Chapter 118

Meng Xi will stay at home for a while this time and will return to the team for training after the New Year.

In order to see her sister, Meng Nan took the train home right after the exam. When the teacher heard that she was going home to see her sister, who was an Olympic champion, she didn't make things difficult for her and just waved her hand and let her go on holiday early.

Meng Nan had met Meng Xi several times in Beijing, but it was not as convenient as at home. She brought imported chocolates for her younger brothers and sisters. After eating the chocolates, the group of little kids hid in the house and whispered to each other, and no one knew what they were plotting.

There were so many people at home that they couldn't fit all of them at one round table, so Zhen Zhen built a small table for the children to sit on.

Although they sit at small tables, the children eat just as well as the adults.

"Auntie Zhen, I'll go call them down to eat."

As soon as Cheng Su got upstairs, Meng Nan pulled her into the house.

"Aunt Cheng Su, we have an idea. Can you listen to it?"

Cheng Su has been abroad for so many years that she has developed the habit of communicating with children on an equal footing. She will not treat Meng Nan as a child just because he is young.

Cheng Su sat upright on the chair, Zheng Zhong asked:

"Ms. Mannon, please go ahead."

Meng Nan expressed his thoughts. Seeing that Meng Xi's popularity was getting higher and higher and everyone in the country knew her, Meng Nan wanted to use his sister's fame to make money.

Of course, Meng Xi is also willing to let Meng Nan take advantage of the popularity.

"I want to create a sportswear brand, sponsor the diving team, and let Meng Xi wear our sportswear brand to participate in international competitions. Then, our brand will definitely be a hit."

There are almost no well-known sportswear brands in China these days, so Meng Nan's idea is a good one.

With Meng Xi's fame, as long as she accepts a few interviews wearing the sportswear brand, the brand's popularity will be spread.

Cheng Su nodded. "That's a good idea, but do you know how to start a company and build a brand?"

Meng Nan made her money by speculating in stocks and reselling supplies, and she really didn't know how to build her own brand.

"Aunt Cheng Su, please tell me more about it! I also want to know how those foreigners build their brands."

Cheng Su told Meng Nan the stories of famous foreign brands, how they made their fortunes, how they expanded their popularity, and how they increased their premiums.

"What is premium?" asked Sanwa.

Cheng Su explained the word "premium". Meng Nan used to think that the price of something depended on the value of the item. After listening to Cheng Su's explanation, he realized that he was really superficial.

The cost price of a product is 50 yuan, but it can be sold at a high price of 5,000 yuan. The extra part is the premium.

It turns out that operating a brand requires so much attention.

Meng Nan touched his chin and said, "Aunt Cheng Su, if you say so, we still need to investigate the market?"

"Of course. Otherwise, how do you know which group your brand is targeting? Is it students, college students, career elites, or housewives? In addition to clothing, sports brands also have sports shoes. Have you ever thought about where to find manufacturers to make the shoes?"

"I have learned that there are many factories producing counterfeit goods in Guangdong and Fujian provinces."

Cheng Su was stunned. "A factory that makes fake goods?"

"Yes, they are factories that counterfeit foreign sports shoes and luxury shoes. The fakes produced by these factories are so authentic that they are indistinguishable from the real ones. This shows that their technology is up to standard. If we introduce some professional production lines from abroad and are willing to invest heavily, we will definitely be able to make world-class sports shoes."

Cheng Su didn't expect Meng Nan to be so smart. It's no wonder that a factory that makes counterfeit goods is really suitable for OEM.

"What about clothing design?"

Meng Nan thought about hiring college students to do the clothing design, or recruiting some elite returnees from abroad. After all, she had three million in her hands, plus the investment brought in by her friends, so it would not be a problem to create a brand.

Cheng Su was quite convinced. It was not enough that Aunt Zhen made a lot of money, but the children were influenced by her and were thinking about making money before they even graduated. This was the power of role models.

During the meal, Meng Nan expressed his thoughts. Meng Daguo was a little worried, thinking that his daughter was too opinionated and he was afraid of suffering a great loss.

Tao Aihong held a chicken leg for herself, "Meng Nan, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but the most important thing for a girl is not making money, but getting married and having children! While you are still young and easy to find, let your third aunt introduce you to a man who grew up in a compound in Beijing, and live a stable life there. As a woman, no matter how much money she makes, if her family is not happy, she is not perfect."

Meng Nan was not angry either, he just gave Tao Aihong a hand and pinched her butt.

"Aunt, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but a woman's youth is very short, so it's not a good idea to indulge in pleasure."

Tao Aihong was stunned by what she said, "What does this have to do with me?"

"Why is it okay? Look at our family. My grandma built up our family business so big. Why? Wasn't it for us, the descendants?"

Tao Aihong nodded quickly, thinking that this made sense.

"But what are descendants? Of course they are people! Our three daughters-in-law have only given birth to six children. Why is that? It's because you didn't set a good example! My mother gave birth to three children, but you only gave birth to two and stopped!" Meng Nan became more and more excited. "The most important thing for a woman is to give birth to children! You and my second uncle should give birth to a few more children, and add a few grandchildren to our Meng family. That's the serious matter!"

"I'm already so old, how can I still give birth?"

"Why can't you give birth? Old ladies in their sixties and seventies are still giving birth, and you're not even forty and you're already giving up? I'm not criticizing you, but you don't take the people in our Meng family seriously. If everyone is like you, how can our Meng family be prosperous?"

Tao Aihong then realized that Meng Nan was criticizing her, but what Meng Nan said was correct.

She asked Meng Nan to get married and have children, but she only gave birth to two for the Meng family.

Two kids isn't a lot these days.

Tao Aihong never dared to provoke Meng Nan again.

Sanwa also wanted to help Tao Aihong, after all, she was his mother. But his mother was really unreasonable and he, as a son, thought his mother was stupid.

The Chinese New Year is approaching and Zhenxin Department Store has a huge customer flow. Meng Nan wants to take Meng Xi for a good shopping trip, buy her some clothes, and learn about how to provide service and build a brand.

Meng Daguo slipped a card to Meng Nan and said, "There's two thousand yuan in it. You two can decide what to do with it."

Si Ya raised her hand: "Dad, there's me too!"

Meng Daguo stuffed another card into Si Ya's hand. The three of them took the cards and called Sanwa and Wuwa, then skipped off to the department store.

The department store was packed with people. After all, there was only one department store in Xinyao County, and when buying New Year's goods, people from the entire county came out.

Meng Nan looked at the endless crowd of people and said excitedly:

"Sometimes, I'm really proud to be a member of the Meng family! Just tell me, how come we have such an amazing grandmother!"

Meng Xi was also very proud. "My former classmates all knew that my family owned a department store and asked me if they could give me a discount."

Si Ya grew up with Zhen Zhen and was used to it. She also told her sisters about her grandmother's gold mining. The siblings went to the gold shop and were all shocked by their grandmother's wealth.

“So rich!”

“So cool!”

"This money is all ours!" Sanwa sighed.

Meng Nan patted his forehead. "You're only a few years old, and you're already thinking about inheriting the family business? Didn't we agree that we should go out and have fun, and not just eat and wait to die?"

Si Ya doesn't have such big ambitions. She doesn't want to be a boss, a leader, or go out to see the world. She just wants to stay with her parents and live a stable life.

When she returned, Si Ya took out a stack of photocopied papers and showed them to her sisters and brothers.

Meng Nan took it with confusion and asked, "What is this?"

This seems to be an adventure novel. The story takes place in Hong Kong. The heroine is an undercover agent sent by the police to a gang. In order to track down the whereabouts of drug dealers, she pretends to be a hostage and is locked up by the gang.

The heroine met the hero who was also imprisoned. In order to escape and find the drug transportation route, she and the hero conducted an in-depth investigation, but they didn't know that the hero was the number one drug lord known as "Satan".

He was once a famous chemical genius, but because of revenge for his father, he embarked on a path of no return. Over the years, the amount of drug trafficking reached 18 tons.

He has excellent skills and strong anti-detection ability, and he quickly discovered her identity.

Thus, under the entanglement of love and desire, justice and evil began to compete, which was destined to be a road with no good ending.

Meng Nan was still not satisfied after reading it. "Who wrote this novel? It's quite interesting, but why is it only 50,000 words? What about the rest of the story? What happened to them after the explosion? Did they die? Is the ending good or bad? Was the man caught by the police?"

Meng Nan was extremely anxious. Why was he still keeping people in suspense?

After Meng Nan finished speaking, Si Ya did not respond. Meng Xi took the copy paper and flipped through it, saying in surprise:

"Isn't this Si Ya's handwriting? Si Ya, where did you get this book? You copied so many words by hand. Are you planning to make copies and sell them for money?"

Si Ya shook her head and sat on the edge of the bed a little embarrassedly. "What do you think of this book?"

"It looks great!" Meng Nan and Meng Xi said in unison.

They are both at the age where they love to read novels, but there are not many novels worth reading on the market, and even fewer novels mainly written by women.

I have never seen this kind of subject matter before, and it looks particularly novel.

"Of course it is! Tell me the name of the novel and I'll buy the second part and we can read it together."

Si Ya lowered her head and didn't speak for a long time. Meng Nan and Meng Xi looked at each other and both had a bold guess.

"Si Ya, this couldn't have been written by you, could it?"

Meng Nan turned over the folded paper. The words on it were obviously handwritten and copied.

Today's copying technology is not very mature, and there are often ink clumps. In some places, two words are blurred together, making it look a bit rough.

Although Chinese character printing fonts have been invented, the software is expensive to buy and is not mainstream. School quizzes and the like are still mainly done by handwritten copies.

The more I look at this character, the more it looks like it was written by Si Ya.

Si Ya’s handwriting is not as unrestrained as Meng Nan’s, nor as bold as San Wa’s. It is very similar to her personality, gentle and mellow, and seems easy to talk to.

Si Ya nodded shyly: "I wrote this, you won't make fun of me, right? I just made it up when I was bored, and took it to my second uncle's copy shop to have it copied. It's not very refined, and there are many flaws..."

Si Ya is not a confident person, but Meng Nan has a business vision and can see how much market there is for this novel.

Since she had money, investing money to help her sister publish a book was not a big deal, so she suggested making copies of the novel and selling it, without formally publishing it first. Instead, she put it on a used book stall to see how it sold, and then get a publishing number.

Si Ya felt that it was not a good idea, "Will people laugh at us?"

"What a joke! You are a member of our Meng family. We are all talented. I told Meng Xi yesterday that you are not interested in business, money, and material things. I don't know what you will do in the future. Now that I see that you write such a good novel, I am relieved."

Meng Nan was born in the 1970s. As the eldest in the family, she feels responsible for her younger siblings.

Among these brothers and sisters, the one she is most worried about is Meng Hao.

Meng Hao has the same surname as her grandmother and has two names, but her personality is nothing like her grandmother’s. She is neither carefree nor generous.

Her personality is somewhat similar to that of Jiao Huilan in the past, a good person who is interested in cooking, likes knitting and sewing, and stays at home.

People with this kind of personality are easily bullied.

Meng Nan thought that if she could make Si Ya famous and have enough food to eat, and with her sister's protection, Si Ya would be able to live a good life in the future.

Meng Nan and Meng Xi were both practical people. The next day, they found a pirated book publishing factory and asked them to print the book.

Meng Nan also named the book "Double Undercover". Si Ya had already finished writing the manuscript, but she was in school. She was afraid of being scolded by her family, who would think she was not studying hard and was distracted by these trivial things. So she asked Meng Nan and Meng Xi to keep it a secret for her and not tell her family.

Meng Nan and Meng Xi could only do this secretly without telling their grandmother.

Don’t say that pirated books are produced quickly. The book was printed in less than a week.

Of course, the production level is not very good, but the cover is tacky and eye-catching, the title is very special, and the story is set in an international metropolis like Hong Kong. It also brings together multiple elements such as gangs, police, and sadomasochistic love. Once it was on the market, it sold really well!

The books are not sold at a high price, and I only make a few cents from each book.

Meng Nan printed a total of one thousand copies. She thought they would sell for at least several months, but who would have thought that they would be sold out as soon as they were released!

Meng Nan, Meng Xi and others didn't believe it, so they went to Wang Ling's second-hand bookstore.

Wang Ling was quite surprised to see them. Zhen Ersao also gave them three pieces of honey to eat.

The three sisters of the Meng family are all pretty. Wang Ling likes pretty girls from the bottom of her heart and said curiously:

"Why are you three sisters here?"

Wang Ling hadn't seen Meng Xi for many years. Meng Xi became very popular this year. People all over the world know her and her popularity is also very high. When Wang Ling shouted, the students who were queuing for steamed lunch boxes next door came over to ask for autographs.

Meng Xi was surrounded by people, so Meng Nan pulled Wang Ling aside and said, "Auntie, I want to ask you something. Do you have pirated books for sale here?"

Wang Ling was stunned and whispered:

"Of course there are. These days, genuine books are so expensive! To put it bluntly, our Xinyao County is a county after all. Many people can't even afford to eat. Where do they get the money to buy genuine books? What's more, this is a lending bookstore. When books are lent out, sometimes everyone passes them around to read together, and it's easy for them to get spoiled. The cost of buying all genuine books is really too high!"

Meng Nan also thought so. "Then let me ask you a question. Do you have "Double Undercover"?"

Wang Ling slapped her thigh and said, "Why did the three girls come here suddenly? It turns out they came to borrow books!"

"Hey, girl, just tell me and I'll take you home. Do you really need to come here in person?"

Wang Ling's family has made good money in recent years. Zhen Xiangyang's auto repair shop has expanded into a motorcycle shop, and in the past two years, at Zhen Zhen's suggestion, he has become a car dealer. Wang Ling's family has a car, so it is more convenient for her to send it to Meng Nan than for Meng Nan to come over.

Wang Ling turned her head and secretly took a copy of "Double Undercover" from under the bookshelf, and said mysteriously:

"I hid this secretly. I had no choice. This book is so popular. It has been circulating all over the school within a few days of its release. So many people came to borrow it! I was wondering what kind of book is so good, so I took it and flipped through it. Who would have thought that I would be attracted to it too? I hid a copy and planned to read it at night when the school closes!"

Meng Nan was quite surprised, and Si Ya blushed. "What do you think of it?"

"Great! They say the author writes vividly, and the description of the extravagant life in Hong Kong is very appealing! Students like to read these, imagining themselves as the heroine, wearing a designer dress, carrying a fancy bag, and wandering around in various halls and high-end hotel cocktail parties."

Wang Ling's flowers made Si Ya's face blush even more. Meng Nan looked through Wang Ling's family's book borrowing records. It can be said that Wang Ling has a very keen sense of smell. This book is only sold in a small range locally, but Wang Ling actually wholesaled more than 20 copies, which can be regarded as supporting Si Ya's creation.

Meng Nan was confident that this book would not only sell, but would sell like hot cakes!

She should have bought a book number as early as possible and helped Si Ya plan publicity so that her fame could spread.

The three sisters had good intentions, but who would have thought that when they just got home, they would see an uncle in a dry hat and someone from the Industrial and Commercial Bureau sitting inside their mother-in-law's room. Meng Nan thought something had happened to her and quickly chased after her to inquire.

Zhen Zhen glanced at them and snorted:

"Good mother-in-law, it's all right. It's you who are in trouble!"

"We?" Meng Nan was stunned. "What bad things have we done?"

"How dare you say that! I ask you, did you take the book to be copied and sold pirated books?"

Meng Nan had not thought it was this. After all, she was still young and worried that she had broken the law. Her heart was beating very fast. "Yes...I did sell some pirated copies, but not a large amount."

"If the quantity is small, it's not a crime? Not only did you sell pirated copies, you also copied other people's books and sold them as pirated copies! When the Industrial and Commercial Bureau raided the pirated book factory, the owner of the book factory gave you up!"

A very tall police officer came over and said, "We can understand that young people want to make money. After all, we are old acquaintances with Good Mother-in-law, Zhenxin Enterprise, and your grandmother! We have a good relationship with each other, so we can turn a blind eye to you. But you copied other people's works and sold them, which is a violation of the law. The crime is not small!"

Jiao Huilan was so anxious that she pulled Meng Nan and said:

"Hurry up and apologize to the police, admit your mistakes, and pay whatever compensation our family owes!"

Meng Nan then realized that they had misunderstood each other, so he pulled Si Ya over and explained the whole thing.

Not to mention Jiao Huilan and Zhen Zhen, even the comrades from the Public Security Bureau and the Industrial and Commercial Bureau did not expect that Si Ya was actually the author of this novel!

The police officer smiled and said, "Si Ya, right? She is not yet an adult. She can get away with it by paying a small fine for pirating. Since she wrote it herself, we won't pursue the matter. The child is talented. With the ability of your Meng family, you can completely use normal publishing channels. Selling pirated copies is not advisable!"

Zhen Zhen is a major taxpayer in the county. Not to mention the director, even the county leaders have to be respectful when they meet her.

But Zhen Zhen has always been low-key. He only takes care of things when necessary and gives people enough face.

Therefore, I have a very good relationship with several directors in the county.

"Thank you, Director Cao. I will come to thank you in person later." Zhen Zhen said, and then glared at the three children, "Why don't you apologize to your Uncle Cao? Uncle Cao is the director, a very busy man, and he even came here in person for you three little girls."

Meng Nan brought his two sisters and respectfully apologized to Director Cao. Zhen Zhen also paid the fine, and the matter was finally over.

Meng Daguo also drove back and after hearing what happened, he scolded Meng Nan severely.

"I knew it was your idea. You are such a brave sister!"

Meng Xi said, "Dad, don't scold my sister. What did she do wrong? She did it for Si Ya's own good. She was afraid that Si Ya wouldn't be able to do business and her grades wouldn't be good, so she wouldn't be able to make money to support herself in the future. She just wanted to help Si Ya."

"Si Ya can't make money, does that require your care? Do you think her father is dead?" Meng Daguo pointed at himself, extremely angry, "Si Ya's affairs are taken care of by me, her father. Even if she fails to get into college and becomes a waste, I, her father, will cover her up."

Meng Nan was not convinced by the reprimand.

The third child also came out to talk to his sister:

"My sister has good intentions. Fourth sister's books are selling very well, which shows that my sister is right!"

Wu Wa nodded, "My sister is right!"

Meng Nan was angry at being scolded, and hid behind Zhen Zhen to act coquettishly:

"Grandma, look at my dad, he just knows how to scold people all day long, why don't you beat him up?"

How could Meng Daguo dare to get angry at his mother?

He quickly put away his angry expression and put on a smiling face:

"Mom, don't listen to this little girl's nonsense. How dare your son get angry with you! Your son is educating the child. This girl is too bold and lawless! First she secretly ran to the war country to sell goods, and then she published pirated books. If your son doesn't control her, she will lead the whole family astray!"

Zhen Zhen smiled and said, "You are steady in your work. Logically, you should take care of the children, and mother shouldn't interfere."

Meng Daguo was flattered and surprised, "Mom, what are you talking about? I am your son, and you are the one who brought up this family. If you don't intervene, who will?"

"Hey, I'm not defending Daya, but I know Daya's personality. She loves her brothers and sisters the most. Although what she did was a bit outrageous, think about it, this pirated copy also requires capital. Where does the capital come from?"

Meng Daguo was startled, and then he saw Meng Nan nestling in his mother's arms, raising his hand and saying, "I paid for it."

"Really? The money for the pirated edition was paid by Daya, so who gets the profit?"

Meng Nan raised his hand again, "It's Si Ya's! I didn't take a penny!"

Si Ya and Meng Xi nodded in unison. Wu Wa also shouted, "I can testify that all the money was given to Fourth Sister! My eldest sister didn't take a penny! Fourth Sister took the money and even bought me a comic book!"

Meng Daguo's heart softened a little when he heard this. Although Daya was unreliable, her personality was like his and she only cared about the good of her family.

Zhen Zhen understands Meng Nan. Meng Nan does things without any selfish motives, much like an ancient patriarch.

"The focus now is not on punishing anyone, but on reflecting on why the child kept it a secret and published it secretly."

Meng Daguo was stunned. "Why else? Could it be that this is also my fault?"

"Of course it's your fault. The children didn't tell you because they don't trust you. It shows that you, as a father, are too strict with them! We, as parents, should not only know how to punish, but also how to appreciate. Si Ya has always liked to write articles, read novels, and read comic books. What did you say? You always complain that she is not doing her job properly!"

Zhen Zhen's words resonated with the children.

Meng Daguo was depressed. He began to reflect on himself and wondered if he was too strict with his children.

"But writing books does interfere with my studies!"

"Writing a book will delay her studies? Then what is the purpose of studying? Isn't the purpose of studying to work and make money? If writing a book can make money, why are you still holding her back? It's better to give her freedom and let her become an expert in writing."

Si Ya was so happy that she rushed over and hugged Zhen Zhen, "Grandma, you are the best! You love Si Ya the most!"

Zhen Zhen smiled and held Si Ya in his arms, then opened her novel again, "It looks good. Let grandma put on her reading glasses and read the novel written by our Si Ya!"

Several children climbed onto the bed and watched with Zhen Zhen. Zhen Zhen read as she watched, and you can tell that she really attracted everyone in the room.

Even Meng Daguo listened with great interest.

But he still wanted to save face, "What's the point of writing a good book? Writers are so poor that they can't even make ends meet!"

"We are not short of money. Besides, whether you make money or not depends on how you run the business!"

Zhen Zhen thought that Si Ya was indeed talented, so he told Meng Nan about his thoughts.

There is really no need to submit the manuscript to a publishing house. It would be better to set up a company dedicated to operating Si Ya's books.

"Operation? How?"

"Buy a publishing number and publish it for her. Carefully design the cover, hire models to take real photos of the characters, contact film and television companies to see if it can be adapted into a TV series or movie. As long as we are willing to spend money, why should we worry that Si Ya's novel will not make money?"

Meng Nan was stunned. She had not thought so far ahead. But her grandmother was right. After all, the family had money, so why should she force Si Ya to submit her manuscript to a publishing house?

It’s better to operate it yourself!

"Okay! Then I will invest my own money in Si Ya! I will make her famous! Let her become the most famous talented female writer in the mainland!"

Zhen Zhen pondered: "After the novel becomes famous, we can have a joint venture with our gold shop."

But that’s all for another time.

Meng Nan wants to create a sportswear brand. In the past few days, he has talked a lot about market knowledge with Cheng Su and Jiao Huilan. He has also talked with Su Xiu from abroad, and called Meng Hua and Tan Wenyin to ask for their opinions.

Everyone in the family is a big shot, which gives Meng Nan a lot of help.

Zhen Zhen would not spend too much time worrying about children's affairs. After all, the third generation of the Meng family had already grown up. As long as they were given some time, Zhen Zhen believed that they would develop well.

Recently, Zhenxin Food Factory introduced a two-mile-long beverage production line, intending to enter the beverage market.

Don't underestimate China in the late 1980s. Coca-cola was popular a few years ago, and there was a trend of imitating Coca-cola in the country. There were more than 2,000 beverage factories selling Coca-cola alone. This is a conservative estimate. If those factories without certificates are included, there are at least 3,000 factories.

If we really just make a conventional product like Coke, we will never make it.

It just so happened that China had won a lot of gold medals recently, so Zhen Zhen wanted to turn to sports drinks.

Sports drinks are not difficult to make. The formula is simple and mainly contains electrolytes, vitamins, amino acids and other ingredients.

The effects are to replenish nutrition, fight fatigue, and make people feel more energetic after drinking it.

Zhen Zhen named this unlaunched drink Red Sun. The red can has a sun printed on it, symbolizing the entrepreneurial spirit.

Of course, for such a large company to launch a drink, there would naturally be someone in charge. Zhen Zhen didn't need to do it herself. She just needed to come up with ideas.

She plans to invite Meng Xi to endorse this drink, advertise it on CCTV, and sponsor various sports events. With all these efforts, there is no doubt that Red Sun Sports Drink will become popular!