Ye Wenzhi: General Manager of Hunan Huanglong Cave Investment Co., Ltd.

Ye Wenzhi's words: Since humanity has waged war, the artillery shells fired and bombs dropped number in the hundreds of millions, but to this day what the world cannot forget are the atomic bombs named "Fat Man" and "Little Boy" detonated over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945. Although the one-time cost of using nuclear bombs is high, their enormous deterrent power ended World War II early, and at the same time spared countless lives from destruction. In the process of product marketing and market promotion, our industry has no

Since the dawn of human warfare, the shells fired and bombs dropped number in the hundreds of millions, yet to this day what the world cannot forget are the atomic bombs named "Fat Man" and "Little Boy" detonated over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945. Although nuclear bombs are costly for a single use, their immense deterrent power ended World War II ahead of time and spared countless lives from destruction. In the process of product marketing and market promotion, our industry cannot afford to fight a conventional war, so we fight a nuclear war—and our nuclear weapon is innovative event marketing!

Ye Wenzhi, male, 43 years old, General Manager of Huanglongdong Investment Co., Ltd. and Chairman of Tianxia Fenghuang Culture Communication Co., Ltd.

Today we cannot import white clouds and blue skies, and tomorrow they will be powerless to recreate rivers and mountains. Please do not consume the Earth's resources at will, otherwise the day after tomorrow the monkeys will ponder humanity's today.

After entering the tourism industry in 1998, Ye Wenzhi became renowned in tourism circles for his "grand-scale" planning. In 1998, the successful case of insuring the signature scenic spot of Huanglongdong, the "Dinghai Shenzhen," for 100 million yuan not only set a world precedent for insuring resource-based assets, but also opened the curtain on his own career in tourism planning; in 1999, the "Crossing Tianmen" Zhangjiajie World Aerobatic Grand Prix, which he masterminded, attracted the world's attention and propelled Zhangjiajie onto the fast track of progress.

During the "Tenth Five-Year Plan" period, Ye Wenzhi successively planned the "Chess Across the Land, Fenghuang Under Heaven" World Go Summit Showdown and the 2004 Zhangjiajie National Parachuting Championship, "Dongting Drifting from the Roof of Hunan," the 2005 China Huping Mountain Natural Waters Rafting Open and Natural Canyon Powered Paragliding Challenge, and other large-scale events, making outstanding contributions to promoting the tourism resources of Zhangjiajie and even greater western Hunan. Ye Wenzhi was named one of China's Top Ten Tourism Figures of 2005.

Ye Wenzhi's small French helicopter cost 15 million yuan. It is a six-seat single-engine helicopter, usually parked on the roof of Ye Wenzhi's private villa, ready for flight at any time. When recently buying a house, in order to see the full view of his villa from all angles, Ye Wenzhi took his private aircraft up for a look, causing a sensation in the local media.

In 1995, Ye Wenzhi served as General Manager of the Hunan Branch of China Datong Industrial Co., Ltd. From 1998 to the present, he has served as Director and General Manager of Huanglongdong Investment Co., Ltd. In 1997, China Datong Industrial Co., Ltd. won the 45-year entrusted operating rights to Huanglongdong, a trump-card scenic spot of Zhangjiajie. In 1999, the '99 Zhangjiajie World Aerobatic Grand Prix, themed "Crossing Tianmen, Flying Toward the 21st Century," planned by Ye Wenzhi and exclusively funded and co-organized by the company and successfully implemented, became one of the successful models of large-scale tourism promotion events held by China's tourism industry. In 2001, Huanglongdong obtained the 50-year operating rights to the main scenic areas of Fenghuang County in western Hunan. The Zhangjiajie Municipal People's Government awarded Ye Wenzhi a hefty prize of 300,000 yuan at the city's 2001 tourism work conference.

On April 17, 1998, the "Dinghai Shenzhen," a signature scenic spot of Huanglongdong in Zhangjiajie, a World Natural Heritage site, was insured for 100 million yuan, setting a world precedent for insurance on resource-based assets. The man who turned the "Dinghai Shenzhen" into gold was none other than Ye Wenzhi, General Manager of Huanglongdong Investment Co., Ltd.

From December 8 to 11, 1999, Zhangjiajie hosted the '99 Zhangjiajie World Aerobatic Grand Prix with the theme "Flying Through Tianmen, Soaring into the 21st Century." Eleven world-class aerobatic masters from 9 countries successfully flew through the Tianmen Cave. CCTV and hundreds of other media outlets broadcast the flight live to the world, and Zhangjiajie "flew" to the world overnight. This event kept Zhangjiajie's tourist arrivals growing by 50% for two consecutive years, becoming a successful model of large-scale promotional activities in China's tourism industry. This "flying" event was masterminded, organized, and implemented by Ye Wenzhi.

On October 14, 2001, the People's Government of Fenghuang County, Xiangxi Autonomous Prefecture, successfully transferred the operating rights of 8 major attractions, including Fenghuang Ancient Town and the Southern Great Wall, for 50 years. The transferee would pay Fenghuang County a transfer fee of 833 million yuan during the operating period. This became the largest tourism deal ever concluded in Hunan Province. The operating rights were acquired by Huanglongdong Investment Co., Ltd., and the chief decision-maker was again Ye Wenzhi. Some people assessed the value of Fenghuang's tourism resources this way: "Fenghuang is Hunan's last treasured land for tourism." Fenghuang has an advantageous geographical location, and a multidimensional transportation network is taking shape. Fenghuang is fully capable of becoming an important "successor area" for China's tourism development and a landmark site for the transformation from traditional sightseeing tourism to future quality-experience and leisure-culture tourism. In order to rapidly expand and strengthen the tourism industry, promote the company's development, and realize its greatest social and economic value, Ye Wenzhi organized a team from the company to consult and negotiate with the Fenghuang County Party Committee and County Government, in accordance with the principles of "separation of government and enterprise, clear property rights, well-defined powers and responsibilities, and scientific management," over the transfer of operating rights for 8 tourist attractions in Fenghuang County—the Huangsiqiao Ancient Town, Shen Congwen's Former Residence, Xiong Xiling's Former Residence, Qiliang Cave, the Southern Great Wall, Fenghuang Ancient Town, the Tuojiang River sightseeing section, and the Yang Family Ancestral Hall (accounting for 90% of all Fenghuang's tourism resources). Because Huanglongdong Investment Co., Ltd. is a tourism company specializing in the development and operation of tourist attractions, with advanced experience in the management and operation of tourist attractions and strong comprehensive strength, Fenghuang County ultimately chose Ye Wenzhi and chose "Huanglongdong" among numerous investors.

In 2001, Huanglongdong received a total of 800,000 Chinese and foreign tourists, generated tourism revenue of 45.02 million yuan, and paid local taxes and fees of 10 million yuan. Compared with before the entrusted operation in 1997, these figures increased by 121%, 198%, and 838% respectively. Various economic indicators reached record highs, making it one of the few giants among Hunan Province's tourism enterprises and placing it at the forefront of the 263 developed caves open to visitors nationwide. In 2001, it was rated as a National Customer-Satisfied Service Unit and one of China's first batch of AAAA-level scenic spots. Ye Wenzhi himself was also awarded many honorary titles, including Best General Manager in Hunan Province's Tourism Industry, and received the first Outstanding Contribution to Tourism Award of 300,000 yuan RMB issued by the Zhangjiajie Municipal People's Government.

In view of Ye Wenzhi's outstanding contributions to the tourism industry, at the 2001 city tourism work conference, the Municipal People's Government awarded him a hefty prize of 300,000 yuan RMB. In the same year, Ye Wenzhi was named one of the Top Ten Influential Figures in China's Tourism Industry. In 2002, the Huanglongdong Scenic Area was rated as a Well-Known Chinese Tourism Brand. In 2003, he was elected a deputy to the 10th Provincial People's Congress. In 2004, he received the honorary title of "China's Highest Planning Award." In 2006, he received the Special Contribution Award for Zhangjiajie Tourism Promotion and was elected one of Hunan's Top Ten "Charismatic Hunan Merchants" in the same year. In 2007, he successively received the honorary titles of the Second "Provincial Outstanding Builder of the Cause of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics" and "The Fourth Batch of Top Talents in the City." In January 2008, Ye Wenzhi was successively elected a member of the 10th Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and a deputy to the 11th National People's Congress.

Ye Wenzhi is quick-witted, "a wild child since childhood," whose main hobby was coming up with tricks to play on people, and to this day he still fondly recalls that "every time I saw someone fall for it, I felt an indescribable joy."

In 1985, Ye graduated from Hunan Normal University. At that time, few people had the courage to give up a stable job like teaching, but for him nothing was impossible. Without hesitation, he stepped into the business world and began to "stir things up."

Many years later, Ye Wenzhi, having achieved fame and success, stood on the podium at Peking University and reflected: The first element of a person's success is perseverance. A person cannot easily change their goals just because they encounter difficulties. Once a goal is set, one must remain unwavering.

"The biggest difference between me and others is my understanding of opportunity. When there is no opportunity, I create one; when there is an opportunity, I cherish it a hundredfold. Many people miss opportunities precisely while waiting for them."

Ye Wenzhi came from a typical ordinary background. His parents were both workers and teachers in Changsha, so there was no superior resource for him to rely on. In the 1980s, if Ye wanted to survive, he had to create opportunities himself. Later, "soldiers use deceptive tactics" gradually became one of Ye's doctrines: do not stick to convention, break away from routine, be unconventional and nonstandard.

Ye's résumé is also quite miscellaneous. In an era of material scarcity, he went into trade, that is, what was then called a "profiteer" with a somewhat discriminatory tone; once he had experience, he switched to a production-oriented enterprise, introducing equipment and raw materials from abroad and processing and producing domestically; after that, he also set his sights on photographic equipment and dabbled in general aviation. In photographic equipment, he made a fortune; in general aviation, he lost everything.

By chance, Ye began his entrepreneurial venture in tourism.

At the time, he represented a general aviation company in Zhangjiajie to deal with a leftover issue concerning a helicopter landing pad, when an offhand remark from someone nearby—"the government would even sell Huanglong Cave"—caught Ye's attention. From then on, Ye Wenzhi began planning to negotiate with the government over the operating rights to Huanglong Cave.

This was a project that could not be played by conventional rules.

In 1997, what to sell, who would sell it, how to sell it... there was no precedent to draw on for any of it.

(The Day After Tomorrow: Today, we cannot import white clouds and blue skies; tomorrow, they will also be unable to recreate rivers and mountains. Please do not consume the Earth's resources at will, otherwise the day after tomorrow the monkeys will ponder our today.)

——Dedicated to World Earth Day 2008

First, regarding "buying a scenic area," is there a legal basis for it? The Ministry of Construction's "Regulations on the Administration of Scenic and Historic Areas" explicitly states that operations cannot be conducted through leasing or contracting, so entrusted operation seems permissible. However, the "Contract Law" contains no provisions on entrusted operation. If the terms of an entrusted operation contract conflict with national laws and regulations, the "Contracting Operation Law of the People's Republic of China" would then apply.

Opportunities are created. "It can be seen that the establishment of such a name is intended to circumvent direct conflict with national laws and regulations. Personally, I think this is just like 'potato, taro, spud'—different names, but actually the same thing," Ye concluded.

Second, the term, the target amount, employee resettlement, asset transfer, and so on—a whole series of issues must be negotiated with the government. There is no standard for this either.

As a result, from the end of 1996 to January 1998, when he officially took over Huanglong Cave, Ye spent a full year negotiating, and ultimately obtained a 50-year operating right to Huanglong Cave for 527.5 million yuan. Thus Ye Wenzhi entered the tourism industry.

Although troublesome, Ye was willing to do it. He positioned himself as a "heretic." "We don't do what others all do; we must take the unconventional path," he said.　　

Can hype for a scenic spot be packaged like a product? For tourism project planning, commercial effects are indeed hard to assess. Ye believes that, including planning activities like flying through Tianmen Cave, how much commercial value there is can only be judged by feel. This is not a problem unique to planning activities; Ye understands it as advertising placement—essentially the same, just a different method of placement. If an enterprise advertises in other forms, such as outdoor or television media, it likewise faces the problem of being hard to assess.

But such activities are more effective than ordinary advertising. The tourism industry is not a manufacturing enterprise; manufacturing enterprises handle logistics, while the tourism industry handles the flow of people. Only when manufacturing enterprises place ads targeting the flow of people can the market quickly take off.

Ye Wenzhi believes that every product must have its own style, and its characteristics and individuality must be brought out. Doing again what others have already done is meaningless. Even with conventional promotional methods, one must be different. Previously, there were many ways of promoting scenic areas similar to photography contests, but few left a deep impression. However, the Go project in Fenghuang Ancient City that Ye planned was different and gave the product new vitality. In the end, it was included by the Ministry of Education in primary school textbooks, and the impact of this was undoubtedly enormous.

In 2005, he planned, organized, and implemented the "Go Across the Land, Fenghuang Under Heaven" Southern Great Wall World Go Peak Showdown. The biennial "Go Across the Land, Fenghuang Under Heaven" event excellently combines the cultures of Chinese Go, martial arts, architecture, and storytelling. With the earth as the board and martial arts children as stones, champions from six major cup tournaments came to the Southern Great Wall to decide the outcome in a single game. "Actually, I don't know how to play Go," Ye smiled.

Ye Wenzhi frankly admitted that whether it was "Go Across the Land" or the "flight performance," all of this was marketing technique serving the theme of the scenic area, equivalent to advertising placement, but in a more ingenious way.

As for Fenghuang, Ye Wenzhi believes that Fenghuang must integrate new things and endow them with new connotations, so that it can gain new vitality. Ye Wenzhi adopted three approaches—Fenghuang in song, Fenghuang in brush and ink, and Fenghuang through the lens—to package the image of this ancient city, promote Huxiang culture, and market the three Xiang and four rivers. The first performance of a work by Tan Dun, an Oscar winner, was also held in Fenghuang. Song Zuying was invited to shoot an MV to showcase Fenghuang in song. Huang Yongyu went to the banks of the Tuo River to paint, interpreting the landscapes and people of Fenghuang.

Ye Wenzhi said that planning must be good at integrating and utilizing resources from all sides. The activities in Zhangjiajie can encompass political, economic, military, cultural, tourism, and other resources. Possessing and utilizing information is indispensable. Ye Wenzhi said that a planner is first and foremost an excellent resource allocator. It is precisely by being good at utilizing various resources and transforming various resources that others' fantasies can become Ye Wenzhi's reality.

In 1998, Ye Wenzhi took out a 100 million yuan insurance policy for a stalagmite landmark attraction called the "Sea-Calming Divine Needle" in the Huanglong Cave Scenic Area, spending 26,000 yuan, which drew the attention of more than 2,000 media outlets and set an international precedent for insuring a World Natural Heritage site.

In Ye Wenzhi's view, the insurance for the Sea-Calming Divine Needle is already a thing of the past; today's planning requires bold moves. Ye Wenzhi believes that tourism does not allow the use of conventional weapons—the more "wicked" the better. One strike should last five years, leaving a lasting impression—that is the effect of a nuclear weapon! "Wicked" to the extreme.

The "Chess on the Earth" tournament is held every two years, with players being the champions of the six major cup tournaments: Toyota, Fujitsu, LG, Samsung, Chunlan, and Fujitsu. Only by winning these six major tournaments does one qualify to step onto the Phoenix Southern Great Wall for a peak showdown. For the players, its significance is like that of the Vienna Golden Hall to musicians, or the Louvre to artists, fully demonstrating the power of a "nuclear weapon."
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In 1999, Ye Wenzhi planned the "Zhangjiajie World Aerobatic Grand Prix" with the theme "Crossing Tianmen, Flying into the 21st Century," in which 11 world-class aerobatic masters from 9 countries successfully flew through the Tianmen Cave. This event cost more than 26 million yuan, and for the following two consecutive years, Zhangjiajie's tourist reception volume maintained a growth rate of over 50%. This event became a classic in China's tourism planning.

In March 2006, Zhangjiajie hosted the "2006 Russian Air Force Zhangjiajie Tianmen Mountain Aerobatic Performance," with Ye Wenzhi again serving as chief planner.

"Do you know how many people want to see a Su-30 fighter jet with their own eyes?" Ye smiled mysteriously, hesitating to speak further.

The Russian Knights, as a national honor guard, came to Zhangjiajie to perform aerobatics. The units involved included the Russian Air Force, the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Sukhoi Design Bureau, the Russian Security Council, the Air Force Guangzhou Military Region, the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of State Security, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Defense, the National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation, and the Hunan Provincial People's Government, among others. The organizational difficulty was enormous, involving numerous ministries and commissions, and the operational difficulty was unmatched by any domestic event.

For such projects, execution is more important than imagination. First, one must understand the business; second, one must be very clear about the workflow; and finally, one must calculate all possible problems. Without money, it cannot be done; with money, it may not necessarily be done well.

Ye estimates: "This year's Russian Air Force aerobatic performance event, after deducting Zhangjiajie's natural growth rate, will contribute at least 1.5 billion yuan to Zhangjiajie."

Ye Wenzhi is just such a person who never follows convention.

Many years later, Ye Wenzhi, having achieved fame and success, stood on the podium at Peking University and reflected: The first element of success is perseverance. A person cannot easily change their goals when encountering difficulties. Once a goal is established, one must be unwavering.

Ye Wenzhi believes that every product must have its own style, and its characteristics and individuality must be highlighted. Doing what others have already done is meaningless. Even conventional promotional methods must be made distinctive.

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