Chapter 246 No, it should be this price: Decentralization
Ivanov spent half the day as a background character, and it wasn't until he left the ribbon factory and got into the car that he put on a mournful show, lamenting, "Alas, without the Soviet Union, things really are no good. Look, your government officials are only fawning over that Singaporean, not even glancing at me."
Nikolai and his friends kept their eyes down and silently complained: "Nonsense, anyone can see that you're not the one in charge. Why would officials waste their time on you?"
Wang Xiao shook his head: "No, he wants to retain Singaporean capital because of the guidance of national policies."
"Do you remember that during his Southern Tour speech, the Chinese leaders specifically mentioned that we should learn from Singapore and do even better than Singapore?"
Ivanov nodded; he remembered it.
In fact, he and Wang Yi interpreted and analyzed every word of the Southern Tour's speech.
Just as Wang said, all policy changes in China are reflected in the leaders' speeches.
They've already made their intentions public. You just didn't understand; that's all.
But what does this statement prove? Does it demonstrate the importance that China attaches to Singapore?
God, King, are you sure you're trying to comfort me?
Wang Xiao shook his head: "No, what I want to say is, who was the first person China learned from during its reform and opening up?"
Ivanov knew the answer too: it was Japan.
At that time, the leader of China, the leader of a great power, met with Konosuke Matsushita during his visit to Japan and publicly requested: "Please help me, Mr. Matsushita and everyone present."
He was still in high school at the time, and he and Yura learned about the news through insider information.
Yura also felt that this old Chinese man was shameful. How could he be so subservient to a businessman from a capitalist country? He was definitely a coward.
The following year, without any prior notice, China launched a self-defense counterattack against Vietnam.
Good heavens, that was a slap in the face to the Soviet Union. Everyone knew Vietnam was under Soviet protection.
Ha! This is what they call a weak person. When he's strong and sharp, he's like a sword.
But for the sake of his country and people, he could also unhesitatingly lower himself and ask for help.
God, why can't Russia have a leader like that?
Wang Xiao was speechless. "Dude, you seem to have gone off-topic. Are you sure you can get a high score on an essay like this?"
She forcefully steered the conversation back on track: "So, Japanese capital was one of the earliest foreign investors to invest in China. However, in 1991, Japan experienced a financial crisis, its domestic economy deteriorated, and a large amount of Japanese capital withdrew from other countries to make up for the lack of domestic capital."
"Undoubtedly, this will have a significant impact on China's economy. First, China's foreign exchange reserves will decrease. Second, we have a considerable demand for Japanese consumer electronics and production materials, to the point that we can even say we are dependent on them."
"Let's start with the first point, the issue of foreign exchange. In the 1980s, besides mainland China, Japanese investment targets were the Four Asian Tigers and the Four Asian Dragons. The tightening of the yen increased regional currency competition among them."
"Everyone wants to keep foreign investment here. What can we do? Devalue the currency. Only in this way can capital feel the benefits and come here on its own initiative."
Ivanov suddenly realized: "So, the devaluation of the Chinese yuan last year was a deliberate act, influenced by Japan?"
That's incredible.
Well, I can understand that, actually. Japan is the world's second-largest economy; it's only natural that when it coughs, the whole of Asia is shaken.
Thinking about it this way, China is quite pitiful. At least, once this veil is pierced, it's a huge loss of face.
Wang Xiao nodded: "Therefore, the Chinese yuan needs to be devalued to a level lower than the Hong Kong dollar. The Hong Kong dollar is at 7.85:1, and the Chinese yuan needs to be discounted by at least 10%, to 8.5 or higher, in order to attract capital from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan to invest."
Ivanov clicked his tongue: "So the devaluation of the Chinese yuan was affected by Japan's economic war. It seems that when the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer. The economic game between the US and Japan has a significant impact."
Wang Xiao sighed and said, "So, now you understand why we specifically said in 1992 that we should learn from Singapore, right?"
The more you trace the threads of history, the more interesting they become.
Sitting in the car, Wang Xiao's mind wandered, and he thought about the impact of the economic rivalry between Japan and the United States.
Without a doubt, Japan lost. The US dollar, relying on the rise of the internet industry, defeated the yen. The depreciation of the yen allowed the US to indirectly subjugate Japan.
But that's not enough.
The semiconductor industry was a major contributor to Japan's economic rise.
If it makes a comeback, the yen can still grow stronger.
Therefore, the United States wants to promote the relocation of the semiconductor industry.
The destinations for the relocation are South Korea and Taiwan.
South Korea is a no-brainer. With North Korea as a hindrance, coupled with its geopolitical situation, it's unlikely to have the courage to say no to its leader!
However, Taiwan faces ideological dangers. In the 1980s, cross-strait relations were actually quite good, with the mainstream consensus being that we were one family.
So what should the United States do? Promote a democratic movement on the island of Taiwan.
Why did the pro-independence camp grow so rapidly in the early 1990s? It couldn't have been due to some kind of collective awakening, could it?
After completing the nerfs, Taiwan also received its reward. Let's look at when and how TSMC rose to prominence.
Wang Xiao stroked his chin, continuing to think.
Why wasn't mainland China caught in the financial crisis of 1998?
Throughout the 1990s, China's main capital came from industrial capital invested by compatriots from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and overseas, not financial capital, or hot money.
This achievement is not unrelated to the rapid devaluation of the Chinese yuan to 8.5 in 1993, which trapped foreign capital and prevented some industrial capital from leaving.
Indeed, the economy is the biggest political issue.
So what other major events occurred in the international economy in the 1990s? Well, the Euro.
There is no doubt that the EU wants the euro to grow bigger and stronger, but the US certainly doesn't want to see that happen.
When politics revolve around the national economy, everything else seems to fall into place.
Wang Xiao got out of the car after parking it in front of the development company.
Although the air quality was still poor today, Wang Xiao took a deep breath, cheered himself up, and prepared for a tough battle.
What tough battle? It's negotiating land transfer fees, of course.
The kind of deal where 3,000 acres of land in Pudong are sold for only $12 per square meter is certainly not going to happen in Beijing's Second Ring Road.
Sure enough, as soon as she met the person in charge in President Zhou's office, the latter immediately offered a price: "We treat everyone the same, 1.5 million yuan per mu. This is the price we agreed on with Boss Zheng."
Wang Xiao shook his head: "No, this can't be treated the same for everyone, because everyone's development plan is different."
She took out her planning proposal and handed it to General Manager Zhou. "I promised the ribbon factory that 12 mu of land would be used for their staff housing, and the remaining 10 mu would be used for a logistics center, and 18 mu for an electronics market. The land use is residential, industrial, and commercial, respectively. We can't just use the standard for commercial land."
Mr. Zhou took out a calculator and, just like a middleman doing business, began to haggle with Wang Xiao: "Residential land, at 800,000 per mu, that's 9.6 million yuan; industrial land, at 500,000 per mu, that's 5 million yuan; commercial land, at 1.5 million per mu, that's 27 million yuan. So the total price is 41.6 million yuan."
My God! We lost nearly 20 million in one go!
Oh dear, he can't take it anymore. This land was sold at a huge loss. It would have been better to sell it to Singaporeans to build a hotel.
Regardless of what happens in the future, at least for now, the benefit of 18.4 million is real and tangible.
Mr. Zhou felt dizzy and belatedly regretted his decision. How could he have been so blinded by greed, abandoning Mr. Zheng and hiring Mr. Wang instead?
He instinctively wanted to back out: "According to the plan, we are converting industrial land to commercial land. Doing it this way is not appropriate."
Wang Xiao said seriously, "What's inappropriate about it? Are we going to drive all the employees away, regardless of whether they have a place to live? Shouldn't the electronics market have its own logistics center?"
President Zhou grimaced, but he couldn't voice his grievances on the spot.
He was dissatisfied, and Wang Xiao was dissatisfied too.
The price of 41.6 million is still too high for her.
Pointing to the commercial land, she emphasized, "This shouldn't be priced like this; it should be 1.2 million."
Mr. Zhou shook his head, laughing in exasperation: "1.2 million? You have to consider the location. The ribbon factory's 40 acres are on the Second Ring Road! 1.2 million? Impossible. It's not like a vegetable market where you can't sell everything at night."
Wang Xiao laughed out loud: "So, I'm willing to raise the price to 1.3 million."
Mr. Zhou then frantically pressed the calculator buttons again, finally arriving at a price of 38 million.
Good heavens, they cut another 3.6 million from his salary.
With this 3.6 million, no, to be precise, it's 22 million from both the initial and subsequent cuts. How much can the district accomplish?
He shook his head vigorously: "No, no, how can you do that? You're giving me a 60% discount!"
Wang Xiao disagreed: "How can this be called a 40% discount? I'm building apartments for my employees on 12 mu of land, selling them to them at cost price. I don't make a profit. Can this be compared to commercial housing? I only actually get 18 mu of land. You do the math, even if it's 1.5 million yuan per mu, how much should that be?"
The calculator clearly showed the result: 27 million.
Well, according to this calculation, it's not that the development company undercharged her by 22 million, but that she overcharged by 11 million.
General Manager Zhou tried to save face: "Well, you planned it yourself. Anyway, we're giving away 40 acres of land. And you didn't even calculate the 10-acre logistics center."
Wang Xiao skipped over the logistics center issue and went straight to the staff housing: "Does that mean I don't care about the lives of the ribbon factory workers? They've worked hard all their lives, shouldn't they have a good outcome?"
Mr. Zhou waved his hand, repeatedly denying it: "You can't say that. You also need to understand our difficulties. How about this, I'll give you the lowest possible price, 1.2 million per mu, 48 million, how about that?"
Sigh, the price of 1.5 million that we finally negotiated has just vanished.
Wang Xiao still shook his head: "President Zhou, you see, we need to talk about politics as well as economics, right? The relocation of a factory with more than 2,000 employees has been managed to ensure that the workers have no complaints and even actively support it. I dare say, looking across the whole country, which development company can do that? You, the district development company you lead, have set a good example. Shouldn't the district government use this as an opportunity to apply for a national reform pilot program?"
Mr. Zhou's mind was shaken as he listened.
In officialdom, by middle age, one often finds oneself in an awkward position, neither high nor low.
Want to climb higher? No one's pulling you up, it's difficult.
I might as well just give up and let things decline; it's not good for me to save face. I can't let the younger generation boss me around like that.
To advance through sheer ability, you need to demonstrate genuine skill.
Wang Xiao continued to brainwash people: "Besides, everyone says that the interests of the government and the people are aligned, and that's exactly what our development plan is about. We've ensured stable employment for the ribbon factory workers and prevented mass incidents. Our planned logistics center can also drive the upgrading of the regional industrial chain."
Mr. Zhou blinked twice, completely unable to follow her train of thought: "Drive the upgrading of the industrial chain? Isn't a logistics center just a warehouse? How can a warehouse drive the upgrading of the regional industrial chain?"
Good heavens! If it weren't for the fact that she was introduced by a leader and that everyone was discussing a contract, he would have sarcastically remarked to her: "Talking big in the dead of winter, aren't you afraid of biting your tongue in the wind?"
Wang Xiao said seriously, "Of course. With a logistics center like this, centralized warehousing and distribution can reduce the cost of building warehouses for surrounding businesses and increase inventory turnover. If you were to set up a business here, wouldn't you want everything readily available? Also, with a logistics center, wouldn't it be possible to collect data from upstream and downstream suppliers, guide production planning in reverse, and prevent overcapacity in advance?"
There are others, too.
For example, warehouse receipt pledge services can be provided, allowing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to use goods stored in logistics centers, mainly electronic components, as collateral to obtain loans below market rates, thus solving the financing difficulties of SMEs.
Furthermore, through technological spillover, such as introducing barcode systems into logistics centers and promoting container standardization, production efficiency can be significantly improved and transportation losses reduced. This inflow and outflow can double the economic benefits.
Another aspect is the catalysis industry cluster.
For example, due to high order volume, packaging material suppliers set up factories within a 3-kilometer radius to reduce transportation costs. This also spurred the emergence of specialized customs brokerage firms, freight insurance agents, and so on.
She hasn't even said anything yet.
However, it doesn't have much of an impact if she doesn't say anything.
Because President Zhou was already attracted by her talk of "preventing overcapacity".
Seriously, the worst thing about running a factory is not knowing whether to increase or decrease production capacity.
What you see in stores is unreliable. The failure of inflation control in 1988 triggered a nationwide buying frenzy, resulting in severe overcapacity. Many factories still have unsold stockpiled today.
If this warehousing and logistics center can truly serve as a guide, then the factory won't be at a loss.
Furthermore, having a logistics center would attract other investors, which seems like a good idea.
After much deliberation, Premier Zhou concluded that, as a leading cadre, he still had to prioritize politics.
Compared to short-term economic benefits, social stability and industrial upgrading are of greater significance.
He struggled for a full three seconds before finally nodding heavily: "Alright, let's have another meeting to discuss this. This isn't a small amount."
Wang Xiao is on the verge of a breakdown.
No, boss, what kind of democratic approach are you talking about at a time like this?
Are they really that timid? Do they really need to hold a meeting to share the risks?
She went straight for the big guns: "How about this, we can sign a performance-based agreement with your company. If we can't provide the promised housing for the employees within three years, and if the ribbon factory goes bankrupt and we can't resettle the laid-off workers, then we will make up the difference of 10 million yuan in land transfer fees."
Mr. Zhou wasn't happy at all; this 10 million was rightfully theirs to receive.
Wang Xiao added, "We'll add another 2 million yuan as a re-employment fund for employees of state-owned enterprises in the district."
Mr. Zhou's eyes really lit up.
This is good; having this immediately changes the meaning.
He immediately promised, "Okay, I'll tell everyone. Alright, what's the rush? This meeting isn't about conveying messages, it's about getting things done. Don't worry, it'll be quick."
Wang Xiao and Ivanov were politely invited to the adjacent meeting room.
Just kidding, the boss's office is full of documents that can't be shared, how could they possibly leave them alone?
Once in the meeting room, Wang Xiao didn't rest; he started working on the plan.
She really couldn't rely on others for this job, because, putting everything else aside, just that 18 acres of land alone was comparable to the SEG Plaza in Shenzhen.
Yes, that's right, that's just how she is.
She doesn't like going to Huaqiangbei to snatch up a one-meter counter and waiting for a miracle.
She likes to do things herself and create miracles on her own.
Ivanov peered over to look at the pictures, utterly curious.
Despite building a high-end office building in Moscow, as a boss, all he needs to do is open his mouth and tell others to do the work.
In fact, he knew nothing about the construction industry.
"Your Majesty, what is this?"
While drawing a simple sketch, Wang Xiao explained, "A glass curtain wall is a building standard consisting of a steel structure and a glass curtain wall. In addition, it needs to be equipped with escalators, central air conditioning, and an intelligent security system."
She had been to SEG Plaza, but only remembered that it had 75 floors above ground and 4 floors below ground. The bottom 8 floors were Asia's largest electronics market, and the top floors were office buildings and hotels. She couldn't recall exactly how many floors were office buildings and how many were hotels.
No problem, the planning and design are left to professionals, and she, as the client, is only responsible for making requests.
Anything that doesn't meet the standard of a vibrant, multicolored white must be sent back for a remake!
Just as the wicked client was getting into the swing of things, there was a knock on the door of the meeting room.
A fair-skinned, well-mannered young man came over and politely invited them to the conference room.
Ivanov was overjoyed. Ah, the king is about to start his debate with the scholars again.
Oh, I'm really looking forward to it.
As a result, his desire to enjoy the drama so much backfired spectacularly.
Mr. Zhou immediately invited them to sit down, and together they drafted the contract on the spot, finalized the details, and then signed the contract.
There were no instances of difficulties from all sides or one person having to overcome obstacles alone; none of that happened.
Even the meeting room was left with only General Manager Zhou; the other managers from the development company had all gone out to attend to their own business.
Well, the only thing that could be considered somewhat ceremonial was that the fair-skinned young man held a camera and solemnly took several photos of them signing the contract.
This time, Ivanov was in the picture, even shaking hands with President Zhou, and was photographed several times.
Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao both suspected that it was his typical Slavic appearance, that made him look like a foreigner, which helped him gain favor with the government's camera department.
After the photos were taken—or rather, after the signing ceremony—General Manager Zhou began to urge him, as if he were one of the family members: "General Manager Wang, the development of this land needs to be accelerated. Once I report this as a model project, countless eyes are watching, eager to see the results."
Wang Xiao smiled broadly: "Definitely, definitely. If conditions permit, the factory will move today, and I'll start construction tomorrow."
Well, that's obviously impossible. Land development requires preliminary surveying, planning, and design, especially for high-rise buildings, which is no joke.
Back then, the SEG Plaza had hidden dangers due to the design and construction being carried out simultaneously. Later, when the wind blew, the building swayed, and every time it swayed, it cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
She's gone mad; she's obsessed with money.
Mr. Zhou wanted to give her another pep talk to get her all fired up.
But the contract has already been signed, so what else can Wang Xiao offer him besides sweet talk?
So in the end, Mr. Zhou could only reluctantly see the person off at the company gate.
Once in the car, the cheerful man reverted to his examiner mode and began chasing KPIs: "How's the resettlement of the ribbon factory workers going?"
Yang Tao was still immersed in the excitement of "learning something new" when her boss asked her a question. She could only stammer and report: "I drafted a guide for them, and I'm polishing and optimizing the details."
Wang Xiao looked at her calmly: "So, who will actually take charge of this matter?"
Yang Tao replied without hesitation, "I'll do it."
Ivanov wanted to cover his face again. God, Peach, may you have good luck.
As expected, Wang Xiao continued, "Are you also directly in charge of acquiring the old houses in Beijing? What about the development of the 40 acres of land?"
Unable to suppress her sharp tongue, she said, "So you are Nezha! My apologies, I didn't realize you had three heads and six arms."
Yang Tao blushed instantly, curling herself up like a quail.
Wang Xiao shook his head and sighed, "Do you know where your problem lies? You've been working alone since you left the trade city for more than half a year, and you still don't have your own team."
"How can a leader carry out their work if they can't build their own team in such a long time?"
"Don't compare Chen Yu to you, even though Chen Yu only started working a year earlier than you. Take Zhang Junfei for example. Zhang Junfei arrived in Shanghai later than you, but when we went to see him, he was already able to gather people to take over the preliminary planning for the newly acquired land."
"And you? You do everything yourself?"
"What do you call this behavior? Using tactical diligence to cover up strategic laziness. It's meaningless except for impressing yourself."
Wang Xiao shook his head: "Forget it, just keep an eye on these 40 mu of land. I'll find someone else to handle the employee resettlement and the old houses."
Her patience had run out, and she issued an ultimatum: "If you can't even manage these 40 mu of land, you don't need to come back after the New Year in Jinning."
Yang Tao's shoulders began to tremble, and she bit her lip tightly to keep herself from crying out loud.
But Wang Xiao didn't know how to cherish women.
When it comes to money, she can scold even her parents severely, let alone her subordinates.
Xiao Gao and Xiao Zhao exchanged a secret glance and looked at Yang Tao with sympathy.
Well, if judged by the standards of her own sisters, Yang Tao is quite outstanding.
But by the standards of the boss's subordinates, she was indeed unqualified.
If it were anyone else, like Ms. Ruan from Malaysia, her boss would have called her yesterday and asked her to arrange for someone to go to South Africa to develop the market and build Huaxia City.
Sister Ruan asked about the requirements and then immediately recommended three candidates, explaining their situations to the boss for selection.
When it came to Xiaotao, she couldn't produce a single one, no wonder the boss was angry.
Don't say things like Sister Ruan is old and experienced.
They believe that even if it were someone younger, like Saori Yamada, who graduated from university less than a year ago, she would have recommendations to fill the position of store manager.
Wang Xiao lowered the car seat and began to close his eyes to rest.
She needed to go through the plan in her mind and, during her break from Beijing, lay out the framework.
While in Shanghai, Zhang Junfei's suggestion to use flights to South Africa and Tanzania and bring back flowers on the return trip inspired her.
However, she didn't want to wait for the Shanghai fish market to be established; she wanted to start making money now, and she wanted to make money in Beijing as well.
South Africa enjoys abundant sunshine and is located in the Southern Hemisphere. Its flower industry has long been established and accounts for 12% of the global flower trade, making it a very large market.
In recent years, the flower market in Beijing has also flourished, and the demand for flowers is so high that even a single star-rated hotel uses a considerable amount of flowers every day.
To put it simply, in the 1990s, opening a flower shop was the dream of countless girls.
Besides South African flowers, Tanzania's cashews and cloves are also globally renowned African specialties.
Tanzania produces 120,000 tons of cashews annually, ranking fifth in the world; and it is the world's largest producer of cloves, with an annual output of 15,000 tons.
The Chinese people's enthusiasm for food has always been something that Engel's coefficient can only watch helplessly.
Furthermore, by coordinating transportation, the sale of fresh flowers from South Africa and cashews and cloves from Tanzania in major Chinese cities will benefit bilateral relations and help Chinese businesses establish themselves in the region.
After all, only through give and take can people live together peacefully in the long run.
Okay, Manager Zhao, let's get to work ahead of schedule and get the transportation of African specialty products sorted out first.
As for transportation, Zhang Junfei has people overseeing it. She should start by developing the Beijing market.
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The original plot involved fierce competition for the Beijing land, employing various business tactics, including leveraging media influence. I was incredibly excited while designing it. However, I later realized that 1994 was primarily about maintaining stability. A bitter fight between Wang Xiao and any foreign investor would have a negative impact. Furthermore, given the prevailing social climate in 1994, it wasn't worth fighting tooth and nail over a piece of land. It was far from the time when hot money was flooding the real estate market.
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