Siheyuan, Shazhu: I have both parents in this life

Chapter 250 Black Gold, Gathering Momentum

After Xu Damao left, He Yuzhu walked towards his office, followed by Bai Yifeng.

Upon entering the office, Bai Yifeng closed the door behind him and said solemnly, "Boss."

He knew that the boss keeping him behind alone must mean that the most crucial and secretive task was involved.

"Old Bai, we have over 300 million in cash and a batch of jewelry at home that we need to quickly convert into readily available, clean Hong Kong dollars. The risks must be under control!"

Bai Yifeng felt his blood rushing and his scalp tingling slightly.

"More than 300 million in cash! This is an astronomical figure that could shake the underworld of Hong Kong and even disrupt the normal financial order! In Hong Kong in 1972, the power and risks contained in this money were immeasurable."

Now, the boss is entrusting him with such an important task, which is both an absolute trust and a tremendous test.

But he didn't hesitate at all: "Understood! Boss, how much time do I have?"

"Three months. It's December 15th now, and the money must be in place by February 15th next year, which is 1973. Are you confident?"

Three months! Bai Yifeng quickly calculated in his mind.

Time is of the essence, especially when dealing with such a massive amount of black gold.

After a long pause, he finally spoke: "Boss, actually, having Ah Lang start a few more large construction sites would solve most of the problem. Then I'll go to Macau to find Mr. He, and the guys below will run around to the local money exchanges in Hong Kong. As for the jewelry, it's a bit more complicated. We can sell some at auction, but the rest can only be sold through underground auctions or to collectors."

He Yuzhu nodded slightly, agreeing with Bai Yifeng's approach: "Ah Lang, I'll talk to him. Our land in Central and Tsim Sha Tsui was supposed to wait, but it seems we'll have to start construction ahead of schedule. Go to Macau and find Mr. He. Go in person and tell him I send my regards. As for local money lenders, find those that are reputable and have the resources, but diversify your operations. Don't put all your eggs in one basket to avoid attracting unnecessary attention."

"As for the jewelry, for the auctions, find a reliable auction house and make sure the transaction is legal and transparent. For underground auctions and collectors, you need to carefully select your trading partners to ensure there are no hidden problems. Remember, every transaction must be clean and cannot cause us any trouble."

Bai Yifeng said solemnly, "Don't worry, boss."

"Okay, go and prepare. I'll tell you where to pick up the things later."

"Yes, boss."

After Bai Yifeng left, He Yuzhu picked up the phone and dialed A Lang's number.

"Ah Lang, it's me. Come to my office now, I have something to tell you."

"Okay, boss, I'll be right there," Ah Lang replied on the other end of the phone.

Not long after, Ah Lang arrived at He Yuzhu's office.

"Boss, what do you need me for?" A Lang stood in front of He Yuzhu.

"Have a seat," He Yuzhu said, pointing to the chair opposite him.

Ah Lang pulled out a chair and sat down.

He Yuzhu continued, "We will start construction on our land in Central, Sha Tin and Queen's Road ahead of schedule."

"Boss, weren't we supposed to wait? Why are you in such a hurry?"

"There's some money at home that we need to spend."

"Oh, how big of a scale do you need to go?"

"The bigger the better."

"Then what should we build? Should we stick to the previous plan?"

"Yes, according to the previous plan, the land in Central will be built higher than Jardine Matheson, Sha Tin will be a residential area, and Queen's Road will be a high-end residential area."

"Boss, this means I won't be able to take care of Kwai Chung anymore, what do you think?"

"Do you have anyone to recommend?"

"Your third brother."

"Yuxin? What about Yuyao?"

“Yuyao is not suited for business. He would be better suited to be a judge, lawyer, or police officer.”

"Hehe, you see things quite clearly."

"I've had a lot of contact with him lately, and he really is very good at these things."

"Can Yuxin manage such a large operation in Kwai Chung all by herself?"

“No problem, we all went through this, and Asheng and I will help Yuxin.”

"Alright, let him give it a try."

"Okay, boss."

"Also, the construction of the Tseung Kwan O pier cannot be neglected. You and Hing Yao should discuss the feasibility of building a large oil depot in Tseung Kwan O. If it is feasible, you should come up with a plan as soon as possible to ensure the safety and practicality of the oil depot," He Yuzhu said.

“Understood, boss. Xingyao and I have already started preparations, and the preliminary plan is expected to be ready in the next couple of days,” Alang said.

"Very good, that's the kind of efficiency you need to have. By the way, are the company's employees doing relatively well lately?" He Yuzhu asked.

"There's no problem right now. Everyone's just doing their jobs for money, and we don't need their wages," A-Lang said.

"That's good. With several projects starting at the same time, do you have enough manpower?"

"We have enough engineering staff, many of whom have experience in dock repair. Building a building shouldn't be a problem."

"The quality of the construction must be guaranteed; if we're going to build something, we'll build the best."

"Yes, what about the project's progress? Our construction is very fast, but it's very expensive."

"No need to rush. Just lay out the plan. With our technology, we can build as high as we can for Central. It's normal for such tall buildings to take several years to build."

"understand!"

"Okay, you go ahead and get busy. Come to me anytime if you have any questions," He Yuzhu said.

"Okay, boss. What about Yuxin?" Ah Lang asked after getting up.

"You can contact him yourself."

"Okay." Ah Lang then pushed the chair back and left the office.

After Ah Lang left, He Yuzhu thought that there was nothing much to do in the office, so he left the Yellow River Building and drove his low-key car to an empty warehouse near the car factory. He then took out the Bald Eagle jeep and M113, and after thinking for a while, he also took out a Mi-4 helicopter, of course, all of which had their weapons removed.

After locking the warehouse door, he drove back to his villa.

Back at the villa, He Yuzhu saw Xiaoman watching the children play in the living room. The others were not there; they were probably all resting in their rooms.

"Dad, you're back?" He Yaozu called out as soon as he saw He Yaozu.

"You're back. Were you all good at home?"

“Good boy, we are all good!” the little ones said in unison.

"Good, then you can play by yourselves downstairs. I need to talk to your mother about something."

"I will take good care of my younger brother and sister," He Yaozu promised like a little adult.

“Yaozu is a good older brother,” He Yuzhu said with a smile.

Xiaoman watched the father and son talk from the side, a faint smile on her face.

"Have you taken care of everything at the company today?" Xiaoman asked softly after He Yuzhu waved to him to come upstairs.

He Yuzhu nodded slightly and said, "Let's go to the study to talk. We had a meeting today, and there are some things that need your execution."

"Okay!" Xiaoman was very happy to be able to help He Yuzhu.

When the two arrived at the study, He Yuzhu recounted the events of the meeting, and then asked Xiaoman, "I know you still have a large sum of money. How much is it now?"

Xiaoman calculated for a moment and said, "Around fifty million US dollars, all in the stock markets of North America and Europe."

“I want to set aside this money for this battle as well.” He Yuzhu looked at Xiaoman, who was in charge of the money, so he wanted to get her opinion.

Xiaoman frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and said, "Do you want it right away? But if we withdraw our funds from the stock market now, we may lose some of our profits."

"It won't be immediately, it just needs to be in place by February next year."

"Phew, that's no problem then. I'll arrange it as soon as possible. The stock markets in North America and Europe have shown signs of correction recently, so we'll start gradually withdrawing now and clear out our positions by February. I conservatively estimate that we can make a profit of 15% to 20%." After hearing He Yuzhu's words, Xiaoman breathed a long sigh of relief and then smiled.

Such high returns?

"That's right, don't you even know who I am?" Xiaoman said proudly.

"Who is it? Can I get to know them?"

"Hate!"

"Oh, so it's our financial darling, Qiao Lingyi!" He Yuzhu exclaimed dramatically.

"I don't deserve it."

"Clang, clang, hahahaha!"

"But Brother Zhu, we've placed such a huge bet in the stock market, what if..."

"Trust me, your time to shine will come in a few months."

"Okay, I believe you."

He Yuzhu cooked dinner, and the family ate so much that they didn't even have time to talk. After dinner, He Yuxin went to find He Yuzhu because A Lang had called him and he learned that the group had made a new decision. He came to find He Yuzhu to encourage him.

"What, you have so little confidence in yourself?"

"I learned all of that from books. It's such a huge undertaking, I'm scared."

"What are you afraid of? We still have Ah Lang and the others. It's time for you to prove yourself, young man."

"Big brother, I will try my best."

"Alright, does the fourth brother have any objections to this arrangement?" "He, he just keeps making fun of me. I was finally going to have some easy days, but now I'm in a tight rein again."

"Hmm, looks like that kid's got some free time." He Yuzhu stroked his chin.

He Yuxin thought He Yuyao was going to be in trouble, but he wouldn't tell his twin brother. Instead, he would wait until he got caught and then make fun of him.

"Big brother, I'm leaving now." He Yuxin left as if he were fleeing, afraid that He Yuzhu would also think about him.

"This kid, but Yuyao really needs some training. Old Wolf is doing well."

The next morning.

Gu Yuanheng led the workers and trucks to the warehouse near the car factory designated by He Yuzhu early in the morning.

The warehouse door was tightly closed, and the key was in Shi Bin's hands.

"Old Shi, the boss told me to run around hauling stuff early this morning, and said there's a surprise? What kind of surprise is it?" Gu Huan asked Shi Bin.

Shi Bin smiled mysteriously: "Don't be in such a hurry. The boss said there would be a surprise, and there definitely will be. Don't be scared when you go in!"

He just wanted to reenact everything that had happened to him on Gu Yuanheng. He had made a huge fool of himself early in the morning, and now he wanted to watch the show.

"You're keeping me in suspense! Open the door!"

Shi Bin used a key to unlock the iron lock, and Gu Yuanheng couldn't wait to have his men push open the huge iron gate.

When the interior of the warehouse was revealed, even the well-traveled Gu Yuanheng gasped in astonishment!
"This……"

A row of steel beasts lay silently in the darkness!
The most eye-catching thing is two jeeps with square and rugged lines!

That iconic seven-slot vertical grille, wide off-road tires, extremely high ground clearance, roll cage... it's the renowned "Jeep Wagoneer SJ"!
Its tall and imposing body exudes a primal and reliable sense of power.

Beside them were several even larger steel behemoths, completely different from civilian trucks!
The rectangular armored hull, the large exhaust pipes on both sides, the empty turret on top, the heavy front armor plate, the angular driver's cab style, and the huge cargo space at the rear... all these features point to their true purpose - a heavy wheeled armored personnel carrier/combat platform!

Although no weapons were mounted, the rugged and fierce aura of military steel was overwhelming!

"This, this is... military jeeps... and armored personnel carriers?" Gu Yuanheng, being an automotive professional, recognized the vehicles at a glance.

His heart was pounding. Where did the boss get a sample of this contraband?
The key is, should we modify them accordingly?
Last night at the meeting, the boss casually mentioned "suitable for all needs"—that's what he meant!

"military"!
He was referring to selling to the chieftains in those war-torn regions!

“This is surprising, Lao Gu, look what’s that?” Shi Bin nudged the dazed Gu Yuanheng and pointed to a corner of the warehouse.

Gu Yuanheng instantly snapped out of his daze, following Shi Bin's finger, his eyes wide as saucers, pointing at the stranger, dark green-painted object in the middle: "My God! That... is a helicopter?"

Following his finger, everyone finally saw the huge object half-covered by a canvas at the deepest part of the warehouse—a thing with a huge main rotor, a short and stubby fuselage, and a rough military green paint job.

Unlike the civilian helicopters they had seen before, its rugged structure, the reinforcing beams of the fuselage, and the empty weapon hardpoints under the nose all indicated its military lineage—it was actually a Mi-4 military transport helicopter!
"The boss... he went out... he didn't go to become an arms dealer, did he?" Gu Yuanheng felt that his worldview had been greatly impacted.

Any single item from this warehouse that gets out would cause a huge uproar!
"Don't you dare talk nonsense outside, you hear me? If I find out, you'll know the consequences." Shi Bin shouted, his face even colder than usual, his eyes sharp as an eagle as he swept over the crowd.

"Yes," everyone replied hastily.

"You don't need to guess what the boss is planning! He has his reasons and confidence for daring to bring these things out. Director Gu, you need to find a way to transport these things back or find skilled workers to disassemble them."

"Disassemble, take it apart, it's such a waste."

"If we don't dismantle it, how will you replicate it? Besides, can an airplane engine be the same as a car engine? Whether you can even build one is another matter," Shi Bin said irritably.

“Then let’s dismantle it here. These things are too big; they’ll be too conspicuous if we take them out,” Gu Yuanheng said.

"Should I send someone to keep an eye on things?"

"Yes, we must use it. The security level here must be at its highest."

"Okay, you go back and get people to move the equipment. My people won't leave yet; I'll arrange for people to take turns guarding it for you."

"it is good."

Gu Yuanheng now understands why his boss had sent him to use a car to knock on the doors of those oil empires.

However, there is still a problem: there are no readily available goods. Imitation is not something that can be done in a day or two. We can only start with Jeeps. Our own Jeeps are not bad. What we lack are the weapons mounting area and bulletproof armor.

As for armored vehicles, it reminded him of the tracked tractor design drawings and related engine design drawings that his boss had given him. He suspected that his boss had something better, and it seemed he would have to ask him about it when he had time.

Gu Yuanheng didn't stop at all; he ran out of the warehouse, drove back to the factory, and after gathering the necessary personnel, he called Xian Xingyao and asked him to send an engineer.

When Xian Xingyao asked why, Gu Yuanheng replied directly, "Why don't you come over too? You'll find out when you get here."

Finally, an address was left for Xian Xingyao.

Gu Yuanheng and Xian Xingyao acted quickly.

Within an hour, the core group of engineers and technicians from the automobile factory, as well as several experts from the steel plant responsible for materials and special steel research and development, all arrived at the warehouse.

The warehouse door had been closed again by Shi Bin's men, and several more vigilant, heavily armed figures were now guarding the entrance.

This display of force sent a chill down Xian Xingyao's spine as he arrived.

"Old Gu, what a big commotion! What's inside...?" Xian Xingyao grabbed Gu Yuanheng's arm as soon as he got out of the car and asked in a low voice.

He couldn't understand how a few cars could make his old partner lose his composure like this, requiring him and so many core technical personnel to come.

"Go in, take a look and you'll understand. Just don't faint," Gu Yuanheng said with a smile.

Xian Xingyao followed Gu Yuanheng to the warehouse gate, completely bewildered.

With a solemn expression, Shi Bin unlocked the heavy iron door again, and the heavy iron door was slowly pushed open.

The scene inside the warehouse was as if an invisible giant hand was choking Xian Xingyao and all the technicians behind him!

"hiss……"

Then came a collective gasp of shock.

"Listen up, everyone. The boss isn't showing off this equipment, nor is he asking us to sell it! His instructions are clear—disassemble, study, and thoroughly understand it. Then, utilize its technological concepts, especially the highlights in materials, engines, and structural design, to improve or even create our own 'Yellow River' products! The primary goal is to develop off-road vehicles and armored chassis for the specific needs of customers in the Middle East and Africa. The ultimate goal is to create our own civilian-use vehicles, understand?"

The two factory managers and technicians nodded subconsciously.

"Director Gu, the Jeep and that metal-bodied vehicle should be fine, but that big guy... we don't have blueprints or parameters. Reverse engineering by disassembling it is probably a bit difficult with our factory's current equipment and technical reserves," a veteran technician at the automobile factory said, pointing to the Mi-4.

"Director Xian, the steel used in these products is definitely not ordinary civilian grade. Judging from the color and texture, I initially suspect that it is high-strength special armor steel with some rare elements added! Our steel plant's existing production lines and process reserves may not be enough for this smelting formula, heat treatment process, and subsequent processing technology. We are completely exploring from scratch."

A materials expert from the steel mill looked solemnly at the thick front armor plate of the armored vehicle.

Then a group of engineers started discussing these big machines.

"You guys keep an eye on things first, we have something to do and need to go out for a bit." Gu Yuanheng tugged at Xian Xingyao.

"Yes, Lao Shi, keep an eye on things, we're going out for a bit."

“Okay.” Shi Bin knew what they were going to do here, so he didn’t stop them.

More than half an hour later, in the study of He Yuzhu's villa, He Yuzhu listened to the two factory directors complaining and said with a smile, "It was my oversight. Old Gu, Xingyao, come with me for a moment."

Gu Yuanheng and Xian Xingyao exchanged a glance and quickly followed He Yuzhu, who led them to a small storage room in the villa.

Several metal boxes were piled up in the warehouse, all of which were locked.

He Yuzhu took out his key and unlocked the box. Inside, there were neatly stacked file bags sealed in kraft paper, with the category names written on the outside of the bags in thick black ink.

"This is..." Gu Yuanheng's heart beat faster involuntarily.

He Yuzhu casually pulled out a few file folders and handed them to the two men.

The bag that Gu Yuanheng took was clearly labeled: "T-54 Technical Analysis" and "Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 (Early Model) Design Details and Improvement Plan (Civilian Off-Road Direction)".

Xian Xingyao received the following documents: "Basic smelting of high-strength armor steel (formula reference and process exploration)" and "Performance parameters of special steel and feasibility analysis for civilian use (preliminary)".

"Good heavens!" Gu Yuanheng felt as if the file bag in his hand was as heavy as a thousand pounds. He carefully pulled out the drawings and written materials inside, and after flipping through only a few pages, his eyes were glued to the pages.

Xian Xingyao's reaction was equally intense.

His hands trembled slightly as he looked at the preliminary formula for armor steel smelting, the key points of heat treatment process, and the detailed performance test data in his hands.

This information is enough to elevate the steel plant's technological level by an entire era!
"Boss...this...this is too precious!" Xian Xingyao's voice trembled.

"That's all the information I can provide; I don't have anything better," He Yuzhu said, shrugging.

“That’s enough, that’s enough, it’s already very good,” the two said hurriedly.

He Yuzhu's voice turned serious: "Remember three points: First, raise the confidentiality level to the highest! Anyone who has access to this information must be absolutely reliable, sign the strictest confidentiality agreement, and have Shi Bin's people responsible for background checks and supervision. Anyone who leaks information will bear the consequences." He spoke the last four words in an icy tone.

"Second, understand, digest, and integrate these ideas. I'm providing these to you so you can learn from the best parts of others' work and save you time. You need to make these things your own."

"Third, what I ultimately want is a 'civilian' version, remember, it's 'civilian', and it needs to be put into production as soon as possible."

"Yes, boss!" the two replied, their voices loud and clear this time, full of enthusiasm and confidence.

Having this information saves a lot of trouble.

"What about the helicopter?" Gu Yuanheng wasn't too overjoyed yet.

"That is indeed the biggest challenge. Without blueprints, reverse engineering the entire helicopter is no less difficult than redesigning it from scratch. Lao Gu, your car factory can first select a few subsystems that interest you, such as the transmission, rotor structure, or that radial engine (if there are relevant references in the materials), and slowly work on them as long-term technology reserve projects to train the team. We don't require immediate results, but we need to continue investing and accumulating experience. This kind of thing can't be rushed."

Gu Yuanheng nodded and said, "I understand, boss. We will treat it as a long-term technological challenge to overcome."

"Very good." He Yuzhu nodded in satisfaction.

"Remember, these are some of the cornerstones that will ensure Huanghe Industry's invincibility for the next ten or even twenty years! You are in charge of the process yourself. If you encounter any difficulties with funding, equipment, or manpower, you can come to me directly. Take your things and go back."

"Yes, boss! But you have to send us some security guards, otherwise..." Gu Yuanheng pointed to the large boxes with a troubled expression.

"No problem, I guarantee I'll get you back safely!" He Yuzhu said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)