In 1978, I was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 398 Old Li, can you use fewer tricks?
Director Lin frowned and stared at him. Xie Wei looked calm, but inside he was a little flustered—such an important matter had been decided on his own without consulting his superiors.

"Tell me what you think."

After a long while, Director Lin finally spoke and asked Xie Wei.

"Whether it's the Dongfeng-3 or this counterattack missile and long-range artillery, they all come from our ministry... but relying solely on our ministry for development means we can't solve many of the supporting issues..."

Xie Wei shared his thoughts.

He understood the importance of supporting facilities from the very beginning, and in recent years, with the development of various projects, the importance of supporting facilities has become even more evident.

"Is that so?"

Director Lin's furrowed brows relaxed. "Supporting projects are indeed important, and compared to the main project, they can get less funding. As long as it's not what the military is asking for."

"No. Previously, leaders Long Yaohua and Li Rui proposed that the Precision Machinery Import and Export Company act as the agent for the Dongfeng-3 business. The newly added $38 billion order is also from the aerospace system... I personally think that a 5% agency fee is too little. Other units are not involved in the production. No matter how the aerospace industry develops, without supporting facilities, it's all for nothing... We currently have many projects waiting for supporting facilities..."

Xie Wei reported on the current constraints faced by the school project.

"Alas, in the end, it's because our foundation is too weak."

Director Lin nodded. "How about this, you go to the guesthouse to rest first. I'll finish up my work, and then I'll treat you to drinks tonight, and we can talk in more detail."

"Boss, we can't drink this today. The big spender's family is still waiting for me. They bought so many weapons, and I sent them a batch of 40mm sniper grenades and disposable individual rocket launchers..."

Xie Wei shook his head.

The boss invited me to drink, but the drink wasn't very good.

Besides, he really can't stay here.

"So, your contract was finalized before the Dongfeng-3 contract?"

Director Lin looked surprised.

"Not necessarily. The contract needs to be finalized first, and they need to get it approved when they get back. The Dongfeng-3 has already been agreed upon; what needs to be discussed are the details..."

The two contracts are completely different.

"Didn't you say we'd get a $15.2 billion advance payment after the contract was signed?"

"Then a contract still needs to be signed. Such an important contract requires the agency to communicate the details and terms with the other party, as well as logistical support, maintenance, and repairs..."

Xie Wei gave a wry smile, "Actually, I wanted to sell them some other equipment, but..."

Schools only have those kinds of things.

There are very few that would even catch the eye of a wealthy dog ​​owner.

If it weren't for the fact that a major client wanted to buy the Dongfeng-3 missiles, and that the client was worried about being a troublemaker and launching a surprise attack on the missile launch site, given that the US and the West aren't exactly reliable, this deal would never have gone through.

Xie Wei grasped the other party's thoughts with remarkable accuracy.

"Alright, in that case, I'll treat you to this drink next time! You can go ahead and get busy."

Director Lin did not try to persuade Xie Wei to stay any longer. He asked his secretary to find a large bag and pack all the good tea from his shop for Xie Wei.

"Just put it in a snakeskin bag!"

The secretary couldn't find a suitable bag for a while, so Xie Wei simply told him to find a snakeskin bag.

The leader's fine tea and such are things that money can't buy, let alone Xie Wei who doesn't have any money right now.

So, Xie Wei, overjoyed, soon carried a burlap sack full of stuffing and paraded around the headquarters of the Ministry of Aerospace Industry, as if afraid that others wouldn't know.

The secretary was so angry that she couldn't help but curse several times.

"Boss, some of these are the teas you like, so Xie Wei can take them all..."

Xie Wei, carrying a snakeskin bag, looked like a Japanese soldier raiding a village. The secretary finally couldn't hold back any longer…

"If my favorite drink is gone, then I'll just drink something else."

Director Lin said nonchalantly, "Keep an eye out for it in the future, and save the best tea for us..."

"this?"

The secretary was stunned.

"He got seven or eight billion US dollars for the ministry, so what's wrong with giving him a little tea? Let alone a little tea, even if he wanted to empty my house, I would still find him a car and personally load it up for him!"

"what?"

Seven or eight billion!

US dollars!

The secretary was so shocked by the amount the leader mentioned that she was speechless.

No wonder the leaders initially frequently berated Xie Wei and the leaders of Harbin Institute of Technology, but when Xie Wei came this time, their attitude completely changed 180 degrees.

If someone is capable, why don't their leaders follow any principles?
"There are some other leaders... Should I go ask them?"

The secretary understood the ins and quickly said...

It's best to cultivate a good relationship with a promising young man like Xie Wei.

He was generous with the leader's money to gain favor with his own people.

Cost-effective!

"Did you rob your new leader? Anyone who didn't know better would think the Japanese invaded the village!"

Seeing Xie Wei swagger out carrying a snakeskin bag under the gaze of countless leaders and cadres, his face full of the cunning of a weasel who had just stolen a hen, Li Rui, who was waiting for him in the car, immediately looked at him with a mocking expression.

"Tch! Look! Look! We're both leaders, but the difference is so huge! The new leader is so much better; I don't even have to rob him, he's already prepared everything for me..."

Xie Wei looked at Li Rui with a face full of contempt.

"Did Director Lin really prepare this for you? Are you sure the new leader didn't know your tendency to rob and loot everything, and let you get a bargain?"

Li Rui didn't believe it at all.

The leaders guarded against him as if he were a thief.

He was even more wary of Xie Wei than he was of Xie Wei.

Xie Wei entered the office, and the swarm was even more devastating than a locust plague.

"Director Xie, Director Xie..."

Just as Xie Wei was putting the snakeskin bag into the trunk, preparing to roll up his sleeves and have a good talk with Li Rui, to make him have the vision and awareness of a leader and not hide even a little bit of tea, Director Lin's secretary caught up with him again carrying a large snakeskin bag.

"Thankfully, you haven't left yet. Director Lin was worried you wouldn't have enough, so he asked me to get some more from the other leaders..."

The secretary quickly walked up and handed Xie Wei the snakeskin bag in her hand.

"Why is this so embarrassing?"

Xie Wei spoke politely, but his face showed no sign of politeness whatsoever.

"..."

Xie Wei's behavior left his secretary stunned: How could someone be so shameless?

"Alright, I'll accept the leader's kindness. Please thank the leaders for me."

Xie Wei put the burlap sack in the trunk and said to his secretary, who was still in a daze, "Please tell the boss to save some good tea for me in the future. I'll just take it with me when I report on my work next time, so you won't have to make the trip."

"..."

The secretary's eyes widened instantly, and her face twitched repeatedly.

Xie Wei's words once again refreshed his understanding of shamelessness.

They took it without any hesitation and even told me to prepare in advance next time.

Can people really be this shameless?
Everyone he interacts with is humble, polite, and refined.
After all, Xie Wei is a division-level cadre.

The secretary didn't come to her senses until the car drove away. They're gone already?

Watching the car disappear, the secretary shook her head and gave a bitter smile.

"How about it?"

When Director Lin saw his secretary return, he asked.

He said to prepare in advance next time...

The secretary regretted it as soon as she said it.

Although I despise Xie Wei's character, I feel that telling my boss this would make things difficult for him.

"Not bad, not bad, that's his style. Looks like this kid isn't keeping his distance from me. Good, good."

Upon hearing this, Director Lin was not dissatisfied at all; on the contrary, he was pleased.

"..."

The secretary felt her brain wasn't working properly again. Was this really her boss?
"See? Compared to Director Lin, don't you realize that you're still a bit petty?"

In the car, Xie Wei looked at him with disdain.

"Bullshit! Am I being petty? Your visit was cleaner than the Japanese raiding a village! Even if I were to rob other leaders, I'd need the right opportunity, wouldn't I? You won't even give me that much time, and now you're blaming me for being stingy!"

Li Rui said irritably.

"Anyway, you're not as magnanimous as Director Lin from our department!"

"From now on, if you need anything, go find your Director Lin, don't fucking come to me!"

Li Rui said angrily.

"Absolutely. Besides causing me trouble and making me clean up your messes, what benefits have you given me?"

"..."

Li Rui fell silent.

The car fell silent instantly.

Even after Xie Wei, Farahleman, and Garcia Abdullah boarded the school's Y-11 that evening, Li Rui still had a stern face.

"Xie Wei is gone?"

Seeing Li Rui's dark face, Long Yaohua asked, "He didn't agree?"

"He didn't even give me a chance to speak. You know how shrewd this kid is. Boss, can we delegate everything to Harbin Institute of Technology?"

Li Rui looked at Long Yaohua with a bitter expression. "This time, Harbin Institute of Technology was on the verge of a cash flow crisis. Neither the military nor the Ministry of Aerospace Industry could provide any financial support. It was just lucky that Xie Wei took advantage of a major client buying the Dongfeng-3 missile and sold a batch of advanced equipment that wasn't even within the export license range... It's impossible to be this lucky every time, right?"

Li Rui immediately gave an account of Xie Wei's situation after leaving the Seventh Ministry of Machinery Industry.

He even mentioned Xie Wei's story about cleaning up his mess, and even exaggerated it further.

Long Yaohua listened silently, his eyes fixed on Li Rui, without interrupting him.

He finally sighed after Li Rui finished speaking.

"Can't you guys cut back on these tactics? Last time, to keep Xie Wei in school, you let him beat you up. Now you're not going to get beaten up, you're just going to get yelled at? That's still not enough!"

"This isn't some kind of trick! Xie Wei, that kid, is as cunning as a monkey when he gets involved, you know that. He's giving 12% of the agency fee directly to keep others... Otherwise, do you really think this kid is that generous?"

Li Rui's face showed even more bitterness.

"Regarding the Y-10, although Xie Wei eventually agreed, what was the result?"

"Is this really not a prank?"

Long Yaohua didn't believe it at all.

"No, that's not it. The university has too many projects. Xie Wei wanted to cut some before, and even with this multi-billion dollar order, I estimate it'll be good if we can keep all the current projects... Harbin Institute of Technology doesn't have any majors or technologies related to naval equipment. We just made some money, and it's not appropriate for us to let them invest in naval equipment again..."

Li Rui spoke first.

Long Yaohua's gaze remained fixed on Li Rui, whose expression did not change at all.

Naval equipment requires even more investment and has a slower return on investment than fighter jets.

Especially in the current context of "everything giving way to economic infrastructure construction" and "the military needs to be patient," with the country reducing military spending and allocating limited resources to economic infrastructure construction, and directly carrying out a massive reduction of one million troops, developing naval equipment requires a considerable investment.

The key issue is that the Navy doesn't have much funding for procurement.

"We'll talk about it later."

Long Yaohua sighed again.

Whether Li Rui was telling the truth or not, there's no point in pursuing it now. "Let's deal with the immediate issues first."

"Thank you. Your country is so big, it's too much trouble for such small planes to fly."

Farahleman said in surprise while refueling along the way.

He knows very little about China.

Before coming here, I had heard that China was poor and backward. After arriving, I found that the poverty was indeed real.

Being backward...

It's probably just that we're a bit behind developed countries; we still have enough of their defense technology for our own use.

It possesses intercontinental ballistic missiles, nuclear bombs, and hydrogen bombs; it can manufacture all types of weapons and equipment; and it also has air defense missile systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles.

Is it really outdated?
"This is an airplane that our school helped design. Although it has a short range, it is still much faster than a train or a car."

Xie Wei really wanted to introduce the Y-9, which had already begun taxiing tests, but that was related to the early warning aircraft, and if he sold it, the military leaders would definitely be furious.

In the end, he didn't say anything.

"Didn't you guys successfully develop a 110-ton large aircraft before?"

Garcia Abdullah suddenly asked, his eyes fixed on Sheve's reaction.

"Sigh, don't even mention it. Our large aircraft project was cancelled a few years ago due to design flaws and insufficient supporting components..."

Xie Wei glanced at Garcia Abdullah, then said with a worried expression, "In the end, our industrial base is too weak and our technology is too poor."

"Your country's technological level is quite impressive!"

Garcia Abdullah said, "Air defense systems capable of intercepting ballistic missiles, although both the US and the Soviet Union claimed to have them, in reality..."

Clearly, this guy wasn't holding back any good news.

Xie Wei is very cautious in this regard.

"General, do the US and the Soviet Union really only reveal their truly advanced equipment as a last resort? Especially given the current world situation, with the Cold War lasting for decades... But we are different. Our country is too poor, and no one wants our outdated equipment, so we can only sell our most treasured items to raise funds..."

Xie Wei remained calm.

However, at this moment, I had already come to a conclusion: I cannot open up everything in the school to them!
Even if you could impress the other party, how much more funding could you get?
If Garcia Abdullah were to side with the US, the consequences would be severe—the Soviet Union wouldn't last many more years. Once it collapsed, the US, focused on absorbing the benefits gained from the Soviet Union's disintegration, wouldn't prioritize the East in the coming years. Once they become the sole global superpower, to continue plundering their allies and keep Europe following their lead, they would need to create an enemy!

"Alright, the plane is refueled..."

Fortunately, just then, the flight crew informed Xie Wei that they had refueled.

On the plane, Xie Wei lost interest in continuing to introduce himself to the other party, and remained wary of Garcia Abdullah.

It was already very late when we arrived in Harbin.

After Xie Wei and Zhang Mingqiu dropped the group off at the Northern Building, they returned to school together.

"Tomorrow's itinerary needs to be changed. We can't open everything to them. Apart from the weapons and equipment we provide, only the tank project can be opened to them. We can't even open up the fighter jets. We even need to tell them that we're only in the aerospace industry..."

Xie Wei told everyone with a serious expression that tomorrow's itinerary would be changed.

(End of this chapter)