"Hey, Shujuan, is this your fellow villager? Someone in our building saw him a couple of days ago and said he's really good-looking? Like...like those movie actors. Like that...Tang Guoqiang!"
"What good is being good-looking? This is a major economics class! Look, even Professor Liu is here, sitting in the back! I've also heard that Professor Liu has always been very dissatisfied with this Lin Huowang. He's not here to listen to the lecture today, he's really here to cause trouble. I think Lin Huowang is in big trouble today!"
Upon hearing this, Qian Shujuan quickly turned around and saw Professor Liu, who was known for his strictness and rigor, sitting in the last row with a stern face. He was holding a notebook in his hand, looking ready to find fault at any moment.
"It's over..."
Seeing this, Qian Shujuan's heart skipped a beat. "I hope Lin Huowang doesn't really mess things up..."
Just then, the school bell rang.
The classroom door was pushed open, and a young man dressed in a simple gray cotton-padded jacket walked in very casually.
He didn't bring any lecture notes; he simply walked behind the podium and picked up a piece of chalk.
Qian Shujuan's eyes lit up immediately; it really was Lin Huowang.
Lin Huowang walked up to the podium, his gaze sweeping over the hundreds of pairs of eyes below the stage, eyes that were full of curiosity, scrutiny, and even suspicion.
Lin Huowang smiled slightly at first, but then, contrary to the usual practice, he did not introduce himself or open his textbook or lecture notes.
He immediately turned around and quickly wrote two large characters on the blackboard:
"Pricing".
Then, he turned around, looked at the audience, and asked with a smile:
"Classmates, can anyone here tell me how much a domestically produced 'Red Lantern' brand radio costs?"
Someone in the audience immediately raised their hand and answered, "Report! With the industrial coupons, it's about 120 yuan!"
"very good."
Lin Huowang nodded in satisfaction and then asked, "Can anyone tell me how much a radio with the same functions should cost if we want to sell it in the United States?"
"this……"
Most of the people in the audience had just been admitted to university, and none of them had ever been abroad.
My limited knowledge of foreign countries came from the foreign newspapers that were allowed to be read in the library.
So... a buzz of noise immediately filled the room. Some people said $50, others said $100, everyone was just guessing!
However, it must be said that Lin Huowang's two questions immediately sparked the interest and discussion among the students who came to listen to the lecture.
At this moment, Professor Liu in the back row snorted coldly, stood up, and said:
"Lin Huowang! Economics is all about 'cost determining value'! No matter where it's sold, its production cost and socially necessary labor time are fixed! The price should naturally fluctuate around this value! Yet you ask such a simple question, it's just attention-seeking! Pretending to know what you don't!"
Professor Liu couldn't hold back and started criticizing, and the entire room immediately fell silent.
Everyone quickly shrank back, thinking that this was bad; Lin Huowang hadn't even started the formal lecture before being rebuked by the professor.
However, Lin Huowang was not intimidated by Professor Liu's opening remarks.
He glanced at Professor Liu, then calmly shook his head and said:
"Teacher, the theories you just mentioned are correct in the books. But in today's international market, in the more complex actual business operations, they are not so accurate."
"What? You dare say I'm wrong?"
Professor Liu was immediately so angry that his face turned red. What he had just said was standard Western economics, economic laws that Western countries had summarized over many years.
Now, Lin Huowang, a mere newcomer, has asserted that it's not that accurate, which is practically challenging his knowledge system.
Facts speak louder than words.
Lin Huowang immediately picked up the chalk and smoothly drew a long curve on the blackboard, which became known as the "smile curve" in later generations!
"In the international division of labor in the industrial chain, the manufacturing link, which is our current factory, is at the bottom of the curve and has the thinnest profit margin."
"And these two ends, one is research and development and patents, and the other is brand and channels, both of which have the highest profit margins."
Lin Huowang pointed to the curve, and his words immediately drew everyone's attention.
After all, in China at that time, no one understood or was familiar with terms like "R&D and patents" or "brands and channels."
"Teacher, if we really only price our products based on cost, then we will only ever earn a meager processing fee. No matter how many products we export, we will always be working for foreigners!"
"but!"
At this point, Lin Huowang slammed his hand on the blackboard and said in a very loud voice:
"If we can control the channels! Control the brand! Control the narrative!"
"So, even if a radio only costs $20 to make, as long as it has our established brand and is placed in our stores, I dare to sell it for $50! And those foreigners will have to line up obediently to buy it!"
"This is called brand premium! This is called supply chain hegemony!"
...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
