Chapter 82 Going to Ukraine to Buy Steel (Bug Fix): Why is there another clearance sale?

The idea of ​​using the primary wholesalers in Moscow's black market to consume large amounts of rubles is a wonderful one, and it's a win-win solution for all participants, so it should be easy to implement.

But here's the question: what is Huaxia Commercial Street's motive for proposing this plan?

For both the Russian and Chinese factories, the commercial street is a normal business operation where they can earn commissions, and there's nothing impure about it.

But when it comes to the big-time speculators, the behavior on the commercial street takes on a strange and bizarre character.

You clearly own your own air transport company, and you clearly have existing sales platforms and channels, so why are you pushing your customers onto us?

Isn't money appealing?

That's right, you guessed it, it's the ruble that's causing people's troubles.

But Wang Xiao and Ivanov couldn't just tell the big-time speculators that directly.

To be honest, how else can they push the ruble out?

After thinking for a long time, Ivanov suggested that they simply say that the two of them were only superficially friendly and that they each wanted to squeeze more money out of each other.

He would step in to introduce business opportunities and demand high commissions from primary wholesalers.

In this way, everyone knows that he wants to steal from the business and cheat his partners, so they can naturally accept the concessions made by the commercial street.

After all, no matter how much money the company makes, it can't compare to the money that's directly in your own hands.

Hey, this idea seems pretty good. It perfectly fits the cunning, money-grubbing, and shameless tactics of businessmen.

But after thinking about it for a long time, Wang Xiao still shook his head and refused.

It wasn't that she was kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see Ivanov ruin his image.

Sigh, to put it bluntly, even a truly honest and kind person, like a pure white jasmine flower, simply cannot survive in the world of black marketeers.

Her refusal stemmed from the fact that she couldn't let outsiders think that the business empire of the commercial street, the trade city, and Wuzhou Freight Company had only just begun, yet the two partners had already started a cutthroat competition, betraying each other.

Once the resellers have this idea, then whether it's a commercial city or a commercial street, they will see it as something extremely unreliable, as they don't know when it will be sacrificed.

If the platform is unreliable, why would people continue to buy goods from you?

So the two discussed it for a long time and finally decided on the high-sounding excuse to be used in front of others: to maintain customer relationships.

Since the preparation of the Huaxia Commercial Street in Moscow, they have used Wuzhou Company's planes quite a bit to ensure a stable supply of goods.

It's fair to say that at least one-third of the cargo planes are now exclusively used by Huaxia Commercial Street.

This will inevitably affect other speculators' use of airplanes.

In order to retain this customer base, their company decided to offer discounts so that everyone would suffer less loss and not be so angry that they would run away.

Only in this way will the big-time traders be willing to continue purchasing goods from the International Trade City.

Of course, this statement cannot be directly presented to the middlemen.

During the phone call, Wang Xiao and Ivanov insisted that it was because they had a good relationship and could make money together.

Next, the primary wholesalers will naturally try to find out inside information.

As for the content of this inside information, it must be what Wang Xiao wants them to hear.

Capitalists, indeed, are beings who lack conscience.

Wang Xiao and Ivanov each decided to fast for a day, even giving up playing with small toys, in order to accumulate some good karma for themselves.

Well, how effective is this approach?

Sigh, a long-term scalper bluntly reminded them: "Then you might as well try to get more flights."

Wang Xiao laughed it off: "Definitely, definitely, we're already thinking of a solution."

If they really wanted to, as long as they could consume a large amount of rubles, they could directly use the Chinese yuan deposited into their accounts by the Chinese buyers to purchase goods, and then free up US dollars to buy airplanes.

For the rest of January, Wang Xiao and Ivanov were extremely busy, constantly traveling between various factories.

There's no way around it; their operations have become too large, and there's simply no one else who can directly take over the job of acting as an intermediary.

Domestic manufacturers only trust Wang Xiao, while the Russian side is also trembling with fear without Ivanov's approval.

It's mainly because of this era; shell companies are everywhere, and there are tons of scammers.

Those focused on production are unlikely to see through their tactics. Furthermore, the translators hastily assembled are often self-taught, lacking proficiency in at least half the required terminology, leading to frequent misunderstandings and a sense of mutual incomprehension. Therefore, they truly need a reliable intermediary.

During this process, the Moscow China Commercial Street, which became famous overnight, helped Wang Xiao and Ivanov a lot.

Their standard operating procedure for brokerage business is that Ivanov first takes the Russian factory representative to Huaxia Commercial Street for a stroll, and then goes with Wang Xiao to the airport or train station to pick up the target customer—the Chinese factory. The two parties then stroll through the commercial street again, and the Chinese factory will then feel at ease to go to the Russian factory for an on-site inspection.

During this process, no one said why they had to go to the shopping street, but everyone silently accepted the process.

Because it demonstrates one thing: the middleman is wealthy and powerful, not a shell company, and has no interest in swindling you out of a pittance.

After all, from the perspective of the Russian factory, having so many supplies to supply the shops on two streets with a steady stream of goods gives them absolute confidence.

In Russia right now, although people don't say it, they all believe that money is meaningless and resources are king.

In the eyes of the Chinese buyers, Wang Xiao and his group were practically the owners of Wangfujing Street in Beijing; to call them wealthy and powerful would be an insult.

This is clearly a top-tier luxury family.

Wang Xiao felt that the commercial street was now more like an online shopping platform, where buyers and sellers completed transactions based on their trust in the platform.

To be honest, their platform is quite efficient, even providing air freight services and helping to introduce rail transport. Therefore, once a buyer finds a suitable option, the transaction speed is astonishingly fast.

The fastest order took only three days from the buyer's arrival in Moscow to their departure with the goods.

These three days were mainly spent waiting for the transfer between the Russian bank and the Chinese bank.

In January 1992, such efficiency could be described as light speed.

You should know that it takes at least a week for international middlemen to receive the money when transferring funds from Russia to China.

What does this prove? It proves that you still need a middleman to make things work.

Without hesitation, Wang Xiao immediately arranged for a press release to exaggerate the matter, hoping to take the opportunity to advertise and attract more buyers and sellers.

This is crucial: Russians have a very low awareness of advertising these days. There are practically no billboards on the streets, and television commercials are scarce. Therefore, people have a similar kind of unwavering faith in television as the Chinese people did right after China's reform and opening up.

Public outreach is important, but official registration is equally crucial.

She made several trips to the Chinese Embassy in Moscow, and Ivanov also used his connections to get a number with the Russian Federation Embassy in Beijing.

In short, when someone wants to find buyers and sellers through official channels, the International Trade City and Huaxia Commercial Street can provide them with options.

With this two-pronged approach, the real estate agency business naturally thrived.

Even when Ms. Chen Yanqiu led a group to Moscow for sightseeing again, she couldn't help but chuckle: "Oh my, my daughter is really something, it's rare for her to see people. I stayed in Moscow for several days and didn't see a single person."

Actually, she has been to Moscow several times already, so she's the type to check off her list repeatedly and could easily avoid the hassle of traveling back and forth.

But the problem was that she was afraid Lenin's body would actually be moved from Red Square, and she wanted to see it a few more times, which is why she decided to come to Moscow again.

Wang Xiao touched his nose and remained silent.

Anyway, she knew that her mother wasn't actually waiting for her reaction.

Sure enough, the workers from the surrounding steel mills and other large factories immediately started chattering: "Oh my, Chairman Chen, really! If my daughter were this capable, I'd be laughing in my sleep! She's in the People's Daily! That's amazing! In our entire factory, besides the factory director and the Party Secretary, who else has ever been featured in the People's Daily?"

The others echoed, "That's right, that's right."

Are factory directors and party secretaries ordinary people? They're not even within the scope of discussion for ordinary folks like us.

Only daughters like Deputy Factory Director Wang and Chairman Chen's daughters are truly capable.

Foreign newspapers interviewed her, giving her a large feature, and she even appeared on foreign television.

Despite the auspiciousness of their ancestral graves emitting auspicious smoke, they remained remarkably calm and silent.

If it weren't for the People's Daily reprinting the news in a foreign newspaper, no one in the factory would have known about it. That's amazing.

Chen Yanqiu's smile was practically radiating from her ears, yet she still feigned modesty: "No way, she's just a child."

Wang Tiejun remained silent.

Doesn't he know his wife? Actually, she bought a whole bunch of those foreign newspapers, intending to bring them back and casually show them off.

Unfortunately, the domestic newspapers reacted too quickly, and before she could even find a chance to boast, the news broke. So, as for foreign newspapers, she can only keep them as treasured possessions at home.

Wang Xiao waited until Dr. Chen had fully satisfied his vanity before inviting everyone to get on the bus.

There were too many people coming, and everyone was carrying luggage, so taking a car would be too inconvenient. Wang Xiao specially rented five buses in Moscow to make it easier to pick everyone up and drop them off.

As soon as she got on the bus, she started handing out envelopes. Each envelope contained 10,000 rubles, which is less than 100 US dollars, or about 500 yuan.

However, in Moscow right now, 10,000 rubles actually has considerable purchasing power.

Although the government deregulated the prices of most goods starting January 2nd, and prices generally increased three to five times, 10,000 rubles can still buy a lot of things because the previous floor prices were low.

The reason they organized the union members from the large factory to come to Moscow this time was so that everyone could buy more things in Moscow and increase the variety of raffle prizes at the New Year's party when they returned to the factory, which would also add a touch of exoticism.

Wang Xiao emphasized: "Russians are relatively quiet, and they don't like to shout when they set up stalls on the street. We must respect their customs, not make a fuss, and especially not point fingers, otherwise it will have a bad international impact."

The people on the bus all said, "No, no, we are all respectable people, we wouldn't do such a shady thing."

"One more thing, watch out for pickpockets, be very careful. When spending money, don't take the envelope out all at once, that's easy to be spotted. Be especially wary of Gypsies, don't be fooled by the fact that they mostly consist of women and children. They will gather in groups to attack foreigners. Everyone follow instructions, and never be alone."

She kept rambling on and on until the bus stopped next to Red Square, at which point she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

These days, there are fewer people queuing at the entrance of the shopping street, but there are more people on the street. This is because many stalls set up by local Moscow residents have gradually appeared on both sides of the street.

Some were selling medals from the Soviet era, others were selling beautiful tableware, and still others were holding roller skates. But most were selling matryoshka dolls, badges, banners, and oil paintings.

But no matter who was setting up the stall, they were all very quiet. If Wang Xiao hadn't reminded the factory workers who got off the bus, they wouldn't have realized that these people were doing business at a stall.

The union cadres were overwhelmed and couldn't help but shake their heads: "How can you sell things like this? How are you going to sell anything like this?"

As we were talking, suddenly someone squeezed up with something in their hand; it was long and soft, and it seemed to be moving.

A female union cadre who was chatting with Wang Xiao caught a glimpse of it, screamed in fright, turned pale, and collapsed to the ground.

Everyone was terrified and hurriedly helped her up, desperately pinching her philtrum.

She slowly woke up, and when she saw that long thing again, she rolled her eyes upwards.

"Belt, belt!"

Wang Xiao quickly called out.

The little boy holding the belt was also frightened and looked a bit lost.

He ran over to sell the belt he was carrying, because there were many foreigners around Red Square lately, and foreigners are the most generous; they are often willing to spend money to buy things.

The female union official then awkwardly explained, "I'm sorry, I thought it was a snake."

The strange thing is that Moscow winters are too cold, and her glasses fog up easily. Whenever she sees an unfolded belt, she mistakes it for a snake.

However, she had a psychological trauma from being frightened by someone holding a snake close to her face when she was a child, and she is particularly afraid of snakes.

The factory workers were all dissatisfied and scolded the child, saying, "What are you trying to do? You just suddenly came up to us like that, it's really scary."

Russians are generally tall and strong, and even though this little boy had a childlike face, he was already as tall as most Chinese adults. At first glance, he didn't look weak or harmless at all.

The boy became increasingly flustered, repeatedly muttering, "I'm sorry."

However, everyone's anger subsided after a while, and some even asked about the price of the belt.

It's not expensive; a sturdy military belt costs less than ten yuan in RMB, but they want US dollars, one dollar.

Well, then nobody will want to talk to him.

Seeing this, the little boy offered to sell it for eighty rubles.

He eventually agreed to sell after being pressured to sell for fifty rubles.

As a result, the person who tried to bargain felt embarrassed and secretly asked Wang Xiao, "Never mind, how about eighty rubles?"

Wang Xiao smiled and said, "It's okay, it's normal to try to lower the price."

However, the buyer still took out a piece of Big Bubble Gum and handed it to the child as a way of comforting him.

The little boy turned red with joy, shouting "Big Brother!" before grabbing his bubble gum and running away.

Just when everyone was marveling at how kids are just kids, no different domestically or internationally, he came back, holding an egg beater, and shoved it directly into the buyer's hand.

Everyone was stunned. Wang Xiao smiled and explained, "This is for you, take it."

The buyer was bewildered: "Is this a gift to return to me? That's inappropriate. How could I take advantage of someone else's child?"

Bubble gum is just candy, isn't it? It's shameful to give a child a piece of candy and expect it to be a gift.

Dr. Chen chuckled: "He thinks he's taking advantage of you. People here really love Big Big Bubble Gum. If you bring two packs of Big Big Bubble Gum here, you can exchange them for anything you want."

The factory workers started brainstorming: "Then our factory can produce bubble gum and sell it exclusively to the Russians."

Don't think it's strange that steel mills and chemical plants produce chewing gum. In this day and age, it's not unusual for large factories to have their own independent food processing plants.

Dr. Chen shook his head: "No, they only recognize Big Big Bubble Gum, they don't care about other brands at all."

Let alone her, even Ivanov, a native Russian, couldn't understand why Russians were so obsessed with Big Bubble Gum. He didn't think it tasted that good either.

What's amazing is that it's not just Russians; people from the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe also have a very high level of acceptance for it.

As if to verify Dr. Chen's words, the boy who sold belts brought a group of children with him. They were holding all sorts of goods and shouting, "Big brother, big brother!"

The factory worker, who had brought a box of Big Bubble Gum, was in a flurry of activity. After he finished exchanging the items, he was dumbfounded: "I only spent two yuan on this box!"

Now he has so many things he's exchanged that he can't hold them all in his hands, so he has to put them in his bag. There are badges, stamps, all kinds of spoons and ladles, and exquisitely crafted wooden dolls. His bag is bulging.

Those around couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "No wonder there are so many resellers!"

This is such a great deal!

Seeing that it was about time, Wang Xiao said goodbye to her mother, "You can explore on your own from now on."

She has to go.

Where to go? To Ukraine.

Who are you going with? Comrade Wang Tiejun and Ivanov.

What are we going to do? Deal with steel.

Why not get it from Russia, which is closer to home? One reason is that Ukraine happens to have the goods, and another reason is to maintain a balance.

The Soviet Union has now dissolved, but the ruble is still the official currency in most CIS countries.

Although Ukraine borders Russia, they are, after all, two separate countries.

The local steel mill wouldn't accept the rubles one minute and then travel all the way to Huaxia Commercial Street to return them.

Because there are also primary wholesalers in Kyiv who source their goods from the Xiaozhou International Trade City, they are happy to provide direct services to the steel mill.

Besides Kyiv, major traders in Almaty also expressed their hope that they could do this kind of business as well.

Both Wang Xiao and Ivanov gave their assurances.

Next time, they will definitely find a way to make it happen when there is an opportunity for cooperation.

Haha, it would be strange if they didn't welcome a ruble-covered Pixiu delivered right to their doorstep.

The main reason for not focusing on Kazakhstan this time is that the international train from Almaty to Urumqi is not yet operational, and Kazakhstan is a typical landlocked country, so relying on water transport is simply not feasible.

The situation in Ukraine is much better. The steel mill is right next to the Black Sea, where the sun shines brightly and it is also a rare ice-free port.

Once the steel was in hand, it was shipped directly to Jiangdong by sea.

Wait a minute, why would Comrade Wang Tiejun, as the deputy director of Jiangdong Steel Plant, travel all the way to Ukraine to buy steel?

Can't their steel mill produce steel themselves?

Yes, of course.

But Jiangdong Steel Plant was worried that it wouldn't be able to produce enough steel.

What's wrong?

Because the chief architect of China's reform and opening up, who had already stepped down from his post, went to Wuchang on January 18. He addressed the top two leaders of Hubei Province, emphasizing that economic development should be the central task.

Then, without stopping, the elderly man went to Shenzhen and, despite his advanced age, began to observe the city's development achievements.

As we all know, Shenzhen is the first calling card of China's reform and opening up.

The implications of his actions are self-evident.

Although no official documents have yet been issued in China requiring Party members and cadres to study the spirit of his speech, those with keen senses, such as the top leader of the Jiangdong Steel Plant, immediately sensed something unusual.

As veterans of the steel industry, the first reaction of the steel plant's senior management was that a large-scale construction project was about to begin.

Adhering to the principle of holding small meetings for important matters, the leadership team held a meeting that very evening and finalized the matter of importing steel in order to cope with the subsequent construction boom.

They dare to take this gamble because there is a policy basis for it.

Last year, in October 1991, the state issued the "Opinions on Comprehensively Promoting the Reform of the Urban Housing System," which fundamentally clarified the market-oriented development direction of the real estate market.

Now that the elder statesman is speaking frankly again, emphasizing that economic development should be the central task, he is effectively clarifying the central government's stance: stop arguing about whether something is capitalist or socialist; developing the economy is the top priority right now.

This is tantamount to the central government endorsing large-scale infrastructure construction, which is a golden opportunity for steel mills to develop.

Therefore, no sooner had the factory's Party Committee reached a consensus than the procurement team, represented by Comrade Wang Tiejun, set off. Adhering to the principle of keeping the benefits within the factory, the factory decided to directly approach Wang Xiao to purchase steel.

That's why I took this trip to Ukraine.

As he boarded the plane, Ivanov wondered, "Will sending so many people to Moscow to buy things be effective?"

Yes.

Wang Xiao went to great lengths, even giving money to the workers of the factory's labor union for shopping, not simply to help Ms. Chen Yanqiu carry out the union's work.

Her real goal was to create the image of Chinese tourists in the minds of Moscow residents.

They may have a loud voice, but they are very considerate of the locals' feelings.

Besides selling goods in the free market, they also buy things from Russians.

They were kind and friendly, full of goodwill towards the locals, and genuinely hoped that the local people could overcome their difficulties as soon as possible.

“It’s useful.” Wang Xiao was quite certain. “When Chinese people move around, they travel in groups, so their presence is naturally strong. They’re wandering around Moscow, so people have a lot of opportunities to see them, and naturally, they leave a deep impression.”

First impressions are very important. Once you have a basic image of a group in your mind, the probability of major changes later on will be greatly reduced.

The two bodyguards also flew to Ukraine on this trip.

They simply couldn't understand one thing: why Miss Wang had to go to such lengths to cultivate the image of Chinese tourists.

She really doesn't have enough to do, she has to turn herself into the police of the Pacific Ocean—she's really meddling in other people's business!

Wang Xiao didn't want to either; she'd always hated trouble. But she had to do it.

If she doesn't do it, the image of Chinese people in Russia, especially in Moscow, will quickly plummet.

Officials from the Moscow city government have repeatedly marveled at how incredibly skilled and profitable Chinese small vendors are at selling their wares.

The subtext of this statement is: you only take in and don't give out.

So she arranged for people to come and buy things, so that everyone could see that Chinese people in Moscow not only earn money but also spend it, and that tourists fly in to buy things, buying large quantities at once.

Once this impression is formed, Russians eager to make money will welcome Chinese tourists.

etc--

The Chinese traders in Moscow also spend money, and when they do, they spend lavishly.

Why would she arrange for tourists to shop separately?

This raises the question of how Chinese traders are perceived by the people of Moscow.

To be fair, most of the middlemen are actually quite low-key. Besides working hard from dawn till dusk selling their goods at the free market, they are also trying to find ways to exchange their newly acquired rubles for US dollars. They don't like to show off at all.

However, some resellers are particularly high-profile, even exhibiting a bit of a performative personality.

This group can be divided into two categories. One type is those who act like big shots in China, relying on their big city background and enjoying the benefits of the urban-rural dual structure system. They look down on everyone else as "you bunch of poor bumpkins" and have an insane sense of superiority.

Upon arriving in Moscow, they made money by reselling goods and viewed the Russians as "a bunch of poor Russians," looking down on them in every way.

Another type is those who were extremely unsuccessful in their careers in the country, and by Chinese standards, they would be considered losers.

As a result, once they arrived in Russia, they unwittingly made a fortune, earning in a single day the equivalent of several months' wages for a local.

Faced with such a stark contrast, they couldn't contain their arrogance. Their extreme inferiority complex turned into intense pride overnight, and they started looking down on others.

With these two people around, constantly making a fuss and acting like they're the boss, it's no wonder that the Russian people, who were already feeling uneasy about losing their big brother status, have an increasingly negative impression of the Chinese.

Unable to control them, Wang Xiao could only find another way, presenting a more prominent image of Chinese people to refresh the Moscow people's perception of them.

Moreover, she continuously transported tourists from within China, and the faces that appeared were diverse, including men, women, young and old, all of whom were polite, friendly, and enthusiastic.

In this way, even if Muscovites still look down on the traders here, they will still form the concept in their minds that most Chinese people are good, and those people are just a few bad apples in a bunch.

In this way, the image of Chinese goods will not collapse, and her commercial street can continue to prosper.

Ivanov was truly impressed by her.

To think she could come up with the idea of ​​building a positive public image, and she even went to great lengths to implement it.

Shouldn't this be the government's responsibility?

Looking at all the foreign businessmen in the Russian Federation now, who else would act like her?

“The situation is different.” Wang Xiao had to lay it all out and explain to him. “In capitalist countries like Russia, whether it’s the US, Japan, or Western Europe, the businessmen who come here are considered leaders in their respective industries. They’ve already achieved a certain level of success in the domestic market before venturing overseas, and they already have a well-established company image.”

However, those who engage in illegal trade in China are, in a sense, failures within the country, at least they themselves are dissatisfied. Expecting them to be constantly mindful of protecting the nation after going abroad is simply unrealistic.

Why is there such a difference? Because the former are beneficiaries of the national social system, while the latter are not.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of human behavior is driven by self-interest.

Ivanov said sincerely, "Your Majesty, if the Russian Federation government does not believe that you want to deeply cultivate Russia's development, then they must be blind and their consciences must be utterly corrupt."

Look at how much effort she put into achieving this goal.

These are things that should actually be done by the authorities.

However, being from a socialist country, he knew all too well just how arrogant and ignorant some people in the rigid bureaucratic system under this regime could be.

Expecting them to protect the image of self-employed individuals and traders who go abroad to make money is laughable.

Can you believe it? Some Chinese officials actually made outrageous statements during interviews, saying that those who escaped were all criminals.

Such people are either stupid or malicious; in short, they are arrogant and condescending.

Ivanov had seen far too many people like this, and it was precisely because there were so many like this that the Communist Party of the Soviet Union collapsed and the Soviet Union disintegrated.

Wang Xiao dared not admit how deeply she loved Russia, because if there were other places where she could make more money, she would definitely leave without hesitation.

Money was the driving force behind her attraction.

As for worrying about everything and having a ton of things to plan, blah blah blah, what's there to feel aggrieved about?

Someone who earns hundreds of billions of rubles at a time, and who says she works hard and it's not easy, would be tempted to slap herself across the face when she looks in the mirror.

They got a good deal and are now acting innocent, smugly enjoying their good food and drink – they're shameless.

If others do everything perfectly, how could you possibly make a fortune?

After the plane arrived at the airport, we transferred to a car and drove for more than three hours before finally arriving at the steel plant.

Comrade Wang Tiejun and the steel plant's purchasing team slept the entire way. They only perked up when they arrived at the steel plant gate, ready to demonstrate their professional skills.

Wang Tiejun looked up at the sky and was quite surprised: "The sky here is nice."

One of the most criticized aspects of heavy industry is its significant environmental pollution and lack of environmental friendliness.

But the sky above the steel plant looks quite blue, and the air quality is perfectly acceptable.

“They don’t use coal to make steel, but natural gas,” Wang Xiao explained. “So it’s low-cost and low-polluting, which is one of their core competitive advantages.”

Where does the natural gas come from? Most of it comes from Russia. Ukraine itself has insufficient natural gas reserves to meet its domestic production and living needs.

Wang Tiejun couldn't help but shake his head and mutter to himself, "I just don't understand what they're thinking. Why are they making such a fuss about splitting up the family property?"

Take natural gas for example. In the past, the Soviet Union directly allocated it for use.

Now that you're free from your parents' supervision, you seem to be living a carefree life. But even close brothers should keep clear accounts. If you use their natural gas again, won't you have to pay in foreign exchange? Do you have foreign exchange?

If they had, the Soviet Union wouldn't have died so easily.

"It's alright," Wang Xiao comforted his elderly father. "They use rubles now too."

Although Ukraine introduced reusable tickets on the 10th of this month to serve as temporary currency.

But the ruble still circulates in the country, and people are more willing to use it.

The former only has monetary effect within Ukraine, while the latter can be used in all CIS countries.

Rybakov, the head of the steel plant and its sales manager, was a friend of Ivanov.

Compared to the ruddy-faced Ivanov, this older man looked much more haggard and exhausted.

Upon seeing them, he apologized: "I'm so sorry, I should have picked you up at the airport, my dear Chinese friends, but I just couldn't get away."

Wang Tiejun quickly reassured everyone: "It's alright, production is the most important thing."

Without any further pleasantries, everyone went straight to look at the steel and then went into the meeting room to discuss the details.

The reception room of this large steel plant is decorated in a typical Soviet style, which can be described as luxurious, indicating that the steel plant is doing very well.

Wang Tiejun, representing Jiangdong Steel Plant, ordered a whole shipload of steel, totaling 12,000 tons.

This figure is neither large nor small for a Ukrainian steel mill, but it's certainly a good start. They hadn't cooperated with China before.

Moreover, the rubles earned on this trip can be used to buy goods at prices lower than the market price, which is quite a good deal.

Rybakov felt a little relieved.

Now that the important matter has been settled, the next step is to arrange transportation. During this waiting period, everyone can naturally sit down and have a good chat.

Rybakov smiled and complimented the Chinese guests: "You guys are really impressive; your reforms have yielded results. Unlike us, we were completely ruined by our reforms."

His assistant suddenly blurted out, "This is a new life in Ukraine, sir. All those things you're talking about should have been finished long ago."

Wang Tiejun and his colleagues at the steel plant couldn't understand Russian, but they were still laughing.

Ivanov and his bodyguards were extremely embarrassed, and Wang Xiao also sensed the tense atmosphere.

She immediately changed the subject: "Mr. Rybakov, when would you like to come to China for a visit? We can cover your food and lodging."

Rybakov, however, showed no intention of backing down. Instead, he continued to lament, "Our greatest misfortune was having a foolish leader, while your greatest fortune is having a wise leader. That's why your red flag is flying high, while ours has fallen."

His assistant was quite blunt: "Don't you think this is a sad statement? You have a bad leader in your eyes, and you've directly turned socialism into capitalism. But why is it that you've never had a good leader that you approve of who could directly turn capitalism into socialism? Your system is so fragile, where exactly does its superiority lie? It's clearly a dictatorship, a tyrant!"

have to--

Wang Xiao is not worried at all about them arguing; what she's afraid of is them fighting, the kind of fight where every punch lands hard and knocks someone down.

Wang Tiejun, not understanding what was going on, thought they were discussing what to eat for lunch, and said with a particularly innocent and cheerful laugh, "Don't be shy, don't be shy, just eat whatever you like, don't go out, we'll eat in the cafeteria."

Wang Xiao translated the words without hesitation.

The tense atmosphere in the meeting room eased a little, and Rybakov took the opportunity to express his apologies: "I'm really sorry for the lack of hospitality."

I don't know if it's because Ukraine's agriculture and animal husbandry are relatively developed, and they are doing better than Russia right after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, or if the steel mills have special supply channels; in any case, the food in their factory canteens is indeed quite good.

The beef stew with potatoes didn't contain minced beef, but large chunks of beef. The fried eggs with butter were piled up like a small mountain, but the most popular dish was the pork skin jelly; Wang Xiao ate several pieces and found it quite delicious.

Rybakov then lamented, "What a difference there is between the leaders of the two countries! When the Russian president talks about reforms, the ruble plummets. But when you say you want to focus on economic development, international stock prices are rising."

Why--

Is that true?

Wang Xiao really didn't know; she had never paid attention to the stock market.

However, after actually traveling to this era and interacting with people from the former Soviet Union and Eastern European countries, she realized that China's reform and opening up has a far greater international influence than she had imagined.

She used to think that she would only be valued by everyone when China's economy took off and at least ranked among the top five in the world.

As a result, she underestimated herself.

Sigh, it seems she's destined not to make money in the stock market. She clearly knew about the Southern Tour (a lie, they said it would be in the spring, but it's still clearly winter), but she never expected the stock prices to rise. She should have bought stocks in advance.

She was so distracted because she didn't really want to hear Rybakov's assistant continue to criticize him.

Sure enough, even though Rybakov stopped mentioning the Soviet Union and started talking about the current state of Russia, his assistant still didn't let him off the hook, directly mocking him: "This is only natural. Without so many people sucking its blood, what would Moscow have left? What else can it do besides sucking blood?"

Wang Xiaozhen envied her father and his colleagues at Jiangdong Steel Plant. They couldn't understand a word of Russian, yet they ate with great relish, occasionally praising the chef's skills. She and Ivanov, on the other hand, felt so embarrassed that they wished they could dig a hole and disappear. They were so awkward that even the stewed beef and potatoes in their mouths didn't taste good anymore.

The meal was finished in a chaotic mess.

When Rybakov personally escorted them to the villa to rest, the assistant thankfully didn't follow them any further.

Ivanov even dared to boldly ask his friend, "Are you alright, my dear old friend? Are you planning to stay here any longer?"

His intuition told him that his friend was in a bad situation at the factory.

Otherwise, even if the assistant had ten times the courage, he wouldn't dare to talk back to his boss like that in front of customers.

Unless he doesn't want to work anymore.

But given Ukraine's current economic situation, anyone with a brain wouldn't dare to easily lose their job.

Rybakov reassured his friend, "It's alright, I'm fine. By the way, you mentioned last time you were looking for a plane, someone wants to sell it for a million dollars."

Wang Xiao and Ivanov perked up and quickly asked, "What kind of plane?"

"Il-62".

“It’s a bit expensive,” Ivanov said bluntly. “We’d prefer cargo planes, the kind that can directly transport goods.”

Rybakov waved his hand: "You guys go and talk to them yourselves. I'll just give you an introduction."

This plane was also sold by the military; the middleman was the cousin of the Rybako couple.

Why is it such a coincidence that a casual in-law can get in touch with the opportunity to buy an airplane?

Because the Soviet Union really had a lot of soldiers; before its collapse, it had an army of four million.

If you don't get a strong sense of this number, here's a comparison: before China planned its massive reduction of one million troops in the mid-1980s, the total number of troops was around four million.

Considering that the Soviet Union had a population of 270 million in 1985, while China had a population of 1.06 billion, one can understand just how terrifying the number of Soviet troops was.

Throughout the Soviet Union, almost every household had a member of the military.

This is probably why it was so convenient for people all over the world to buy weapons from former Soviet troops after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

After all, if you randomly pick someone off the street, their family or relatives all have members serving in the military.

Wang Xiao and Ivanov had no objections; the Il-62 it was. Its cargo capacity was decent, and it was a robust aircraft.

It's okay if it's inconvenient to use it for transporting goods now; we can modify it.

What if there are no sliding rails inside the cargo hold, and cargo can only be stacked manually? Just add floor rails, right? Use containerized cargo containers; the transit speed will be incredibly fast!

The hatches also need to be modified to facilitate cargo transport.

The two sides agreed on a time, and early the next morning, Wang Xiao and Ivanov, along with their bodyguards, went to the garrison to inspect the goods.

After haggling for a long time, the two sides finally agreed on a price of $800,000 plus 35 million rubles for the goods.

However, they had to help the troops find suppliers so that they could exchange 35 million rubles for supplies.

The two exchanged a glance and readily agreed.

But Wang Xiao had to be upfront about the unpleasant things: "The food is no good. The suppliers we can provide are mainly those that sell clothes and daily necessities."

The colonel who spoke with them said he didn't care: "There's no shortage of food here, just clothes and daily necessities, nothing else."

Ivanov laughed: "I can't guarantee anything else, but the quality is definitely guaranteed. Our jeans have Italian labels, and no one has ever said they're fake."

The soldiers present all laughed.

Ivanov seized the opportunity to say, "If there are more planes coming, you can continue to sell them to us. We can also exchange the rubles we receive for supplies here."

Unfortunately, although the Soviet Union's military industry was very developed and it produced a lot of aircraft, this was not an air force unit after all, and it was already quite good if there was one aircraft that could be used.

The colonel asked them in a serious tone, "Tanks, do you want tanks? Buy five, get one free."

Wang Xiao and Ivanov were both finding it hard to laugh.

Hey, hey, hey, they're all law-abiding citizens, legitimate businessmen. They're really not arms dealers, so what use would they have for buying tanks?

The colonel seemed quite disappointed, and even repeatedly assured them, "Don't worry, you can drive it away directly."

“We can’t drive it away,” Ivanov had to emphasize. “It’s not an airplane, how am I supposed to get it back?”

While waiting for the bank transfer, they ate a meal at the military base.

Just as the colonel had emphasized, the food here was alright, with plenty of canned meat for stews, which had a unique flavor.

Wang Xiao found it quite strange that the soldiers showed no signs of hunger.

She asked Ivanov in a low voice, "Why are they in such a hurry to sell airplanes and tanks?"

Last year, the Soviet high command in the military was eager to cash out and leave. Now that everything has settled down and the military is no longer in dire straits, why are they in such a hurry to sell their belongings?

Ivanov was equally bewildered.

The two bodyguards, both former special agents, knew the ins and outs of the matter.

Most of the officers in this unit are Russian.

According to the agreement at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union, the issue of the affiliation of these troops, which numbered as many as four million, was to be resolved by sending the soldiers back to their respective homes.

In other words, you can go home if you want, and if you don't want to go home, you can stay and continue serving as long as you get the consent of the republic where the garrison is located.

However, Russia's stance was actually one of calling on its own soldiers to return, and there is no doubt that Russian soldiers constituted the largest number in the Soviet military.

They were all ready to leave. Large weapons were inconvenient to carry, so it was much more convenient to exchange them for cash and scarce supplies.

What? You mean the weapons are lost? How are you going to explain this to your superiors?

Sigh, just pay up.

Since the Soviet army ran out of funds, chaos broke out in the troops, and the higher-ups could only turn a blind eye.

After all, these are a group of old men carrying guns. If you anger them and they rebel, everyone will be in trouble.

Wang Xiao now understands that the famous clearance sale of weapons by the former Soviet army in the 1990s was probably partly due to this reason.

Ivanov sighed and muttered to himself, "When we lose our shared beliefs, nationalism will spring up rapidly."

The reason Russian soldiers are so eager to sell weapons is precisely because they fear Ukraine will benefit from them.

By the way, the Black Sea Fleet is still based in Ukraine, and who it belongs to is a big question.

Wang Xiao patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, saying, "Things will get better in the future."

What a joke! Before she transmigrated into the book, the two countries hadn't even finished fighting yet, and who knows when the fighting would end.

She knew an older sister who was studying in Ukraine, but was forced to return to China early, which made her extremely upset.

Wang Xiao changed the subject: "I'll call my dad and ask how things are going at the steel mill. It would be best if we could leave together when it's all settled."

When the call was made, the purchasing manager of Jiangdong Steel Plant was frantic: "Wang Xiao, you need to come over right now! The steel plant has turned its back on us and refuses to sell."

Wang Xiao was taken aback: "Why? Didn't we agree on this? We even signed the contract."

The man on the other end was stamping his feet in frustration: "Who knows what they're going to do? They're saying that old Russian can't represent the factory. They're saying this is a Ukrainian factory, and the steel is for export to earn foreign exchange. What right does a Russian have to make this decision?"

Ivanov was immediately enraged: "Why should we? Russia paid a lot of money when the steel plant was built."

Wang Xiao didn't mince words: "What about their phone number? What's it?"

When the call was made, the two sides immediately started arguing.

Your steel mill's internal power struggles are your business. Once you've signed the contract and affixed the official seal, you have to accept it, otherwise this matter isn't over.

Anyway, they absolutely cannot suffer this loss in silence. They should ship the goods when they are supposed to, and if they don't, don't blame me for being impolite.

oh--

It's your Ukrainian steel plant, right? Then why don't you stop using Russian natural gas?

Cut off their life force and see if they'll still be able to smelt steel.

Don't think I'm just trying to scare you. Ukraine is your territory, and you call the shots. But Russia is still our territory. If you insist on tearing things apart, then prepare to fight to the bitter end.

The phone call ended, and Ivanov was panting heavily with anger: "Bastards, a bunch of damned bastards, what right do they have to withhold our steel? Foreign exchange, all they care about is foreign exchange, isn't the ruble money too?"

After calming down, Wang Xiao realized that the matter was indeed quite risky.

Because both Ukraine and Russia want economic aid from Europe and the United States.

Even if they are just making a statement, they should prioritize Europe and the United States for scarce commodities like steel.

Moreover, even during the Soviet era, steel was an important export commodity that generated foreign exchange.

“It’s not that cheap!” Ivanov said fiercely. “We Russians absolutely cannot be taken advantage of.”

The colonel came over to invite them for afternoon tea. Upon hearing the commotion, he immediately burst into laughter: "Steel? Steel isn't anything rare. If you want, I can find some for you."

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