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Zhong Shanshan rarely appeared in front of the camera to respond to the controversial picture

Zhong Shanshan rarely appeared in front of the camera and responded one by one to all the controversies from the outside world regarding "the richest man", "cyberbullying" and "successor".

Text｜Zhang Wenjing, reporter of "Chinese Entrepreneurs"

Editor: Mina

Source of header image｜Visual China

Zhong Shanshan once again mentioned Cervantes, a writer he admired, and the ceramic statue of Don Quixote on his desk in the office - the latter is sitting on a chair, his left hand on an open book, holding a sword in his right hand, as if in deep thought. Many people told Zhong Shanshan that swords should not be placed in the office. He said that this sword should be placed there, it is the sword of ideals.

Zhong Shanshan has many labels given to him by the outside world, such as "the richest man" and "top streamer", etc. These labels have brought him glory, but also made him lose his freedom and caused him controversy and abuse.

He seemed relieved and said, "Since you have been labeled, there must be a reason behind it. Just digest it slowly and don't tear it off." The only label he hopes to have is "idealist."

Zhong Shanshan, 70 years old this year, has been a farmer, a reporter, grown mushrooms, raised turtles, and sold health products. Later, he founded Nongfu Spring and achieved success. Now he owns two listed companies - Nongfu Spring and Wantai Biological, which "developed the first domestic cervical cancer vaccine."

In the business world, he is regarded as aloof and a "lone wolf", but he likes this title. He once said frankly: "I am a loner. I don't care what my peers are doing or thinking." "I don't have the habit of flattery, so I don't like to socialize and I don't like drinking."

Zhong Shanshan’s speech footage source: Visual China

He rarely appears in public and has only been interviewed twice in the past decade, the last of which was nine years ago. He once said that he didn't want to say much because he was afraid of being misunderstood and criticized. This concern is not without reason. Zhong Shanshan is a controversial figure. From the century-long dispute over natural water and purified water in 2000 to the standard gate incident in 2013, controversy always surrounds him.

"If a person is ahead of the times, one step may be the best. If it is two steps, it will be controversial. If it is three steps, it will attract criticism." Zhong Shanshan explained in a recent CCTV interview program "Dialogue".

To some extent, he is like Don Quixote who wanted to be a knight. He is stubborn in his bones. He insists that natural water is healthier than purified water and once said that he would not make purified water. However, Zhong Shanshan "broke his promise" - in the first half of this year, Nongfu Spring launched "green bottle" purified water.

But he did not betray his own persistence. "During this online controversy, some people said that 'Nongfu Spring is a little sweet' and deceived me for 20 years. I think my mistake at most was to deprive consumers of their right to choose." He said in a sullen tone: "I was wrong. I will give the right to choose back to everyone."

A few months ago, Zong Qinghou, the founder of Wahaha, passed away, and Zhong Shanshan encountered an online storm, which spread from the early disputes between Wahaha and Nongfu Spring to the nationality of Zhong Shanshan's eldest son Zhong Shuzi, the cultural elements of Nongfu Spring products, etc. He experienced one "trial" after another. He was angry and stubbornly wanted to explain himself, but instead attracted a new round of attacks.

On August 10, Zhong Shanshan rarely appeared in front of the camera and responded one by one to all the controversies from the outside world regarding "the richest man", "cyberbullying" and "successor".

In 2015, he admitted in an interview that "I have suffered too much injustice over the years." This time, he said "I am not wronged," "especially this online storm, which makes me rethink the responsibility of the richest man."

The following is based on the interview content of CCTV's "Dialogue" (with deletions):

On the Responsibilities of the Richest Man

host:On March 25, 2024, Hurun Research Institute released the "2024 Hurun Global Rich List", and you became China's richest man for the fourth consecutive time with 450 billion yuan.

Zhong Shanshan:I live my life, nothing has changed, and I don't feel that this has made any difference in my life.

If we talk about wealth itself, this kind of wealth is a kind of praise from consumers or the market to an entrepreneur. But to be honest, the term "richest man" has negative connotations in our country.

Because it took us 300 or 400 years to go from agricultural civilization to industrial civilization, but we shortened it to 30 or 40 years. However, during this process, the enlightenment and understanding of wealth were not enough, and the meaning, responsibility, value, and behavior of wealth were not fully explained.

Nongfu Spring mineral waterPhotography: Jiang Chenyu

host:Do you feel aggrieved by the negative views on the richest man?

Zhong Shanshan:I don't feel wronged.Especially this online storm made me rethink where the responsibilities of the richest man lie.

The richest man has responsibilities, because society has different requirements for you. Although we have done a lot of altruistic things in the past, I think if you do good for the sake of being seen, it is not true goodness. If you do good things for others to know and see, then it is not good, you are hypocritical.

After becoming the richest man, the first criticism I received came from the 24,000 bottles of water. This is actually a system design of ours.

When the Wenchuan earthquake occurred, we transported water to Chengdu, but all transportation hubs in Chengdu were paralyzed. If we wanted to deliver water to the disaster site as soon as possible, we had to have authorization. So we set up a system: whenever there was a public crisis, the company would delegate the power to deliver water to each region. Later, each region took this system a step further and delegated the power to deliver 1,000 cases of water to offices and distributors, which is 24,000 bottles.

This system design is originally a good thing, but it was also pulled out in the online controversy and used as a criticism of the richest man. I think people don’t understand our system.

host:Some people say that, from a global perspective, the richest man in the United States builds rockets, while the richest man in China sells water, so they are more "watery".

Zhong Shanshan: I think this sentence is very pertinent. I am selling water, right? I am more "watery", because if I am not "watery", this "water" will not be water.

Elon Musk, the richest man in the United States, I have read his biography and I think he is a genius entrepreneur. There is a big difference between us. I went to elementary school for 4 years and worked as a farmer for 17 years, that's all I have. Elon Musk was a doctoral student at Stanford University when he was 24, but he didn't finish his doctorate and went into business to pursue his ideal career.

The two people are incomparable, but as the richest men, their social responsibilities are comparable. There are many different ways to return. The path taken by Elon Musk is to create the boundaries of technology. But my experience is that of a farmer, which determines that I will think more about farmers and do what I can do within my knowledge.

Musk has done earth-shattering things. I am not that great, but as a Chinese entrepreneur, I have also done something that suits me. I have solved problems that Americans have not solved and maintained normal income for farmers. This is what I can contribute and I am proud of myself.

Talk about traffic

host:You are now also a part of the traffic, and some people even say that you are not just an ordinary traffic leader, but a top traffic leader.

Zhong Shanshan:I don't think I have that ability. I'm not someone who speaks up often, but when I was observing the traffic, I found thatIf there is no one responsible for the information carried by the word "traffic", that is, traffic does not bear legal responsibility in the public opinion environment, then traffic must be a kind of evil.

If some people with personal purposes or in order to make money use technological means to exploit the weaknesses of human nature and deliberately create traffic potential, it will be destructive to a certain extent.

host:Do you feel confused a lot of the time? Most people are willing to accept the so-called truth that they first encounter, but it is actually a false truth. After a period of time, the truth comes out, but people are no longer in the mood to accept it.

Zhong Shanshan:So the law must act quickly and in time.

host:Would you like to talk about a time you experienced online criticism?

Zhong Shanshan: I think let them attack me online. I think the stigmatization of me online this time cannot be completely washed away, so let them do what they want.

host:Is this a helpless giving up?

Zhong Shanshan:No. I do my own thing and ignore it. I have my own ideals in my heart, because the day will definitely come in the end, even if it comes a little later, as long as I can hold on until the daybreak.

The day when the truth comes out, it will definitely come out, but it won’t be that soon.Many people say that truth is not absent, it is just late, but being late is a kind of harm and a loss. Truth cannot be late.

host:Were you also in an angry mood at that time?

Zhong Shanshan:Yes. But I am emotional. Sometimes I get angry for a while, but it passes quickly. I still sleep, eat, and go to work.

Sometimes I get angry. If there is a little truth in it, I will accept it with a smile, but it is almost all nonsense. I have worked in journalism, and journalism is also my first major. Truth is the first priority of journalism.

I wonder how the Internet can be like this? Is there no logic? It completely removes the time and environment, and then presents it. In addition, many people do not know the truth, they only know that this person is so bad and he is the richest man, so they imagine how the richest man gets his money, which is original sin.

host:Would you like to say something to these "keyboard warriors" today?

Zhong Shanshan:The existence of "keyboard warriors" is itself a kind of discourse right. For this discourse right, we must first bear ethical responsibility; secondly, we must bear moral responsibility.

This is also good for yourself. When you learn to seek the truth of a thing, it is a kind of progress in life experience. Therefore, you should do good things that are beneficial to others and society. If the whole society is moving forward, you will also move forward. If the whole society is moving downward, you will definitely be dragged down.

Talking about "making products"

host:When it comes to running a business, many people often say that speed is the only way to succeed. What does the word “slow” have to do with you?

Zhong Shanshan: "Slow" is actually relative. Without time, you really can't polish a good product. We used to have a saying that "three years does not make an army". If you organize an army, it will not even be able to achieve the basic form without three years. So it's not that we don't want to be fast, but that we can't be fast.

host:It took 6 years to make tea, 8 years to make orange, and 10 years to make water. Have you ever been anxious?

Zhong Shanshan:I was anxious before. It’s not that I haven’t been anxious before, because the debt ratio was over 90% at that time, but you can’t be anxious.

host:But the industry requires speed, such as product iteration and so on.

Zhong Shanshan:Speed ​​has its disadvantages. If there are no truly good products, it is easy to be covered up. New products can be released generation after generation every year, but their lifespan is not long.Being slow is for longer life. This slowness is the result of long-term technological accumulation, and it is a very strong corporate production capability.

host:The orange juice business has been going on for 8 years. Is it profitable now?

Zhong Shanshan:Orange juice is not profitable yet.

What should be considered for agricultural profitability? From the perspective of the entire company, it has a marginal effect. What is a marginal effect? ​​If there are no oranges during the Spring Festival, the entire season will not be rich. If you only sell water, the people who sell water will have nothing to do during that season. For a company, it depends on the whole. Not everything has to make money. There must be strategic losses and cultivation projects.

host:Do you set a timetable for your strategic losses? Let's take tea as an example.

Zhong Shanshan:We started making tea in 2012 and 2013, and it has been more than ten years now. We did not make any money in the first six years, but the growth curve started to pick up very quickly in 2021. The first part is long, but we are not afraid of it, but we need to be able to pull up the growth curve later.

host:But this track is already crowded.

Zhong Shanshan:Yes, this year is an explosive growth. Last year there were only 10 follow-up varieties, this year is estimated to be 2,000, but this is a process, in the end the best few will remain.

Don't be in a hurry to make money. As long as you make a contribution, you will be rewarded with wealth. You must do those homeworks. If you don't do them, you are deceiving yourself.In the three months of 2023, I probably made a profit of 5 billion to 6 billion yuan, but in the first 15 years, the total profit may not even be 5 billion yuan.

host:In the first 15 years, did you think you had a chance to make money by continuing to work so hard?

Zhong Shanshan:If you look at the growth curve, it must be a slow, healthy accumulation process. Don't be impatient. I noticed that Huang Renxun's CPU, GPU, and now GPU2 have very flat growth curves, but they may rise suddenly later. High-tech companies are like this. Traditional companies must be down-to-earth. There is no shortcut.

host:It can be seen that you have always adhered to the concept of "slow is fast".

Zhong Shanshan:Yes, sometimes speed is a kind of accumulated ability. It is not necessarily a completely absolute number, but you need to know when it is fast and when it is slow.

host:People often say that predicting the future is the most difficult thing. In an era of rapid change, how can you accurately know that the future you see is the future that may appear in 10 years?

Zhong Shanshan:Everyone has their own business philosophy, and the logic and methodology are different. For example, I am a great admirer of natural philosophy. When humans develop to a certain level, they will care about themselves. Health must be the future, so industries and products are all centered around the word "health". The word "health" sounds very broad, but when it is implemented to a certain point, demand emerges.

Then, if you look at the current products, you will find that wherever there are problems or defects, that is where the problem you need to solve is. They are everywhere.

host:Continuous self-innovation, continuous iteration and upgrading. Take Nongfu Spring's product iteration as an example. There are so many products in different categories. Are you a person who likes "curls" by nature?

Zhong Shanshan:I think the word "volume" itself is not a wrong word, don't look at it with a negative perspective.

There are two ways to "roll" it: one is to roll it downward, where the product quality decreases and the price goes down; the other is to roll it upward, where the product quality improves and the price increases. This is a good roll.

There are two truly positive "rolls": quality and price go up, and social wealth will increase.

host:But now the competition is too fierce. We hope to present a positive "curl", but the movements are often distorted.

Zhong Shanshan: That’s because your technical content, technological content and differentiation are not enough. If they were enough, you would definitely be able to “roll up”.

Talk about successor

host:One day, a business operator will have to face the issue of succession. Do you have your ideal person now?

Zhong Shanshan:"The ideal person" is a vague concept. There are two types of successors for an enterprise:

One is the cultural inheritance, system inheritance, and value inheritance at the corporate level. About 20 years ago, we determined our values ​​- creating profits, educating people, and benefiting the world. We also attach great importance to system design.Institutional innovation or institutional inheritance must be placed before ownership inheritance. Institutional inheritance is greater than ownership inheritance.

Many people do not distinguish between these two inheritances. Institutional inheritance and cultural inheritance are important issues for a company to prosper, because inheritance can have no blood relationship with you, which is the most important. The second is the inheritance of your ownership.

host:I heard that there is a saying that Nongfu Spring may be passed down to the second generation who are American citizens, and it may no longer be a Chinese company in the future. Is this true?

Zhong Shanshan: I believe Nongfu Spring will always be an excellent Chinese company. I repeat, Nongfu Spring will always belong to China.Nongfu Spring's equity structure is very simple. There is no archipelago company. Its value chain is very short and its equity structure is very simple. I would not fail to consider the ownership issue, which I think is the most important, at the beginning. I must have considered it very clearly.

host:Are your considerations about succession now almost 100% clear?

Zhong Shanshan:It is not clear. It cannot be clear because it is customary.

host:If it is not clear, how can the successor know what preparations to make?

Zhong Shanshan:Yes, we can’t prepare because it’s a big company.All large companies, in order to keep this body always in the competitive stage, must keep it secret so that everyone feels that I have a chance.

host:Under what circumstances will this mystery be revealed and seen by the public?

Zhong Shanshan:When I feel that their abilities are enough to make me feel assured and I can hand over the baton to them.

host:Let’s take a reverse example. What kind of successor might not lead the business to prosperity as you wish, but instead lead the business downhill?

Zhong Shanshan: The worst quality of a successor is hesitation, doubt, and indecision. This is the most basic quality.

Why? Even if you make a wrong decision, you must make a decision. Sometimes you have to make a decision slowly, sometimes you have to make a decision quickly, but you must make a decision.

I think the successor needs to be kind, smart, altruistic, innovative, not conservative, and dare to break the rules. The vitality of an enterprise lies in its courage, so these requirements of mine are very high, but they can also be accomplished by a group.

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