Rebirth: Fan Debiao rises from the Liaobei land

At six o'clock in the morning, before it was fully light, Fan Debiao was woken up by his phone vibrating.

Engineer Wang's voice was hoarse as a broken gong on the other end: "Boss Fan, something terrible has happened. The foundation poured last night has cracked!"

Fan Debiao jumped to his feet: "How big is the crack?"

"You could stick your finger in there!" Mr. Wang cursed. "I suspect the sand has too much soil content, or the curing wasn't done properly. The workers are all gathered around watching; are they even going to do any work?"

"Stop, stop everything," Fan Debiao said as he pulled on his pants. "I'll be there soon."

When I arrived at the construction site, the sun was just rising. Two cracks gaped open on the cement foundation, and five or six workers were squatting nearby, smoking. Engineer Wang was squatting next to the cracks, his face as black as the bottom of a pot.

"Have you taken a sample yet?" Fan Debiao squatted down.

"I've picked it up and sent it to the building materials testing station." Engineer Wang handed me a cigarette. "The results won't be out until this afternoon. But I reckon we'll probably have to tear it all down and start over."

Fan Debiao refused the cigarette: "How many days would it take to start over?"

"Seven days for basic curing, one day for removing the formwork, and another day for rebuilding the formwork and pouring the concrete," Engineer Wang calculated. "It will take at least nine days."

"Nine Heavens..." Fan Debiao stared at the crack. "The equipment will arrive next week, and the installation team has already been contacted. Is it possible to repair it locally?"

"Repair?" Engineer Wang's eyes widened. "Boss Fan, this is the foundation for the base station. A fifteen-meter pole needs to be erected on top! If the foundation isn't solid, the pole will collapse in a strong wind, and that would be a disaster—people could die!"

Fan Debiao stopped talking and took out his phone to call Ericsson's Manager Zhao.

"Manager Zhao, this is Fan Debiao. There's a slight problem with the foundation, so it'll be delayed by a week. Could the equipment be shipped a little later?"

Manager Zhao was silent for a few seconds on the other end: "Boss Fan, the equipment was allocated from the Shenyang warehouse, and the trucks have all been ordered. If you postpone it, it will be scheduled for half a month later. Moreover, the installation engineers' schedules are all full; if they don't come next week, it will be next month."

"Okay, I understand."

After hanging up the phone, Fan Debiao said to Engineer Wang, "Smash it. Smash it now."

Engineer Wang was taken aback: "Aren't we waiting for the test results?"

"We can't wait any longer." Fan Debiao stood up. "We can't afford to waste time. Replace all the sand and cement with new ones, and I'll cover the cost. But you have to make up for lost time—seven days, you must get the foundation done."

"Seven days..." Engineer Wang gritted his teeth, "Fine, I'll add more people, two shifts."

When the excavator started breaking the foundation, Awei rushed over. Seeing the scene, her face turned pale instantly.

"Brother Biao, how much will this be a loss?"

"Materials, labor, and equipment delays—it'll be close to 20,000 yuan." Fan Debiao lit a cigarette. "Money is a small matter; we can't afford to waste time. The contract with Netcom states that it must be completed by the end of the month, with a deduction of 0.5% for each day late."

Awei was writing in her notebook, her hands trembling slightly.

"Also," Fan Debiao said, "go to the building materials market and find Lao Zhang. Have him deliver ten tons of 425 cement. The sand must be river sand, and the soil content cannot exceed three percent. Also, find two experienced maintenance workers to keep an eye on it 24 hours a day."

"clear."

As soon as Awei left, Gangzi led over a dark-skinned, thin man.

"Brother Biao, this is my cousin, Liu Tiezhu. He used to work for the power bureau; he has both a working height permit and an electrician's license."

Liu Tiezhu, in his early forties with calloused hands, nodded to Fan Debiao: "Boss Fan."

"Can you climb this kind of pole?" Fan Debiao pointed to another cement pole that had been erected next to him.

Liu Tiezhu looked up and said, "I've climbed higher than this before. But it depends on what's installed up there. If there are a lot of antennas, we'll have to go up in batches."

"The antenna has six sides, plus the feeder cable," Fan Debiao said. "It's 150 yuan a day, including three meals. There's a bonus for good performance."

"Okay." Liu Tiezhu answered readily. "When do we start work?"

"Once the basics are set up," Fan Debiao said, handing him a cigarette. "Stay at the mobile phone shop for the next few days and get familiar with the business."

At 2 p.m., Fan Debiao was looking at the account book on the second floor of the mobile phone store when his phone rang again.

This time it was a Motorola engineer surnamed Chen, with a heavy southern accent: "Boss Fan, our technical department just discovered a problem. Your existing switching equipment at Kaiyuan Netcom is from Lucent, and we need to add a protocol converter to interface with our Motorola BTS equipment."

"What instrument?"

"A protocol converter," Engineer Chen explained. "Simply put, it's what allows two devices to communicate. But we didn't bring this accessory; it has to be shipped from Beijing."

"How many days will it take to arrive?"

"It will take at least three days. But after installation, it will need to be tested. If everything goes smoothly, it will take one day; otherwise, it's hard to say."

Fan Debiao rubbed his temples: "Engineer Chen, you didn't mention this before you came."

"We just received the notification ourselves," Chen said, sounding a little embarrassed. "Recently, base stations have been deployed all over the country, and the equipment models vary from place to place. This is the first time we've encountered this kind of problem."

After hanging up the phone, Fan Debiao made a note on a piece of paper: Protocol converter, four days wasted.

The sounds of customers haggling could be heard downstairs. It's been almost a month since the phones were stocked, and sales are still booming; it's time for the mobile phone store to restock. Popular models like the Xiaxin A8 and TCL 3188 require advance payment for ordering. The money in the account needs to be kept in reserve for quick turnover; it can't be used recklessly.

Fan Debiao went downstairs and saw the shop assistant Xiaoling arguing with a customer: "Brother, this price really can't go any lower. Our wholesale price is already..."

"Stop with the nonsense," the customer waved his hand. "Just tell me the lowest price."

Fan Debiao walked over and said, "Buddy, this machine is priced at 1,300. If you really want it, it'll be 1,280, and I'll throw in a phone case for free."

The customer hesitated for a moment, then said, "Okay."

After the customer left, Xiaoling whispered, "Brother Biao, we'll only make two hundred from this price."

"Two hundred is still money," Fan Debiao said. "Cash flow is tight right now. This afternoon, take stock of the inventory and sort out the models that aren't selling well. I'll find a channel to get rid of them."

"clear."

In the evening, Fan Debiao went to the construction site again. The foundation had been demolished, and the workers were clearing away the debris. Engineer Wang was squatting to the side eating his boxed lunch. When he saw Fan Debiao come over, he ate a couple of bites and stood up.

"Boss Fan, the new cement and sand have arrived. But I've discovered another problem."

"explain."

Engineer Wang pointed to the blueprints: "Look here, our base station is designed to be dual-band, 900MHz and 1800MHz. But the 1800MHz frequency has poor penetration and a small coverage radius. According to regulations, it should be at least 500 meters away from the 900MHz base station."

Fan Debiao frowned: "This place is just this one open space within a kilometer radius."

"Then the performance of the 1800M equipment will be compromised," said Engineer Wang. "A weak signal means more user complaints. The network operator will definitely hold you back during the acceptance process."

"Never mind that for now, let's proceed according to the original plan."

"There's more," Engineer Wang pointed to the top of the pole, "The design calls for six feeder cables from the base station to the antenna. But there are only four pre-drilled holes on the pole. We either need to drill new holes or reduce the number of feeder cables—reducing the number of feeder cables will result in greater signal loss."

Fan Debiao looked up at the fifteen-meter pole: "How long will it take to re-drill the hole?"

"We need to set up scaffolding, which will take a whole day. And the poles are already erected, so working at heights is dangerous."

"Damn it, the signal on PHS phones was already bad. If we reduce the feeder lines, won't it just become a complete disaster?" Fan Debiao said. "We'll set up scaffolding and launch a full-scale attack while ensuring safety."

Engineer Wang opened his mouth, then finally sighed, "Fine, you're the boss."

"And another thing!" Fan Debiao added, "We'll have a meeting after get off work tonight to figure out whether the problem lies with the design or the supplier."

At 7 p.m., Fan Debiao returned to the second floor of the mobile phone store. Awei was already there, with the account book spread out on the table.

"Brother Biao, I've finished reviewing the accounts." Awei's voice was a little weak. "The building materials over budget were 8,000, the labor costs were 5,000, and the estimated loss from delayed equipment was 12,000. Of the 120,000 that General Manager Wu added, 90,000 has already been spent."

Fan Debiao lit a cigarette: "What about the phone shop?"

"The inventory is worth about 150,000, and we only have 32,000 in cash on hand." Avi paused for a moment. "We need to make payment for another batch of goods soon, which will require at least 80,000."

"How much more is needed?"

"Forty-eight thousand." Awei looked up. "Brother Biao, if it really doesn't work... how about we take some from the phone shop's account?"

Fan Debiao remained silent for a while, then took out his phone and called Wu Derong.

"Mr. Wu,"

"What's wrong, Debiao?" There was karaoke background noise from Wu Derong's side.

"There's been a problem with the project; the foundation cracked and we have to redo it. We're a bit tight on funds, so I'm thinking of borrowing 40,000 yuan from the phone shop's account to tide us over."

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end: "Is it serious?"

"It can be resolved, it just takes a little time."

"Fine, move it then." Wu Derong readily agreed. "You're the major shareholder, you can handle this small amount of money!"

Even close brothers keep clear accounts; I need to discuss this with you.

After hanging up the phone, Fan Debiao said to Awei, "Transfer 40,000 to the project account tomorrow. I'll figure out a way to cover the remaining shortfall."

Awei bit her lip and wrote it down in her notebook.

My phone rang again. This time it was an acquaintance from the China Netcom Engineering Department, surnamed Zhou.

"Boss Fan, let me give you a heads-up. Someone's been watching your base station."

"Who?"

"It's hard to say," Section Chief Zhou said in a low voice, "but the acceptance standards may need to be raised. In particular, the signal coverage radius and call quality will be tested more rigorously than before."

When was it decided?

"This week." Section Chief Zhou paused for a moment. "I only heard about it from the beginning. Just keep that in mind."

Fan Debiao said, "Thank you, Ao!" and then hung up the phone.