MMB Chapter 1468 Revealing the Truth
Chapter 1468 Revealing the Truth
Chapter 1468 Revealing the Truth
"Why did Director Xu leave?"
Wang Yajuan came in with the documents, glanced back at the corridor, and said, "He was in a real hurry to see you just now."
"It's alright, it's resolved."
Li Xuewu looked at the documents in his hand and asked, "What's wrong? Is something the matter?"
"With Deputy General Manager Ding from Shouqi visiting, aren't we going to do any publicity?" She handed over the documents in her hand and explained, "This is the publicity plan we prepared."
"I haven't even written my horoscope yet."
Li Xuewu glanced at the documents on the table, but didn't even open the cover. He looked up at her and said, "Let's talk about it when things are more certain."
“How can we know when it will be available?” Wang Yajuan pressed down on the proposal and insisted, “Why don’t you take a look first? You need to give us a standard, otherwise we’re afraid we won’t have enough time.”
"When did the publicity department adjust the timeliness to such an advanced level?"
Seeing her insistence, Li Xuewu took the document and began to read it.
Wang Yajuan curled her lip and said, "Because we're afraid of staying up all night to work on proposals."
"Oh, that's alright."
Li Xuewu glanced at the documents in his hand briefly and said confidently, "Let's prepare it like this."
"No other opinions?"
Wang Yajuan looked at him and said, "Don't let us do this for nothing if you're not satisfied later."
"Times change, and plans can't keep up with changes, don't you understand?" Li Xuewu put the documents back on the table and looked at her, saying, "If you're worried about not having enough time, then make several contingency plans and take all sorts of situations into account in advance."
"Then we might as well make it right away—"
Wang Yajuan took back the document with great dissatisfaction, frowning as she said, "Why is it so difficult to do some work?"
What job isn't difficult?
Li Xuewu picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "Why don't you sit here and I'll work on the proposal?"
"You did this on purpose, didn't you?"
Wang Yajuan looked at him and said, "I just want to make reasonable adjustments to the order of the publicity work..."
“Optimize,” Li Xuewu suddenly said.
"Optimize..." Wang Yajuan was suddenly stumped by his reminder. Was this another new word?
Seeing that she had stopped talking, Li Xuewu said, "It's right to try to optimize the workflow, but you have to consider the actual situation, especially the publicity work."
He pointed to the documents beside him and emphasized, "The person you're promoting isn't even sure if he can complete the task tomorrow. What are you going to do?"
"Should we hold a knife to his throat and force him to make a quick decision, or should we concede and waste today's time?"
Wang Yajuan looked at him speechlessly, not knowing how to describe his explanation.
"The nature of propaganda work is inherently lagging and complex, because no one can predict the future."
Li Xuewu said calmly, "This isn't a football match where there are only a few possible outcomes. You have plenty of time to prepare your articles in advance."
"Let me tell you this, even Mr. Ding from Shouqi can't be sure what he'll be doing tomorrow."
"What should we do then?" Wang Yajuan frowned. "Do we have to interview him again?"
Do you think this is an appropriate time?
Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and said, "He's currently torn between choosing the antelope or the white sheep."
"What sheep?!" Wang Yajuan was dumbfounded. Why did they choose sheep? Wasn't the other party the vice president of Shouqi? How did he end up working in the agriculture, forestry and animal husbandry sector?
"Alright, do as I say."
Li Xuewu's gaze returned to the documents in his hand, and he instructed, "I will have someone notify you if there is any news."
"If only that were the case—"
Wang Yajuan thought to herself, "When has the office ever consulted with the publicity department beforehand?"
This is not a matter of initiative, but rather a matter of how the nature of the work restricts communication between the two departments.
Think about it, if you're in the office providing services to the leaders, why would you talk about your work to the publicity department? You might as well just call them out yourself.
"You said—" Wang Yajuan finished her business but didn't leave immediately. Instead, she asked softly, "Is Director Xu still thinking about Yingcheng Port?"
"What do you mean?" Li Xuewu looked up at her and asked, "You've got your eye on her?"
"I'm not qualified—"
Wang Yajuan glanced at him and said, "I was just asking. I heard that the person in charge of Yingcheng Port hasn't been decided yet."
“Working in publicity is really different,” Li Xuewu said, looking her over. “You’re starting to care about these kinds of issues now.”
"Can you stop talking like that?" Wang Yajuan glared at him and said, "Is it interesting to embarrass people like that?"
"I just want to find out about the next personnel arrangements for Yingcheng Port."
She didn't mince words and asked directly, "I originally heard that the group's chosen candidate was Deputy Secretary-General Bu, but now that Deputy Secretary-General Bu has gone to United Energy Corporation, what's next...?"
"The group hasn't even been decided yet, do you think I'd know?" Li Xuewu looked at her and asked, "You want to go to Yingcheng Port?"
"Do you think it's feasible?"
Wang Yajuan tentatively asked, "I heard they need staff for external affairs and there are opportunities for overseas training. I'd like to give it a try."
“Yingcheng Port is a shareholding project, just as you’ve heard.” Li Xuewu nodded, but then added, “It’s easy to go, but it’s hard to come back.”
"What do you mean?" Wang Yajuan asked, frowning. "Are you saying that going to Yingcheng Port is easy to go but difficult to come back, or that going overseas for training is difficult to come back?"
“For equity projects involving foreign investors, organizational and personnel management is handled separately.”
Li Xuewu looked at her and explained, "You can be transferred from the group, but you can't be transferred back."
"The personnel relationship barrier is one-way, and the group cannot accept management cadres for this type of project."
He subtly shared what he knew, then cautioned, "Unless you reach the level of general manager or vice president, you won't have a chance to return to the group's hierarchy."
"how so--"
Wang Yajuan frowned and said, "They only told me that the management atmosphere in Yingcheng Port is more advanced and modern, but they didn't say that I can't be transferred back."
"Do you want to go out and travel, or do you want to change your work environment?" Li Xuewu thought for a moment and said, "Actually, there are opportunities to go out in publicity work as well."
"That would be ages ago—"
Wang Yajuan pursed her lips, looking like she didn't want to think about it anymore, but before leaving, she asked again, "So, will Deputy Secretary-General Ji go to Yingcheng Port to take up a post?"
"Please call Director Zhang Jing for me."
Li Xuewu didn't answer her question, but instead found her some work to do, so she wouldn't have to keep going on and on.
"Hmph—" Wang Yajuan only dared to hum once before leaving the room.
***
Ding Zhichen struggled with the decision of whether to choose the antelope or the white sheep for two days.
He had been in the steel city for three days. On the first afternoon, he met Li Xuewu. The two talked for a long time and almost broke up.
The next day, Lu Yuanshen, the plant manager of Gangqi, received him and accompanied him on a tour of Gangqi's several production lines.
Ding Zhichen was a man of the world, but he was shocked as soon as he entered the steel and gas production workshop.
Leaving aside the massive assembly line production workshops and the long, winding assembly line machinery overhead, let's talk about the cleanliness of the workshops.
He didn't notice this at first, but when Lü Yuanshen accompanied him to the workshop entrance, the workshop director in charge of receiving him gave him a warning before the visit.
The warning education clearly tells him where the escape routes are, where the fire extinguishers are stored, the green areas on the ground are safe to walk on, the red areas are prohibited from passing through, and so on, among other dazzling information.
One of the rules is that any trash must be disposed of in the trash can during the workshop visit.
When the workshop director was explaining these things, his tone was very serious. Fearing that the director might be unhappy, Lü Yuanshen quietly explained the purpose of each reminder.
Ding Zhichen hummed and hawed as he listened, but inwardly he was amused, laughing at the other person for putting on a show.
He'd seen this kind of thing countless times; it was all about saving face and presenting a good image to the guests during their visit.
He didn't say anything. When you're on someone else's turf, you have to do what they say.
The workshop director read out the visitor guidelines before leading them into the production workshop.
In an instant, Ding Zhichen and his entourage understood the words the workshop director had just reminded them of. These words were absolutely true, without any falsehood.
Standing at the entrance of the passage, looking along the green path under my feet, I saw no industrial dust, which is common in this era; it was exceptionally clean and tidy.
All traffic lanes, whether red or green, are straight and perpendicular.
During the visit, Ding Zhichen saw forklifts carrying cargo boxes through the red channel, creating a safety barrier between them and the green area.
They wouldn't have been so amazed if the workshop director hadn't emphasized this before they entered the workshop.
The red and green lanes were strictly separated, and they did not see any workers stepping into the red zone along the way.
"This is a forklift from Anhui Province."
Seeing their curiosity, Lü Yuanshen assumed they were just curious about the forklift used to move parts, and that's when he started explaining.
Ding Zhichen turned to look at him and asked, "Are all your production workshops divided into red and green access zones?"
"Oh, you mean this?"
Lu Yuanshen realized what was happening and nodded seriously, explaining, "This is our group's latest standard for safety production standardization. All factories built after 67 have this system."
"How did you manage that?" Ding Zhicheng asked, gesturing with his finger towards the traffic lights in front of him. "How do you require workers to strictly adhere to this regulation?"
“Because people have died.” Lu Yuanshen paused before continuing, “In fact, most of the group’s current safety production standardization is a summary of past safety production accidents.”
"Especially since behind every seemingly unreasonable regulation lies at least one human life."
He pointed to the forklifts moving through the red lane and explained, "The reason we use colors to distinguish the lanes is because forklifts have blind spots, move at high speeds, and carry goods that risk tipping over."
"Assembly line operations may seem slow, but in reality, industrial manufacturing is very fast."
He confidently explained, "It is thanks to the group's unified safety production standards that we have been able to achieve our goal of producing more than 200 cars per day."
"200 units!" Ding Zhichen asked in surprise, "So fast! So many!"
"Yes, that's right, that fast, that much." Lu Yuanshen said with a smile, "The speed has increased since the car production line became independent."
"Two hundred a day, at least six thousand a month!" Ding Zhichen asked incredulously, "Your factory can achieve the goal of producing six thousand cars a month?"
"It's an independent production line, not our factory."
Lu Yuanshen smiled slightly, raised his hand to signal him to continue walking forward, and said in a nonchalant tone, "Our factory has many production lines like this, there's nothing surprising about it."
I bought a watch last year!
Ding Zhichen had something on his lips that he kept circling back to himself, but he almost couldn't hold back.
What do you mean, "nothing to be surprised about"?
"With so many cars, can you sell them all?"
"No inventory whatsoever, every month we clear out our stock."
Lu Yuanshen explained with a smile, "Most of the supply goes to overseas markets. The cargo ships that transport cars dock at Bincheng Port, which is directly accessible by rail."
"However, this situation will gradually change."
He added, "Our group has established Yingcheng Port Area, where these cars will be loaded onto ships and exported to overseas markets in the future."
"..." Ding Zhichen understood Li Xuewu's arrogance a little better now; why was he so conservative?
Does this include Aries?
Ding Zhichen finally asked the question he had prepared long ago, but pretended to be casual.
Lu Yuanshen was prepared, and now he introduced with a smile: "Of course, Aries is actually export-oriented, and the domestic market cannot fully absorb it yet."
What other export models does your factory produce?
Ding Zhichen suppressed his surprise as he walked along, watching the workers mechanically taking parts out of storage boxes and assembling them onto the frames at their workstations.
What is the most valuable thing about the Steel City Automobile Manufacturing Plant?
Besides the assembly line equipment and a complete parts supply system, there are these workers.
You might think these workers are uneducated and just mechanically repeat the same tasks.
However, training and assembling these workers is also a huge undertaking.
Even Beijing No. 2 Automobile Works, which has already completed the assembly line transformation, dares not say that it produces more than 200 130s per day.
However, the advantages of this production model are evident, and the demand for mini-trucks in Beijing and even across the country is gradually being met by the BJ130.
The only competitor is Red Bull's three-wheeled motorcycles, which have multiple channels and explosive supply.
One reason why Shouqi was willing to partner with Hongxing Steel Group is that Hongxing Steel Group has an independent and complete sales and service system.
Hongxing Steel Group has offices in more than a dozen major cities across the country, and each office is a marketing and service center. Its capabilities and network are unmatched.
Starting from these dozen or so major cities, goods such as automobiles and hardware continue to spread to the surrounding areas, attracting more and more local distributors.
Ultimately, these distributors will be integrated into the Tianjin Trade Management Center for further processing.
The organization that carried out this work was the Sales Corporation of Hongxing Steel Group.
Shouqi's idea is to leverage the influence of Hongxing Steel Group in Beijing to create a fleet of taxis that reflects the characteristics of the times and meets the needs of publicity.
When Ding Zhichen reached the end of the assembly line and saw the cars rolling off the line one after another, he was truly moved.
Aries are prettier than antelopes!
-
"I've come all this way to see you, aren't you going to give me a hug?"
Catherine opened her arms for a hug, but Sigma missed her.
"Li, you can't do this—"
"Why are you here again?"
Li Xuewu looked at her helplessly and said, "Didn't your father tell you to go to Hong Kong to see him?"
"I've already been there. I just got back from Hong Kong. Did you miss me?"
Catherine followed him to the sofa and sat down next to him, asking kindly, "Did you miss me?"
I still prefer your reserved side.
Li Xuewu looked at her and said, "Just like when we first met."
"So you like this!"
Catherine raised an eyebrow, feigning modesty, and said, "But you took me upstairs the first time we met, I can't quite remember that..."
Tell me about your trip to the port city.
Li Xuewu couldn't stand the foreign girl's bluntness; he was still used to Chinese food.
"What's so great about the port city?"
With one arm draped over the sofa and one leg tucked under the other, Catherine turned to look at him and said, "If you're rich, it's heaven; if you're penniless, it's hell."
"Why does it sound like you prefer the mainland?"
Li Xuewu turned slightly to the side and glanced at her, then asked, "Is this the reason you came back so early?"
“Actually, my dad likes this place very much too,” Catherine said earnestly. “He said it holds his fondest memories.”
"Please thank Mr. Andrew for me."
Li Xuewu said with a smile, "He is also welcome to come to the mainland for work and travel again."
He's not coming back—
Catherine turned and sat back on the sofa, turned to look at him, and said with a smirk, "My grandfather has chosen him as his successor, and he's busy right now."
"Oh, congratulations!"
"What's there to be happy about?"
She seemed surprised by Li Xuewu's sudden contribution, saying, "It was my father who inherited the family business, not me."
"Then congratulate your father for me."
Li Xuewu suddenly remembered that family relationships in the West are very pragmatic, especially among the old money families.
Italians are considered better; they have a strong sense of family and are said to be more receptive to Chinese culture.
"You seem more interested in my father."
Catherine tilted her head slightly, looked at him, and said, "Do you think he's more powerful now?"
"Your father is my good friend."
Li Xuewu calmly replied to her question, "I never consider whether a friend has power or influence when making friends, and your father is the same."
“That’s exactly it—” Catherine looked at him with adoration and excitement, “Keep this attitude, all night long! I’ll agree to anything you want—”
"You son of a bitch—" Li Xuewu gritted his teeth, squinted at her, and asked, "Do you particularly admire your father? Do you only choose boyfriends who have a presence like your father?"
"……Why do you say that?"
Catherine hesitated for a moment, then looked at him and asked, "What does this have to do with me and you?"
"Just out of personal curiosity—"
Li Xuewu suddenly laughed, as if he had discovered her inner secret.
His gaze made Catherine feel a chill run down her spine, as if she were being seen naked.
"Do you think I'm happy being born into such a family?"
Catherine understood his gaze and smile, and suddenly calmed down, lowering her head slightly as she said, "Actually, you don't understand."
Li Xuewu twitched the corner of his mouth and said, "Don't I understand your joy and happiness?"
He chuckled and crossed his right leg, saying, "If that's what you want to say, I won't argue, because I've never experienced the happiness of a capitalist, including being the child of a capitalist."
"You don't need to look at me like that."
Li Xuewu turned his head and glanced at her. Her gaze was somewhat surprised and complicated.
"Have you ever experienced hunger?" He raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "Hunger is more painful than trauma."
“Who hasn’t gone hungry?” Catherine said, hugging her knees. “When I was little, my nanny starved me and punished me for being disobedient.”
"Would she dare to starve you for three days?"
Li Xuewu smiled and said, "I'd eat people even if I starved myself for three days, do you believe me?"
“Auntie—” Catherine grinned, but then her gaze froze as she asked seriously, “Is everything you’re saying true?”
Li Xuewu did not answer her question, but continued, "My deepest childhood memories are not of happiness and joy, but of hunger."
"Actually, my family is doing alright, but now I can wake up from my nightmares about being hungry."
He placed his hands on his right knee, which was crossed over his knee, and looked ahead as he spoke: "The most memorable time was outside the city, when I witnessed a tragedy..."
"You're a big shot now."
Catherine wrapped her arms around his neck, rested her head on his shoulder, and whispered comfortingly, "You seem to be even more capable than my father."
"are you joking?"
Li Xuewu suddenly chuckled and said, "I may strategically underestimate your father's power, but do you think I have the power to mobilize billions of assets?"
“You don’t need to be jealous of him. No matter how much wealth the family has, it doesn’t belong to him; it belongs to the family.”
Catherine looked up at him and smiled, saying, "My father also said that being the family heir is actually a tough and painful job with no fun."
You'll definitely doubt what I'm saying.
She pointed to Li Xuewu's lips and said, "But I'm telling you this is all true. Fighting for the family heir is not as simple as you think."
"What's so complicated about it?" Li Xuewu said with a light laugh. "It's nothing more than using the power to apply resources to seek more personal gain, even if those resources have to be handed over in the future, right?"
Seeing Catherine's surprised expression, he said with a smile, "Didn't you study Chinese history? This kind of thing is commonplace here."
"No wonder my dad said that East Asians are incredibly intelligent, especially you—"
Catherine looked at him as he opened his eyes slightly and said, "My father told me to be wary of you."
“Be good, listen to your father.” Li Xuewu earnestly advised her, “I’m dangerous, you’d better stay away from me.”
"Really? Where are you in danger?"
Catherine reverted to her lustful demeanor, rose, knelt on the sofa, and looked into his eyes flirtatiously, saying, "I'll do whatever you say if you show me your face."
"Is it okay, Daddy—"
I'm so sorry, Mr. Andrew, she struck first!
Good morning, Secretary General.
"morning"
Good morning, boss.
"morning"
……
Li Xuewu got out of the car and walked upstairs, greeting people constantly as he said he was late.
He could guarantee that he wouldn't act like a teacher, but he couldn't resist the other party's demand that he act like a father.
What a terrible thing!
This was his first time experiencing this track in all this time; the Italians were really showing off their skills.
"Boss, the Northern Industry Daily would like to arrange an interview with you. They said they have already sent someone over."
Zhang Jing seemed to be waiting for him, and came out when he heard the noise in the corridor.
"Northern Industry News?" Li Xuewu frowned slightly.
Zhang Jing nodded in confirmation: "It's that Northern Industry Daily."
The two seemed to say nothing at all, yet they also seemed to say everything.
"What do you want to interview me about?" Li Xuewu walked into the office, and Zhang Enyuan followed him in to change his tea.
"The other party didn't explain it very clearly; it was very vague."
Zhang Jing frowned and said, "I emphasized it to them several times, but they just kept going in circles."
He is the director of the group's office for the Liaodong Industrial Leading Group, so he has the basic manners for receiving guests.
Where would you accept a media interview if there were any uncertainties, especially from the Northern Industry Daily?
The last time Shenyang Aircraft Corporation's Zhou Zicheng came to Beijing to sign a contract, the North Industry Daily was very unfriendly.
Later, Li Xuewu also learned from Lao Li that the whole thing was actually orchestrated by Su Weide.
Old Li must have given Su Weide a warning; he couldn't let Su Weide get angry.
But Suweide was reprimanded, so the Northern Industry Daily should have interviewed Lao Li instead of Suweide.
Li Xuewu didn't believe the other party was there to promote Hongxing Steel Group, since the group hadn't been lenient with them and hadn't given them that money.
Old Li is right. How dare a beggar curse like that?
The Northern Industry Newspaper is considered a major newspaper within the industrial system, especially in the Northern Industry circle.
The newspaper was originally affiliated with the Industrial Information Administration Bureau, but later underwent organizational changes and was separated to operate independently.
The supervising unit remains the industrial system, but the finances need to be raised from local governments and enterprises.
There are many such newspapers; they do receive funding, but not much, and they barely manage to make a living.
Later, there was a very popular TV series called "The Story of the Editorial Department," which depicted a similar theme.
Of course, it depends on the behavior and habits of those older people. Their behavior in their youth reflects the characteristics of this era.
"Then just ignore them."
Li Xuewu said impatiently, "Just say I don't have time, and if you need to do an interview, contact the group."
“I’ve inquired with the group,” Zhang Jing explained softly. “The general office said that Director Li had already refused them once, just the day before yesterday.”
"If Director Li refused, can't I refuse?" Li Xuewu looked at him and saw Zhang Jing's troubled expression, knowing that he was thinking of him.
If Li Huaide neither sees the other party nor himself, then how can the other party write an article without relying solely on his words?
Zhang Jing is not in charge of publicity, but he is responsible for coordinating and assisting Li Xuewu with his daily work.
"Let's wait until they arrive before we talk about it."
Li Xuewu ultimately couldn't bring himself to refuse the interview. He and the others didn't dare to write about him because he was too weak and easily bullied.
"Then I'll get ready."
Seeing that the leader nodded, Zhang Jing suggested, "Let's arrange for them to stay at the guesthouse; that way, they'll be easier to take care of."
"Well, it's up to you."
Li Xuewu nodded, took a sip of hot tea, and said, "Be careful and take precautions."
Don't worry—
Zhang Jing responded earnestly, and before leaving, reminded Li Xuewu, "Don't forget the meeting this morning."
"I know." Li Xuewu remembered this; even if Zhang Jing hadn't reminded him, Zhang Enyuan would have.
Li Xuewu was still thinking about the Northern Industry Daily when he picked up the phone and went out.
The call connected quickly, and Zhou Yao's voice came through.
"There's something I need you to look into. A reporter from the Northern Industry Daily is coming to interview us. Could you check who the reporter was who came to our group last time for a signing ceremony?"
With the phone call taking place so far apart, who can guarantee that no one is eavesdropping? So you have to be careful what you say.
I can't be too vague, otherwise Zhou Yao won't understand; but I can't be too direct either, otherwise too many people will understand.
He instructed that he should "check out" who the reporter was, meaning to investigate the reporter's background.
That's what it means to be a certain kind of person.
“Okay, boss,” Zhou Yao replied crisply. “I’ll call you later.”
"Okay." Li Xuewu replied and then hung up the phone.
If the Northern Industry Daily hadn't contacted him today to arrange an interview, Li Xuewu would have completely forgotten about this.
But I remembered it again today. What did Old Li say that time?
The reporter named Liu Hongmei was provoked by Su Weide; she was clearly there to cause trouble.
Later, Lao Li spoke with his superiors and expressed his strong dissatisfaction with the matter. As for the subsequent outcome, Li Xuewu didn't know; it was Lao Li who handled it.
However, he could also guess that Old Li was unwilling to even talk to the other party or contact them to seek a solution to the matter, and did not take the other party seriously at all.
It would be strange if this relationship could improve.
Li Xuewu's memory of Liu Hongmei was still fairly clear. That day, she was wearing a black top, had short hair that reached her ears, and was quite good-looking. After all, female journalists in this era were not simple.
It wasn't that he thought there was anything wrong with Liu Hongmei; he just suddenly felt something was off when he thought of Su Weide.
Old Su knelt down too quickly this time, which is quite different from his usual stubborn style.
If he's after Old Li, then it doesn't matter; Li Xuewu just needs to ensure Old Li doesn't fall.
But what if Lao Su came here specifically for him?
There's no doubt about this possibility. The Northern Industry Daily even sent people to Liaodong and the steel city to interview him. What is there about him that would attract their attention?
Li Xuewu is in charge of all industrial management work of the group in Liaodong. Even the United Energy Corporation is now under local management. The bigger the tree, the more the wind blows.
In July, Li Huaide expressed his hope that he would complete the restructuring of the Liaodong Industrial Zone as soon as possible and shift the focus back to the group.
In September, Li Huaide expressed this request again, this time even emphasizing his desire for him to return to work at the group.
Is it because he worked too hard in Liaodong, carried out too much rectification, and achieved too significant results?
The group's industrial enterprises in Liaodong were developed when Dong Wenxue was in charge. In the process of building up the empire, there were bound to be various problems.
The group understood the situation, but Dong Wenxue knew that the situation was beyond his ability to resolve and that someone else had to be sent to handle it.
At this time, Li Xuewu came along. He used some methods to quickly adjust the management situation of various industrial enterprises and streamline their organizational structure.
Now that the initial results are visible, Lao Li wants to stop while he's ahead and doesn't want him to linger in the core of the group's management for too long.
Do you think Old Li meant well?
Stop joking. He's afraid that if Li Xuewu stays away for too long, his influence will become too entrenched, making it difficult to take action against him later.
Getting promoted from the security system isn't the problem, but having industrial management experience and skills is.
Li Xuewu's premature accumulation of influence will only make their situation more awkward.
Now an opportunity is presented to Li Xuewu. Should he try to achieve his goal indirectly, or should he try to shift the blame elsewhere?
Unable to discern whether Lao Su and the Northern Industry Daily were enemies or plotting against each other, he could only prepare for the worst.
If Lao Su's roundabout approach was for Lao Li's sake, then he chose to remain unchanged in the face of all changes.
If Lao Su tries to do something indiscriminately and fails to get Li Huaide to turn his attention to him, then he should shift the blame to Lao Li and let them continue their feud.
Old Li was used to block bullets, wasn't he?
-
Let's talk about Aries directly.
At the start of the meeting, Ding Zhichen didn't want to waste any more time and bluntly stated: "If Shouqi wants to operate Aries, how should we negotiate?"
"This isn't on the agenda for this meeting, is it?" Li Xuewu frowned slightly and emphasized, "The group's requirements and letters to us all said that Shouqi wanted the Hongxing Antelope. Why have they changed their minds now?"
Nonsense, why wouldn't you say he could change his mind?
How is Ding Zhichen supposed to answer this question? If he says Aries is good, then how can he discuss cooperation?
If he says Aries is bad, then why did he abandon the Red Star Antelope and choose Aries?
"After comprehensive consideration, I think Aries is more suitable for use in urban transportation."
Ding Zhichen was quite the talker. He slightly raised his chin and said, "This time we will deploy 50 Aries taxis for the Beijing taxi market."
Is there still a market for taxi services?
At this time, the people who take the most taxis are those from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, because they are not spending their own money.
“I can’t negotiate without the group’s authorization.” Li Xuewu completely ignored his question and instead stated frankly, “How about I report your demands and wishes to the group, and we can discuss it later?”
Ding Zhichen knew perfectly well that this was the other party's strategy: asking for an exorbitant price and then negotiating on the spot.
He gave Li Xuewu the opportunity to ask for an exorbitant price, but the other party simply refused to make an offer.
This is definitely not something that can be dismissed with a 20/80 split!
"Frankly speaking, the Red Star Antelope is already able to meet our current needs in the taxi market."
Ding Zhichen looked at him and said, "The reason we are seeking further cooperation is that we have seen the potential of Aries in the international market, and we believe that your company is also willing to promote this excellent car to the domestic market."
“Choosing Shouqi is equivalent to choosing the market, because we represent the largest car operation company in Beijing and the best unit for operating taxis.”
"How about you take a look at other models?"
Li Xuewu turned to look at Lü Yuanshen and asked, "Have you taken President Ding to see other car models these past two days?"
“I’ve seen it, even the Smooth Road.”
Lu Yuan knew that he couldn't get a word in edgewise at this point, and he had no right to speak at the negotiating table.
However, when asked by a leader, he still followed up on the topic and introduced his itinerary for the past few days.
Li Xuewu nodded slightly and looked at Ding Zhichen, saying, "Actually, operating Aries is already in our work plan. I introduced it to you on your first day here, and it also includes our Hongyun minibus."
"I think it's pointless to discuss any intentions with you now without the group's authorization."
He paused, then continued, "I still suggest you wait a bit, or go directly to the group to talk to Director Li. I believe that would be more appropriate."
"Then tell us your plan first."
Ding Zhichen, however, took a different approach, frankly stating, "If your plan is good, then we can also join your plan."
You're just talking nonsense, how can you join without even knowing what you're talking about? Do you even know how to call someone "Dad"?
"From the information I've given you, you can see that we're not simply trying to expand our business, but rather to provide employment for laid-off employees."
Li Xuewu frankly explained, "The group's newly established second three-year plan requires reducing the number of employees by 40,000, and the resettlement of these employees is a problem."
"We have some experience and insights in freight transportation and the operation of three-wheeled cargo motorcycles, so we will develop passenger and freight transportation in a coordinated manner, carry out passenger taxi business, and strive to work hand in hand with employees to solve employment problems."
"I understand what you mean."
Ding Zhichen spread his hands and said, "It's not that I'm questioning your operational experience and capabilities, but there's one thing you haven't considered, and that's the market."
"Neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs nor ordinary people have a high demand for taxis."
He explained, "It's just a few fixed locations, fixed units, and very few other people—"
“I do not deny your excellent experience in cargo transportation, but taxis and freight are two different things.”
“We can implement a lease-to-own policy to allow employees to operate the cars.”
Li Xuewu emphasized, "We will provide training and guidance to all drivers involved in this project, and organize and manage transportation throughout the city."
"Currently, the high cost of taxi fares makes it unaffordable for ordinary people, and the main problem lies in the cost of the vehicles themselves."
He did some calculations on paper with a pencil and bluntly told Ding Zhichen that as long as Hongxing Steel Group operated the taxi project, the fares could be reduced to a level that ordinary people could afford.
Some say that fuel costs are high these days, and refueling is a problem. But Hongxing Steel Group has its own refined oil subsidiary, which can fully coordinate costs.
It's impossible to take a taxi for just a few cents, but a starting fare of a few dimes is still achievable.
After all, this is Beijing. There are people who are not short of money but short of time. If a high-end car like the Aries appears in Beijing, it will be a huge blow to the taxi market.
Forget about the future, Ding Zhichen feels like he's been hit hard right now. Is this some kind of table-flipping attack?
Hongxing Steel Group and Shouqi have never had a cooperative or competitive relationship before, because there is no competition between them.
One is a car manufacturer, and the other is a taxi company. What kind of conflict could they possibly have?
But he never expected that Hongxing Steel Group would be so unscrupulous, actually setting its sights on the taxi market, and doing so quite well!
"Ahem—" Ding Zhichen couldn't help but cough twice, and looked at Li Xuewu and said, "This plan is really good. It makes me want to talk about cooperation."
Okay, you can beat me, but I can't, so join me, alright?
If you don't join my group, then I'll join yours. You can't just kick me out, can you?
"Shouqi still has some resources that you can't access if you operate independently."
Alright, Ding Zhichen has revealed his hand.
(End of this chapter)