Chapter 57 Second Uncle's Call 1 I just answered and said "hello," then the battery died...

Liang Jianshan was rushed into the emergency room. Shen Qinghuai, who was in a meeting, couldn't get away and had to arrange for Shen Tenglong to go to the hospital to sign the consent form for Liang Jianshan's surgery.

As for Liang Jianshan's wife, she wanted him to pay for her father's heart transplant, but Liang Jianshan was stingy and unwilling, so the couple had been going through a divorce for several years and were currently separated, so it was impossible for her to come and take care of him.

This is also a major reason why Liang Zhihao was spoiled. His father was too busy, and his mother wasn't around, so no one cared about him.

After the meeting, Shen Qinghuai also went to the hospital.

Before the man had even left the emergency room, Shen Tenglong saw him arrive and muttered, "Uncle, what do you need so much money for in this life? Uncle Liang isn't short of money..."

He didn't say anything more after that.

Shen Qinghuai sighed silently. Yes, Liang Jianshan's wife wasn't helping her family without restraint; she just wanted to show filial piety to her father. Besides, the demolition compensation was distributed per person, so his wife was entitled to a share.

But Liang Jianshan was too stingy and ultimately stood by and watched helplessly as his father-in-law died despite all efforts to save him.

Now his son is going astray, and he himself is so angry that he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and his life is hanging in the balance. Isn't this a kind of karma?

Thinking of karma in this life... Shen Qinghuai suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

Is Liang Yuting's extravagance his karma in this life? He abandoned his own daughter in Yunnan for over a decade without ever caring for her; he's no good either.

He suddenly felt a bit irritated, couldn't help but loosen his tie, glanced at his watch—it was almost time to get off work—and urged, "Go pick up your sister, I'll take care of things here."

"Okay." Shen Tenglong felt that his uncle had something on his mind. Could it be that he was thinking about himself? He couldn't help but advise, "Uncle, Xiaoman is a very good girl. You should take better care of her. Sincerity can move mountains. As for Grandpa's birthday banquet... she refuses to go."

"Okay, I know. Go quickly, it's cold, don't keep her waiting too long." Shen Qinghuai loosened his tie again, feeling inexplicably short of breath.

Speaking of the cold, Shen Tenglong chimed in, "By the way, Uncle, there's no heating pipe at the base. Don't you know someone at the heating company? Can you think of a solution? My sister's office is freezing cold, and the base can't even find a security guard."

"Okay, I got it. Go on." Shen Qinghuai picked up his mobile phone and dialed the boss of the heating group, "Old Sun, when will the pipeline be installed in the suburbs?"

"Oh, Lao Shen, the costs are too high. The residents over there have low incomes and are unwilling to pay upfront before construction begins. I can't do a losing business, can I? The group isn't my family's business; it belongs to the state." Lao Sun was in a difficult position. He was Shen Qinghuai's former classmate, and the two had a good relationship. He was speaking the truth.

Helpless, Shen Qinghuai could only ask, "Then provide me with manpower and equipment. I want to donate a boiler room to the police dog base so that the base can provide its own heating."

"A police dog base?" Old Sun paused for a moment, recalling some recent news, and couldn't help but ask, "Is it because of your eldest daughter?"

"Yes, Yunnan is never this cold all year round. It would be terrible if I got frostbite. Money is not a problem, just get it arranged for me as soon as possible." Shen Qinghuai didn't want to suffer the consequences of his actions; Liang Jianshan's experience had served as a somber warning to him.

His nephew's words made sense. Even if Xiaoman was still cold to him now, as long as he persisted, there would eventually be a day when their relationship would break down.

Old Sun understood and promised, "I've heard there's a brief rebound in the market, maybe two or three days. I'll arrange for construction to begin during those three days. But then you'll have to figure out the coal rationing yourself; each company has its own quota." After all, it's currently a dual-track market system, and the planned economy hasn't completely ended.

State-owned enterprises must still be subject to state planning and control.

Shen Qinghuai understood: "I know shipping companies in Hong Kong, so I can try to import some."

For imported goods, privately purchased goods, and goods not included in the planned quota, the government will not impose quota restrictions.

Old Sun was dumbfounded: "No way, imported ones are very expensive. What's wrong with you? Are you trying to compensate that child? But I heard from Old Jiang that you still haven't let her be recognized by her ancestors."

"I haven't settled things with my wife yet, so let's wait a bit longer." Shen Qinghuai didn't play tricks on his old classmate and spoke the truth.

Old Sun understood and sighed, "You were in the wrong first, and now you're in a dilemma. You're only reaping what you sowed. Hurry up and think of a solution. Actually, it's not difficult to handle. Your son is still young, and he might need your eldest daughter's help in the future. Explain the pros and cons to your wife and tell her to stop making a fuss."

"Yes." Shen Qinghuai understood.

Old Sun then reminded him, "Coal is a major energy commodity, and even if it's imported, it's still subject to the control of China Coal Group. You need to apply to them first and explain its purpose."

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Shen Qinghuai hung up the phone and immediately contacted the leaders of China Coal. When they heard that it was a donation to the police dog base, they readily agreed and told him to submit the application as soon as possible. They would open a green channel and approve it immediately.

Shen Qinghuai then contacted a Hong Kong businessman.

After haggling for most of the day, the other party was still in a difficult position. Coal is an energy source and a bulk commodity, and suppliers don't care about small-scale transactions. If they want to import it, they have to start with a whole shipload.

How many tons is a ship?

"If it's a Panamax ship, it's 60,000 to 80,000 tons. If it's a Capesize ship, it's generally 150,000 to 180,000 tons. I don't think you can handle anything bigger; those start at 200,000 tons."

"Aren't there any smaller cargo ships?"

"The Russians and Vietnamese do have small, handy cargo ships, each weighing about 20,000 to 40,000 tons. But as you know, business with those two countries is tough. Just the pile of approval documents alone is enough to make me need nitroglycerin pills."

"Then let's go with the Panamax type. How much for one ship?"

"For thermal coal, the current international average price is $30-40 per ton, and that's just the FOB price. Shipping costs also need to be factored in, varying by route and ranging from $5-10 per ton. Fortunately, the country currently exempts coal imports from tariffs, so the CIF price is $35-50 per ton, and a Panamax shipment would cost between $2.1 million and $4 million. For coking coal, it's much more expensive—"

"Boiler heating is not steelmaking."

“Then it’s thermal coal. When do you need it? I’ll contact the cargo ship and the supplier.”

"I need it now, prepayment or full payment?"

"Prepayment provides a buffer in case of unforeseen circumstances during shipping."

Shen Qinghuai understood that the current international situation was not good, and the probability of shipping accidents was quite high.

"Then let's make a prepayment," he asked. "How much?"

"It's usually 30%-50%. I'll talk to them first, and I'll call you back once we've reached an agreement." The Hong Kong businessman hung up the phone.

Shen Qinghuai thought for a moment, then made another overseas call. His second uncle, Shen Wanming, was abroad and could help him negotiate a lower price with the supplier.

Shen Wanming was unaware of what was happening in China, and was quite surprised to receive a call from his dear nephew.

Upon asking, I learned that this scoundrel had abandoned his daughter in the countryside, and now that his daughter is successful, he wants to make it up to her.

Shen Wanming berated him over the phone, finally demanding, "What kind of skill is it to just give money? When are you planning to bring your child back to your ancestral home?"

Shen Qinghuai had a bit of a headache: "Uncle, the situation here is complicated—"

"Get out!" Shen Wanming interrupted him directly. "Listen, I can help you lower the price, but the money saved isn't for you. You give the difference to Xiaoman, not a penny less, understand?"

"Okay." Shen Qinghuai had no objection; after all, she was his daughter, so it wasn't a loss.

Before hanging up the phone, Shen Wanming asked for Qiu Xiaoman's number and wrote it down in his memo.

When the call was made, Qiu Xiaoman was helping out in the Vietnamese interrogation room and refused to answer.

Shen Wanming guessed that the child was busy, so he quickly contacted the supplier.

The Hong Kong businessmen just agreed on an FOB price of US$36 per ton. Taking a shortcut, the sea freight cost is US$7 per ton, making it US$43 per ton. The cargo ship they found is an 80,000-ton class vessel, so the total is US$3.44 million. With a 50% prepayment, that's US$1.72 million.

Just as he was about to call Shen Qinghuai back, he received a call from the supplier. Apparently, an acquaintance had intervened and brought down the FOB price to $29 per ton. The cargo ship was also a friend's, and the shipping price was also discounted to $6 per ton, making the CIF price $35 per ton. The cargo ship was still an 80,000-ton vessel, so the total cost was $2.8 million. In total, he saved $640,000!

The prepayment ratio was also reduced to 30%, giving Shen Qinghuai enough time to process the money!

The Hong Kong businessmen were dumbfounded. They quickly asked who the acquaintance was. When they heard it was Shen Wanming, they were relieved. It was only natural, as he was a big shot on Wall Street.

Hurry up and inform Shen Qinghuai. Shen Qinghuai calculated that, based on the current exchange rate of 4.72, his second uncle had saved him 3,020,800 RMB in one go.

Great, his Xiaoman is now a millionaire.

After hanging up the phone, he immediately contacted Manager Zhao and rushed to China Coal Group to submit the materials and make an application.

Manager Zhao was dumbfounded. Had President Shen gone mad?! 2.8 million US dollars! That's 13.216 million RMB!

Just to provide heating for your eldest daughter? Why didn't you do that earlier? You're such an idiot. You used to save a little money, and now you're paying a huge price.

Xiao Qiu might not be convinced!

However, President Shen doesn't seem like the type to do business at a loss. Besides, a police dog base wouldn't need that much coal.

He suddenly asked out of curiosity, "Mr. Shen, is it possible that international energy prices are going to rise?"

"I don't know. We'll just stock up on what we can't use and wait for the price to go up." Shen Qinghuai certainly didn't have the ability to predict the future, but...

The escalating oil dispute in Iraq will certainly impact major energy commodities such as coal.

Never mind, if we really can't use it all, we can sell it to China Coal. Let's just leave it at that!

*

Qiu Xiaoman spent the entire afternoon in the interrogation building. When she came out of the Vietnamese interrogation room, her mouth was dry from talking.

In short, with Liang Zhihao's cooperation, Qiu Xiaoman had managed to get the Vietnamese man to confess everything he needed to.

Team Leader Zou was surprised and impressed by the young girl's many skills. He invited her to have dinner with the criminal investigation team after get off work.

Qiu Xiaoman declined: "Maybe next time. I have to go to the base. Two dogs got into a fight today. I was planning to go and deal with it this afternoon. If I don't go now, they might fight again tomorrow."

"Okay, then I'll have Tiger take you." Team Leader Zou is two years older than Brother Tiger, so naturally he wouldn't call him "brother."

Qiu Xiaoman refused again, pointing to the Santana that was slowly driving up: "No, my brother is here, see you later."

Team Leader Zou could only wave goodbye and watch the young comrade leave in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Tiger stood next to him and couldn't help but sigh, "Talented people emerge in every generation."

"That's right, let's go eat!"

In the car, Qiu Xiaoman leaned back in the back seat and yawned wearily. Shen Tenglong asked about the destination and was a little curious as to why they were going to the slaughterhouse first.

After thinking for a moment, he still reminded him, "The slaughterhouse is closed. If you need anything, I'll take you somewhere else to buy it."

"Oh, then let's just find a place that sells pig offal. I'll buy some pig intestines," Qiu Xiaoman added, yawning. "After that, I'll go to the mall to buy two plush toys."

Huh? Shen Tenglong was completely confused. Oh well, never mind, he'll just do it.

The place where you can buy both of these items at once is Fule Department Store.

As he stopped in the parking lot, Qiu Xiaoman's mobile phone rang.

Qiu Xiaoman opened her eyes, picked up her mobile phone, and just as she answered with a "hello," it ran out of battery and shut down.