National Tide 1980

Catherine Deneuve brings unexpected good news to Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé.

That day, she, Ning Weimin, and Matsumoto Keiko discussed the general framework for investing in Saint Laurent Company. As soon as she drove back to her manor, she was extremely excited and called her friends to bring the news.

She was triumphant and claimed in a showy tone that she had found a rich man from the East who was willing to give their company 500 million francs to replace the investors who had withdrawn their capital.

But the current problem is 500 million francs, which can only be paid in installments, which can be paid off within four months.

And when it is finally determined, the other party still needs to interview her two friends about the shareholding ratio and some cooperation conditions.

That's what she said.

This is no small matter.

As soon as the news spread, it caused shock to the owners and top managers of the Yves Saint Laurent Company.

For Yves Saint Laurent, the founder of the company, because he is not involved in the company's actual operations, he only knows that the company's lack of money situation can be solved, which greatly alleviates his depression and mental anxiety.

However, for general manager Pierre Bergé, who runs the company every day and does practical things, the effect is exactly the opposite.

He does not have the innocence of an artist and is completely different from Henry Lacamie, the president of LV.

So he had to worry about Kathleen acting hastily and attracting wolves into the house.

And he also understands that this kind of interview is not a casual matter, and requires him to do a lot of accounting work.

What's more, after a night, Catherine Deneuve continued to call them early the next morning, and actually added another situation.

He said that the rich man from the East was here for his honeymoon. Due to visa issues, he might not be able to stay in France for long. He was afraid of long nights and dreams, so he hoped to arrange a meeting as soon as possible.

This made Pierre feel even more pressure.

Needless to say, this is a long and tiring job.

Pierre had to hide some operating data that was not convenient for outsiders to disclose, but he also needed to bring investment confidence to this oriental rich man, letting him see that Yves Saint Laurent's business potential has not been exhausted, and that there is a natural potential in the ready-to-wear market. brand advantage.

Even if the founder's physical and mental condition is not good, the market still buys into the brand.

So Pierre and the company's financial staff hurriedly got together.

As a model boss, he also takes the initiative to work overtime, which is no different from Chinese people.

Even the financial staff was off work, and he was still burying his head in the paperwork.

After a full day and night, everything was basically ready until dawn.

But the meeting could only be arranged in the evening of this day, because Pierre was too tired and needed to catch up on his sleep.

But what was unexpected, and even more tragic, was that that night, after the introduction of Catherine Deneuve, Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent finally met this mysterious oriental rich man and him. After meeting the newlywed wife.

Only then did Pierre realize that all his hard work seemed to be in vain.

Because the other party was fundamentally interested in the financial data he provided, and only cared about the company's debt ratio and operating profit, he put aside his carefully compiled financial statements and related documents.

The other party did not even ask for detailed reading of these documents or time to think about it, but made it clear that they wanted to invest and hoped to get straight to the point and enter substantive negotiations immediately.

Although this kind of unconventional refreshing is a good thing, Pierre will inevitably feel a little aggrieved and even feel sorry for himself.

He seems to feel that his work has not been respected as it should be, and that the other party should be more cautious to be truly sincere.

"Sir, don't you take a closer look? According to the usual practice, you must fully understand our company's financial situation before we can negotiate. Otherwise, I doubt how long your investment confidence can be maintained. We need funds That’s true, but you should be careful when choosing shareholders. I don’t want you to regret it and ask me to withdraw your capital after a while..."

Unexpectedly, Ning Weimin said in an understatement, "It's really not necessary. This matter was caused by Kathleen. I believe her. What's more, Mr. Saint Laurent and this company are famous far and wide. I value investing in such a company more." It's not about short-term financial indicators, but about the value of the brand and the company's heritage. So you don't have to doubt my sincerity. I can assure you that I will never divest. So let's save some trouble. I will take the indicator document back and look at it later, but we should talk about some substantive issues now.”

These words not only showed strong confidence, but also quietly praised Catherine and Yves Saint Laurent, making them smile immediately.

However, Pierre is a shrewd and pragmatic businessman, and he is not so easy to fool.

Especially as an admirer and same-sex partner of Yves Saint Laurent, he has spent his life guarding this company to prevent undesirable coveting by young people.

Ning Weimin's sweet words were just clever words in his eyes, but they made him even more wary.

"No, no, that's not the case. No matter the status of Catherine or Saint Laurent in the industry, they cannot guarantee the safety of your investment. You must know one thing, any investment is risky. In the end, only you can Take it upon yourself. Frankly speaking, our company has always been an industry leader in the field of high-end fashion, but the process of entering the field of ready-to-wear manufacturing has not been smooth. But in order to achieve the goal of going public, we have only one way to increase our bets. Many shareholders withdrew their capital because they were not optimistic about our success, so if you decide to do this transaction, we will not bear any legal responsibility. And if the garment business fails, you will go to Kathleen again because of losses. She won't be of any help to you either."

It should be said that Pierre is indeed a qualified businessman, and he understands the necessity of vilification.

And whether it is warning, suspicion, or dissatisfaction, it is all expressed in a decent way, still leaving steps for both parties.

Pierre even took the opportunity to take Catherine's responsibility out of the matter.

As a partner, his innate quality can indeed eliminate many business risks.

It's just that the truth is always easy to offend people.

Beautiful women always pay too much attention to themselves.

After listening to Pierre's words, although Yves Saint Laurent himself had no objections, Catherine was not happy to be involved.

She needs to be held in someone's hand at all times. She cannot allow anyone to ignore her or despise her. This is related to her self-esteem.

So before Ning Weimin could speak, she started to condemn Pierre, as if Pierre was someone who deliberately undermined cooperation.

"Hey, Pierre, what are you doing! Are you trying to scare away my friends?"

On the contrary, Ning Weimin's words were much more pleasing and more in line with her wishes.

"No, I would never blame Kathleen for a loss. If that happened, I wouldn't blame my friend."

Katherine immediately expressed her appreciation, "Don't mind, Pierre is always nervous, as if he is surrounded by bad people. Isn't it Yves?"

As a result, Yves Saint Laurent was immediately embarrassed and in a dilemma.

"Aha!"

But Pierre snorted coldly when he was ridiculed by people who didn't know the best of people.

No matter Ning Weimin's unreasonable words sounded to him, or Kathleen's emotional revenge.

He felt extremely stupid, and he didn't want to see Yves, who had a weak personality, being led away by others.

So his patience was completely exhausted, and he didn't want to show his "pig teammates" this kind of "long live friendship" drama, so he criticized him unceremoniously.

"I'm sorry, young gentleman. With all due respect, now I really have to doubt your ability and your sincerity. This is not a child's game. Is this how you are responsible for your investment?" Especially if the money you are planning to invest does not entirely belong to you, then you are committing a crime against those who provided it to you. Although no judge will judge you, it is definitely unethical behavior. You can't betray those who trust you and give you money because of your own attitude."

Obviously, in the opinion of Pierre who said this, it is impossible for Ning Weimin to own such a huge amount of wealth at his age.

Moreover, he cannot respect such a partner. This is against his business ethics and may bring unpredictable risks.

Yes, he did hate this person, and he was convinced that Ning Weimin was not trustworthy.

However, just when he was already thinking about how to persuade the two partners to give up the investment and refused to accept new shareholders to join.

What happened next was so bizarre.

Ning Weimin's reaction not only shocked him, but even shocked him, causing his thinking to almost shut down.

"Mr. General Manager, have you misunderstood something? In view of your doubts, I need to state that the funds I use to invest in your company are my personal property. I have no possibility of letting others down. In fact, I only Just take responsibility for me and my wife.”

"What? The five hundred million francs are all your personal assets!"

When Pierre, who was already in his fifties, heard these words, he was as dumb as Alain Delon and Catherine Deneuve. He was stunned and in disbelief.

He never expected that Ning Weimin would have such wealth at such a young age.

As soon as he said it casually, he almost got slapped in the face.

And it wasn't over yet, just when he felt ashamed, ashamed and extremely embarrassed.

As if he felt his situation, Ning Weimin immediately took the initiative to show full recognition of his point of view and put steps under his feet.

"However, Mr. General Manager, I still agree with your point of view. In my opinion, although your words just now are full of doubts about me, it is enough to prove that you are a qualified business manager. It proves that you have strong morals. "

"What?"

Ning Weimin's words made everyone except Matsumoto Keiko stunned on the spot.

Because I have seen people who are easy to talk to, but I have never seen anyone who is so easy to talk to.

In their view, Ning Weimin had reason to be angry when Pierre repeatedly questioned him and targeted him every time.

It’s already good if you don’t turn away and refuse to negotiate.

Unexpectedly, he actually turned around and praised the person who made things difficult for him. They still couldn't understand such generosity.

However, Kathleen, who was worried that the negotiations would fail, finally settled down.

"So, you still plan to continue investing?" She asked happily.

"Sir, Pierre is indeed a... qualified business manager. I can absolutely guarantee this. If you really think so, then... that would be great. I believe we will get along harmoniously."

Yves Saint Laurent, a shy genius, finally had the courage to intervene and endorse his old friend.

The person involved, Pierre, felt a little disoriented.

However, human nature will never change. He looked at his two partners, but he was not in a hurry.

He simply said straightforwardly, "Sir, it's not enough to just say nice things. Even if you have confidence in me, I don't have confidence in you. Frankly speaking, I can't find anything trustworthy in you. You You have to prove this to me. Yes, our company is in urgent need of funds, but if you want to truly become a shareholder, it is not enough to have funds.”

As soon as these words were said, everyone fell silent, and there was a discordant silence.

But precisely because of this, what he never expected was that Ning Weimin would agree with him again.

"Yeah, what you said is great, and I think so too. There is no point in cooperating with partners. For the development of a company, in the long run, funds are far less important than people. So in order to be able to To win your trust, I will first give a detailed explanation of my own investment intentions. I hope that Mr. General Manager and Mr. Yves Saint Laurent can have a deep understanding of my ideas. I have this confidence. We are here. It’s entirely possible for us to be partners in a mutually trustworthy relationship.”

Pierre made eye contact with the others and saw that even Katherine had a puzzled look on her face, becoming increasingly confused at this time.

"I think, although I don't know where your confidence comes from, I have no reason to object, please tell me."

As a result, everyone's eyes were all fixed on Ning Weimin. So many eyes gathered together and clearly focused into a huge question mark - what kind of words could he say?

"Frankly speaking, when I personally made the decision to invest in Saint Laurent, in addition to hoping to help Catherine, the more important thing is to recognize the achievements of your company's founder, Mr. Yves Saint Laurent, in the fashion field, and the general manager. Mr. Saint Laurent is already an indispensable element in French fashion. Such a company and such a brand should be the first to go public, and if it is successfully listed, the rewards will be huge. Things we all know.”

"As for the development of things that may fail, I don't care. Because there have been countless design masters in the history of fashion for a century, but I have to say that Mr. Saint Laurent is the most special one. So special that even I, a Chinese from the East, I also know this. Even if it is a temporary failure, it doesn’t matter. Saint Laurent’s heritage will prove to the world that gold will shine in the end.”

"I don't mean to flatter, mainly from my personal point of view, I absolutely agree that the future era will be an era of female independence, so the unisex clothing design pioneered by Mr. Saint Laurent and good at it, I think it will become the future because of the changes of the times. Mainstream. This is the need of the times. And maybe Mr. General Manager and Mr. Saint Laurent don't know it yet. I also work for Pierre Cardon. I know the huge potential of the ready-to-wear market. This is the main source of my investment confidence. "

"However, despite this, I will not interfere in the management of Yves Saint Laurent and I will not seek a board seat. I understand that every company has its own characteristics and its own heritage, especially fashion companies, which need a distinctive style. , It is not allowed for outsiders to interfere randomly. I have this self-awareness, and my investment in Saint Laurent is purely for financial reasons. I also informed my boss, Mr. Pierre Cardon, and obtained his permission.”

"And just because I am an Oriental, I cannot stay in France for a long time. Therefore, I choose investment targets carefully. As long as the financial statements do not show a deficit, I will never bother you. In fact, even I will not become a shareholder of Yves Saint Laurent. I will record all the shares purchased for 500 million francs in my wife's name, for no other reason than that my wife invests in movies independently, and the movie industry is too risky. It’s high. My goal is to let my wife have an asset that is enough to guarantee her a prosperous life under any circumstances. If Yves Saint Laurent is listed, it should be able to do this, right?”

"As for the last thing I want to declare, my original intention of investing is to help my friends, not to cause trouble. What I pursue is to get along with you in harmony, a fair offer regarding the share of equity, and an investment that can share benefits with you in the long term. It's just a right. Isn't this too much? Are there any differences between our requirements? "

After saying this, not to mention the three partners of Yves Saint Laurent were moved and excited, even Matsumoto Keiko was moved and excited.

After all, Ning Weimin had never said these words to anyone before.

Think about it, which woman can remain calm when her husband frequently sends gifts of 500 million francs?

Not to mention, it can turn her into a shareholder of a French fashion brand.

If this deal is really done, it will be of great benefit to her fame and film career.

But Catherine is a little jealous of this.

After all, her love life has been full of scumbags, and her shares are all bought with her hard-earned money.

Seeing others so lucky, she can't help but feel jealous.