Back to the prime of life

Chapter 167: Opportunities in Danger
Lu Changge likes the feeling of driving alone, just like he used to treat the journey home from get off work as a rest time before his rebirth. Of course, this life is not so suffocating, but the pace has been too fast recently.

The drive back from Shanghai took about three hours. He didn't listen to any music or the radio, he just drove back alone.

Relax your mind, have a good night's sleep, and you will be full of energy again the next day.

He was woken up by a call from Wang Hongcheng in the morning.

This guy has recently encountered a business crisis. He is no longer as carefree and confident as before, but instead seems a little panicked.

Lu Changge even felt that his facial features had changed slightly, that is... his cheekbones seemed to be more prominent.

Another thing is that he doesn't care so much about his appearance. His hair is a little messier, his clothes are a little more casual, and he doesn't have any witty remarks when he speaks. All he talks about is how far he has come in finding funding.

It made Lu Changge almost forget that he was a rich second-generation.

Then he thought again, everyone in the real estate industry, except those with deep backgrounds, is probably a little panicked, and his father is probably also facing some kind of pressure.

"I made an appointment with Director Xu. He said he hadn't seen you in a while and wanted me to go with you. I've contacted him several times in the past two days. There's a state-owned capital platform in the district, and he promised to give me some support."

Lu Changge didn't ask Xu Weiguo why he agreed to him. There must be a reason, as long as he knew it in his heart.

"How much?"

Wang Hongcheng said, "I want 20 to 25 million. I've also contacted Wu Yiming's wife according to your method. I can get another 10 million, plus yours, and then I'll ask others to lend me some more. That should be enough."

"The government has to have a reason and basis for spending money. If an audit asks why they invested such a large sum of money in you, it will be difficult for them to explain."

Wang Hongcheng didn't hesitate at all, "I can sign a bet agreement with him."

Lu Changge kept his mouth shut. He could sign it, but in order to protect himself, Xu Weiguo insisted that this gambling agreement must be clearly beneficial to the government so that he could convince the leaders and explain it clearly when facing audits in the future. Otherwise, he would definitely not sign it.

It seems to be really urgent.

"Come on, I'll go with you to find him."

Wang Hongcheng turned his head to look at Lu Changge who was driving, and he felt a little emotional.

As the saying goes, only the person who drinks the water knows whether it is hot or cold. In this society, when you lose certain fame and fortune, the reality and power of human nature will make it impossible for even the strongest man to remain calm.

He has a clear feeling of how the people around him are doing recently.

Only Lu Changge, who had only been friends with me for about a year, could achieve such a level.

"Long Song,"

"Ok?"

"If the funds can be found, this project will be entirely mine. No matter how much you lend me in the end, I will give you 20% of the shares in this project."

Lu Changge knew that his mental state was a little unstable, but he didn't take it seriously. "Friends are friends, business is business. Let's not talk about this at this time."

"I know, I know. I'm not impulsive."

I remember that the first time I met Wang Hongcheng, Xu Weiguo treated him to a meal, but times have changed and it was not so easy to meet Xu Weiguo again this time.

This is also the reason why he must pull Lu Changge along.

The two of them sat in Xu Weiguo's office for about twenty minutes before he arrived.

Of course, he was still polite for the sake of appearance. He shook hands with Wang Hongcheng and said, "I'm sorry, I was just organizing a meeting and couldn't ask for leave. I kept you waiting."

"No, no, Changge and I just arrived too."

Xu Weiguo nodded to Lu Changge beside him, and Lu Changge nodded back.

They are more familiar with each other now, and there is much less formality.

"Have a seat." Xu Weiguo raised his arm, then put Wang Hongcheng aside and said to Lu Changge, "Changge, I have something important to discuss with you. When you are free, I want to discuss it with you."

In the past, he would have asked Lu Changge to come to him. But this time there was a change, and Lu Changge himself didn't quite understand it.

He said, "I don't need to manage such a large area. I'm just an idler. Just take your time."

"Big Idle Man is too modest. You've been a little angry lately."

Lu Changge said, "Actually, it was Boss Wang who helped us invite this Olympic champion through several connections..."

"No, no, no," Xu Weiguo smiled and waved his hands. "I said you're famous not because of the swimming pool, but because of your online clothing store. No, it should be called Taobao store."

"You know all this?"

"I know. You're here today. What's the daily turnover of that store?"

Lu Changge wanted to ask if he had gone off topic today, but he still answered, "I haven't asked in the past two days, but it has indeed increased six or seven times compared to before."

Xu Weiguo asked in confusion, "With such a huge increase in sales, aren't there any problems with supply?"

"To say there aren't any problems would be a lie. Sales are exploding, after all," Lu Changge said with a smile. "But in terms of supply, there's no problem. Online clothing direct sales don't involve warehousing. Products are produced and shipped directly via express delivery. As long as the factories keep running, there won't be any supply issues."

He glanced at Wang Hongcheng and found that this guy was also patient, because he must be very anxious in his heart, but he did not show it too much.

Xu Weiguo noticed Lu Changge's detail and finally turned to face him. "Mr. Wang, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Changge and Director Xu haven't seen each other for a while. You two can chat first."

"I've reported your situation to our Chief Engineer." Xu Weiguo shook his head. "He didn't agree directly, and he has a request." Wang Hongcheng asked anxiously, "What request?"

"Many companies are short of funds right now. Besides lacking funds, a large number of them have suddenly lost overseas orders, and everyone is waiting for rescue. And your company is not in our development zone, after all. The butt determines the head. You want Director Cheng to allocate funds to rescue you at this time, don't you have to give him a reason?"

Xu Weiguo paused, then said, "You need to find a guarantor for the funds given to you, and then the state-owned assets in our district will invest in you, accounting for at least 30%."

This requirement is a bit harsh. We already have a guarantor, but we still need such a high shareholding.

But then again, if he didn't have a good father, there wouldn't be such harsh conditions.

Wang Hongcheng himself knew that the only people willing to guarantee him at this time were either his father or his mother.

He still wanted to fight for it, but Xu Weiguo didn't give him a chance: "Mr. Wang, you have to understand that we can't use the government's money as our first lifeline, so we must have a guarantor. Think about it, and we'll call again tonight."

Helpless, this is the final result.

Then he said, "Changge, would you like to stay for a while?"

"Okay." Lu Changge nodded and said to Wang Hongcheng, "You go first, I'll come back to find you."

He has to figure out the guarantee himself. No matter how good his friends are, they won't do this for him.

Wang Hongcheng certainly did not feel relaxed, and he left with heavy steps.

After they left, Xu Weiguo asked, "Changge, what do you think?"

Lu Changge said, "Normally, I didn't think the government would agree to his request, so I was surprised when he told me he could secure some support. But along the way, I've been thinking, I suspect Director Cheng would consider it because the leadership understands that China's real estate market is still on the rise. The temporary downturn is simply due to the international economic situation, and it's only a matter of time before the cloudy weather turns sunny."

"That's what I said, and the logic is not complicated, but no one knows what will happen in the future. If real money is invested and something goes wrong, it will be a big problem."

"I personally promised him that I would give him some support."

"How many?"

"Five million, maybe." Lu Changge said softly, seeming to say it casually.

But Xu Weiguo was surprised. "You... is the swimming pool so profitable?"

"No, two years ago, when my Taobao store was making money, I invested the money in the stock market and earned a little more. I was lucky."

The bull market has been over for so long, so it’s no big deal to talk about it now. The law doesn’t stipulate that ordinary people like us can’t make money through the stock market, although some people may want to make such a provision.

But he said it deliberately for a reason.

Because Xu Weiguo gave him some 'hints'.

"Let's not talk about how much money I'm making. I'm worried about something else right now. The US economy has changed dramatically, and the overseas market has changed dramatically in just the past month. Jiangzhou has an export-oriented economy, and the development zone was just established, so it has a weak foundation. Everyone in the district, starting with Director Cheng, has been focused on this, trying every possible way to help businesses. They're not going to let go of anything, even the smallest detail. So when I saw you on TV, I immediately thought of your Taobao store."

Lu Changge actually knew what it was, but he didn't know how far Xu Weiguo had thought about it, so he asked, "Uncle Xu, what do you want me to cooperate with?"

Xu Weiguo said: "It's mainly about procurement. Can we give some more support to some of the companies in our district?"

This really means that the leaders have to step in to sell the goods.

However, this idea was relatively superficial. It was nothing more than grabbing Lumang's current meager sales from other companies.

The fact that he could even think of doing this shows that even the smallest detail is worth a thousand bucks.

But his past life's work experience taught him that this was actually normal. Perhaps outsiders didn't quite understand what "pressure from above" meant. It meant that when things got this far, they wouldn't discuss difficulties or reasons; they only wanted results, and with every layer of pressure, they had to deliver.

It's so obvious that you can't even begin to understand the logic behind it. It's like, you think he's using a cannon to shoot down mosquitoes, but in reality, he'll definitely shoot down anything he can, as it's a matter of his future political career.

"Uncle Xu, for now, Lumang's sales are limited, and its product categories are limited, so the help we can provide may also be limited. So my idea is not to limit it to orders from now on."

Xu Weiguo asked, "What do you want to do?"

Lu Changge said, "As a brand, Lumang itself also needs to expand its product categories. As a development zone, it's impossible for all clothing companies to produce white-collar shirts. In this case, why not let the government take the lead and use our store as a platform? We will sign agreements with various manufacturers and supply different categories of clothing at the same time, all with our brand. The company will handle the marketing, which is nothing more than using me as a gimmick. That's fine, but my personal gimmick is ultimately limited. If I want to make a splash in the market, I need a shocking enough price. Consumers ultimately only care about price."

This made Xu Weiguo a little confused because the idea was too ambitious.

"In this way, you are trying to eat a fat man in one bite, just like a snake swallowing an elephant." Director Xu thought to himself that young people are really daring.

Lu Changge just smiled. This opportunity was rare. On the one hand, a large number of companies had lost orders on a large scale, while on the other hand, the government was caring and nurturing them with all its strength.

As for Lumang, it has limited funds, so it cannot expand its product categories quickly. Its sales volume is low, and it is difficult to put enough pressure on suppliers to lower the purchase price.

However, if the government takes unified action, these problems can be solved. If funds are insufficient, they can borrow money first, or even withhold payments. As for purchasing prices, the government's goal is to prevent these factories from going bankrupt, not to make them huge profits.

If these can be implemented, he will demand a price that is shockingly cheap, and in this way, consumers will vote with their feet.

In the past 20 years of the Internet economy, Chinese consumers have made many choices when faced with low prices, and their choice has been the same every time.

Taobao's initial core appeal was that online shopping was cheap and cost-effective; Xiaomi was smart and replaced the word cheap with cost-effectiveness; when takeout invaded on a large scale, an order only cost two or three yuan, and even smart electric cars used the fact that electricity costs were cheaper than oil costs as their main promotional point. At the most extreme point, Pinduoduo was blatantly selling counterfeit goods.

After all, everyone has ignored the silent majority on the Internet and underestimated the number of 14 billion. In fact, think about it, even if you count the number a little more, there are 4 million middle-class people in this country, but even so, there are still 10 billion left.

Besides, this was 2008.

If you don't have a deep sense of time, you can look at the housing prices. At present, the housing prices in Shanghai are just over 9000 yuan, and they have been falling recently. In some areas, the prices have fallen below yuan.

Thinking of this, Lu Changge slapped his thigh. He almost forgot that it was time to buy a house!
(End of this chapter)