1979: How I Became the Pearl King

He Zhenbang is reborn in 1979. In his previous life, he was cheated in the pearl business, left his village drowning in debt, and failed his wife and children. This time, his only wish is to earn enough to give his family a good life—but things spiral far beyond his expectations. He starts by selling river mussels, making his first small fortune. From a few tenths of a mu of pond behind his house, he expands to tens of thousands of mu of pearl beds and hundreds of farms. As copycats flood in, he pivots to breeding mussel seedlings and soon controls nearly 70% of the local mussel supply—if you want to farm pearls, you come to him first. When pearl sales slump, he navigates the grey edges of policy. During the financial crisis, exports are halved and prices crash while others flee; he buys the bottom and wins widespread acclaim. At his peak, half of China’s freshwater pearls pass through his hands, and he holds over 80% of the country’s top‑grade large pearls. His pearls adorn showrooms in New York, London, Paris, and Tokyo, earning him the title “The Pearl King.” Asked by a reporter for his secret, He Zhenbang replies calmly: “I just stood where the wind was blowing.”