Jiang Lan vaguely felt that this matter seemed to be a conspiracy, as if the two of them had colluded to trick her. But would anyone go to such great lengths just to prank one person?
Jiang Lan said with a cold face, "Fine, if it's my fault, it's my fault. I was just unlucky with the people I met."
She looked at Jiang Rong and said coldly, "Since it's my responsibility, I'll bear all the losses this time. I'll take the goods from Xu Shaojin."
This was quite a bold statement.
She could afford the compensation!
Given the current scale of Xun Rong, Jiang Lan had enough money to compensate and had no need to evade. However, after this lesson, she would never interact with Jiang Rong and Xu Qin again.
But what Jiang Lan never expected was that Xu Qin refused her offer to compensate!
Xu Qin chuckled coldly, "This is your fault, but you don't need to compensate. If this gets out, people will laugh at our Jiang family for bullying others."
Wasn't that exactly what was happening?
They were indeed bullying her!
But the more Xu Qin said this, the more Jiang Lan insisted on compensating. If she didn't take the blame, Xu Qin would surely badmouth her everywhere, saying she caused trouble but didn't have the guts to face it, calling her a coward.
To avoid being scolded later, taking the blame now and severing ties with her family was the most sensible course of action for Jiang Lan.
Then, a comical scene unfolded.
Although Xu Qin and Jiang Rong had pinned the blame on Jiang Lan, they refused to let her compensate. Instead, Jiang Lan herself was adamantly trying to pay, and the three of them began to argue over the compensation.
At this point, Lu Ming shook his head helplessly, patted the table, and said, "Actually, it might not be necessary to compensate."
Huh?
The three of them turned to look at Lu Ming simultaneously.
Lu Ming said, "Based on the current clues, we've only acquired a batch of defective products, but that doesn't mean we'll definitely incur a loss. If we can utilize these defective products well and make them generate extraordinary value, we might not only break even but even make a substantial profit."
Profit?
Everyone was dumbfounded.
What foolishness was Lu Ming spouting?!
Given the current situation, not losing money would be a miracle, let alone making a profit. Was he treating them like fools, or was he grinding their intelligence into the dirt?
Xu Qin sneered, "Fools speak foolish words. Allowing you to sit at this table today, do you really think of yourself as someone important? Get lost, get lost, take your bowl and get out. I have chronophobia and can't stand seeing a simpleton like you."
Jiang Rong also mocked, "I've seen stupid people, but never someone this stupid. I can afford to pay this small amount. There's no need to lose face over such a trifle."
However.
Jiang Lan expressed her support for Lu Ming.
She had known Lu Ming for quite some time and knew he never spoke carelessly. Since he said it, he must have a way to resolve the issue!
So, Jiang Lan stood up and said, "I think Lu Ming's words are not unreasonable. Why should we compensate? What if this batch of goods can actually make us money? Jiang Rong, since you say it's my fault, then this batch of goods is now under my management. How it's handled is my business. Give me three days, and I will give you a satisfactory answer. Lu Ming, let's go."
Jiang Lan turned and left.
Lu Ming sighed, got up, and followed Jiang Lan.
Jiang Rong let out a cold snort, looked at Jiang Lan, then at Jiang Mengxin, and said, "What kind of situation is this? She made a mistake, yet she's so temperamental. And Mengxin, isn't Lu Ming your fiancé? Why is he always hovering around Jiang Lan?"
Jiang Mengxin's expression also darkened, and she looked displeased.
This meal was completely ruined.
An hour later, at Xun Rong's conference room.
Jiang Lan looked at Lu Ming very seriously and asked, "Was what you said at the dinner table true? Is there really a way to create more value from this batch of defective products?"
Lu Ming replied, "We can try, but no one can guarantee the specific outcome. After all, they are defective products. We can give it a shot, but we can't guarantee the result."
Having a chance to try was already good enough.
Jiang Lan asked, "Then how do you plan to try?"
Lu Ming said, "It's quite simple. We just need to do some marketing, drive up the price of these defective products, and then sell them off in one go. That way, we can at least recover our costs, or even make a significant profit."
Marketing?
Jiang Lan had heard of this term before, but no matter the type of marketing, wouldn't the goods need to be at least presentable?
What difference did these defective products have from trash? Consumers weren't fools, so how could they accept them?
Lu Ming explained, "Tomorrow night, there's a film festival where many celebrities will walk the red carpet and receive awards. We just need to get the most popular and dazzling star to wear clothes made from our defective products, then bribe the media to promote it as the latest trend. This will create a huge following trend, and the defective clothing will sell like hotcakes. Then, we can get rid of the goods we have."
Uh...
It seemed to make sense.
Jiang Lan also thought it had potential, but there were two difficult hurdles: First, how to convince a celebrity to wear defective clothing? Second, wouldn't the audience think it was malicious manipulation?
Lu Ming continued, "As for persuading them, if the money is right, we can definitely secure it. Also, we need to design based on the characteristics of the defective products, ensuring that only they can be used to create this effect, something that high-quality silk couldn't achieve. Furthermore, the clothes must be trendy and fashionable, making young people find them cool! We also need to set reasonable prices. If all these points are met, I believe we can sell our goods."
With Lu Ming's analysis, Jiang Lan felt it was feasible.
Trying was always an option.
If they tried, there was still a chance to turn things around. If they didn't, they were destined to lose money.
No sooner said than done!
Jiang Lan first approached designers, asking them to create clothes based on the characteristics of the defective silk, emphasizing coolness, trendiness, and unique qualities of defective products.
This was already a significant challenge.
In addition, Jiang Lan had to find a celebrity to collaborate with.
After much deliberation, Jiang Lan set her sights on the rising star of the past two years – Jia Jingkun.
Jia Jingkun was a rapper, handsome, and highly popular among young people.
His fans were trendsetters, and they loved fashionable, cool things.
His fame and reputation were sufficient.
Moreover, Jia Jingkun had recently starred in a highly successful suspense drama, earning significant recognition for his acting. He was also highly anticipated on the red carpet.
If they could secure Jia Jingkun, everything else would fall into place.
The difficulty lay in how to secure him.
Too many people wanted to collaborate with Jia Jingkun, with numerous companies offering exorbitant prices for him to wear their clothes.
He was spoiled for choice. How could he possibly wear your company's defective clothing?
For this challenge, there was no other way but to throw money at it.
They believed that with enough money, everything could be negotiated.
So, with a hesitant heart, Jiang Lan contacted Jia Jingkun's agent and made an offer. Clearly, they refused outright at first.
After hearing Jiang Lan's description, the agent found the proposal unbelievable, thinking the outfit would ruin their artist's image and refused to accept any amount of money!
Gentle persuasion was useless.
After hanging up, Jiang Lan's heart sank to the bottom. If she couldn't hire Jia Jingkun, who else would be suitable?
But just as Jiang Lan was feeling despondent, she unexpectedly received a call.
It was Jia Jingkun himself!
After hearing his agent's complaints, Jia Jingkun found it very interesting. He also wanted to try a different style and avoid clashing with other celebrities at the film festival.
Clearly, Jiang Lan's proposal would bring Jia Jingkun more exposure, and he was willing to give it a try.
Jiang Lan was overjoyed. She hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. She immediately rushed to Jia Jingkun's agency with the contract and signed it.
In reality, not everything in the world goes smoothly.
Jiang Lan would never know that after her call failed, Lu Ming immediately arranged for someone to communicate with Jia Jingkun's agency. With the Dragon Warlord's involvement, even the biggest matters could be handled!
Ultimately, Jiang Lan, highly satisfied, signed the contract with Jia Jingkun. All that was left was to wait for the film festival the next day.