this man is not calm

Chapter 387 Utilization Efficiency
When it comes to attracting investment, all regions are very enthusiastic now. Investors who actively approach us are still very capable and will of course be welcomed.

Hao Qilian wanted to introduce some people to Jin Shang and have a chat with him. The other party seemed to be the head of a high-level laboratory. In addition, several scientific research institutes also wanted to understand the situation and strengthen cooperation.

Jin Shang also wanted to finalize the matter as soon as possible, but unfortunately he didn't have the time.

The engagement ceremony, which has been delayed for some time, cannot be postponed any longer.

April 16th is the tenth day of the third lunar month and is a good day for weddings, engagements, sacrifices, coming-of-age ceremonies, business openings, etc. It is a Wednesday, a workday, not a weekend when everyone is relatively free, but almost all the relatives and friends who could come came, even Jin Miao, who was not thought to show up despite the invitations, brought a gift.

It was not a formal marriage but a declaration of engagement, so it was not that serious. There were no awkward ceremony, exaggerated emcee, vulgar jokes or boring games. It was just a gathering to introduce themselves to everyone and get to know each other.

Over the years, there haven't been many people who have had close contacts with the father and son of the Jin family. It was only in the past two years that they began to gain some popularity.

"I didn't expect that my family would have so many relatives and acquaintances."

Excluding those from the Huang family who he had less contact with, in fact, only Mei Xinghong and Jin Shi’s brothers and sisters were relatively familiar with him, and he had more contact with the Nan family brothers.

Jin Shang and Li Xuan, wearing formal suits, went outside to offer tea to everyone and exchange a few words.

The three books and six engagements in ancient rituals have long been simplified, and the steps are almost the same. This is a semi-formal disclosure. In the folk perception, they can already be regarded as an engaged couple, waiting for the final wedding banquet.

Before this, if the two broke up, at most they would say they were not destined to be together, which would not be a problem from a moral perspective. But after today, if they go their separate ways, it would be considered a broken engagement. In the past, it would have ruined their reputation and made it much more difficult to get married, which would be even less welcome than a divorce or a second marriage after a widowhood.

Now is a new era, everything requires evidence, the marriage law cannot catch anyone, but the emotions of ordinary people are simple, and those who regret their engagement have a serious moral stain.

Jin Shang, who had drunk a lot of light wine and had a hot face but was very happy, took a break and chatted with Li Xuan, who was dressed in red.

Putting down the rice wine that had been diluted with who knows how much water, Li Xuan looked outside at the noisy but not particularly noisy hall, and playfully stuck out her tongue, pretending to complain:

"Your aunt and uncle are so serious, and your brothers and sisters are so polite that they look pedantic. They look like a family. As for the Mei family, they are relatively peaceful..."

"My uncle's family is a bit special. It seems that they have confidentiality requirements. They moved frequently in the past, so I'm not very familiar with them..."

I can guess what he will do, but that's not important. My aunt revealed that he will change his career path in the future. After demobilization and desensitization, he will be in charge of local work, which means he will officially start his career. Even so, he will probably shine in a field where he can use his professional abilities.
"It's normal to engage in management work after gaining practical experience in geological exploration, land resources, geographical research, etc."

The most suitable places for development are definitely the southwestern mountainous areas, the snowy plateaus, the northwest desert, and the permafrost areas in the north waiting to be developed.

The starting point is definitely not low, but it is hard to say how far they can go. The father and son of the Jin family are not following the industrial routes of basic mineral development, steel and coal, rare earth smelting, etc., and they seem to have no intersection in their work, but this kind of thing is hard to say.

It seems that all my cousins ​​from my eldest aunt's family are planning to pursue a career in politics or technology, that is, to do research in their professional fields and become authorities.

Learn valve?

It seems a bit like Mei Fengchun's father, but also different. Economics and sociology involve many fields, as well as disputes over routes, which are different from natural sciences.

"Come to think of it, your relatives' first two generations always had problems, but after all these years, they've actually been doing pretty well. They're much better than my family who's confined to one place and can't find a way to make a breakthrough."

These words made Jin Shang laugh:
"Everyone has their own circle. If you are not of the same kind, it is difficult to force your way into it. Without someone to introduce you, it is very difficult to get involved. Although the name 'Jiangxia Huang' is not so intimidating anymore, many people are still willing to give it face. Under the same conditions, when anyone can be chosen, the close relatives of the Jin family are the magic weapon to defeat the enemy."

As I said, Huang Zhengkuo is just old, not dead.

Not being in charge of things doesn't mean you can't be in charge. It's very easy to deal with some short-sighted guys just by moving your fingers.

He has seniority and has lived a long life, and it's not a matter of principle. It's normal to be flexible and give him some leeway.

"So, you see, this world is the same everywhere. Connections and circles will always play a role. It just depends on whether you know how to use them. My uncles, aunts, cousins, even if they don't do anything, are already a long way ahead at the starting line."

"It is really hard to find something that is absolutely fair."

"So, we should leave some channels for talented and hardworking people to see the hope of advancement..."

Jin Shang gently patted the back of Li Xuan's hand and changed the subject.

"Let's not talk about that. The Xian family is here too. I don't know them. There are only a few of them in the capital. My grandmother specially notified us to come and have a chat. If we don't come and visit, we will really be cut off from our relationship."

The Xian family is very small, but there are still some close relatives of Old Lady Xian and their descendants.

Jin Shang had greeted them before, and they were a little reserved. They had been making a living in western and eastern Guangdong for a long time and were unfamiliar with the capital. It was estimated that many of them had no family members to visit them.

It’s really too far and it’s not easy to come here.

In addition, we don’t have much interaction in our daily lives, and I don’t even know what to talk about.

Later, Jin Shang took Li Xuan's hand and went to that table. Xian Guizhen, Jin Shi and Mei Xinghong were talking to the Xian family. They introduced them and chatted for a while.

"Working in sugarcane planting, sugar extraction, and trade!"

Jin Shang smacked his lips.

It is almost the northernmost place in East Asia where sugar can be produced efficiently. It has plenty of sunshine, abundant rainfall, tropical and subtropical climates, and low labor costs. The plantation economy can still be maintained, but the cost is a bit high, so it is not as competitive as Southeast Asia, West Africa and other places.

Equally embarrassing industries include palm oil, rubber, tropical fruits, etc., which can indeed be popularized and have certain economic value, but they are not particularly profitable and can only serve as basic supplements to maintain existence.

As for exporting and earning foreign exchange, forget it. It's too expensive even for our own consumption.

A man in his 35s, who seemed to be the son of Madam Xian's cousin, became so excited that he couldn't help but complain.

"Especially in the past two years, the World Trade Organization agreement has gradually come into effect, and the sources of imported sugar have increased. It's not just sugarcane planting, sugar extraction, and sales channels. Everyone can only earn a little hard-earned money, and they have to work..."

There is no need to go into details about some of the policy issues. Also, there is no decent secondary or tertiary industry there, and doing other things is not as comfortable as the sugar industry.

Jin Shang also heard something else from the distant relative's words.

In places far away from home, there are always some chaos that are difficult to tell outsiders. The man whom Jin Shang called uncle seemed to have let slip that many industries there, including the sugar industry, are not unprofitable, but they do not seem to be profitable.

Jin Shang could guess some things. Living by the mountain, living by the water, living by the water. Living by the sea, it is inevitable to go by sea. On the vast ocean, the situation is naturally very complicated.

However, these have little to do with Jin Shang. In the early years, the Xian family made their fortune by making sugar and planting cash crops. They were powerful local tyrants and wanted to develop in the capital, so Xian Guizhen and Jin Shi and Jin Shang's family were born. Unfortunately, the Xian family did not seem to have a firm foothold in the north, and even their foundation in the south was unstable. The brothers and sisters did not seem to be very wealthy.

Of course, compared with other relatives, this seems a little lacking in confidence, but it is also much better than ordinary families. The gifts brought are not particularly precious, but they are also very sincere.

We will probably be able to visit each other as ordinary relatives in the future. Estrangement is difficult to reverse. We haven't had any contact for decades, and the relationship won't become warm again just by getting together once or twice.

Li Xuan is not a very sociable person. Perhaps her face could no longer hold back a stiff smile for such a long time. Even Jin Shang was a little tired. He kept repeating the same things over and over again, so it was normal for him to feel tired.

Several halls were booked and were basically full. Even some relatives from Lao Huang's family who had some dealings with Jin Shi came. Jin Shang had seen them before and remembered their appearance, but his name and identity did not quite match.

In short, they are all just formal interactions, and the relationships over there can only be maintained by Lao Jin.

The feud between the Jin family father and son and the Huang family was very shallow in Jin Shi's generation, and it was almost severed by the time of Jin Shang. If it were not for the single-line connection with Huang Zhengkuo and some unclear interests, especially the "family golden finger" that needed to be strictly kept confidential, there would probably not be so many lingering connections.

As for Li Xuan's relatives, there are obviously more of them than Jin Shang's family, but not many of them rushed to Beijing to attend the engagement ceremony.

The chosen day is not a holiday. Everyone has to work and live, and children have to go to school, so most of the time they just send a few representatives.

The place chosen for the engagement ceremony was very nice, but it was not a luxurious occasion, and there was no need to wear gold and silver, look noble, or show off wealth by carrying a pile of cash. The main purpose was to have a relaxed and enjoyable exchange.

Speaking of which, Li Xuan also has some of the same problems that Jin Shang encountered at home, that is, her seniority is relatively low.

As he is the eldest son of the family, he occupies a dominant position in the family, but there are also a lot of relatives who are obviously young but have surprisingly high generations.

It has been a long time since Jin Shang last called a child of similar age or even younger as grandpa, aunt, uncle, etc., and he still feels uncomfortable.

As the soothing and relaxing music flowed like water waves, time passed slowly and the ceremony, which was not long, did not seem to be dragged out.

As for any sentimental scenes of thanking the parents, there weren't any of those. It wasn't a formal marriage, so there weren't so many awkward ceremonies that would make one pick one's feet. There were no noisy best men and bridesmaids, and no wedding pranks to watch the fun.

The really important things have been done privately, and what needs to be said has been agreed upon long ago. What is shown to everyone is a natural outcome. The wedding date, if nothing unexpected happens, will be May 28th two years from now.

Some of the guests who came from far away did not arrive recently. Many relatives took advantage of the good weather to travel and see relatives they hadn't seen for a long time.

It's not easy to have an opportunity to bring so many people together.

After the engagement ceremony, the guests were sent to a nearby resort center. Since the place had been booked out, they could stay there for a few days, eat and drink for free, be picked up and dropped off, and have fun in Beijing and the surrounding areas. They were also free to make other arrangements.

After settling Li Xuan's relatives, it was already past three in the afternoon. We were busy all day and still a little tired, but Li Xuan and I still took some time to get in touch with her eldest uncle and his family, whom we hardly saw.

Jin Shi, Jin Lanzhi and Jin Lanyun, three siblings, have been spending less and less time together since they became adults. It's not that they are not close, but that they are too far apart and have their own things to do.

As for my uncle-in-law, the name publicly disclosed this time is Liu Jiayuan. Jin still doesn’t know if it is his real name. He vaguely remembers that it seemed different before, but he is not sure, mainly because he is too unfamiliar to me.

Although he looks like a man of few words, he is actually quite talkative. When I mentioned the current situation at home, my uncle seemed to have some opinions but he didn't say them explicitly.

"It's good that my family is safe. As for business, it's good as long as it's safe and stable. There's no need for our family to use more precious things to make a fortune. We've passed the stage of risking everything to make money and improve our lives."

These words seemed to be a lecture from an elder, but the original intention was still very positive. Jin Shang also agreed with them, so he did not object and nodded casually.

"For things like building a factory, if you have the ability, it's good to use your own money to invest in industry, but... it's not the best choice."

After chatting for a while, my uncle Liu Jiayuan expressed his views in front of Jin Shang and several relatives:
"A large factory that can provide a large number of jobs and produce a lot of output is not just a construction base or a platform for making money. It has more value. If... the output is a scarce resource that can fill certain gaps and solve specific difficult problems, it would be even better, just like..."

The uncle, who was somewhat at a loss for words, paused for a moment, and Jin Shang suddenly had an idea and seemed to understand something.

"Returning a favor, lending a flower to a Buddha?"

“Almost, but not exactly!”

After a pause, Liu Jiayuan responded very calmly,

"I can't explain it in detail, so I'll tell you about something I've seen. A businessman in a certain county was very business-minded. He built a textile supply chain with a wide coverage by virtue of his eloquence and maneuvering. He made a lot of money after a few years. Later, when the industry ceiling was reached, it was necessary to move up and down the industrial chain or to make a horizontal layout. If you want to go further, investing in building a factory and laying down a foundation is the general trend..."

The uncle told the rest of the story very seriously and in detail, and Jin Shang listened quietly.

What happened later was not very complicated. Even if a remote county town that was not wealthy wanted to invest in building a large factory, it had to deal with many issues, from land acquisition, three connections and one leveling, goods and raw materials, product sales, employee recruitment, financial and tax incentives, etc., which were very complicated.

A large factory with thousands of employees would cost hundreds of millions to fully put into production.

The boss has worked hard for many years but didn’t earn that much money, so he has to take out a loan or even borrow money.

And therein lies the great risk.

Building a factory at the risk of bankruptcy and hoping to accomplish it entirely on one's own ability is very dangerous for local bosses who plan to expand investment in reproduction, expand blindly, and fail to see the situation clearly.

The boss in my uncle's story got to know the local investment promotion person through the introduction of an acquaintance. After chatting with him, he found out that this industry happened to be a big profit and tax contributor, and investing in building a factory could solve many stubborn problems.

As a result, the two parties hit it off. One party wanted to do it but lacked money, while the other party had resources but had no one to integrate and set up a factory.

The final result of the discussion was that the boss did not have to pay a penny in the early stage. The local government helped to select a good factory site, find people to build the factory, buy equipment, and help contact human resources to recruit employees. Correspondingly, he had to assume an investment debt of nearly 500 million yuan.

Of course, this money is not spent in vain, and the boss is not a fool. The two parties signed a bet agreement. As long as the other party takes over, operates normally, and meets a series of conditions such as providing jobs, taxes, and output value, the debt can be reduced or forgiven.

The most attractive thing is that if you can achieve 2 billion in external sales within five years, you can completely waive all debts and don’t have to spend a penny on building the factory, it will be given away for free.

Jin Shang couldn't figure out the data for a while, but he judged based on his intuition that it was mostly true.

In fact, neither party in the bet loses anything, it is a win-win situation.

If it cannot be completed, the boss will have to pay back the money and interest. He was going to build the factory anyway, so at most he didn't get any advantage. If it fails, there are still liquidation clauses. It would be good to pay off the debt in full. If that doesn't work, he can just pay back the money for the equipment. The local government can also take back the factory and core assets and land, so it's not a loss, and the boss can minimize his investment losses.

But if the bet is completed, the boss will get a big factory for free and make a lot of money. The county will arrange jobs for many migrant workers, revitalize the local economy, and collect a lot of taxes. The nominal investment is 500 million yuan, but in reality it goes from one hand to the other. It would be considered good if the actual expenditure is two-thirds of the total. After five years, the total output value can reach more than 3 billion yuan, which is also a big profit.

"Resources exchange, each taking what they need?"

"That's what I mean!"

As if he had reached his comfort zone, my uncle became more and more relaxed as he spoke, and he naturally suggested,
"If your business with your brother-in-law's family is really as big as you say, then your strength is already quite strong. It may not be particularly outstanding in the capital, but if you put it outside, it is really like a giant. Let's put it this way..."

After a brief recollection, my uncle explained:

"You know that Jiangnan is a rich place. The poorest county is located in the mountainous area of ​​the central and western regions. Its size is quite astonishing. But do you know what the lowest GDP of Jiangnan was announced two years ago? It was only over 600 million!"

"so little?"

Jin Shang was very surprised.

Among the most economically developed counties in the Yangtze River Delta, there are not just one or two with assets worth over 100 billion yuan, but a whole row of counties with assets worth tens of billions. Yet, there are still some poor counties with assets worth hundreds of millions?
"So, can you imagine how valuable a factory is with an investment of several hundred million and an output value of nearly ten billion, even if it is listed, it will have a value of at least five billion. I know there are local tycoons in many places who are not very conspicuous, but this kind of large factory that is closely related to people's livelihood is not the kind of paper wealth that is inflated by bubbles. Finally, do you know what happened to the boss I mentioned?"

"Ok?"

Facing Jin Shang's curious gaze, the uncle replied:
"There was a medium-scale flu outbreak in the area. It wasn't very dangerous, but it was troublesome, and it spread to the surrounding neighbors. For a time, the demand for sanitary and security equipment increased dramatically. After the boss took over, he received a large number of orders and modified the production line. The 2 billion bet was completed in a year and a half."

After saying this, Liu Jiayuan looked at Jin Shang meaningfully.
"It's not a high-tech thing. It's cheap, in large quantities, and sufficient. It doesn't matter who the order is given to. Why did he get it? Have you ever thought about it?"

This is not difficult to understand.

How is it possible that a business worth hundreds of millions, billions, or even tens of billions is completely isolated from the local area and has no impact at all?

In the megacity of Beijing, today's culture is not very prominent, but if it extends a tentacles outward, it will probably cause a stir in some small places.

In this case, it is not impossible to rely entirely on self-investment and shoulder the responsibility, but it is somewhat thankless.

"Politics and business are like fish and water. The two need to coexist in harmony and cooperate sincerely. This does not mean that you have to do anything outrageous. Just have normal exchanges and follow the rules. You are worried about being constrained, and others are also on guard against you doing bad things. Trust is built step by step, and it is the same everywhere..."

Their interests are aligned and they complement each other without any attempt to collude with each other.

"I was negligent."

Jin Shang indeed did not do enough to think things through, make good use of the resources, and maximize the value.

"You are still young, so some flaws are understandable. It's not a big problem..."

"Details can sometimes determine success or failure! Jinxi Culture... does seem too aloof and a little out of touch with the masses."

Jin Shang is willing to listen to good suggestions with an open mind.

For example, when planning to win over partners to build factories in Jingu, Tanghai, and Jiaodong Peninsula, they were thinking about how to get land to build factories, recruit people to start work, and open up sales channels. They basically paid little attention to the local economic strategic planning, did not consider the situation of mutual complementarity and support, and indeed did not do enough preliminary work.

"Small businesses don't need to think so much. Now your company and its partners have become large-scale business entities. To be frank, it's not as easy as before for your great-grandfather to continue to protect them."

Therefore, many things have to be done by the Jin family father and son, especially Jin Shang.

There is no need to think too much about it now, but if a playboy from a big family shows up in the future and wants to find Jin Shang to "extract gold coins", it is impossible for him to go to Lao Huang to "seek justice" for every matter, right?

"In the big picture, you need to grasp the direction and attitude, accurately identify your role, and know who to turn to when problems arise. It's just a matter of being good at dancing with long sleeves. For the rest, just do what you want to do. We are very tolerant here... a lot of the time."

The grace of a great country and the pride of a strong man are the most obvious characteristics that Jin Shang feels from this era. It was not like this at all in the same period of his previous life. It is estimated that there will still be some of this kind of temperament in another twenty years.

"I am grateful for your advice, uncle."

I don’t know how this elder, who seems to be a little domineering in his every move, has such knowledge. Isn’t he said to have been doing technical work in geological surveys?
It doesn’t quite look like it!

(End of this chapter)