Chapter 472 - 287: To Continue the Lost Teachings for Past Sages

Chapter 472: Chapter 287: To Continue the Lost Teachings for Past Sages

Lin Chu smiled and nodded.

After briefly touching upon the issue, they set it aside for the time being.

There was certainly no immediate answer to the question of an ’ideal’.

However, he had successfully completed his recent short-term goal: to contemplate the topic of love and romance. ℴ

His conversation with Bai Weiwei by Erhai lake in Dali had allowed him to see his own true nature clearly.

And after meeting, liking, and falling in love with Dongnya, Lin Chu also understood just what kind of woman he could truly ’fall in love’ with.

It really came down to two things.

First, she had to be strong. For example, Dongnya’s martial prowess was actually what moved him the most. Of course, this definition of ’strong’ wasn’t limited to physical strength; achieving outstanding success in any field would suffice. This would earn his ’respect’ and ensure she wouldn’t be seen as just a simple trophy wife.

Second, she had to be obedient—one hundred percent obedient, from her body to her soul.

That was why he always felt something was missing with the others before. But with a foreign woman, he had found the perfect score he was looking for.

’Isn’t this every man’s ideal wife?’

’After all, if you’re just playing around, you’d definitely only look for a trophy wife.’

’But whether it’s for love, starting a family, or having kids, the number one choice deep down is definitely the ’teammate’ type.’

...

After a night’s rest, Lin Chu arrived at SKP Mall the next morning.

It was considered one of the most high-end luxury malls.

As far as the eye could see, there were all sorts of top-tier brands: Hermes, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Gucci, Prada... and so on. The foot traffic was naturally high, despite the steep prices.

Although the Lc store also had customers, its brand recognition, popularity, and the customers’ purchasing power were clearly a far cry from these other brands.

However...

Its prices, on the other hand, were on par with them.

It was far from cheap.

From the very beginning, it had been positioned as extremely high-end.

Whether it could sustain those prices all depended on the meticulous operations to follow.

’I fucking wish I could acquire the LV Group...’

Standing at the entrance and looking at the Louis Vuitton store across the way, the thought quietly surfaced in Lin Chu’s mind. He couldn’t help but shake his head and smile, and in that instant, his heart began to beat a little faster.

It was a thrilling thought.

It wasn’t just thrilling; it also stirred a sense of inexplicable national pride. In the luxury goods sector, the domestic market was a virtual blank slate, completely dominated by foreign brands.

If he were to make a move, he would definitely take a two-pronged approach.

On one hand, he would build his own brand from scratch.

On the other hand, he would start acquiring others, buying up everything in sight. As long as he ’worked hard’ enough, he could grind out enough money.

As for what to do after acquiring them, foreign capital had already set a great precedent. The answer, of course, was to... shelve them, gradually phase them out, and absorb their supply chains and product lines completely.

In the early days of China’s economic opening, many famous domestic brands were killed off this way.

Now... decades had passed. It was a classic case of "the river flows east for thirty years, then west for thirty years." Given the current situation, Lin Chu estimated it wouldn’t be long before he could take things to that stage on a massive scale.

A market counter-attack!

And not just in the luxury sector, but in many other fields as well.

Of course...

Actually trying to acquire them wouldn’t be that easy. In fact, you could say it would be as hard as ascending to heaven.

Whether on the primary or secondary market, they would most likely never sell a golden goose like that.

It wasn’t even a matter of money.

In recent years, quite a few top-tier foreign brands, like Volvo, had been acquired by domestic capital, but that was only because the original brands were already suffering massive losses or were saddled with huge debts.

That kind of situation would never happen in an industry like luxury goods.

In this entire industry, the most valuable asset is the brand itself.

How much could the production cost of one bag possibly be?

Once a brand is successfully established, it becomes a money-making machine comparable to a printing press.

You could sell a plastic bag with a logo on it at a premium of several hundred, or even several thousand, times its cost.

As he thought about this, another realization dawned on Lin Chu: a shared ideological consensus, rooted deep in people’s hearts, is the most valuable thing in the world.

For example, the idea that you have to own a house to start a family.

Or that diamonds represent love.

Or that carrying a Louis Vuitton bag means you’re rich...

Of course, these so-called ’ideological consensuses’ were all forged bit by bit through various events and public opinion campaigns, over long periods of time, and at the cost of countless sums of money.

Heh.

’I’ll just think about it for now.’

’We’ll see later.’

’First, I should find a third-party company to estimate the feasibility. And as for the money, I need to step up my game and grind some more.’

With these thoughts in mind, Lin Chu called You Shaoqiang and asked with a casual smile, "I’m heading back to Peng City this afternoon. What are you up to?"

The United Youth Association and the Unity Association were both excellent platforms in the business world of Guangdong Province, one of the leading organizations.

The background, connections, and various networking channels they had accumulated over several decades were naturally nothing to scoff at.

If he really wanted a snake to swallow a whale, it would be best to borrow some strength if he could.

"This afternoon... I don’t have any plans. What time do you arrive? At the airport? I can pick you up."

Receiving Lin Chu’s call, You Shaoqiang’s voice couldn’t help but reveal a smile as he spoke with great warmth.

’Reliable.’

’Lin Chu is truly reliable.’

’To think he’d come all this way, traveling a great distance, just for this deal.’

’He’s doing me a huge favor.’

’Lowering my status to pick him up from the airport is no problem at all.’

"Sure, that’d save time. We can talk on the way. Also, I want to buy a company, and I’d like your advice."

Lin Chu agreed with a smile, his tone nonchalant.

"Huh? Which one are you thinking of buying?"

You Shaoqiang asked curiously.

The ultimate stage of financial freedom was the freedom to buy companies—to buy whichever one you wanted. In his mind, Lin Chu had clearly reached that level.

But his heart still skipped a beat.

This felt a bit like an ’unexpected complication’.

’Could Lin Chu be using this as an excuse to politely refuse the financing terms he agreed to a couple of days ago? Or... does he want to negotiate for more favorable terms?’

’Well... that wouldn’t be a problem, either.’

In an instant, all these thoughts surfaced in You Shaoqiang’s mind, leading to a whole Association of ideas.

"I want to buy... haha, the LV Group."

Lin Chu said with a half-joking, half-serious laugh, his tone slightly exaggerated.

’It’s a goal that sounds a bit too ambitious, but it’s not like there’s zero chance. It’s worth a shot, right?’

’Even if I can’t buy the whole thing, getting a portion of the shares would be fine too.’

’In any business transaction, there’s nothing that can’t be solved with money.’

You Shaoqiang: ...

’Alright then.’

’Haha.’

’I was overthinking it.’

He let out a dry laugh. For a moment, he was utterly speechless.

How could a company like that possibly be for sale?

Even if it were for sale, it would be at an astronomical price, countless times higher than its market value. Even if you paid a premium many times over to buy it, it would make no sense from a financial returns perspective.

At that moment, he just assumed Lin Chu was joking, so he replied with a teasing smile, "Sure, go ahead and buy it. In that case, there’s one I’d like to buy too. You buy Louis Vuitton, and I’ll buy Tesla."

But at least one thing was certain: the matter they had agreed upon earlier wouldn’t have any complications.

"Sure. It’s a deal,"

Lin Chu replied with a faint smile.

That tone...

You Shaoqiang suddenly felt that something was off. His heart skipped a beat as he asked in disbelieving astonishment, "Wait, you’re not actually serious about buying it, are you?"

’No way, right?’

’Is he crazy?’

’What kind of league is Louis Vuitton in?’

’Its market cap is several hundred billion USD, nearly two trillion RMB. On the domestic A-shares market, that’s on the level of the Moutai Group!’

’How could he possibly have that much money?’

"We’ll talk about it when I get back. I’ll arrive at six-thirty this afternoon. No rush. Let’s grab dinner tonight."

Lin Chu said casually with a smile, exchanged a few more pleasantries, and then hung up the phone.

Just as he’d expected, even a top-tier rich second-generation like You Shaoqiang thought the idea was insane.

Objectively speaking, it was indeed extremely crazy.

But... let’s do it!

Time to grind for money!

Let’s go!

Damn, if I could actually pull this off, I’d truly... go down in history.

That would be so fucking awesome.

...

...