"Jiang Hai, I have something to tell you." After a dull dinner, Pra-Walton had not mentioned the purchase of cattle to Jiang Hai today, and Jiang Hai had not brought it up either. However, after Pra-Walton left, and as Jiang Hai was about to clean up the remaining dishes, Qi Li entered the kitchen, looked at Jiang Hai, and spoke up.
"What's the matter?" Jiang Hai asked, continuing to clean the plates.
"Can you leave some of your beef cattle for me?" Qi Li asked, a little embarrassed, her gaze fixed on Jiang Hai.
Just last night, she had been negotiating with Jiang Hai, but a day later, her tone had completely shifted. From someone trying to profit off Jiang Hai, she now found herself in the position of wanting to profit for him. It was a huge change.
"Sure, take as much as you want, but only as much as you need. Is it for your mother? I remember the last time I gave her the best beef." Hearing Qi Li's request, Jiang Hai assumed she was too embarrassed to take some back. Despite their complicated relationship, Jiang Hai wasn't stingy when it came to giving her some beef, so he answered without hesitation.
"No, not for me, and not a small amount. You know our Qi family is primarily involved in real estate, but the domestic market hasn't been doing well lately, so we've shifted to investing in the electronics industry. However, it's not an industry per se, and there are too many bubbles in it. I'm concerned, so recently, I've been thinking of venturing into the catering industry," Qi Li explained, looking at Jiang Hai. She was indeed a skilled businesswoman, and her ability to speak with such confidence made it clear she was also a shrewd strategist.
As she spoke, her earlier hesitation had completely disappeared. She was now fully immersed in sharing her philosophy.
Jiang Hai paused, his hands still as he processed her words, and looked at her in surprise.
"You want to buy beef from me?" Jiang Hai asked. "Uh… to be honest, I don't think it's the best choice. After all, my beef is a bit, well… expensive. It's hard for the average person to afford." He hesitated, speaking carefully. Business was business, and feelings were feelings. Jiang Hai and Qi Li didn't share a personal bond. Their relationship had always been more adversarial, so he wasn't about to offer any discounts.
"I know the price is high," Qi Li said, nodding. "I'll buy it at the same price as Pra-Walton. Don't think I'm going to open a Western restaurant catering to middle- and low-income groups. From the start, my target market has been the wealthy. A 2,000 RMB steak may be hard for the average person to accept, but it's not so expensive for the rich or those who like to show off." Qi Li looked directly at Jiang Hai, her gaze unwavering. Their perspectives had always been different. After all, Jiang Hai had once been a failure in China.
Although he was now a wealthy man abroad, he still felt more like a misfit. As someone had once said, wealth doesn't last more than three generations, and the truly wealthy families are the ones who have kept their wealth for generations. While Qi Li wasn't from a multi-generational family, she set her sights on those kinds of people.
Such a high price could only be tolerated by the rich or the nouveau riche who liked to flaunt their wealth.
"Since you've decided, I can give you 1,000 head of cattle. But the transportation fees and other costs aren't included in the price. You'll need to rent a warehouse in Boston and figure out how to transport the beef back, whether by air or sea—it's up to you." After a moment of reflection, Jiang Hai agreed. He could spare 1,000 cows, and it wasn't a big deal. After all, Pra-Walton hadn't specified the number of cattle she wanted.
Jiang Hai understood why Pra-Walton hadn't been in a rush—his beef was too expensive. Only a few companies in the U.S. could afford to buy all of it. Although he had participated in the New York State Beef Show, his reputation was still building, and there wouldn't be a massive follow-up demand. She had been playing a waiting game, hoping Jiang Hai would eventually buckle under the pressure.
By giving Qi Li 1,000 cattle, Jiang Hai was signaling to Pra-Walton that his beef was not unsellable. If she didn't act soon, it might be too late.
"1,000 head? That's amazing, but we may not need that many all at once." Qi Li, who had prepared many excuses, was momentarily stunned but then thrilled when she heard Jiang Hai's offer.
She had expected it to be difficult to get cattle from him, but Jiang Hai was far more accommodating than she had imagined. A thousand cattle would be more than enough for her western restaurant.
If the quality of the beef was anything like the cuts she had enjoyed over the past two days, her restaurant would have no trouble becoming popular.
"That's no problem," Jiang Hai replied, waving it off. "Beef doesn't taste as good after being frozen. If you want it fresh, we can sign a six-month contract. You can slaughter them in multiple batches, and the amount each time is up to you. The total will be 1,000 head."
Many slaughterhouses froze beef after slaughtering it in batches. While frozen beef doesn't spoil, it certainly doesn't taste as fresh as beef that's freshly slaughtered. Top-quality beef, like some rare fish, remains delicious for about ten days to half a month if kept properly frozen. But once it's thawed, it must be consumed immediately to avoid spoilage.
Jiang Hai's beef followed the same principle. After slaughtering, it needed to be quickly iced and sent to China. The round trip took about two days, making it ideal to slaughter once every two weeks.
"No problem, we'll sign the contract." Qi Li's eyes lit up at Jiang Hai's agreement.
After six months of growth, Jiang Hai's bulls had reached their maximum size, about 750 kg, or 1,500 pounds. With a 65% meat yield, that's nearly 1,000 pounds per cow.
From that, approximately 2,000 steaks could be made, but a restaurant couldn't just serve steaks. Qi Li estimated that her restaurants would need about 1,200 servings. If her restaurants couldn't sell 5,000 kg of beef a day, then opening them would be pointless.
"Okay, it's a deal." After hearing Qi Li's thoughts, Jiang Hai nodded.
To be honest, he hadn't been keen on selling to Qi Li, as 1,000 cattle was no small amount. With the value of his beef, each cow could easily fetch over $100,000, meaning 1,000 cows would be worth more than $100 million USD—700 to 800 million RMB. It was a significant commitment for Qi Li.
But Qi Li appeared ready to shoulder the pressure. After Jiang Hai's agreement, she rushed upstairs to contact her company about securing the beef.
First, they'd need to rent a transport plane, since buying one was out of the question. Then, there was the matter of pricing, which her professionals would handle.
The next morning, Qi Li arrived with the contract. The first person stunned by the deal was Pra-Walton. Just as Jiang Hai had predicted, she was taken aback by Qi Li's intervention.
"Jiang, this is different from the number we discussed. How could you sell her 1,000 cows without consulting me?" Pra-Walton's face darkened as she looked at the contract Qi Li had brought. She had already prepared the funds, just waiting for Jiang Hai to finalize the deal with her.
But unexpectedly, Qi Li had swooped in.
"First of all, you made a mistake. These are my cows, not yours. Second, this is my business, and I'll sell to whoever I choose. You never stated how many cows you wanted, nor did you say you didn't want them. I can't refuse someone who's offering me real money just to wait for you." Jiang Hai casually signed the contract Qi Li had brought. He also showed the contract to Moses Adams to ensure everything was clear.
Seeing Jiang Hai so nonchalant, Pra-Walton's patience snapped.
"Fine, a thousand head. I'll take the rest." She slammed her hands on the table, visibly upset.
"Don't you want to inspect the cattle? We haven't even discussed the price yet," Jiang Hai said, surprised.
Pra-Walton smiled, her eyes narrowing. Did Jiang Hai really think she was playing around these past few days? How naive. (To be continued.)