"Brother-in-law, I told you, those people are all scumbags. Please calm down. Such a trash company will definitely disappear and go bankrupt on its own within a few years!" Leng Zhimeng said, waving her small fists as she comforted her brother-in-law in the taxi.
"Disappear and go bankrupt on its own..." Huang He's expression was extremely complicated. Relying on Tengda to disappear and go bankrupt was impossible for at least another 20 years. On the contrary, he could only watch Tengda flaunt its success and become the leader in China's internet companies. Even a certain novel relied on Tengda for its livelihood.
Never mind whether Tengda would disappear or not, but Huang He was about to leave Shenzhen. After all, his business was finished. However, Huang He was still very unwilling to leave just like this.
"Zhimeng, do you think we'll become a laughingstock if we just leave like this?" Huang He asked Leng Zhimeng timidly.
"Hmm, it's hard to say. It depends on the situation," Leng Zhimeng replied after thinking for a moment.
"Depends on what situation?" Huang He asked curiously.
"It depends on the future development of that Tengda company!" Leng Zhimeng tilted her head and said, "If Tengda becomes successful in the future, and even hugely successful, with a market value of several hundred million US dollars, then we'll be a joke. People will say we overestimated ourselves and lacked self-awareness. It might even appear in college entrance examination essays as a counter-argument, demonstrating lack of self-awareness and intelligence."
"But if Tengda fails and goes bankrupt, then the embarrassment won't be ours, but Tengda's. They will become material for college entrance examination essays, used to illustrate that failure stems from arrogance and a refusal to cooperate, and so on. Anyway, they will be the ones embarrassed, and we won't be affected!" Leng Zhimeng said. Surprisingly, what this little girl said made a lot of sense, and it couldn't help but make their boss, Mr. Huang, nod in agreement.
It was just that only their boss, Mr. Huang, knew how impossible it was to hope for Tengda's failure. This second scenario was likely something Huang He would never see in his lifetime.
"Are there any more satisfying endings than these two?" Huang He asked, still somewhat unwilling. Leng Zhimeng shook her head, indicating that she couldn't think of any more satisfying endings than the second one.
"I have one!" Suddenly, a voice said.
"Uh..." Huang He was stunned for a moment, then realized it was the taxi driver who had spoken. He had probably heard every word of the conversation between him and Leng Zhimeng.
"This is bad. This story will definitely spread in the future!" Huang He lamented, tapping his forehead. Almost all taxi drivers had one specialty: they were very talkative and could talk you into a daze in the short time you were in their car.
This was normal, as drivers couldn't be distracted while driving and couldn't engage in other recreational activities. Apart from listening to the radio, their only option was to chat with passengers.
"Master, what's your more satisfying ending?" Huang He was regretting it, while Leng Zhimeng couldn't help but ask curiously.
"Let me ask you a question first. Do you all know about the Flying Eagle razor blades?" the taxi driver asked. Leng Zhimeng nodded vigorously. "Of course, I know. My sister shaves her legs every day with Flying Eagle razor blades!"
Hmm, it seemed he had heard something remarkable. Whose leg hair needed shaving every day?
Was it Zhiruo or Zhiwen?
He didn't know. Zhiruo always wore black stockings, so her legs were never visible. Zhiwen's legs, however, were smooth, fair, slender, lustrous, and elastic, shining like a perfectly retouched photo. Logically, it should be her. But if such beautiful legs were shaved every day, the pores would become enlarged, and they would be filled with black sebum deposits, unlike their current appearance.
Huang He couldn't help but let his mind wander, while the taxi driver continued, "That's right. Anyone who has used Flying Eagle razor blades knows how good they are. Almost everyone in the country uses Flying Eagle blades, and these are produced by our Shanghai Razor Blade Factory!"
"But you probably don't know that Flying Eagle razor blades were originally pirated. Right after the liberation, our country couldn't produce good razor blades. Shaving with domestic razor blades often left the chin bloody."
"So, an American imported Flying Eagle razor blade became popular. It was extremely sharp and very good to use, but it was expensive. One blade cost 1 yuan, and many people couldn't afford it."
"Later, the Shanghai Razor Blade Factory began to imitate Flying Eagle razor blades. Through the hard work and research of our Chinese people, the quality of the blades they found was no worse than that of the Americans. It was just that they couldn't establish brand recognition at first and couldn't sell them. So, they simply named them Flying Eagle razor blades, becoming a shameful pirate."
"Domestic Flying Eagle razor blades were launched in the 1970s. They cost only 10 cents per blade, which was very cheap, and everyone bought them. As a result, they quickly occupied most of the market share. Conversely, the Americans' blades couldn't be sold, and the market began to shrink."
"What's more serious is that the quality of the American Flying Eagle razor blades actually deteriorated. Later, shaving with them also caused bleeding. Because both companies had the same brand and the packaging was the same, many people who bought the American Flying Eagle razor blades went to complain about the Shanghai Flying Eagle razor blades, which almost ruined the entire Flying Eagle brand!"
"The Shanghai Razor Blade Factory felt that this was unacceptable and had to solve the problem. However, they couldn't help the other party improve quality. Unexpectedly, they suddenly learned that the American Flying Eagle razor blade company was on the verge of collapse and wanted to sell. So, they simply bought the American Flying Eagle razor blade company themselves. Our Chinese enterprise actually acquired an American company in one go. Doesn't that sound particularly satisfying!"
"Hahaha!" The taxi driver laughed gleefully as he spoke. Leng Zhimeng on the side also listened with sparkling eyes. She had never heard such a satisfying story of pirated goods making a comeback. It was simply too exciting!
"Master, is all this true? You didn't make it up, did you?" Leng Zhimeng quickly asked.
"Of course it's true. My cousin works there, and he told me himself!" the driver guaranteed, patting his chest.
"Heh heh!" As for their boss, Mr. Huang, his smile was rather peculiar.
Huang He had actually heard this story before. In later generations, it was one of the most famous online anecdotes, and it was likely that many people had already heard it. However, precisely because of its wide dissemination, some busybodies specifically conducted detailed investigations and arrived at a ridiculously amusing truth.
First of all, the event did happen, but it was half true and half false.
The Flying Eagle razor blades were real, but the American Flying Eagle razor blades did not go bankrupt because it was a subsidiary brand of Gillette.
If it went bankrupt, Gillette would also go bankrupt.
However, the Shanghai Razor Blade Factory did not engage in outright counterfeiting because the packaging of the two companies was different, and Flying Eagle had not applied for brand protection in China. The technologies used by both parties also differed, so while there was some element of counterfeiting, it wasn't extensive.
Of course, in the end, the Shanghai Razor Blade Factory could not acquire Gillette. Instead, Gillette, in order to enter the Chinese market, chose to form a joint venture with the Shanghai Razor Blade Factory. All the Gillette razor blades and related products currently on the market are produced by the Shanghai Razor Blade Factory. The Flying Eagle razor blades have also been integrated into the entire production system, with only the brand name remaining independent.
Therefore, this is actually a somewhat distorted story, similar to the various half-true and half-false stories circulating online; each has its own agenda.
"I understand!" Leng Zhimeng suddenly clapped her hands and said, "Master, are you trying to tell us that the most satisfying third ending is that we create a similar company, then snatch all of Tengda's business, defeat them until they go bankrupt, and then we buy Tengda and stand before 'Little Ma Ge' and say to him in a smug tone!"
"'Little Ma Ge, I want to thank you! If you hadn't sold Tengda to me back then, I wouldn't be where I am today! Hahahahaha!!!'"
"That's right, that's exactly what I mean. This ending is the most satisfying!" The driver also laughed heartily.
"Hmm, this idea is indeed very satisfying, even more satisfying than 90% of the power fantasies!" Huang He also felt exhilarated, and then a startling idea flashed through his mind: "If I actually achieve this, wouldn't I be even more satisfied?"