The Grandmother in the Siheyuan

Chapter 402 Dutiful Son
"One hundred million US dollars?"

Section Chief Liu nodded: "The groundbreaking engine that Volkswagen is about to launch in Germany was designed by that person. Compared to him, what are you?"

"Him? Designing engines? Or for Volkswagen in Germany?" The technical director shook his head: "Are you kidding me?"

Section Chief Liu said with a stern face: "Do I look like I'm joking? He was already a well-known engineer in the Ministry of Machine Building twenty years ago. The knowledge you're learning might have been invented by him."

Seeing that he didn't dare to talk back, Section Chief Liu continued, "Do you know why the leaders sent you here this time?"

The technical supervisor shook his head, and Section Chief Liu explained, "The leaders said that we need to develop our own domestic automobile industry and can't just rely on imports. Your engines still need to be imported from abroad, which is not progress. Our own automobile industry should of course support its own supporting industries."

The technical supervisor looked a little grim. At the end of last year, the first assembled car had just rolled off the production line, and the leadership was already thinking so far ahead. If they didn't update their thinking, they would inevitably be left behind by the times.

Section Chief Liu chuckled: "You should be grateful. Remember Professor Liu's good deeds. If it weren't for Professor Liu's engine design, you would have had to design your own. With your current skill level, do you think you're qualified?"

Jetta eventually ordered one hundred engines from Liu Hua. They would have to conduct countless experiments to perfectly integrate the engines into the existing vehicles.

Xiali was more generous, ordering a thousand units in the first batch. They had been assembling vehicles since the 1980s and had a lot of experience in this area, so they wanted to try more things.

Ju Wei brought his apprentice, a master's graduate from Yenching University, whom Liu Hua planned to train to become the factory manager.

"Boss, although car engines are expensive, the order volume is too small, and we have no profit to speak of."

Liu Hua shook his head: "Everything is difficult at the beginning. Didn't we have few motorcycle engines at the beginning? But we gradually opened up the market, didn't we? We mobilized our sales staff to go out and promote them."

Liu Hua paused for a moment: "There's another point: expanding the scale of the workshop."

"Is it necessary? Based on this trend, I don't think it's necessary to expand within the next two or three years."

“Last time I delivered more than one type of engine,” Liu Hua said with a smile. “There were also several engines used in public transportation vehicles such as buses, minibuses, and coaches. That order would be very large.”

“That’s great,” Ju Wei said happily. “Our country can’t afford private cars yet, but public transportation is developing rapidly. I’ll handle this promotion. According to my information, there are no fewer than thirty manufacturers of public transportation vehicles in our country. This is definitely a huge market.”

Ju Wei's apprentice, Zhao Qiang, volunteered: "Boss, Master, let me handle this."

Ju Wei asked cautiously, "Are you confident? Don't mess things up."

"Master, please give me some pointers from behind," Zhao Qiang said with a smile. "Besides, I'm quite confident about this matter."

Liu Hua asked with a smile, "You've only been studying under Ju Wei for less than a year, how can you be so confident in saying such things?"

“My family is from Xiamen,” Zhao Qiang said with a smile. “A few years ago, my father and I were transferred to Xiamen Automobile Industry Company, which manufactures buses.”

"Isn't this a case of being in a good position to get the best deal?" Liu Hua said with a smile. "Alright, take the gifts back to see your dad. When a son and his father discuss business, it's a battle of wits to see who's more ruthless."

Zhao Qiang said with a smile, "From childhood to adulthood, my dad has never held back when beating me. This time, I'm going to get my revenge."

Ju Wei chuckled and said, "Spare the rod and spoil the child. You really are a very filial son."

They used the factory's accounts to buy Zhao Qiang a bunch of gifts, including a plane ticket. When Zhao Qiang returned home with bags full of things, the neighbors all greeted him warmly.

"Ah Qiang, you're back to visit family? It's not a holiday, where did you get a vacation?"

"Ah Qiang is so filial, carrying all these bags and packages. He's much more filial than my brat."

As Zhao Qiang offered cigarettes, he replied, "I came back to see my dad now, and also to discuss a business deal with the factory."

"Hey Qiang, don't you work for a private company? How come you're doing business with our factory?"

Back then, those who could live together were basically from the same factory, and the factory also took care of the workers' accommodation.

"Although our company is a private enterprise, it is by no means simple, and it is no less than our car company."

"Ah Qiang, you're just bragging. Private enterprises in the South are much more active than those in the North. I haven't seen any private enterprises that can compare to our car company."

Prejudice is a mountain in people's minds. Although private enterprises are very active now, for employees of state-owned enterprises, working for a private enterprise is still considered to be a waste of time, unstable, and a neglect of family.

Zhao Qiang returned home with bags and packages, which made his mother very happy. She immediately took a basket and went to the market to buy some of her son's favorite vegetables.

When Zhao's father came home that evening, he saw bags of gifts at the door, but he didn't see his son.

As a mid-level manager in the car company, Mr. Zhao would occasionally receive requests for help, usually with gifts. However, Mr. Zhao was upright and honest. He would help if he could, as long as it didn't violate the rules, but he would never accept gifts.

"Wife, how could you accept a gift?" Zhao's father said angrily, "Aren't you trying to ruin me?"

Aunt Zhao rolled her eyes at him: "Do you think I don't know your personality? How could I accept gifts from others? Your son is back, this is what he brought for you."

"Our son is back?" Zhao's father was initially happy, but then frowned. "Why is he coming back at a time like this, without any holidays? And with so many gifts? How much does he earn in a month?"

Zhao's mother said with dissatisfaction, "Your son is so filial to you, yet you still act so suspiciously."

When they arrived at the dinner table, Zhao's son was engrossed in a book. Zhao's father asked, "Why did you come back today? Did something go wrong at work? I told you before that private companies are unreliable. If you had come back then, I could have pulled some strings and gotten you into our head office."

"No problem with the job." Zhao Qiang looked up and smiled, "Our factory manager is grooming me for the position. If I come back to work here, will I get that kind of treatment?"

"Then what brings you back during this unusual time of year?"

Zhao Qiang said with a smile, "I'm on a business trip, and I'm back to discuss business."

"Is your boss reliable? What kind of business can a young kid like you handle?"

Zhao Qiang said with great joy, "I came back this time to talk business with your car company. Dad, you're not high enough for that."

(End of this chapter)