On September 13, 2013, at 6 a.m., Zong Qinghou was doing his morning exercise in the residential area as usual. Suddenly, a middle-aged man rushed out from the roadside, exchanged a few words with Zong, and then raised a fruit knife to slash at him. Zong instinctively blocked with his palm, and the man fled. Five days later, Hangzhou police released more details via Xinhua News Agency, and other media followed up. To this day, apart from knowing that the attacker surnamed Yang acted out of desperation, many details remain controversial. When private entrepreneurs face such crises, they usually hope to hush things up, especially for family businesses like Wahaha. The injury of the pillar of the company would arouse public curiosity. Excessive social attention means any flaw in the company would be magnified, and in the public eye, they would either become national heroes or objects of scorn. Fortunately, Wahaha successfully weathered the crisis. With years of experience, Zong used a subtle approach, downplaying the attack as a robbery attempt and explaining it as an accident. The media and institutions also showed special care for this elderly magnate, trying to downplay the incident. As time passed, the relevant institutions and parties remained tight-lipped, and the case gradually faded from memory. But the past is not like smoke; entrepreneurs of that era always had some less glorious moments. The past must eventually fade, but now Zong Qinghou's face bears wrinkles of time, and the knife wound remains on his hand, lingering. Being a private entrepreneur has never been easy. **-01-**Zong Qinghou, the Fighter Against 'Imperialism' Zong Qinghou's injury was once widely believed to be a stab in the back by Danone, and such speculation was not unfounded. In 2007, French Danone Group was suing Wahaha worldwide. Zong Qinghou, in an interview with domestic media, was furious and left the words, "Danone is not fair!" Born in the year of victory in the War of Resistance against Japan, this Zhejiang old man has been frequently in the media spotlight since then. If this statement were made in 2019, it would surely stir a wave of national pride and force Danone to confess on TV. The old feud with Danone originated from equity and once shocked the high-level officials of both China and France. In hindsight, that dispute is actually quite interesting. In 1996, Danone and Wahaha formed a joint venture, with Danone holding 51%, Hangzhou Wahaha Group Co., Ltd. holding 39%, and Zhejiang Wahaha Industrial Co., Ltd. holding 10%. Zong Qinghou set up a separate business outside the joint venture, which thrived. Danone argued that the businesses using the Wahaha brand outside the joint venture should be considered part of the joint venture system and treated as subsidiaries. Zong Qinghou argued that he had opened the factory and invested the money, so why should he include it in the joint venture and give dividends to Danone? The two sides frequently clashed over this issue. In hindsight, the "Danone-Wahaha dispute" was not difficult to handle, but at that time, equity and companies were still new concepts. Danone accused Zong Qinghou of "unauthorized use of the Wahaha brand and original product formulas owned by the joint venture," and even sent people to follow and monitor him, escalating the situation. A political aphorism says: What cannot be solved with the tongue must be solved with teeth. Zong Qinghou was prepared to have a falling out and split the company. But to his surprise, Danone did not use the underworld approach; instead, they sent lawsuits to his desk. The power of law made this stubborn old man roll down his sleeves. After some hesitation, he quickly responded. In 2009, Wahaha led Danone 23:0 in lawsuits. The lengthy litigation caused Danone's market share in China to shrink rapidly, and they had to seek a settlement, selling their 51% stake to Chinese partners. The result was obvious: Wahaha launched "Shuangwaiwai" (Happy Twist), a product name that reflected Zong's mood, while French Danone became the "Nutri-Express" for the Zong family. After getting rid of the French, Wahaha grew bigger and bigger, with more and more product categories. In 2010, 2012, and 2013, Zong Qinghou topped the Forbes China Rich List three times. Among those who have topped the list, only Liu Yonghao and Zong Qinghou's businesses are related to "eating," but Liu makes food for animals, while Zong makes food for people. The subsequent plot for Wahaha is very similar to France in the late 18th century: after driving out foreign invaders, they welcomed a dictator. Zong Qinghou was involved in every detail at Wahaha, sending dozens of faxes daily. In interviews, he explained that successful large enterprises in China all have a strong leader, and he believed that to run a good enterprise in China's current stage, one cannot let power slip away. Under these circumstances, Wahaha's board of directors was jokingly called a formality. The real problem is not how the outside world evaluates it, but that there is no one within Wahaha who can stand on their own. After Zong Fuli returned to China, Zong Qinghou gradually assigned R&D, marketing, and production to his daughter to manage independently, but she did not achieve much. It is hard for a stronger person to emerge under a strong leader. Zong Fuli once said in an interview: "He (my father) cannot approve of me; this is my biggest setback." If Zong Fuli so desperately seeks her father's approval, how can she lead Wahaha to conquer the world? Enterprise managers should make independent judgments while respecting the market, not cater to others. In recent years, Wahaha has not had many outstanding products. Since 2016, revenue has been declining. In interviews over the years, Zong Qinghou has frequently emphasized that he wants to delegate power, promote new talent, and introduce Western management systems. But he soon found that "I used to do everything myself, and the cadres and employees relied too much on me and rarely used their brains." There will not be a second Napoleon beside Napoleon. Under a strong leader, there are no outstanding talents. Zong only understood this truth after many years. At least so far, Wahaha's performance has not shown obvious recovery, and no second Zong Qinghou has emerged within the company. Dictators all hope to be the golden needle that stabilizes the Eastern Sea, but they invariably forget that Sun Wukong could also use it to pick his ears. The reason behind this is simple: power and responsibility are interrelated, and this relationship is influenced by ability. At the start of the venture, Zong Qinghou's pragmatism and decisiveness indeed concentrated resources to accomplish great things, but it also made everyone dependent on him. Once the enterprise matures, without established rules, relying solely on individual strength is difficult to solve complex problems. On the other side, the expelled Danone fought back into the Chinese market with "Mizone," later gradually shifting to high-end products. In recent years, "Evian" still holds a place in the high-end mineral water market. But in the functional beverage market, there is Red Bull blocking the way; if not Red Bull, there is Tai Niu; if not Tai Niu, there are Lehu and Dongpeng Tequila. Danone, rushing into the high-end mineral water market, thought it could catch its breath, but it did not know it would encounter another tough opponent—Zhong Shanshan. **-02-**Zhong Shanshan, the Uncommon Porter "Shan" is a rare character, pronounced "shan," and is not common in names. It has two meanings: one is to shine, and the other is to peep. Zhong Shanshan does not often appear publicly, so he does not shine. Perhaps Zhong Shanshan is not well known, but his company, Nongfu Spring, is famous. From fish and turtle pills to Duo'er capsules, from Nongfu Spring to Qingzui lozenges, Zhong Shanshan's marketing achievements are no less than Du Guoying's. Excellent entrepreneurs do not make people remember themselves, but make people remember the brand. This Zhejiang native, born into a scholarly family, rose from the bottom. Because his parents were labeled as rightists, he began wandering the world in the late 1960s, traveling extensively in Shaoxing. People in poor conditions often need to be versatile to survive, going wherever needed. He worked as a mason, bricklayer, and carpenter. Such a growth experience can only cultivate two types of people: one who is content with mediocrity and works hard without complaint, and another who is savvy about people and walks alone. Zhong Shanshan became the latter. In 1991, this "lone wolf" became the general agent for Wahaha in Guangxi and Hainan provinces. He had a similar experience to the head of Wahaha. Perhaps coincidentally, Zong Qinghou also started from the bottom and was equally decisive. When two people with similar backgrounds and strong personalities meet, sparks are bound to fly. Zhong Shanshan did well in Guangxi and Hainan, then expanded to Zhanjiang, Guangdong. Because Hainan was a special zone with tax exemptions, the cost of products was lower, and with low prices, he easily entered the Zhanjiang market. How could Zong Qinghou tolerate the "governor of two provinces" not following orders and disrupting the marketing territory? Distributors want more markets, but the brand owner must consider the interests of all parties. After a struggle, Zhong Shanshan felt his wings were not yet full, so he decided to bide his time and withdrew. After leaving Wahaha, Zhong Shanshan founded Yangshengtang in 1993, with the first product called "Turtle and Turtle Pill," perhaps implying that he would no longer be a turtle hiding in its shell. Soon after, he returned to the beverage industry with "Nongfu Spring." Zong Qinghou and Zhong Shanshan are not only similar in experience but also highly similar in business and corporate growth: both started with health products, and both focused on beverages. As their careers developed, they became competitors that neither could eliminate nor forget. Zong has Wahaha and Nutri-Express, while Zhong has Nongfu Spring and Nongfu Orchard. In addition, their marketing abilities are equally matched. Wahaha opened the market with the slogan "Drink Wahaha, and your meal will be fragrant," while Nongfu Spring became the king of mineral water with "Nongfu Spring is a bit sweet." Their advertising slogans created a new marketing paradigm, and later followers mostly adopted this marketing approach. The student surpasses the master. Zhong Shanshan, six years younger than Zong Qinghou, is a master of crisis public relations. In 2013, the Beijing Times challenged Nongfu Spring. Nongfu Spring avoided the main issue, seized the moral high ground, and quickly took the initiative, known as the "Standard Gate." As his name suggests, the usually low-key Zhong Shanshan seized the opportunity, stepped forward, and personally held a press conference to respond to the doubts. "Nongfu Spring is a company that makes drinking water. Its responsibilities are only two: first, to make a good product; second, to pay taxes to the government. The rest are just related responsibilities and obligations." Zhong Shanshan's two responsibilities were enough to dismiss all the reports from the Beijing Times. The first sentence highlighted Nongfu Spring's sense of responsibility, dispelling social doubts; the second indicated that he was serving the country through industry. The implication was: how could the Beijing Times question our quality, putting the cart before the horse? Then, Zhong Shanshan said word by word, "Holding a press conference in the capital of my motherland," placing himself in an invincible position. Regardless of the reporters without microphones shouting, Zhong Shanshan did not need to say a word; the spotlight was always on him. At that moment, Zhong Shanshan was no longer an ordinary private entrepreneur but a national entrepreneur. After this crisis, Nongfu Spring's marketing approach also changed significantly. It no longer boasted about the product itself but instead humbled itself as a porter. On reflection, this marketing rhetoric does make sense: what responsibility does a porter have? Nongfu Spring has become the "domestic product" of drinking water. Even Evian, claiming to be sourced from Alpine springs, cannot compare with the green mountains and clear waters of Qiandao Lake. Moreover, the cost of foreign brands is so high that Nongfu Spring can easily beat competitors on cost alone. Today, Zhong Shanshan's business empire is centered on Yangshengtang, with countless products. A single paragraph can string together many brands: In the orchard, Zhong Shanshan, like a farmer, added a piece of "Oriental Leaf" to the spring water, calling it "Cha Pai." If you are a girl, he will give you two treasures like Huang Yaoshi: one is Duo'er capsule, the other is Turtle and Turtle Pill. It is said that these two treasures can not only nourish the skin but also tonify the kidneys. Not only does he venture into health products and beverages, but Zhong Shanshan's business empire also includes a large pharmaceutical company, Wantai Biological, which will soon be listed on the A-share market. The company is jointly developing an HPV vaccine with pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. If successful, "Savior of the Uterus" is believed to become Zhong Shanshan's new title. **-03-**The Real and Fake Red Bull "If an enterprise does not hype, it is a mummy." Zhong Shanshan is right, but hype must be done with the right timing; otherwise, it can burn. For hypesters, the money of certain groups is particularly easy to earn: women, children, and the elderly. After Duo'er, Zhong Shanshan's next move may come soon. Once it arrives, he will complete a marketing journey from beauty to internal organs, from outside to inside. Those familiar with Jewish history can easily see that their success lies in deep insight into the market, focusing on women and children. The 5-yuan convenience store is actually an imported concept; in Germany, it was once called "Women's Home." Wahaha dominates the children's health beverage market, while Nongfu Spring's products are distributed across various segments. However, the youth beverage market has long been occupied by another Thai product—Red Bull. Everyone eyes the functional beverage market as a piece of fat meat, but it is not easy to take a bite. Fortunately, the Sino-Thai Red Bull dispute has intensified, and the market has suddenly gained many players. The Sino-Thai Red Bull dispute is very similar to the "Danone-Wahaha dispute." In the mid-1970s, Thai T.C. Pharmaceutical developed Red Bull, a brand that made the bottom-born Thai businessman Chaleo Yoovidhya a future billionaire. In the 1990s, China's economy was rapidly rising, and this market with a huge population was undoubtedly not to be missed. Chaleo Yoovidhya was a Thai Chinese, born in 1922 in Wenchang, Hainan. At the age of 2, he went to Thailand with his parents to do business. Wenchang once produced the Soong family: Soong Ai-ling, Soong Ching-ling, and Soong Mei-ling married into wealthy families, and Soong Tse-ven, Soong Tse-liang, and Soong Tse-an were also prominent figures in politics and business in the first half of the 20th century. Chinese society values connections; opening up connections is equivalent to opening up channels. There was an important barrier to entering the Chinese market: the health food approval certificate could not recognize functional beverages. Chaleo found his friend, Yan Bin from Shandong, hoping to have a Chinese guide. Yan Bin first landed in Shenzhen, the most policy-open city, and in 1998 moved north to find the Huairou Township Enterprise Company in Beijing. With the help of state-owned background, he successfully obtained the certificate to enter the Chinese market. According to media reports, the shareholding structure of Thai Red Bull is: the Chaleo family holds 51.88%, Yan Bin's Huabin Group holds 47.12%, Huairou holds 1%, and Thai Red Bull holds 88% of Red Bull China. Yan Bin and Zhong Shanshan were both born in 1954, both experienced the material shortage of the early 1960s, and both went through the ten years of madness. People who came through that era were branded with the mark of "revolution": as long as the goal is good, any means can be used. Huabin Group developed smoothly in China, and the market pie grew bigger and bigger, but the original shareholding structure gradually exposed problems. In 2012, the alliance between Xu and Yan lost its emotional bond with the death of Chaleo Yoovidhya, and there was no longer any basis for mutual trust between Thai T.C. Pharmaceutical and Huabin. The second-generation leader of the Xu family broke the silence and confronted Yan Bin, who turned the early agreements of 20 and 50 years into a Rashomon. For Thai T.C. Pharmaceutical, seeing their own Red Bull become the property of the shopkeeper was certainly unacceptable; for Huabin Group, they had raised the calf with their own hands, and giving it away was also hard to accept. However, Thai Red Bull is not French Danone. While fighting a legal battle with Huabin International in Beijing, it quietly entered the market with "Red Bull Anjai" to return to the Chinese market, preventing Huabin Group from "stealing the bull" or "killing the bull." The short-term litigation results have not yet been announced, but online introductions of Yan Bin prominently state "patriotic industrialist." Just looking at the title, the outcome of the lawsuit is no longer important. In the second decade, functional beverages entered an era of chaos. Mizone, Gatorade, Red Bull, and Pocari Sweat represent the four major factions of functional beverages: traditional sports drinks, nutrient drinks, energy drinks, and electrolyte drinks. The most intense local war is in the energy drink segment, represented by Red Bull. To borrow the media's words, the Red Bull trademark dispute is a fight between the biological father and the adoptive father. But during the fight between the two fathers, this golden son "Red Bull" was gradually taken advantage of by a group of "wild children" eyeing it. Suddenly, a bunch of Red Bull-like products appeared. Shi Nai'an at most created Li Kui and Li Gui, but Wu Cheng'en went one step further and created Sun Wukong, Wukong Sun, and Sun Wukong. In terms of imagination, contemporary entrepreneurs are the best. They have created at least five imitations of Red Bull: Tai Niu, Lehu, Dongpeng Tequila, Red Niu, and the low-market-share Bing Niu. **-04-**The Dance of the Bulls A golden short pull-tab can usually remind people of Red Bull. If the red print on the can is not two bulls but a big eagle, it is the national brand Dongpeng Tequila. Taking advantage of the state's withdrawal from general competitive industries in 2003, Lin Muqin, then sales manager of Dongpeng, took over this faltering beverage company. After ten years of development, Dongpeng Beverage Co., Ltd. has gradually become a listed company about to go public on the A-share market, from a local enterprise with less than 20 million yuan in assets. Its product, Dongpeng Tequila, has also expanded from Guangdong to the whole country. However, Dongpeng Tequila has always struggled to shake off the shadow of Red Bull. "Tired and sleepy, drink Dongpeng Tequila" easily reminds people of Red Bull's slogan "Drink Red Bull when thirsty, and even more when sleepy or tired." Lin Muqin also tried to struggle, so he brought in the older man Nicholas Tse, who shouted in 2013, "If you are young, you must fight while awake." The essence of marketing is to impress people with the simplest language, and rhyme is even better. Combined with well-produced and plot-twisting advertisements, Lin Muqin smashed the Red Bull statue in consumers' minds and replaced it with Dongpeng Tequila's big eagle. Not only did he change his approach, but Lin Muqin also portrayed Dongpeng Tequila as an ant that overturns an elephant, quickly winning sympathy and attention. Through the internet, consumers mostly see three keywords: grassroots counterattack, national brand, and under the shadow. Lin Muqin is well aware that if he cannot walk his own path, the national brand will eventually be scolded as a "national copycat." To be honest, Dongpeng's packaging is quite different from Red Bull. Dongpeng Tequila is bottled, while Red Bull is canned. They wear different clothes, so how can it be called plagiarism? Interestingly, on April 20, 2018, just after Dongpeng Tequila shook off the shadow of Red Bull, it was copied by a similar product called "Lepeng Tequila." After making an effort to provide evidence, Dongpeng took three food companies in Zhongshan to court in one go. Obviously, Lepeng's move was like showing off one's skills before an expert, trying to learn from Dongpeng and defeat Dongpeng. Lin Muqin picked up the legal weapon and resolutely fought against speculators to defend his legitimate rights. After a year of trial, on August 23 this year, the Second People's Court of Zhongshan City ruled in the first instance that the "national brand" Dongpeng Tequila won the case. Lin Muqin used legal means to strangle the copycat in the cradle. Indeed, he has some skills. When introducing his replication experience, Lin Muqin said, "Only by understanding both production and raw material processes and product development can you make products that are cheaper and more technologically advanced than competitors." It is precisely because Dongpeng thoroughly understands Red Bull and wild Red Bulls that it can accurately find its own positioning. In terms of taste, Dongpeng Tequila is much lighter than Red Bull, with more water and less flavor, and at a discount, it penetrates into townships that Red Bull cannot reach. Small-town youth can drink Red Bull for half the price, which indeed contributes greatly to popularizing Red Bull and sinking into lower-tier markets. Positioned in the mid-to-low-end market, Dongpeng has achieved nearly 5 billion yuan in revenue in the functional beverage market. Although it cannot compare with Red Bull, it firmly holds the second position in the industry. Dongpeng, which is getting better and better, has completed its first round of tutoring and is getting closer to listing. It is believed that after listing on the A-share market, it will achieve two firsts: the first company to replicate and go public with a single product, and the first functional beverage listed company. Referring to the PE of Xin Nuo Wei, a major taurine producer, Dongpeng Tequila is unlikely to get a high premium. Opening Qichacha, besides the three Lin brothers, the second largest shareholder of Dongpeng Tequila is Tianjin Junzheng Investment Management Partnership. Unraveling the layers of holdings, we ultimately see Anhui Provincial State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission and Song Xiangqian. The effect of state-owned assets endorsement is self-evident, but Song Xiangqian of Jiahua Capital has long been deeply involved in consumer goods. Its subsidiary, Jiahua Weiye Capital, has invested in Aimer, Laoxiangji, and Easyhome since 2017. Jiahua Capital can also be seen in Qiaqia Food, Meituan, Meitu, and Didi. Investors not only bring money but also their network, such as Jiajia Food, which Jiahua Capital invested in, also participated in Dongpeng's investment through its He Xing Fund. However, no matter how hard it fights while awake, Dongpeng Tequila remains the second in the functional beverage industry, below Red Bull. Not only is there a long distance from the leader, but there are also pursuers behind, and Lehu is undoubtedly the biggest one. **-05-**Dali Got a Little Hurt Lehu is a beverage brand under the food giant Dali Group, which is also a company with many stories. If it had not been listed in Hong Kong in 2015, almost no one would have thought it could be a national brand comparable to Wahaha. The biggest feature of Dali Group is its strong research and development capabilities. Its products include Daliyuan Egg Yolk Pie, Haochidian biscuits endorsed by Zhao Wei, and Kebike potato chips endorsed by photographer Chen Guanshi and Jay Chou. Of course, there is also Youxianru, which is one word different from Yili Youxianru, Heqizheng, which fights with Wanglaoji and JDB, and China's own Red Bull, "Lehu." While JDB and Wanglaoji were fighting to the death over a can, Dali's Heqizheng was quietly sad. Just as when Coca-Cola and Pepsi were fighting, Zong Qinghou silently sobbed while holding Feichang Cola. When top players in a sub-sector fight, it attracts attention and also serves as free advertising. Lack of competition, unique taste, following trends, and strategy caused Heqizheng to gradually decline. When the top two fight, the third should not just watch; the correct strategy is either to ally with the top to strangle the second, or to invest more effort and join the battle in marketing and pricing. Unfortunately, Heqizheng chose to watch. Wanglaoji and JDB did not knock each other down but maintained a balance. But Daliyuan did not lose heart because management had a bigger strategy: don't put all eggs in one basket. Watching Red Bull's drama of Li Kui and Li Gui, and with players like Dongpeng Tequila joining the functional beverage battle, they launched Lehu. This time, Daliyuan did not make a mistake. The 250ml can is priced at 5.33 yuan per can on Taobao for Red Bull, while Lehu is 3.74 yuan per can. If we talk about price competition, Huizhou cannot compare with Shenzhen. Dongpeng Tequila is almost half the price of Red Bull, at 2.7 yuan, undercutting the market. According to institutional statistics, since 2017, Lehu and Dongpeng Tequila have joined the Red Bull battle, seriously diluting Red Bull's market share. As new domestic Red Bull brands, Lehu and Dongpeng Tequila must, on one hand, covet the fat meat in Red Bull's hands, and on the other hand, guard against second-tier competitors with similar appearances. However, this Huizhou company's advertising slogans are indeed too verbose and mediocre: "Drink Lehu, refresh and fight fatigue; drink Lehu, stimulate your positive energy." With thick eyebrows and deep-set eyes, looking like a bald Chen Baoguo, this is Xu Shihui, the richest man in Fujian and chairman of Dali Group. This man born in Hui'an, Fujian, always has insight into the market, but like his fellow townsman Gu Hongming, he struggles between China and the West. Besides replicating Red Bull with Lehu and creating the third brother of herbal tea, Heqizheng, Xu Shihui often meets his match: first there was Korean Orion, then Dali Egg Yolk Pie; he turned to potato chips with Kebike but encountered American Lay's. He finally made Youxianru, but unfortunately, that product is reconstituted milk (made from milk powder), making it difficult to compete with dairy products like Youxianru, as the dairy industry is another deep-water industry. Whether it is Dali's unsuccessful replication or the strength of its enemies, in short, Daliyuan's market has been thrown into chaos. Fortunately, Dali Foods has been doing well in recent years. Since 2014, revenue and net profit have grown year after year. However, it has developed a post-replication syndrome: in the early stage of replication, revenue and net profit surge, but soon the growth rates gradually decline. Joining the competition is a good thing, and there are advantages to being a latecomer, but it also brings a big problem: how to achieve differentiated positioning. Daliyuan has many products, but it has never found a hit product. If followers cannot lead the trend, mediocrity will be their final destination. Last year, an article titled "My Dad is Dali's Xu Shihui" compared Xu Shihui's daughter Xu Yangyang with Zong Qinghou's daughter Zong Fuli. Based on past experience, Zong Qinghou should be vigilant; who knows when Xu Shihui will launch a "Wahaha AB Iron Milk." Both Zong and Xu seem to intend to cultivate the next generation and keep the industry in the family. But the successor of the Red Bull Xu family is not so lucky; a group of wild Red Bulls are gradually encroaching on the domestic functional beverage market. **-06-**The Art of Brand Mating In recent years, Thai Red Bull has had bad luck. Behind Beijing Red Bull, there are not only Lehu and Dongpeng Tequila. Just as it was about to return to China as "Thai Red Bull," Tai Niu and Red Niu emerged from the wilderness. Imitators seem to have understood Nongfu Spring's porter technique and have all become disciples of Zhong Shanshan. Some move Red Bull into other bottles, or increase the proportion of water in the formula. As long as the price is low, someone will say it is good. Among the various wild Red Bulls, Tai Niu has the lowest price: 600ml, 15 bottles for only 79 yuan on Taobao, and during Double Eleven, 49 yuan with free shipping. Such a low cost almost drives all the bulls, tigers, and eagles back to their lairs. Tai Niu is produced by Zhejiang Tai Niu Trading Co., Ltd., and its price war is not outstanding. But Red Niu is different; they do not fight a price war but rely on another skill to compete. Red Niu is a big move by the Wei family. This family is very mysterious, as can be seen from the name of the holding company—Red Bull (Guangzhou) Beverage Group. Wei Tingjian is the chairman, and Wei Tingxi is the vice chairman. Looking at their brands, Mr. Wei has excellent brand mating ability, giving birth to countless familiar but meaningless brands and companies. In terms of capital structure, Wei Tingxi controls Nongfu Shan (Guangzhou) Dairy Co., Ltd., Zhongshan Yedao Beverage Co., Ltd., and Wangzai Beverage (Guangzhou) Group Co., Ltd. These companies have nothing to do with the famous Nongfu Spring, Yedao Coconut Juice, or Shanghai Wangwang. Their Red Bull-like product is actually called "Tishenbao" (Refreshing Treasure), but the can prominently features the letters "RedNiu" and an angry bull face. It is probably a form of performance art, telling the world that Thai Red Bull, because it was copied by you, dares not speak out, so today I will launch an angry bull to pay tribute to Thai Red Bull. The Wei family is indeed extraordinary, with unprecedented and unmatched "mating ability" in logo design and category development. Wei Tingxi also has two sets of methods, one righteous and one evil: the art of brand mating is evil, while using legal weapons is the right path. The Red Bull trademark is a side view of two bulls butting heads, so Wei Tingxi registered a front view of a bull. The Red Bull (Guangzhou) Beverage Group, which rose by borrowing the "bull," is not only better at cracking down on counterfeit trademarks than Red Bull, but even Dongpeng Tequila admires it. According to a photo from the public account "Feiyu Observation," Red Bull (Guangzhou) Group is the only legally registered trademark of "Red Bull" in China, with the slogan "Support domestic products, support Chinese Red Bull." A company established in 2017 has actually knocked down German Red Bull, Austrian Red Bull, Spanish Red Bull, and Thai Red Bull, all the "foreign bulls." Although it achieved the effect of "expelling the barbarians," we are all of the same root, so why rush to harm each other? Perhaps because they were carried away by anti-counterfeiting, Red Bull (Guangzhou) also launched a publicity campaign last year, claiming to be the only Red Bull in China and accusing Beijing Red Bull under Yan Bin of being counterfeit. Yan Bin never expected that he, the Li Da who killed Li Kui, would be sued by a Li Gui. Earlier, it was mentioned that Wei Tingxi has many products, but he is only the vice chairman of Red Bull (Guangzhou) Beverage Group. The chairman, Wei Tingjian, is also a tough character. Wei Tingjian owns brands such as Hengtai Beer, Hengtai Mineral Water, and Xuehua Lingmai. Wei Tingxi has mastered a magical brand mating technique, putting Wahaha, Red Bull, and JDB in a cage and giving birth to a nest of chimeras. Wei Tingjian has a unique brand splitting skill, punching Evergrande's Xu Jiayin and kicking China Resources' Snow. What magical market nurtured these wonders? It seems this family wants to overturn famous brands under the banner of "national brand" and "domestic product." In 2020, when COVID-19 struck, a public account published an article titled "Red Bull (Guangzhou) Beverage Group 'Cares for the Frontline' and Shows Concern." The dozens of photos in the article showed many recipients across grassroots in Guangdong, Hainan, Jiangsu, and Jiangxi, with workers unloading boxes of "Red Bull Tishenbao." The brand's ability to sink into lower-tier markets is truly impressive. In Jin Yong's novels, there is a hero surnamed Wei who is also famous in the mating world. He once said a sentence that is particularly apt to praise the Wei brothers: "Draw inferences from one instance? I can draw inferences from four or five." A functional beverage has staged an animal evolution in China. Beijing Red Bull and Thai Anjai, besides the same family Tai Niu and Bing Niu, also have the flying Dongpeng and the meat-eating Lehu. **-07-**Conclusion There is a book called "The Past Is Not Like Smoke," which is particularly apt for today's beverage brands. From Zong Qinghou's Wahaha to Yan Bin's Beijing Red Bull, Chinese brands introduced advanced technology and, with the help of the huge domestic market, quickly became giants. But Zong and Yan, due to equity issues, set up their own businesses and used a series of legal means to drive out outsiders and monopolize the market. Although the process was controversial, they never slacked in product development, and many products led the trend of the times. Wahaha has AD calcium milk and Nutri-Express, Yan Bin has Red Bull and War Horse, and don't forget Zhong Shanshan's Nongfu Spring series. All are brands developed by China itself. China has gradually formed a complete intellectual property system. Logically, it should be better than the original, but players like Dongpeng Tequila, Daliyuan, and the Wei family are gradually degenerating. They hope to overturn existing brands through replication, talking at length about how unique their marketing and positioning are, but in the end, they cannot answer how much innovation their products actually have. However, they all try to hold high the banners of "Chinese XX" and "national brand," hoping to use nationalism to enhance their legitimacy. Everyone knows that nationalism is a treasure; whoever uses it says it is good. Little do they know that national sentiment is like a child: on one hand, it has a sincere heart, but on the other hand, it often cannot control itself and wets its pants. Source: Ginkgo Finance (ID: yinxingcj), Author: Wu Xianzhi, Editor: Wang Xiaolou Tips will be paid 400-2000 yuan upon adoption.