Chapter 323 Transaction: Seen as a Saying
As the sun sets, the shadows of poplar trees slant across the gravel road.
The deputy mayor's black Jeep rolled over a few fallen leaves, startling a few gray sparrows that fluttered towards the wrought-iron fence covered with ivy.
He got out of the car, pushed open the gate, and walked through the arched corridor covered with grapevines.
The air was filled with the sweet scent of honey and lavender.
The deputy mayor's superior, Luzhkov, was wearing khaki overalls and a bee-proof mask, squatting in front of the log beehives at the end of the corridor.
That's right. This mayor of Moscow is not only an athlete who loves football, volleyball, skiing, and horseback riding, but also enjoys beekeeping.
Whenever he has free time, he comes to take care of these little creatures.
The bees weren't afraid of him at all, and were swirling around his fingertips.
Luzhkov skillfully poured the special syrup into the feeder with a wooden spoon, his movements as gentle as if he were soothing a baby, his voice tinged with laughter: "How is it? Isn't the Red Revolutionary Machine Tool Factory quite lively today?"
The deputy mayor laughed out loud: "It's certainly lively."
After recounting his visit to the machine tool factory that day, Luzhkov smiled and sighed, "My God, how dare they try to control the red factory director? That's like asking a tiger for its skin."
He knew all too well how greedy and cunning these guys were. The purpose of privatization in Russia was simply to seize state assets from them and distribute them to the people.
The cabinet keeps talking about vigorously promoting privatization, yet it colludes with these red factory directors, which shows how incredibly stupid it is.
They deserve to be tricked by the "red" factory director.
This group of people lacked even the political acumen of a businessman like Ivanov. At least the latter knew that he shouldn't have gone to the Red Revolutionary Machine Tool Factory to join the commotion.
Some complained that he shouldn't have brought Ivanov to the president so easily, as it was giving the businessman too much credit.
The person who said this has no idea of the value of a businessman.
The deputy factory director also laughed. He couldn't stop laughing whenever he recalled how terrible Punoning's face had looked when he rushed over.
Clearly, the clever Miss Wang had seen through this long ago, so she remained calm and collected, enjoying the spectacle.
He couldn't help but exclaim, "Sir, she is truly a Catherine the Great, never suffering a loss from beginning to end, and completely holding the upper hand in the negotiations."
Luzhkov didn't stop pouring syrup into the feeder, sighing softly, "Moscow, we Moscow need businessmen like this."
The deputy mayor laughed, glancing at the swarming bees out of the corner of his eye, and complimented, "Chemists are so clever; whatever they do, they succeed immediately."
He flattered Wang Xiao like this because he knew that Wang Xiao used to be a researcher at the Jiangdong Provincial Chemical Research Institute, and that his superior, Luzhkov, was a meritorious chemist in Russia.
Luzhkov smiled and continued feeding the bees, but shook his head: "No, it has nothing to do with whether you're a chemist or not. What matters is whether you have the courage and determination to learn."
He recalled his years transitioning from the laboratory to politics, where mixing chemical reagents and manipulating political games were essentially about finding the optimal reaction conditions.
He gently shook his arm, swatting away the bees that had landed on his clothes. "When I first took over the vegetable farm, I didn't know anything either. But it wasn't long before those people couldn't fool me anymore. Because I already knew everything about the farm."
A responsible person, even when entering a completely unfamiliar field, will strive to learn and master new knowledge, and will never be a bystander or an outsider.
The deputy mayor smiled and said, "Miss Wang has inherited the qualities of an excellent chemist. She only saw the quarantine stamp on the eggs and judged that they came from the container market, which shows that she is very familiar with the market."
Luzhkov nodded: "These are the basic qualities that a manager must possess. Unfortunately, our factory directors and managers are too lazy to even go down to the workshop; the new elites on whom our cabinet has placed high hopes only know how to make money through financial games and have never created any wealth."
A bee flew up to the deputy mayor, who, not wearing a mask, was forced to take a step back and laughed awkwardly: "We just lack experience. The reforms started too late. I suppose in another ten years, Moscow will have countless managers like this."
"I hope so," Luzhkov smiled, then quickly changed the subject. "So, what about the container market? What do you think of it?"
"Clean, tidy, and orderly." The deputy mayor used these three words to characterize the container market.
Good heavens, if you had come to Moscow in 1994, you would know just how dilapidated and chaotic this city really is.
The free market was chaotic, with people coming and going, leaving behind piles and piles of garbage.
On rainy days, it becomes like a sewage pond.
But the container market is different. There are countless customers from all over the world, and because of the wide variety of goods, the roads are clean and tidy, and the goods are neatly arranged.
To put it simply, even if a stray dog urinates on the roadside, a sanitation worker will immediately come forward to wash and mop the ground clean.
He hadn't experienced this level of cleanliness and order in a long time; he had always thought that only formal, high-end stores deserved such things.
Luzhkov was a man with a very strong sense of order. He opposed large-scale and rapid privatization precisely because he hated that such behavior disrupted order and made the whole society chaotic.
The deputy mayor's description pleased him, but it wasn't enough, because he was more concerned about: "How's business? How's business at the market?"
“Very good,” the deputy mayor emphasized. “Almost every stall is extremely busy. The best ones can ship two containers of goods a day.”
Good heavens! Who dares to say that the city government is demanding that the container market build hospitals, roads, and a Jill truck factory, trying to squeeze every last drop of profit out of every human bone fragment?
People who think this way are seriously underestimating the capabilities of the container market.
It's a hen that lays golden eggs.
"No wonder they sell so well; they really know how to run a business. A down jacket has a separate inner lining and an outer coat, connected by a zipper. The inner lining is the most expensive part, and it can be paired with a windproof outer coat in more than ten colors and patterns. You can change it any way you like and everyone will think it's a brand new outfit. This season, a dress can be transformed into seven or eight different styles. They really satisfy customers' need for presentable clothing with the least amount of money."
Even the deputy mayor had to admit that he was tempted when he saw it and planned to get one for his wife and daughter.
Good heavens, the cost of women's clothing is a considerable burden for a family.
"Business is so good?" Lu Rike pondered, "Then—"
The deputy mayor had assumed that his superiors would have Ivanov inject more capital to revitalize a large state-owned enterprise.
Unexpectedly, Luzhkov suggested, "How about letting our factory set up stalls there? Just like the retail outlets of enterprises in Jiangdong Province, we can set up our outlets in the container market."
He muttered to himself, "The biggest reason our businesses are in trouble is the lack of orders, especially from the government and the military. As long as there are orders and profits, they have the motivation to produce."
He finally put down the wooden spoon in his hand, and looked at the dark mass of bees sucking up the special syrup from the feeder, revealing a relieved and expectant smile.
The setting sun cast his long shadow onto the neatly arranged beehives, as if gilding each one.
"These companies are like bees. When there isn't enough pollen, the government has to provide syrup to keep them alive. Only in this way can they produce a continuous supply of honey when all the flowers are in bloom."
The container market thus became the designated syrup.
When Ivanov went to the hotel where Secretary Fang was staying to find Wang Xiao, the sky in Moscow was already completely dark, and the evening breeze was full of the chill of autumn.
Secretary Fang greeted him with a smile: "I'm so sorry to have taken up so much of President Wang's time again."
Ivanov bowed politely to her: "Secretary, it is our honor to serve you."
He looked up and said, "Don't worry, I will fully cooperate with the technology transfer work of the Red Revolutionary Machine Tool Factory."
This sounds a bit far-fetched. What does the Red Machine Factory have to do with him?
Ivanov said in a gentle voice, "I have just been informed that I will be in charge of the Red Machine Factory in the future."
Wang Xiao was astonished; that slap was like the Buddha's Palm, completely stunning him.
While Punonin and his cabinet were still entangled with the red factory director, the mayor directly ousted him.
With a new owner, the Hongji Factory has no chance of the current factory manager taking over.
However, he warned Punonin and those behind him that Moscow was Luzhkov's territory, and no one should interfere.
After this slap, which of the other factory directors involved in the remaining agreements would dare to jump out and cause trouble, opposing the transfer of technology to Jiangdong Province?
The Red Machinery Factory was the chicken used to scare the monkeys; anyone who dared to misbehave would suffer the same fate.
If even a businessman like Wang Xiao could see through the intricacies, how could Secretary Fang not understand?
She immediately smiled and shook hands with Ivanov: "I wish us a pleasant cooperation between Jiangdong and Moscow."
Ivanov maintained his impeccable smile: "This is what we all expect."
It was getting late, so he said goodbye and took his leave.
Wang Xiao also waved to Secretary Fang and took his leave.
Looking at the two figures walking away side by side, Secretary Fang smiled bitterly to himself. Oh well, it's just that Xiaoyu doesn't have that kind of luck.
This trip to Moscow was definitely worthwhile.
Wang Xiao got into the car with Ivanov and then asked, "What did he ask you to exchange this time?"
Ivanov laughed: "You really know the mayor well."
He slowly exhaled before answering, "The container market. He's demanding that the container market provide stalls, prime locations, for Moscow's state-owned enterprises, and offer them the most favorable prices."
Without hesitation, Wang Xiao said, "We already have no empty spaces. If we force more stalls to be added, we won't have enough fire exits. If a fire breaks out, the consequences will be unimaginable."
Ivanov sighed, "That's what I said too. So, the city government approved another piece of land for us to expand the market."
Wang Xiao breathed a sigh of relief: "That's more like it."
This is a great deal; land prices in Moscow will eventually rise to a crazy level, far exceeding the reach of Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.
Ivanov couldn't believe his ears: "Your Majesty, didn't you realize they were making a substitution plan?"
When the mayor approached him, he was talking about Moscow's industrial development, using the machine tool factory as an example.
The Soviet Union initially sent engineers and technicians to the United States to learn, and then returned to develop the machine tool industry.
Now he wants to send the state-owned enterprise salespeople to the container market to learn how to sell their goods.
But Ivanov thought to himself that the engineers and technicians the Soviet Union sent to the United States would eventually return to the Soviet Union.
He suspected that the state-owned enterprise salesmen sent by the mayor to the container market would not only never return, but might also take over the company's operations.
Mayor Luzhkov has never welcomed outsiders, and his current tolerance of the container market vendors is simply because they still have some value to him.
Once that value is replaced, that's when they'll be kicked out.
Wang Xiao raised his eyebrows: "My God, how can you have such strong faith in them? Let me tell you something. This kind of government-led street vending to help state-owned enterprises open up sales channels has been happening in China since the 1980s."
Does it work? Almost no effect.
“They were given the best stalls, but the stalls next to them could do a week's worth of business in a day.”
Wang Xiao shook his head. "Their mindset is stuck in their ways; they lack sales awareness. They're used to times of scarcity, when everyone lined up to buy their goods. Otherwise—"
She pointed out the window towards the container market. "Our market has been around for so long, and many Muscovites have visited it. They should know that many vendors are direct agents for the factories. If these state-owned enterprises in Moscow were ambitious, shouldn't they proactively approach the market and ask to set up stalls here?"
Does such a person exist? No.
When people look back at state-owned enterprises from the planned economy era, they often mistake them for enterprises from the market economy era.
In fact, they function more like administrative agencies.
How many government agencies are ambitious and enterprising?
Wang Xiao shook his head: "They are not competitive. Their problem lies in their core, not their surface."
Otherwise, how did the private sector develop? It has no room to grow in any state-owned or collectively-owned sector.
China has been cracking down on speculation and profiteering for many years. "Profiteering" and "profiteering" are not positive terms.
Often, the more something is suppressed, the more it can grow wildly, like weeds.
It was too late to go back to the villa, so they stayed in the commercial street that night.
After getting off the bus and going upstairs, Wang Xiao urged Ivanov, "Go take a shower quickly, my God, you even have pimples."
A thirty-year-old man, who is not exactly abstinent, actually had bright red pimples on his nose, which shows how badly he was suffering from internal heat.
After Ivanov finished showering, he saw the Yunnan Baiyao in Wang Xiao's hand.
He couldn't read Chinese characters, but he recognized the medicine; it was used to stop bleeding.
"Your Majesty, are you injured?"
"No, it's for you." Wang Xiao gestured for him, "Sit down, I'll apply it for you."
Ivanov was even more bewildered: "I'm not injured? Could it be that a pimple popped? God, you don't need Yunnan Baiyao for this, do you?"
"This is for you to get rid of your pimples." Wang Xiao was experienced. "Let me tell you, Yunnan Baiyao is especially effective for these single pimples. If you apply it now, you'll see results by tomorrow morning. Hey, it's perfect timing to deliver it to Secretary Fang tomorrow so she can see it for herself. Let's do some cosmeceuticals too. We have so few skincare products to offer."
Oh my, besides Yunnan Baiyao, Ma Yinglong's hemorrhoid cream is also a big name in the skincare industry.
In fact, China has many advantages to tap into in the cosmeceutical industry. If this market can be developed, the profits can be quite high.
Ivanov sat obediently like a guinea pig, not daring to move.
After Wang Xiao finished his work, he finally asked, "You mean cross-licensing technology?"
He had roughly reviewed the previous agreement, and this clause was not present at all.
He only found out today when he was summoned to see the mayor.
Wang Xiao nodded, screwed the cap of Yunnan Baiyao on, and explained, "I said I would give you half of what I have, and I would take half of what you have."
The window was open to let in some fresh air, and the evening breeze, filtered through the screen, carried the delicate fragrance of roses from the balcony.
The crowd downstairs hadn't dispersed; the security situation near Red Square was still much better than in most other parts of Moscow.
Someone was playing the accordion and singing: "Неслышнывсадудажешорохи, Всёздесьзамерлодоутра..."
The melody is beautiful; it's from "Moscow Nights".
Ivanov looked at Wang Xiao, opened his mouth, and said, "I think I should propose to you under these circumstances."
Under the light, the Yunnan Baiyao powder stuck to his nose made him look comically childish.
He frowned in distress, “But I know clearly that we are confidants and comrades-in-arms, and marriage is not a good match for us.”
Wang Xiao laughed: "You should take a break. Luckily you didn't get dizzy."
Ivanov wanted to laugh, but was afraid the powder on his nose would fall off, so he just smirked and turned his head to stare blankly at the shadows of flowers outside the window.
Wang Xiao was about to return to her room when she saw this and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
“There’s something,” Ivanov said in a low voice. “I’m not entirely sure, but I suspect Luzhkov wants me to take over the Muscovite automobile plant.”
My God!
The Muscovy car certainly has a glorious history.
It was based on the K38 production line salvaged from industrial bases in eastern Germany by the Soviet Army after World War II. Later, it was redesigned and became the Moskva, which not only became popular throughout the Soviet Union but also gained great popularity in the international market.
When Tang Yicheng was in charge of Suifenhe and was in charge of the car business, the cars he produced the most were Moskva and Lada.
Two years ago, Ivanov even personally helped organize the production of the Muscovy car to ensure he could get enough of them.
However, the disruption of Russia's automotive industry supply chain has not spared the Muscovites either, and the car factories are now terminally ill.
Ivanov complained, "They saw that the ZIL truck factory was making three-wheeled vehicles, so they wanted the Muscovites to take over some of the orders as well."
He got angrier and angrier as he spoke, forgetting all about the powder on his nose. His facial muscles twitched more and more. "Don't you think about it? The Jill Truck Factory has 100,000 employees. We have to develop all the sales markets to ensure that we can support them?"
"The truck factory has only just started to make a living, and hasn't even paid off a single penny of its bank loan. How can we possibly distribute orders?"
Ivanov retorted angrily, "Do they think three-wheeled vehicles are made of gold? The kind that lay golden eggs on their own? The municipal government just hosted the Jiangdong delegation; don't they even have a basic understanding of China's economic reforms?"
There are ready-made examples right in front of us.
In the 1980s, just a few years after China's reforms, a famous entrepreneur named Ma Shengli transformed himself into China's most renowned factory manager by contracting a paper mill.
His idea that a bag could cure all diseases became a sensation.
But not long after, a bunch of heavily loss-making factories were dumped on him, and then he suffered a major setback. The massive losses of his businesses dragged Director Ma, a two-time recipient of the National May Day Labor Medal, into a quagmire.
“Lazy!” Ivanov complained. “These officials, who are conditioned by a planned economy mentality, have no basic market concepts and no understanding of production and management.”
Despite Luzhkov's self-proclaimed role as a market manager, he actually didn't understand market economics.
"They're just lazy, unwilling to use their brains, never willing to adapt to local conditions, and only thinking about getting rid of all their burdens at once."
Ivanov practically slammed his fist on the table as he spoke, "Why can't they learn from the mistakes others have already made?"
Wang Xiao laughed: "Didn't Hegel say that the lesson humanity learns from history is that they haven't learned anything? That's normal, nothing strange about it."
Let alone Russia, how many business managers and local governments in China have learned from Ma Shengli's mistakes?
Putting aside other things, how did the dancing Chundu ham sausage, which is now popular all over the country, eventually die out?
The competitor Shuanghui was merely an external factor; what truly led Chundu to its doom was mergers and acquisitions, large-scale mergers and acquisitions.
Under the call of the local government for "high-quality enterprises to merge with inferior enterprises", Chundu has merged with a large number of enterprises from various industries.
Local governments have breathed a sigh of relief and gotten rid of their burdens for the time being.
However, Chun Du's funds were quickly depleted, making it difficult to move forward and causing mistakes at every turn.
Wang Xiao comforted Ivanov: "Alright, alright, don't be angry. You don't need to ride the three-wheeled vehicle, you can do something else."
Ivanov said anxiously, "It's basically impossible to continue producing cars now, and they have no advantage in price or quality. It would be difficult to find a market in China."
“We won’t make sedans.” Wang Xiao waved his hand. “Our approach should still follow the three-wheeled vehicle model. It’s a cheap alternative to trucks, so let’s make a cheap alternative to cars.”
What is that? An old man's amusement park ride.
Before Wang Xiao's time travel, electric cars had already developed rapidly and were quite inexpensive.
However, the use of electric vehicles for the elderly remains rampant despite repeated bans, and in areas below the county level, they can truly sweep across the land.
Why? Because it's genuinely cheap, small, and convenient. It has become a popular mode of transportation for many elderly people, hence the nickname "old man's car."
For Russians who want to buy a car but can't afford one, it's a more affordable alternative.
However, compared to the three-wheeled vehicles that had already developed quite maturely by 1994, the old man's vehicle still has a practical problem, namely, energy supply.
When the "old man's car" emerged, electric vehicles had already become quite mature, so it was electric. This was also one of its major advantages: low energy consumption.
It is said that the inventor of the "old man's car" used the sheet metal from an air conditioner, the motor from a washing machine, and the battery from an electric bicycle to create the first four-wheeled low-speed electric vehicle in China, which then quickly became popular in towns and villages, throughout the country, and even overseas.
Everything else is negotiable; Russia has no shortage of steel, and the engines for household appliances aren't a big problem either. The real obstacle is the batteries.
In 1994, lithium batteries had only been commercialized for a few years and were far from mature. What was even more critical was the lack of basic infrastructure such as charging stations.
Therefore, if the journey is a bit longer, you have to take a gasoline car and give up the option of taking an electric car.
Even so, Ivanov was still beaming with excitement after hearing Wang Xiao's idea: "My God, where did you see this? I don't think I've ever seen it before."
Wang Xiao, without blushing or panting, said, "It's my idea. As for the specifics, car factories can't just sit around waiting to be fed. There are so many engineers and technicians; they should figure it out themselves. But I insist that my name be listed as an author on the patent."
Ivanov didn't care about these details; he believed that solving the problem of direction would solve the bigger problem.
As for the other implementation details, let the professionals handle them.
"By the way, what's its name?"
Wang Xiaozhen was stumped by the question; she couldn't very well say it was an old man's car.
After thinking for a moment, she gave an answer: "Let's call it Simple Car."
But just as Ivanov nodded and was about to celebrate happily, Wang Xiao said seriously, "It's an equal exchange. We're not Aladdin's lamp; we can't solve every problem for the mayor."
The amber light flowed like honey, giving her a sweet glow.
Like the fairy godmother guiding Cinderella in a fairy tale, she looked earnestly at her partner, "Dear Ivanov, you can't be treated like Aladdin's lamp. Tools never end well. You need to get what you deserve."
The next day, they went to the airport and saw Secretary Fang off on his flight. After that, Ivanov did not leave with Wang Xiao, nor did he return to the factory.
He received a formal invitation to play tennis at the President's Club.
The so-called Presidential Club is a sports field built by the President for his closest friends.
In the mid-to-late 1990s, the businessmen who could access these places had a collective identity: oligarchs.
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Sorry, I didn't finish the outline yesterday. I'm not going out today, I'll continue working on the outline, and then I'll write the next chapter. [Cracks] I'm doing really well working on "The Daily Life of Ancient Migrant Workers Entering the City," I really want to start a new story. [Collapses] Yes, I am just that fickle and easily bored.
Regarding the Red Proletarian Machine Tool Plant, the most recent specific information I could find was an article titled "Based on Fundamentals, Manufacturing Advanced Technology—An Interview on the 150th Anniversary of the Red Proletarian Machine Tool Plant" in the September 2007 issue of *Manufacturing Technology and Machine Tools*. According to this article, the plant maintained production from 1988 to 2000, followed by technological innovation. After 2007, I couldn't find specific information about the plant's situation. However, the development of machine tools in Russia is indeed not very good at present, requiring a large amount of imports, primarily from China.
The Moskvich Automobile Plant, which Luzhkov tried hard to save in the 1990s, failed to be saved, just like the ZIL truck plant in history, and officially went bankrupt around 2002.
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