Chapter 53: The Way of Business

  I hope to make further progress in ranking and I hope everyone can help.

  "Looking at your complexion, you seem to have something on your mind." Ren Xiang glanced at Xiao Hong's forced smile and said softly: "If I had to guess, it should be that the pharmacy business is not doing well, right?"

  Ren Xiang's words cut deep, and Xiao Hong nodded with a bitter smile, his expression filled with helplessness.

  "Come on, let's go eat and we'll all think of a way to help you out. I feel like your business model is not right." Ren Xiang said, pulling Xiao Hong's arm. Obviously, this time he owed Xiao Hong a favor and should return it. More importantly, Ren Xiang's father was a shrewd businessman in Taiwu City, otherwise Ren Xiang wouldn't have spent so much money to build his team.

  What's more important is that Ren Xiang has been influenced by his family business since he was a child and has considerable experience in doing business.

  "This..." Xiao Hong hesitated for a moment, but at this time Huang Mao and Zhuang Hai had already pulled him up, all the way persuading him to get closer to the magic car, and instructed Xiao Hong Li Le to lock the door of the pharmacy and go together.

  Xiao Hongye didn't show too much resistance, and instead listened to the experiences of these people who had been socializing for years. After all, most of his own experiences were spent on magic patterns and his strange illness, so he was quite lacking in business acumen.

  Arriving at a wine building, it's clear that Huang Mao and others are already very familiar with this place. As they got off the magic pattern car, the gatekeeper carefully greeted them.

  "Hey, Huang Ge, it's been a long time since you've come back. I heard that the other side has launched a new product, congratulations!" The guard said respectfully.

  Huang Mao himself was also a big hoodlum of this generation back then, and only after following Ren Xiang did he "turn over a new leaf", but the change wasn't thorough, so who knows if he'll still gather his underlings and get into some brawls.

  At the Kyokai tournament, it's considered a weak faction, but in the underworld, it's also considered to be quite capable of fighting.

  Huang Mao glanced at the gatekeeper with a hint of disdain and struck a pose that said he couldn't be bothered.

  "Watch the carriage closely, we have noble guests today, don't cause any trouble for me." Huang Mao put on a proud expression and tossed a silver coin to the gatekeeper, then turned around and instantly changed into a respectful demeanor: "Hóng Gē, Xiáng Gē, please enter."

  Soon, Xiao Hong and others entered a luxurious private room. He had never been here before, but he didn't show too much discomfort.

  As the dishes were served, after exchanging a few pleasantries, Xiao Hong, who had never been one to beat around the bush, directly asked Ren Xiang: "You said earlier that my pharmacy's business model has problems, can you specifically tell me about it?"

  Ren Xiang didn't beat around the bush, thought for a moment, and said: "Before I answer this question, I'd like to ask Brother Hong, what is the ultimate goal of opening a pharmacy? Saving lives and treating injuries? Maybe a little, but I think the ultimate goal should be making money, right?"

  "That's right." Xiao Hong nodded and replied.

  "Since it's about making money, our next question is who has the easiest money to make. How many pharmacies are there in Taiwu City? I'm telling you, 149, which is a staggering number. Pharmacies are different from other businesses, after all, people don't get sick every day. Among these 149 pharmacies, five of them have monopolized 50% of the patients in Taiwu City, and the remaining 50% is shared among the remaining 144 pharmacies. For a pharmacy like yours, it's too hard to make money..." Ren Xiang analyzed.

  Xiao Hong did not respond, but nodded slightly, although Ren Xiang only said a few words, they were very reasonable.

  "So, if you want to develop, you must change the business model, which brings us back to the previous topic. Whose money is easiest to earn? I'll tell you, it's women." Ren Xiang took a sip of low-alcohol wine, grabbed Xiao Hong's shoulder, and gave him a sly look: "And what do women care about most? Two words: beauty, including clothes, jewelry, etc., etc."

  Xiao Hong's expression changed upon hearing this, as if he had thought of something.

  "My idea is, why does Brother Hong insist on holding onto the pharmacy? I've seen Brother Hong's methods before, they're very powerful. So, I think if Brother Hong can use his magical tattoos to create some medicine that makes women more beautiful, he'll definitely make a huge profit. Moreover, this kind of business only has three households in Taiwu City, and what's even better is that the three households aren't doing it well, the effect of their medicine isn't obvious, but despite that, the business is still very good." Ren Xiang pointed out his idea.

  Xiao Hong, who was listening intently beside him, couldn't help but have a slight change in his expression, as if he had taken notice. His brain, which was originally a complete blank when it came to this aspect, began to spin rapidly. Previously, Xiao Hong had manufactured cell repair patches, and with a little modification, he could completely manufacture cell activation patches, making whitening, freckle-removing, and wrinkle-reducing patches. For Xiao Hong, this was not a difficult task, and he could even manufacture weight loss patches.

  With this series of ideas, Xiao Hong's eyes shone with endless light, and he gently patted his thigh before saying resolutely: "Let's do it, I'll get ready as soon as I get back."

  "I'd like to take this opportunity to wish Hong Ge a prosperous future, and also congratulate us on getting the qualification!" Huang Mao said with a smile, raising his glass.

  Having solved the biggest trouble, Xiao Hong's heart was extremely pleased and he smiled as he raised his wine cup.

  It wasn't until late at night that the celebration finally came to an end, and Xiao Hong also carried Li Le all the way back to Da Hong Medicine Hall.

  The streetlights twinkled, Xiao Hong's cheeks were slightly flushed, but he was still quite sober because earlier Xiao Hong had only drunk a few cups of low-alcohol wine on the pretext of being ill. On the other hand, Li Le was a different story altogether, rarely seeing such a sumptuous feast and expensive fine wines, so he ended up in this state.

  After arriving at the backyard, Xiao Hong casually threw Li Le onto his bed and returned to his own room. He started thinking about the plan that Ren Xiang had given him while tapping on his desk with one hand.

  While thinking about business strategies, I am also thinking about various methods of manufacturing beauty and pharmaceutical products.

  Xiao Hong has finally figured it out. In the East City Quarry, his business is booming because there are few competitors and the villagers and miners are all poor people who don't care about looks but only need to be healthy and have enough food and clothing. But in Taiwu City, it's different. There are many rich people who have more than enough to eat and wear, and they have spare money in their pockets, so naturally they will consider various luxurious things.

  Turn on the desk lamp, Xiao Hong came to the bookshelf, rummaged for a while, and finally found two books. One was about skin structure and the other was about health preservation. Then he sat back at his desk and studied them carefully.

  As for so-called beauty treatments, they are actually no different in essence from the work of a pharmacist, only now instead of treating illnesses, they advocate for aesthetics.

  Through research, Xiao Hong's mind already had some ideas. Skin problems are nothing more than a few types: whitening, wrinkle removal, freckle removal, and health preservation to regulate bodily functions.

  These ideas were all recorded by Xiao Hong in his notebook and began to think about these medicine patterns, striving to make all preparations more sufficient.

  Such research didn't end until 2 o'clock in the morning.

  When he woke up, it was already noon. Xiao Hong didn't choose to open the door for business, but instead put up a sign that said "closed". As for Xiao Hong himself, after simply eating something, he rushed to the Adventurer's Guild store without stopping, to buy the materials needed to make beauty potions.

  Across from Dahong Pharmacy, Chunyan Medicine Shop had already started business in the early morning. The business wasn't booming, but it was still quite brisk.

  With the care of Jifu and the Zelei family, as well as Peiyan, a first-class pharmacist, in all aspects, they are far ahead of Dahong Pharmacy.

  "Hey boss, look quickly, it seems that Dahong Pharmacy has closed down." The speaker was Zhongning, the head clerk of Chunyan Pharmacy and also a disciple of Fu Yan.

  At this moment, he was pointing at the sign of the Dahong Medicine Hall across the street, speaking with great interest and a face full of schadenfreude.

  "Hmph, being able to hold on for so long is already quite impressive. Closing down was only a matter of time." Fu Yan, who was mixing the magic potion at the counter, raised his eyelids and glanced slightly at the opposite side with disdain.

  "Who says it's not? Daring to open a pharmacy right across from us, it's simply overestimating their abilities. Closing up shop would be the wisest choice for them. They really think they're on the same level as Shang Hongyun's pharmacy, how laughable." Zhong Ning continued, completely forgetting that Da Hong Pharmacy was the one that opened here first, and they were the ones who stole the nest of the magpie.

  "Don't bother with it, just an ant, closing the door is their wisdom." Fu Yan's expression remained unchanged, with a superior demeanor, responded and then began to pour medicinal liquid onto a bloody stone slab.

  Xiao Hong naturally couldn't hear, nor did he want to hear, Zhong Ning's words. Now he was only thinking about how to perfect the plan that followed.

  Xiao Hong returned to his room after purchasing the necessary materials from the traveler's tattoo shop. This time, in addition to buying materials for making beauty potions, Xiao Hong also bought some other materials, such as the "Hanyun" tattoo.

  This demonic pattern is learned from the "German Concave Pattern", not a battle pattern or a medicinal pattern, but like the "Riding Fragrance Demonic Pattern", it is an unscrupulous and rigorous training of riding power, only with a focus on precision.

  Simply from the aspect of training power accuracy, it is more advanced than body training method, but Xiao Hongke does not intend to give up body training method.

  It can be said that in the battle with Beilong, Xiao Hong has fully tasted the benefits of physical training and precise control, although training precise control will affect the upgrade speed of control, after all, everyone's control is limited every day.

  However, Xiao Hong doesn't care and mustn't forget that the Cyan Black Magic Bead can allow him to have twice the amount of Qi usage as a normal person every day.

  In addition, there is also Yu Xiang Mo Yun and so on.