A doctor who travels through two eras

Chairman Lin Sanqi's expression was somewhat unpleasant, but of course, it was intentional; businessmen are professionals at acting.

Qiao Jingzhu, on the other hand, joined in with a strong protest:
"Mr. Zhang, our Lingnantang Group is a key enterprise in Guangdong Province and one of the top 100 taxpayers. Just yesterday, we were in Xi'an and signed a huge order worth over 10 billion yuan with Shaanxi Aircraft Industry Group and Dongfang Ordnance Group."

Do you know how they received us? The chairman of Xi'an Aircraft Industry Group, who is at the provincial level, personally went to the airport to greet us. That same evening, the chairman of Shaanxi Aircraft Industry Group, who is also at the provincial level, personally paid for the dinner out of his own pocket.

The Eastern Ordnance Group, right? They're at the vice-ministerial level. Their top leader flew to Xi'an overnight on a private jet to negotiate with us. They were incredibly polite to us.

Good grief, we came to your FAW Changchun branch, and not only was no one there to greet us, we could have just taken a taxi ourselves. But when we arrived at your branch, this was the kind of tea and service we received.

Mr. Zhang, this is a huge order for 1000 heavy-duty trucks, worth over 4-5 million yuan, right? And there will be a steady stream of orders coming in later.

I don't know if FAW Jiefang has become so wealthy that it doesn't care about such a small order? Or is it that Lingnantang is beneath our notice? Since FAW doesn't welcome us, shall we leave?

Upon hearing this, Zhang Mingliang was also annoyed.

Is your Lingnan Hall crazy? Are you trying to play the "pretend to be weak to fool others" trick?
You should have told me earlier that you wanted to place such a large order; they could have handled the airport pick-up service. Why did you have to catch us off guard?

The fact that Lingnan Hall can be associated with so many large military industrial enterprises shows that it has a powerful background. If the head office finds out, his job as a branch manager will be over.

Thinking of this, Zhang Mingliang fully demonstrated the flexibility and adaptability typical of officials, his face beaming with smiles:

"Chairman Lin, oh my Chairman Lin, as the saying goes, ignorance is no excuse. I really didn't receive any news that Lingnantang Group was going to grace us with their presence, otherwise I would definitely have done my duty as a host, wouldn't I?"

Look, it's so cold outside! In Northeast China, daytime temperatures are below -20 degrees Celsius; it's freezing! Come, come, let's go inside. Mr. Qiao, please come in too!

It was already January 2016. The winter in Northeast China was truly something else; the cold wind was as biting as a razor blade.

Lin Sanqi shrank back, thinking that one shouldn't go too far in a play, and that it would be enough to give her a way out. So she joked:
“Mr. Zhang, I can go back if you want. If the order for this thousand vehicles goes smoothly, we can sign the contract today and make the payment tomorrow. But if you don’t give me a discount now, I definitely won’t agree.”

Zhang Mingliang burst into laughter upon hearing this, and affectionately put his arm around Lin Sanqi's shoulder:

"Chairman Lin, whatever you say, I will give you the biggest discount possible, using my authority as the head of FAW Jiefang Company."

Zhang Mingliang didn't care about the discount; that's just how generous large state-owned enterprises are.

What he wants is the total annual sales volume and quantity, so that he can boast a lot during the year-end performance review.

As for profits, which state-owned enterprise is pursuing profits?
Even the two major oil companies, when they tallied up their finances at the end of the year, were suffering huge losses. Losses are normal; how can state-owned enterprises make money?

Both sides returned to the conference room, where the heating was on and the fruit, all imported and air-freighted, was very fresh.

Lin Sanqi didn't waste any time on pleasantries, as time was of the essence, so he got straight to the point:

"Mr. Zhang, I came to Changchun with the utmost sincerity this time. Jiefang trucks are the pride of our national products. So, with such a large order in hand, I must prioritize our domestically produced vehicles."

Otherwise, I'll spread the word, and believe me, Daimler Trucks, PACCAR, Volvo, and others will all send representatives to negotiate with me and offer me the biggest kickbacks.

Zhang Mingliang nodded and said, "I have no doubt about that, so I am even more grateful to Chairman Lin for giving FAW Jiefang this opportunity."

Lin Sanqi made his stance clear before continuing:
“I’ve just test-driven the large trucks, and I’m particularly satisfied with your Jiefang J6P high-altitude version tractor. I need them urgently, so I’m wondering how many your company can provide right now?”

Zhang Mingliang coughed lightly, and a secretary handed him a document.

Zhang Mingliang glanced at it a few times before smiling and saying:

"Chairman Lin, don't worry. We have 1000 Jiefang J6P plateau version tractor trucks in stock at all three of our production bases. As long as we sign the contract, we can ship them immediately."

Lin Sanqi breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Sure enough, there was this advantage to cooperating with large state-owned enterprises. They didn't care whether they could sell the cars or not; they would just produce them as much as possible, which is why they had a lot of cars in stock.

If this were a private company, they would probably produce one vehicle as soon as they sell it, minimizing inventory. "Mr. Zhang, we not only need the tractor unit, but also a full range of semi-trailers. We need dump trucks, low-flatbed trucks, stake trucks, tank trucks, and box trucks. I have a list here."

Yao Zhuohan handed a list to the other party's assistant.

After reviewing the documents, Zhang Mingliang and several senior executives of the company had a clear understanding of the situation, so they also produced a price list in return:

"Chairman Lin, semi-trailers are easy to find, they are readily available. However, we have several models of our Jiefang J6P plateau version tractor truck. I don't know which one you need, so we can give you a quote."

Lin Sanqi wasn't short of money, so he spoke directly:

"Just give me the top-of-the-line price."

Zhang Mingliang said with a smile:
"If we're talking about the top-of-the-line model, then it's this one: a 6x4 AMT automatic transmission tractor truck, currently priced at 55 yuan on the market. However, that's the dealer's price. Since Chairman Lin has come to our company in person, we'll definitely offer a discount."

However, if all of them are top-of-the-line models, we won't be able to gather 1000 cars in a short time. So my suggestion is that Chairman Lin shouldn't worry about the configurations. Actually, many of these features might not be suitable for overseas markets, such as this navigation system.

Lin Sanqi thought about it and realized it made sense. The high-altitude version of the truck was not a mainstream model and was relatively niche, so it was normal that there was not much stock of the smaller model.

Zhang Mingliang continued:
"Here's what I'm saying, Mr. Lin. No matter what the configuration is, I'll give you a 10% discount on the final total price. How does that sound? It's not that I don't want to give you a discount, but with just 10%, we'll have almost no profit left."

Lin Sanqi looked at Qiao Jingzhu, who nodded and whispered:
“Sure, a cup of tea can be sold for tens of millions less, this business is worth doing.”

Lin Sanqi smiled and looked up, saying:
"Since Mr. Zhang is giving me face, then let's have a pleasant cooperation. Both teams should quickly draft the contract, and we'll try to sign it today."

Zhang Mingliang didn't expect such a big deal to be completed so easily. No business banquets, no young models to entertain, and no kickbacks or red envelopes were needed. It was incredibly fast.

However, this large order was negotiated by his general manager personally, and it counts as a personal achievement for him, which is beneficial to him personally.

Thinking of this, Zhang Mingliang readily agreed:

“Okay, Chairman Lin is very generous. Let’s start drafting the contract now. Raise any objections on the spot and we’ll resolve them right away.”

Both parties acted quickly, signing the contract in just one afternoon.

In the end, Lingnantang purchased 1000 heavy trucks, 1500 semi-trailer trailers, 5 complete repair workshops, and a large number of spare parts.

The total price reached 8 million RMB.

In addition, FAW Jiefang also gave away 50 unsold pickup trucks as gifts.

Lin Sanqi didn't mind the quality of the freebies; after all, a pickup truck like this would be considered a high-tech product in another era.

Lin Sanqi took a red-eye flight back to Huadu that night. He didn't have time to go home because he still had a lot of things to deal with, so he slept in the office.

The next morning, the office door was opened, and Lin Sanqi was startled awake.

Then Yin Lianyi came in with several takeout containers. Seeing her boyfriend's dejected appearance, she felt heartbroken.

“Hey, you idiot, now that you're such a big boss, you can just leave some things to your second sister-in-law and the others. Do you really need to run around all over the world?”

Lin Sanqi took the lunchbox, pulled his girlfriend over, and made her sit on his lap. Then, as if guided by a GPS, he precisely pinched two soft spots with one hand:

"No, without my involvement as the boss, many deals might not be possible. For example, the weapons I need this time—our company doesn't have the necessary qualifications, so the weapons group and the aircraft group won't even let us in the door."

So only when I use my connections will they take it seriously and be willing to offer anything that's not for sale. Besides, I've purchased billions worth of supplies this time; I really can't rest easy if I don't keep an eye on things." (End of Chapter)