Chapter 1416: Setting a Trap for the British (Third Update, Please Subscribe)

"What will you do if I don't allow you to?"

This seemingly light sentence made Li Jingye's face change. His hands even trembled slightly involuntarily, and there was no light in his eyes.

Not allowed...how to do it?

What else can I do?

At this moment, the feeling of despair enveloped Li Jingye completely.

What can he do?

Ignore?

Without even thinking about it, Li Jingye knew what kind of situation he would be in if he really did that - all banks and companies would terminate their cooperation with him, and at that time, he would be like a rat crossing the street, the kind that everyone would shout and beat.

It’s not because he accepted the order from the UK, it’s simply because... the United Chamber of Commerce!

The United Chamber of Commerce has long controlled all aspects of industry and commerce in the country. Who can resist the United Chamber of Commerce?

By then he will not only be disgraced, but he will never have a chance to turn things around.

What if he obeyed the Chamber's decision?

At least he would not be ruined, at least he would not be suppressed from all sides, at least he still had the possibility of turning things around! The Chamber of Commerce would not kill him completely.

While he was weighing the pros and cons in his heart, Li Jingye wanted to struggle a little longer. Just as he was thinking about whether he should try again, his lips opened but no words came out.

After a long while, Li Jingye said in an almost desperate tone.

"I will abide by the Chamber of Commerce's decision... and cancel this order."

Pursing his lips, Li Jingye sighed.

"I just hope the Chamber of Commerce can come forward to coordinate the loan. Xingye is a very promising factory. Its development will benefit the country and the people. President, it is such a pity that it went bankrupt... I hope the president can seriously consider it. It is really a pity."

Li Jingye's words came from the bottom of his heart. As a large shipyard, Xingye Shipyard was indeed extremely important to Datang, which had a weak industrial foundation. Especially since most of Datang's large shipyards were state-owned enterprises with average efficiency.

After Li Jingye said this, he stopped talking. There was no point in saying anything now. After all, the decision was in the hands of the other party.

In response to Li Jingye's plea, Zuo Xiaoxun did not give an immediate answer, but smoked a cigar, wondering if he was thinking about something.

"Yes, if Xingye Shipyard goes bankrupt, it will be a pity for the Tang Dynasty, whose industry is not well developed..."

Sitting on the sofa, Zuo Xiaoxun spoke in a slow tone.

"Do you regret the choice you made? If you hadn't made that choice, why would you have so many troubles?"

The choice you made at the time?

Li Jingye was stunned at first, and just when he wanted to say that he regretted it, suddenly, he realized that the other party was not asking about the British order, but about ten years ago!

"Regret? Why should I regret?"

Li Jingye said directly.

"I know that many people think that I took advantage of the power of the Ming Dynasty to cheat this factory. Yes, that's right. I did cheat this factory. But I didn't do it just for myself! What did this factory look like at that time? When this factory was first built, it was the largest shipyard in the Far East. The equipment was the best equipment purchased from the Ming Dynasty and the United Kingdom, but what happened then? During the years when the Kingdom of Heaven presided over it, did this factory make any progress? It seemed that more than a dozen warships were built, and even ironclad ships were built, but in fact, the factory employed only the prince's confidants and confidants. How many of the people in charge of the shipyard knew about shipbuilding? Technology? Even management was a layman. The so-called supervisors were just greedy for money, which directly led to the low production efficiency and high production costs of the shipyard. In their hands, the shipyard... was just a pile of garbage! It was even more cost-effective to buy ships than to build them!"

When talking about the old days of the shipyard, Li Jingye still looked indignant. He was the first person in China to learn shipbuilding, but he had never been truly valued in the shipyard and had almost no say in the factory management.

"Even in the Tang Dynasty, how much better are the situations in Qingdao and Haizhou? Officials are corrupt, production is wasteful, costs are high, and efficiency is low. Even if I hand it over to them, what can I do? That's why I swallowed up this factory. It's true that the factory is mine now, but it can only really play its role in my hands. In the past ten years, Xingye has built no less than 700,000 tons of ships! Three years ago, it had already built a 10,000-ton ship. Such an achievement is incomparable to the captains of Qingdao and Haizhou. Does it mean that this is not beneficial to the country? Regret? I have never regretted it! This factory was built with the blood and sweat of the people. It is better to play a role in my hands than to use it as a tool for officials to seek personal gain!"

Is this a fallacy?

Obviously!

But what the hell is this country like?

For corrupt officials, most of them regard foreign affairs as a feast. For these officials, the fate of the country is false, and promotion and wealth are real!

Here, officials are considered good officials if they don't exploit the people...

If the shipyard is left in their hands, there will be no chance of development; at best it will just remain as it is!

Nodding slightly, Zuo Xiaoxun said.

"Indeed, it can play a greater role in your hands than in theirs. You have indeed contributed a lot to the shipyard's current status."

Looking at Li Jingye, Zuo Xiaoxun showed a smile on his face.

"I asked you to come here today not to cancel the order, but to continue to fulfill the contract!"

"What?"

Li Jingye said in surprise.

"President, this, this..."

“Not only do we need to fulfill our contracts, but we also need to win more orders!”

“President!”

Li Jingye was stunned. What did the president mean by this?

"But you have to tell the British that the deposit must be more than 40%. If it can be more, it would be even better. 50% is the best."

“President…”

Listening to the president's advice, Li Jingye suddenly seemed to understand something and said in surprise.

"President, are you trying to cheat the British?"

Asking for such a large deposit must be an attempt to defraud money!

"It's not a scam, it's a normal business transaction! It may be possible to deliver now, but what about the future? You know, a lot of changes will happen in the future."

Why did Zuo Xiaoxun make such a conclusion?

Because he knew what would happen in the future. This country would definitely declare war on Britain.

After the declaration of war, it would naturally be impossible for this order to be delivered to the British, because the money paid by the British was real money.

The British's hard-earned money may have been wasted, but for them, they got the ship that Britain bought with money.

What will happen in the future?

It doesn't matter to Li Jingye. What matters is that his factory will not go bankrupt, not only will it not go bankrupt, but it will also be supported by the Chamber of Commerce.

After Li Jingye left happily, Zuo Xiaoxun walked to the window, his eyes fixed on the pedestrians and vehicles outside the car.

What will happen in the future?

This country will undergo tremendous changes in the future.

This country, which has been ruined by those hypocritical and almost unscrupulous people, will be completely changed.

"Those who till the land have their own fields, those who live in the house have their own houses, those who work hard have their own jobs, and those who work hard have their own rewards..."

That kind of country is a real country!

As for the country at the moment... thinking of the ministers in the court, Zuo Xiaoxun sneered.

"How can this bunch of insects run a good country?"

Just as he sneered, the secretary walked behind him and said.

"President, I just received a telegram from the secretariat."

After taking the telegram, Zuo Xiaoxun raised his eyebrows.

"What's going on? Why is he in Fukuoka? And why do you want me to go there?"

The reason why Zuo Xiaoxun had such doubts was that the telegram invited him to Fukuoka, a place in Japan.

"When did the telegram come?"

"The secretariat just received a telegram three hours ago. It was sent over immediately after it was received."

After listening to the secretary's answer, Zuo Xiaoxun spoke for a while and then said.

"Prepare a car to go to the train station immediately, and book another ferry ticket to Fukuoka."

Some things can never be avoided...

(End of this chapter)