83: Let's go, my Africa!

Liu Qi was very surprised when he received the notice from Lu Weibing; why on earth was he being asked if he would consider going to Africa?

That's right, this was the same Liu Qi who was the first to purchase a shining 1 on Pinduoduo. He successfully joined Red Star last year, and because his professional skills were quite good, his salary had risen to 7,000 yuan a month this year.

For a recent graduate who had only been out of school for a few years, he was quite satisfied with this current salary. The main thing was that there was room for growth at Red Star, and the boss liked to hand out bonuses at the drop of a hat.

The most, most, most important point was that he really liked the food cooked in the company cafeteria, and it was free.

Especially those Explosion-filled Fried Dough Twists that were said to have been improved through multiple processes; Liu Qi had to have one every day.

The kind that would be gone if you arrived late.

Now, being asked to abandon the familiar environment of the Beijing for an unfamiliar region—and a place like Africa that sounded terrifying—Liu Qi's first reaction was to refuse.

There was a legend in the company that whenever Mr. Chen, Chen Chen, found an employee disagreeable, he liked to say, "Transfer him to the Africa department." The problem was that Red Star had no business in Africa, nor did it have a department there.

The subtext was that they were fired.

To be honest, in the year or so since joining Red Star, Liu Qi could be described as conscientious, winning the praise of his leaders with his professional skills. Now, suddenly being exiled to Africa, no one would be able to take it.

Since the company's founding, no one had ever been exiled to Africa before.

But after hearing Manager Lu finish explaining the salary, Liu Qi was instantly tempted. The first batch of employees going to pioneer the market were given the maximum annual salary. Right now, his monthly salary was 7,000; counting bonuses and year-end awards, it was just over 100,000 a year.

If he went to Africa, his monthly salary would double immediately, plus there were extra subsidies. In total, he could take home more than 250,000.

Manager Lu also said that as long as they did well, the first batch of personnel going to Africa would be the first-tier candidates for promotion in the future African Business Department.

Liu Qi was very tempted by the salary for a very simple reason: he needed money.

He was only in his twenties, yet he could earn such a high annual salary and have hopes for promotion. If he worked for a few more years, he might even be able to afford a down payment in the Beijing.

Just as Liu Qi was immersed in the fantasy of getting promoted, getting a raise, and marrying a wealthy African beauty, his colleague Zhi Peng walked over.

"Brother Liu, what are you thinking about so intently? You even forgot to eat your fried dough twist. If you don't eat it, I will."

"Eat it, eat it. I don't have an appetite right now."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony."

Zhi Peng took the fried dough twist from Liu Qi's tray and began to eat it in large bites. Only after swallowing a mouthful did he remember to ask what Manager Lu wanted with Liu Qi.

"Brother Liu, I saw Manager Lu looking for you just now. What did he talk to you about? It couldn't be a promotion, could it?"

Liu Qi gave a bitter laugh and said:

"What promotion? Manager Lu wants me to go to Africa to be in charge of new business."

"Exiled to Africa?"

Being in the company, Zhi Peng naturally knew what being put in charge of African business meant; it almost slipped out of his mouth.

Realizing he had misspoke, Zhi Peng quickly changed his tune:

"Brother Liu, I didn't mean that. I meant, it's just..."

He thought for a long time but couldn't figure out how to express it. Being sent to handle African business was almost synonymous with being fired. The problem was that Liu Qi was doing a good job, so why fire him?

"Um, Brother Liu, is there some misunderstanding? Manager Lu praised you last month. Why would he suddenly lay you off? I'll go find him with you. He has to give us an explanation."

Liu Qi pulled the excited Zhi Peng back down, signaling him to sit. "It's not a layoff. He really wants me to be in charge of new business in Africa."

This made Zhi Peng even more confused. The company had no business in Africa, so what would he be in charge of there?

"It's to have me pioneer the African market. The company is preparing to expand overseas, and I'm to be responsible for setting up the advance post in Africa."

"Hah, you should have said so earlier! You gave me a fright; I thought you were being laid off."

"Going to Africa must mean a promotion and a raise for you, right? Tell me how much they added. If it's good, I'll apply to Manager Lu too."

Like Liu Qi, Zhi Peng was part of the same batch of employees recruited by Red Star. Because they were of similar age, in the same department, and both liked playing League of Legends in their spare time, they quickly became close friends who shared everything.

Unlike Liu Qi, Zhi Peng's father had undergone surgery for stomach cancer when he was in high school, and he relied entirely on his sister and mother to put him through university.

Zhi Peng placed even more importance on money and salary.

"The salary doubles, and with various subsidies, Manager Lu said it's about 250,000 in hand."

"250,000?!"

"That much?"

To be able to get such a high salary only two and a half years after graduation was something Zhi Peng wouldn't have dared to imagine before.

So what if it was Africa? So what if it was a bit hard and tiring? For Zhi Peng, who was born in the countryside, what did that matter?

He hadn't graduated from some prestigious university. To earn 250,000 a year would normally take many more years. Now, just by going to pioneer the African market for the company, he could get such a high salary. Zhi Peng was itching to drag Liu Qi to find Lu Weibing immediately.

"Don't get excited yet. This money isn't that easy to earn. Right now, the company knows nothing about the African market. We need to go do research and development. Although we'd be going to the more developed cities in Africa, you know how it is there—there's still a certain level of danger."

"Oh, and Manager Lu also said that future promotions in the African Business Department will prioritize the first batch of personnel. I'm still considering whether to go."

Zhi Peng was so excited he stopped eating his fried dough twist. He pulled Liu Qi up. "What's there to consider? Let's go apply to Manager Lu together."

"We brothers will go together and conquer the African market."

Lu Weibing hadn't expected that he had only just started talking to a few employees to gauge their willingness to go to Africa, yet in just two days, the framework for the Africa team had already been built.

All that was missing were a few lead bellwethers; otherwise, relying solely on those youngsters, nothing would definitely get done.

Then he remembered what Mr. Chen had told him a few days ago: "For the African market, phone batteries must be large, speakers must be loud, and running lights must be bright. It's best to make them triple or quadruple SIM on top of dual SIM standby."

"Also, the photography there needs special optimization to ensure that even black people can be beautified in photos."

"And equip them with heavy bass speakers and set up a matching photovoltaic charging system."

This experience was Chen Chen's only understanding of the African market, because in his previous life, he hadn't deeply understood how Transsion rose in Africa.

He only knew through short videos that Transsion used these methods to solve the pain points of African comrades, then proceeded to crush Nokia and kick Motorola aside.

Telling Lu Weibing was done in the hope that this experience would help the team going to Africa gain a foothold as quickly as possible.

In the end, for Red Star's African business advance team, Lu Weibing chose a man named Xu Han as the captain. This person had worked at Red Star for many years, and his abilities were certain.

Making Liu Qi the vice-captain was because the kid had drive, was quite clever, and had excellent professional skills. Even if he wasn't sent to Africa, Lu Weibing had planned to focus on cultivating him.

Just like that, an advance team of dozens of people, having processed their visas the day before the Red Star Mobile Phone launch event, set off for their first stop in Africa—Nigeria.

PS: This book won't have Transsion, haha. Because Zhu Zhaojiang entered the African market as early as around 2006. If Red Star enters in 2013, they'd probably be beaten senseless by them. I will try my best to replicate Transsion's development in Africa. Thank you, everyone.