My Lord, you need to stand up!

Chapter 816 On How a Pure-Hearted Young Man Turns into a Casanova
Exhibitions and trade fairs are truly an excellent way to break into the market.

Wei Dong certainly didn't know before; he was just being forced to suggest that Jiangzhou shouldn't spend money building that so-called industrial and trade center building, and it was useless.

Instead of spending this money, we should build an exhibition center and hold trade fairs.

Because he knew that place later became the Jiangzhou Convention and Exhibition Center, which was quite famous and beautiful.

As a result, Jiangzhou City and the Economic Development Zone put in a difficult position, saying that since you recommended building a convention center, you should at least help revitalize this exhibition hall.

They just tried organizing a car expo.

But it was just this one time that made Wei Dong finally understand.

Trade shows are essentially live-streaming studios or temporary trading platforms in the pre-internet era.

Car livestreaming rooms have attracted countless people interested in cars, as well as manufacturers who sell cars and make parts.

The clothing expo attracts countless clothing brands, merchants who want to open clothing stores, and managers from major department stores.

The National Food and Drinks Fair attracts manufacturers and brands from various food industries, as well as food and beverage sales and trading companies from all over the country, and even small vendors.

Each trade show in a different industry is a unique live broadcast room.

The key is whether we can attract a large audience and make the event as well-known as an online celebrity; if we can do that, the exhibition will be a success.

So when Wei Dong heard Yu Xiaoqiu mention that the National Exhibition Center was right next door, he immediately thought that Jiangzhou City was still conducting all sorts of research and investigations. Why not just hold onto this exhibition center, check what advanced technologies were introduced and improved upon each round of inspections?
Developing the local economy, whoosh!

Actually, it was a deliberate act to give Qin Jianjun an opportunity to pass on the message.

Let's see if Jiangzhou responds to the challenge before the meeting.

He didn't care that Jiangzhou hadn't spoken up for him during the changes at the beginning of the year.

Their future, their stance.

Adults only care about their own interests.

I will eventually have to develop my career in Jiangzhou; so many people depend on me for their livelihood.

Old Qin, whether he realized it or not, said: "Yes, yes, yes, at this international textile machinery exhibition, a silk factory from a county in Jiangzhou City signed a contract with Italy for rapier looms, using up the city's accumulated foreign exchange quota of 20 million US dollars. The city attaches great importance to this!"

Wei Dong really asked the question casually!
All Lao Qin has to do is go back and tell the city that he's a reform pioneer and that's how things are going. If they're willing to communicate, things will be back to normal.

But then he stopped eating, because he knew about this case!
The county-level silk factory under Jiangzhou's jurisdiction spent tens of millions of US dollars to import Italian rapier looms. Because the name was so unique and easy to pronounce, he still remembered it decades later.

This is a classic case that has been reported by the tax authorities.

Shangzhou was later merged into Jiangzhou.

Why did he go to the Xishan factory? I heard that the Xiangshan factory was going to inspect the imported camera production line, and that's why the reaction was so strong.

It's because of this case.

If you were to ask Wei Dong what problems might arise from introducing a camera production line, or what problems might arise from introducing a car production line, he really couldn't say.

At least these two imports can produce something.

Only this loom.

He hesitated for half a second, but still decided to intervene: "Uh, rapier looms, I've heard of them in Hong Kong. There are some similar silk companies in Southeast Asia. I heard them mention something: European looms, especially rapier looms, don't seem to be suitable for Asia. This is because our silkworms are different from those in Europe. The silk from our cocoons is very difficult to use on European machines, with frequent malfunctions and even being impossible to adjust or modify. All those who bought these Italian rapier looms eventually had to scrap them."

It's such a simple detail.

The factory and county leaders who went abroad for inspections broadened their horizons and saw how smoothly other people's machines were used in their factories.

We made the decision to buy it, but it was barely usable and didn't adapt well to the local conditions. Later, we were even forced to introduce European silkworm breeding methods...

At this point, we realized things were getting out of control. The reason why Asian silk was unparalleled in the world and could be exported to Europe and America was naturally because the silkworms had unique characteristics in spinning silk.

If you introduce European silkworm varieties and adapt them to European machinery, can you still call it Asian silk?

This is putting the cart before the horse.

But the biggest problem is that raising silkworms is a complex undertaking that affects the whole system.

At least in the southwest region, farmers were given sheets of silkworm eggs covered with black spots.

Farmers in countless households raise pigs as a sideline to supplement their income, just like they raise pigs, in addition to farming.

Picking mulberry leaves, cultivating insect-proofing, and spinning cocoons are all very arduous tasks that take place throughout the season.

Should we change the species... or change the mulberry leaves and the feeding method?

Those are completely different creatures.

In any case, those years brought immense suffering to silkworm farmers and mulberry growers, leaving them utterly devastated.

For farmers in the 1980s, a basket of cocoons or a pig could mean a year of financial hardship.

This is more painful than spending the most precious foreign exchange.

All we got in return was a few people traveling.

In their past lives, Wei Dong and the others were a little puzzled when they heard about this. How could such a distant machine from Italy be imported into a remote, mountainous county below Jiangzhou?

Now I instantly understand, it's an expo!

Old Qin's expression changed as soon as he heard this: "Is it really going to be scrapped?"

Wei Dong used chopsticks as an analogy: "The characteristic of modern industry is high efficiency. All of us here can carve chopsticks by hand. We would probably be exhausted if we produced a hundred or so a day. But a production line machine can probably carve a hundred in a few minutes, and it only requires one or two workers. But if the bamboo is not compatible, it will keep jamming. We have to stop the whole line to clean and repair it, and we have to do it several times a day. I say it's better for us to carve chopsticks by hand. Why would we spend 20 million US dollars to import such an ancient technology? The consequences would be very serious."

After asking a few more detailed questions about the rationale behind the explanation, Lao Qin immediately got up to report. The director of the Beijing office had various ways to contact different leaders.

It all depends on how he uses it.

Everyone here must be full of admiration for Wei Dong, that he even knows such obscure knowledge as textile machinery.

Yu Xiaoqiu especially admired him; she only mentioned it casually when she came over.

Wei Dong casually remarked, "That's why you need to go out and broaden your horizons, especially Xiao Wang. Actors need to see more of the world. When do you have a holiday, come with me to Hong Kong to see how movies are made? We've started our own film company. Chow Yun-fat is currently filming a movie, and Tony Leung Ka-fai is also co-producing with Hollywood. We're looking for ways to get it released in mainland China. Sister Su, you can go and inquire about it."

Wang Zhiwen didn't show any excitement or joy at the prospect of going out; he simply thought for a moment and said yes.

On the contrary, the general manager of the advertising company, who also works as an actress, said in a somewhat coquettish tone, "Why don't you just tell the boss?"

Yu Xiaoqiu felt that her aunt seemed to be lacking in quality and needed to improve her understanding of her.

After they finished eating and the party ended, Wang Zhiwen was asking his boss what the plans were. He wanted to inquire about the differences between making movies in Hong Kong and Hollywood.

He didn't have the slick suspicion that Wei Dong was having some kind of entertainment with Yu Xiaoqiu, nor was he afraid of interfering with his boss's private time. He simply believed in character and hard work.

Wei Dong was naturally pleased: "No problem, come stay with me at the TV production building, let's have a good chat all night..."

Yu Xiaoqiu abandoned her usual affected manner of pleading and expressing regret, and simply quickly prepared her schedule for tomorrow.

At this moment, Lao Qin returned and extended a warm invitation: "Stay here, stay at the Beijing Liaison Office. The city attaches great importance to this and will convene a meeting immediately to contact relevant local leaders. We may need Wei Dong to provide some advice later."

Rang Weidong originally intended to go and test the business hotel there; he even had an office there.

Never mind, I'll just rest here.

As it turned out, the manager of Pingjing Trading Branch was also a college graduate from last year. He shamelessly said he wanted to chat as well, and Liu Zhiyuan also joined in.

Yu Xiaoqiu then pulled Ai Jiayi aside and suggested they get together.

Letting Wei Dong have the job is no problem. More people means more efficiency. All he wants is to stick to his stance and style.

Sister Song and Sister Su definitely wanted to come too, but their intentions were different, so Wei Dong jokingly told them to go and do their own thing.

Qin Jianjun, being very perceptive, arranged a suite for the leaders. Since they weren't driving, he suggested getting some wine and preparing some delicious snacks.

Wei Dong even whispered that Lao Qin's service was really good, and they all wanted to poach him to work at the hotel.

However, after observing a few young people, it became clear that this older man preferred the formalities of welcoming and sending off guests.

It's impossible to go down the path of a commercial hotel.

Therefore, making the best use of people and developing them according to their different characteristics and desired directions is the correct approach for those of you who are already leading troops into battle.

Instead of requiring them all to become a single brick, as was demanded in previous decades.

Times have changed. We need to create different characteristics for each individual in order to achieve a better outcome.

The conversation started from there, and everyone listened attentively and with great interest, even taking notes.

Let Wei Dong explain his three major strategies: from Shenzhen to Hong Kong, and then to Southeast Asia and Citibank.

Cars, shipping containers, and CDs—of course, CDs involve a series of engineering projects related to computers and semiconductors.

Basketball and movies are just minor things that serve to support these major battles.

The young people listened with great interest.

I can't wait to bravely go into battle.

Sure enough, close to midnight, Jiangzhou called Rang Weidong and brought up the project directly.

Ai Jiayi, being older, suggested that everyone rest so they could digest and absorb the nutrients they had gained.

Xiao Wang, take good care of the eldest.

Wei Dong then made up a story, mentioning that his Southeast Asian businessman had gone bankrupt because of this, and that it was impossible to verify the machine again.

But since we're going abroad for research, wouldn't it be enough to just bring a sufficient quantity of local silkworm cocoons and silk for testing?

"The most important thing in modern industry is efficiency. Once it is interrupted by frequent failures, the efficiency gained from such huge investments becomes a mirage. Let me give you another example from earlier. Shanghai Shipyard built a Panamax bulk carrier for Guoyuan Group for $26 million. It had frequent failures, and the daily loss was more than $20,000. It was extremely painful!"

Chief Engineer Huang even gave Wei Dong an estimate: "This ship, which was originally planned to break even within two years, is now expected to break even in ten years, which would be quite good."

In ocean shipping, this is truly a case of losing more than you gain, precisely because the technology of that power system was not fully understood, and the equipment used was not the best.

In another thirty or forty years, the remaining industrial gems of Europe and America will basically rely on this stability and durability.

After a few seconds of hesitation, Jiang Zhou thanked Rang Weidong for the reminder and began exchanging pleasantries about his work in Pingjing.

Let Wei Dong briefly mention that it was for the Cherokee's automotive supply chain.

The tone was like an ex-boyfriend talking about the weather with his ex-girlfriend.

They exchanged a few brief words and then hung up the phone.

They should all understand that the honeymoon period between them is over.

This has led Wei Dong to shift his focus to Shanghai, a change from his previous situation where he was wholeheartedly devoted to Jiangzhou.

In other words, the innocent young man turned into a playboy.

(End of this chapter)