What's wrong with me being a rich man?

Chapter 482, Section 241 Exposed
The carbon silicon group in Lingang has a style of quietly building cars, but its founder, Yu Xing, was quite charismatic when he first started out.

Although Yu Xing has conducted some testing on cars in the past few years, his overall approach is completely different from his previous work in the internet industry, and even...

Before calling to interview Yu Xing, reporter Yao Chenfeng pondered the character of Yu Xing and felt that the word "disruptive" could be used to describe his style before and after entering the automotive industry.

Yao Chenfeng doesn't pay much attention to internet news, but he knows about the uproar Yu Xing has caused since starting his business. Given this habit, this car maker should criticize Volkswagen and talk about Toyota every now and then. Why did he suddenly retire from the business?

With this thought in mind, he called the Silicon Carbon Group at the agreed time, and was then transferred to the president's office.

Listening to the rather young voice on the phone, Yao Chenfeng exchanged a few pleasantries before asking the usual question: "Mr. Yu, what are your thoughts on the recent black swan event in the automotive industry?"

As someone working in the automotive media, this interview wasn't actually that important; or rather, the overall reaction of the Chinese media to this incident was rather lukewarm.

The diesel passenger car business is mainly in Europe and the United States, and the two types of market monopoly also mainly occur there. Therefore, in China, people just watch the show, and even if there are relevant official investigations, the level and intensity are not very high.

As for car owners and potential car owners, they don't care much about this.

Yao Chenfeng requested this interview mainly because he noticed foreign media discussing Tesla, carbon neutrality, and clean energy, which led him to think about the development of electric vehicles in China. That's why he arranged to meet with Mr. Yu from the Silicon Carbon Group.

When faced with this question, Yu Xing offered a very simple comment: "It's really dark."

Yao Chenfeng was taken aback, finding the other party quite interesting, unlike those rigid "old car companies".

Yu Xing added with a smile, "This black swan is quite fat too."

Yao Chenfeng felt that these two sentences were very vivid; no one expected that this incident would have such a wide impact and such a profound effect.

He raised a second question: "Mr. Yu, this time multiple car companies have been exposed for problems. Do you think this is an industry consensus in the automotive sector?"

Yu Xing hesitated for a moment: "This..."

Yao Chenfeng then asked, "Since founding the Silicon Carbon Group, has Mr. Yu observed any unspoken rules in the industry?"

“The Silicon Carbon Group is still very young, and the focus here in Lingang is on the development of electric vehicles,” Yu Xing replied. “We are not yet in such an industry, so we haven’t encountered any tacit understandings or unspoken rules. As for this BBA (BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi) issue, the final decision will depend on the investigation results.”

Upon hearing this, Yao Chenfeng smiled and said, "President Yu, has anyone said that you're not as sharp as you used to be?"

"Is this also an interview question?" Yu Xing said casually. "I don't think I've changed much. If I had to say something, it would probably be that I've put stricter requirements on the cars. Compared to traditional gasoline cars, we don't have concerns about emissions. The future launch of pure electric models will be another step forward in environmental protection."

Silicon Carbon Group needs to build a sales system in the second half of the year and also needs to do some market promotion, which is a good opportunity to rehearse with the media in advance.

Yao Chenfeng, however, was not very interested in the business of the Silicon Carbon Group. The technology route of range-extended vehicles did not seem to have much prospect.

He continued to focus on the industry's black swan events: "Mr. Yu, at a time when Volkswagen and BMW are facing serious crises, is this a good opportunity for Silicon Carbon Group?"

There was no immediate response from the other end of the phone; several seconds later, Yu Xing's voice came through.

"I do not think so."

"It should be said that the Silicon Carbon Group's competition in the market does not take into account whether car companies like Volkswagen and BMW are facing emission or financial problems; we are competing on products."

"The Silicon Carbon Group will launch a product war next year."

The product war is a battle based on vehicle electrification and current user range anxiety.

Yao Chenfeng repeated "product war" to himself twice, thinking that President Yu was indeed from the internet industry, and his words sounded quite good.

He asked a few more questions, and finally said, "Mr. Yu, we still need you to express your opinion on events in the industry, like appeals and initiatives. I will write it at the beginning or end of the report."

Print media reports should at least have some significance.

Yu Xing thought it over and over, and said, "Those who do many unrighteous deeds will surely perish."

After thinking for two seconds, Yao Chenfeng said, "Your tone was a bit harsh."

"They've already monopolized the market and are counterfeiting, is that too serious?" Yu Xing laughed. "Then what's the point of saying, 'Deception will endure'?"

Yao Chenfeng thought for a moment: "Riding on the popularity of Guoshanfeng is fine. How about this, President Yu, I'll elaborate on similar points and then highlight the advantages of our Silicon Carbon Group in environmental protection."

Yu Xing chuckled twice and agreed. It was only natural for him to ride on the coattails of the mountain's popularity.

At the end of the call, he casually invited the China Automotive News to visit Hong Kong at the end of the year, and they readily agreed.

After the phone interview in the morning, I raised a similar question at the company's market analysis meeting in the afternoon.

The distribution system is being established, and market competition needs to be considered.

Yu Xing's thinking in this regard is not complicated. He intends to launch a product war between electric vehicles and gasoline vehicles in China next year, bringing more user experience at a lower price. For example, in the application of hot-formed steel, "Jiuzhou" has already adopted 1500MPa hot-formed steel provided by Baosteel for key structures such as the A-pillar, which is top-notch on a global scale.

Because of poor performance in previous offset crash tests, BMW and Mercedes-Benz have upgraded their 3 Series and C-Class models, priced over 30 RMB, with 1500MPa hot-formed steel this year. Audi's A4 has not yet followed suit and is expected to make a move next year. Higher-end models such as the E-Class, 5 Series, and A6 will have to wait until their next generation before adopting this material on a large scale.

Among them, BMW's reinforcement of the 3 Series is a "precise reinforcement", focusing on strengthening the core stress area of ​​the A-pillar, while Mercedes-Benz has expanded the use of hot-formed steel to replace parts such as door sill beams and roof longitudinal beams.

The former has a nicer explanation: balancing cost and performance.

This point was discussed at an internal meeting of the Silicon Carbon Group, which led to jokes that, according to this argument, their car manufacturing would be considered to be regardless of cost.

Because foreign T1 suppliers are unwilling to sell to the domestic market, this progress from the supply chain is also a factor in Kyushu's ability to compete on product fronts. Of course, there is still room for improvement in China, and Baosteel's coating technology still relies on imports.

At the meeting, Yu Xing elaborated on his ideas, stating that the current stage is a product war, but once the penetration rate of new energy gradually increases, it will be a brand war, and the accumulation of brand power will depend on the solid products in the next few years.

In recent years, the entry barrier for car manufacturing by the Silicon Carbon Group has been relatively low, especially as the supply chain matures further. The difficulty will decrease further, and the fierce competition will inevitably put great pressure on the industry from top to bottom.

Yu Xing discussed things until very late that day. He had even sent his secretary, Zhang Yangxu, back home. Just as he was about to go downstairs, he received a call from Liu Jiankai.

He had assumed the caller would talk about cryptocurrency or his life in Hong Kong, but after a few words, he learned that Liu Jiankai was about to arrive in Lingang. So he had no choice but to make tea and sit down again.

About fifteen minutes later, Yu Xing saw Liu Ge, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, in his office.

"You look a bit weathered, but you don't seem as dejected as before you left," Yu Xing said with a smile after taking a quick look at him. Liu Jiankai chuckled, "Having left President Yu's wing and weathered many storms in Hong Kong, it's no wonder you look weathered."

“You haven’t been doing so well ever since you left Mr. Xu’s wing.” Yu Xing shook his head. “I still remember how high and mighty you were at Capital Today. Why did you even choose to come back to Shanghai on this dark and stormy night?”

Liu Jiankai was momentarily dazed, feeling as if today's capitalism was something from a long time ago.

He took the tea that President Yu handed him, silently took two sips, and then asked, "How has President Xu been lately?"

Yu Xing paused briefly, then briefly explained Li Song's failed short-selling attempt and subsequent strategic shift, as well as the fact that Xu Xin seemed unaware of this. Of course, Today Capital's development was still quite good, and JD.com's listing further enhanced its reputation.

Liu Jiankai listened and laughed, finding the story of his former employer somewhat heartwarming.

After finishing his tea and refilling his cup, he said, "I didn't expect Mr. Li to consider short selling to make money, but this is a good fit for his financial background, and he was probably inspired by Shanfeng."

Yu Xing asked, "Is the mountain peak frequently reported in Hong Kong?"

Liu Jiankai said in an exaggerated tone, "Over the Peak is so popular in Hong Kong! Its registered office is in Hong Kong, and this time it has done such a big thing. When I listened to the tone of those financial people in Hong Kong, they seemed to be... a little proud."

Yu Xing laughed and said, "That's because I didn't take a flight from the mountain peak to Hong Kong."

Liu Jiankai shook his head: "How could it not be shorted? China Forest Holdings, which was listed in Hong Kong before, was shorted. Its CEO fled and was only arrested recently."

Yu Xing nodded: "I had forgotten about it."

Liu Jiankai found Yu's matter-of-fact tone a bit strange, but didn't think much of it and laughed, "It's probably because killing one is a crime, slaughtering ten thousand is heroic. Guo Shanfeng is now known as the King of Short Sellers, so he's proud of it."

Yu Xing sighed, "It's all just empty fame."

Liu Jiankai glanced at President Yu, "It's not like we're talking about your Silicon Carbon Group or Silicon Carbon Data."

Yu Xing realized what was going on and asked without changing his expression, "How's your 'Kebit' platform? I haven't seen it in the news much."

“We’re still a small platform and haven’t made a name for ourselves yet,” Liu Jiankai said with a smile. “President Yu, it’s a good thing you haven’t seen this. If you had seen it now, it might have been reported that the platform has gone out of business. Sigh, Hong Kong’s policies might be tightening, and I’m thinking about where to go next.”

He paused, then gave an example: "In January of this year, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Securities and Futures Commission sent letters to financial institutions to assess the money laundering risks of cryptocurrencies and to conduct customer due diligence. If 'Kebit' does not implement the KYC verification process for customer information, it may face the risk of being shut down."

Yu Xing nodded in understanding and casually said, "There are actually some good options in Europe, such as Malta, Cyprus, and Luxembourg. The financial regulations there are quite relaxed, and the taxes are very low. Your platform can also do offshore shareholding."

He briefly discussed Luxembourg's affinity for offshore architecture.

Liu Jiankai's eyes held a strange look: "President Yu, I didn't expect you to know so much about offshore design."

Yu Xing laughed and, without explaining, said directly, "Isn't it normal for me to understand this?"

Is it normal? Is it not normal? It's probably normal.

Liu Jiankai then thought that it was perfectly normal for these wealthy business people to be so interested in studying offshore structures.

He nodded slightly, a thought in his mind, and began to talk about how his goal in coming back was to recruit more technical talents to work together. Cryptocurrency platforms have suffered a lot of attacks in the past two years, and Bitcoin needs to have sufficient technical strength in this regard.

The two chatted in the office until very late.

Liu Jiankai fully expressed his longing for Shanghai, only leaving a prelude at the end that he planned to discuss it again tomorrow: "But Bit is also facing certain financial pressures right now."

Yu Xing guessed that this was exactly what he was going to say, and upon hearing it, he readily agreed: "Red Falcon Capital has a lot of connections overseas. We can ask them to introduce funds later, so at least your initial development won't be a problem."

Liu Jiankai was overjoyed, not expecting President Yu to be so willing to help. He immediately expressed his gratitude and proposed to visit Liu Wanying.

“She just happened to fly to Hong Kong again.” Yu Xing shook his head. “You can go to the financial center tomorrow; there are people there.”

After Liu Wanying completely recovered from her previous mental exhaustion, she was once again eager to raise funds to seek revenge against Japan. With her previous experience of shorting Mitsubishi, she was able to learn from the previous mistakes in attacking Kobe Steel.

Yu Xing had only one feeling about her actions: shorting never ends...

Short selling like this can probably be addictive.

Liu Jiankai arranged to host dinner for President Yu the following evening, and then excitedly bid farewell and went home.

The following morning, Yu Xing took some time to search for news about 'Kebit', but could only regretfully see that the platform had not yet made any progress.

I was taking a walk outside the factory area to digest my lunch when a phone call came in out of the blue.

Yu Xing answered Xu Xin's number, and was about to speak when he heard a sharp remark from her.

"You guys are already making short videos?"

He thought about it again. How did Xiong always talk to her? Her tone sounded so unpleasant.

Yu Xing smiled and said, "Did President Xiong tell you?"

Xu Xin's voice was filled with surprise: "President Xiong? President Xiong already knows?"

Yu Xing was also taken aback: "Huh? This... he didn't tell you? Then why are you asking me this?"

Hearing President Yu's unsolicited confession confirm the news that had just emerged, Xu Xin said irritably, "Your work overseas has been exposed. Is it that MUS? Some former employees are talking about Carbon Silicon Data's activities overseas on Weibo!"

Yu Xing: "..."

"Speechless? Didn't expect that? When did Mr. Xiong find out? When did you do it in China?" Xu Xin fired off a barrage of questions. "You were secretly planning it, weren't you? You're really good at it, keeping it from me too. Now you've capsized!"

Yu Xing pondered for a moment, then said somewhat helplessly, "Our confidentiality agreement is quite strict, this..."

"I just saw this on Weibo. Your 'All-Knowing Scholar' forum is probably already buzzing with discussion about it." Xu Xin said with a forced smile. "I knew you, President Yu, wouldn't be so kind as to care about other people's projects. Now that things have come to light and you've been exposed, you've experienced what it's like to be the 'All-Knowing Scholar' who exposes others."

Yu Xing sighed, and after briefly considering the possible changes, he smiled and said, "Well, it's normal. This is just a small-scale trial of carbon silicon data overseas, nothing more."

(End of this chapter)