2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 251 Brave Iron Ox, Unafraid of Difficulties

Yongkang.

At 5 p.m., Wu Jianzhong was still inspecting the workshop.

From the moment he accepted his brother-in-law's invitation to resign and give up his public office, Wu Jianzhong devoted all his energy to the preparation and production of Zhongtai Automobile.

Over two years, overcoming numerous difficulties, the factory gradually rose from the ground, and Zhongtai Group was established during this time.

After in-depth research, it was found that what the domestic market lacked was this type of small SUV. As the actual manager, Wu Jianzhong immediately made the decision, and Zhongtai Miao was approved to enter the domestic small SUV market.

And before Geely and Chery could do it, they used reason and money to acquire the Daihatsu TERIOS production line, which was being sold.

With the complete vehicle production line in place, Zhongtai's vehicle manufacturing plant was officially completed. The engineers worked quickly, and at the beginning of this year, the first batch of TERIOS replicas rolled off the production line.

Although it was a copy, Wu Jianzhong was still incredibly excited when the first complete car rolled off the production line. His brother-in-law, Ying Jianren, had almost gambled everything he had on making cars, including his own promising future. The whole family was essentially risking everything to succeed.

"Win and you get young models at a club; lose and you have to work in the sex industry."

Wu Jianzhong had never heard of this phrase, which was often used as a joke in the stock market in later generations, but if Tan Jincheng knew about Zhongtai's experience in making cars, he would definitely think of this phrase.

The car was built, but a new problem arose: the birth permit was still not available. The brother-in-law spent several months running around, even waiting in front of several qualified state-owned enterprises and pulling strings, but they just wouldn't agree.

As time passed, Wu Jianzhong was also worried. The domestic car market is now booming and there is undoubtedly a great opportunity. This model, temporarily named Zhongtai 001, will undoubtedly fill the gap in the domestic small SUV market.

If the price is right, there's no worry about it not selling once it's on the market, but unfortunately, it can't be launched yet, and a lot of time has been missed.

However, production cannot be stopped. Anyone who has run a factory knows that as long as the machines in your workshop are not making a roaring sound, all sorts of people will come knocking on your door, and then you'll really be doomed.

Just as Wu Jianzhong was worrying in the workshop, a Mercedes-Benz W140 slowly drove into the Zhongtai Automobile factory area.

Ying Jianren is back.

As soon as the car stopped in front of the office building, Ying Jianren eagerly opened the car door and rushed to Wu Jianzhong's office. Seeing that no one was in the office, he knew that his brother-in-law had gone to the workshop again.

Ying Jianren quickly took out his phone: "Brother-in-law, are you in the workshop? Come back quickly, I'm in your office."

Wu Jian, who was in the workshop, suddenly felt a chill. Shouldn't his brother-in-law be in Chengdu at this time? Why was he in Yongkang? Had something else happened?
After repeatedly hitting roadblocks with state-owned enterprises, Ying Jianren, who was in charge of securing production qualifications, knew he couldn't wait any longer. He learned that there was a company in Chengdu called Xindadi that didn't manufacture cars, but had a very unconventional business model: they made a living by manufacturing, reselling, and renting out production qualifications.

To be honest, this business was somewhat shady and illegal, but there was no other way at this point. The cars had already been manufactured, and they couldn't just not sell them.

So the two of them discussed it and decided to go to CD to see if they could rent or buy a production license.

At this point, Wu Jianzhong didn't have time to think anymore and hurriedly headed towards the office building. The birth permit had been a headache for the two of them for quite some time, and they really didn't want any more accidents to happen now.

As soon as he entered, Wu Jianzhong disregarded any semblance of composure and asked directly, "Weren't you supposed to be going to CD? Why are you back now?"

“Some things changed. I had just arrived at the airport when the city called and said that there were production qualifications in Beicang, Ningbo, and they wanted to talk to us about cooperation. So I immediately canceled my ticket and turned back.”

"Where did Beicang get the production license? I've never heard of it. Didn't we inquire around the province first?"

"I'm not too sure about that either. It seems that there was an electric vehicle manufacturer over there that got it from somewhere. After hearing about it, the Beicang District persuaded that company to cooperate with us."

"An electric vehicle company? Which company is going to take such a risky approach? What conditions did they propose?"

"They haven't mentioned any conditions yet, but it's probably either money or equity like Chery did. I think this would be good for us, so I came back directly. They'll be coming over the day after tomorrow to discuss cooperation, and we'll prepare accordingly."

Wu Jianzhong nodded and said, "It is indeed a good thing. This way we will have complete production qualifications, which is much better than renting or buying."

Although they said they were buying, they both knew that renting was more likely. The car market was doing well, and those who specialized in brokering production licenses clearly knew that renting was more cost-effective. They could get four or five hundred yuan for free from a car and not have to worry about anything.

If they're going to sell them, their qualifications aren't for unlimited production; they'll eventually run out. In business, you need to be patient and sustainable.

"Let's discuss this further, brother-in-law. What kind of conditions might Beicang propose?" Ying Jianren was skilled in capital, but when it came to matters within the system, he couldn't compare to his brother-in-law, a former state-owned enterprise leader. This was why he entrusted the car factory to his brother-in-law's management. Although his brother-in-law had left the system, he still had connections and was much better at dealing with the government than Ying Jianren. At least the city government was willing to give him face.

Wu Jianzhong pondered, “Since it’s the district that’s involved, it probably isn’t about money. Beicang District isn’t short of money. I guess they want to develop the automotive industry. It’s either moving there or opening a branch factory. The probability of moving is not high, but the probability of opening a branch factory is higher.”

The district government directly intervened, and Wu Jianzhong could think of almost everything they could think of. He was previously a leader of a state-owned enterprise and had some knowledge of local economic development.

"Well, moving there is definitely impossible. We just built the factory, how can we just move it like that? Building a branch factory is no problem, as long as the conditions are right, we can agree to it, which would also be beneficial for us."

"Yes, the business environment there is good, and it has the natural advantage of a port. Ningbo's administrative level is also higher. If we can reach an agreement, it will be beneficial for us."

"Yes, if the conditions aren't too unreasonable, we can definitely agree. It not only solves our immediate problem, but it's also beneficial for the future development of Zhongtai. We already had plans to open branch factories in other parts of the country."

"So, let's not go to CD's place for now? I'll go find out what conditions they've proposed, and what kind of company that electric vehicle is. It's always good to deal with people with connections like that."

Wu Jianzhong nodded: "Okay, I won't go for now. The district is coming to talk, so we need to raise the level of the talks. If we can't reach an agreement, we can go to CD. It won't make a difference if we wait a day or two. I'll also organize the company's documents here."

"Okay, I'll go and find out."

"It's after get off work, where are you going to ask around?"

"It'll be easier to find out after get off work. Brother-in-law, do you want to come along?"

"I'll pass, but you just need to be careful and not cause any trouble at crucial moments. It will greatly affect whether the car can be launched and sold."

"clear."

Ying Jianren was born in 1962. His father supported the family by blacksmithing. After graduating from high school, he inherited his father's craft and started working in the hardware industry.

After more than 10 years of hard work, in 1992 he scraped together 8 yuan with the help of relatives and friends to establish a machinery factory, which was the predecessor of Tieniu Group. Later, he gradually moved from the hardware business to motorcycles and auto parts.

From the early 80s to after the turn of the millennium, Ying Jianren was in business longer than Tan Jincheng was. Over the years, he gradually built his business from small to large, enduring a lot of hardship and developing many bad habits along the way.

After his business grew, he gradually changed, but this takes time. His brother-in-law has helped him a lot along the way, and Ying Jianren doesn't feel offended by his brother-in-law's reminders.

On the contrary, he still respects his brother-in-law very much. He said that without his brother-in-law's help and guidance, he would not have been able to get to where he is today. There are many hardware bosses like him in Yongkang who are not well-educated, but how many of them can become rich?

The next morning, Ying Jianren arrived at the company.

"I found out, and it's pretty much what you guessed, brother-in-law."

"You found out in just one night? Is the information accurate?" Wu Jianzhong asked with some doubt.

"It should be accurate. They didn't deliberately hide it from us. They just want some equity and to build a branch factory in Beicang to boost the local economy. Also, we found out about the electric vehicle company that got the production license. It's called Flash Technology. I checked it last night, and this company is developing very rapidly."

"Flash Technology? I feel like I've heard of it somewhere before. What are their demands? The production license belongs to them, and Beicang District can't just take it for free, can they?"

"My brother-in-law heard about it, probably from a TV commercial. Last year they were the first to hire a celebrity as their spokesperson. As for their demands, they didn't say anything, but they'll be here for tomorrow's negotiations."

Then Ying Jianren continued, "I don't think their demands are important. I did a thorough investigation of this company yesterday. Their rapid development is due to the strong support from Beicang District. Since they didn't directly approach us to discuss cooperation, but instead had the Beicang District government intervene, I don't think their demands are too excessive."

"That makes sense. Although the items belong to them, I estimate that the decision-makers are still the Beicang District side. Flash Technology shouldn't make any excessive demands."

"That makes things easier. Ah, finally I can relax a bit. It's like a godsend; all that running around for nothing, it just came to me naturally, haha."

Ying Jianren laughed heartily, saying that he had suffered a lot of indignation during this period when those powerful companies ignored him.

Seeing that the urgent matter was finally showing signs of progress, Ying Jianren could finally breathe a sigh of relief. At the same time, Wu Jianzhong also felt much lighter, as he was not afraid of dealing with government departments.

(End of this chapter)