Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 872 The Game of Site Selection

Director Shen quickly asked, "What are your requirements? Please tell me."

“I hope the university’s area can be large enough, or that the land planning bureau can reserve enough land to prepare for the university’s future expansion.” Yang Wendong continued, “I have actually discussed this with Yanjing before, but as you know, it is difficult for Yanjing and Shanghai to provide enough land. But this should not be a problem in Shenzhen.”

While the current urban area of ​​Yanjing and Shanghai is not large, it is still difficult to allocate a large enough plot of land for a university, and the demolition costs are also very high, which is something that Yang Wendong is not satisfied with.

He either doesn't build at all, or he builds the most prestigious university, aiming for the level of Tsinghua University, Peking University, and Fudan University. In this way, once the university becomes a top-tier institution, Yang Wendong will have an achievement that can be remembered for hundreds or even thousands of years.

While area is not the only factor for universities to grow bigger and stronger, it is certainly an important one. Without sufficient area, a university cannot grow in size.

Director Lin of the Land Bureau said, "Mr. Yang, there is still a lot of farmland around Shenhai City. If the compensation is adequate, I think the local farmers will have no objections."

As for the government, I can't guarantee anything right now, but they shouldn't have any objections.

“Okay, let’s build the first phase, just like a factory, but leave enough open space around it. We can expand when there is social demand in the future,” Yang Wendong said with a smile.

Rome wasn't built in a day. It's really unnecessary to build such a large school in the early stages. Even if it's built, it's not certain that the software resources can keep up with the hardware support.
Just like building highways, although highways between major cities will need to be eight lanes in both directions in the future, it is enough to build four lanes in the early stages. However, when acquiring land, the land for eight lanes must be acquired properly, otherwise there will be endless troubles and huge land acquisition costs later.
Of course, some facilities need to be built all at once, such as bridges, which are an exception.

Director Lin agreed, "That should be possible. I'll go back and discuss it with the municipal party committee."

"Haha, then I'll wait for good news. Your side doesn't need to discuss the details right now, just agree first." Yang Wendong continued, "Many specific issues still require approval from the Ministry of Education. I'll be going to Yanjing in a few days to discuss this matter with the Ministry of Education."

A good university doesn't lack foreign exchange; there are too many cities that want it. This kind of thing will probably involve some competition in the future.

However, as long as he, the investor, insists, no matter what others do, it will be useless. But the name of the big city still has to be given.

After the two bureau chiefs left, Yang Wendong breathed a sigh of relief. This matter was about to come to an end, and his investment in education in mainland China had taken its first step.
In fact, he could have taken the opportunity to gain some benefits for himself, such as acquiring land around the university. However, this would have damaged his charitable image, as it would have been misinterpreted as a conditional donation or an exchange of money, which would have been detrimental to him.

Anyway, there are plenty of vacant plots of land in Shenhai City now. If you want one, just develop it according to the procedures. Compared to its future value, the current land price in Shenhai City is extremely low, so there's no need to do that.
Moreover, given the nature of the mainland government, those who made investments or engaged in charity during the early days of poverty in the mainland generally received other forms of returns later on. This is something that Li Ka-shing, Guo Henian, Hu Yingxiang, and others in my previous life all benefited from.

He wasn't in a hurry. In the 80s, apart from industry, other sectors in mainland China weren't about making money, but rather about early investment in order to seek long-term returns.
The same applies to philanthropy;
Of course, he also wanted to do some charity work. After all, he had more money than he could spend, so it was worthwhile to help the Chinese community get out of poverty. It would also increase his fame and other benefits.
On the other side of Shenhai City, Director Lin and Director Shen returned to the city and immediately reported the matter.

The municipal leaders naturally attached great importance to this matter. The investment in the primary school was approved unanimously. The leaders also welcomed the university's situation. However, this matter still needed to be reported to the central government. After all, a top university is often not under the leadership of the municipal government. The municipal government can only receive indirect benefits from the university.

Even if a top-tier university is built in Shenhai City in the future, it will be directly under the leadership of the Ministry of Education of the Central Government.

After attending the groundbreaking ceremony for Changxing Industrial, Yang Wendong had nothing else to do in Shenzhen. The investment in Hong Kong Electric is in the heavy industry sector, which requires careful investigation and site selection, and the infrastructure requirements are also quite high, so it's still a long way off.
Changxing Industrial first bought the land, built a medium-sized factory, and then gradually expanded.

After receiving approval from the Shenzhen Municipal Party Committee, Yang Wendong flew directly to Yanjing City.
It has been almost half a year since he last visited Yanjing. Some of his projects in the mainland have made progress. However, he still has many things to discuss with the mainland's high-level officials.
On November 18, Yang Wendong arrived in Yanjing. As soon as he got off the plane, a chill swept over him.
Director Shen of the Education Bureau of Shenhai City, who was traveling with him, said, "Mr. Yang, the weather in Yanjing is quite different from where we are. There's been a cold front recently, and the temperature has dropped quite a bit. You should be careful."

"Haha, I was all ready, I just didn't expect it to be this cold," Yang Wendong said.

Winters in the 1980s were much colder than they are decades later. Some people born in the 1980s and 1990s in the Yangtze River region should remember that when they were children, the rivers were covered with thick ice in winter, and people could even walk on it. But decades later, there are only occasional floating ice floes.

Of course, summers are also much hotter now. Summers when I was a child were not as hot as they are decades later.
Global warming seems to be a reality, but Yang Wendong can't make a judgment. He can only rely on his own experience to get a feel for it, and temperature changes in one region cannot represent the whole world.

After getting off the plane, several leaders from the mainland came to pick them up, and then everyone took a car to Yanjing city.

This time, the state guesthouse where Yang Wendong stayed has opened to the public, and it costs 2888 RMB per night. This is an astronomical price for mainlanders, and even for most Europeans and Americans, it is unaffordable. However, it is nothing for Yang Wendong.

The environment of the state guesthouse is quite good, similar to that of a five-star hotel abroad. It was originally built to receive distinguished foreign guests.

That evening, Yang Wendong also visited several scenic spots in Yanjing. In the 80s, Yanjing had not yet developed its tourism industry on a large scale, but precisely because of this, many ancient buildings and landscapes were preserved, which was quite an eye-opener.

The next morning, Yang Wendong arrived at the Ministry of Education as agreed and met with the ministry's leaders.
"Mr. Yang, has your side really decided to build the University of Electronic Science and Technology in Shenhai City?" a bureau chief surnamed Qin asked.

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Yes, it's been confirmed. I've also reached an agreement with the local government of Shenhai City. There shouldn't be any problems with the central government, right?"

Director Qin said, "No, it's just that although Shenzhen is a special economic zone, its population is too small and it's only just begun to develop. The school you want to build is very large in scale. We still think it would be better to locate it in Beijing or Shanghai, as it would be more helpful to the local economy." Yang Wendong shook his head and said, "I don't think so. Since Shenzhen is already a special economic zone and a place to attract overseas capital, the lack of high-end education there will also be a weakness in attracting foreign investment."

Leaving aside some high-end industries, even ordinary low-end industries, if they are large in scale and have little technology, still need a large number of management and quality personnel. Without these people, large foreign companies simply wouldn't consider them.

As a pilot city for domestic economic reform, the special economic zone cannot develop if it can only attract small businesses. Having a university there indirectly benefits the entire country.

From today's perspective, it is naturally more cost-effective to place a top university in a megacity. The current Shenzhen University is not even in the same league as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Director Qin smiled and said, "Mr. Yang has a point. In fact, it doesn't matter where it is built, as long as it is within our country."

After all, they are from the Ministry of Education. While they may sometimes favor Beijing or other major cities, they cannot show it too much. When investors specifically request to invest in a particular place, they cannot say anything more.

After all, given Yang Wendong's status, once he makes a decision, it's very difficult to change it without sufficient reason.

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "That's good. I hope the central government can complete the approval process as soon as possible. Once you approve it, the deep sea side will immediately prepare to acquire land and start construction. My goal is to build all the hardware within a year and a half."
By September 1982, I hoped the first batch of students could enroll, so they could graduate as early as 1984 or 1985.

According to his plan, many of his industries will be relocated to the mainland on a large scale around 85, with Deep Sea being one of the main investment destinations. This will naturally require a large number of local talents to be trained.
In the early days of university, it wasn't necessary to insist on graduating in four years. The electronics industry at that time was not as complex as it would be in later years. If you learned quickly, two years was enough. Even if that wasn't enough, you could continue learning on the job or through a combination of internship and study.

This is very common in mainland China, because the mainland is also in great need of talent. Many people are assigned to work before they graduate, and the time spent working is also considered as learning. This can be done even after graduating in 4 years.

In short, for most people, the purpose of learning is to get a good job. As long as the employer has no objections, they are willing to do whatever it takes.

"A year and a half? That's fast? Is that even possible?" Director Qin was astonished. This efficiency was just too high.

Yang Wendong said, "Of course, the university is just large. As long as the funding is in place, all buildings can start construction at the same time after the foundation is completed. We don't need to build any high-rise buildings. Maybe a few buildings like the library will require a little effort."

As long as Party A has the money, then the only things limiting Party B's speed will be some physical factors.

This era itself doesn't pursue tall buildings, and university towns don't need them either; they're mostly under ten stories. For construction teams aiming for deep-sea speeds in the future, this isn't a problem at all. And since foreign exchange is involved, the motivation is even stronger.

Even if some parts are not built properly, the impact will not be significant;
Director Qin nodded and said, "Okay, I understand. If that's the case, it really can be done."

"As for the hardware, leave it to me and Shenzhen City. The central government just needs to expedite the approval process." Yang Wendong paused and said, "In addition, the central government also needs to prepare the teaching staff as soon as possible. There are quite a few of them. The school will also set up a team to conduct assessments. I think the construction speed might be faster than the teaching staff."

The most important factor in determining the quality of a school is not its hardware, but its software, namely its teaching staff. After all, money can buy good school buildings, but not people, especially in mainland China. Top talents are needed by both schools and the government.

Director Qin frowned and said, "This is indeed not easy. Given the size of your school, it would require drawing people from top universities across the country. On the one hand, these professors are used to staying in their local areas, and on the other hand, the schools won't just let people go."

Yang Wendong said, "How about this: I will increase the salaries of teachers who come to work at my school by 50%, half of which will be settled in foreign currency, and I will also provide some teachers with opportunities to go abroad for training. What do you think?"

"What? Is this true?" Director Qin asked in surprise;
Yang Wendong smiled faintly and said, "Of course it's true. Would I lie to everyone about something like this?"

For scholars from mainland China, going abroad is extremely difficult. Public funding is like crossing a narrow bridge with thousands of people, and even going privately requires a large amount of foreign exchange. Without top-level connections, it is simply impossible.
But for Yang Wendong, this was a piece of cake. Domestic labor costs were low. Even professors earned less than 100 RMB a month. Even if the salary doubled, it would only be 200 or 300 RMB. According to the official exchange rate, it was less than that of an ordinary worker in Hong Kong. Half of their wages went to foreign exchange. For Changxing Group, it was just a drop in the ocean.
As for sending people abroad, given Changxing Group's current overseas operations, sending people abroad to work can certainly generate profits.
“Okay, if that’s the case, I think many people will still volunteer. Once the individual’s willingness is resolved, things will be easier for the school,” Director Qin said happily.

Yang Wendong said, "That's good, but I also have my own review process."

For scholars from mainland China, being able to go abroad is like gaining prestige; since they can provide this resource, they naturally need to carefully select talents from all walks of life.

He still attaches great importance to the future Deep-Sea University, as it is one of the core sources of fresh blood for his future company.

"Of course." Director Qin nodded and asked, "Then the name of this school will be Deep-Sea Electronic Science and Technology University?"

Yang Wendong thought for a moment and said, "Let's remove the 'electronics' part. Although this university will focus on the electronics industry, it will also have other aspects. Let's still call it Deep-Sea Science and Technology University."

“Alright, I will use this name to apply for approval. We’ve discussed most of the details, and I think it will be approved soon,” Director Qin promised.

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(End of this chapter)