Kong Island carried the unique humidity and sultry heat of the harbor.
As soon as the newsstands on the street were set up, newspapers of all colors flooded into the streets and alleys like a tide.
Among them, the scarlet bold front-page headline of the Asia Daily was like a red-hot iron, suddenly burning the eyes of all those who cared about the situation in the Hong Kong newspaper industry.
What's Jin Yong's intention in poaching? Kobayashi Tenmo bluntly suggests 10% of Ming Pao's shares could be exchanged for Huang Yi!
The red words on the white paper are so sharp that they are blinding.
The content directly points to the bold statement made by Jin Yong a few days ago - no matter how much remuneration the Asia Times gives Huang Yi, Ming Pao will pay at least double.
The writing style is full of humorous flavor that imitates Jin Yong's tone yesterday, but the core content is like an ice-hardened dagger, stabbing Jin Yong's heart.
The article bluntly points out that what the author Huang Yi enjoys from the Asia Daily is not just royalties, but actual shares in the newspaper, accounting for no less than 20%.
If you want to let Huang Yi leave and go to Ming Pao to continue "A Step into the Past", that's fine!
There was only one condition - the highest manifestation of Jin Yong's fulfillment of his "double" promise: to give up 10% of the shares of Ming Pao.
Moreover, these shares were not given to the Asia Daily newspaper or to an intermediary, but were directly transferred to Huang Yi himself.
The article is full of irony and confidence, as if it has calculated the opponent's weakness.
"This is what you said yourself. No matter what kind of treatment we give Mr. Huang, you will give him double it... Now we are making it clear that Mr. Huang's treatment is not only in terms of remuneration, but also in terms of equity. The double of your Ming Pao salary can only be matched by equity."
Every sentence is like a needle, piercing Jin Yong's high-spirited "substantial salary to recruit talents" and making it look pale and reckless in an instant.
Meanwhile, the headline on the front page of Ming Pao that day was equally eye-catching. The headline read: "Ming Pao is hiring the talented Huang Yi with a generous salary. There is no upper limit on the remuneration for the manuscript of 'A Step into the Past'!"
The proclamation for seeking talents, signed by Jin Yong himself, was passionate and powerful, emphasizing his determination to obtain Huang Yi and his "A Step into the Past".
The article even specifically pointed out that this poaching was fully funded by the wealthy Huo Zhenting, the eldest son of Huo.
"No matter how huge the remuneration is, it is not a problem", the words reveal an unquestionable sense of wealth and determination to win.
Causeway Bay, the top floor of the Ming Pao editorial building.
The huge floor-to-ceiling windows reflect the early morning light of Victoria Harbour, but the open space does not bring any open mind.
Louis Cha and editor-in-chief Wang Yang, each holding the Asia Times and Ming Pao, which still smelled of ink, looked at each other in bewilderment.
Louis Cha's usually gentle and refined face now looked like a mixture of mixed emotions.
He first subconsciously glanced at his ambitious call for talent, then looked at the precise and sharp counterattack in the Asia Daily. The corners of his mouth seemed to want to pull up a self-deprecating smile, but it was frozen in an awkward and stiff arc.
An indescribable feeling surged up from my stomach, as if I had really swallowed a fly. I felt nauseous and stuffy, but I didn't know how to deal with it.
Wang Yang stood aside with a grim expression on his face.
The cigarette in his hand was half burned, with the ash hanging long and almost falling without him noticing.
His heart was churning, a mixture of regret, shock and a hint of anger at being fooled.
Yesterday they were still applauding the tactic of "paying a large sum of money to recruit talents", believing that with the financial resources of the Huo family and the background of Ming Pao, offering the condition of "double remuneration" was an invincible strategy.
It can not only dig up the cash cow Huang Yi, but also deal a heavy blow to its arch-rival Asia Daily.
Who could have expected that the situation would change so suddenly overnight.
That Kobayashi Tenmo, that young man stirring up trouble in Hong Kong as a Japanese-Chinese, actually resorted to such an unbelievable tactic—directly giving newspaper shares to a serial novelist?!
"insidious!
Totally insidious and cunning!"
Louis Cha slammed two newspapers onto the large mahogany table, making a dull sound.
He angrily pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose, his chest heaving slightly, his tone filled with unacceptable and absurd feelings, "Ayang, listen to this, what kind of talk is this!
Is there any respectable newspaper that would give shares to its serial writers?
This is sheer nonsense and a violation of industry rules!"
Wang Yang took a deep breath of cigarette, letting the spicy smoke swirl around in his lungs before slowly exhaling: "Master Cha, it is indeed bizarre.
Huang Yi holds no less than 20% of the shares in Asia Daily... This is simply shocking.
Xiao Lin Tianwang He...isn't he a pure businessman?
Businessmen are driven by profit. Isn't this a move that undermines the foundation of the newspaper, handing the lifeblood of the newspaper over to others?
He was thinking rapidly in his mind, trying to find the logical loopholes.
“Is this news true or false?
Could it be that Asia Times teamed up with Huang Yi to release a smokescreen to counter our poaching?
Deliberately set such harsh conditions that we would never agree to?"
Louis Cha was silent for a few seconds and paced around the office.
The clamor of the newsstand downstairs could be heard faintly outside the window, like a mockery of his current predicament.
He forced himself to calm down, and the shrewd businessman in him began to wrestle with his anger.
He recalled Kobayashi Tenmo's previous unexpected moves: acquiring a dying newspaper, founding the up-and-coming "Dragon Jump," and even vying with Mr. Huo for favor, sparking a storm of public opinion to raise the profile of himself and his industry...
Everything he did was initially considered heresy, or even suicidal, but in the end, it seemed that everything was successful under the control of that kid, or at least he was able to gain a foothold.
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