Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 212 Lightning Cooperation (Part 1)

February 15th, just three days after the Lantern Festival.

A middle-aged man nodded to the flight attendant, gave her a friendly smile, and got off the plane.

Although her smile was radiant, her mood was like that of someone drenched in a downpour.

Just before the New Year, he had dinner and drinks with the vice mayor of Shenzhen, discussing the future.

Last week, amid stock market volatility, Shenzhen was still calling to inquire about BOE's financial situation.

Just a few days later, Shenzhen unilaterally notified him that it would cooperate with Sharp and abandon the Julong Project.

"Chairman, the people in Hefei are not simple. While they are negotiating cooperation with Sharp, they are also secretly contacting us. I don't know if they have contacted Shanghai Broadcasting and Television yet. When we negotiate with them, we can be more proactive and not let them find out that we have a third option."

Vice President Liu Xiaodong walked to his side and whispered.

Shanghai Radio & Television has its second domestically produced fifth-generation production line, which officially went into operation in October two years ago.

Backed by the Shanghai State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, they have faced almost the same fate of being suppressed in international competition. BOE internally believes that they share the same feelings as BOE, and the cooperation between BJ Shanghai and the establishment of the sixth-generation line is a good result.

However, Shanghai is more focused on profits. Last year, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan besieged the main screen models produced by the fifth-generation line. The price of 17-inch computer monitor panels dropped by 50%, and the price of TV panels under 32 inches also plummeted. Shanghai Radio and Television has a relatively negative attitude towards the sixth-generation line. It believes that even if it continues to upgrade the sixth-generation line, the 37-inch TV panels covered by the sixth-generation line will also be subject to besieging and price reductions. Only by being on the same high-generation line as Japan can it have a real say.

BOE could only offer words of advice while sighing: "Doing domestic products is not easy."

But after Wang Dongsheng finished sighing, he inhaled the breath back into his stomach, transforming it into a surge of determination:
Orcs Never
No.

The Chinese people will never give in!

“Shanghai Broadcasting and Television is right. As long as we are within the range of their 8th generation line’s top-level artillery fire, we are bound to be hit. This is a gamble. Our current situation is very bad, and we cannot invest too many chips. Xiaodong, you also need to be careful not to give in easily during negotiations. Cash is our lifeline. We cannot spend another penny. As long as we can still pay our employees’ salaries, we can survive.”

The two exchanged words of advice, and the group walked out of the passenger passage.

Someone was waiting outside to greet them and then politely led them to the entrance.

Outside the gate, Chen Xuebing stood next to Mayor Wu with his arms crossed. Seeing the frowns on the faces of the BOE group as they exited the airport, he felt as if his own home was being rejected.

"Mayor Wu, this airport really needs repairs. If we really don't have the money, we could at least widen the roads outside and add some greenery."

"Xinqiao International Airport has been approved as a provincial-level mega-project. The plan is very ambitious. The province is coordinating resources, and it will be completed soon. At the latest, it will officially start construction the year after next. We will definitely invite General Manager Chen to visit the groundbreaking ceremony."

The leadership in Hefei always managed to touch Chen Xuebing's heart, showing him respect. They were quite satisfied with the equal treatment between government and business. In just over half a month, he had countless thoughts about developing the area and settling down there permanently.

"Sure, I'll donate some money and try to participate in the ribbon-cutting ceremony."

"That would be wonderful! I'll definitely prepare a pair of golden scissors for Mr. Chen!"

"Hehe, Mayor Wu, you'd better hurry up and prepare. I think we'll be able to use it soon."

The two chatted and laughed quietly as they approached the BOE team.

"President Wang!" Mayor Wu shook hands with Wang Dongsheng very warmly.

Chen Xuebing smiled slightly and said, "I've heard so much about you."

The order in which they shook hands represented their status: Mayor Wu first, Mayor Lu second, and the unusually young Chen Xuebing third, which made Wang Dongsheng hesitate.

“Mr. Wang, we’ve spoken on the phone. I’m Chen Xuebing from Changzheng Capital.” He proactively revealed his identity.

Wang Dongsheng's expression shifted several times before finally settling into a knowing smile: "Oh! President Chen, you really... killed BOE!"

It seemed like a joke, but when shaking hands, both hands were used, and at least 80% of the force was applied.

Chen Xuebing calmly accepted the offer with one hand.

"If Mr. Wang hadn't been so stubborn, BOE's stock price would be above three yuan now."

On the previous trading day, BOE closed at 2.6 yuan.

Wang Dongsheng gritted his teeth: "If it weren't for such stubbornness, how could BOE have survived to this day?"

Chen Xuebing chuckled but didn't answer, continuing to speak at his own pace.
"But since you're here, I stand by my word. From today onwards, you don't need to worry about BOE's stock price."

Wang Dongsheng thought to himself, "If it weren't for your meddling, I wouldn't have had to worry about anything."

Now look what's happened; 260 million has been invested, and the stock price is still plummeting.

"Oh? Mr. Chen really has that kind of ability? Then, is there any chance we'll get our money back?"

"That's natural. It's not practical for Mr. Wang to build a factory in Hefei if he doesn't have the money." "Oh! We'll see! Whether the factory can be built depends mainly on Hefei's resources!"

From the very beginning, tensions were palpable between the two sides.

The people at BOE were well aware of who had put them in such a passive position, and they were all determined to fight it out at the negotiating table.

Upon arriving at the destination, I was completely bewildered.

We stayed at a guesthouse.

Mayor Wu left, and Chen Xuebing and government staff brought him the room key. As he handed it to them, he smiled at Wang Dongsheng.
“This place is close to the government, and Sharp’s people stay here too. We see each other all the time, so it’s easier for us to negotiate with them.”

The bluntness of the words angered the entire BOE team.

Liu Xiaodong stepped forward.

"Mr. Chen, you invited us here just to provoke Sharp? Is this how the Hefei government operates?"

"Of course not. We invited you here for cooperation. Sharp is a competitor, and BOE is a teammate. However, I hope we can simplify the process and reach a cooperative relationship as soon as possible."

Wang Dongsheng felt a sense of powerlessness, as if he were being manipulated, from his encounter with this guy in the stock market to his underhanded tactics in Hefei disrupting the negotiations, and now to their meeting today. He gradually frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Chen Xuebing didn't waste any time and handed over a contract document.

"I've already discussed the conditions for building the line with Hefei once, but Hefei currently has a funding gap. After discussion, we plan to help you build a 4.5-generation line to produce mobile phone screens, so that BOE can get rid of the losses caused by international competition in large screens."

Upon hearing this, Wang Dongsheng and Liu Xiaodong exchanged a glance, both puzzled.

Who leaked the information?
They did discuss the lower-generation production line.

Faced with the current fate of being contained, there are only two options: either expand to a larger scale or shrink to a smaller scale. If they cannot break through the containment of the next generation, they can still survive on small screens.

However, the meeting to discuss this matter was a small one, with only four core executives present. The final decision was to first develop the sixth-generation production line.

How does he know?

“Our fifth-generation line can also produce small screens, and we’ve received quite a few orders recently. Why do we have to use a 4.5-generation line?” Wang Dongsheng probed.

Chen Xuebing shook his head and chuckled: "Definitely not. Modern mobile phone screens emphasize high resolution and thinness, requiring extremely high pixel counts. More delicate electronic circuits are needed to control the pixels. Your fifth-generation line was built for large screens. I've bought and looked at the small screens it produced, and they're all obsolete products that can't enter the mid-to-high-end market. We must build a dedicated line and allocate a team to research and produce them. The substrate size of the 4.5-generation line is also more suitable for producing screens under 5 inches. 3.5-5 inches will be the major trend in the next few years."

Wang Dongsheng's expression turned serious at first, but he smiled again at the end of the sentence: "It seems that President Chen is an expert. However, the mainstream trend is 3.5-5 inches. This is the first time I, as an insider, have heard of this. I wonder where President Chen came up with this conclusion?"

“Mr. Wang isn’t the only one in the industry. I’m in the mobile phone business. Mr. Wang may not be more focused than me. If you do it, once you’ve completed your production line, I guarantee you at least 20 yuan worth of orders for screens larger than 3 inches every year.”

20 yuan.

Wang Dongsheng subconsciously did the math.

The 4.5 generation line substrate glass is 730*920mm, cut to three inches, and after deducting the frame loss, it costs about 200 pieces.

With a yield rate of 80%, it costs 160 yuan.

20 pieces, which is 1250 substrate glass pieces.

Not many.

Building a factory without an annual production capacity of 300,000 substrate glass pieces is considered a waste of production capacity.

However, since a 3-inch screen from BOE costs over 120 yuan, and with orders totaling over 20 million yuan, even a small amount is still something. So he didn't rush to refute it, but simply asked, "Isn't Mr. Chen in finance? Why are you making mobile phones?"

"The factory is in Shenzhen, and the brand will be registered soon. Mr. Wang is welcome to visit if he is interested."

The factory is too small now. Although its monthly sales are close to 10,000, most of them are not produced by him. Chen Xuebing did not want to explain.

The main sources of mobile phone screens in Huaqiangbei are small and medium-sized counterfeit manufacturers that specialize in imitating specifications and dismantled parts from recycled mobile phones. They have taken away a lot of business from these large manufacturers. It is inconvenient to disclose his identity as the king of counterfeits.

Wang Dongsheng opened the first page of the document and said casually, "We can do small screens, but we really don't have the money for investment. Since President Chen has already learned about us, I'll be frank: even getting a loan is difficult. We don't have any capital unless you can accept a private placement to raise enough capital for us."

The conditions he mentioned casually were actually the part that BOE was most concerned about. The syndicated loan in BJ is now putting them under a lot of pressure because the initial capital for building the fifth-generation line was too small and the loan ratio was too large. After discussion, they decided to use equity financing for the first time to build the factory.

Upon hearing this, Chen Xuebing laughed.

"Look at page three."

(End of this chapter)