That year the flowers bloomed 1981

Chapter 1381 Never Regret It
Li Ye sat quietly in the corner, observing the subtle expressions of each speaker in the conference room, drawing experience for future trials.

In such settings, everyone qualified to speak is a high-level player who has fought their way through various challenges. Learning even a little from them could be beneficial for a lifetime.

However, Li Ye did not expect that he would get a chance to speak just as the meeting was about to end.

Suddenly, a director named Wan Zhenyang said, "The light vehicle company is doing well right now, especially the first branch plant, which accounts for 70% of the profits."
However, they have Hong Kong-invested shares and loans, so negotiations might be a bit complicated. Is the head of one of the branch factories present today?

Several people in the conference room looked at Li Ye.

In recent years, the No. 1 Factory has indeed been "quite lively," with a continuous stream of outstanding achievements and various events. Many people have visited the No. 1 Factory and, of course, know Deputy Factory Director Li Ye.

Li Ye glanced at Ma Zhaoxian again, and seeing that he didn't intend to speak up for him, he raised his hand to indicate his presence.

"Hello, Director Wan, I am Li Ye from the Light Vehicle Company. I was previously in charge of technical and marketing work at the No. 1 Factory."

Wan Zhenyang raised his eyelids slightly and said in a nonchalant tone, "Oh, since you're here, then tell me your opinion. If the Light Vehicle Company participates in the group merger, how should the foreign investment issue of the First Branch Factory be handled?"

Hearing Wan Zhenyang's serious tone, Li Ye was first surprised, and then found it somewhat amusing.

Since everyone knows that the First Branch Factory is a "special case," shouldn't such matters be discussed privately first before being discussed in public?

Now that Li Ye hasn't received any prior warning and the Hong Kong investors aren't even on site, what kind of advice do you want from me?
[Does he expect me to say we should divest from the Hong Kong investment, clean up the table, start afresh, and have a new clientele? What's the point of all that? Why don't you just divest me too?]

The No. 1 factory is the most valuable asset within the light vehicle company. Li Ye wanted to spin it off separately, but was limited by the high barriers to entry in the automotive industry, making it difficult to obtain a production license. That's why it has been "living together" with the state-owned enterprise all along.

But judging from what this person is saying, is he planning to divest from Hong Kong investment?
Not entirely certain of the other party's intentions, Li Ye cautiously said, "Because our branch factory was a pilot unit for reform, the higher authorities gave us sufficient autonomy. At that time, Hong Kong was also set to return to China in 1997, so we boldly introduced Hong Kong capital."
Over the years, Hong Kong capital has attached great importance to and provided strong support to the First Factory. This support is not only financial but also technological. The new electronic fuel injection gasoline engine that the First Factory is about to finalize has received significant assistance from Hong Kong capital.
In summary, with our full support in many aspects, the First Branch Factory has achieved certain results and has also developed a long-term and clear development plan for the future.

I believe Hong Kong investors will support our plan to grow bigger and stronger; no one wants to disappoint the expectations of all parties.

"."

Li Ye's words were meant to indirectly emphasize the importance of Hong Kong capital to the branch factory, but after Li Ye finished speaking, Wan Zhenyang said calmly, "Aren't you a bit irrelevant? I'm asking you how to handle the Hong Kong capital situation in this merger."

"."

Li Ye raised an eyebrow and said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Although we have an agreement with Hong Kong capital, as long as we aim for a win-win situation, I believe anything can be discussed."

Wan Zhenyang's gaze sharpened: "The purpose of a win-win situation? What is a win-win situation?"

Li Ye stated frankly, "The current situation at Branch Factory One is a win-win situation. The company is doing well, the workers are in high spirits, and we have support from all sides. The company has plenty of potential for future development."

"."

Wan Zhenyang glanced at Li Ye and didn't continue to nitpick.

Because Li Ye's words were practically saying, "If you want to change things, you'll be responsible for any consequences."

Although the No. 1 Factory was initially a pilot unit for reform and could accept some setbacks, the current situation is that the transformation of the No. 1 Factory has been too successful, and everyone seems to have forgotten that reform can also fail.

Just like a top student, everyone finds it hard to accept a sudden drop in grades.

If such a model unit experiences a serious mishap due to the actions of an individual, it cannot shirk its responsibility.

After the meeting, Ma Zhaoxian called Li Ye into his car and then asked in a low voice, "Should we talk to the Hong Kong investors and get their opinion?"

Li Ye gently shook his head and said, "Let's not do it yet. Our merger is still far from being finalized! I reckon that once things are looking promising, the ministry will definitely notify the Hong Kong investors to participate."

Li Ye knew that Ma Zhaoxian meant to have the Hong Kong investors protest now, since they should have a say in the merger. However, remembering Professor Ke's advice to "not rush," he decided to remain calm and wait.

Ma Zhaoxian nodded thoughtfully and said, "That's true. Given our efficiency, it won't be possible to make a decision in a short time. It would be bad if the Hong Kong investors knew in advance, as they are all too impatient."

Sure enough, when Li Ye returned home and told Wen Leyu about what happened that day, Wen Leyu said in surprise, "Is this to save us trouble? Are you being so considerate?"

The loan that Li Ye's branch factory obtained from Zhongxin Bank was handled by "Xiao Zhong". Xiao Zhong and Wen Leyu are considered "family friends", so even if Li Ye didn't tell Wen Leyu, she knew that the branch factory was the lifeblood of the light vehicle company.

Now that someone is trying to single out the No. 1 factory for discussion, isn't that like adding a pillow to a pillow when you're already dozing off?
Li Ye thought for a moment and said, "They don't have a deep understanding of Branch Factory One. They think that now that Branch Factory One is independent, it no longer needs the assistance and support of Hong Kong capital. They don't understand the supervisory and restraining role of Hong Kong capital in Branch Factory One at all."
However, if we want to spin off the first branch factory, it would be like cutting down a money tree; there would definitely be a lot of resistance.

In the past two years, it's not like no one has tried to take over the No. 1 factory. Niu Hongzhang once wanted to use the No. 1 factory for his own purposes, but he failed due to protests from Hong Kong investors.

It can be said that without the constraints of Hong Kong capital, the entire set of rules currently in operation at the No. 1 factory would be gradually eroded by the state-owned enterprise system until it is completely unrecognizable.

Wen Leyu smiled and said, "It's normal to encounter resistance! But isn't it because someone is helping us overcome the resistance? If Southwest Heavy Truck is still hopeless this time, it will definitely be split up again. Whether it's splitting up one company into two or three, it's still the same."

"."

Li Ye was utterly astonished, then suddenly realized what was happening.

After learning about Southwest Heavy Truck's past, he was very resistant to the merger of the two companies, but little did he know that Teacher Ke had already planned everything.

Since Southwest Heavy Truck has always been a bunch of troublemakers who are more likely to mess things up than to accomplish anything, it's only natural that you mess things up again this time. When it's split up again, wouldn't it be even easier for the first plant to become independent?

Li Ye had to admire this foresight in thinking three steps ahead.

But the Kamaz project was something Li Ye had worked hard to bring in. If he wanted to achieve this goal, was he supposed to secretly sabotage it and drag Southwest Heavy Truck down with him?

For a moment, Li Ye didn't know what to do.

When Li Ye talked about those classic cases of "turning losses into profits", he always looked down on them for profiting at the expense of the public.

A large company had been losing money for many years, but after being privatized, it turned a profit in the same year. What kind of magical operation is this?
But now this kind of operation is going to fall on Li Ye's shoulders?
Wen Leyu glanced at Li Ye, pursed her lips, and said, "Don't worry, Mom and I know what kind of person you are. At most, you'll only take our share, not a penny of the public funds. Are you relieved?"

Li Ye paused for a moment, then burst out laughing.

I'm really being stubborn. The factory started from scratch and only received 200,000 in support. Why not just pay it back ten or a hundred times over?

As for the contributions of the vast number of employees, Li Ye will lead them to prosperity in the future, and will never be shortchanged.

(End of this chapter)