1977: The beginning of the blind date with the daughter of the king

Chapter 555: Being tough and showing weakness!
"Hello, Mr. Victor. I am Shunpei Kobayashi, the representative sent by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry to negotiate with Mr. Victor."

In another small reception room, Kobayashi Junping, who was about 1.75 meters tall, bowed and politely greeted Li Changhe.

"Hello, Mr. Kobayashi, please take a seat!"

"It will take some time for Mr. James and Mr. Matthews to come over, so how about I communicate with Mr. Kobayashi first?"

After sitting down, Li Changhe said to Kobayashi Junping with a smile.

Kobayashi Shunpei smiled and nodded: "Of course, I also think that we just need to communicate well with Mr. Victor."

"I think Bank of America and Wells Fargo will definitely follow Mr. Victor's opinion this time."

They did not come here without preparation. In fact, Jun'ichi Misugi had already sent them a lot of information from the United States.

Victor probably has no more oil in his hands. The inside story this time is probably that Bank of America and Wells Fargo have approached each other.

The reason may be the payment condition in Japanese yen they proposed.

They tasted the sweetness of Li Changhe's yen payments, so they wanted to use the same method to deal with other dollar customers.

But those people were certainly unlikely to accept it, so we found Victor.

However, Kobayashi Shunpei is not in a hurry. The price of oil is falling now, and the oil in the market is no longer so scarce.

This time they hold the initiative.

Hearing the other party's arrogant tone, Li Changhe couldn't help but sneer in his heart.

The Japanese are like this. Most of the time, they only remember to eat and not to be beaten. It really proves the old saying.

The son of a Zhongshan wolf will become arrogant when he succeeds!
"Mr. Kobayashi, I actually can't control the will of Bank of America and Wells Fargo. It's just that we have a good relationship, and I have a precedent of friendly cooperation with your country, so I intervened in this matter."

"In fact, at the end of the day, this deal still needs to be negotiated between your country, Bank of America and Wells Fargo."

Li Changhe said calmly at this time, removing himself from the transaction.

After hearing this, Kobayashi Shunpei pretended to sigh.

"Yes, it's been a long time since we met a partner as suitable as Mr. Victor."

"It's just a pity for Sanshan-kun."

"What's wrong with Misugi-kun?"

Li Changhe "deliberately" followed the topic and asked.

Kobayashi Shunpei shook his head. "Because the cost of previous oil purchases increased, Sanshan was punished in the recent review meeting."

"Of course, please don't be angry, Mr. Victor. We have no intention of blaming Mr. Victor. The responsibility this time lies entirely with Sanshan-kun and his American team. They misjudged the market forecast, which led to their work errors."

At this time, Kobayashi Shunpei "hurriedly" explained to Li Changhe.

After hearing this, Li Changhe couldn't help but sneer in his heart.

Damn Misugi-kun, be punished.

The other party is actually making it clear that they bought the oil at a high price last time and they regretted it, so they will not give in this time.

Come to think of it, the highest point of oil price was only 39 US dollars, and it did not exceed 40 US dollars.

But Japan bought it at the price of US$40 a barrel, and it only took more than a month.

This gap really made the Ministry of International Trade and Industry very unhappy.

This is equivalent to the newly bought oil depreciating before it even gets warm.

No wonder the other party was so happy to come to Hong Kong Island to meet Li Changhe. It turns out that he wanted to make up for it by cooperating for the second time!
"Mr. Kobayashi, let me be fair. I think it is very stupid for your boss to punish Mr. Misugi."

"Mr. Sanshan's behavior should not only not be punished, but should be rewarded."

"Although the price of oil has fallen now, at that time, it was on an upward trend, and no one knew how high it would go."

“More importantly, you couldn’t buy oil during that period.”

"Although the oil price has fallen in less than two months, Mr. Kobayashi, as an official of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, should know very well how much oil your country consumes every day? How much oil does it consume in a month?"

"If Mr. Sanshan had not purchased the oil from me at that time, how long would your country's oil reserves last? I believe Mr. Xiaoxin should have a judgment in his mind."

"And if your country's oil supply is interrupted, the losses caused will be completely out of the same league compared to the premium Mr. Sanshan incurred when purchasing the oil."

"Mr. Sanshan's purchase at that time was a timely help to your country. After all, no one could predict the trend of oil prices. At that time, I believe that national interests outweigh economic interests."

"Besides, Mr. Sanshan has visited you several times and made sincere visits to lower your costs, so I am willing to accept the condition of payment in Japanese yen."

"I think I'm probably the only one in the world who would accept such a weird condition of payment in Japanese yen. After all, Japanese yen is not a world currency at all now. It can't be spent anywhere except in Japan."

"I agreed to your terms because of my family's long-standing cooperation with Japan and my belief in Japan's economic potential."

"But if you think you've suffered a loss in this transaction, then I doubt the work level of your boss."

"During critical periods, shouldn't national interests be more important than economic interests?"

"Besides, you only spent a few dollars more, which means you spent less than $1 billion more."

"If one billion dollars is a very large amount for a company, it can be said that the loss is huge."

"But for the entire country of Japan, one billion dollars is not a lot."

Li Changhe criticized bluntly at this moment.

He did not show any submissive attitude just because the other party was a representative of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, because he knew very well that the person in front of him would definitely apologize.

The Japanese are actually a bit like green tea. They lack the courage to face head-on. Most of the time, they say one thing in public and do another behind the scenes.

They appear to be servile on the surface, but behind the scenes they use small actions and tricks to disgust you.

Only when they are sure that you pose no threat to them at all will they truly bare their fangs and attack you unscrupulously.

But it is obvious that the current Li Changhe is not someone they can control at will.

Before coming, Kobayashi Shunpei had been told that this young Mr. Victor should not be underestimated.

He is not only a wealthy descendant of a shipping tycoon family in Hong Kong, but more importantly, he has very close relations with the Rockefeller family in the United States and the new president.

In addition, there is the California consortium that they are about to face.

Such people must be treated with caution. Therefore, after hearing Li Changhe's blunt criticism, Kobayashi Shunpei bowed his head decisively to apologize.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Victor, I misunderstood you."

"In fact, I also agree with Mr. Victor's ideas. Sanshan has made contributions in this matter. Although we have suffered a slight loss economically, we have gained the initiative in national strategy."

"But you also know that often times, there are different voices in a company or a country, and some people will always find reasons to attack the hostile party."

"In fact, before I came here, some colleagues had already reported Sanshan-kun's problems to the top management. I believe they will give Sanshan-kun a fair treatment."

"I apologize again to Mr. Victor. It was my words that made him unhappy. In fact, we are very satisfied with our cooperation with Mr. Victor."

Li Changhe just said calmly at this time: "In fact, I am just complaining for Mr. Sanshan. Of course, this is actually the internal management of your country and has nothing to do with me."

"Well, I know Mr. Kobayashi has his own bottom line when he comes this time."

"Mr. Xiaolin, I think the conditions this time will definitely not be as favorable as the last time."

"So Mr. Kobayashi, why don't you just tell me what your offer is this time?"

"Although I can't make the decision for Bank of America and Wells Fargo, I can give you both some advice."

"Of course, if your country's offer is completely insincere, I will not get involved in this matter. If you can negotiate, then negotiate. If you can't, then don't talk. It has nothing to do with me."

After hearing this, Kobayashi Shunpei's eyes flashed with a hint of nervousness.

Junichi Misugi said that Mr. Victor was a tough opponent, and it turned out that he was not lying. The opponent was very confident.

In fact, his words just now have hinted that they are dissatisfied with the high price last time, and they will definitely lower the price this time.

Li Changhe also pointed out his confidence in his evaluation of Jun'ichi Misugi.

First, Japan needs oil for a long time because their country consumes a large amount of oil every day to maintain national production.

So it doesn't mean that they can sit back and relax after buying the oil. In fact, they can't use the oil for long, only one and a half months at most.

In the oil market, countries, especially countries like Japan that rely almost entirely on imports, are always buyers and do not have much initiative.

Now it is just because of the change in oil prices that we temporarily have some initiative.

Secondly, as for the condition of payment in Japanese yen, at present, no other seller in the world will agree to it except Li Changhe.

Bank of America and Wells Fargo approached Victor, actually wanting him to be a middleman to complete the currency conversion.

Therefore, Japan’s purchase conditions are actually very narrow, and only Victor will agree.

If they fail to reach an agreement with Victor, then they will have to buy oil in the market entirely in US dollars.

So which one is more advantageous: 37 US dollars plus a portion of Japanese yen payment, or 35 US dollars full payment in US dollars?

For MITI, it is definitely the former!
Because payment in yen not only represents saving of US dollars, because yen can only be used in Japan, it also means that this batch of yen is actually foreign investment attracted by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.

If these investments are made domestically, they can also create employment, boost the economy and generate wealth.

Although the specific gravity is not large, a mosquito is still meat no matter how small it is.

Comparing the two, of course the former is more cost-effective.

Therefore, Mr. Victor is still very confident and is not afraid of his threats.

The other party also said that at worst they would withdraw from this transaction and let them negotiate with Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

This almost foreshadows the failure of cooperation.

Because Kobayashi Shunpei knew very well that without the prerequisite of payment in Japanese yen, it would be difficult for them to reach an agreement with the California consortium.

In fact, the higher-ups don't want to break off talks with the California consortium. This is not only due to economic considerations, but also political ones.

But I don't want to be ripped off again for no reason, as that would make my colleagues laugh to death and become a handle for them to attack.

Therefore, it is up to Kobayashi Shunpei to strike the right balance here.

Thinking of this, Kobayashi Shunpei sighed in his heart. He had thought that this would be an easy job, but it turned out to be very difficult.

Well, I have to try a different strategy.

"Mr. Victor, please believe that we are very much looking forward to cooperating with you this time, especially for you. Your family has deep roots in our country, and in the previous transaction, we are very grateful for your ability to sell us a large amount of Middle Eastern crude oil."

"To be honest, this time we really can't offer as favorable conditions as last time."

"It's not an easy position for us to be in. Many people are eyeing us and are ready to accuse us and investigate us in the name of damaging national interests."

"So this time, before I came here, the minister once told me to try my best to reach an agreement with Mr. Victor. However, there are some conditions that we really cannot fulfill again. Please forgive me, Mr. Victor."

At this moment, Kobayashi Shunpei said to Li Changhe respectfully but helplessly, "surrender."

Before coming, he had already thought about it. He could give a strong hint at the beginning to see if Mr. Victor would back down.

If the other party backs out of this, that's great. He can then make the conditions more stringent.

But on the other hand, if the other party doesn't buy it at all, then he can lower his attitude and make concessions, hoping that the other party will show leniency and lower the conditions.

He knew that the Chinese have always been very receptive to this. Their thousands of years of culture have made them often have a "good" side, and they will often make certain concessions in the face of the weak.

"Oh? It seems that I misunderstood Mr. Kobayashi."

"Then Mr. Xiaolin, why don't you tell me your conditions first? I'd like to listen first!"

"Of course, I also know that times have changed. The current oil market is definitely different from what it was a month ago, and I don't have to continue cooperating under the previous conditions."

"So Mr. Kobayashi, why don't you state your conditions first, I'll listen to them, and then we'll talk."

Li Changhe said calmly at this time.

Become!

Hearing the tone of Li Changhe's words, Kobayashi Shunping was delighted.

Sure enough, this young man still prefers flattery. I cannot confront him with a tough attitude, but should show weakness in exchange for his sympathy and concession.

Thinking of this, Kobayashi Shunpei had a clearer idea in his mind!

(End of this chapter)