Rebirth: Fan Debiao rises from the Liaobei land

On the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, at eight o'clock in the morning, on the third floor of Victoria.

Fan Debiao pushed open the door and went in. Wu Derong was sitting in front of the tea table brewing tea, and steam was rising from the tea table.

"De Biao is back? This trip must have been tiring!" Wu Derong looked up. "Come, sit down and try some of my newly bought Lapsang Souchong."

Fan Debiao put the bags he was carrying on the coffee table and sat down. Wu Derong poured him a cup of tea; the tea was bright red and had a fragrant aroma.

"Good tea." Fan Debiao took a sip.

"Of course, over three hundred per jin." Wu Derong put down the teapot and looked at the bags. "What are all these?"

Fan Debiao took things out one by one.

"For General Manager Zhang, there's 20-year-old Xinhui tangerine peel and some aged medicinal tangerines. For Director Zhao, there's a carved walnut from Zhoushan, a handmade piece. For Director Wang, there's a Cantonese embroidery ornament. For Director Li, there's a Cixi celadon teacup. For Director Liu, there's Ningbo gold-painted lacquerware; and for Brother Liu, there's a piece of olive oil tea—these are collector's items!"

Wu Derong picked up the lacquer tray, looked at it, then put it down, staring at the pile of things on the coffee table.

"Debiao," he said, "these things are quite valuable."

Fan Debiao picked up his teacup and took another sip.

"Gifts have to be presentable," he said. "We owe our success to the help of General Manager Zhang, Director Zhao, Chief Wang, Director Li, and Section Chief Liu. General Manager Zhang's word was all it took to secure the China Netcom base station project. Director Zhao's tips were crucial; we wouldn't have even had a chance to negotiate. Chief Wang was a huge help last year with those issues. Director Li gave us countless pointers at the tax office, and Section Chief Liu gave us the green light at the business registration office. And Brother Liu goes without saying; Gangzi was his protégé, and he can settle any trouble in the underworld with a single word."

He put down his teacup.

"If someone treats me with respect, I will treat them with even greater respect. This money is worth spending."

Wu Derong looked at him and nodded.

"Okay," he said, "you've learned how to handle things on this trip."

As the two drank and chatted, Fan Debiao mentioned the signing of the contract, which left Wu Derong speechless. "Debiao, if Li Hongzhang had your skills back then, he wouldn't have suffered such a humiliating defeat at the negotiating table!"

After showering him with compliments, Wu Derong took a folder out of the drawer and spread it out on the coffee table.

"I have good news for you," he said. "General Manager Zhang has been officially appointed as the head of China Netcom."

Fan Debiao's eyes lit up.

"Is it settled?"

"It's settled. It was settled before the Lunar New Year, and the official document was issued on the eighth day of the new year." Wu Derong lowered his voice. "The provincial company originally had other ideas, but General Manager Zhang did a great job on the project last year, and someone from higher up spoke up for him."

Fan Debiao nodded. It was expected that General Manager Zhang would take over, but he still felt at ease upon hearing the news.

"What about the loan?"

Wu Derong opened the folder and pointed to a few pages.

"It's from the credit union, three million, 6.5% annual interest, three-year term," he said. "It's almost done, just a few formalities left. I estimate the money will be in place in as little as half a month, or at most a month."

Fan Debiao took it, looked at it, and then pushed it back.

"Great. Mr. Wu's involvement is truly invincible!"

"And there's the telecommunications city," Wu Derong said. "I've spoken with the department store leaders. The old department store area is a whole block, with an annual rent of 200,000 yuan, excluding heating, and a minimum three-year lease. But I estimate we can negotiate a 5% reduction."

Fan Debiao didn't speak, but picked up his teacup, seemingly lost in thought.

Wu Derong looked at him.

"What's wrong? You have other ideas?"

Fan Debiao put down his teacup.

"Mr. Wu," he said, "could we not rent it?"

Wu Derong was stunned for a moment.

"Not renting? What then?"

"Buy it."

Wu Derong was stunned for a full three seconds.

"Debiao, are you crazy?" He leaned forward. "That building is four stories, 2,800 square meters, and the department store is asking for over three million. After we ordered the TCL Bird products, how much cash do we have left? The three million loan hasn't even arrived yet. Even if it does, if we pour it all into buying the building, how are we going to get our mobile phone inventory? How are we going to handle the construction?"

Fan Debiao remained silent.

Wu Derong continued, "Even if we manage to scrape together the money and buy the property, our cash flow will be stretched to the limit. If anything goes wrong and the banks start demanding repayments, how will we pay them back?"

Fan Debiao looked at him and held up two fingers.

"Mr. Wu, firstly, regarding the money, could we handle it this way? Could we use the company as collateral to buy the building?"

Wu Derong was taken aback.

"and then?"

"Then they mortgage the building and take out another loan."

Wu Derong opened his mouth, but no words came out.

After a few seconds, he gave a wry smile.

"De Biao, your operation...theoretically it should work, but it won't pass the bank's risk control. They're not stupid. You're just transferring money from one pocket to another, and the collateral is still the same. Do you think they won't notice?"

"Hehe!" Fan Debiao laughed, "Mr. Wu, I think it's feasible. As long as our collateral is stable and the property rights are clear and undisputed, lending shouldn't be too difficult. Even if there are difficulties... hehe, Mr. Wu, with you handling it, it'll be a piece of cake!"

Wu Derong laughed in exasperation, "You went to Guangzhou and learned just this one Cantonese phrase! Loan, Debiao, you've given me a real problem! Fine, I'll look into it and see what to do. What's your second point?"

"Mr. Wu," Fan Debiao continued, "you know that the department store has been losing money for years, and not only are the losses increasing, but it's also completely unprofitable. How can the higher-ups not have any concerns?"

Wu Derong was taken aback.

"What are your thoughts?"

"Restructuring," Fan Debiao said. "This is what I've heard, it may not be accurate. But for these old state-owned enterprises, after years of losses, there are only two paths: either the enterprise becomes insolvent, the government leads the liquidation, and the real estate is auctioned off publicly; or assets are used to pay off debts, and then the bank takes over, or it is transferred to a third party. No matter which path is taken, the price will not be what it is now."

Wu Derong remained silent for a few seconds.

"You mean, wait?"

Fan Debiao nodded.

"Let's talk to him first and stall for time. If the system really changes, then we'll make our move. Even if it doesn't change, if we stall for two or three months, he'll lower the price on his own, and we won't lose money if we rent it then."

Wu Derong looked at him, his eyes somewhat unreadable.

"Debiao," he said, "who told you that?"

Fan Debiao smiled.

"You're just asking around. When doing business, you can't just focus on your own little corner of the market. You have to keep an eye on whatever's going on outside."

Wu Derong nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

After the two drank tea for a while, Wu Derong suddenly spoke again.

"Debiao," he said, "I have an idea too."

"explain."

Wu Derong leaned forward.

"I want to mortgage Victoria and build a golf course."

Fan Debiao paused, his hand holding the teacup still. He thought to himself, "Wu Derong, you have no idea, you went bankrupt in 2003 because of this project!"

"Mr. Wu, are you planning to build a golf course?"

"Yes." Wu Derong's eyes lit up. "I've inquired, and there are only two venues in Shenyang. Kaiyuan is close to Shenyang, only a little over two hours' drive away. If we build a sports field, we can definitely attract customers from Shenyang."

He became more and more excited as he talked.

"I've looked at a few plots of land around Kaiyuan. There's a place called Qinghe, nestled against the mountains and by the water. Building a small nine-hole stadium there would only require an investment of a few million. With a membership system, you could sell a card for 30,000 to 50,000 yuan, and break even in a few years..."

Fan Debiao put down his teacup.

"Mr. Wu, please listen to me."

Wu Derong stopped and looked at him.

"The geography is terrible," Fan Debiao said. "Kaiyuan isn't far from Shenyang, but have you done the math? People from Shenyang drive here, and with the gas, tolls, and time costs, why don't they just visit Shenyang? Is Shengjing not good enough, or is Shenshui Bay not good enough?"

Wu Derong opened his mouth.

"Besides," Fan Debiao continued, "not many people in our small town even know how to bowl. You want to start a golf club? That's for people from the provincial capital. How many people in Kaiyuan can afford that? A membership card costs 30,000 yuan. Who are you going to sell it to?"

He paused.

"Also, have you found out about the land? I heard there are a few plots of land in Qinghe whose ownership has been disputed. If you invest in them and the land runs into problems, the bank will cut off the loan, and your Victoria will be wiped out."

Wu Derong remained silent for a long time.

"De Biao," he said in a low voice, "now that you've said that, I'm not sure what to do."

Fan Debiao looked at him.

"Mr. Wu," he said, "we've known each other for several years now. I'm a straightforward person, so please don't take it to heart."

Wu Derong shook his head.

"You're right." He sighed. "I was drinking with some friends before the New Year, and they encouraged me to do this, saying I could make a lot of money. I've been thinking about it these past few days, and the more I think about it, the more feasible it seems."

He looked at Fan Debiao.

"Thanks for your words of caution. I need to find out more about the situation before making any plans!"

Fan Debiao picked up his teacup.

"Mr. Wu, let's focus on doing a good job in the telecommunications industry this year. On the mobile phone side, we've signed contracts with TCL and Bird, and this year's volume will double compared to last year. On the engineering side, we'll start working on fifty base stations in the spring. If we can secure the telecommunications city, we won't just be selling mobile phones anymore; we'll be building distribution channels."

He paused.

"I believe there is still much more to be done in this industry this year."

Wu Derong looked at him and nodded.

"Okay," he said, "I'll do as you say. We'll talk about the golf thing later."

The two chatted for a while longer, until it was almost ten o'clock.

Fan Debiao stood up and packed the pile of gifts.

"Mr. Wu," he said, "I'll send the dried tangerine peel over to Mr. Zhang's place. I'll also deliver these few portions myself. As for the others, since you're more familiar with them, your delivery will be more effective."

Wu Derong nodded in agreement, "Debiao, you've grown a lot since this trip. That's a good thing!"

Fan Debiao turned to look at him and smiled, "President Wu, I know someone who clings to every little thing like it's a lifeline. One day I looked at him and wow... good heavens, what he's holding onto is already a towering tree that I can only look up to."

Wu Derong was completely confused. "Who is it?"

"His surname is Xu!"

In the afternoon, Fan Debiao drove to Dexing Communications.

The store wasn't crowded. Xiao Juan was playing on her phone behind the counter, Liu Qiang was arranging stock, and Wang Fang was doing the accounts. They all looked up when they saw him come in.

"Brother Biao is back!"

"Hmm." Fan Debiao tossed the small gift he brought to the store onto the counter. "We've split it up. I carried this all the way back."

"Oh, thank you, Brother Biao and General Manager Fan!"

Fan Debiao then clapped his hands.

"Come here, everyone, I need to talk to you."

Several people gathered around.

Fan Debiao took out a stack of red envelopes from his pocket, all of which had been prepared in advance.

"Opening bonus, 100 yuan per person." He handed them out one by one. "This is a lucky money gift for opening the business. I learned it from General Manager Wu. It's for good luck."

Xiao Juan's eyes lit up as she accepted the red envelope.

"Thank you, Brother Biao!"

Liu Qiang pinched it and grinned.

"Brother Biao is particular!"

Wang Fang smiled too.

"This year will definitely go smoothly."

Fan Debiao looked at them.

"There's a lot of work this year, so everyone has to work harder. We've already signed contracts with TCL Waveguide, and the volume is double what it was last year. On the engineering side, we'll start working on fifty base stations this spring, and there might be other business as well."

He paused.

"Our business is getting bigger and bigger. But as long as we all work together, we won't let you down."

Several people nodded.

"Don't worry, Brother Biao, I'll work for you!"