February 4, Lichun, 7pm, Hong Kong, Kai Tak Airport.

Shen Chong followed the flow of people, walked out of the airport, and saw Li Kaiyuan guarding the airport at a glance, southern girls are generally petite, her figure of one meter seven is very eye-catching in the crowd.

"What, don't give a warm hug?" Walking in front of Li Kaiyuan, Shen Chong put down his luggage, opened his arms, and pretended to be pitiful and said: "After staying in the wild land of ice and snow for a week, my whole body is frozen. ”

This is in the previous life, a love master taught Shen Chong how to deal with this kind of scene, two men and women who have just had a small breakthrough in their relationship, after being separated for a period of time, when they meet again, there will be inexplicable embarrassment, at this time it is best to do some simple physical contact, which is conducive to emotional exhibition.

"Flim Flam." Despite saying this, Li Kaiyuan still walked up and hugged Shen Chong.

"I miss you so much."

"Hmm."

Ah Worm on the side lifted Shen Chong's luggage and whistled, and Li Kaiyuan, who was teasing, turned slightly red, showing a rare shyness.

"Worm, are you alright?" Shen Chong pointed to the band-aid on Ah Worm's forehead, he had a conflict with a group of pirated Rubik's cubes two days ago, and he was slightly injured.

"It's okay, skin trauma." Ah Worm carried the luggage into the air, showed off his muscles and said, "Don't worry, Brother Chong, I can fight." ”

"Don't do it again." Shen Chong patted Ah Worm's shoulder and said, "If the porcelain doesn't touch the clay pot, you are now a white-collar elite, and you can't fight and kill." ”

"They're stealing our business, so what's not going to happen." Ah Worm was full of the atmosphere of the rivers and lakes, "Brother Chong, you can't admit it, if you take a step back, people will go further, and in a few days, all the territory will be snatched away by them." ”

"Don't worry, I know what to do."

Holding Li Kaiyuan's soft hand, when he walked out of the airport, Shen Chong threw himself to the ground with the five-body body that he admired as a master of love in his previous life, and sure enough, as he said, he tried to eliminate the embarrassment when he met, and the relationship would immediately go to a higher level.

Before the Spring Festival, Shen Chong bought a car in the name of the company, and now Ah Worm has two jobs, he is the one who delivers the goods, and he is the one who picks up and drops off the employees.

"In January, a total of more than 120,000 Rubik's cubes were sold, of which about 30,000 were mirror Rubik's cubes, making a total of more than 8oo yuan." On the way, Li Kaiyuan roughly reported the sales number of the Rubik's Cube, although she made a lot of money, she looked sad, "In recent days, there have been more and more pirated copies, and sales have fallen sharply." ”

"It doesn't matter, Hong Kong will let them rob it." Shen Chong smiled and said, "Let's go earn dollars." ”

"Have you found an agent in the U.S.?" Li Kaiyuan was pleasantly surprised.

"Not yet, but I have found a first-level advertising person, and I believe that it will not be long before orders will fly like snowflakes."

"Bragging again!" said so, but in his expression, he believed Shen Chong's words.

Shen Chong still lives in the original house - but his identity has changed, he used to be the owner, and now he is a tenant. Before the Spring Festival, Wen Renjie's wife was now pregnant, and decided to wait for the child to be born before moving over, Shen Chong was too lazy to change places, so he rented the boat and continued to live.

After flying from Boston to Hong Kong for more than 18 hours, Shen Chong was exhausted, and when he got home, he hurriedly took a shower and then slept with his head covered.

The next day, Shen Chong was awakened by hunger, looked at the time, and it was already noon.

"It's a pity that there is no Taobao, otherwise it would be so cool to order a takeout and continue to sleep!"

Barely got up, while dressing, while nostalgic for the past house life, and then suddenly realized, time flies so fast, more than a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

Humans are truly adaptable animals...... Gotta hurry to make a movie......

Shen Chong walked out of the house in a cranky way, found a random place, ate and drank a meal, and then walked slowly to the company.

Before going to the United States, Shen Chong set up the company's financial office and business department, and now the office hall is no longer deserted during the previous foursome period.

Shen Chong called Li Kaiyuan, Huang Xin and A Worm to his independent office and held a meeting.

"Sister Xin, and Ah Worm, you are the elders of the company, the company can do well, and you have worked hard." After looking at the sales figures for January, Shen Chong said, "I am ready to give each of you 1% of the company's shares as a reward." ”

Huang Xin was surprised and delighted, she was idle and bored, looking at Li Kaiyuan's face to help, she didn't expect to make much money, she didn't sign the contract when she came to work, she didn't expect the company to show so fast, she made millions a month, she was dizzy when she saw the numbers, and she regretted every day that she didn't invest some money to be a shareholder, and now she can get a 1% stake and divide tens of thousands of bonuses every month, which is also comforting.

Ah Worm didn't have any idea about this, just thanked him with a big grin.

"Now that piracy is rampant, we have to change our product strategy." After talking about the shares, Shen Chong began to talk about the new plan, "Our product packaging is too simple, and piracy is easy to fake and real, so I decided to sell the Rubik's Cube in the future, all of which must have a packaging box, and the box is beautifully made, and it comes with a dIy sticker and a play guide." ”

"It's going to cost a lot more, isn't it?" Li Kaiyuan asked: "What about the price, unchanged?" ”

"The local price in Hong Kong remains the same, so it should be a big reward for vomiting blood."

Everyone laughed, even if the packaging was changed, the cost would not rise much, at the current price, it was still profitable, and it was crazy to make money, and it was shameless to say that it was a big reward.

"Hong Kong is a small place, and it can only make a small amount of money, which is not worth paying special attention to." Shen Chong took out one from the pile of reports, held it up and gestured: "The Japanese have already come to ask for the price, we have to prepare early." Japan, Europe, the United States, these places are full of gold, people are stupid and have a lot of money, and it is the best for our products. ”

"Since there's gold everywhere." Li Kaiyuan smiled and said disdainfully: "Why didn't you see that you brought a piece back from the United States?"

"How do you know I didn't bring it?" Shen Chong turned the pen in his hand and said casually: "The gold is too heavy, I will consign it directly, and you will see it in a few days." ”

"Is it true?"

"Of course it's true, do you see that I've told a lie?" Shen Chong put down his pen and said, "Sister Xin, if you recruit some people in the next few days, it is best to have foreign trade work experience, otherwise you may not be able to cope with it after a while." ”

"Okay." Huang Xin picked up the note and wrote it down, she became more and more respectful of Shen Chong, she used to joke, but now she is very restrained, "How many people are recruited?" ”

"Let's recruit ten first."

"What kind of big list, so many people?" Li Kaiyuan was anxious and couldn't wait to ask: "Don't sell it, tell the truth!" ”

"There was a respected man who promised to help me advertise in a magazine with millions of readers around the world." Shen Chong held the back of his head with both hands, leaned back in the chair, and said proudly: "You said that after the magazine is ready, will there be many orders?" ”

"What big shot?" Ah Worm, who had been silent, said, "Is it the president of the United States?" ”

"If I had that ability, I wouldn't have sold Rubik's Cubes." Shen Chong laughed and said, "This person's name is Martin Gardner, he is a mathematical science writer, you just need to know that he is very famous and influential, and then sit back and wait for the money." ”

That's right, the reason why Shen Chong stayed in the United States for a few more days before returning to Hong Kong was precisely to visit this Martin Gardner, "the national wealth of the United States." (Note 1)

Previously, Shen Chong was attracted by Wen Renjie's interesting math book and became interested in the author, Martin Gardner, and after Wen Renjie's inquiry, he learned that he was a columnist for the popular science magazine "Scientific American".

Shen Chong has no concept of this magazine, subconsciously thinks that popular science magazines are very niche, so he doesn't care too much, this Spring Festival, in the basement of his uncle's house, he has a whole big box of "Scientific American", one issue at a time, placed year by year, the earliest can be traced back to the 2o years.

This surprised Shen Chong, and after asking, he learned that Scientific American has a great influence in the United States.

Founded in 1845, Scientific American is the longest continuous magazine in the United States, and is also the sister journal of the famous Science (SNETSCE), with nearly 100 Nobel laureates writing for it, including the famous Albert Einstein, which is the world's most famous and best-selling popular science magazine, with more than 50,000 regular subscribers in the United States alone, and can be bought at newsstands on the streets. (Note 2)

If you ask Martin Gardner, it is even more amazing, he is a household name in the United States, along with Asimov and Carl Sagan, and is known as one of the three major science masters in the United States, is considered one of the smartest people in the world, has appeared on the cover of Life and Newsweek magazines, and is as well-known as a Hollywood superstar.

The authors who write in Scientific American are experts in various fields of science and technology, and few people can publish more than two articles in this magazine, and Gardner has opened a column on math games in Scientific American since 1957, focusing on interesting mathematics, and has written for more than 2o years, almost every month, no less than 2oo articles, and his column has become the trump card of the magazine, which is widely popular and has fans all over the world.

Asimov once said of Gardner: "Martin Gardner is an amateur magician, there is no doubt about it. But compared to one of his housekeeping skills, the magic trick is nothing more than a drop in the bucket. Any mathematical subject can be written in his hands, and it can be written into an elegant and vulgar article, which is indescribably wonderful, and I can't help but love it. ”

After listening to Jane's introduction, Shen Chong recalled the math book that kept him in his hands, and then a crazy idea popped up in his mind - if Gardner could write an article about the Rubik's Cube and publish it in Scientific American, wouldn't it be overnight that the Rubik's Cube would be able to enter the American market?

Shen Chong thought so, and then did the same.

He first went to New York, found the editorial office of Scientific American magazine, disguised himself as a fan who had come from far away to make a pilgrimage from the far East, and successfully deceived the magazine's staff into trusting him to obtain Martin Gardner's home address.

Then I flew out of New York and flew straight to Cleveland County, Ohlahoma, where I found Martin Gardner.

Things went unexpectedly smoothly, Gardner was thinking about writing an article about group theory, and the mathematical principle of the Rubik's Cube was precisely related to group theory, the old man was very interested in it, Shen Chong threw out the concept of "God's number" in time, hung the old man's appetite, and after playing with the Rubik's Cube all night, Gardner finally agreed to write an article about the Rubik's Cube in the next magazine column. (Note 3)

With the influence of Scientific American and Gardner's prestige, it is foreseeable that a tidal wave of orders will flood in, and it will really be time to make money and earn cramps......

After the meeting and everyone left, Shen Chong picked up a magazine and read it.

This is what he just bought at a roadside newsstand, the second issue of "Movie Fortnightly", when this issue was published, he was already on the plane to the United States, and he had not seen it.

After flipping through it in a hurry, Shen Chong shook his head and casually threw the magazine on the desk.

is still too niche, in the words of later generations, it is too petty bourgeoisie + literary youth.

A few movie reviews are either moaning without illness, or difficult to understand, everyone buys movie magazines, the picture is a fun, who is interested in watching you sad and sad? Who is interested in seeing you drag the paperwork B?

Math is so difficult, Gardner can write funny, film reviews are interesting, popular, is it difficult?

There is still a problem with positioning, either it is purely high-end, playing professional, or it is purely popular, doing entertainment, now this kind of is not up or down, professionals can't look at it, the general public can't read it, there is no feature, how can sales go up!

It's no wonder that Cinema Fortnight had a hard time before it was acquired.

It's better for me to go into battle myself and relieve you as soon as possible......

Shen Chong picked up the phone on the desk and dialed Shu Qi's number.

After greeting the New Year and greeting a few words, Shen Chong said, "Editor-in-chief Shu, are you free at night?" I'll invite you to dinner and discuss something. ”

"Okay, I'll see you at the place last time."

Putting down the phone, Shen Chong smiled slightly, he looked for Shu Qi, on the one hand, to inquire about Xu Anhua's recent movements, and on the other hand, he wanted to acquire "Film Fortnightly".

Since the time of crossing, Shen Chong has been like a glutton, salivating over "Film Fortnightly", he has been knocking on the side to inquire about the details of "Film Fortnightly", and knows that it is not difficult to acquire it.

If you want to talk about "Film Biweekly", you have to talk about Tang Shuxuan, a strange woman in the Hong Kong film industry.

Tang Shuxuan is the granddaughter of the famous warlord Tang Jiyao of the Republic of China, settled in Hong Kong in her early years, and was later admitted to the film department of the University of Southern California in the United States, and found an investment after graduation, and returned to Hong Kong in 1966 to shoot the film "Mrs. Dong", which was filmed in 1969, and was the first Hong Kong film to receive wide attention at Western film festivals, and won several Golden Horse Awards.

In 1975, Tang Shuxuan founded the biweekly "Big Close-up", which was printed on ordinary paper, not with celebrity nude photos as the cover, but dominated by text content, so that Hong Kong film magazines are no longer just pictorials to read, but books that can be read.

"Big Close-up" does not have a strict administrative management system, its editorial office is open, authors and readers can visit at any time, and the editorial office often holds salons or symposiums, so "Big Close-up" has become a platform for Hong Kong film lovers to communicate, gathering a group of young filmmakers and film critics.

However, "Big Close-up" has been in an amateur state in terms of operation, repeatedly losing money, and Tang Shuxuan is preparing to get married and leave Hong Kong, and the magazine finally ceased publication in the first half of 1978.

After the closure of "Big Close-up", many young film lovers regretted it, and under Shu Qi's advocacy, a group of editors and authors of "Big Close-up" founded "Film Biweekly", which was published by many people with fund-raising, everyone was a shareholder, and there was no major shareholder.

Because of this, the magazine is very chaotic, with unclear positioning, unclear characteristics, and poor sales, which can only be circulated among niche readers.

If you want to expand your influence in the film industry, it is very necessary to master a media, although "Film Biweekly" is very frustrating now, but the potential is huge, it has a historical origin, has a reputation and popularity, and is rich in interpersonal resources, and the source of the manuscript is stable.

Besides, "Film Fortnightly" is in hand, and the Hong Kong Film Awards, isn't it also in the bag?

This is Shen Chong's ultimate goal......

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Note 1: World-renowned evolutionary scientist, paleontologist, historian of science, and science essay writer, Stephen Gould praised Martin Gardner as "America's national treasure."

Note 2: The number jù here is based on the sales of Scientific American magazine in 2oo5 and should not be taken seriously.

Note 3: The number of gods refers to the minimum number of restoration steps after any third-order Rubik's cube is shuffled.

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