Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 852 The Early Days of the Automobile Industry
"You want to donate the hotel?" Yang Wendong wasn't surprised.

Historically, one famous event after the reform and opening up was Bao Yugang's donation of a hotel to Yanjing City, with a budget of 1000 million US dollars.
However, Bao Yugang wanted to name the hotel after his father, which made the leaders in Yanjing hesitant to accept the offer. The dispute dragged on for a long time, and finally a leader from the mainland made the decision, and then the matter was settled.

Bao Yugang said, “Yes, since you’ve donated to a university, I should donate something too. I couldn’t think of what to donate when I was in Hong Kong, but I didn’t stay in a comfortable room last night, so I think a hotel is more suitable.”
After all, while Yanjing, as the capital, has some luxurious venues, those are geared towards political figures. These guesthouses are inappropriate for entertaining Western businessmen; what Yanjing really needs right now is a modern hotel.

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "You're right, Beijing is indeed short of hotels. Your idea is good."

In fact, he knew that Beijing was short of hotels, and he also owned the Four Seasons Hotel, but he did not mention this to the mainland.
Because the mainland is currently lacking too many things, and it's not just Beijing, but also Shanghai, Guangdong and other places. So things have to be done one by one. He can't propose too many projects at once, because that would make him seem too hasty and would not be good for his own business interests.

Initially, we'll start with a cola collaboration project, and then donate to universities to attract the talent our company needs. Once things are stable, we'll gradually move on to other projects.

Bao Yugang smiled and said, "Then I'll have to mention this when I meet with the leaders later."

"Whatever you want," Yang Wendong said indifferently.

Upon arriving in Yanjing, his most important task was naturally to meet with his superiors;

After a quick breakfast, the two were taken to their destination, where Yang Wendong met his superiors once again.

"Hello, shipping magnate and richest man Yang," the leader said with a smile.

"I don't deserve it, I don't deserve it," Yang Wendong said with a smile.

Pao Yu-kong's fleet was once the world's largest, so it's normal for him to be called the shipping magnate. Yang Wen-dong, on the other hand, was slightly inferior to Pao Yu-kong in the shipbuilding field alone, but he was much stronger in many other fields and was once called the richest man in Hong Kong by the media.

Even Japanese media outlets investigated Yang Wendong's business after Apple's IPO, calling him Asia's richest man. While his wealth couldn't compare to Japan's major conglomerates, he was still more than Japan's richest man, Yoshiaki Tsutsumi.

However, Yoshiaki Tsutsumi seemed to have his own opinions about this, and the matter was eventually dropped. Yang Wendong didn't pay attention to what was happening in the Japanese media.

"Haha, I know all about your achievements in the US. I must say, you're really impressive," the leader continued.

Yang Wendong said, "You flatter me. I was just doing what a businessman should do."

His wealth in the United States, let alone a country, could be thoroughly investigated even by a wealthy man like Bao Yugang if a real investigation were to be conducted.
Fortunately, the Forbes list hasn't appeared yet. Fortune's list usually only investigates companies, and their own subsidiaries haven't been targeted yet, but it's probably coming soon, especially Best Buy and KFC. Once these two American companies raise funds and go public, everything will be public.

The leader smiled and said, "Your ability to achieve such results in Europe and America is a testament to your skills. So, if possible, I hope you can also teach us people from the mainland how to do business with people overseas."

“I would be happy to,” Yang Wendong replied. “However, business between countries is different from business between individuals, and I’m not very familiar with it. So, in my opinion, it would be more convenient for me to invest or make purchases directly.”

"That's fine too. I've tried the Very Cola you invested in in Yanjing, and it's delicious," the leader said with a smile.

Yang Wendong said, "I'm glad you like it."

"In terms of food, there is indeed a great need in China, and it would be good if you could invest," the leader continued. "But besides food, I also hope that your companies can invest in the mainland in the technology sector to drive the development of the mainland's technology industry. I've heard that your electronics technology company is one of the world's top giants, haven't you?"

Yang Wendong said, “Investment is welcome, but my company’s main business is gaming, not technology. As you know, Hong Kong’s population is no match for the technology of Japan and the United States.”

In modern business competition, especially in technology industries such as automobiles, aerospace, heavy industry, electronics, and biopharmaceuticals, the most fundamental factor is population.

"Yes, population is the most important factor." The leader nodded and said, "Our mainland has a population of 10 billion, but unfortunately, we are still far behind in this aspect."

Yang Wendong said, "Our foundation was too weak. Back in 49, it is estimated that less than 10% of the people in the country could write their own names. Any developed country has developed its education over several generations before it can develop."

For any company or country, talent is the foundation. Although Japan and Germany, the two defeated countries, had their mainlands almost completely bombed, a large number of the surviving population had some level of education, which is the fundamental reason for their rapid development.

In comparison, the mainland was far behind. When the country was first established, the illiteracy rate was alarmingly high. It took two generations and a huge amount of money to successfully eradicate illiteracy.

"Yes, education is the most important thing." The leader nodded and said, "However, investing in education also requires a lot of costs."

Yang Wendong said, "Yes, that's why I also hope to contribute to the development of education in China."

In the 1970s and 80s, the mainland economy was on the verge of collapse, and the reform and opening up was a necessary measure; every region needed to spend money.
Education is important, but what about compared to not having enough to eat or wear? National defense is also equally important. As a time traveler, he knows there are no problems in the future, but the pressure on others is still enormous.

Therefore, it is very difficult to invest limited funds in education.

The leader said, "That's very well said. It's great that you thought of that. I've reviewed your university plan and I've initially agreed to it. As for the specific location, size, and staffing arrangements, you should have someone negotiate with the Ministry of Education."

“Okay, thank you.” Yang Wendong added, “In addition, I plan to donate $1000 million, not to build universities, but to build primary schools in various places to help many children at least learn some normal words.”

Even within the education department, there are disagreements about how to allocate funds. Some believe that resources should be prioritized for building universities to cultivate key talents first; others believe that primary schools should be built on a large scale to help the general public become literate first.
There's no right or wrong, it's just that they're "poor";
"Good, that's thoughtful of you." The leader smiled and said, "By the way, you also acquired a British car company. I'm very curious, do you, a young man, want to get involved in the automotive industry?" Yang Wendong replied, "Why not? The automotive giants in the United States and Japan are all privately owned. If they can do it, so can I."

"Hong Kong is just too small a city; I can't work in the automotive industry there, so I have to go to overseas countries."

"Haha, you really are ambitious, very good." The leader nodded and said, "So you're planning to develop the automotive industry in Britain? As far as I know, the British automotive industry isn't that great, is it? Why not choose the US or Japan?"

In the early years, in order to develop the automobile industry, China conducted a survey of the automobile industry abroad. The conclusion was that the automobile industries of the United States, Japan, Germany, France and Italy were very strong, while the others were not very good. Britain was one of them. China did not send representatives to Britain to find local automobile brands to seek cooperation.
Of course, no matter how weak British cars are, they are still stronger than domestic cars. However, when choosing a partner, domestic companies naturally want to choose the strongest one.

Yang Wendong shook his head and said, "This is the only way. Hong Kong can't have an automotive industry chain unless it can be established on the mainland."

"Hmm, your thoughts are exactly what I guessed." The leader didn't seem very surprised and said, "I've considered why you made this acquisition. Looking at your previous investments, they were all very successful, yet you chose a British car brand. I think your purpose is probably to target the mainland."

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Yes, I want to rely on the mainland market. This is my opportunity. However, you may not know that I also have a large number of car retail stores in Asia and the United States, and I will also invest in Europe in the future. So supporting a Mini car company in the UK is not a problem."

He wasn't surprised that this person had guessed his purpose. Even those close to Yang Wendong who truly understood him knew that he highly valued the future mainland market.
Even if someone guesses your intentions and you have future collaborations, you can't let them think that you only have the option to cooperate with them; that would put you in a very passive position.

"Haha, it seems you've made two preparations. No wonder you're Asia's richest man, who started from scratch in Hong Kong," the leader laughed.

Yang Wendong said, "Car retail stores are a huge industry in themselves, and they can also influence many car brands. Today, the three major Japanese car companies want to expand into the Southeast Asian market, and a small part of that market relies on their cooperation with me."

No matter how large the automotive giants like Toyota and Honda are, they cannot participate in end-user retail; their main focus is still on manufacturing cars.

His capital was used to expand all over Southeast Asia. He bought what he could find and built his own cars when he couldn't buy them. In particular, he built cars in some small and medium-sized cities, where the demand for cars was increasing as the Asian economy developed.

In the early days, Japanese automakers didn't care much about themselves, but as their number of stores increased, approaching a thousand, they had no choice but to cooperate. After all, the three giants were competitors, and there were also second-tier brands like Suzuki and Mitsubishi.

Knowing that the Asian real estate market would also surge in the future, he dared to invest recklessly, while other capital would not dare to do so.

This is its advantage. Once the retail and after-sales network is established, it will form a huge first-mover advantage, and other capital will not be able to catch up. In the future, the three Japanese giants will have to give it some face, at least in the Southeast Asian market.
Of course, his core purpose is to enable the cars he builds in his mainland factory to be exported in the future, so as to comply with the foreign exchange balance policy. He is not Volkswagen, and he cannot build another engine factory specifically for export.

After listening, the leader thought for a moment and said, "Your business idea is good. If it really succeeds, our mainland's automobile exports may have to rely on you in the future."

“As long as there are suitable cars in mainland China, my store welcomes them.” Yang Wendong smiled and said, “However, right now, many cars in mainland China still need to be imported. You might as well consider a Mini. My car is not big, but it is still easy to drive and fuel-efficient.”

People in China may prefer spacious cars, but that's a thing of the future. For now, driving a car is good enough.

The leader said, "Importing is fine too, but you'll have to give me a big discount."

“No problem,” Yang Wendong said confidently.

The leader then said, "Why don't you consider forming a joint venture with a mainland car company, building a joint venture factory in the mainland, and producing cars domestically? What do you think?"

Yang Wendong said, "That's something we can also consider."

He had naturally had this idea for a while, but he preferred that the mainland side bring it up first. In business negotiations, whoever brings it up first will be at a disadvantage.

"Haha, okay, I'll arrange for someone from the Ministry of Machine Building to negotiate with you. Let's do it in the next few days. You can discuss the general outline first," the leader said.

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Okay."

The First Ministry of Machine Building was the department in China currently responsible for automobiles, managing automobiles, civilian machinery, electromechanical equipment, shipbuilding, agricultural machinery, instruments and meters, etc.

The leader sighed and said, "Alas, when it comes to cars, we are far behind Japan. According to information from below, we are also far behind Germany. I wonder when our country will become a leading automotive power."

"Actually, it's normal that we can't compare to Japan and Germany, and we can't compare to the United States and the Soviet Union either," Yang Wendong said with a smile.

The leader asked, "Why is that?"

Yang Wendong explained: "This is because Japan and Germany were defeated in World War II, and they were restricted from developing various military industries, warships, tanks, rockets, and even aircraft."

At that time, the top science and engineering talents in Germany and Japan could only develop automobiles, civilian shipbuilding or various other industries. On the contrary, the United States, the Soviet Union and the mainland had to invest their top talents in these places because of their defense needs.
With no military spending, the country can focus all its efforts on developing its economy.

This is why Japanese and German automobiles, home appliances, and industrial products have been able to achieve global success.

In fact, the core factor that allows many small countries to develop well is that they do not engage in military industry.
"Your perspective does make some sense," the leader said after a moment's thought.

After a while, the leader chatted with Bao Yugang, who also proposed to donate a hotel. The leader agreed in principle and asked him to negotiate with the Yanjing city government.
After chatting for a while, the two left.
PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of this chapter)