New Trends and Winds of Change

The celebration hosted by the President reached its climax with the arrival of the Vice Chairman of the Progressive Party.

The Chairman of the Progressive Party Committee was not present; the Chairman represented him in offering congratulations. This was not because there was any conflict between the Chairman and the president; in fact, the Progressive Party Leader were also absent.

These two individuals far surpass the current president in terms of status, position, and reputation. Their presence at the scene would cause considerable disruption to the public.

Are they surrounding the Chairman of the Progressive Party Committee and His Excellency the Party Leader, or are they surrounding the President? This dilemma could even create rifts between three people who were originally on good terms. These rifts might not be apparent on a daily basis, but they would eventually leave small gaps until one day, something happens that causes these problems to explode completely!

Therefore, neither of them attended the event, nor did they do anything to overshadow the host. They entrusted the Vice Chairman at the event, to represent them in celebrating the President's inauguration.

People still surrounded the president, watching the two men in the crowd chat and laugh with reverence and longing, and would occasionally burst into laughter at a joke that wasn't really funny but that made everyone else laugh.

To live to this extent—referring to the two people within sight of others—is not a wasted life, having killed two hundred million brothers and sisters to come into this world.

"Mr. Lin Qi!"

As Lin Qi held his wine glass, gazing at the most bustling scenery in the distance, a very unfamiliar voice appeared beside him. He turned around and glanced over, only to see a well-dressed gentleman and his female companion.

The man looked to be about forty-four or forty-five years old. His beard was neatly trimmed, which made him look younger than his actual age.

"Hello, I didn't know you were..." Lin Qi nodded politely and extended his hand.

The latter also reached out and shook his hand, and introduced herself, "You can call me Clayton, and this is my wife."

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Clayton!"

And so the two became acquainted. Clayton didn't exchange many pleasantries and went straight to the point about why he had come over to meet Lin Qi: "I heard that you started a secondhand goods exchange and auction in York State, and that it's doing quite well. Is that true?"

Lin Qi nodded in agreement. Many things might be kept from the general public, but these things would not be kept from politicians and capitalists.

Power and wealth are always the supreme passports in this society, and they are extremely useful at any time and in any place.

What Lin Qi did in York State is something that anyone with the right to know can easily find out, so he doesn't need to deny it.

Clayton continued, "You know, they're all in cahoots..." He gestured with his index finger, holding his wine glass, roughly pointing to a group of people, mainly politicians. "Where I'm located, there's a desire to promote this form of commodity circulation, and I have a small question I'd like your help with, is that alright?"

Lin Qi took a sip of his wine. "Why not? Tell me what you think, maybe we can discuss it."

"I knew it! You're a very approachable person. We'll definitely become friends!" Clayton's behavior left Lin Qi somewhat puzzled. He wasn't sure if this was Clayton's true nature, or if this was the mask and persona he had chosen to project. But perhaps this was just his mask!

Everyone needs to have their own identity and persona to live in this society. This may seem a bit... strange, but it is the truth.

This applies not only to the Upper Class but also to the lower class.

When a person begins to explore their memories and impressions of those around them, they can always think of those who left a deep impression on others. The impression these people give is their persona and positioning, as well as their own understanding of how they are needed by society.

Some people are good at listening and communicating, and they have many friends. When some people encounter some upsetting things, they often confide in them.

Some people seem carefree, even a bit reckless, and it seems to have become commonplace to be contradicted by such people occasionally.

Everyone will put on a mask that suits them according to their own circumstances. Perhaps what Lin Qi is seeing now is Clayton's mask.

Of course, Lin Zi himself also has it.

"I'm dealing with some issues in my city. Recently, the Police Station in our city has become much more efficient. They've cracked down on a lot of illegal dealers, but I've also run into some trouble."

"I have fewer and fewer secondhand goods on hand, and some people bring things to me to sell, but they ask for higher prices. When we sell these goods, we guide them to a clear price point, which makes the work of buying and reselling not profitable enough. How do you solve these problems?"

Clayton's explanation was somewhat rambling and even a bit incoherent, but fortunately Lin Qi understood it. He basically meant that the secondhand market in his area didn't trade frequently, and once they sold out of their secondhand goods, they would face the problem of having nothing left to sell.

At the same time, those who sell second-hand goods have also become cunning. Auctions have given them a general idea of how much second-hand goods can be priced. They already know what kind of goods can be sold for how much.

Therefore, it has become quite difficult to acquire these second-hand goods at very low prices and resell them for profit.

There may also be some political pressure involved. When a policy becomes mainstream and is implemented, if it is blocked or difficult to implement in some places, people will not consider the role played by ordinary people in this matter, but whether the leaders are qualified.

After a moment's thought, Lin Qi gave his answer, "You can sell some brand-new goods. As far as I know, warehouses in many places are now full of unopened products, and people will be more interested in these things."

Clayton frowned. "But the owners of these goods won't easily sell them to me at very low prices, especially recently, with our new president taking office and some new rumors circulating that the physical economy will gradually recover!"

"I've also met some people who always tell me that they will never sell anything to me until they go bankrupt!"

After Clayton finished speaking, he angrily picked up his glass and took a big gulp, while his wife, with an apologetic smile, apologized to Lin Qi and Sai Weiruila.

The phenomenon he described stems from the Federal's future international policies. The Federal market is nearing saturation, but there is still a large market in the International Community.

This is also what the new president needs to do: open up markets for Federal merchants' goods. Once he does that, the unsold stockpiled goods in the country will soon be able to generate enough money to revitalize a stagnant industrial city.

This has also led some people to wait, and they won't rush to deal with the things in the warehouse unless they encounter some serious financial problems.

Lin Qi pursed his lips after listening. "Mr. Clayton, if you had paid attention to what you just said, you would have realized that they actually gave you a solution!"

Seeing Clayton's blank expression, Lin Qi explained, "They said they won't sell you the stuff until they go bankrupt, so just let them go bankrupt."

"Banks, governments, and workers who are owed wages—there's always someone who can make their financial situation even worse, until they either compromise or go bankrupt."

Clayton, who was about to listen to Lin Qi's long-winded explanation, was suddenly stunned by his "solution." He couldn't even think of a word to describe his feelings at that moment.

"We are businessmen, Mr. Clayton. All we pursue is profit and people who can bring us profit. As for those people you mentioned, becoming friends with them will not bring you any benefit, but making them bankrupt will solve your current troubles and bring you huge profits, so why not make them bankrupt?"

This statement makes so much sense that it's hard to find a way to refute it.

After a long pause, Clayton finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You know what? At this moment, I feel like you're more like one of those people in finance here at Bu Peien's than an entrepreneur."

The financiers in Bu Peien's group are very famous throughout the Federal, especially some of their teams, which are notorious for their favorite trick: packaging and selling off a company's core profitable projects and then having other businesses file for bankruptcy to reap huge profits.

They don't care at all what will happen to other people and companies in the future; all they care about is the money they are about to receive and the money they have already received.

This is actually an irreconcilable contradiction between traditional entrepreneurs and financial upstarts in society today. For these people who are engaged in capital operations and playing financial games, the value of a company is to eventually sell it for more profit.

What entrepreneurs value is a kind of inheritance, a humanistic sentiment that may seem laughable to financial professionals. This has led to many traditional enterprises being gradually left behind by some emerging enterprises!

This is a very sad thing, but it is also a trend in global development, and future entrepreneurs will understand this more and more.

It's better to boast well than to do well.

It's better to sell well than to boast good things!