Return to Hong Kong Island for a Century

Chapter 332 Establishing a Car Sales Company (5200+ words)

"Our foundation is too weak. Countries like the US have already started deep space exploration, while we are still confined to Earth," the leader said.

China's aerospace technology lags significantly behind that of other countries. In 1965, Amazon launched Mariner 4 to explore Mars and transmit data back to China.

Of course, the fat bear's plan was earlier; he planned to launch 1A in 1960, but it was unsuccessful.

Even in areas like communication satellites, we lag significantly behind foreign countries.

Specifically, this refers to the spaceborne atomic clock, which not only provides high-precision time for satellites but also affects positioning accuracy.

There is also remote sensing technology, which is used to control satellites and receive data transmitted back by them.

These man-made spacecraft on Mars, or even on other planets or in deep space, also require human control.

This is necessary to carry out missions, such as Mars exploration. After transmitting data, the exploration needs to be repeated, or the location needs to be changed.

This requires instructions to be issued from the ground.

Of course, this is a bit far. For something closer, like checking if your neighbors are up to something.

Because the locations to be viewed are different, the satellite needs to change its orbit, which requires human intervention.

The satellite technology and ground technology that Li Song presented were complementary.

"Yes, we can't let others watch our home; we also need to watch others."

"Let's conduct closed-door research first, and then talk about it after we catch the culprits." The top leader spoke directly.

The order was then issued to the following related research institutes: remote sensing technology, satellite-related gyroscopes, thrusters, transmission and receiving equipment, storage devices, battery devices, and self-contained battery devices.

The satellite's solar panels primarily supply power to the satellite and its related equipment.

The thruster is used for satellite orbit changes, for attitude and orbit control.

Of course, gyroscopes are also part of satellite attitude and orbit control.

Every single component of a satellite is crucial, because if any one component fails, the entire satellite is rendered unusable.

A satellite weighs one or two tons, and not a single gram of its weight is superfluous.

Researchers from the relevant research institutes were quickly transferred to Chengdu, where many classified agencies from the Third Front construction period were located.

These secret agencies are located in various remote mountain valleys.

It turns out that the secrecy here is excellent, because it's very conspicuous for an outsider to come to these places.

There's also space station technology, which is unknown to the mainland. The space station technology that Li Song presented not only integrates existing technologies but also reserves room for upgrades.

However, it is not very meaningful for mainland China to build a space station at present, because the existing technology is not quite up to par.

Moreover, the space station is a complete system, because for the space station to operate, it needs manned spaceflight, rockets, communications, ground support, and so on.

If a space station is unmanned, it is not very meaningful and will only waste money.

Of course, the current space station is very expensive to build; the Mir space station cost 35 billion rubles.

As for the International Space Station, the reason why America later cooperated with the US was actually because they were forced to.

The space shuttle program at that time was not only frequently involved in accidents, but also extremely expensive. The US could not afford it, but had no choice but to give up spaceflight.

Meanwhile, the eldest son of the Fat Bear family was facing industrial difficulties due to the family split, so the two sides hit it off and Ame abandoned the Freedom space station project and cooperated with the eldest son of the Fat Bear family to build the International Space Station.

However, although the two sides cooperated, neither trusted the other, and joint research was impossible. As a result, they each took charge of a specific area.

Moreover, the eldest son of the Fat Bear family has experience operating the Mir space station, so he has a dominant position in the cooperation. The control system, thruster system and so on of the International Space Station are all owned by the eldest son of the Fat Bear family.

Of course, because each module operates independently, the differences in technical standards of the International Space Station lead to poor compatibility of module interfaces.

Each of the ten countries developed its own system. If the Japanese spacecraft wanted to dock with the spacecraft, it would need to modify the interface, otherwise it wouldn't fit.

Furthermore, in subsequent operation, incompatibility caused frequent problems and increased fuel consumption.

Because the space station will continuously descend, and after descending to a certain altitude, it will need to ascend, which requires fuel.

Fortunately, mainland China didn't join the mess that was the International Space Station back then, because even if it had, it wouldn't have had access to the core technologies.

Moreover, the construction cost of the International Space Station reached $1500 billion, with a toilet costing $1900 million and an Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer costing $20 billion. In addition, there is an annual maintenance cost of $50 billion.

Of course, Ami borne 80% of these costs.

Although the time is not yet ripe for China to build a space station, we can start by studying and learning from it.

Then, based on this, we can design and build our own space station.

Absorbing technology is only the first step for the mainland; the next step will be to design its own technology.

Imitation of others still represents backwardness.

Of course, Li Song is not worried about this, because researchers in mainland China can create all sorts of amazing things once they have a thorough understanding of the technology.

Of course, the mainland believes that these advanced satellites and space station technologies belong to Aramco.

In fact, Li Song's second-hand platform integrates and optimizes the technology of this era.

Therefore, after seeing the data, the relevant technical personnel in the mainland exclaimed that the US is too powerful and its technology is so far ahead of ours.

America is indeed very powerful in this era; just look at their space shuttle.

Of course, it was precisely because Ame was so outstanding in space that it dragged Fat Bear into the space race.

Then the fat bear was dragged down.

The US could actually ignore America and continue developing advanced missiles, nuclear submarines, and the like.

Unfortunately, Fat Bear was also the leader of one faction, and faced with competition from the leader of another faction, he had no choice but to join in.

Moreover, the US is making exaggerated claims at this time, such as using space-based laser weapons, saying that as soon as you launch a missile, I will immediately launch a laser, and then your missile will explode in your own country.

Space-based kinetic weapons, the infamous Rod of God, can destroy an entire city and then pierce the earth's crust, triggering a volcano.

The Global Positioning System can make my missiles pinpoint any location in your home.

The Fat Bear camp is too poor on one hand, and too domineering on the other, wanting to take away its underlings' land.

During Fat Bear's era, the leaders elected by his underlings' families were not recognized by Fat Bear; they had to be appointed by Fat Bear.

Several major incidents have also occurred there, such as the Prague Spring.

So after Fat Bear disbanded, many of his former underlings became his enemies, because Fat Bear had humiliated them.

Fat Bear was still very strong at this time; his eldest son had lived off his family's wealth for decades without ever running out of it.

The technical data on the space station that Li Song provided was mainly intended for the mainland to learn from its technical standards.

This is the most crucial point.

Of course, what Li Song hopes for most is to launch a satellite as soon as possible. When the mainland has satellite manufacturing capabilities, he can directly purchase satellites from the mainland for launch.

After sending the documents to Li Song on Hong Kong Island, he began to attend to his own business, starting with a visit to Parkson Department Store.

Then I went with the company's management to Kwai Tsing, where there are instant noodle manufacturing plants and cosmetic manufacturing plants.

Both factories are export-oriented and are located not far from the Kwai Tsing Pier.

The two companies are still somewhat distant, as cosmetic factories are, after all, involved in the chemical industry.

"The instant noodle factory is faster. We signed an import agreement with the mainland for flour and then with Southeast Asia for palm oil." The person in charge of the instant noodle factory is Chen Zhihong, 38 years old this year. He used to be the deputy factory manager of an instant noodle factory.

"The cooking oil we use is imported soybean oil from Aramco."

"The spices involved come from dozens of countries," Chen Zhihong explained one by one. Although the factory and equipment are not yet completed, the raw materials need to be stockpiled in advance because large orders are placed ahead of time.

"Hmm, what about the vegetable bag?" Li Song asked.

"We plan to import vegetable packages from the mainland and provide the mainland with vegetable freeze-drying technology."

"The main problem is that it's difficult for foreign companies to contract land in mainland China." "In addition, outsiders also face various difficulties in the local area. Now there are many township enterprises in mainland China. We directly provide technology and orders to these enterprises. In this way, we can just collect the finished products according to the contract, which will reduce a lot of trouble and extra expenses," Chen Zhihong said.

"Don't sign contracts with township enterprises; sign contracts directly with the local commerce bureau or import/export company. Township enterprises are poorly managed." Li Song knew about township enterprises.

Many township enterprises have become the pockets of local township leaders, who take bribes and demand kickbacks, and they will soon be brought down by successive generations of leaders.

In the end, they even sold the land. Most of the township enterprises now are located in a piece of land in the city. Although it may seem a bit remote now, in a few years, with the expansion of the city, these places will be quite good.

Of course, those leaders don't think that far ahead. After all, it would be better if they could stay in power for a few years and squander all their wealth while they were in charge. Whether there were any opportunities for them to take bribes later on was none of their business.

Therefore, dealing with these companies carries a relatively high risk, because township leaders simply abandon their businesses. What can you do? Kill them?
Didn't you see decades later, when outsiders invest in a certain place, the locals rush to buy it up, and then there are always disputes?

It's different at higher levels; the contracts are quite binding, since people in higher positions have more to consider.

"Okay!" Chen Zhihong nodded upon hearing Li Song's words.

In fact, Li Song wanted to go to northern Xinjiang or other places to reclaim wasteland and then develop industrialized farms.

In any case, Li Song was not optimistic about the company-plus-farmer model because human nature simply could not withstand the test.

Agricultural product prices fluctuate significantly, affecting not only supply but also quality.

Farmers work hard to grow crops, but the market price is high while the purchase price is low, leaving farmers dissatisfied.

What if the quality of the crops doesn't meet the requirements?
What can be done about pesticide pollution?
Of course, most of it is good, but there are always some people in every place who incite others.

As for deep-frying, that's fine; health isn't really an issue at this stage.

Actually, many of the later claims about "non-fried" are just about spraying oil onto the dough and baking it; it's just a different way of saying it. It doesn't mean that oil is not used.

The instant noodle industry will be booming for many years to come. Li Song also plans to make beverages and purified water, and then vigorously develop offline physical stores.

The market is actually a cycle; now it's a physical market, and in a few years, online shopping will be booming.

However, major online platforms later ventured into the physical world.

Li Song can first establish a logistics system, at least down to the township level. With the advent of the internet age, these township-level distributors can become self-pickup points for online shopping.

The convenience store is combined with the large supermarket.

We will develop logistics, transportation, warehousing, and so on, with this as the core.

Of course, this is far less profitable than those platforms, because those platforms profit from both ends, and like casinos, they take a cut, leaving the risk directly to the merchants.

To be honest, some platforms are worse than casinos because they can directly change prices for merchants in the backend and use algorithms to severely restrict merchants and delivery riders.

Instant noodle factories use stainless steel processing equipment, and some workers are already undergoing training. The food industry needs to place greater emphasis on factory regulations.

There are many risks in these food factories; flour and oil are sometimes considered hazardous materials.

After inspecting the area, we arrived at the cosmetics factory. The progress there was slower, partly due to the availability of raw materials, and partly because the mass production of the formula required continuous experimentation, as different equipment and processes were used.

The biggest cost for cosmetics is advertising, which is also known as brand premium.

Of course, there are also core technologies involved. Even with the same proportion of raw materials, the mixing process, the temperature during mixing, and other factors can result in significant differences in the final product.

As for purely plant-based products, the formulation is actually quite difficult because the results of plant extracts vary from place to place.

For example, rose essential oil comes from the river valleys of Bulgaria, Morocco, and Turkey, where the large temperature difference between day and night is conducive to the accumulation of aroma.

Moreover, even within the same rose garden, products grown at different vertical altitudes will be completely different.

Like an orchard, the taste is slightly different at the foot of the mountain and at the top.

Because of differences in sunlight and temperature, just like the same tree, the fruit at the top of the tree tastes better than the fruit at the bottom.

Therefore, the quality control of plant-based cosmetics cannot reach the same level of stability as that of chemical materials.

Therefore, it is normal for the same plant-based cosmetic products to have slight differences each year, especially in terms of fragrance.

Because perfumers aren't omnipotent.

After the inspection, they returned to Parkson Company.

"Boss, this is a motorcycle order from Africa. Their order quantity is several times that of the first one, and we think there might be a risk," Lin Awang, the general manager of the motorcycle sales company, reported, holding up the documents.

Li Song picked up the documents and immediately understood that the dealer model in Africa was different from that in Southeast Asia. In Africa, the payment was made for the previous shipment upon arrival of the current one, and initially, each dealer only had a little over a thousand vehicles.

Now a distributor earns three to four thousand.

In other words, if the distributors don't settle accounts after the goods arrive at their destination, the losses will be significant.

Moreover, in some parts of Africa, goods can be taken away directly, which would result in the loss of both the previous goods and this one.

“When you get back, develop a plan and set different quantity limits for different distributors in Africa,” Li Song said.

"A slightly larger quantity than this is fine." Li Song knew why Lin Awang had come to ask him for instructions: it was out of a sense of responsibility.

Li Song knew very well that the distributors in Africa were all from countries like Britain and France.

Putting that aside, with such good sales, if these distributors default on their contracts, then a lot of people would probably want to do it.

But Lin Awang didn't dare to gamble, because he was just the company's general manager.

If anything goes wrong, it will be his responsibility. But now that he has reported it, it is no longer his responsibility.

In Li Song's view, there was nothing wrong with this way of doing things, and it was absolutely right to ask his boss for permission to do such things.

Besides, Lin Awang was just an employee; there was no need for him to take such a big risk.

"Boss, I'll make it as soon as I get back," Lin Awang said.

"Boss, Xiaoben has successfully produced the first batch of 50cc motorcycles at the Third Master's place."

"However, all the parts were imported from small notebooks."

"The market price is the same as our 90 model, but the third boss plans to localize the production of 50cc motorcycles this year, which will give them a price advantage." Lin Awang then took out a document containing newspaper clippings and translated explanations.

“Competition drives development. We shouldn’t worry about that. If anyone brings it up, let them do what they want. We won’t interfere,” Li Song said.

Don't bother trying to figure out how to deal with the third-in-command, because they'll mess things up themselves.

"It is said that Baba Yang is in technical talks with the Japanese about outboard motors."

"And then there's Bangladesh."

"I heard that the project is very sincere, providing support in terms of funding and technology," Lin Awang continued.

"Support them if you want, we can just withdraw from their market if necessary." Li Song didn't bother to argue with them at all.

Industrialization is not that simple. It involves a robust industrial chain and various infrastructures. For example, the electricity supply in these countries will remain a major problem even decades from now.

While the costs are lower over there, what about production efficiency?
The costs associated with idle production lines, workers, and stockpiled production materials also represent a significant expense.

"Hmm." Lin Awang was a little confused.

Li Song couldn't very well say, "Just look at those few countries in South Asia, like America, which has been supported by the US for decades, and what kind of mess it turned out in the end."
During this period, Fat Bear gave the third leader whatever he wanted, including over 10 billion rubles in money, tank technology production lines, and specially designed transport aircraft for high-altitude areas.

As a result, industrialization failed, and in the end, even agriculture was lost.

Of course, it's not the only country in the world that can't even protect its own agriculture.

Later, Aramco engaged in activities with mainland China, supporting the upgrading of manufacturing industries in Southeast Asian and South Asian countries.

The results of it?
They're just assembly plants; the parts still come from some mysterious country.

"Lin Awang, have you ever thought about leaving BMW Motorcycle Sales Company?" Li Song asked again.

Lin Awang was clearly taken aback when he heard this, because he hadn't been with the company for very long, but the company was thriving, exporting tens of thousands of motorcycles and outboard motors every month.

"What do you mean, boss?" Lin Awang asked, knowing that his boss wouldn't say something like that without a reason.

“A new BMW car sales company will be established. My idea is to go with BMW motorcycles as the sales channel. You are more familiar with them, and you have more pioneering spirit than Yang Ayao,” Li Song explained to Lin Awang.

(End of this chapter)