Chapter 169: Securing Copyrights and the Completion of the Rolling Suitcase
The next day, at Ming Pao:
After returning to the office, Jin Yong called in Shen Baoxin and told him everything that had happened during his meeting with Yang Wendong.
Shen listened and said thoughtfully, "Yang Wendong is essentially using today's money to bet on the future."
Jin Yong nodded. "Exactly. He's gambling that my future novels will be just as successful as Legend of the Condor Heroes and Return of the Condor Heroes."
Shen replied, "I wouldn't even call it a gamble. Everyone in Hong Kong knows your name now. The chances of your next book succeeding are pretty high. His risk is actually very low."
Jin Yong chuckled. "You're too confident. No one stays popular forever!"
"Oh, come on. You don't need to be modest with me," Shen said with a grin. "So, are you going to sell the rights?"
"For the ones I've already written, I'm fine selling the audio rights," Jin Yong said. "Let's be honest, no one else has a radio station looking to buy. The only question is price.
But for future works—it's not that easy. I already have several new ideas forming in my head. I think some of them might even surpass Legend. Selling them now would feel like selling them cheap."
Shen nodded, then analyzed, "From Yang Wendong's perspective, he's exchanging money now for future high returns.
From your perspective, you'd be exchanging future profits for immediate funding. That makes things clearer, doesn't it?"
"Yes." Jin Yong's eyes lit up. "That puts things in perspective."
Shen continued, "If we're only looking at the numbers, of course Yang Wendong stands to benefit more.
But from your standpoint, what are you going to do with that money right now?"
"Invest it in Ming Pao, of course," Jin Yong said without hesitation. "That's our real business."
"Exactly. So the decision comes down to this: what's more valuable—your future copyrights, or the impact of using that money to grow Ming Pao now?"
Jin Yong sat silently, then nodded again. "I get it now."
"Haha," Shen chuckled. "It's just a simple trade-off analysis. Whether it's worth it or not—it's still your decision."
"I understand," Jin Yong said. "If it can help Ming Pao develop faster, it's worth it. Honestly, I write novels to build this paper.
If we hadn't started our own company, and someone else had invited me to write for them, I probably wouldn't have said yes."
Shen nodded. "Then you should consider selling the future audio rights. If you can exchange them for funds now, it'll accelerate Ming Pao's development. That's definitely worth it.
Anyway, Yang Wendong isn't asking for lifelong rights."
...
By March, Jin Yong had sent word that he was willing to sell part of the rights—but not for ten books.
Yang met with him again. After a casual meal and chat, they finalized the deal: five future novels, for a total of 35,000 HKD.
The per-book price went up a bit, but Yang also gained selection rights—meaning if he wasn't satisfied with one novel, he could substitute the next.
In the end, Yang paid 55,000 HKD and obtained the audio rights for four existing titles and five future ones. Each license was valid for ten years.
"Pleasure doing business," Yang smiled once the deal was sealed.
"Likewise," Jin Yong said. "I hope you treat these works well and help more people discover the stories."
"Absolutely," Yang nodded.
Authors held a unique advantage: after writing a novel, they could sell the rights—and the buyer would often increase the novel's fame in the process through commercialization, whether via audio, television, or film.
And Jin Yong earned every cent, because he could write stories that people actually loved.
...
March 6th – Changxing Industrial Factory
Yang Wendong didn't head to the office as usual but went straight to the adjacent Phase Two site with several others.
After touring the construction area, he saw hundreds of workers laboring intensely and asked, "When's completion expected?"
Wei Zetao, who was accompanying him, answered, "Mr. Yang, if all goes according to plan, the structure will be done by the end of April.
The first workshop will be completed early, and equipment from Changsheng will be installed there first.
The rest will be installed gradually—about one new workshop per week. Within two months, all eight will be outfitted."
Yang asked, "So by June, Phase Two will be fully operational?"
Wei nodded. "In theory, yes. But there will be a ramp-up period due to staff training. We expect to hit full capacity by July."
Yang continued, "Post-it note production requires literate workers. Are we still able to recruit enough of those?"
"In the beginning, it was tough," Wei admitted. "The population around Tsim Sha Tsui was too small.
But now that we've started providing dormitories, it's much easier. People are lining up to apply—especially those we couldn't attract before."
"Looks like housing really is the key," Yang chuckled. "Now that our factory is growing, dorms are essential. But make sure they're safe."
Small factories could skip providing housing, but for big operations, it was a must. In Yang's past life, major factories like steelworks and electronics companies almost always offered staff accommodation.
The logic was simple: if the factory was too large for the surrounding community to house all its workers, they had to build dorms to keep production running smoothly.
Wei nodded. "Don't worry. I've enforced strict safety rules—no open flames or high-power appliances.
Meals and hot water are all centrally provided by the company to prevent fire risks."
"Good," Yang nodded.
With thousands of employees now living together, Yang finally understood why schools in his previous life banned high-powered electrical devices in dorms.
After reviewing the construction site, the group returned to Phase One, where they held a short meeting to discuss internal factory affairs.
Yang had begun delegating more authority, but he still needed to stay informed.
After the meeting, Yang visited the R&D department—the real reason for his visit.
Department head Hong Xuefei walked over and said with a smile, "Mr. Yang, it's done. Please come to the conference room."
"Alright." Yang nodded.
The group followed him down the corridor. At the far end, in a spacious room, stood over a dozen upright suitcases in various colors. The retractable handles were all extended.
Yang approached one, pressed the handle—it didn't move. Then he located the center button, pressed it, and the handle smoothly retracted into the suitcase.
Hong explained, "All the features match your specifications. The design is now complete."
"Excellent. Have the patents been filed?" Yang asked, examining the casing. The design indeed matched his vision.
There were many ways to implement retractable handles, but only the most practical ones survived market competition in his past life.
"All filed," Hong replied. "The legal department will deliver the documentation to your office this afternoon."
"Good." Yang gave the suitcase a tug—it rolled smoothly on its wheels.
"The materials we used are high-durability plastics," Hong added. "Once mechanical stress testing is done, we can start small-scale production."
"How long will the tests take?" Yang asked.
"Not long," Hong said. "Unlike hooks or spin mops, which involve glue and high-speed motion, suitcases only require strength testing and basic temperature endurance tests."
"Alright." Yang turned to Wei. "Are the supplier's new factory and machines ready?"
Wei answered, "Yes. Dehe Injection Molding has all 25 machines installed. It's enough to supply the Hong Kong market for now.
If sales go well, we'll scale up immediately."
"Perfect." Yang nodded. "Make sure we're also preparing the right distribution channels. In the beginning, these suitcases should only go to upscale locations."
In Hong Kong's current economy, cheap general stores weren't the right fit for this product. Only wealthier travelers and businesspeople could afford something like this—for now, it was a premium item.
Wei chuckled. "I've already contacted Zhao Chengguang. He's very interested in the new product. He should be arriving this afternoon."
"Good. Make sure he starts laying the groundwork early," Yang instructed. Then he added, "Also, send someone to Hong Kong Chinese Daily and ask them to schedule an ad for the suitcase before it launches. We want people to know what's coming."
Having his own media outlet made this kind of promotion easy. And since Hong Kong Chinese Daily targeted a higher-income demographic, there was plenty of overlap with the suitcase's target audience.
Wei nodded. "Understood. I'll take care of it right away."
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