Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 227 The Vast Land is Engulfed in Fire and Wind

After discussion, Pang Donglai decided to send 20 people to Chongqing. It would take several days to transfer manpower from more than a dozen stores, and several cars would need to be driven to Chongqing to avoid not having vehicles available when they arrived.

It's over a thousand kilometers; it would take a whole day to drive there.

Chen Xuebing was also quite busy, so he said he would go back first to arrange the location of the new store and wait for them in Chongqing.

Yu Donglai told him not to sign a contract, but to just choose a few suitable locations and they would come and inspect them themselves. There are many factors to consider when choosing a location to open a supermarket.

Chen Xuebing chuckled and said, "Actually, I lied to you that day. We really are in the same industry. My mom used to run a tobacco and liquor store. I started helping her run the store when I was a teenager. If we really ran a supermarket, you might not be able to beat me."

Yu Zong retreated tactically.

"Hey—you, Mr. Chen, are always running big businesses. You're trying to take this small business from me!"

The two of them burst into laughter.

Pang Donglai's driving incident reminded Chen Xuebing.

Before boarding the plane, he called Cai Zhijian and asked him to arrange two Coaster buses. He also made arrangements for the supermarket site selection, listing all the shopping malls in Chongqing with more than 20,000 square meters available for lease.

He did not return to Chongqing.

Pang Donglai will be a few days away; he needs to go to Hefei.

The stock market performance in April was so good that Mr. Chen's wallet was bulging, and he couldn't resist the urge to start a major battle.

The spark that ignited the great battle was in Hefei, and he had to go and help.

The people in Hefei couldn't wait any longer either.

2006.4.22
click!
A negative with a date label captures the Hefei New Station Comprehensive Development Experimental Zone on this day.

This is the final location for BOE's 4.5-generation line, which is 30 kilometers away from the national-level economic development zone where Chen Xuebing initially selected the location for BOE's 6th-generation line.

This area is one of the three major development zones in Hefei, but it is more secluded and desolate, which can provide BOE with a larger and more complete land area to accommodate two factory areas and a substation that provides power services. This eliminates the need to build separate substation systems for the two factory areas, greatly improving power efficiency.

This location demonstrates BOE's determination to build two factories simultaneously, and it also serves as a demand for payment from Hefei and Changzheng Capital.

Fortunately, the first payment for this demand letter has been successfully made.

A group of leaders, along with Wang Dongsheng and Chen Xuebing, cut the ribbon together on the stage, amidst applause from the audience.

After the ceremony, we saw off the provincial leaders, including the two top officials from Hefei, Chen Xuebing and Wang Dongsheng, chatting as we walked.

"Too fast!" Leader Sun exclaimed, looking at the vast wasteland.

"I never expected that such a large project could start in just a few months. General Manager Chen's decisiveness has saved us a lot of time," Mayor Wu praised.

"Hehe, the whole country is in turmoil, but I'm still not fast enough. Sharp's people arrived before my money arrived, otherwise they would have surrendered long ago."

Chen Xuebing dared not take credit, as his money was deposited into his account more than half a month later than the contract's stipulated date of March 31st.

During this period, Sharp officially announced that it was abandoning its cooperation with Shenzhen, and the negotiation team hurriedly came to Hefei to prevent BOE from building a 6th generation line.

Upon arrival, it was discovered that the funding for the first 4.5-generation small production line had not yet been secured, and negotiations began to proceed at a leisurely pace.

Upon arriving in Hefei, Chen Xuebing immediately accelerated the process, having a third-party account transfer funds as soon as the Xinhua Insurance funds arrived. The TMT fund didn't even have an inauguration ceremony; the first investment was completed in no time.

Today, the second day after the funds arrived, and also a Saturday, Wang Dongsheng rushed over from Beijing at Chen Xuebing's request to quickly complete this groundbreaking ceremony.

"Mr. Chen, do you think it's too high to ask them to pay a deposit of 200 million? They won't agree, will they? How about we lower it a bit?" Mayor Wu asked.

"It's not like it's given away for free; Hefei is going to give up land." Chen Xuebing firmly shook his head and said:

"This money was paid by Sharp for the factory construction. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fleece them, so we can't miss it. We've put on such a big show, putting the signing ceremonies of the two factories together, just to show off our wealth and make them panic. The groundwork has been laid. We'll invite them to build the factory after the New Year. The conditions we've offered have already proven that we have the ability to help BOE build a 6th generation line at any time. Sharp doesn't know how much money you can come up with now. During the negotiations, you must be confident and demonstrate the strength of Hefei's finances. If they need 12 billion to jointly build a 7.5 generation line, then agree to invest 12 billion. But the deposit cannot be less. The line is that we need to pay BOE 200 million in breach of contract fees. Hefei can give them a piece of land of equal value. If they can't even come up with this much money, then they have no sincerity."

This scheme began after the Lunar New Year. People from Hefei invited Sharp, offering almost the same conditions as Shenzhen. This was both to force Shenzhen to quickly abandon BOE and to mislead Sharp, making them guess Hefei's capabilities.

The subsequent simultaneous signing of contracts for the 4.5-generation and 6-generation lines was a further blow to Sharp: if you don't come, we'll start working on the 4.5-generation line and immediately start working on the 6-generation line, and see if we have the capability.

Leader Sun and Mayor Wu have been cooperating, after all, this is for the benefit of Hefei, but they still have some doubts.

Chen Xuebing set the price too high.

"A deposit of two hundred million. Would they really be so panicked as to leave it here?" Boss Sun said leisurely.

Chen Xuebing smiled and looked at Wang Dongsheng. "Mr. Wang, you're an expert, why don't you tell us?"

Wang Dongsheng coughed, reluctant to answer the question, but after hesitating for a moment, he still answered honestly:
"With the economical cutting of the 6th generation line, it can cover up to 40 inches. This size can cover almost 90% of the LCD TVs on the market. Especially with plasma screens focusing on large-screen TVs, it is particularly important for LCD companies to control the 32-42 inch market. If BOE can produce 40-inch TVs, their LCD market profit margin will be instantly reduced by more than 30%. It can be said that the sooner we build the 6th generation line, the sooner they will lose their monopoly on LCD profits in China and will be forced to lower prices. So every minute and second they disrupt the market is meaningful. Sharp's visit this time may be backed by other Japanese panel companies. It won't be just Sharp that has to pay for it."

At this point, Chen Xuebing interjected with a smile: "President Wang is too optimistic. In my opinion, Hitachi, Samsung, LG, AUO, Chi Mei, and companies from Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan are all involved, so we can rest assured. Sharp is not an honest company. For this market with sales of tens of millions, each of these companies will have to spend money. Two hundred million, they can't actually contribute much."

A 40-inch LCD screen can still sell for over ten thousand yuan today. Back in 2009, when BOE officially started building its factory, it was still making a profit. These companies must have been able to do the math.

This was the first time the two commanding officers had come to such a deep understanding of the matter. Leader Sun frowned and said:
"Wouldn't signing an exclusivity agreement with them delay BOE's development?"

Chen Xuebing nodded: "So the negotiations need to be accelerated. The exclusivity agreement should be signed for three years, but the default period should only be six months. If they don't pay the first installment within six months, we have the right to choose other manufacturers to cooperate with. This is them paying to buy time. In fact, this is also the time we need to raise funds. The premise is that we can't let them know that we don't have money now. We have to show our stance. Now we can't wait any longer. If they don't pay and sign the contract, we will start immediately. I suggest that we bring in 30 excavators, make the excavation area bigger, make a big splash, and scare them."

Actually, six months is too long. If you calculate it this way, the investment will be finalized at least in November, and the lock-up period will end in November next year.

However, 16 billion yuan has already been invested. Even after the lock-up period expires, Hefei Capital and Changzheng Capital can only sell 5% of the total share capital on the stock market next year. The rest will have to be sold through buybacks and transfers to increase BOE's profits, allowing them to expand their share capital significantly and have the funds to buy back shares, thus giving them greater operational flexibility.

Both leaders smiled.

That Mr. Chen is really cunning.

But as an ally, it's really comforting.

Wang Dongsheng still had a vague understanding of the whole matter and asked curiously, "If we pay 200 million, will they really give us the land? What will happen afterward?"

Now all three of them laughed.

Chen Xuebing chuckled and said, "President Wang, the land is in Hefei, how could it run away? Once it's in Sharp's hands, only Sharp can build the factory. They can't sell it even if they want to. Whoever dares to take it over should be prepared to be troubled by Hefei."

Upon hearing this explanation, Wang Dongsheng's expression was not as relaxed as the other three.

"The profit margins of a monopoly are really huge; they might actually build a factory for that."

“Then let them build it.” Chen Xuebing patted Wang Dongsheng on the shoulder: “They want to build a 7.5-generation line. I’ll be responsible for finding other places to help you build a 6-generation line. We’ll do solid research for three years, make good profits, and then we’ll go back to Hefei to cooperate again and build an 8-generation line for you, or even an 8.5-generation line.”

"8th generation line, that's something..." Wang Dongsheng choked, but ultimately didn't say it.

Let alone 8th generation or 8.5th generation lines, it's hard to say whether Sharp would even get government support to build a 6th generation line in another location, especially if Sharp were to actually put a 7.5th generation line into production in mainland China.

But what if the dream comes true?

BOE is facing difficulties, and we must not abandon anyone who wants to help them.

Judging from this first collaboration, Mr. Chen is quite capable.

"President Chen has changed a lot recently; he speaks with more and more confidence," Mayor Wu said with a smile.

"Confidence always changes over time."

With the stock market surging, Chen Xuebing has gained another trust license to back him up, and his tone is much more relaxed than when he first came to Hefei:

"I hope Hefei can get this 200 million yuan windfall as soon as possible, so that we can have more opportunities to cooperate in the future."

In the afternoon, Wang Dongsheng rushed back to Beijing to find a bank to raise funds.

The construction of the 5th generation production line is currently using loans from the Hefei government. He also needs to use 16 billion yuan of capital to obtain bank loans, inject capital into Hefei BOE, and purchase equipment.

Before leaving, Chen Xuebing had a conversation with him in the room.

“The two-cent safety line we set up before may have been leaked. I’ll test it for you. If they do know, then you should thoroughly investigate everyone who knows the original contract.”

"CITIC didn't participate in your third-party guarantee. With no one helping them in the auction, why would they take action?"

"Why does it have to be CITIC? Can't we just settle things with the court? Besides, not everyone can afford such a large sum of money."

"What should we do then? Do you need our help to buy it back?"

"What help do you need? Just take everyone you can with you when you go abroad, and make sure they don't have access to any information."

"Go, go, go."

"Damn, Lao Wang, why did I feel like your eyes were a little sly just now? You're not allowed to buy it back! You're not allowed to buy it back!"

(End of this chapter)