2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 233 The Benefits of Information Asymmetry
Obtain a car production license, but don't produce anything for several years, just leave it to appreciate in value?
Have you done nothing all these years?
That's obviously impossible.

At this point in time, Zhongtai, or what should now be called Tieniu, must be running into walls everywhere, right? They've approached BAIC, FAW, and even Changhe, but as a small private factory, you simply don't have the qualifications to bargain with these established state-owned enterprises.

For Flashpoint Technology, this could very well be an opportunity.

This is the benefit of information asymmetry. Ever since he had the dream of building cars, Tan Jincheng has been keeping an eye on the development of Zhongtai and secretly collecting information. Due to insufficient information technology, he has not been able to collect much information in the past year or two, but he still knows the general process.

In Tan Jincheng's view, it's a bit of a pity that Zhongtai has failed. If it had focused on technological research and development after its success with Porsche, its fate might have been different. Moreover, Zhongtai was the first company in China to obtain a new energy vehicle license.

However, like most companies, they were obsessed with fraudulent subsidies in those years. In the end, the boss probably realized that there was no way to turn things around, so he started to engage in crazy capital operations, turning a good car manufacturing dream into a cash-out scheme, and started to run away with the buckets.

It must be said, this is a tragedy.

For ordinary people, this is also a great loss. After all, although Zhongtai's models have many problems and are often criticized as being low-end, they are really cheap, unlike those new energy vehicle brands that charge hundreds of thousands of yuan for a single car.

They're always comparing themselves to this or that, talking about the best car under 100 million or the best car under 500 million, without ever considering the average person's wallet.

If Tesla didn't have its occasional price reductions, we might really be reduced to driving only BMW, Mercedes-Benz, or Audi if we didn't work hard.

If we assume that Zhongtai did not forget its original intention and did not eventually go bankrupt, would the market be different? Tan Jincheng is not sure if this assumption is valid.

However, looking at those established domestic gasoline car manufacturers that have transitioned to new energy vehicles, the pricing of their models is relatively reasonable, so they probably won't sell them too expensively, at least most of their models won't be too expensive.

Lunch was still eaten in a small private room in the company cafeteria; Tan Jincheng wasn't completely clueless, and he still knew how to put on a show, for example, he brought over several bottles of mineral water. The dishes weren't extravagant, but they were still quite refined.

After the initial agreement was signed, everyone on both Tao Qinian's and Tan Jincheng's sides felt much more relaxed, and the atmosphere at the dinner table became quite lively.

Tao Qinian chatted and clinked glasses with Tan Lihua and Zhang Xupeng, who had just arrived.

Compared to Tan Jincheng, Zhang Xupeng had never met a leader at this level before, especially since he came from his hometown of Yicheng. He seemed somewhat awkward and kept glancing at Tan Jincheng.

However, Tan Jincheng was too busy to take care of himself, and Xu Xueming and the head of the Finance Bureau were guarding him at the moment, which seemed to indicate a clear division of labor.

Fortunately, Tan Jincheng had told him before he came that the other party seemed to be interested in bringing Jinpeng Trading to set up a garment factory in Wangjiang County. As for how to decide, Tan Jincheng let Zhang Xupeng make the decision himself.

Although Tan Jincheng still hoped that Zhang Xupeng would stay with Jinpeng Trading and make money for a few years, and then find an opportunity to retire comfortably, so that he wouldn't have to worry for the rest of his life or even several lifetimes.

However, Jinpeng Trading is now only a "minor shareholder," and the company's decisions still have to respect the boss, Zhang Xupeng.

Setting up a factory back in one's hometown isn't entirely without its advantages; in other aspects, it's quite beneficial. First, one can capture the profits of the contract manufacturer; second, costs will be significantly reduced.

The only concern is the business environment. It is known that even the King of Hell is easy to deal with, but his underlings are difficult to manage. Even if Tao Qinian personally introduced the company, and it is an enterprise with an annual output value of over 100 million yuan, it is still hard to guarantee that there won't be a group of people under him causing trouble.

But it doesn't matter. If we're fooled and the business falls apart, at most we'll just lose some profits. It's not a bad thing to learn a lesson from those losses.

Not bad money!
"Mr. Tan, this is the second time we've had drinks together. Thank you so much for your hospitality during my stay in Ningbo. I won't say anything more; it's all in my glass."

"It was my fault for being negligent. I overslept that day and was in a hurry to catch my flight, so I didn't have time to say hello. Mr. Xu, you are very generous. I'll toast you with this glass as my apology."

"What are you saying? Before we came, Xiao Zhang said you were quite busy, so I apologize for bothering you. But if we're going to have a drink, one cup won't be enough, we'll have to have three, how about it?"

What can you do if you don't go? The matter is already settled, the agreement has been signed, how can you go back on your word?

"No problem, three cups it is. However, my alcohol tolerance is limited. Please bear with me, leaders, as I am a junior." Tan Jincheng readily agreed.

This old guy is probably a bit annoyed. Three drinks it is. Even though we won't have many opportunities to deal with each other in the future, there's no need to offend him too much.

There's nothing wrong with giving him face.

The kind of arrogant and confrontational behavior depicted in online novels only demonstrates a lack of common sense. Offending someone without any vested interest is completely unnecessary. Tan Jincheng disliked him before simply because this old guy was trying to undermine his own interests.

Back then, I naturally didn't hold back in rebuking him, but now that there's no longer any conflict of interest between us, it would seem a bit brainless to keep attacking him.

High-level banter stems from self-interest; low-level banter is driven by impotent rage.

Seeing that Tan Jincheng drank three cups so readily, Xu Xueming's expression softened considerably: "President Tan is generous and kind!"

Alright, it's already quite generous of a young and impetuous person to give such face. Let's stop here. Perhaps not getting anything this time isn't such a bad thing. The 80 yuan offer from that company in Taizhou is far too much compared to FlashTech's 500 million yuan offer.

If it were really sold to that company, and this kid was dissatisfied, it would cause a lot of trouble if he exposed it. In the latter half of the banquet, Xu Xueming saw that Tan Jincheng had only clinked glasses with the others and even Tao Qinian, and noticed that his cheeks were flushed, indicating that his alcohol tolerance was really not very good, so he did not continue to take advantage of him.

"Mr. Tan, would you like to hold a ceremony for your donation? If so, we'll prepare accordingly. Also, what are your plans for this donation? Do you have any specific requirements?"

While Tan Jincheng was half-drunk and half-awake, another person in charge of the attack, the head of the Finance Bureau, asked.

"No need. Doing something for our hometown doesn't require any ceremony. As for the purpose, part of it will be used to improve the county's office conditions, and the other part will be used to improve the living conditions and housing environment of the middle school students in the town. What do you think?"

During the few days I spent at my hometown for the Spring Festival, I heard my younger cousins ​​who were in junior high school and other children in the village say that the conditions at the junior high school in the town were still very difficult, especially for students like them from the countryside, who needed to live on campus.

However, judging from their descriptions, the dormitory conditions at the town's middle school were truly appalling, and the food in the canteen was also extremely poor.

At the age of teenagers, it is a time when they are growing. They eat poorly, live poorly, and have heavy schoolwork. It must be quite miserable. This time, in order to obtain the production qualification of Andar, the donation was proposed by himself.

Regarding how to use this money, the other party will definitely respect your opinion. Take this opportunity to bring it up, and I believe they will understand what you mean.

"Understood. Then I'll thank you on behalf of the county staff and children, Mr. Tan. I'll drink this cup in one go, Mr. Tan, please feel free to drink as you like."

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Tan Jincheng, who had been sleeping on the office sofa, finally woke up.

Hearing the commotion, Zhang Xuhui rushed in and poured Tan Jincheng a glass of water.

"Did they send my dad, Pengya, and the leaders back?" Tan Jincheng asked, rubbing his head.

He wasn't a big drinker to begin with, and having just flown back from the capital, he was quite tired. So he couldn't hold on any longer and took the opportunity to leave early to use the restroom, then went to his office to lie down.

When Zhang Xuhui found Tan Jincheng, he was already asleep, so he didn't disturb him.

"Yes, the leaders have been taken to the guesthouse, and Uncle and Pengya have taken them back to their accommodations. Pengya is a bit drunk, but what's funny is that when he heard you donated money, he insisted on donating too," Zhang Xuhui said with a smile.

Tan Jincheng was taken aback, and stopped what he was doing: "What the hell?"

"Haha, when the head of the finance bureau was pouring him drinks, he drank a bit too much and started yelling that he wanted to drink like you."

"Damn it, this idiot, you can't just say things like that. If you say it, you have to do it. You'll be held legally responsible," Tan Jincheng said, somewhat troubled.

"Who says otherwise? I was afraid he would keep talking nonsense, so I kept an eye on him."

"Alright, let's forget about him, let's just donate; sit down first, let's talk."

"Is there something wrong?" Zhang Xuhui asked somewhat nervously, as his boss rarely spoke to him in this tone.

Tan Jincheng nodded and said, "There is indeed something I need to discuss. What are your thoughts on working in the capital?"

After much thought, I decided that sending Zhang Xuhui to the capital was the most appropriate option. He could learn slowly even if he lacked experience, and it wouldn't matter if he couldn't manage things well. With him there keeping an eye on things, I would feel more at ease.

"Working in the capital? Boss, are you from Hangxin Energy?" Upon hearing this news, Zhang Xuhui was somewhat taken aback.

"Yes, I'm planning to send you over there as the logistics supervisor. You'll just need to manage things like purchasing and spending money. Are you willing?"

"Well, I have no management experience, so I don't know if I can do it well."

"You can learn if you don't know how. When you first came here, you didn't know anything either. You probably looked down on me back then. It's okay, you can learn slowly. I'm not worried about you not being able to manage, you just need to keep an eye on things for me."

Hearing his boss recount the past, Zhang Xuhui scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly: "That was because I was young and naive when I first graduated."

"I didn't mean anything by saying this. You and Pengya are brothers. I trust you, that's why I'm letting you go there. If you're willing, then it's settled."

"Thank you for your trust, boss, but if I go there, you won't have anyone you trust by your side. What will you do then?"

“That’s easy. I’ll give you two days to think it over. If you’re willing to go, hire a few assistants for me in two days. You’ll be responsible for training them, and you can go over once they’re ready to take over your work.”

Two days, it's just a weekend, why do we have to make a decision next Monday?
"Um, okay, let me think about it."

(End of this chapter)