Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 966 A Brutal Solution

"You want to buy Yanjing Jeep? Its entire business in mainland China?" There was a hint of surprise in Li Aikeka's voice on the other end: "You're that optimistic about the future of mainland China?"

Yang Wendong said, "I am Chinese and have my own connections in China, so I can naturally ensure the smooth operation of my businesses in the mainland."

“It’s not impossible, but after the acquisition, you will still need to continuously purchase parts from me,” Li Aikeka said.

Yang Wendong countered, "Do you think that's possible? To me, wouldn't doing that mean creating a useless company?"

"..." Li Aikoka was silent for a moment, then said, "So what do you want?"

Yang Wendong said, "I want all the relevant technology patents and some production equipment. Some parts can be imported from the United States in the early stages. Later, I will try localized production in China. After that, it will have nothing to do with you."

Li Aikeka shook his head and said, "That's impossible. Giving you the relevant technology is the same as selling you the whole Jeep."

"Don't worry, I only need patents in mainland China or within Asia," Yang Wendong said. "After obtaining the patents, the cars I produce will not appear in the European and American markets. We can include this in the contract."
Just like the MPVs we negotiated before, I only want the mainland China or Asian market.

After acquiring Mini, he entered the automotive industry, but taking the next step is very difficult because he can't find a suitable target. Even if there is, people won't sell. At the same time, national policies are also a major obstacle.

At this moment, he was presented with an opportunity to acquire Jeep's business in mainland China or Asia, since his main market when he first entered the automotive industry was China.
In mature overseas markets, it is almost impossible for new industries to succeed. The only historical success of Hyundai was achieved by South Korea pooling its national resources, making concessions to Wall Street and the United States, and becoming a tool for the United States to target Japanese cars.

After acquiring Jeep in China, he can use it to enter the off-road market and then smoothly enter the SUV market.

Although we've lost our most important car, we have to take things one step at a time, and at least we can take the first step now.

"What about the brand?" Li Aicoka asked;
Yang Wendong said, "I own the Jeep brand in China. If you are willing to give up the Asian market, I can also make an offer to buy it. In short, I will not disappoint you in terms of price."

Since Li Aikeka didn't have a positive outlook on the mainland market, he simply accepted it.

“I need to think about this matter and also report it to the board of directors,” Li Aicoka replied after a moment’s thought.

Yang Wendong said, "Okay, I hope you will negotiate carefully. After I acquire it, you can directly receive a large sum of cash, plus end an international turmoil."
Furthermore, even if I localize the industry in the future, it will take a considerable amount of time. Therefore, in the short term, I will still need to import parts from the United States, which is also a good business opportunity for you.”

“Okay, I’ll get ready to start the meeting right away. It should be tomorrow morning for you. I’ll call you again then,” Li Aikeka replied.

Yang Wendong said, "Okay."

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the two hung up the phone.
Yang Zhiwen, who had just arrived in Yanjing, stayed by his father's side and asked, "Daddy, isn't what we're doing a bit too risky?"

"Wrong, the risk is actually very low if you do it this way." Yang Wendong laughed: "In China, the demand for Jeeps is still very high, especially for military vehicles."

Previously, orders were placed with the US side. After the acquisition, the domestic side will feel much more at ease, and the procurement volume will increase. At the same time, the domestic market demand itself is not low.

The Jeep and Santana of the 90s were the pinnacle of two car models.
If it weren't for this incident, Chrysler in its original history would definitely have been able to take a big bite out of the domestic market.

However, he doesn't know if doing this now will alleviate the conflict between Chrysler and the domestic market, and might even give Chrysler some opportunities.

The butterfly effect is something that's hard to control, and Yang Wendong didn't want to think about it too much anymore. Right now, all he wanted was to make a profit.

Yang Zhiwen smiled and said, "Then congratulations, Daddy, on reaching a new level in the automotive industry."

He also knew that Yang Wendong was now so wealthy that he didn't care much about ordinary wealth and career.
But I still care a lot about the electronics and automotive industries; these should be my life goals.

"Well, I hope it will be successful. Also, I'm planning to import their MPV models from Chrysler. If we acquire their shares in Yanjing Jeep, it will be much easier to import them then," Yang Wendong said, nodding.
United States:

After hanging up the phone, Li Ai Keka frowned and pondered for a while before ringing the phone and saying, "Lily, notify all senior executives above the vice president level, as well as the staff of the Mainland Affairs Department, to have a meeting at 1 p.m. this afternoon."

"Yes, sir."

At 1 p.m., more than 20 people gathered in a conference room at the Chrysler headquarters building in Detroit.
After Li Ai Keka entered, everyone stood up and was then beckoned to sit down. The secretary also started working on the documents, and many people's expressions changed after reading them.

Li Aikeka said, "Everyone, here's the situation. Eric from Hong Kong, who used to be our major shareholder, wants to buy our Jeep brand and domestic technology patents in mainland China. What do you think?"

"How much does it cost?" one person asked.
Li Aicoka said, "There has been no negotiation yet. Today's meeting was just to discuss whether to sell or not. After that, we will discuss the price."

“I don’t think we should sell it. It’s one of our production centers in Asia. We can continuously send American parts there for assembly, which will result in higher long-term profits.”

"Mainland customs have already blocked the import of parts. Do you really expect to be able to sell parts without any obstacles in the future?"

"What's the big deal? Let the White House put some pressure on us, and let the media give it some publicity. We're not afraid that such a small country won't back down."

"Do you own the White House? Don't you think the media should be paid? A prolonged standoff might not be a good thing for us."

"."

Many people at the scene started arguing, with some clearly feeling that the property shouldn't be sold, while others thought it was better to sell it.

After a long while, Li Ai Keka coughed, and the room quieted down: "It seems that everyone is considering the best interests of the company. The core of this matter is whether we can dump our products in the mainland?"

“Sir, I think it’s unlikely. The mainland is also one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. Even if we mobilize the media now, they still haven’t let go.” One person said, “The White House also knows about this, but it seems they are not willing to get too involved.”
On the mainland, they've also sent people to communicate with us. Their stance remains the same: they insist on adhering to the contract and require us to localize the production of components in mainland China. The negative public opinion in the US has dealt them a significant blow, but it's unlikely to make them back down.

"Then let's continue the media attack."

"If you really go too far, you'll definitely have no business left."

"If we're not going to do it, then we're not going to do it. It's a market that's not even as big as Brazil, what's the big deal?" "Then we might as well sell it. If we sell it now, we can get a large sum of money, plus a stable supply of parts, isn't that exactly what we needed in the first place?"

After listening to the opinions below, Li Ai Keka finally said, "In that case, selling is also a feasible method. Winston, you are in charge of the business in Asia. You will go to Yanjing to negotiate with Eric's team on this matter."

Remember, the first priority is price, the second is defining the scope of patents, and the third is maintaining the planned procurement of subsequent parts.

“Yes, Mr. Icoka,” a rather plump middle-aged man stood up and said.

Li Aikeka said, "Alright, I'll call Eric tonight. As for the rest, we'll see how the negotiations go."

The next morning, Yang Wendong received a call from Li Aicoka and immediately had someone summon Director Zhao and Director Sun from the previous day.
"Gentlemen, please have some tea," Yang Wendong said.

"Thank you, Mr. Yang." After accepting the teacup, Director Zhao asked, "Mr. Yang, how are your communications with the Americans going?"

Yang Wendong said, "Last night I spoke with Li Aike and we came up with a preliminary solution: I will personally acquire the American shares in Yanjing Jeep Company."

"What? You're acquiring Yanjing Jeep?" Director Zhao was taken aback. "But after the acquisition, will you still be able to continue production?"

Yang Wendong said, "Of course, I can't just acquire a blank factory. I also have to transfer some of the vehicle's patent technology in the mainland."
In this way, I will gradually localize the parts supply in Yanjing to resolve your core conflict with Chrysler.

Ultimately, the core issue is foreign exchange. Chrysler didn't want to invest too much and wanted the mainland to use US dollars to buy parts from the US, so they could make a profit on the price difference in the US. This way, they could make a stable profit without investing and without any risk.

But how could the mainland possibly agree to such a practice? The mainland is already short of foreign exchange, and it would be difficult to spend even one dollar as many as five dollars. How could it possibly agree to Chrysler's practice of being able to extract hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign exchange every year?

Director Sun said, "Mr. Yang, your Mini company has been very successful in localizing in China. If you acquire shares in Jeep, I think localization in the future should not be difficult."
However, the problem now is that nearly ten million US dollars worth of parts are stuck at customs and won't be released. What do you think?

“When I negotiate with the American side, those parts, including those on the road or in the United States, are also taken into consideration,” Yang Wendong said. “However, I cannot get involved until an agreement is reached with Chrysler.”
"I can't possibly spend dollars to buy it separately, can I?"

Director Zhao said, "That's natural, but in that case, the problem will have to be delayed for a while."

“When it comes to international mergers and acquisitions, a few months is already considered fast. I will try my best to speed things up, but it’s unlikely that it can be resolved in a few days or weeks.” Yang Wendong shook his head and said, “Once all the reviews are completed and the price is roughly agreed upon, I might go to the United States to negotiate with Li Aikeka in person and finalize the deal as soon as possible.”
Until then, things will remain as they are, unless you negotiate with Chrysler yourselves.

He's not stupid; he wouldn't give away money for nothing.

Asking him to do charity work and help some poor people is negotiable, but he can't help with this kind of purely business transaction.

Once I help them, they might come back to me with similar problems in the future, and that's a matter of principle.

Director Zhao thought for a moment and said, "That's good. Mr. Yang will be able to meet with Li Aikeka directly, which will speed up the resolution of the problem. We also sent people to the United States, but we couldn't get through to him."

"Someone was sent from China? Who was it?" Yang Wendong asked.

"It's ***," Director Zhao said.

Yang Wendong said, "This Li Aikeka is really too arrogant."

It seems that what happened in the past has still happened. In other words, even if they acquire Jeep, Chrysler will never be able to enter the domestic market in the future.

That's good too; these Americans are too arrogant.

Director Zhao sighed, "There's nothing we can do. The national economy is weak, and at this time, we still heavily rely on foreign investment."

"To develop, sometimes you have to endure humiliation and hardship. In fact, every powerful country has gone through this process, including Europe, America, and Japan," Yang Wendong nodded and said.
Europe's early mistreatment of its working class was the foundation for the Industrial Revolution's initial wealth.

Japan also paid a heavy price to industrialize;
The situation in mainland China is much better now, thanks to the global industrial transfer, the rise of labor unions and liberals in Europe and the United States, and the United States' promotion of free trade, which makes it easier to absorb foreign capital and industries.

In its previous life, the mainland eventually became an industrial Cthulhu after 2020. Before that, it had endured humiliation and hardship for a long time, and had to bear many things.

If you're not as strong as others, there's nothing you can do.

Director Zhao said, "Thank you very much for your help, Mr. Yang. Please let us know as soon as there are any further developments."

“Okay, I will arrange for someone to liaise with you,” Yang Wendong continued, “but the customs department can’t resolve this in the short term.”

"I understand. It would be a very good result if there were any hope of completely resolving this problem in the future," Director Zhao said with a smile.

Yang Wendong said, "Alright, that's settled then. If I successfully acquire Yanjing Jeep, we will follow the Mini model in terms of localization. We also hope that more Jeeps will be purchased domestically in the future."

"Haha, if it doesn't cause foreign exchange losses, we'd naturally be happy to buy more Jeeps," Director Zhao said with a smile.

Yang Wendong said, "Okay."

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Directors Zhao and Sun left.

Once outside, Director Zhao looked back and said, "Mr. Yang's method, though crude, is indeed quite good."

"They have US dollars, so ultimately, this whole thing boils down to the US dollar," Director Sun said helplessly.

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(End of this chapter)