The unparalleled talent of the country started from Harbin Institute of Technology

In February 1989, the New York Stock Exchange was packed with people.

Everyone is watching Paramount stock closely because it has been the most volatile stock in recent days.

Even the Velociraptor Fund made a small profit of nearly one million US dollars by taking advantage of the rise in Paramount's stock price through its quantitative trading system.

Paramount's stock price surged on Monday, February 20th.

Then on the 21st, the stock price plummeted.

Then on Wednesday the 22nd, news came from the New York Stock Exchange Commission that Paramount's other minority shareholders had submitted an application requesting Mystery Capital to privatize the company.

The two sides really went at it.

After the news broke, Paramount's stock price surged again on Wednesday, rising 50% in a single day.

But strangely, the trading volume on Wednesday was extremely high.

The trading volume was even greater than that of Tuesday.

The market seems to have been stirred up, and everyone is eager to enter the market.

At Viacom's headquarters, Sumner Reston listened to his subordinates' report that Goldman Sachs had also gotten involved, wanting a piece of the pie.

Has the message been confirmed?

"Yes, today's stock price fluctuated abnormally, and the trading volume far exceeded previous levels, breaking Paramount's trading record since its listing."

Upon hearing this, Redstone frowned.

He had no choice but to be cautious, because this time, the waters surrounding Paramount stock were indeed very deep.

Today's stock price increase exceeded many people's expectations.

It was definitely a setup orchestrated by Paramount's shareholders.

With Goldman Sachs, a giant on Wall Street, getting involved personally, this makes things even more interesting.

Based on this morning's closing price, Paramount's market capitalization has once again reached $11 billion, roughly the same as the closing price two days ago.

Paramount's actual value is far from being worth $11 billion.

However, with capital manipulating the situation behind the scenes, all of this becomes possible.

For example, Goldman Sachs, if they were to personally participate, would hold about five percent of the stock.

In the subsequent operations, once the market value exceeds 10 billion, the shares will be gradually released.

When the stock price fell to eight billion, they quietly bought more shares.

You can definitely make a lot of money by going back and forth.

But how exactly to manipulate things, and how to avoid risks, especially investigations by financial prosecutors, requires some thought.

Insider trading is absolutely unacceptable.

Otherwise, if everyone were to follow Goldman Sachs's market manipulation tactics, the market would be doomed.

However, given Goldman Sachs's shrewdness, such news is unlikely to spread widely.

In other words, given the information channels Viacom traders have, it's unlikely they would have known this kind of inside information.

Of course, if you look at things like unusual trading volumes in the market, it's still possible to find some clues.

After all, Goldman Sachs loves to use these underhanded tricks, and many people know that.

"Let's have a little fun and earn some pocket money."

After a moment of silence, Redstone decided to enter the room.

Because no one can resist the temptation of money.

The stock of a company with a market value of tens of billions of dollars fluctuated so much, coupled with the fact that mysterious financial groups such as Maple Tree Capital were determined to acquire Paramount.

Privatization is still a very likely possibility.

Paramount is like a piece of fat meat right now, and everyone wants a bite.

Before retail investors could even react, capitalists were manipulating everything behind the scenes.

Whether you are bullish or bearish on the market.

As things stand, retail investors will definitely be tormented and will surely lose a lot of money.

Inside the New York headquarters of Want Want Group, Wang Jianchao sat in his office, looking at the stock price of Paramount Pictures, which had risen so much in such a short period of time.

They were also dumbfounded.

Before they even made a move, the market had already corrected their course.

This market trend is terrifying!
"Li, how many shares do you still hold?"

Immediately, Wang Jianchao contacted Li Efra and the others on the computer.

This temporary chat room is an application software that was coded by Facebook technicians and ran using the Dawning supercomputer.

And since it's a voice call, no records will be left behind.

Only in this way can we avoid the risk of being spied on.

Facebook has many cybersecurity professionals, and their technical staff are very skilled.

In addition, Facebook has already built a very strong firewall, so once it detects an intrusion, it will definitely issue a warning immediately and retaliate.

Based on Facebook's current protection system, it is definitely number one in the world.

The team from Exa Cybersecurity, led by Wang Lichuan, should rank second.

Relying on cables for internet voice communication, Wang Jianchao's office has signal jamming enabled, making it impossible for outsiders to know what he said or did inside.

Similar situations exist in the small, private rooms of other financial firms such as Summit Global, Maple Tree Capital, and Sun Capital.

"We currently hold approximately 45% of the shares, and we plan to purchase more stock when the market recovers."

Upon hearing Li Efra and the others' answers, Wang Jianchao hesitated for a moment, still unable to make up his mind.

Should we give up on Paramount?
Given the current 45% stake, it's definitely easier than acquiring Hollywood giants like Universal Studios and 20th Century Fox.

However, Paramount has now attracted a lot of attention, and its current market value is too high, at $11 billion.

Horror!
If an acquisition were to take place, the final cost would likely exceed $11 billion.

However, if the acquisition is abandoned, it will be almost impossible to sell the 45% stake currently held on the secondary market.

As for selling it to other powerful capital?
Depend on!
Others aren't exactly innocent victims, so why would they take on this hot potato at this time?

So, it's truly a dilemma.

Forget it, I'll just ask his ninth uncle.

Unfortunately, his ninth uncle is still fast asleep. Sigh!
The next day, Wang Duoyu had just gotten up and hadn't even had breakfast yet when Yuan Zuliang knocked on the door to say there was a phone call.

"Okay, I'll come right away."

Upon hearing this, Wang Duoyu went out to the study in the villa next door. After answering the phone, he quickly learned what problem his nephew had encountered.

"Since the market is already like this, let's just sell!"

"Take advantage of the good market conditions now and sell off as much as you can!"

"However, it's best not to dump the shares. Let's sell a lot first and make some profit."

"I estimate you can only sell about 10% at most; the remaining 35% will likely be impossible to sell."

"There should be other large capital entering the market on Wall Street now, so let's ignore them and sell first."

"On Friday, have Reedstone give a speech saying that we've stopped the acquisition of Paramount!"

"On the other hand, we need to expedite negotiations with Universal Studios and 20th Century Fox. Regardless, let's get to it."

For most retail investors, shifting acquisition targets would be a fatal blow.

Then retail investors will flee in panic.

The stock price will definitely plummet, and it might even trigger a circuit breaker.

If the circuit breaker is triggered, then this matter will escalate significantly.

However, there's no need to worry about things getting out of hand, since Wall Street giants like Goldman Sachs are backing them up.

Moreover, Wang Duoyu has always emphasized following the rules and not breaking them.

Therefore, as long as financial companies like Summit Global do not break the law or commit crimes, there will be no problem.

"By the way, how's the Stratton Oakmont Company doing these days?"

Upon hearing his ninth uncle's question, Wang Jianchao smiled wryly:
"The stalemate continues. Jordan and Andy are currently unwilling to share the profits, but the company's cash reserves are accumulating, and Wells Fargo is losing patience."

Wang Duoyu already knew about this at the pre-Spring Festival summary meeting.

Jordan and Andy, backed by Wells Fargo, want to reduce Sun Capital's share by issuing new shares, but is that even possible?
Although Andy and Jordan together owned 60 percent of the stock.

However, the company's articles of association and the relevant shareholder agreement have already stipulated the rights and interests enjoyed by shareholders.

To add other shareholders, it is necessary to obtain 70% of the voting rights.

It's clear that even if Andy and Jordan joined forces, they couldn't achieve that.

Besides, Sun Investment Company is the real major shareholder and has veto power.

This is the ultimate weapon; how could Andy and Jordan possibly succeed?
So now there's only one path left: an IPO.

However, going public requires qualifications and profitability, among other things.

Stratton Oakmont can only go public through a reverse takeover; otherwise, it would be impossible to go public.

However, a backdoor listing also means acquiring the "shell" of another company, which still requires the consent of Sun Investment Company.

Without asking, it was clear that the shareholder representative sent by Dylan Dario vetoed the IPO proposal.

So now all we can do is wait.

They can only wait three years until Stratton Oakmont meets the listing requirements, at which point it can go public.

So now the situation is at a stalemate. Although Jordan and Andy believe they haven't completely broken ties with Sun Investment Company, in reality, they had already broken ties when they approached Wells Fargo to cause trouble.

It's just that it hasn't been brought up publicly yet, and Dylan Dario hasn't personally come forward.

"Okay, then that's settled."

Wang Duoyu smiled and didn't say how to resolve the issue. He said it was fine to just let it drag on like this.

Because of the need to go public, Jordan would not be able to truly let loose and be himself.

The controversy surrounding the investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Guyn Smith has also temporarily subsided.

If we can hold out for a few more years, there shouldn't be any major problems.

In this context, as long as Jordan doesn't go astray, everything will be fine.

Wang Duoyu's investment in Jordan was merely a side effect.

Such a person is exceptionally capable; they will rise to prominence when the time is right.

Although Jordan Belfort later ended up in prison himself due to various reasons.

But right now, Jordan is just getting started and is under pressure to go public, so he can't afford to take any risks.

Most importantly, this guy isn't divorced yet, so it'll be a few years before he falls from grace.

Take your time.

After hanging up the phone, Wang Duoyu went back next door, had breakfast with Liu Xiaoli and the others, and then returned to his study to begin his work for the day.

For those engaged in mathematical research, there is never enough time.

Wang Duoyu, who has entered a state of 'seclusion', also feels that there is never enough time in the day.

But today he is destined to be affected by many small things.

At 9:25 a.m., Shing-Tung Yau and his team arrived.

"Professor Wang, you're amazing! It's incredible!!!"

As soon as John Milnor and his team arrived, they started talking to Wang Duoyu about the paper he had previously uploaded to the Harbin Institute of Technology's official website.

They have completed the review of the final paper on the functor conjecture. There are still some details to be discussed, which they have compiled and plan to clarify with Wang Duoyu today.

If there are no problems, then this paper can be published.

After figuring out their purpose, Wang Duoyu stood in front of the blackboard and began to explain their questions to them.

Two hours later, enthusiastic applause filled the study.

Robert Langlands, with tears in his eyes, clapped and choked out:

"Professor Wang, you have fulfilled my lifelong dream. I have no regrets in this life."

"Since I proposed the Langlands Programme more than 20 years ago, I have been working hard on it, but unfortunately, I have not been able to produce many useful scientific results."

"But Professor Wang, you have helped me a great, great, great deal."

The initial proof of Fermat's Last Theorem greatly corroborated the Langlands Program, propelling this research topic to become a hot topic in the global mathematics community.

Later, the Langlands conjecture, the fundamental lemma, the reciprocity law conjecture, and so on, were all very important pieces of the Langlands program.

The Langlands Program, hailed as a grand unified theory in mathematics, is a force to be reckoned with, and anyone who can prove it will undoubtedly be a figure of immense influence in the mathematical world.

Wang Duoyu has already presented his research findings, such as Fermat's Last Theorem, so he may indeed be able to fully prove Langlands' program.

Today, Wang Duoyu has once again definitively proven the functor conjecture, completing a crucial piece of the Langlands program.

In terms of importance, this piece of the puzzle surpasses scientific achievements such as Fermat's Last Theorem and the Fundamental Lemma, and should be the most crucial core achievement of the Langlands Program to date.

That's why Robert Langlands was so excited.

John Milnor, Charles Feifman, Shing-Tung Yau, Smail, Jean-Baptiste, Daniel Gray, and others were equally excited.

"you flatter me."

Wang Duoyu smiled and calmly said:

"This is something a mathematics researcher should do; there's no need for you to get so worked up."

"Furthermore, to be honest, if you hadn't discovered and promoted the Langlands Program, I would most likely still be in a state of confusion."

Although mathematical problems such as Fermat's Last Theorem and Riemann Hypothesis appeared long ago in the Langlands Program.

But if Robert Langlands hadn't pointed this out, no mathematician would have discovered the connection between number theory, algebraic geometry, and the theory of reduction group representations.

"Your Majesty, I must say something to you: you are far too modest!"

John Milnor interjected at this point:

"I've been trying to verify the funcolite conjecture, even though I'm quite old and my mind can't keep up with a young person like you."

Speaking of young people, Qiu Chengtong, Yorke, and Jean-Baptiste are all young people present, especially Yorke, who is a year younger than Wang Duoyu.

However, Yorkes and his friends were all aware of their own limitations.

Although they are young, they are no match for Wang Duoyu in terms of intelligence.

"But after so many years of reasoning and proof, I still haven't been able to produce many useful results. On the contrary, you have completely proven it in just over a year."

"Even so, you're still so calm and humble. Where do you expect me to put my old face?"

Everyone burst into laughter, and Wang Duoyu also laughed:
"Humility is a traditional Chinese virtue. If I become arrogant at this time and therefore stop striving for progress, I believe that is certainly not what you would want to see, right?"

"No no no!"

Smail suddenly interjected:

"You should stop now. You're already very capable; you should give other young people a chance."

Haha!

Everyone laughed even harder.

Among everyone present, only Yorkz and Jean-Baptiste probably had a slight chance; the others didn't need it, nor did they have such an opportunity.

For example, Shing-Tung Yau was born in 1949. By 1990, he was already 41 years old and no longer met the requirements for the Fields Medal.

Charles Feifman and Shing-Tung Yau were born in the same year. Apart from them, Smail, John Milnor, and Daniel Gray are all over forty years old.

"Oh, in that case, I'll withdraw from the Fields Medal competition next year."

Upon hearing Wang Duoyu's words, Robert Langlands was the first to shake his head:
"No way! If you don't win the Fields Medal next year, I'll be the first to object!"

Although Wang Duoyu had already won two Fields Medals and was recognized worldwide as the "Emperor of Mathematics".

However, Wang Duoyu will definitely win a Fields Medal at next year's International Congress of Mathematicians, and it will be the most prestigious one.

The reason is that Wang Duoyu's current research achievements, with just seven papers proving the functor hypothesis, are enough to be equivalent to the two Fields Medals he previously won.

Not to mention, Wang Duoyu also published three research achievements: infinite-dimensional partial differential equations, the Banach hyperplane problem, and the Kolas conjecture.

Therefore, in terms of prestige, this Fields Medal next year will definitely surpass the two that Wang Duoyu won before.

John Milnor and others echoed this sentiment, saying that this was unacceptable and that the Fields Medal was a must.

After everyone had joked and chatted for a while, Shing-Tung Yau suddenly changed the subject:
"By the way, Professor Wang, now that you've proven the functor conjecture, can you announce the specific date for the report?"

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Wang Duoyu. The report meeting had been arranged beforehand, and now that Wang Duoyu had completed his task, it was time to set a specific date.

"Okay, no problem, let's set it for July this year."

Wang Duoyu smiled and nodded in agreement.

clap clap!

Everyone applauded, their faces beaming with smiles, eagerly anticipating the arrival of July.

Before they knew it, it was lunchtime. Wang Duoyu invited them to stay for a meal, and everyone readily agreed.

As one of the few wealthy individuals among Harbin Institute of Technology students, no one would refuse.

In fact, Qiu Chengtong and his colleagues are quite wealthy, after all, the Harbin Institute of Advanced Studies pays these researchers a considerable salary.

The basic salary for a full-time researcher is 30,000 RMB, which is equivalent to more than 9,000 USD.

Including other performance-based bonuses, the annual salary is over 500,000 RMB.

And these wages will continue to rise.

To be honest, this salary level is definitely better than that of professors in the United States, but it's not necessarily much better.

After all, the average annual salary in the United States is just over 20,000, and top mathematics professors earn around 100,000 a year.

Wang Duoyu also receives a salary at the Harbin Institute of Advanced Studies, which is more than 600,000 RMB per year.

how?

Of course it's a lot, but compared to his salary at Want Want Group, it's very little.

Wang Duoyu needs to declare and pay taxes every year, and his personal income tax is at least in the hundreds of millions.

It depends on whether he is entitled to dividends. If he is entitled to dividends, the taxes he pays will naturally be higher.

However, it is important to note that the salaries of all staff at the Harbin Institute of Advanced Studies are after-tax, not before-tax.

In other words, the annual salary of 500,000 RMB is the salary they receive after the research institute helps pay taxes.

In the office of the head of the Mathematics Department at Nankai University in Tianjin, Chen Xingshen sat reviewing exam papers, but his brow was furrowed.

In fact, when Chen Xingshen returned to China, he served as the director of the Institute of Mathematics at Nankai University. However, in the following years, he also took on the position of head of the Department of Mathematics.

However, his position as head of the mathematics department was far inferior to that of his student, Shing-Tung Yau, who served as the head of the mathematics department at Harbin Institute of Technology.

Whether in terms of student quality or resources, Harbin Institute of Technology far surpasses Nankai University.

Therefore, no matter how you compare them, Chen Xingshen will never be able to surpass his students.

Of course, this is not a fault of war.

Who can blame them when Harbin Institute of Technology has such a legendary figure as Wang Duoyu?
In addition, Smail and his old rascals and antiques all went to Harbin.

It's worth noting that back then, Chen Xingshen did try to talk to Smail and his team, but without exception, they all refused.

But now they've all gone to Harbin.

On the other hand, Shing-Tung Yau was his student, and Chen Xingshen was even happier and proud that his student had surpassed him.

The reason why Chen Xingshen is frowning right now is because the current situation of Nankai University is not very good.

Harbin, as one of the world's three major mathematics centers, is extremely attractive to top mathematics students in China.

Every year, whether they are champions, runners-up, or other students, all the primary and secondary school math Olympiad participants hope to go to Harbin Institute of Technology.

Peking University and Tsinghua University want to recruit them, but they simply can't.

It's not just because Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) is strong and has many top mathematicians, but also because HIT itself has many companies, and being wealthy is one of HIT's defining characteristics.

Based on this alone, other universities such as Peking University, Tsinghua University, and Fudan University can only pick up the students that Harbin Institute of Technology didn't select.

dong dong!

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Without looking up, Chen Shengshen said, "Come in."

A doctoral student walked in from outside. He was not a student of Chen Xingshen, but a student of Nankai University.

"Professor Chen, this is the latest issue of the Harbin Institute of Technology Mathematics Journal, which contains Professor Wang's paper on the functor conjecture."

Before the doctor could finish speaking, Chen Xingshen had already stood up abruptly.

Because he clearly remembered that Wang Duoyu had previously published six related papers, the last of which was the final paper on the functor conjecture.

"Give it to me quickly!"

Chen Xingshen was very surprised. After receiving the journal, he immediately began to read it.

Soon, he saw the paper, and sure enough, it was the final, top-of-the-line paper.

Since it has already been published, it proves that the paper has passed the review process.

As everyone knows, the review team for the Harbin Institute of Technology's mathematics journals exceeds the standards by a significant margin.

It's safe to say that among all the mathematics journals in the world, none has a review team as impressive as the Harbin Institute of Technology Mathematics Journal.

There are more than two Fields Medal winners, more than twenty other top mathematicians of similar ability, and Wang Duoyu, the "Emperor of Mathematics".

Globally, no one can match it.

If it were Wang Duoyu's own paper to be published, then Shing-Tung Yau, John Milnor, Charles Fefman, and others would assist in the review.

Conversely, as long as it's not Wang Duoyu's paper, he will help review it.

Even for papers by students like Yorkz, McMullen, Goers, and Wei Jiahong, Wang Duoyu was in charge of the final review stage.

As for whether these papers are 'fake'.

In other words, Wang Duoyu and his ilk colluded, took care of each other, and published papers at will.

Haha, absolutely impossible!

Mathematics is all about logic; if there is even the slightest error, it will not pass.

Chen Shengshen naturally believed that Wang Duoyu and his group would not do something so foolish as to destroy their own Great Wall.

So he didn't call Shing-Tung Yau to verify anything.

Instead, he lowered his head and began to peruse the paper.

On the contrary, the PhD who delivered the journal to him was left out in the cold.

This scene was already commonplace for the doctor, so he didn't find it strange and quietly left.

While Chen Xingshen was busy reviewing papers, the same scene was unfolding in the offices of mathematics departments at many universities around the world.

Whether it's Princeton University, Moscow State University, MIT, Oxford University, Nanyang Technological University, the University of Tokyo, or the University of Hong Kong, most mathematics professors are reading this paper.

Along with the publication of this journal article came an invitation to Harbin Institute of Technology to hold a conference on the functor conjecture in July of this year.

The invitation was sent in the name of the Department of Mathematics at Harbin Institute of Technology to renowned mathematics professors and doctoral candidates worldwide.

It can be said that the report meeting in July this year was once again Wang Duoyu's special session.

However, no one expressed any objection. On the contrary, everyone actively participated and went to Harbin Institute of Technology to listen to this lecture.

There are as many as seven papers that prove the functor conjecture.

Although a significant portion of them were published last year, each paper is comparable to mathematical problems such as the Poincaré conjecture and Fermat's Last Theorem.

After all, the functor conjecture includes top-level mathematical problems such as the Artin conjecture, the Sato-Tate conjecture, and the Ramanujan conjecture. Its high level of expertise and the significance of the papers are unparalleled in the world.

As the global mathematics community was reeling from this, March 1st arrived.

This day marks the official implementation of the Wildlife Protection Law of the People's Republic of China.

Wang Duoyu then called the villagers in his hometown and chatted with his older brothers for more than ten minutes.

In short, don't do anything illegal. Hunting protected animals can really land you in jail.

The Wildlife Protection Law has only just come into effect, and many people will defy it and commit crimes.

Those who oppose it have very simple reasons:
We've only been eating our fill for a few years, and we've already forgotten our roots?

Which animals should we protect?

Why don't they protect those poor, ordinary people?
Wang Duoyu didn't care too much about this matter; he was just chatting with his family back home.

To avoid having to trouble him to bail people out if something goes wrong, which would make him lose all face.

In the entire Qingshan Township, Wang Duoyu is the most famous person.

Even looking at the entire Ice City, there are probably very few people more famous than Wang Duoyu.

"Du Yu, are you busy?"

After he hung up the phone, Liu Deben and Lü Gongliang came in.

Behind him were five other leaders: Fang Lihe, Lü Yangui, Yu Chunshun, Fu Dong, and Qi Haimin.

Wang Duoyu quickly stood up to greet them and exchanged pleasantries with the leaders.

After a few words of small talk, Lü Yangui got straight to the point:

"Duoyu, we know you're very busy and your time is tight, so I'm getting straight to the point. Here's the situation."

Lu Yangui directly mentioned that on the 14th of last month, the first working satellite of the US Global Positioning System was successfully launched and entered space orbit.

In just half a month, or even before that, the higher-ups had already discussed this matter.

However, the United States certainly wouldn't want us to use this GPS system.

Therefore, Lü Yangui and his team received a task to ask Wang Duoyu for his opinion.

In the past, if anything happened, he would naturally call Wang Duoyu and ask him to come to Beijing to discuss it.

However, things are different now. Wang Duoyu's status and position are different now, and he has also heard about the recent events in the mathematics community.

That's why Fang Li and the others came to Harbin Institute of Technology to discuss this matter with Wang Duoyu.

"What the higher-ups mean is, they want to ask you whether we should develop such a global satellite positioning system?"

"Oh, why are you asking me?"

Wang Duoyu was very surprised and said:
"Shouldn't this be a decision made by the leaders themselves?"

Fang Li and the others immediately looked away; it was all because they didn't have money.

Wang Duoyu has a large amount of money in his hands, but it seems he has nowhere to spend it.

For example, the Glacier Expressway, which was a project three years ago, will be almost completed in another two years.

Even so, a few days ago, Wang Duoyu bought another luxury yacht, which is now moored in Guangzhou.

Yes, the yacht that Wang Jianchao bought for Wang Duoyu was not transported back to Harbin, but was placed in Guangzhou.

After all, to be precise, Ersha Island in Guangzhou can be considered Wang Duoyu's "second" home.

The courtyard at No. 87 Zhongguancun West Street in Beijing, the small two-story building in Nanxun Ancient Town, and the house in Jiuzhaigou are all considered Wang Duoyu's 'second home'.

So, given that Wang Duoyu is so wealthy and has a strong ability to make money, it's natural to ask him what he thinks.

Seeing the expressions on Lü Yangui's and the others' faces, Wang Duoyu quickly realized what was going on.

"Boss, do you want me to invest?"

Fang Lihe immediately put on a great performance, nodding to indicate that he was right.

However, Wang Duoyu immediately laughed:

"As you know, our Want Want Group recently partnered with Great Wall Industry Corporation to launch three geostationary satellites to help us complete our satellite communication system."

This part of the investment is not that high, and Want Want Group can bear it all on its own without any problem.

However, the requirements for satellites in a global positioning system are very high. The US GPS system has 24 satellites, and the Russian GLONASS system also has 24 satellites.

The EU's Galileo system deploys thirty satellites, twenty-four of which are operational and six are on standby.

In the future, our country's BeiDou satellite navigation system will deploy 35 satellites, with a total investment of tens of billions of RMB at the time.

I'm not entirely sure of the exact amount, because there's a "surplus" in it.

Even in 1989, if Want Want Group were to invest in such a navigation system, the possibility of losing money would be 100%.

The investment would require at least 10 billion RMB, and it would be almost impossible to recoup the costs.

As is well known, the lifespan of satellites in the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System is fifteen years.

Even so, it's still a long-lasting and durable satellite.

The cost of a single satellite for the U.S. Global Positioning System is approximately $50 to $80 million.

Its lifespan is the same as our Beidou satellites, which is fifteen years.

But $50 million in 1989 was really too expensive.

Twenty-four satellites would cost $1.2 billion, and with other miscellaneous expenses, it would definitely be $2 to $3 billion.

too expensive!
"So we don't have much money right now."

Upon hearing Wang Duoyu's words, Fang Li and the others immediately rolled their eyes, and Yu Chunshun promptly spoke up:

"Professor Wang, I'm from the Foreign Exchange Department. I certainly don't believe what you're saying. How could your Want Want Group not have money?"

Fu Dong, a leader from the General Administration of Customs, echoed this sentiment, stating that Want Want Group did indeed export a significant amount of products last year, generating substantial revenue.

After the two of them finished speaking, Fang Lihe finally spoke:
"Duoyu, let's be frank. Whether your Want Want Group has money or not is not something we need to discuss or debate; it's pointless."

"Tell me, if your Want Want Group could contribute some funds, what would you want?"

Wang Duoyu shook his head: "We don't need or have any use for satellite navigation systems for the time being!"

"However, if the government is really short of money, our Want Want Group can donate 200 million RMB to support the country's cause."

He was being very accommodating, not letting Fang Li and the others leave empty-handed.

But that wasn't Fang Li's or their goal, Lü Yangui said with a wry smile:

"Duoyu, I know, do you harbor resentment towards us?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Duoyu shook his head; he wasn't that bored.

Wang Duoyu was perfectly clear about what Lü Yangui was talking about.

It's simply because Lotte Group didn't make much money during the 1987 stock market crash.

Companies like Yuexiu Group made a lot of money, but Lotte Group only made a little over 800 million US dollars, which was a complete waste of such a good opportunity.

This all happened two years ago, so Wang Duoyu naturally wouldn't still be angry with them.

He's not the kind of person who's narrow-minded. Besides, if he were, he'd probably be depressed by now.

“You don’t need to deny it. We know we were indeed too arbitrary back then. If only we had…” Lü Yangui shook his head with a wry smile, and didn’t finish his sentence.

If they hadn't been so stubborn back then, they wouldn't have needed to come here to see Wang Duoyu now.

After all, companies like Yuexiu Group had earned tens of billions of dollars in total, and Lotte Group held so many assets. If they had just been a little bolder back then, they could have easily come up with the funds to invest in this navigation system.

Tens of billions of dollars, that's no small sum.

Fang Li and his group knew that Want Want Group had earned at least 20 billion US dollars.

Including the Plaza Accord and the Louvre Accord, as well as the drop in oil prices, Want Want Group has always accurately caught the pulse of the times, and must have earned at least 30 billion US dollars.

Therefore, investing around three billion US dollars in a global satellite navigation system now is absolutely no problem.

“I’m really not angry, and it’s been so long that I’ve forgotten about it if you don’t mention it.”

Wang Duoyu chuckled and then said:

"The Global Positioning System is indeed very important to us, but at this stage, our Want Want Group does not have a great need for it. If the higher authorities really need our Want Want Group to invest, then we can donate 200 million RMB."

"In addition, Harbin Institute of Technology can also invest 1 billion RMB. Besides that, I think you can contact companies like Yuexiu Company and CITIC Securities; they might be willing to invest."

"Dear leaders, please stop exploiting our Want Want Group! We're already practically bald from all that exploitation!"

Haha!

Lu Yangui and his group burst into laughter, but a closer look at their expressions revealed that their smiles were far from genuine.

After all, the five of them came to Wang Duoyu in person to beg for alms, but all they got was 200 million RMB. They weren't even willing to invest.
Do you really not have a positive outlook on the Global Positioning System?

But this is a national project, there's nothing we can do about it.

Of course, Harbin Institute of Technology's willingness to invest 1 billion RMB is not a small amount.

After the laughter subsided, Qi Haimin, Fu Dong, Fang Lihe, and Yu Chunshun took turns trying to persuade Wang Duoyu again.

Fifteen minutes later, Wang Duoyu had to reach out and stop him, saying:
"Okay, okay, our Want Want Group will invest. But while we can invest, we won't put in too much money because we really don't have any right now. I'm not kidding you."

"Eight hundred million, at most eight hundred million RMB, no more than that."

what?
Even at this point, Wang Duoyu is only willing to offer 800 million RMB?

Does Want Want Group really have no money?

Where did all the money we earned go? (End of Chapter)