America's No. 1 financial conglomerate

Chapter 391 Trade Laundering

Chen Hongping's office is decorated in a traditional Chinese style. The dark solid wood desk is calm and dignified, and the antique display shelf in the corner displays a few antique porcelain and jade pieces, revealing the owner's love for traditional culture.

But in this office full of Chinese charm, there sat a group of people who were completely out of place.

A group of burly men, the kind you only see in American gangster movies, were gathered around the coffee table in the office, enthusiastically enjoying the Chinese pastries laid out on the table.

"Boss Greg, this mung bean cake is so soft, but it's not sweet enough. If it were sweeter, it would be much better than any macaron." A burly man with a buzz cut and a scar on his face picked up a mung bean cake and mumbled as he chewed.

His voice was hoarse with a distinct American accent, but he seemed quite interested in this dessert favored by women. Before he had even finished one piece, he reached out to grab a second one.

"Then you can try this," said another burly man sitting next to the scarred man.

He picked up a garlic stick coated with glistening frosting and handed it to the scarred man, his tone carrying a hint of recommendation, "It's both sweet and salty; it would be perfect with cola."

The burly man with the scar took the garlic stick, took a bite, and was immediately impressed by its crisp texture. However, when he saw the teacups on the coffee table, his eyes instantly turned to disdain.

He glanced at the teacup, his brow furrowed. "I don't like this drink, especially since it's unsweetened tea. It's awful."

After saying that, he deliberately pushed the teacup to the side, as if the tea was some kind of monstrous flood.

What he didn't know was that the tea he so disliked was actually Chen Hongping's treasured Da Hong Pao, costing several thousand yuan per kilogram, a precious item that he usually couldn't bear to drink.

"You all need to be mindful of your image." Compared to his younger brothers, who were full of curiosity about Chinese pastries and tea and behaved casually, Craig was clearly much more composed.

"You all need to be mindful of your image." Compared to these younger brothers who were curious about everything, Craig had been here a few times and was now basically used to it.

Sitting in a wooden chair, his large body completely nestled inside, his flesh peeking out from the gaps, he said, "You're businessmen now, don't always act like you've never seen the world."

"What's this? In a few days I'll take you to Dongguan, that's the real paradise." Craig's tone was mysterious and seductive, as if Dongguan possessed some irresistible charm.

While Craig was giving a lesson to his underlings in his office, Ding Haitao was pulling Chen Hongping along in the hallway outside the office. The two were whispering to each other, their faces showing some doubt and unease.

"Are you really sure these are foreign businessmen?" Ding Haitao asked Chen Hongping again, his tone full of uncertainty.

He had just glanced at the office from the doorway and his impression was that all the pastries were a waste; a few bottles of beer and a couple of pistols would have been more appropriate.

"Of course, I've met that Craig," Chen Hongping replied, though his tone carried a hint of uncertainty.

Ding Haitao wore a wry smile and said in a low voice, "I have a feeling it's the bandit leader who's walked in."

Although his words were somewhat exaggerated, they revealed the true feelings of both of them.

The way those burly men spoke and acted made it hard to associate them with foreign businessmen; instead, they were more likely to be seen as bandits who robbed and plundered.

But he did see Craig, and the last time Craig came, he was accompanied by government officials. "I guess this kind of attire is fashionable among American businessmen now?"

Ding Haitao turned around and looked at Chen Hongping with a blank expression. The meaning in his eyes was all too clear: Do I look like an idiot to you?

Even if American fashion trends are unique, it's impossible for businessmen to dress like this, right?

Big gold chain, big gold watch, all kinds of tattoos all over his body, wearing earrings and studs, he goes around the world doing business with people?

He even wondered to himself, could these people have regressed to their ancestral ways? Are they becoming more and more like the bandits of the past?

"Don't worry." Chen Hongping saw the doubt in Ding Haitao's mind, patted him on the shoulder, and reassured him, "We'll take good care of him. Director Chen's plane will arrive this afternoon. With him here, what's there to worry about?"

Although he had never met Director Chen, he had heard Chen Hongping mention him before and knew that it was he who had been helping Craig establish connections with Chinese companies.

"What's he doing here? Buying some clothes isn't that serious, is it?" In Ding Haitao's opinion, no matter how powerful this foreign businessman is, he wouldn't need to make such a fuss about purchasing textiles, would he?

"Buy some clothes?" Chen Hongping pursed his lips, then cautiously looked around to make sure no one was there before leaning close to Ding Haitao's ear and whispering, "My secretary just told me that these people seem to be planning to purchase a lot of goods, on a scale of several billion US dollars."

Chen Hongping's voice wasn't loud, but the words "billions of dollars" exploded in Ding Haitao's ears like a bombshell.

"Dozens..." Ding Haitao was so surprised when he heard the number that he almost shouted it out. He quickly covered his mouth, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"What are they planning to do? How much are Walmart's total orders in a year?"

Walmart, as a multinational giant in the retail industry, has always been a major customer of China, with annual purchases amounting to billions of dollars.

Craig America Trading Company is an obscure little company. Even if it has a super-rich person behind it, it is impossible for it to purchase so many goods.

Chen Hongping shrugged and spread his hands, saying, "How would I know? Otherwise, why would Director Chen fly over here?"

"Anyway, we just need to treat them well. As long as we secure the clothing orders, we can not only survive the second half of this year, but also use these orders and bank loans to continue expanding our production capacity and become one of the largest garment manufacturers in Jinjiang. At that time..." Chen Hongping became more and more excited as he spoke, his eyes sparkling with anticipation for the future.

He seemed to have already envisioned his company growing and becoming a leading enterprise in Jinjiang's garment industry.

However, before Chen Hongping could finish speaking, Ding Haitao was already eager to rush out.

Fortunately, Chen Hongping reacted quickly and grabbed him, asking in confusion, "Where are you going?"

Ding Haitao glared at him with displeasure. "It's already past ten o'clock. The Americans have been on the plane for such a long time; they must be starving. Shouldn't we make sure they eat and drink well?"

"Let's go to a restaurant. I, Ding Haitao, will risk my life to make sure we have a good time today," Ding Haitao said firmly, patting his chest.

Whether Ding Haitao actually risked his life after lunch is unknown, but one thing is certain: he definitely gave up his bladder.

People in Fujian province often enjoy drinking Shaoxing wine, which has a low alcohol content, a mellow taste, and a unique aroma.

In business settings, however, they tend to prefer drinking baijiu (Chinese white liquor).

However, Craig and his group didn't like drinking huangjiu or baijiu, and the restaurant didn't have any red wine, so they ended up drinking beer.

If it comes to the quality of their drinks, Ding Haitao isn't afraid of these Americans at all.

But now it's about quantity, not alcohol content, just lots of water.

Ding Haitao is already fifty years old, while Craig and his group seem to live in a beer-drinking world, drinking beer as easily as drinking water, one glass after another, unable to stop.

They ate and drank heartily, sometimes chugging down a bite of food straight from the bottle.

And their eating manners were quite unrestrained, with food spilled everywhere and soup dripping down their chins. Ding Haitao really wanted to call Lu Hui and have her come over to see how these Americans ate, so she would know how elegant his own eating manners were.

However, in any case, the meal was generally quite enjoyable.

Craig and his group were very satisfied with the food, and even more satisfied with their underlings' drinking capacity. As they left, Craig put his arm around Ding Haitao and said, "We have things to do today, but we'll have another drink when we have time. We won't let you down."

Ding Haitao, holding back his pee, cursed under his breath: "So everyone's here to keep me company, huh? Then who am I supposed to keep up with?"

After getting into the car, when everyone returned to Chen Hongping's company, Director Chen also arrived.

Director Chen came not alone, but with a professional team, which shows that the government attaches great importance to Craig and his delegation's visit.

Then, just like Chen Hongping and Chen Hongping, when they met Craig's underlings, they all looked at each other in bewilderment, wondering, "Is this the latest trend?"

Inside the meeting room, because there were too many people, Craig's men were arranged to rest elsewhere, while he was left to handle the negotiations alone.

"Chen, we're old friends, so I won't beat around the bush."

Craig sat on the sofa, took a satisfying sip of his cola, and wore a contented expression.

Craig was very satisfied with Ding Haitao's hospitality today, especially after seeing how much everyone in the restaurant liked Coca-Cola. He immediately asked the restaurant staff to move several cases to his car and bring some back with him.

"Of course, I will try my best to meet any requests you may have," Director Chen replied with a smile.

Upon hearing Director Chen's words, Craig did not speak immediately. Instead, he turned to look at the other people in the room, his eyes carrying a hint.

Director Chen was a smart man and immediately understood Craig's meaning. He gave him a knowing smile and said, "Don't worry, they'll forget anything we say in this room once we leave this room."

Craig nodded in satisfaction, a smile spreading across his face. He then adjusted his posture, leaning slightly forward, his expression turning serious as he said earnestly, "I hope to raise the prices of our imported goods. In return, we can leave China with a super order worth no less than five billion US dollars."

As soon as he finished speaking, the room fell silent, as if the air itself had frozen.

Chen Hongping and Ding Haitao exchanged a surprised glance, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

Having spent years navigating the business world, the two men immediately thought of money laundering when they heard Craig's words.

As one of the important foreign trade ports, Fujian has very frequent foreign trade activities. Locals are no strangers to money laundering through trade, and can even be said to be very familiar with it.

Why do companies that can easily purchase cheaper and better products domestically choose to spend several times more to buy them from abroad?

Why infringe on patents that could have been avoided, only to end up with an outrageously high compensation payout without even offering a defense?

This is trade money laundering, a method of money laundering second only to shell company money laundering in scale.

When Greg mentioned raising the price of goods, he wasn't referring to raising the price for them, but rather the price on the invoices and customs declarations. This was to transform illegally obtained funds into legitimate trade income, thereby concealing the true nature of the funds. No wonder they needed to find Director Chen; they really couldn't do without him.

Although they can manipulate the system by signing private contracts, issuing false invoices, or inflating customs declaration amounts, this will lead to a significant increase in the amount of taxes payable, and this additional cost usually has to be borne by the purchasing party.

But if Director Chen could communicate with those above and open a door, the situation would be completely different.

Craig's purchasing scale is so large that he can undoubtedly save a huge amount of money.

Will Director Chen make that exception?

He was eager to personally handle this $5 billion trade deal, only regretting that the opportunity wasn't big enough.

However, he will still fight for it when the time is right.

"Mr. Greg, you know this is no small matter," Director Chen said, looking troubled.

Ding Haitao, standing to the side, subtly curled his lip. Such things might be difficult to do in the United States, but in China, where everything is focused on economic development, it's practically out in the open.

However, Craig was unaware of this and immediately nodded in response, "Of course, otherwise I wouldn't have contacted you specifically. But I believe you have the ability to help me solve this problem."

Director Chen feigned hesitation, then sighed after a moment, "I can help with this, but the problem is the amount..."

"Is the amount too large?" Craig pressed.

Director Chen quickly chimed in, fearing the other party might reduce the order again: "It's not that it's too big, it's that it's too small."

Craig's eyes widened. "Do all Chinese officials act this recklessly? Fifty billion US dollars is too little? Are you afraid they won't be able to find out?"

However, he was secretly delighted. He didn't care if it was small or not, because this was a way to make money.

What are these lackeys I brought here for? They're just using their newly established shell company to conduct sham transactions. Even if things are exposed, it won't have anything to do with Craig Trading Company. All I'm doing is normal trade.

So Craig wasn't afraid at all, and he didn't care about washing more later.

"I may not have told you that this five-billion-dollar order is just the first phase, and there will be many more five-billion-dollar orders in the future."

He recalled Ernst's words, the scale of the trade he described, which instructed him to drive the purchase price down as low as possible.

"According to our estimates, in three to five years, the annual procurement volume should exceed 30 to 50 billion US dollars."

The room fell silent instantly, and everyone except Craig had only one thought in their minds.

Are these Americans now so blatant about money laundering?

With hundreds of billions of dollars a year, isn't that backed by the big leaf king of North America?