Chapter 231 Su Yuanshan's Broad Mind
—"Just talk to President Shan once and you'll understand."
That was what Wang Rui had said with a smile when Duan Yongping, slightly tipsy, once asked him what kind of genius Su Yuanshan really was.
At the time, Duan Yongping hadn't taken it seriously. After all, he knew that if you believed everything people said in China, you'd be a fool — just a few years ago, there were "qigong masters" making the rounds on national television, and plenty of them were still out there today.
Compared to those who claimed they could punch through mountains or ascend to heaven, what was one so-called genius?
Besides, Duan himself had gotten into Zhejiang University before he was sixteen...
Being called a "genius" was nothing new.
However, after actually talking to Su Yuanshan, he had to admit: where there's fame, there's substance.
Su Yuanshan didn't just stay on the same wavelength with him during their conversation — he could immediately extrapolate, and his understanding of various marketing strategies was terrifyingly sharp.
It even made Duan Yongping wonder — if Su Yuanshan understood all this so well and cared so much about the future of mobile phones, why did he still allow the marketing department to mess around like this?
...
The sound of applause brought Duan Yongping back to reality. He stood again, smiling and nodding politely to everyone — even if he had been "ordered" to criticize, he didn't want to offend anyone completely.
"I agree with Old Duan's suggestions," Chen Jing said, glancing at Duan Yongping and then at Wan Yongliang, who hid his disappointment well. She smiled and said, "Old Duan, please draft a detailed plan and discuss it thoroughly with President Wan so we can implement it quickly."
"As for the new brand... shall we brainstorm some ideas now?"
"Sure," Su Yuanshan said immediately, laughing. "But I'm terrible at naming things. I'll just listen to you all."
The group quickly started throwing out suggestions, but nothing great came up. Most of the ideas were spontaneous and rough.
Names like Yiduo, Keke, and Live were proposed.
"Why not call it Pandora?" Xi Xiaoding suddenly suggested. "It's the name of our lab, and it has a lot of prestige."
Chen Jing frowned slightly. "Wouldn't that sound a bit too feminine? I thought of 'Vido' earlier, but it felt too girlish."
Xi Xiaoding hesitated. "I think it's fine. In mythology, Pandora was associated with evil, but her box symbolized hidden possibilities. In our lab, it means creating black technology.
If we use it for phones, it symbolizes cutting-edge tech hidden inside."
"Alright, let's reserve 'Pandora' for now," Su Yuanshan said. "We can register it, but hold off on using it. Save it for when we launch non-mass-production concept models loaded with black tech."
Chen Jing's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea! Pandora Lab already represents Yuanxin's black tech — not just phones.
Any leading-edge product could carry the Pandora brand. It could become a luxury line and shift away from any feminine connotations."
"Sounds good. We'll have to work harder then," Xi Xiaoding chuckled.
Duan Yongping was still thinking when he suddenly said, "President Chen, about 'Vido' —
We could spell it Vidoo — it could be interpreted as 'Vidor,' 'Unique Bean,' or even pronounced like 'viooo.'"
"I think it's very good.
When we launch, we should push 'Vidoo' as the brand name, without a Chinese equivalent.
From a branding perspective, 'Vidoo' can be made aesthetically pleasing — definitely better than 'Yuanxin.'"
As he spoke, Duan Yongping dipped his finger in tea and wrote out the word on the table.
Chen Jing immediately followed, testing different font styles — and sure enough, it looked much better.
"This is it!" Su Yuanshan said, making the final call.
"President Chen, you even know calligraphy?" someone joked.
"I picked up a little from doing blackboard designs in school," Chen Jing said, wiping away the tea characters and pressing her hands together. "Alright. The brand is settled.
Next, we'll go over our cooperation report with Siam — this marks Yuanxin's first overseas investment..."
...
After the meeting, Su Yuanshan deliberately lingered. Chen Jing, seeming to read his mind, slowly tidied up her papers.
When everyone else had left, she moved from the head of the table to sit beside him.
"Looks like Old Wan has some concerns," Chen Jing said, frowning slightly. "Isn't Duan Yongping a bit too aggressive?"
"Compared to Duan Yongping, Old Wan... well, he's clearly outclassed," Su Yuanshan sighed lightly, tapping the table rhythmically with his fingers.
After a few seconds of silence, he shook his head.
"You can't really blame Old Wan. Up until now, our business divisions never had to fight for market share.
BP devices were Wang Chaoxin's territory.
VCDs were monopolistic.
Sales were never a problem.
So Old Wan never had a chance to toughen up."
Chen Jing chuckled. "Old Wan's already in his mid-thirties. How much more can he grow?"
"Age doesn't matter. Even at fifty, if someone wants to grow, they can," Su Yuanshan said seriously.
"If someone stops growing, it's because the environment hasn't forced them to change.
And China's business environment now is changing every second."
Chen Jing thought for a moment and nodded, acknowledging his point.
"If Duan Yongping hadn't shown up," Su Yuanshan continued, "I'd still be willing to give Old Wan time to grow.
But the situation doesn't wait.
From now on, Duan will lean heavily into branding and PR."
"Old Wan's sensitivity to the market is a bit lacking, but his communication skills and execution are still strong — that's his advantage."
"Exactly," Chen Jing agreed.
"That's why I picked him in the first place."
Su Yuanshan nodded.
"You'll have to explain it to him — you're the one who recruited him."
"As for Duan Yongping being strong-willed..." Chen Jing trailed off.
"You think so too?" Su Yuanshan asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" Chen Jing laughed.
"He's a professional manager, like you," Su Yuanshan said with a smile.
"He's run factories and delivered results... Of course, he's not in your league, though."
Chen Jing giggled, rolling her eyes at him playfully.
Su Yuanshan laughed. "We needed a strong, independent division head who could break new ground.
And frankly, I know what you're worried about —
you're afraid he'll grow too powerful to control?"
Chen Jing didn't hide her nod. "Yes. After all... he left his old company over a dispute with shareholders."
"Don't worry about that," Su Yuanshan said confidently.
"He's successful because he's smart.
And smart people know..."
He paused, then grinned mischievously.
"Sister Jing, can I be narcissistic for a second?"
"Pfft..."
Su Yuanshan chuckled.
"Smart people know there's no bigger starfield than Yuanxin.
There's plenty of room for him to shine."
Chen Jing had been bracing for a shameless brag — but hearing that, she paused.
Then she smiled sweetly.
"When it comes to having vision," she said softly,
"yours truly is truly vast."
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