My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 700 Taking too big a step will definitely tear your balls.

Sure enough, with Zhenhua Machinery as the introduction, Shanghai Shipyard jumped right in.

Just across the river from Lujiazui, it can be considered a neighbor of the X Building on the other side.

At that time, even the largest state-owned enterprises were still struggling to undergo restructuring; they hadn't yet reached the super-sized scale that would later emerge from various integrations.

Moreover, when it comes to business, Shanghai is definitely the place in China that emphasizes business rules the most.

With those two shore excavators from Zhenhua Machinery as a foundation, Weidong couldn't possibly be the fraudster Azari.

Especially since they have their own company in Building 5 on the Bund, and next door is a large-scale demolition and reconstruction of an international hotel, they are absolutely trustworthy.

Let Wei Dong not make empty promises, after all, Shanghai doesn't currently have the capability to create such new container ships: "As long as Lao Zhong's shore crane is reliable in quality and its technical specifications can match the international advanced level, I can guarantee that the order of more than 50 units in the Guangdong-Hong Kong area is just the beginning."

Zhong Zhenhua guaranteed: "I'll go there immediately and wait for the equipment to arrive in Pengzhen by ship. I'll assemble and adjust it with extra care and make sure it lives up to the name of Shanghai Port Machinery!"

Even when dealing with equipment worth millions of dollars per unit, he still maintains a composed demeanor and doesn't panic when faced with orders for just a few dozen units.

The shipyard must be green with envy.

Wei Dong then dropped an unexpected bombshell: "The reason I was able to persuade them to purchase so many shore cranes is because I'm encouraging the construction of large ships, expanding from the current Panamax cargo ships with no more than 4000 containers to super ships with 5,000, 8,000, 10,000, or 15,000 containers. The size of these ships will definitely change. Can your shore cranes adapt to that?"

Chung Chung's expression must have started to change drastically.

Wei Dong now deals with businesses all over the country, and he has a deep understanding of this.

In many provinces, especially in the north, people from factories and mines, as well as college students, are willing to agree to anything when talking to others, but when it comes to actually doing it, they start making excuses and delaying.

The prevailing atmosphere in Shanghai is to strictly adhere to the rules; if you can't do it or haven't done it, you'll never pat your chest in admiration.

They strictly followed international rules and regarded European and American standards as the gold standard, which was absolutely correct in the 1980s, and was a thousand times better than the current attitude in mainland China, which is either resistant or perfunctory.

But in this case, the advantage becomes a disadvantage.

The shipyard must have looked even uglier, completely disregarding Wei Dong's expertise: "Although we haven't built Panamax ships before, we are very familiar with this internationally advanced ship type. It's an increasingly recognized standard ship type internationally, so how could we possibly break through or change it at will?"

Old Zhong quickly advised, "The dimensions of shore cranes are strictly regulated. The outward extension of the dock crane boom is 32 meters. This is no joke; even a centimeter more or less will cause problems!"

The main problem is that what Wei Dong proposed was too ahead of its time.

Panamax cargo ships are 32 meters wide, and shore cranes are naturally customized strictly according to these dimensions; there's no room for arbitrary increases or decreases.

Even such a small adjustment could mean that the new ship type cannot be matched with the old dock for loading and unloading.

Wei Dong, being an outsider, wanted to help these top students overtake others by taking a shortcut: "I won't let you take risks, but once I finalize the relevant matters and start building this kind of cargo ship that surpasses the Panamax class, I hope you can keep up with the improvements as soon as possible."

The shipyard worker shook his head vehemently: "Impossible, absolutely impossible!"

Wei Dong tried hard to persuade him: "I just asked you to broaden your thinking. This kind of new ship will definitely not be designed and built from the mainland. But if there is such a project, I hope that our shipyard can organize teams of experts to participate in learning and make it our flagship product as soon as possible, just like Zhenhua Port Machinery entered the international market. The same principle applies to shore cranes. If we can adjust and adapt to this kind of new ship type as soon as possible, it may be a good opportunity for Zhenhua Port Machinery to make a name for itself."

If it weren't for the fact that they had already purchased two shore cranes for delivery and installation, Shanghai Shipyard certainly wouldn't have listened to this layman's nonsense.

The mainland has absolutely no presence in the ocean container industry; it doesn't even have the right to be on the table.

They are even less likely to have the power to change the rules.

Wei Dong was being forced to act with a mindset from thirty or forty years in the future and with only a superficial understanding.

Old Zhong definitely approves of him more, so let's tell him the current situation in detail.

It turns out that Shanghai Shipyard didn't even have experience building Panamax-class cargo ships.

The large-scale segment welding and precision management involved in 60,000 to 80,000-ton mega-ships is still a blank for Shanghai Shipyard.

Previously, the largest bulk carriers were only over 20,000 tons, and they were built for Hong Kong shipping magnates. The blueprints had to be imported from Japan, the engines had to be imported from Hans, and the crankshafts had to be bought from South Korea.

It has many shortcomings.

Taking on challenges beyond one's level is never that easy.

So Wei Dong also adjusted his approach: "Okay, let's set the Panamax class as our first target. We shouldn't be too ambitious, but try to find opportunities to participate. Shore cranes and container ships complement each other, and I will do my best to help find orders in this area."

After much persuasion, they finally agreed to make some preparations separately.

Wu Shengyun, who had been standing by the side the whole time, remained silent until after the guests were seen off, at which point he grinned and said, "These guys have no long-term vision. I'll go find the major shipyards in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and the major shipyards in the north to try and smooth things over."

This made Wei Dong realize that it's not so easy to change direction on such a sharp bend, and he himself didn't have any concrete evidence.

He patted his subordinate's arm with a smile: "They are already the best partners at the moment. Let's take it one step at a time. How is the shipping company doing?"

Wu Shengyun immediately beamed: "Brother's crane ships are such a visionary move! After the Spring Festival, we sent five to the coast, and they immediately became the main force for loading and unloading at the docks. Some porters even tried to cause trouble, but they can't compare to our mechanical equipment!" Wei Dong, who indeed had a longer-term vision, said: "This is not a good thing. If we cause layoffs in porters in various places and exacerbate conflicts, we will make a big mistake. We need to quickly gather the crane ships together. We can use them in large ports and docks like Shanghai, Jiangzhou, and Echang. We should wait in smaller places. We shouldn't let us become the fuse."

Wu Shengyun was surprised, but he immediately thought that his boss was right. It was obvious that the standards varied from place to place. Large cities like Shanghai and Jiangzhou were more tolerant of private companies, while in smaller places, it was really possible that if something happened, it would be the capitalists' fault.

Set off immediately to make adjustments.

Chi Shih-ming became even more convinced of his boss's "foresight".

When all the sales systems gathered in Jiangzhou for a meeting last year, he also wanted to take the opportunity to look for real estate opportunities all over the country, at least in provincial capitals, and use Dongsheng Trading's branches in various provincial capitals to assist in the development of real estate projects.

At the time, Wei Dong advised him to slow down and finish the projects in Shanghai, Jiangzhou, and Pengzhen first.

Now it has indeed been discovered that many provincial capitals are seeing a proliferation of local real estate companies with deep connections.

Jiangming Real Estate, which was just starting out, might have been caught in a chaotic battle if it had spread its efforts to various places last year.

Not to mention the significant differences in the tightness of policies across different regions.

Concentrating resources on development in Shanghai and Shenzhen is now a much more stable approach.

They discussed the progress of the projects under construction in Shanghai in a few words. The two of them pulled Lao Zhang along and started from the hotel construction site not far away, to the building under construction in Pudong, the workers' new village of the shipbuilding real estate company, three hotels that were nearing the end of their decoration, and then to the international community in the western suburbs and the real estate projects in the electronics park, inspecting and exchanging ideas with each one.

Especially at the five-star hotel in the electronics park, which is basically completed and about to be put into trial operation, they met up with Uncle De and Lao Heng.

Let's sit down and discuss the details in more detail.

More than two years after Hong Kong businessmen were brought to the mainland by Wei Dong, unlike Qin Yuye who chose to open a denim clothing factory for immediate results, they were more confident in developing real estate and hotels.

We're almost at the harvest season now.

The four-star hotel in Jiangzhou Economic Development Zone made a big splash at the National Auto Expo. The hotel's atmosphere, which was not considered top-notch, left a deep impression on manufacturers from all over the country.

Even the price of a standard room, which is nearly 200 yuan, exudes a sense of "high-end".

Uncle De and his group visited three mid-to-low-end business hotels under the Wanmade Group, as well as a top-tier luxury hotel on the Bund that is sure to be the best in Shanghai.

Given that even Citibank's hotel tycoons are so optimistic about the mainland market, and considering our own experience, it's definitely worthwhile to move from initial trials to large-scale investment.

Wei Dong casually mentioned that Mr. Awald chose to build the Holiday Inn in the plateau region. Anyway, he only focuses on budget chain business hotels. After completing the model in Shanghai, Beijing, and Jiangzhou, he will definitely promote it in provincial capitals such as Guangdong and Hubei. That is the advantage of his branch offices that are spread throughout the provinces and cities.

Anyway, he mainly offers budget hotels and hostels priced at 20, 40, and 80 yuan, so it doesn't conflict with what you guys are doing.

Old Zhang sat behind Rang Weidong the whole time, taking careful notes.

Chi Shiming originally wanted to do the same, but Wei Dong deliberately gave him up.

He would occasionally throw conversations at him, emphasizing that the operation of all these real estate projects was handled by Hong Kong boy.

This finally caught Uncle De's attention, and he began to inquire about Chi Shih-ming and Jenny's plans to get married this year.

Chi Shiming handled the situation well, without panicking in front of the billionaire expectant father. Since Jenny liked art, he decided to use Shanghai as a base to set up a gallery and hold art exhibitions, while he could also establish himself in the mainland to run a real estate business.

Pingjing and Jiangzhou are both places with a strong artistic atmosphere, and they are also areas that Jiangming Real Estate is mainly promoting.

It can help Jenny expand her influence in the art world, acquire more artworks at low prices and sell them at high prices, and in turn, inject a lot of artistic atmosphere into her own real estate.

After all, these artists are among the first to get rich in mainland China and can become the main consumer group.

Wei Dong, a peer who was chatting with Lao Heng about the basketball court, was secretly impressed. He focused on the theme, revolved around the details, and showcased his strengths.

Uncle De then inquired about the profits from Jenny's artworks, and Chi Shih-ming gave a figure of about eight figures.

Old Heng was shocked. In less than a year, that pampered young lady who usually didn't seem to do any productive work had made such a good profit.

Chi Shiming carefully explained that the domestic art market is currently in a period of explosive growth, after decades of hoarding, and has just begun to establish export channels.

The prices are outrageously low; the current plan is to set up a large-scale gallery in Hong Kong to sell to overseas markets.

This truly maximizes the role of Hong Kong as the only current bridge for export.

Uncle De was quite pleased to hear this and immediately decided to entrust Chi Shiming with the development of the family group's real estate projects in mainland China. His second son would be mainly responsible for the hotel and commercial group, and the wedding was scheduled for next month. He hoped that Chi Shiming and his brother-in-law would work together to make the family group's business in mainland China thrive!
Chi Shiming turned around and chuckled to Wei Dong, "Look, our scale has grown!"

Wei Dong was both amused and helpless: "I still need to help you settle Sister Duan in!"

Chi Shiming was immediately moved to tears and wanted to call him godfather.

(End of this chapter)