Reborn in 2012, building a new energy empire

"Beep beep beep..."

The QQ message notification sound rang out in the silence.

Jiang Haoran opened his eyes, his sharp gaze still sharp. He turned his head to look at the Xiaomi 1S flashing a dim light on the bedside table and tapped on the "Special Attention" icon.

Gao Qian's message was filled with grievance: "Haoran, why didn't you reply to my messages yesterday? Didn't you promise to go with me to pick out a gift? (Feeling wronged)"

"Just got home, lots of things to do. Weren't you looking at dresses? Did you decide?"

The other end replied instantly: "I thought you were angry (poor thing). It's not that I absolutely have to buy it, it's just that the beige silk dress, the sales assistant said it's the last one left... but it's a bit expensive at over three thousand, can I send you a picture?"

Jiang Haoran sneered inwardly. In his past life, he had been tricked into handing over money by this kind of feigned retreat.

He typed back, "Yeah, you look good in anything."

He then offered a bait: "By the way, my dad's factory is about to sign a big contract, and there's a bonus if it goes through. I was thinking of having someone bring you that classic Gucci Mamon bag from Hong Kong as a surprise."

The "Typing..." message at the top of the dialog box lasted for about ten seconds.

Gao Qian's reply was filled with barely suppressed excitement: "Really?! Haoran, you're so good to me!!! (heart)(heart) I knew you wouldn't ignore me! My roommate carried a nice bag last week, and I've been envious for so long!"

Sure enough, compared to a dress costing three thousand yuan, a Gucci bag costing tens of thousands of yuan was her real target.

Jiang Haoran continued his trap: "But there's something I need to ask you for a favor. My sister's birthday is coming up soon, and my mom wants me to get her a gift. I've already saved up all my money to buy you a bag, and my credit card is almost empty."

"You haven't opened the Chanel gift set I gave you last night, have you? Could you deliver it to the boys' dormitory? I'll have Li Jiangshan go down and pick it up... Also, send me the color and size of the bag you like so I can ask my friend in Hong Kong to order it."

Gao Qian paused for a moment: "Ah... I opened it and took a look last night. (awkward)"

"It's alright, it won't affect anything," Jiang Haoran said casually, while offering an even more enticing promise.

"The Gucci black bag is the most versatile, it goes perfectly with your white dress. Once my dad signs the contract and receives his bonus, we'll go to Shanghai Disneyland for a few days. With your new bag, the photos will definitely be amazing."

He knew Gao Qian's Achilles' heel all too well: vanity, a competitive spirit, and a desire to outdo her "best friends" in their social circle.

Sure enough, her hesitation vanished instantly: "Then I'll pack it up exactly as it was! (Happy) I'll have Fangfang deliver it to the dormitory this afternoon! You can have Li Hao come down and get it!"

"Don't forget about the bag! Hopefully you can snag a limited edition one! (Please!)"

Greed knows no bounds; one will take an inch and then a mile.

Jiang Haoran typed the last line: "Don't worry. Don't tell your roommate. I'll give you a surprise later."

He logged out of QQ and tossed his phone back onto the bedside table.

This is just the beginning of the calculation. The Chanel gift box that is about to be returned will be the first "tuition fee" he has to pay after his rebirth.

He opened the chat window with Li Jiangshan: "Fatty, Gao Qian will have her roommate Fangfang deliver a Chanel gift box to the dorm this afternoon. Could you pick it up for me? After you get it, go to the Wanda Plaza counter and return it to me. Just transfer the money directly to me."

This amount of money isn't much, but it absolutely cannot be wasted on someone like Gao Qian. Every penny of start-up capital will be of great use to him.

Jiang Haoran logged out of QQ and placed his phone on the bedside table.

Under the moonlight, the faint sounds of the parents talking in hushed tones could be heard from the living room.

"...The day after tomorrow at noon, Hengyuanlou...it's all set with Taozi..." Father Jiang Jianguo's voice was weary, yet tinged with a glimmer of hope. "Profit margins are getting thinner and thinner...we can't afford not to upgrade our equipment...if it weren't for this order from Taozi..."

A heavy sigh seemed to penetrate the door and press down on Jiang Haoran's chest.

A heavy sigh.

Jiang Haoran got up and opened the door. His parents sat at the dimly lit dining table, their shadows elongated by the light.

"Dad, Mom." He walked over and sat down.

Jiang Jianguo looked up, his brows furrowed: "Did I wake you up?"

"I can't sleep." Jiang Haoran's gaze fell on his father's newly added white hair, his tone as calm as possible. "I just heard you say... the factory received a new order?"

"What? You studied finance in school, and you know this?"

He recalled that last summer, he asked his son to go to the workshop to identify the machine tools. The boy stayed for less than ten minutes before sneaking out to play on his phone. He couldn't even distinguish between a lathe and a milling machine.

Jiang Haoran sensed the underlying doubt, but didn't care.

He continued, "I took a basic elective course on mechanical engineering. I just heard from Mom that Brother Jiang Tao introduced me to a big order in Suzhou? What exactly is it?"

When the order was mentioned, Jiang Jianguo became more talkative: "It's gears for export to Southeast Asia, 5,000 sets, and the delivery time is very tight. We need to buy a few new CNC machine tools, some high-purity brass parts, and the rest are ordinary alloy steel."

"If this order is done well, the profit will be very high. Hengtong is a major exporter. Taozi said that as long as this batch is done well, there will be orders every month afterward."

He spoke as if to his son, but also as if to himself, reinforcing his fragile confidence: "I've also asked around, and Hengtong Company is indeed a legitimate state-owned enterprise with substantial strength."

"Although they only gave us a deposit of 50,000, they were willing to provide us with a copper futures standard warehouse receipt with a face value of one million as collateral."

"Although we have to advance the money for raw materials and some new equipment, with this collateral, the risk is manageable... It's a good deal that can save us from an emergency."

State-owned background, 50,000 yuan deposit, and one million copper futures standard warehouse receipts as collateral...

Each word was like a cold key, instantly unlocking the door deep in Jiang Haoran's memory that led to a tragic ending.

His heart sank in his chest, a chill crept up his spine, and his fingernails dug silently into his palms under the table.

The root cause of my past life's financial ruin lies in this seemingly reliable "one million" futures warehouse receipt!

Jiang Haoran's heart sank suddenly, and his fingernails almost dug into his palm.

In my past life, my family's factory went bankrupt because of this 100 million copper futures delivery order!

What state-owned background? Most of them are just empty shells bought from abroad; so-called futures collateral is simply a carefully fabricated financial tool.

There probably isn't even a single ton of copper that meets the standards in Hengtong Company's warehouse. From beginning to end, this was a trap set up to target small and medium-sized machinery factories in the Yangtze River Delta region that were desperate for orders and had tight cash flow!

They used a combination of "export orders + futures collateral" to defraud at least a dozen factories.

Those business owners advanced funds for production, even taking out loans to purchase equipment, only to lose everything in the end. Some sold their houses to pay off debts, while others fell ill from grief and anger. Although the case later gained significant attention, the mastermind had already vanished overseas with a huge sum of money, shrouded in mystery.

We must obtain irrefutable evidence, and we must do so with lightning speed.

"How much will the advance payment be?" Jiang Haoran pressed, his fingers subtly clenching. "Can our factory's cash flow keep up?"

Jiang Jianguo's expression instantly turned cold: "Why are you asking these questions? I can handle these business matters. You're just a student, don't go asking around. Wait until you graduate and the factory is handed over to you before you make any decisions."

Chen Fang quickly smoothed things over: "Old Jiang, the child is just concerned about the family..."

He silently lowered his head and ate his rice, but out of the corner of his eye he saw his father's phone screen was lit up with a message from Jiang Tao: "Uncle, bring the company seal the day after tomorrow. As soon as we sign the contract, I'll urge Hengtong to pay the deposit and intention payment."

A silent battle against time and deception quietly began in Jiang Haoran's heart.