ABT Chapter 141: The Deep Schemes of Foreigners

Unlike the atmosphere on Li Fanyu's side, the air in the meeting room at the headquarters of RaceFast was almost frozen.

Godfrey sat with his hands crossed at one side of the long table, looking at his colleagues. Those who met his gaze quickly looked away, creating a very tense atmosphere.

"Gentlemen, I think it's time we did something. The V12 is about to hit the market, and we can't let this incident affect its sales."

Godfrey's pure, clipped English echoed in the meeting room, creating a slight reverberation due to the silence.

A group of executives with shifting eyes inwardly criticized him; wasn’t it all because he ignored everyone's warnings and made a foolish decision?

Working as a senior executive in a Chinese subsidiary of a foreign company can be incredibly tough. They have to endure the various arrogant behaviors of their foreign bosses daily, and occasionally, they have to tolerate the whims of personnel sent directly from the parent company.

This situation was entirely because Godfrey ignored all advice and acted on his own. But that didn't matter; after his reckless move, he still gathered everyone to clean up the mess.

It's not easy earning a foreigner's salary.

Seeing the expressions on everyone’s faces, Godfrey sighed, "I know this was a complete marketing failure. But gentlemen, we cannot let this crisis strangle us."

Everyone looked at each other, still silent.

After a while, a young man stood up, "Mr. Godfrey, although we lost in the comparison, it’s not all bad if you look at it from another angle."

Godfrey looked at the young man and smiled wryly, "Kid, we need to face the facts. Because of my mistake, the V12 is now at a disadvantage. Don’t try to comfort me; I'm not so old that I can’t handle a setback."

"No, sir. Have you watched the video carefully?"

"Of course! I’ve watched it over a dozen times!"

"Let me break it down. The video was shot using high-speed cameras, resulting in clear, high-resolution footage even in slow motion. This filming technique is common in races and highlights the beauty of motion and stillness, which is the first point. The second point is that it showcased the car's performance through comparison. Although we were the foil in this comparison, if you look closely, the V12's acceleration still outpaced the airplane in the video. Don’t you think that’s a great concept?"

Godfrey frowned, feeling impatient.

Great, it's great! If it weren't for that damn X-power, it would have been fantastic. That hateful Li used my strategy to humiliate me!

Godfrey now felt like he was in the same position as Alfa Romeo back then.

Yes, he was on the receiving end of humiliation.

"What exactly are you suggesting?" he said through gritted teeth.

"Sir, we can use this idea for promotion. Of course, only featuring the V12 and the airplane."

"But the event has already set a precedent!"

"In China, there's a massive population with diverse opinions. Although news spreads quickly online, this incident is still fresh, and many people are unaware. We can completely get ahead by using this concept to make an advertisement, then register the creative idea. Finally, we can use copyright to prevent our competitor from using this method for promotion. This is known as 'turning the tables' in Chinese strategies."

The young man smiled modestly as he spoke.

Godfrey was taken aback, thought for a moment, then clapped his hands vigorously, "Excellent! Go ahead with it. Young man, what's your name?"

"Honorable Mr. Godfrey, my name is Shan Yun, currently the marketing manager of the company."

"Shan, I owe you one."

"It’s my duty."

...

So, before Li Fanyu even started his planning, RaceFast's ad was already in production.

This was when the difference between companies became evident. Li Fanyu was almost fighting alone, tangled up with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's approval process, with no one to share his burden.

In contrast, RaceFast had formed a dedicated team, working on two fronts: one team was with a professional company to shoot the ad, and the other team headed to the TV station to negotiate time slots. In just three days, they had everything set and aired a 20-second commercial on CTV-5 at 10 PM.

In the ad, a group of foreign engineers briefly introduced the performance of the RF-V12. Then the scene shifted to an airport where a pilot smiled at the camera. Next, both the airplane and the V12 were shown on the runway. As the background music reached its climax, both the plane and the car started simultaneously—naturally, the V12 led in acceleration, outpacing the plane.

At the end of the ad, the young man driving the V12 made a cool gesture, saying, "Passion, Aggressive—RaceFast!"

At this moment, Li Fanyu had just finalized the design of Zhengxin's official website with Wang Meimei and returned home.

Li's mom had finally bought a duplex villa in the suburbs, over 400 square meters in total, with five bedrooms.

She had carefully planned this layout: one for herself and Li’s dad, one for Li Fanyu, one for his brother. The remaining two were reserved, one for future grandchildren and one for playing mahjong...

The villa was fully furnished, so they moved in without needing any renovations. She had already moved in quickly.

Despite such a significant event, Li Fanyu had been so busy that he hadn't even visited. Only after everything was settled did Li's mom give him an ultimatum—come and see the house, or risk getting lost later.

When Li Fanyu entered, he saw his dad adjusting the new rear-projection TV in the spacious and bright living room.

As he changed the channel, Li Fanyu caught a glimpse of the ad on CTV-5 and quickly asked his dad to switch back.

Watching it, he became furious; shameless!

At that moment, Wang Dazui called, "Xiaofan, check out the ad RaceFast aired on CTV-5!"

"Brother Wang, I saw it. Damn... is this plagiarism?"

"Uh, not exactly. You didn’t register the idea... but the website contacted RaceFast about this, and they said they’ve already registered the idea."

"What? Damn it, have they no shame?"

"Well, we didn’t expect them to pull this trick. Even foreigners are playing dirty now; this is like pulling the rug out from under us!"

"Brother Wang, does their registration mean we can’t air our video?"

"Not exactly. We own the copyright to the video, and our copyright date is earlier than their registration. If we push it, we can argue about it, but it’ll likely take a year or two, and by then, it’ll be too late."

Li Fanyu narrowed his eyes, "So, does that mean we can edit our video to use as an ad?"

"That won't work either. A race video is one thing, but if you use it as an ad, the V12 appears in the video, and you'd need RaceFast’s permission."

Li Fanyu rubbed his chin, thinking carefully, his eyes darting around. Finally, he slapped his thigh and grinned wickedly, "What if we blur out the V12?"

NEXTNEXT