Before arriving, I had already notified the subsidiary company, Beigang Real Estate. When I got off the plane, a man in his thirties was waiting at the arrival gate, holding a sign that read "Welcome to the team of Lu Feng, Chairman of Jiafeng Electronics".
"Hello!" Lu Feng said as he walked over.
The other person sized up Lu Feng and asked, "Are you President Lu?"
"Yes, you're here to pick us up, right?" Lu Feng said to him, "Get in the car first, it's a bit cold."
"Oh my, this guy is so young! I was just looking over there when I saw a man in his fifties and thought it was you. Come on, get in the car, it's cold around here!"
The other party was very enthusiastic and talkative. We chatted as we got into the car and drove around, looking at the surroundings. The city's infrastructure, streetlights, and green belts were all well-planned and orderly. Compared with other small cities, it was like a different country.
"Are you here to collect a debt?" The driver turned around and looked at Lu Feng and his companion with some surprise.
"Yes, we hope to have a proper discussion with your company," Feng Zhiyao said politely.
"What kind of expensive company are you talking about? We're just a work unit. Let me tell you, it's not easy to collect debts. Before the Lunar New Year, many work units were squeezed out and couldn't survive. You were asking me for money, and I was asking you for money. We even got into a fight!" The driver looked like he was in a big deal.
"Fighting?" Feng Zhiyao looked at Lu Feng with a face full of surprise and asked, "Fighting?"
"It means fighting."
“It’s tough for companies these days. Business isn’t good, and we’re not as well-off as we were a few years ago. There are too many people, and those with connections have secured their jobs. Let me tell you, there are over 10,000 people who are on sick leave. Imagine how much it costs for all of them to be on sick leave and still get paid every month? I know a guy who went to work there for a month and never saw him again, but he kept getting paid. Later I found out that he opened a barbecue restaurant on that street to the north.”
The driver complained about the mess at his workplace, saying that nowadays, even a secure job has a price tag: serve two years in the military, come back, and pay some money to get a job there.
Spend a little more money to get a medical record from the hospital, apply for sick leave, and you won't be able to go to work. That way, you'll have lifelong security, and you'll even have a retirement pension when you get old.
"Have you ever thought about what might happen if your company goes bankrupt one day? Or if you have to buy out your years of service?" Lu Feng asked.
"How could that be? This company is state-owned, they eat the state's food. Some people are clamoring for it to go bankrupt, but that's pure nonsense. It's impossible for it to go bankrupt. If it did, the country would be finished, countless people would lose their jobs, and society would be in chaos," the driver said firmly.
Lu Feng chuckled upon hearing this comment, thinking it likely represented the true thoughts of the vast majority of people.
The car arrived at the foot of an old-fashioned building, and the driver turned around and asked, "Gentlemen, are you paying for this yourself or on company terms?"
"We don't have government funding; we're a private enterprise. Is there a difference?" Lu Feng asked, puzzled.
"A private enterprise?" The driver paused for a moment, his gaze towards Lu Feng instantly losing its previous enthusiasm, and said, "Do you want to go to the guesthouse? If not, there's a very expensive hotel up ahead."
"Let's go to the hotel!"
The car stopped in front of the hotel, and Lu Feng got out and asked, "Where is your general manager?"
"Mr. Hao instructed that he would have dinner with you tonight and that's all he mentioned. I don't understand what the boss meant, so you can contact him later."
Lu Feng knew this matter wouldn't be resolved anytime soon, so he carried his suitcase into the hotel.
Inside the Beigang Real Estate office, two or three men were sitting. The driver opened the door and said, "Mr. Hao, the person has been taken to the hotel."
"Alright, that's all for you," President Hao waved his hand.
"Mr. Hao, who is this?" the man next to him asked.
"It's a debt collector. Last year, we bought a batch of TVs from the south and sold them at a low price in the resettlement housing as a benefit. We haven't paid them yet, and the boss is here to collect the debt," said General Manager Hao nonchalantly.
"How many TV sets did you get? I don't remember sending out many."
"I distributed about a third of them, and the rest were given to the leaders. I kept seven or eight for myself, but I sold them all later. Last year, when Lao Li's son got married, he asked me to help him get a spot," General Manager Hao said casually.
“He’s really going to great lengths to collect this debt. Just ignore him and pass it on to the group company. Why should a subordinate real estate company like ours get involved in this?” the man next to him advised.
"See? You just don't understand. Those companies that tried to collect debts at the beginning of the year didn't get their money back; in fact, they ended up losing a lot of money. This boss came all this way; he's determined to get his money. If he wants money, he has to pay up some of it, right?" Boss Hao raised an eyebrow and said confidently, "I can outmaneuver him!"
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