1982 Started from Hong Kong

Chapter 527 Is Steak Delicious?
'A Model of International Cooperation in Economic Reform: Hong Kong Enterprises Support Soviet Youth Education, and my country's Ministry of Culture Establishes a Strategic Partnership with Chunqiu Performing Arts Academy'

—Pravda

Foreign investors are coming to our country to learn advanced educational concepts. Kuaibo Technology provided $500 million worth of audio-visual equipment, expressing its sincere desire to work together to promote the modernization of education.

—Red Star

'Patriotic Chinese businessman Zhai Yuan shoulders responsibility, promotes Sino-Soviet educational cooperation, and demonstrates the traditional friendship between the people of China and the Soviet Union.'

—Ta Kung Pao

'Spring and Autumn and Kuaibo conducted educational charity work in the Soviet Union, with child prodigy Yuan donating millions, setting a new benchmark for international philanthropy.'

—The September 1st Daily News

Four major newspapers, four news articles, different perspectives.

Soviet domestic propaganda would naturally not use words like 'benefit' or 'donation'.
However, the fact that the $1200 million budget was reduced to $500 million in the publicity still left Zhai Yuan somewhat dumbfounded.

With the remaining 700 million, Director Ivan will first divide it cleanly with his colleagues in the Ministry of Culture. The 500 million on the books will not be handed over in an orderly manner, but will have to go through multiple subordinate departments. Although the Kuaibo supplies have not yet been delivered, it is already destined that less than one in ten will survive.

Corruption was also the most serious problem in the Soviet Union at the time.
Two years ago, the KGB investigated tens of thousands of wealthy individuals in the Soviet Union, all of whom had net worths exceeding hundreds of thousands of US dollars.

Ninety-seven percent of them are officials from Party and government units, and the remaining three percent are their family members.

The intricate network of relationships makes it impossible to advance anti-corruption efforts; even if cases are uncovered, no one dares to take action easily.

then,

After Moscow Mayor Gavril Popov took office, he proposed that any business owner should pay a 10% service fee to the officials who provide services to them.

Although Popov agreed in an interview that it could be called bribery, he insisted that it was a commission.

The reason for setting it at 10% is that many entrepreneurs don't know how much to give to express their gratitude, so a uniform standard was set.

Before becoming mayor of Moscow, Popov was a humble scholar.
He is now one of the ten richest people in the Soviet Union.

Popov filed a defamation lawsuit against the Russian magazine Kommersant after the magazine reported that he was one of the top ten richest people. However, he later withdrew the lawsuit after the magazine paid him a commission.

To capitalists, Mayor Popov was practically a hero dedicated to the fight for privatization and market liberalization!

5 month 5 day,
On the third day after Zhai Yuan arrived in Moscow, he met with Mayor Popov at the White Stone Building of the City Hall on Tverskaya Street.

5 month 8 day,
Zhai Yuan was invited into the mayor's private apartment, where they had a pleasant conversation and, for the first time, ate food other than black bread and caviar.

Steak and red wine – the highest level of hospitality in Moscow.

The red wine was indeed real red wine, but the steak was horse meat imported from Kazakhstan, heavily fried in oil and sprinkled with pepper, barely enough to make it look presentable.

This is another manifestation of the current food shortage in the Soviet Union. Even though Popov is one of the top ten richest people and holds the high position of mayor of Moscow, he still cannot enjoy fresh beef.

When Zhai Yuan left the mayor's private apartment,
I also packed two portions of 'horse meat beef' to take back to the hotel, so that Ye Yuqing and Lizhi, who hadn't tasted meat in a long time, could have a nice snack.

The foreign guests' hotel also had limited food reserves. They were served two meals a day. If there was bread, they would eat bread; otherwise, they would be given all sorts of canned food, including spoiled and expired canned food, as well as canned herring that was disgusting even if it was not expired.

"Enjoy your meal slowly. I'm going to make a call back to Hong Kong; it's time to deliver the goods to the Ministry of Culture."

Zhai Yuan fiddled with the newly installed satellite phone in the room, trying to contact Hong Kong.

Ye Yuqing cut a piece of steak and put it in her mouth, chewed hard and swallowed, and said with a bitter face: "What I regret most now is that last time I stayed at the Peninsula Hotel, the kitchen cooked the steak too overcooked, and I lost my temper with the chef. I must apologize to him when I go back this time."

"Cut it finer." Lizhi cut a thin slice of meat and placed it in her bowl, saying in a low voice, "It's good enough that you have something to eat. Didn't you see that when we went out today, there were people starving to death on the roadside?"

Reminded by her, Ye Yuqing recalled what she had seen when she went out that afternoon: a group of well-dressed citizens went to the woods in the suburbs to pick mushrooms to fill their stomachs, and several of them suddenly collapsed on the way.

"Eek~" Ye Yuqing rubbed her goosebump-covered arms a few times and realized that the steak in front of her wasn't so bad after all.

"Brother Yuan, when can we go back?"

"I told you not to come~ I haven't seen your boss yet, so I'll wait a little longer."

"Sigh! Now I realize how great Hong Kong is... Did you get through on the phone?"

"I'm dialing again, I'm dialing again."

"Could you also send over some Dutch tarts, cream cones, and plum blossom basket cakes?"

"Pick! You've got quite the appetite!" Zhai Yuan fiddled with the satellite phone, glancing at Ye Yuqing with annoyance, then asked Li Zhi, "Zhi Zhi, is there anything you need to bring?"

Li Zhi blushed and whispered a few words in Zhai Yuan's ear.

Zhai Yuan said thoughtfully, "That's right! We don't know how long the banks will keep operating like this, so we definitely need to prepare more toilet paper and sanitary napkins..."

Ye Yuqing realized the seriousness of the problem and hurriedly raised her hand to make a request: "I need Andrex wet wipes!"

Zhai Yuan rubbed his temples in worry. He had brought a lot of supplies with him this time, but the team of more than twenty people was also very exhausted. If they didn't get supplies shipped from Hong Kong soon, they would really be in a state of running out of paper and food.

I'm reminded of a Soviet joke that said Pravda was in high demand not because people wanted to know the truth, but because they desperately needed toilet paper.

Even if you stay in a five-star hotel, you'll still have to use newspapers to accompany you in the toilet.

Toilet paper? Not available.

"Hey, Sister Huang."

So after the satellite phone call was connected, the first call that should have been made to Hong Kong was made by Zhai Yuan to Hong Huang.

"Have you seen the news? Yeah, he's been wandering around Moscow lately."

Zhai Yuan exchanged a few pleasantries with Hong Huang through the receiver before getting down to business: "I don't know when I'll be able to go back yet. Could you contact some middlemen for me and have them send over some supplies? I estimate we'll need dozens of bags of rice and flour. The black bread here is so salty it'll break your teeth after just a couple of bites. Also, frozen meat and vegetables—pork, beef, chicken wings, ribs, everything—enough for twenty people. Oh, and send as much toilet paper and sanitary napkins as you can. This is a top priority; the sooner the better, otherwise your sister-in-law and I will have to make do with newspapers..."

Hong Huang laughed so hard he could barely breathe on the phone: "Is it really that tough?"

"It's tough!" Zhai Yuan complained, then said, "I'm planning to open a bank here, and I'll inevitably have to trouble you later."

On the other end of the phone, Hong Huang paused for a moment, then chuckled and said, "Open a bank? I don't know anything about that stuff~"

The laughter carried a hint of curiosity and hope.

Zhai Yuan rubbed his stubble and chuckled, "Everyone's doing business as a middleman these days, why don't you start a trading company? Once my bank opens, and my esteemed clients come in to deposit money, wouldn't it be reasonable to give each of them a loaf of bread? And for the high-net-worth individuals, a cup of coffee wouldn't be excessive, would it? People are starving to death outside bakeries in Moscow every day, so my demand for goods from the mainland will definitely be high. It's better for you to set up a trading company and do business with me than for outsiders to profit from it!"

Hong Huang's breathing became heavier on the phone as he tentatively asked, "Rubles aren't worth much, are they? You don't want to lose money."

"Hey! Consider it a lesson learned if we lose money," Zhai Yuan said dismissively, adding, "Anyway, you don't need to worry about my side. You just handle the supply; I have plenty of money." Hong Huang was silent for a moment, then nodded, "Okay! I'll go to the business registration office tomorrow to ask about the paperwork!"

After resolving the issue of supplies, the second call was made back to Hong Kong.

"Sister Wan-en, have you missed me lately?"

As soon as the second call connected, Ye Yuqing and Li Zhi both looked at Zhai Yuan and pricked up their ears to eavesdrop.

On the other end of the phone, Xue Wan'en said helplessly, "How come you have so much energy to go to Moscow again?"

"Yes, Hong Kong can no longer accommodate me."

Zhai Yuan chuckled, made a few flippant remarks, and then asked, "How's our husband-and-wife business, Zhuanzhuan Appliance Recycling, doing? Here's the thing, don't ship to third-world countries for now. Gather all the used appliances together, put high price tags on them, and help me transport them to the border. Someone will come to pick them up. Right now, a brand new Kuaibo VCD player is priced at 4000. Can you help me price these used machines at 8000?"

Although the Ministry of Culture was taking a lot of kickbacks, it was impossible for Zhai Yuan to actually provide $1200 million worth of equipment.

Both directions went to belong to yes.

"Besides, we can't gather enough equipment to donate just by recycling, so you, Huaen Department Store, will have to take advantage of us, since we're a married couple."

Zhai Yuan smiled and spoke.

Ye Yuqing and Lizhi exchanged a glance, and only then did they realize that the person on the other end of the phone was Xue Wan'en, the current head of Hong Kong's Chinese-owned department stores.

No wonder Hua En was able to specialize in VCDs and 1024 Cinemas...

Ignoring the strange looks from the two women, Zhai Yuan continued, "It just so happens that Kuaibo recently released a new product. Let Huaen launch a trade-in program, where you can trade in your old VCD player for a new one for a small extra fee... But let's not let consumers get away with it for nothing. Just organize a few promotions, issue some so-called subsidy coupons for them to grab, expand our influence, and we can recycle used machines, promote our brand, and sell my new product—a win-win-win situation!"

Xue Wan'en was somewhat bewildered by this line of thinking. After a pause, she asked, "An old machine is priced at 8000 yuan, and you're doing charity education in Moscow like this?"

"Do they understand how to use the new machine? If that's not enough, have someone send over some more bare CDs, priced at 50 yuan each."

Zhai Yuan smiled, not explaining the current state of corruption here to Xue Wan'en, and continued, "This time it's partly charity and partly advertising. We'll use these secondhand VCDs to penetrate various federal countries, and in the future they'll only recognize the Kuaibo brand. Wait for me, Sister Wan'en, once I've established myself here, when Huaen Department Store opens in the Soviet Union, we'll still have the exclusive rights to Kuaibo, and we'll continue to make our husband-and-wife team bigger and stronger!"

Xue Wan'en was both amused and exasperated: "I don't have such lofty ambitions as you."

Zhai Yuan joked, "Then you'd better work hard, otherwise if I go bankrupt in the future, I won't even have a place to live off my wife."

Xue Wan'en: "...I won't talk to you. I'll go contact the recycling company on Zhuanzhuan first."

After hanging up the phone, Zhai Yuan stretched leisurely.

This also resolved the Ministry of Culture's issue; the $1200 million worth of supplies, after being overpriced, saved a considerable amount of money.

I'm not interested in charity or education. Anyway, whichever wealthy family these machines end up with, it's just advertising and marketing for Kuaibo.

Just as she was thinking this, Ye Yuqing's sour voice followed: "A husband-and-wife team, huh? I wonder when you, Mr. Zhai, hooked up with the head of Huaen."

Zhai Yuan glanced at her, beckoned with his finger, and Ye Yuqing pouted and reluctantly walked over.

"Is the steak delicious?"

"What beef? It's clearly horse meat! It's dry and tough, absolutely awful!"

"You're so talkative, how about I give you another banana?"

Zhai Yuan slapped her pert buttocks and pulled her down, causing Ye Yuqing to squat down in front of him.

After struggling for a while, Ye Yuqing glared at Zhai Yuan and lowered her head.

Lizhi's pupils dilated instantly, and she got up to leave.

Zhai Yuan stroked Ye Yuqing's hair, let out a soft breath, and called out to Li Zhi, who was sneaking towards the door, "Come back!"

…………

5 month 13 day,
Through Mayor Popov's introduction, Zhai Yuan first met Foreign Minister Edward Shevardnadze.

Another important figure in the reform movement.

On the surface, the approval authority for banks seems to lie with the Ministry of Finance and the National Bank, but in practice, any financial institution involving foreign investment must be approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As a close confidant of Gorbachev, the current leader of the reformists, Shevardnadze can easily disguise financial reforms as foreign cooperation with a single sentence, silencing all opposition from the conservatives.

5 month 15 day,
With verbal approval from Foreign Minister Shevardnadze, Zhai Yuan was finally able to enter the headquarters of the Central Bank of Moscow.

A gray building on Negrinnaya Street, with an old exterior and worn stone steps.

Viktor Kharansky, the head of the Central Bank headquarters and the gatekeeper of Soviet finance, reviewed all the materials submitted by Zhai Yuan's team in just half an hour.

Ignore the content, only look at the signature and official seal.

When the last page of the document was unfolded, Halansky slowly raised his head, took off his metal-framed glasses, and smiled at Zhai Yuan.

"Congratulations, Principal Zhai."

He spoke slowly in Russian: "Based on the guidance of the National Development Agency and all the materials you have submitted, you have now officially obtained permission to open a commercial bank in Moscow. We hope your bank will thrive in the future..."

What Halansky said next is no longer important.

Every private bank must deposit 10% of its reserves with the central bank.

This means that if a depositor deposits 100 yuan, 10 yuan of that amount will be deposited into the central bank's settlement account.

Zhai Yuan set the central bank's reserve requirement ratio at 15%, and kept the excess for himself.

Who can have an opinion? Who dares to have an opinion?
Stepping out of the building, the Moscow sky remained overcast and lifeless.

But just across the street from the central bank, workers are busily renovating a building.

The Moscow Opera, which was on the verge of bankruptcy, has now completely closed down and changed hands.

The ink on the license in Zhai Yuan's hand was still wet.

Amidst the clanging and banging of renovations, a brand-new plaque has been hung above the opera house entrance.

Soviet term: Far Eastern Bank.

(End of this chapter)