Chapter 435 South Africa is the starting point: Let's play a game of □□
From January to February, for more than 20 days, Nemtsov followed Wang Xiao around, inspecting more than 50 factories. He filled three notebooks with his work and lost weight—well, not really.
With the Lunar New Year approaching, every household in the countryside is preparing for the holiday. Nemtsov, however, is quite accustomed to the tastes of the Yangtze River Delta region. He eats everything from sausages and rice cakes to pig's head jelly without hesitation, enjoying it immensely. Even though he's constantly on the go, his face has become noticeably rounder.
I'm demonstrating through my own actions that anyone who doesn't control their diet will gain weight.
He didn't stop until the 28th of the twelfth lunar month. He even followed Wang Xiao to Jiangzhimen, where he discovered something new and interesting: online shopping.
Don't get me wrong, although Nemtsov has never tried online shopping himself, he is certainly not ignorant of what online shopping is.
Amazon and eBay were already established in 1995. Even if Nemtsov had never eaten pork, he'd at least seen pigs run.
What surprised him was that the commercial city actually had online shopping?
Online shopping is high-tech and a product of the electronic information age.
But what exactly is the trade city? It's a small commodities market, a Moscow container market in another sense.
Who are the people doing business here? They are all merchants coming and going.
They and e-commerce high technology are from completely different worlds.
If we had to use Chinese idioms to make a comparison, one would be "refined and elegant" and the other would be "common and uncommon."
There is no high or low, noble or base; they are simply two different worlds.
Wang Xiao couldn't read minds, so she naturally couldn't guess what he was thinking. She simply explained, "This isn't real online shopping; it's more like a simulated online shopping experience."
Why do I say that? Because in mainland China in 1997, online payment transactions were simply not possible.
Therefore, the online malls of the three commercial centers mainly provide browsing functions, allowing users to view product advertisements, compare prices, and then place an order.
Where is this order placed? In two places.
For example, if you are in Jiangzhimen and you see something you like in the Shanghai electronics market, and you complete the order process, the order will be split into two parts: one part will fly to the Jiangzhimen Information Shopping and Trading Center, and the other part will fly to the electronics market.
The latter will be shipped to the warehousing center near Jiangzhimen. After you have inspected the goods and are satisfied, you will pay at the information shopping center and then pick up the goods with the receipt.
As for the payments made by the merchants, the information shopping center will then transfer the funds to the sellers in the Shanghai Electronics Market.
Isn't this process quite complicated? But in 1997, it was already considered a very convenient way to trade.
It successfully saved the resellers the time, transportation costs, and accommodation expenses they would have spent traveling between the three markets.
It also allows everyone to judge whether a product is popular or not based on online sales volume in the first instance.
Therefore, merchants who frequently purchase goods from trade cities or electronics markets have a habit: the first thing they do upon arrival is to browse online stores, select goods from other locations, and then visit physical stores.
In this way, by the time you've finished shopping at the physical stores and placed your order, the online purchases will have almost arrived, and then you can arrange for them to be shipped together.
Buyers save time, effort, and money, so it's naturally welcome.
The sellers have expanded their sales channels and saved time on offline bargaining. What used to require three stalls to achieve full volume can now be done with just one stall, earning them more money, so of course they are happy.
For the commercial cities in the three locations, the unified logistics method of online transactions has greatly increased turnover on the one hand, and the unified scheduling of shipments can significantly improve logistics efficiency and effectively alleviate the contradiction of insufficient flights between the three locations on the other hand.
Of course it's a good thing.
Nemtsov listened with admiration, giving Wang Xiao a thumbs up: "Miss Wang, no wonder you can make money."
Even with objective limitations, her reaction was not to give up directly, but to find a way to use human replacements to keep the process going.
If Russian industry possessed this kind of spirit, courage, and execution, then industry would not have shrunk so drastically.
No one can ever truly empathize with another's experience; at least for now, Wang Xiao wouldn't think about Russia's industry.
Her idea was to use this method to increase the volume of online shopping and achieve scale.
This would give her the confidence to negotiate with the authorities and get them to develop digital currency to facilitate genuine electronic transactions.
Yes, yes, she could indeed create something similar to Alipay herself.
As a time traveler, wouldn't she know how to simply copy someone else's homework?
But the problem is that she feels it's unnecessary. Why should she do it herself when the government can handle it?
Moreover, once you get involved with certain things, you'll be drawn into a huge vortex, and you might even be swept along, completely unable to stick to your own direction.
Wang Xiao didn't want to take that risk. She was adventurous, but not willing to take every risk.
She asked Nemtsov, "Do you want to go to Shanghai?"
The Yangtze River Delta does include Shanghai, but the township enterprises whose influence extends from Shanghai are not located in Shanghai itself, so they haven't visited any factories in Shanghai during this period.
Wang Xiao didn't plan to visit any factories in Shanghai; she wanted to browse the electronics market that had just opened last year and take care of some other things.
Nemtsov nodded; he was going.
When people talk about China's reform and opening up, the first thing that comes to mind is Shenzhen, and Shenzhen is also the place they know the most about.
He believes that the current Chinese government's large-scale development of Pudong will definitely not be the same model as Shenzhen in the 1980s.
Otherwise, since both places are port cities, if one simply copies the other, wouldn't that be like fighting with both hands?
He even joked with himself, "I'm going; country bumpkins want to go to the city."
"The countryman" is how Nemtsov refers to himself. He also wrote an autobiographical novel called "The Countryman," which sounds very down-to-earth.
However, Wang Xiao felt that his self-proclaimed status as a countryman was less an affirmation of his peasant identity and more a rebellious spirit—a rebellious spirit that separated him from the old bureaucratic group.
She smiled and nodded, then joked, "I want Chen Huansheng to come to the city too."
Nemtsov paused for a moment. He knew Chen Huansheng. When he went to inspect the township enterprises, the village happened to be showing a movie, which was "Chen Huansheng Goes to Town". He found it very interesting.
But he didn't understand why Wang Xiao would compare herself to Chen Huansheng.
Wang Xiao laughed and joked, "Because in Shanghai, all people from other places are considered country bumpkins."
Even foreigners are just country bumpkins.
Nemtsov listened in astonishment, his curiosity growing stronger; he really wanted to see the amazing Shanghai for himself.
When Wang Xiao heard the word "amazing," he laughed even harder.
Isn't it amazing? Only Shanghai deserves the title of "Magic City".
Deputy Director Xie had been running around with them for so long that his feet were calloused, and he couldn't wait to go home for the New Year.
Hearing that they were going to Shanghai, he happily saw them off at the airport and waved goodbye.
A single flight took less than an hour to get the person to Shanghai.
Upon entering the electronics market, Nemtsov's first thought was, "When did Africa come to Shanghai?"
There were many Black people wandering around, carrying large and small bags in and out; about one-third to half of them were Black.
Wang Xiao explained, "They originally came from Chungking Mansions in Hong Kong."
It was Tang Yicheng who introduced them to him when he went to Hong Kong to invest in land.
Later, word spread, and one person led another, like a snowball rolling downhill, and there were more and more of them.
Nemtsov sighed. The Bible is right: For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.
It will always get better and worse.
Once you have that starting point, you can go all the way.
Wang Xiao once again acted as the Goddess of Wealth, distributing red envelopes to the employees before handing Nemtsov over to Zhang Junfei, the person in charge of the Shanghai market, to properly entertain the governor of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.
As for herself, she needs to complete the project's acceptance process before the end of the year.
What project? E-commerce project.
What e-commerce project? A shopping website that will soon be launched in South Africa.
That's right, Wang Xiao is preparing to launch an e-commerce platform in South Africa.
As we all know, the development of online shopping depends on a well-developed logistics industry.
Whether logistics can flourish depends on two fundamental conditions: transportation and manpower.
Convenient transportation and inexpensive human resources are combined to build a robust logistics network, thereby reducing the cost of online shopping and making it a convenient and affordable way to shop.
But things often have two sides.
In 1997, a country with well-developed transportation infrastructure, including highways and railways, was undoubtedly a wealthy country. Only such countries could afford to invest heavily in infrastructure development.
At the same time, labor costs are high in wealthy countries, and the cost of installing air conditioning is almost as high as the cost of buying an air conditioner.
The two have a symbiotic relationship.
This makes it difficult for online shopping to become the true mainstream in the shopping world.
But there are always exceptions, and in this symbiotic relationship, the exception is South Africa.
South Africa boasts a well-developed road network and banking system, yet its labor costs are relatively low compared to developed capitalist countries.
In South Africa, even the highest-income white population earns an average monthly income of only a few hundred US dollars.
This situation provided Wang Xiao with the objective basis to do e-commerce in the local area.
Why did she insist on doing e-commerce in South Africa? Was it for an experiment?
Not entirely.
The catalyst that prompted her to put online shopping platforms on her agenda was her acquisition of a large number of Taiwanese-funded enterprises in South Africa.
Most of these companies are engaged in processing supplied materials, and the most important lifeline for these companies is their sales channels.
Buying someone's factory doesn't mean you'll get their customers.
That's someone else's lifeline, the foundation for their comeback, so they'll definitely hold onto it tightly.
Even in some factories, the original owners had no choice but to cooperate with Wang Xiao and share customers in order to fulfill the orders they had already secured and to prevent damaging their reputation.
However, most Taiwanese companies in South Africa lost their owners and customers, and rebuilding their export networks takes time.
But the factory still needs to keep operating; it can't be shut down because of this. So many workers need to eat, and not paying them even a day's wages could cause riots.
The Taiwanese authorities are still eyeing the situation covetously. They are unwilling to end their "diplomatic" relations with the South African government and have been trying to find loopholes to make a comeback.
If the Taiwanese companies that Wang Xiao takes over can't hold on and go bankrupt or shut down, it will directly evolve from an economic activity into a political event, causing a huge uproar in South Africa.
Of course, Wang Xiao couldn't just stand by and watch this happen; she had to save herself.
What are the self-rescue channels? Exporting to the domestic market.
If they can't sell to Europe and America, they sell to South Africa and neighboring African countries.
The sales channel she chose was online shopping.
Last December, she tasked domestic computer companies with building online shopping platforms as quickly as possible.
As for when Wuzhou Group started its computer company? It started in 1995. At that time, it was established to make computer games, similar to "JX Online". In fact, they are indeed working on it, and it is almost completed now.
But once the big boss assigned a task, everyone could forget about taking a vacation and had to get the shopping website up and running first.
Fortunately, although there are no shopping websites in China at present, Amazon and eBay are ready-made examples, so the programmers are not completely clueless and have no idea where to start.
They weren't slow; they were working incredibly hard to get the job done before Chinese New Year's Eve, so the boss could see their true abilities.
The programmers were thrilled, feeling that their product was no worse than Amazon's or eBay's.
As for how much content they referenced from those two websites? That's another question, boss, please don't ask.
Wang Xiao didn't plan to ask; she didn't understand programming. She had learned C in college, but that was solely to obtain a Level 3 Computer Certificate and maintain her image as a top student.
In fact, she completely forgot all of that content after the exam.
Besides, she has already been in this world for seven years.
Wang Xiao's method of finding fault is to stand in the shoes of both the seller and the customer to find points of dissatisfaction.
Before she could even get started, the moment she saw the online shopping interface, her vision went black, and she immediately shouted, "No, no, no, this won't do. The interface has to be changed!"
The veins on her forehead were throbbing. She thought the graphic designers had great taste when making martial arts games, so why couldn't she get the point when making websites?
"Didn't I tell you? South Africa is not the African tribe you imagine, and it should be based on the aesthetics of white South Africans."
However, the person in charge of the computer company had a typical programmer's mindset, and was particularly rigid and inflexible.
He solemnly emphasized: "We have checked the data. The majority of the population in South Africa is black, and we should respect their ethnic customs and aesthetic preferences."
Where is the computer company located? It just found two offices in the electronics market, which together are less than 150 square meters.
So, the people coming and going in the computer company came into contact with a lot of Black people, and they clearly understood that Black and White aesthetics are completely different.
They need to respect customers, so they can't just do whatever the boss says.
Wang Xiao's temper flared up instantly: "There are many black people in South Africa, but have you considered who the main target audience of this shopping platform is? It's white people! White people in South Africa! Disillusioned white middle class! Poor white people in South Africa!"
Her gaze was like a knife, piercing the group of programmers. "Don't you do any market research before you do the design? Yes, you don't have time to do it. So I've already done this work for you. You haven't even been to South Africa, so what gives you the right to presumptuously deny the market research results I gave you?"
The once cheerful office suddenly turned bitterly cold, as if the air conditioner was blowing not warm air, but the chill of the entire twelfth lunar month.
The computer company manager's face flushed red, and he didn't know how to explain for a moment.
But the furious boss showed no sign of letting them off the hook, continuing to berate them: "Don't you know how serious apartheid was in South Africa? Don't you know how profound its aftereffects are? And don't you know that even now, no black person goes into a large store in South Africa to buy anything, and white people basically don't shop in small commodity markets either, no matter how good or cheap the latter is?"
"It's an invisible wall, standing in every corner of South Africa, where their skin color determines their social circle."
"Going to the mall is a matter of course for white people in South Africa, and even the only option."
"During the apartheid era, ordinary white South Africans had high incomes and lived comfortably, so they could afford the goods imported from Europe and America in department stores."
"Can you imagine? A regular thermos, the cheapest kind, can sell for $40 in a South African shopping mall."
"But with the loss of the protection of apartheid, the income of white people in South Africa has plummeted, and a large number of white people have lost their jobs. They have become a fallen middle class and have to cut back on food and clothing and downgrade their consumption to fight against their increasingly impoverished lives."
"They can't just go to the small commodities market to buy things; that's not where they should be, and they wouldn't dare."
"President Mandela did indeed call for the building of a rainbow bridge between all races in South Africa, so that everyone could live together in peace."
"But how can the deep-seated hatred created by years of racial segregation be so easily eliminated? Small commodity markets are assumed to be a world of Black people. What if a down-on-his-luck white person goes in and gets retaliated against?"
"The more insecure a person is, the less likely they are to take such a risk."
"Moreover, in their eyes, the things sold in the small commodity market are all cheap and inferior products, and should not be their choice."
"Going left won't work, going right won't work either, they have to find a third way."
"What you have to do is bring the third way to their feet."
Wang Xiao's face darkened. "I respect technology, and I ask you to respect the market and the orders. If you have any questions about my requirements, you can ask directly instead of making decisions on your own presumptuously."
Put away your arrogance!
This is a common problem in the so-called high-tech industry: people think they know everything, that customers know nothing, and that customers must listen to everything they say.
They scoffed at the customers' demands.
You don't know what you want, but I do.
So you're just paying money to be treated badly? Don't forget, the customer is always king.
Your technology isn't that great either. If this place doesn't work, customers with money in their pockets can easily switch to the next one.
The computer company manager was so scolded that he couldn't even lift his head, wishing he could transform into Tu Xingsun and simply disappear into the earth.
One graphic designer cautiously raised her hand and boldly asked, "So, don't the black people in South Africa need a third way? I...I...I read in the information that some black people in South Africa are starting to get rich. I'm thinking, maybe they also don't want to shop at small commodity markets anymore, and their consumption level is rising..."
Whether it was due to nervousness or a lack of language skills, the graphic designer suddenly couldn't continue speaking.
Wang Xiao responded to the graphic designer's question quite amiably: "You mean that these newly wealthy Black people could also become customers of online shopping platforms, right?"
The graphic designer immediately nodded, like a chick pecking at rice.
Wang Xiao nodded in agreement: "That's certainly very possible. Online shopping itself has barriers to entry; only people who own computers at home can become online shoppers. In this sense, online shopping in South Africa is seen as a fashionable option. The newly wealthy Black population is indeed very likely to become the target customer group for online shopping."
The computer company executive's expression softened; he twitched his facial muscles, said nothing, yet said everything.
Wang Xiao remained unfazed: "But even if they become online shoppers, the website interface must still be designed for white people's aesthetics. Because the first thing white people in South Africa do after they get rich is to quickly move away from their original black communities, buy houses in white-populated areas, and integrate into white community life. That's the life of the upper class in their eyes."
This is the prevailing rule in South Africa, or rather, in most parts of the world.
Compared to race, class is more likely to erect invisible walls among people who were originally the same.
Wang Xiao glanced at the clock on the wall and nodded: "Start making changes now. I want to see your proposal today. South Africa doesn't celebrate the Spring Festival, and business there is still booming."
Although summer is almost over, autumn in South Africa is just as beautiful.
Moreover, for these Nordic countries, the long winter is only halfway over, and the bright sunshine of South Africa still has a fatal attraction.
"Oh, right," Wang Xiao added, "Don't discard this version of the interface. Use it as the interface for a sub-channel, and sell South African specialties on it later."
She was too lazy to let the computer company people figure it out themselves, so she explained it directly: "The main shopping group for this sub-channel is tourists visiting South Africa, mainly from developed capitalist countries. They are more interested in South African specialties, the more primitive and vibrant they are, the more interested they are."
Wang Xiaode admitted that she hadn't originally planned to do this; she created the shopping website simply to sell her own products.
She only remembered it after she saw the shopping website's interface and finished getting angry. Since she had already done it, she figured she might as well not waste it.
It's such a waste that someone spent so much time and effort designing it, only to have it completely ruined. It would be better to reuse it.
Moreover, selling South African specialties online increases the international influence of South African culture and boosts income for the Black community. This also greatly benefits the website's chances of gaining support from the South African government.
Yes, we must leverage culture and focus on promoting people's livelihoods and the economy.
Thinking of this, Wang Xiao felt much better, and even started to offer carrots after the big stick: "I have a quick temper, which is why I offended you. Please don't be angry. I'm not personal, I'm just dealing with the issue. Let's just let this matter go. As long as the work you submit later is good, that's fine."
The company manager quickly backed down, saying, "Not at all, boss. I was presumptuous and my thinking was too shallow."
Wang Xiao always gives face when others do, and said with a smile, "This is pointing it out to me, saying that I didn't do a good job and should have taken everyone to South Africa for a proper tour."
The rest of the company started teasing: "Yeah, boss, when are you taking us to South Africa for team building?"
Wang Xiao laughed and said, "Anytime is fine. Your company can arrange it itself. I'll put in a good word with General Manager Zhang, and I'll sign off on things without any problem. Do a good job! I'm counting on you guys to make history."
The atmosphere in the company became lively again, and a group of people laughed and continued to bury themselves in their work.
The boss said it's due today, so if they can't come up with a plan today, they really won't be able to leave work.
Wang Xiao didn't act as a supervisor either—she didn't understand anything, so what was the point of supervising?
She turned and left the company gate, only to bump into an acquaintance. She immediately smiled and said, "Wow! Our CEO Tang is getting more and more impressive. What, are you back for the New Year?"
When Tang Yicheng saw Wang Xiao, his expression was incredibly subtle for a moment.
Good heavens, Mr. Ivanov has become the Deputy Prime Minister?!
The person who was toasting you last year has now joined the leadership of a country, and a large one at that. This doesn't sound like a martial arts comeback story anymore; it sounds like a fantasy tale.
So now, facing the trader, he really didn't know what kind of expression to wear.
So he could only joke, "Boss, you're not planning to make me the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, are you?"
Seriously, with such a brilliant example as Mr. Ivanov right in front of us, our confidence in our boss is now soaring throughout the entire universe.
If Russia's deputy prime minister can get it, why can't Hong Kong's chief executive?
Wang Xiao bowed to him and said, "Go for it, Chief Executive. I'm counting on you to carry me to new heights."
Brother, you're really bold! If I had that ability, why would I help you up? Why couldn't I go up myself?
Tang Yicheng chuckled: "Never mind then, I'm just thinking about having a ready-made meal."
"Stop daydreaming, there's a lot more to come," Wang Xiao said seriously. "I'm asking you, what's the current state of the Hong Kong property market?"
Tang Yicheng didn't know how to describe it, and after thinking for a long time, he finally came up with an analogy: "It's like it's coming out and coming in at the same time."
Hong Kong will return to China on July 1st, and now a large number of Hong Kong people are busy applying for immigration, fearing that they will be eliminated by socialism.
If they want to leave, they will naturally have to sell their properties.
Theoretically speaking, if more people are selling, the real estate market will experience an oversupply, causing housing prices to fall.
But there's something strange about it: those who stayed in Hong Kong firmly believe that after Hong Kong's return to China, a large number of mainlanders will flock to Hong Kong, especially high-ranking officials from the mainland.
There are even rumors, from who knows where, that the mainland government will buy governor's houses for all officials, starting from provincial and ministerial level officials, so that they can regularly go to Hong Kong and have a comfortable place to stay.
Unfortunately, this rumor has a wide audience and has greatly stimulated the real estate market. Speculating on unfinished properties has become the hottest way to get rich in Hong Kong.
Tang Yicheng didn't know how to evaluate the people of Hong Kong anymore.
They always think that mainlanders are unsophisticated and ignorant, but their own knowledge is ridiculously shallow, and they have absolutely no political acumen whatsoever.
Has the mainland government gone mad? Buying a governor's mansion in Hong Kong?!
Anyone with a modicum of political acumen wouldn't suffer from this kind of delusional disorder.
Wang Xiao waved his hand: "Ignore them. Remember, before June, get rid of all the properties you've stockpiled."
Tang Yicheng immediately perked up: "Boss, what important thing do you need the money for?"
Wang Xiao didn't answer directly: "Just wait and see, you'll find out then."
She would raise all available funds and go all in during the Asian financial crisis.
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[Let me see] Good morning! I have to work overtime starting today and continuing until the end of the week. Actually, I worked overtime last night too.
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