Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 233 Financial Going Global Plan
Sunlight streamed through the not-quite-closed floor-to-ceiling windows.

Chen Xuebing woke up first, feeling refreshed.

After releasing all the pent-up energy, I slept exceptionally well.

Her smooth arms were outside the blanket, wrapped around his waist.

Chen Xuebing exhaled a breath of stale air, turned around, picked up the watch on the bedside table, and checked the time; it was only a little past six.

I did some exercise, and it seems like I didn't fully release the energy from last night; I'm still in great spirits.

Cheng Danting was awakened by his movements. Her eyelashes fluttered as she opened her eyes and met his gaze.

That hint of listless art student demeanor completely vanished in bed, replaced by a sensuality rarely seen in her daily life.

She instinctively tried to dodge, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back into his arms.

"Why are you running?" Chen Xuebing's voice was low and hoarse, carrying a hint of morning languor and danger.

Cheng Danting's ears burned, and her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible: "...No way."

Chen Xuebing slipped one hand under the covers, around her slender waist, his fingertips slowly moving upwards along her waistline, feeling her body tense instantly, and chuckled softly:
"Weren't you quite daring last night?"

As he spoke, he looked with amusement at the curtain that Cheng Danting had torn off halfway the night before.

She buried her face in his chest in embarrassment, but he lifted her face by pinching her chin with his other hand.

His thumb caressed her slightly red lips, his eyes darkening slightly: "Does it hurt?"

She shook her head, her heart racing as she thought about the madness of last night.

He was so strong; he held her with one arm, and she...

It took flight.

If it weren't for the sudden loss of weight, she wouldn't have been clinging so tightly to that curtain.

Chen Xuebing suddenly rolled over and pinned her down, his hot breath brushing against her ear: "Doesn't it hurt? Shall we try again?"

"wait wait wait……"

Cheng Danting tried to push him away in a panic, but he grabbed her wrist and pressed it above her head.

He lowered his head and bit her earlobe, catching a whiff of white tea-scented shampoo. His voice began to husky.
"No wait."

As dawn broke, only suppressed sobs remained in the room.

……

A twenty-year-old man's body is really resilient; he can do whatever he wants, and he can try things out again when he doesn't want to. Don't listen to those so-called experts who say he should be moderate.

So that you don't regret not having left a strong impression on women when you were young, only when you've reached the inevitable decline in your career.

At eight o'clock, Chen Xuebing thought to himself as he helped Cheng Danting, whose steps were a little unsteady, downstairs for breakfast.

When we arrived at the restaurant, most of the seats were already occupied.

Chen Xuebing came to Hainan to avoid the peak tourist season. He arrived on the 28th, and today is only the 29th. He was thinking that he could go back when there were more people on the 2nd or 3rd, and he didn't want to be stuck in the crowds here.

However, the people who can afford to spend two or three thousand yuan per day to stay at this hotel are clearly not 9-to-5 workers; there are quite a few people who share the same idea as him.

The two of them could only choose a seat next to a long table.

The group of people at the long table were all dressed formally and spoke quite loudly, even a bit noisy. Those who were willing to avoid sitting next to them avoided the seats.

"Mr. Yu, it's one thing for wheat prices to rise a little, but soy sauce prices have risen too much!"

"Director Liu, we had no other choice."

Chen Xuebing showed some consideration, letting the inexperienced Cheng Danting sit down first, and then picked out some breakfast for her and brought it over.

However, when she returned to her seat, Cheng Danting was looking at the long table, listening intently to their conversation.

"Eat your food properly," Chen Xuebing said, putting down several plates.

"They seem to be talking about importing goods. Is there a port here too?" Cheng Danting asked curiously.

Chen Xuebing had actually overheard some of it and roughly understood what was going on. He whispered:
"Of course there is a port. Otherwise, where would the island's residents get their daily necessities? There is a Yangpu Port here, but it is not large. It mainly serves the island's needs. The government has also built warehouses there and regularly purchases some staple foods and oils as reserves."

He was quite clear about Hainan's development. In his previous life, 24 years ago, there was a hype surrounding a Hainan concept stock, with claims that Hainan was going to close its borders and that the Hainan Free Trade Port, which had been talked about for six years, was finally going to be established.

The so-called "sealing off the border" does not mean closing off the island, but rather completely opening it up to the outside world. Like Hong Kong and Macau, it operates under the "domestic but outside customs" system. All assets on the island will become offshore assets, and import and export products will be exempt from taxes when they are stored or sold, but will be subject to taxes when they arrive on the mainland.

Hainan, with an area of ​​35,100 square kilometers, is 30 times larger than Hong Kong and 1,000 times larger than Macau. By making Hainan China's offshore free trade center, it will have a larger throughput and be able to take on larger trade orders. Hong Kong, on the other hand, can focus on being an offshore financial center and serve as a powerful tool to break the Mundell-Fleming trilemma.

If this really happens, the number of listed companies in Hainan will definitely increase along with the value of assets on the island.

Chen Xuebing had thoroughly researched various aspects of Hainan's situation and history at the time.

In summary, Hainan still faces numerous difficulties in developing its free trade port.

The Qiongzhou Strait is located in an active seismic zone with rapid currents and an average depth of 44 meters, with the deepest point exceeding 114 meters. Building a cross-sea bridge is extremely difficult. Typhoons are also frequent, resulting in high logistics costs and a greater possibility of cargo being stranded. Not to mention the challenging environment of trade friction.

However, Hainan has never given up on expanding its seaport since 1975.

While eating, Chen Xuebing chatted with Cheng Danting about the situation in Hainan and also talked about some "visions" regarding the Hainan Free Trade Port.

As a reborn person, it's quite painful to keep many things from your past life inside. Occasionally, you can bring them up and tell them as a story to someone who only has a vague understanding of them, which is a way to relieve stress.

However, Cheng Danting listened with great interest and a hint of admiration, saying that she didn't want to go to the beach later and could wander around on land instead.

Chen Xuebing realized he had talked a bit too much, making her think he was very interested in Hainan's ports. He laughed and said she was overthinking it; Yangpu Port is not in Sanya, but in Haikou, which is two or three hundred kilometers away.

However, the government officials at the next table brought people to Sanya to discuss business and even stayed in this kind of hotel, which shows that their hospitality was quite high.

Just then, someone next to me suddenly stood up.

"Director Liu, we really can't do it at 6000 per ton! What are the costs lately? Go ask about the international soybean price! No, no, if you keep saying that, I'm going straight back to Shenyang. It's not that I don't want to give you face, but this deal is really impossible."

Upon hearing the accent, Chen Xuebing laughed. "Another Northeasterner who conquered Hainan."

"What are they saying? 6000 per ton?" Cheng Danting whispered, like a curious child.

"It should be soybean oil. Phew." Chen Xuebing said, then scooped up a spoonful of hot milk and blew on it.

Before he could even put it in his mouth, the spoon froze in mid-air, and Chen Xuebing stopped moving.

drop.

drop.

Drip milk into the glass.

Chen Xuebing's thoughts gradually became clearer, and his eyes brightened.

I'm crazy.

How could I forget about this?

"What's wrong?" Cheng Danting asked.

"It's okay, you eat." Chen Xuebing waved his hand and fell into deep thought.

Chen Xuebing returned to his room, turned on his computer, and connected to the internet.

He sat there for over an hour without saying a word.

The curtains remained closed, and the cold light from the screen reflected on his sharply defined face, his expression indifferent yet focused.

Cheng Danting sat on the edge of the bed watching, thinking Chen Xuebing was very handsome, and even swooned over him for a while.

But after a while, he got bored, so he walked behind him with his hands behind his back to look.

It was discovered that Chen Xuebing's computer was full of English documents, with many tables and a small border next to it, which was a translation website.

"What is this?" Cheng Danting asked.

Chen Xuebing leaned back in his chair, stroking his chin without speaking for a long time, as if he was pondering something.

After a while, he waved his hand and said, "Go back to your room and rest for a while. I have something important to do."

Upon hearing these slightly cold words, Cheng Danting bit her lower lip.

At this moment, Chen Xuebing seemed to exude a sense of detachment, as if the tenderness from last night to this morning was just an illusion.

But the way she and Chen Xuebing interacted was predetermined from the beginning; she could only choose to leave or accept her fate.

“Well… if you’re busy, I’ll go out for a walk by myself,” Cheng Danting said.

Chen Xuebing realized she was a little angry, so he took a card out of his coat and handed it to her. He hugged her, kissed her forehead deeply, and tried to coax her. "I'm sorry, I really have something to do. I'm going out for a walk to buy some things. I'll come and keep you company later."

Older men of status are always ruthless when they turn their backs on someone; the gentleness they show during their post-coital slump is only for the next time.

However, Chen Xuebing was not only rich, but also young and handsome, which made him exceptionally attractive to girls. After a little comforting, Cheng Danting softened.

“I don’t want it… I have money.” She pushed the card back.

“You’re mine, what’s wrong with spending my money?” Chen Xuebing said with a gentle smile.

Cheng Danting hesitated for a moment while holding the card, then looked up and saw the gentle look Chen Xuebing gave her. It was very sincere and didn't have the feel of a sugar daddy/sugar baby scene from a TV drama.

Financial relationships between men and women are shameful.

But if you add a touch of tenderness, it becomes a variation of affection that is easy for people to accept.

"Okay... then I'll wait for you."

After saying that, she obediently went back to her room.

Chen Xuebing watched the door close, a satisfied smile appearing on his face. After a moment of composure, he picked up the phone on the table and dialed.

The call will be connected after two beeps.

"Hello, Chairman."

Have you gone back to Hong Kong?

"Not yet. I've been back in Hong Kong, and I can't get through on this phone anymore."

"Hmm...you know about BVI, right?"

"British Virgin Islands Company?"

"Yes, are there many BVI (British Virgin Islands) application agencies in Hong Kong? Could you help me apply for one?"

Do you want to start an SPV company?

"I guess so, but it's not about doing projects. It's about investing in the US, preferably in the Cayman Islands. Also, could you help me find out a cheap way to exchange US dollars? I need to exchange some money over there."

"With the recent crackdown on money laundering, underground banks are facing very high costs... Is there a good opportunity?"

"Let's go with the high-end one. Other channels are too slow. We shouldn't delay. Go back to Hong Kong today and get this done as soon as possible."

“…It’s a holiday, boss.” Cai Zhijian said helplessly.

Chen Xuebing frowned: "The UK and the US don't celebrate May Day, we'll make time to give you a make-up holiday."

"Okay, I'll go back this afternoon."

"Can you get in touch with overseas investors? It would be even better if we could raise some US dollars as well."

"You want to invest in overseas funds? The domestic stock market is very different from the US stock market..."

"We want to be global investors," Chen Xuebing said firmly.

"Alright... but this can't be rushed. Let me find out for you first, and we'll discuss it when I get back."

"Yes, the procedure is not in compliance with regulations, so it should be kept confidential."

"know."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Xuebing slapped his forehead and lay on the bed in a daze.

Foreign exchange, oh foreign exchange.

Recently, Singularity Technology has been communicating with several banks about purchasing foreign exchange to address supply chain issues.

Applying for foreign exchange for legitimate trade is not difficult, but the process is a bit long and requires verification of authenticity.

Each order requires a contract and customs declaration to apply for, and Singularity currently does not have a mobile phone production license, making the process even more complicated.

This is a huge challenge for the singularity.

They need to postpone the supply of parts as much as possible to ensure the advanced nature of each component. There are many imported parts involved, involving many manufacturers in four countries: Japan, South Korea, Germany, and the United States. Every order needs to be reviewed, and it is impossible to be timely.

Chen Xuebing had this in mind when he asked Lu Weibing to start doing foreign trade early: to earn some US dollars from Southeast Asia and convert them into foreign currency, so that Qidian could enter the Class A foreign trade enterprise earlier and the procedures for applying for foreign exchange would be simpler.

But it's not that simple. There will be many, many more places where we need to use the US dollar after the singularity, and there are some things that cannot be applied for in foreign exchange.

For example, this time they went to Switzerland to recruit people.

Furthermore, many of the products that Singularity is currently importing already involve advanced generations restricted by the Wassenaar Arrangement.

The United States is currently preoccupied with global counterterrorism efforts and its economic strategy is also constrained by the European Union and the Eurozone. The previous Coordinating Committee on Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (COSCO) has been dissolved, but the United States has left behind the Wassenaar Arrangement, which specifically restricts the export of high technology to technologically backward countries and socialist countries.

This agreement focuses on blocking technology and production equipment, unlike later agreements that directly restrict the export of finished chips, but there is a risk of it being overly politicized.

He had carefully reviewed the agreement, which restricted the most advanced version of chip design software. To put it more deeply, it also restricted Marvell's use of cutting-edge design software to help them design the most advanced 65nm generation chip.

To go even deeper, without Marvell as a transit point for indirect exports, he simply wouldn't have been able to obtain TSMC's advanced production capacity.

Everyone is doing this quietly because it's profitable, but once the first generation of products is launched, directly competing with Apple, will Apple let it go?
They will definitely look for loopholes in his operations and cut off his supply chain.

Chen Xuebing has always been cautious and careful, taking things one step at a time, and he cannot allow such a thing to happen.

The Wassenaar Arrangement was signed by more than thirty member states, and it is not something that one or two people can decide. It is impossible to break the agreement. If you want to buy high-tech or production equipment from abroad, you have to have the ability to bypass the QB organization.

Just kidding. They have satellites. If they really wanted to investigate you, everything that happens on the ground would be laid bare in their eyes.

So he never thought about lithography machines.

But as long as we don't upgrade his equipment, create a separate restricted list, or label it as "military," allowing him to easily purchase advanced products, that's enough.

Let him at least enjoy the same treatment as Huawei, and keep him happy until 2019.

This involves the relationship with the country, and the companies themselves also need to work hard.

He needed to go to sea and find allies in the United States to speak on his behalf.

To do these things, you need money.

Ideally, it should be money that others can't see.

Underground banks are convenient, and Hong Kong companies are convenient too, but they are risky. Huang, the general manager of Gome, was investigated for opening a Hong Kong company to illegally exchange foreign exchange. Later, a series of problems were found. He often used this method, which was to leave himself a handle. If he was involved in any base funds or embezzlement, he would be covered in dirt and anyone could take advantage of him.

You still need to make money through investment.

There are several ways to invest in the United States from China.

The simplest solution is immigration.

Pass.

The ODI (Outbound Direct Investment) filing process convinced the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange that such outbound investment is transparent, known to both China and the United States, and is subject to project review.

QDII funds raise RMB domestically and invest in overseas markets. Even Huaan Fund is still in the preparation stage. The first QDII fund has not yet been launched, so it's not their turn yet.

Another option is the red-chip structure, which involves listing on the US stock market and allowing the funds raised to be invested overseas.

Red-chip structures are typically headquartered in the Cayman Islands, a tax-free area where information is more transparent and meets the basic requirements for information disclosure by listed companies.

Another place is the British Virgin Islands, BVI.

The cost of starting a company here is low, and the information is kept confidential. Registration only takes a week, and the legal flexibility is very strong. If you find an agent to act as the legal representative, your assets placed here will be impossible to find anywhere in the world.

It is not suitable for listing, but it is very suitable for the operation of international private equity funds.

As for what to do with the funds and where to invest them, he has been thinking about this question.

He didn't have a deep understanding of the early days of the US stock market. Currently, the companies with the highest market capitalization in the US stock market are mostly oil companies and military enterprises, and they are mostly listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Apart from Microsoft, most of the well-known companies on Nasdaq are now minor players.

It's possible to make money, but the cycle is too long. It's better to keep the money and invest it in the domestic bull market than to withdraw it.

In recent years, the only opportunity to get rich quick was during the financial crisis. By shorting a few companies or directly buying subprime mortgage insurance, one could have earned several times the return.

But even now, more than two years later, he still thinks the opportunity hasn't come yet.

This morning, upon hearing the word "soybeans," he suddenly realized that the opportunity had arrived, and had been there for over two months.

But he had completely forgotten.

(End of this chapter)