Chapter 263
Before Wang Laoliu could even make a move, he was arrested by the police station. Li Sanmei was frantic at home and secretly went to town to ask her son's former brothers, but no one was willing to give her a definite answer.
Nonsense! They themselves are completely clueless, how would they know what Wang Laoliu did wrong?
People like them can't withstand scrutiny.
It's like squeezing toothpaste; you grab it once, and only a tiny bit comes out.
Anyway, unless the police can produce solid evidence, who would be foolish enough to confess voluntarily?
So why do people like them, who operate in the underworld, keep going back and forth to the palace? Sometimes it's not because they've committed new crimes, but because they did something in the past that went undetected, and now it's been uncovered, or perhaps their accomplices reported them as "redemption."
Who knows if Wang Laoliu had something on his hands before, and this time he was suddenly exposed?
Fortunately, they weren't foolish enough to sell themselves for a meal.
In the end, it was a hoodlum who was related to Li Sanmei's family who kindly gave her a couple of pointers.
"Think carefully about why your son came to town to drink with us?"
"You people, you insist on offending those you shouldn't!"
“Your family only has Wang Hui as its only son, Auntie, you should think this through.”
"Sigh! Luckily, we didn't have time to make a move this time. I guess the police station will just detain him for a couple of days to let Wang Hui calm down."
"However, once he gets back, Third Aunt, you must give him a good talking-to. A real man can bend and stretch. It's not our place to provoke him. What's wrong with being a coward for once? What is face more important than life?"
Li Sanmei was suffering!
Of course she knew who her son had offended, but did she dare to say it?
And that eight thousand yuan, I'm afraid I really won't get it back now...
Although she was heartbroken, Wang Hui was her only son, so Li Sanmei could only grit her teeth and pretend that the eight thousand yuan had been stolen.
Otherwise, would they let their son eat for free for several more years just for eight thousand yuan?
Jiang Xiaoman was still waiting in town for Wang Laoliu to bring people to cause trouble, but unexpectedly, instead of Wang Laoliu's revenge, she received a state-owned order.
"Brother! Brother, we're famous! Hahaha~" Jin Chengjie rushed in and hugged Jiang Xiaoman tightly.
Jiang Xiaoman was completely confused.
Jin Chengjie jumped and hopped around like a silly monkey for a long time before finally opening his phone with a big smile and forwarding a scanned copy of a cooperation agreement to Jiang Xiaoman's phone.
"I have to make a special trip just to send an electronic file? Can't you just send it directly... Holy crap!" Jiang Xiaoman couldn't stay calm when she saw the "Client" section.
Previously, because of the collaboration with Jin Yan to enter the clothing industry, Jiang Xiaoman, a complete novice, did some research online and naturally learned about the international clothing brand called "Hera".
However, unlike the most well-known brands in China, Hera is a very low-key brand, and it's not a brand that just anyone with money can order custom-made clothes from.
When other people consume, they use money as a barrier to entry; items with clearly marked prices can only be bought by whoever has the money.
Hera's clothing isn't ready-to-wear; it's said that every piece is custom-made, and having money isn't enough—you also need to find a long-time member to write you a letter of recommendation.
This is just the entry-level custom clothing. To hire a senior tailor in this industry, in foreign countries, you would need to be at least a princess or queen, or at the very least a duchess.
When Jiang Xiaoman first saw this, she thought it was all hype. But after looking at the list of clients who had worn Hera custom-made dresses, she had to admit that it wasn't hype, but that she really was a country bumpkin.
Because, the first one on the list is Her Majesty the Queen, who is known worldwide for her "extremely long battery life".
What brands can get Her Majesty the Queen to help them with promotion?
However, the reputation of their Langshan embroidery cannot compare with that of the famous Suzhou and Sichuan embroidery. Why would such a legendary super luxury brand want to collaborate with them?
"I heard that Hera's personal designer really likes the totem culture of Langshan. By the way, brother, could you ask Jiang Xia to help us receive this designer? He insists on coming to Langshan for inspiration... You know, for top luxury brands like this, the personal designer has a lot of say. The designer is very important if we want to finalize this collaboration!"
Hearing Jin Chengjie repeatedly refer to "our Langshan," Jiang Xiaoman felt extremely heartbroken.
He thought that since the titmouse had rejected Jin Chengjie's marriage proposal, the guy would give up.
Unexpectedly, they became even more determined after setbacks, and now they've even moved into the titmouse's house!
However, Young Master Jin was right about one thing: if they want Langshan's intangible cultural heritage embroidery to go abroad and reach the world, this so-called "official designer" is indeed very crucial!
Isn't it just that they wanted to come to Langshan to collect folk songs?
Come on over! They'll definitely cover all your meals and accommodation, and accompany you throughout the entire trip!
If we take good care of the designer, and then ask them to post a promotional article for them on foreign websites, wouldn't Langshan embroidery suddenly go global?
"No need, no need, how could we let the village pay for that? I got my dad to specially approve 500,000 yuan for hospitality expenses, and if that's not enough, I'll ask him for more! This is a crucial battle for our Golden Goose to go global, and my dad will personally come to receive the designers. We're not short of money!"
Young Master Jin took on all the responsibilities, and Jiang Xiaoman didn't stand on ceremony with him. After all, if this matter were to be successfully completed, Jinyan Group would be the biggest beneficiary.
Whoever profits the most should pay for the hospitality, no problem!
Thinking back to how she had worked late into the night with Sun Zheyuan to write materials for the initial research on Langshan Tu embroidery culture, Jiang Xiaoman quickly called Secretary Sun to share the good news.
"This is great news! If our Langshan intangible cultural heritage can really go abroad and cooperate with top international luxury brands, then the county will definitely give you a big credit!" Sun Zheyuan was also very happy. After thinking for a moment, he asked Jiang Xiaoman to write down the situation and send it to him on WeChat.
"I'll find an opportunity to talk to the county leaders about this later. Don't rush to sign the contract. Wait until the end of the year when there's a centralized investment promotion and signing conference in the county. Then you can talk to Jin Yan and ask them to put the project at the signing conference. There might be some preferential policies later."
"Does our embroidery workshop have any preferential policies?" Jiang Xiaoman didn't care whether Jin Yan could enjoy the policy benefits. No matter how well Jin Yan's project was done, he wouldn't get much money. He was the major shareholder of the embroidery workshop.
“You little rascal…” Sun Zheyuan was both amused and exasperated. This was a true master of fleecing others. Let alone fleece, even if a sparrow flew over Jiang Xiaoman’s head, this kid would still pluck two of its tail feathers!
However, Sun Zheyuan had only just arrived in the county and hadn't had time to learn about many of the more detailed tasks. After thinking about it, he told Jiang Xiaoman to come to the county to find him tomorrow. He would then send the clever little Jiang Xiaoman to the Investment Promotion Bureau and let him take advantage of the bureau's resources!
"Hehe~ I'll come over first thing tomorrow morning."
Jiang Xiaoman knew that this opportunity was extremely rare.
That's the county's investment promotion bureau! They handle projects worth tens or even hundreds of millions of yuan every day!
Village-run embroidery workshops like theirs are at most individual businesses. If you were to package them as some kind of big project, even they themselves wouldn't believe it.
However, if you were to hitch a ride with Jinyan and a top-tier international brand, things would probably be a different story...
Pulling himself together, Jiang Xiaoman spent the whole night researching and preparing his speech. He also wanted to know if his small village-run workshop could catch the coattails of a top international brand. Since he didn't know, he could just humbly ask someone who did.
Knowing that Sun Zheyuan was now a secretary to a leader and must be busier than before, Jiang Xiaoman didn't dare to waste his time. Fortunately, their cooperative now had a car. He and Shan Yan left home at six o'clock in the morning and arrived in the county town at a little after seven. They found a breakfast stall, had breakfast, and went to the county government, just in time for work.
Jiang Xiaoman guessed correctly. Secretary Sun was indeed much busier than before when he was in the township. Fortunately, they arrived early. Sun Zheyuan quickly finished his steamed bun, drank some water, and led the two to the investment promotion bureau office on the seventh floor.
"I'm going to accompany the leaders to inspect the work later. I've already spoken to the Investment Promotion Bureau. Please explain the situation to Section Chief Yang in detail and listen to his opinion. Section Chief Yang is in charge of investment promotion in the cultural and tourism industry, and he's an expert in this field."
"Brother Yuan, thank you so much! I won't say much more. I know your office is crowded, so I didn't dare bring you any local specialties today. Next time you have a holiday, bring your wife to Langshan. I'll cover all the food and accommodation, and I'll make sure she's well taken care of!" Jiang Xiaoman said gratefully.
“What sister-in-law…” Sun Zheyuan blushed.
"You yourself posted about your relationship on WeChat Moments, but you kept it a secret from me?" Jiang Xiaoman muttered.
Sun Zheyuan is an older, unmarried man who used to work in a rural town, where it was indeed difficult to find a partner, and there were no suitable people around to set him up on blind dates.
Unexpectedly, after being transferred to the county party committee office, his career took off. A while ago, when Jiang Xiaoman was browsing his WeChat Moments, he saw that he had taken a picture of a large field of flowers and a girl's back. What else is there to understand?
Secretary Sun is getting promoted and falling in love at the same time; she's definitely a winner in life.
Sun Zheyuan quickened his pace.
Sun Zheyuan hastily handed Jiang Xiaoman over to Section Chief Yang and fled as if his life depended on it.
Section Chief Yang felt a little embarrassed and explained to Jiang Xiaoman very seriously: "There was a work safety accident in the county recently. Secretary Sun has been going to enterprises with the leaders to inspect work safety these days. He told me about your matter. Don't worry, as long as it can contribute to the county's economy, no matter how big or small, we will definitely give it our full support."
Jiang Xiaoman quickly smiled and said it was okay, but thought to herself, "How would you know? He wasn't busy, he was just too shy."
What's there to be embarrassed about in a relationship?
He's single now. If he ever gets a girlfriend, he'll not just post it on his WeChat Moments, he'll post it on all his social media accounts.
What's shameful about showing affection in public? If you don't show affection, are you showing off your intelligence?
...
As expected of a professional, Section Chief Yang explained to Jiang Xiaoman in detail how their village-run embroidery workshop reached a cooperation agreement with Jinyan Group, and how Jinyan connected with international top brands like Hera, without any concealment.
There's nothing shameful about it. They're just a village-run workshop. They were lucky to be noticed by a big shot like Jin Yan. That's their good fortune!
In business, ability is important, but sometimes luck is even more important than ability; otherwise, how could it be called "windfall"?
Even the well-informed Section Chief Yang couldn't help but envy Jiang Xiaoman's good luck.
This guy originally just wanted to set up a village-run workshop to do OEM work for others. But by chance, Jin Yan wanted to create a high-end national trend brand line. In addition, Langshan Tu embroidery has the gimmick of being a national intangible cultural heritage. Even though it is just a village-run workshop now, Section Chief Yang dares not underestimate the future development prospects of this village-run workshop.
However, if this project can be successfully completed, the economic benefits will be secondary; it will definitely have a significant positive impact on the local image!
In the past two years, rural revitalization has been vigorously promoted across the country, and the county is also focusing on creating a brand for attracting investment. If even top international brands can cooperate with Langshan, how prestigious would that be?
Considering that Jiang Xiaoman was personally brought by Secretary Sun, Section Chief Yang pondered for a moment and then began to tell Jiang Xiaoman everything he knew.
A small intangible cultural heritage workshop in a village is indeed unlikely to be included in the county's key investment projects.
Therefore, Section Chief Yang gave Jiang Xiaoman some advice, telling him to go back and persuade Jinyan Group to create a Langshan Tu embroidery cultural and creative project.
“Jin Yan isn’t going to move its headquarters to our county, so this project will definitely still fall to you.” Section Chief Yang whispered to Jiang Xiaoman, “You should just quietly make a fortune with Jin Yan. First, include your workshop in the project’s supporting facilities. Once the project is signed in the county, it will definitely expand to a larger scale. Then you can start your own projects. Whether it’s buying land to build factories or leasing office buildings in the industrial park to develop cultural and creative industries, it’s all your own business.”
Jiang Xiaoman was dumbfounded.
Is it possible to play with a spin like this?
Isn't this the legendary "fox borrowing the tiger's power"?
Let Jin Yan, the big tiger, walk in front, and Jiang Xiaoman, the little fox, walk behind the tiger, pretending that they are on the same side as the tiger... Well, thinking about it carefully, it really is simple, crude, and effective!
Section Chief Yang went the extra mile, not only giving Jiang Xiaoman and his team a feasible idea, but also finding some electronic materials on the county's previously successful cultural and creative industry projects that attracted investment, so that Jiang Xiaoman could copy them back and study them at her leisure.
"Thank you, Section Chief Yang. I will definitely keep these materials safe and delete them after I've read them. I will absolutely not cause you any trouble!" Jiang Xiaoman assured him tactfully.
Now, Section Chief Yang looked at this young man with new respect.
Actually, these materials are from several years ago and have long since expired. It wouldn't matter if Jiang Xiaoman showed them to others.
However, it is extremely rare for someone who has just entered the system to have such a sense of confidentiality.
Could Jiang Xiaoman really be Secretary Sun's cousin?
Chapter 264