Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 80 An Extremely Large Small Workshop

Chapter 80 An Extremely Large Small Workshop
"I'm just a mobile phone seller, how would I know anyone at MediaTek? What, you want to open a factory?"

Liu Tao instantly sensed something amiss from Chen Xuebing's two questions. After speaking, he sized up Chen Xuebing.

Of course, Mr. Chen wants to open a factory.

Chen Xuebing has not yet developed any interest in the internet industry because he knows that true internet giants will rise from the mobile internet.

Today's internet industry is booming and a darling of financing, but all internet companies are aiming for a Nasdaq listing. Why?
Because they are not eligible for listing on the A-share market.

Profit is a hurdle.

Regardless of which giant it is, their advertisements are everywhere, but when you actually see their financial statements, they're like a pile of shit.

Therefore, he can focus on the PC internet sector on a small scale, or even not at all, because this is still an era where physical entities reign supreme.

But in the mobile internet era, it's something you absolutely can't miss.

This raised another problem that troubled Chen Xuebing.

Having failed to accumulate enough users and reputation in the PC internet era, how can they compete in the mobile internet era?
He had already figured this out when he entered Huaqiangbei.

The answer lies in the riddle itself.

The phone was forcibly installed.

Master the hardware first!
Therefore, we must make our own mobile phones.

He needs to create his own blockbuster phone before the mobile internet era arrives, then the sales volume of that phone will determine the size of his customer base.

It was still early, and Chen Xuebing remained at his stronghold in Huaqiangbei, feeling quite relaxed about conquering this key position in the mobile phone market.

"I'm just asking for a friend."

Chen Xuebing leaned back in his chair, a smirk playing on his lips, and spread his hands: "Do I look like a factory owner?"

The proprietress, Sun Feng, immediately shook her head: "It doesn't seem like it."

Chen Xuebing's lips twitched.

He was fine with self-deprecation, but Sun Feng's judgment in that instant was somewhat offensive.

When this was mentioned, Liu Tao laughed confidently: "Don't be offended, she doesn't understand. What's so difficult about it? Those who do assembly only have three people in one room: one in charge of hardware, one in charge of software, and one in charge of assembly. As for the casing and keyboard, they just take the phone they want to imitate to the parts factory and place an order. As for the chip, MediaTek, they just find it on the market. Those second-hand chips are several times cheaper. You can design a phone mold for 20,000 to 30,000 yuan. If you use someone else's mold, the cost of a machine is less than 300 yuan. The only trouble is in sales!"

Liu Tao felt she was trying to smooth things over.

But to Chen Xuebing, this whole thing was worse than nothing.

You think all I can do is run a small workshop and produce those Lamborghini toy phones?
However, Mr. Liu's words bring up a real problem.

They do not have a mobile phone manufacturing license.

Even if the policy is changed to an approval system in February, and more licenses are issued, there will only be a few dozen nationwide. Renting a mobile phone license would cost at least tens of millions, which is beyond his reach right now.

It seems that we really can only start from small workshops.

Anyway, they're selling pirated copies now.

So be it, a small workshop it is.

Even if I'm going to start a small workshop, I'm going to start a big one!

Chen Xuebing slapped his thigh and stood up.

"Mr. Liu, can I borrow your computer?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Tao immediately tensed up, took a few steps back, and stood protectively at the backstage entrance: "You...you want me to introduce you to the manufacturers, but you can't touch the information on the computer!"

Chen Xuebing laughed: "Don't worry, I'm just going online."

……

After leaving Sun Feng's mobile phone store, the two headed straight for Longcheng Street in the district.

Destination: Laoxi Village.

It's an urban village, and also the location of the 280 million yuan factory site that Chen Xuebing told Yu Chunyin about.

Chen Xuebing knew that Huawei's headquarters was also located in an urban village in Longgang called Gangtou Village.

The thought that I would soon be starting out in the same place and under the same background as Huawei still makes me a little excited.

According to online reports on land auctions and tenders, this area has been undergoing urban renewal since 02.

It's been two or three years now. Given Shenzhen's development speed, isn't that...?

Not yet...

The car turned off the main road into a cluster of bungalows, and then stopped on a messy long street.

"We've arrived at Laoxi Village."

Chen Xuebing: ...

What exactly has changed in these three years?

The surrounding environment was somewhat similar to the streets of Chen Xuebing's rural hometown.

"What are you doing here? Buying local specialties?" Huo Xiaowen asked, glancing outside as he got out of the car.

"Remove the words 'original' and 'local specialty'."

Chen Xuebing calmed himself down and moved forward.

Huo Xiaowen counted on his fingers for a while before catching up.

"Buy soil?"

"Young hero, you have a good head for math."

Chen Xuebing gave a thumbs-up in praise, then asked a passerby on the street for directions.

"Hello, could you tell me which way to go on Shenhui Road?"

"There."

The man pointed in a direction.

Chen Xuebing didn't know the exact location of the plot in the village, but looking at the map, he knew that the plot was quite close to Shenhui Road outside, so he checked it again.

"Is there a piece of wasteland over there that's for sale? It should be about twenty acres."

12000 square meters, 666 square meters is one mu, 18 mu, if it is a standard rectangle, it would be 100×120 meters, which is about the size of two World Cup football fields.

This is an urban village, full of houses. This is such a large open space; the villagers should know about it.

"Oh...that junkyard, right? Yes, it's over there."

Chen Xuebing felt a chill in his heart upon hearing this.

Then he comforted himself: Damn it, it's a garbage dump, at least it's not a mass grave.

The village was quite large, with many alleys. After walking around in that direction for five or six hundred meters, I finally arrived.

"Damn, you really are buying dirt, huh?" Huo Xiaowen said sarcastically.

In front of them, the open space was piled with garbage and dirt, forming a small hill. A group of children were chasing each other on the dirt pile, and one of them was standing on the highest point and urinating down on it.

Seeing the environment here, Chen Xuebing felt more at ease.

In Shenzhen, where land is incredibly valuable, the housing compensation in Dachong Village, Nanshan District is 2500 yuan per square meter, calculated based on the building area. If it were a really good place, how could it be only 200 yuan per square meter?

Or is it the area of land occupied?

Looking into the distance, you can see a cluster of tall buildings; the bustling area of Longgang is only two kilometers away.

If the land use designation of this area is changed, the plot ratio should be able to be adjusted to 3-5 times.

If we calculate it five times, with a building area of 6 square meters, it would be no problem to build an office building of more than twenty stories.

If we make it shorter, we can build a spacious four- or five-story office building with a strong sense of design.

He had checked before coming here. In Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, converting industrial land to commercial land only costs a few hundred thousand yuan per mu. This place is not a special economic zone, so it might be even cheaper.

Chen Xuebing quickly calculated the potential returns in his mind. If handled properly and with a little additional investment, this land could yield at least ten times the return within five years.

Ten years from now, even a hundredfold increase might not be enough to take it down.

After making up his mind, Chen Xuebing didn't hesitate any longer, took out his phone, and called his uncle.

Once the call connected, Chen Xuebing got straight to the point.

"Uncle, are you home?"

"Ah."

"Is it convenient to talk? If not, hang up and I'll call back later."

"..." The voice on the other end suddenly became louder.

"Oh? Xiao Zhang! The documents... oh, they're in the car! Wait a minute!"

After a long while, the other person was able to speak normally again.

"You said."

Yu Chunyin's voice was still mixed with the echoes from the stairwell.

Chen Xuebing clicked his tongue, inwardly sighing at the hardships men face.

"I'm in Shenzhen right now."

"Huh? It's Chinese New Year, why aren't you spending time with your mom? What are you doing in Shenzhen?"

"Regarding the procurement. I've found a piece of land for you. It's in a good location, an urban village undergoing redevelopment, next to a main urban road, not far from the Longgang central area. It's 18 acres of industrial land, listed at 280 million. I estimate we can get it for under 300. However, there's a large layer of soil, probably dumped by a construction team. We'll need to call an excavator to clear it. The total investment... if you're willing, 310 should be enough. The seller should cover part of the leveling cost."

"... "

"310?"

"...Let me think about it."

Yu Chunyin was clearly stunned.

Chen Xuebing touched his nose and added, "If you want to buy this place, you can rent it to me for free. Within three years, I'll double the price and buy it back for you. If I can't buy it, I'll give you 50 yuan in rent every year."

"What?! Two rounds?! 900 million?!"

"Twice, not twice, 1200 million." Chen Xuebing's voice echoed in the wind, as if 1200 million were nothing more than paper in his mouth.

What nonsense are you spouting!

Chen Xuebing chuckled lightly: "I'm afraid you might change your mind later. I think we should sign an agreement first. I'll buy it for you for 1200 million, and you'll make a profit of 900 million. You'll give me a 20% commission, which is 180 million. So you can sell it to me for 1020 million."

They're incredibly shrewd, even more so than a monkey.

Yu Chunyin, however, felt that such a huge windfall was coming from heaven.

"Did you hear something from someone? Let me tell you, there are a lot of scammers in Shenzhen..."

Chen Xuebing interrupted, "To tell you the truth, I'm planning to open a factory here. You know I sell mobile phones, right? I make about 100,000 yuan a month now. If I set up my own assembly line, I can at least double the profit. I also have construction sites to work on. You know the profit margin on construction sites? 500,000 yuan a year. I can afford to rent it. That's 1.5 million yuan in three years. You're essentially buying this land for half the price. That's my guarantee for you."

"hiss…"

Yu Chunyin fell into deep thought.

If the nephew can guarantee the rent, that's an incredibly secure offer.

half an hour.

"Don't panic. Even if this works out, I'll still need to borrow money. Wait until after the New Year for me to come and investigate."

“I can lend you money, but I suggest you don’t bring anyone else in as a partner. This land is really profitable. I’m determined to buy it back from you at double the price. I’ll feel bad if someone else takes a slice of the profits. Also, don’t tell your aunt.”

"Nonsense! If I were to talk to her, would I need to borrow money? ...Are you really going to open a factory in Shenzhen? What about the construction site here?"

"Let's talk about it when you get here. I have to stay until after the eighth day of the month."

The factory Liu Tao introduced wouldn't start work until the seventh or eighth day of the Lunar New Year, and he would have to go to MediaTek after the New Year, so he definitely wouldn't be able to go back before the eighth day.

"I'll be here around the same time! You're doing this little thing, and you're not even celebrating the New Year?"

Chen Xuebing chuckled: "What's the point of celebrating the New Year? Once you've made money, every day is like New Year's."

"Ugh!" Yu Chunyin couldn't help but curse, "These high school seniors are more career-minded than I am!"

Chen Xuebing smirked: "You call that ambition? If you were truly ambitious, why would you be out here taking calls? If it were me, and my wife dared to block my path to making money, I'd slap her across the face."

Before the other end could continue hurling insults, I quickly hung up the phone.

"Bang! Bang!"

A little kid threw an oil drum into it from a short distance away, creating a double explosion.

The sound of firecrackers didn't frighten Chen Xuebing, but when he turned his head, he was so startled that he took a step back.

Huo Xiaowen was standing right next to him, staring at him in a daze.

Chen Xuebing yelled, "Damn it! Why are you standing so close to me?"

"Let me hear if you're just bragging or making fun of me."

After saying that, Huo Xiaowen still asked incredulously, "You're not buying soil, you're buying land? 300 million? Really 300 million?"

"Why the hell would I buy dirt! You're damn dirt-savvy enough!" Chen Xuebing ruffled his bald head in annoyance, then looked at his ripped jeans. "You country bumpkin, can't you at least buy yourself a couple of decent clothes now that you're making money? With your looks, you think you can be a boss?"

"These are damn imported Korean-style jeans! Over two hundred yuan! Each hole costs at least twenty yuan!" Huo Xiaowen said indignantly.

"I think you've got a hole in your head." Chen Xuebing pointed to the group of children not far away: "Go, grab a couple of firecrackers to play with, it's been years since we set off firecrackers."

Huo Xiaowen was speechless: "Why aren't you going?"

Chen Xuebing smiled shyly: "I'm embarrassed."

"Hold!"

……

Bored, I wandered around Shenzhen.

Chen Xuebing wasn't interested in tourist attractions.

Bantian Gangtou Village – Nanshan Feiyada Building – Nanyou Commercial Building.

Huawei's headquarters is already quite large, with its own building. The logo above the door still features 15 flower petals, and next to it hangs a sign that reads "Shenzhen's First Mayor's Quality Award Unit".

These days, Huawei has a lot of core technologies. There's a table at the entrance with a security guard sitting there. You can't enter without an employee badge.

People were coming and going inside, and many were still at work.

The Fiyta Building was bustling with people, but Tencent's headquarters clearly didn't have such a high level of technology. No one questioned me when I went up or down the stairs, and I even met Liu Chiping, who would be named the "King of Hired Managers" more than a decade later, in the elevator.

Tencent is clearly very busy.

The Nanyou Commercial Building, the headquarters of Vanke, is closed and no longer in operation.

A company listed on the A-share market closed down during the Chinese New Year holiday.

When Chen Xuebing came out, he clicked his tongue in amazement.

No wonder others have trillions, while you only have hundreds of billions.

This journey felt like a pilgrimage.

On this Lunar New Year's Eve, Chen Xuebing used this method to build up his inner strength.

Shenzhen also has many excellent companies, such as Ping An, BYD, SF Express, and Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics...

Chen Xuebing couldn't remember the names of several universities, but he had a deep impression of these companies. He had met them in the stock market, been a temporary small shareholder, studied their positive and negative factors, and even cursed the ancestors of their management.

Perhaps we will meet again in a different way in the future.

He was looking forward to it.

……

Evening, Baishizhou.

The colorful fireworks display at Window of the World provided a free and heartwarming experience for those who did not leave the city.

Even the barbecue stalls that didn't close were equally generous, offering half a case of beer with every 100 yuan worth of meat skewers.

Chen Xuebing was thoroughly drunk by Huo Xiaowen and the other three.

Xin Mengzhen called before 12 o'clock.

How was the New Year in Shenzhen?

"It's alright. The cuttlefish balls are delicious, the fireworks are beautiful, and there's plenty of money everywhere."

Chen Xuebing openly expressed his desire for money.

"I was worried you wouldn't have enough to eat. Do you like Shenzhen?"