Chapter 221 What exactly do you want? We're afraid we'll give you the wrong thing.
Inside the carriage, both bosses fell silent, clearly busy weighing the pros and cons of the matter.
On the surface, joining the circle seems to offer many benefits.
However, there is actually a rule that applies throughout history and across the world: when important figures are shouting slogans, it is best for ordinary people not to be foolish enough to rush up and echo them.
Otherwise, you'll become a scapegoat to be pushed out and take the blame in the future.
If you don't believe me, just look at the bombardment of the White House.
Is the Speaker dead? Is the Vice President dead? They're both alive and well.
Those who died were all insignificant people.
Russian banks are different.
Because the Russian federal government does not have its own central treasury, the state relies on "chartered" commercial banks to store and spend its money.
Even someone with no financial knowledge knows that the waters here are unfathomably deep.
The assistant subconsciously lowered his throat. When he saw the two bosses open their eyes at the same time and stare intently at him, the latter was so frightened that his heart almost jumped out of his chest, and he involuntarily stammered, "Well, actually, many clients hope that we can open a bank. They say they don't trust other banks."
To put it bluntly, they felt that the boss was wealthy and had a solid foundation, and wouldn't run away with the money like other banks.
Wang Xiao didn't respond to his assistant's words, but only gave instructions: "First, let's compile a list of the steel mill workers' needs. How about $100 per person, according to Ivanov?"
Ivanov turned to look at her, a hint of doubt in his eyes: "Your Majesty?"
Wang Xiao nodded: "Sure, if we don't understand, we can recruit people who do."
Although she didn't know the specifics of how to handle banking transactions, she had never flown a plane before starting Wuzhou Company.
Oh no, to be more precise, she has never flown a plane before.
But did this stop them from making money through Wuzhou Company?
Capitalists just need to do their jobs well.
Ivanov let out a soft breath, nodded slightly, and smiled: "Then let's leave it at that. Hmm, let's first take stock of everyone's needs."
When Wang Xiao met the short-haired girl who had greeted them the day before, she specifically asked, "What do you need? Hmm, Christmas gifts. What do the female employees need? Hmm, we're worried we've misunderstood and haven't given you what you need most."
To prove her point, she cited her experience when she first arrived in Moscow in 1991 as an example.
"On the train I was on, there were also Chinese government officials. They were escorting aid supplies to Moscow. At that time, well, the Soviet Union hadn't collapsed yet, and the government was facing some trouble. China provided a batch of daily necessities. The Second Secretary of the Moscow City Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union personally went to the station to meet them and ensured that the supplies would never enter the free market. But on the third day, I saw that batch of luncheon meat and small sausages in the free market."
The short-haired girl, Elena, immediately showed a look of both embarrassment and anger: "Ha! Anyone who believes their nonsense will suffer a great loss. These guys specialize in doing this kind of thing."
“No, no, no,” Wang Xiao explained, “You misunderstood me. I think these supplies should have already been distributed by then. But what the people who received them really needed most might not have been luncheon meat and sausages. That’s why they took them to the free market to sell and exchange them for what they really needed. In that case, why don’t we prepare what they really need from the beginning?”
Elena looked at her intently.
Russian girls are generally tall; she was a head taller than Wang Xiao. Her expression towards Wang Xiao was very serious: "No, Miss Wang, you need to be careful. I think you're good people. I saw the news on Channel One; you even took the bad clothes that other people were selling and replaced them with good ones. My grandmother didn't believe it at first, but you really replaced them and sent them to her. But you can't do that in a factory. They, well, there are too many scammers in this country; scammers are everywhere."
Wang Xiao held her hand, smiled, and looked into her eyes: "I know, thank you, dear Elena, you are a kind and warm-hearted girl."
"Our idea is that we should always focus on real industry. We should organize production, sell the products we produce, get money, and then distribute it to the people who produced them so that they have money to buy what they need. If they can't buy what they need, that's okay too. We can have our own stores, and they can buy whatever they want from the stores."
Elena looked confused yet hopeful, and murmured, "Yes, that should be it."
The Soviet Union of the past—well, the Soviet Union she disliked—seemed like this, but it didn't work out because the stores didn't have what they wanted to buy.
Those party elites were always complaining that the workers had too much money and trying to find ways to take it away.
They even abolished the 50 and 100 ruble denominations.
Ha! She had just started working then, she had just received her salary, and she had just planned how to spend it when the money became worthless.
She had assumed that with the collapse of the Soviet Union, there would be plenty of things in the stores that everyone would want to buy.
In fact, it does exist; it has everything.
I heard that those beautiful American and French goods can be found in big stores.
But everyone was out of money.
The factory didn't even have the money to pay everyone's wages.
The thought of wages jolted Elena awake, her gaze turning wary: "So, can you pay us wages?"
When the workers' representative meeting of the steel plant was held, this was also the issue that the workers' representatives were most concerned about.
Yes, yes, theoretically speaking, the factory should be auctioned off, with those who have acquired enough factory privatization securities participating in the auction, and the highest bidder winning.
But this is only a theoretical perspective, and one that employees are neither interested in nor welcome.
The economic downturn left people with no energy to dream about the future; almost everyone was only concerned with one thing: "Where's our salary? When will we get paid? Will we even get paid?"
“Of course,” Ivanov said with certainty. “If we don’t pay wages, how are people supposed to live? If they can’t even survive, what value does the factory have?”
The atmosphere in the venue finally eased a little.
Since the factory fell into difficulties, almost every meeting the leaders have emphasized that everyone should understand the factory's difficulties, unite as one, and overcome the challenges together.
But when they were making a fortune running their own internal bank, they never thought about sharing the profits.
I wonder if this new boss... well, let all the factory managers and chief engineers get out of here. They'd welcome a boss who pays their salaries.
"How are you going to pay our salaries? Are you going to make up for all the outstanding payments?"
Ivanov looked at the young worker in front of him, who looked like a calf, and said seriously, "Part of it is wages, and part of it is goods."
"Ha!" The workers below the stage whistled, clearly venting their dissatisfaction.
Someone shouted, "You're going to pull that scam again! We want our wages, rubles! We want rubles! Don't try to fool us with that nonsense."
"Let me finish!" Ivanov raised his voice. "The factory will reopen the shops, and all employees and their families can use coupons to buy all the necessities they need at a low price."
"Give us rubles!" a young worker shouted angrily, jumping up and waving his fist. "We only want rubles!"
“No!” Ivanov refused without hesitation.
He looked earnestly at the employees below the stage and said, "If I agree, then I'm a complete fraud who only knows how to talk big and fool you."
The room became noisy, and the audience below was in a chaotic state, with all sorts of people saying different things.
Ivanov gestured: "When I said I wanted to run a factory, many people said I was an idiot. Because everyone knows, everyone in Moscow knows, that running a factory requires spending a lot of money to upgrade equipment, and the products you make may not even sell. Smart people are speculating; currency speculation has low costs, high profits, and requires almost no capital."
This is no secret; everyone knows it, and everyone wants to do it.
It's like a popular saying in China in the 1980s: "Out of 1 billion people, 900 million have collapsed, and the remaining 100 million are still searching."
Ivanov raised his hand slightly: "But I've never done that. Everyone knows I haven't earned a single ruble from that. I get loans from banks, and I invest them in production, honestly paying the interest. Because I've learned a little about finance, and all finance is just icing on the cake after the development of industrial and agricultural production."
"Finance is just floating numbers, drifting in the air. Only the real things, produced in the factory and from the ground, are real."
I like things that are real and tangible.
The workers grew impatient: "We want our wages! We want our rubles!"
Which normal person enjoys listening to capitalists spout nonsense and talk about their so-called life ambitions?
The working class doesn't care about the capitalists' dreams!
Ivanov's eyes widened: "That's why I need to control costs. I'm in the retail business, you all know that, that's how I make money. I've also invested in farms. I supply goods to stores, and the price is definitely lower than what you buy directly from the market. That way, I make a portion of the profit here, which offsets part of my investment. Without controlling costs like this, I simply couldn't take over the factory."
The young workers who had been shouting earlier wanted to argue further: "We just want what we want..."
The person next to him abruptly pulled him down and shouted loudly towards the stage, "Is it really cheaper than outside?"
“Of course,” Ivanov nodded, giving an affirmative answer. “Our products are all of high quality and low price, absolutely great value for money.”
The whispers among the employee representatives grew louder.
Perhaps it was because they were all steel plants, and both were transitioning from a planned economy to a market economy, but at that moment, Wang Xiao even had the illusion that he was in the Jinning Steel Plant area.
Someone asked again to confirm: "Is it really cheaper?"
“Of course.” Ivanov felt there was no need to dwell on this issue. “The vegetables and fruits I sell on my farm in Moscow are less than half the market price.”
He then warned, "Hey! Don't even think about reselling this. It's for you and your families to live on."
Laughter began to fill the room.
Some couldn't help but hope: "You should give us more money. We're suffering so much, really suffering so much. Look at our children."
Ivanov shook his head firmly: "No, we must save the profits and use them all to upgrade our equipment. God, how long has it been since you've seen a blue sky? God, I don't want you living in this kind of air. Pollution, we must eliminate pollution."
One worker argued, "Novokuznetsk isn't just home to one steel plant; it's full of factories."
Ivanov wasn't having any of it: "The West Siberian Steel Plant is in the mountains, unlike our plant, which is right in a residential area. God, you can tolerate it, but I can't, even though I don't live here."
One of the workers asked, "Where are you going?"
"Find a market," Ivanov said irritably. "How will the factory survive if we don't sell the steel?"
Those who had initially opposed the idea fell silent and began to laugh, finally bringing the atmosphere to a completely harmonious state.
Even after the conference ended, some elderly employees came to Ivanov and pleaded, "Please, you must buy our factory."
Russia's industry has shrunk drastically, with factories shut down or even going bankrupt everywhere. It's common for workers not to receive their wages.
The government is unable to continue subsidizing factories, and the newly rich are busy speculating in finance or making big money by reselling oil, so no one is willing to focus their attention on factories.
That's perfectly normal.
During the real estate boom, clothing manufacturers, shoemakers, and all sorts of seemingly unrelated industries wanted to get a piece of the pie.
Who doesn't like making quick money?
Compared to quick money, manufacturing, which involves large investments and low returns, is really unappealing.
Putting aside other things, Kugane Steel has more than 30,000 workers. Even if each worker only earns $50 a month, that's still nearly $2 million a month to pay their wages.
Where will such a large sum of money come from?
Frankly speaking, even Wang Xiao, if she were to choose between Jinning Steel Plant and Kugang Steel Plant from an investor's perspective, would choose to buy the former.
The reason is very simple: even if the former business eventually fails and goes bankrupt, she can still make a lot of money just by selling the land.
Frankly speaking, Wang Xiao is not optimistic about the real estate prospects of Novokuznetsk at all, even if Kuznetsk Steel were to be used instead.
In Russia, especially in major cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg, real estate is the only viable option.
It's just that Jinning Steel Plant hasn't said it's going to sell yet.
Ivanov earnestly assured him, "I'll find a way to pull some strings and get this settled. Hey—"
He then called out to the leaders of Kugang Steel, "As soon as possible, no, immediately, organize people to clear out the idle workshops. As for the benefits, um, the Christmas benefits for everyone, once the statistics are compiled, they should be coming over soon."
The workers who hadn't left yet cheered.
My God! Is this time for real?
Wang Xiao and Ivanov spent the New Year in Novokuznetsk, staying until January 3rd, when all the supplies arrived and were distributed.
Honestly, Wang Xiao felt their actions were truly moving, considering the extremely poor air quality here. They were practically risking their lives to distribute supplies to the workers.
Yet this terrible environment, where they feel they'll die if they stay even a minute longer, is the home that the workers have lived in for years, and perhaps for the rest of their lives.
As they were leaving, some workers ran up to Ivanov and repeatedly emphasized that he absolutely had to participate in the auction.
If those bigwigs try any tricks, they can transfer all their privatization securities to him so he can still buy the steel mill.
This made Ivanov's eyes red, and he kept promising, "I will definitely come back."
The car door closed, but he was still waving goodbye to the people outside the window.
Yura quipped sarcastically, "My God, Ivanov, you're such a wonderful guy. How come you're so popular wherever you go?"
“Because I spent three million dollars to celebrate Christmas with everyone.” Ivanov snapped back, “If you did, they would absolutely love you.”
Yura was about to jump up and down again.
He swore that he was actually a steady person, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to rise to a high position at such a young age.
Wang Xiao can't read minds, otherwise she would definitely roll her eyes.
Steady? Are you kidding me! What hair on your body has ever been associated with the word "steady"?
Moreover, does Russia need to be cautious?
Russians are just too steady, which is why a madman can suddenly appear and take the stage with just a few slogans.
Surprisingly, no one has knocked him down yet.
Yura and Ivanov, the elementary school chickens, argued for less than three rounds before Yura was losing ground and instinctively wanted to ask Vlamikl for help.
But when he spoke, he sadly discovered that Vladimir had already left before New Year's Day.
Ivanov seized the opportunity to mock him: "Of course, do you think everyone is as idle as you?"
Yura snapped again: "Hey! What nonsense are you spouting? I'm busy. If you weren't my friend, would I have come all the way to Novokuznetsk to suffer with you? God, I don't even have a single piece of clothing left to wear."
Ivanov was not moved at all; instead, he mocked him: "Then you should take a couple more days off, so that when you get busy, you don't just cause trouble for the people."
"Hey! Ivanov, you!"
Without saying a word, Wang Xiao put earphones in his ears and started listening to Michael Jackson's songs.
That's terrible. Her favorite singer is in trouble now and has even canceled his concert and returned to the United States.
But it's okay, he can get through this.
Ivanov and Yura really do have a good relationship.
Even though they argued all the way, from the car to the train, and even after they got off at the train station back in Moscow, it didn't stop Yura from angrily introducing him to business opportunities.
What kind of business? Airline business.
Ivanov looked astonished: "Did I hear that right? Nobody wants an airline? That's absolutely ridiculous."
Good heavens, everyone knows airlines make money.
“They just want money,” Yura said, frowning impatiently.
To be fair, he's considered handsome among Russians, but his expressions always detract from his good looks.
Yura said irritably, "They just want to control the ticketing process."
Haha, Russian airlines these days are so interesting. The planes are always running out of fuel, and the pilots are always going unpaid.
Is it that airlines aren't making money? Of course not, there are always planes taking off and there are always tickets that can't be sold.
But the cash used to buy tickets, especially the cash used to buy tickets abroad with hard currency, seemed to have magically grown wings and flown away.
No one knows for sure where it flew to.
Such unclear and ambiguous situations are countless in Russia, and the government doesn't know what to do.
Because their disappearance is, in a sense, legitimate.
Yes, it's absurd, but that's how it is under the current law.
Holes, holes everywhere. Those cunning termites and greedy fleas are like loaches, loaches that can get into any hole.
Wang Xiao sighed softly, unable to help but lament, "You really should legislate properly. Your laws are completely unsuitable for modern Russia. They're full of contradictions, neglecting what should be regulated and interfering in things that shouldn't be regulated."
"Is this our responsibility?" Yura became agitated again, his eyes almost bulging out. "It's the Soviet Union. For 70 years, the Soviet Union didn't use the law. Going back further, even the Tsars didn't. Russians don't respect the law. The law is useless."
Wang Xiao was afraid that he would get too excited and something bad might happen, so she quickly emphasized, "I understand, the law will always be lagging behind."
Ivanov sneered: "Whose fault is that? When you were so eager to kill the Soviet Union, you didn't even have the time to sit down and think about what you would do if the Soviet Union died. If it were the Soviet Union, and they encountered a situation where the money disappeared, do you think they could continue to live freely?"
Yura was speechless.
He was an official, and he dealt with all sorts of cunning people.
Sometimes, he admits that such a thought would pop into his head when he was exhausted.
Would you dare to fool Soviet government officials like this if it were the Soviet government?
He could only subconsciously console himself: "Russia will eventually move towards freedom and democracy."
Ivanov burst out laughing, his voice dripping with sarcasm: "Ah, freedom and democracy. What beautiful words, Mr. Democracy and Mr. Science. Have they arrived yet?"
Yura wanted to get angry, but when he followed Ivanov's gaze, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
Because he saw the White House, one of Moscow's landmarks built in 1981 at a cost of $1.4 billion, now unrecognizable and in ruins.
What democracy and freedom? Is it the democracy and freedom of firing cannons at one's own opponents?
Yura pressed her lips tightly together, refusing to speak again.
When the driver was about to turn, he gave the order in a rather impatient tone: "Turn to the right."
Ivanov immediately pressed, "What are you doing?"
"The plane, the plane you wanted!" Yura was like a walking firecracker, ready to explode at any moment. "Fine, don't take it!"
Under Wang Xiao's warning gaze, Ivanov reluctantly adopted his arrogant demeanor: "Alright, I'll go take a look."
Ah, how rude of you to lower yourself like this.
It's fortunate that Yura truly loved Ivanov; otherwise, anyone else would have turned on her on the spot.
However, Wang Xiao's inner thoughts changed when the car reached the vicinity of the helipad, and he thought Ivanov was really giving Yura face.
Look at all that stuff sitting on the tarmac! Haven't those obsolete fixed assets been towed away yet?
Look at those airplanes, their wings drooping, their windshields bulging... Oh dear, the doors that open with a gust of wind.
Anyone who dares to fly this thing isn't an aerial warrior, they're a suicide bomber.
No, not even assassins could do it, not even gods could fly these planes.
Because even the aircraft's engines and other parts were removed, it was left with only an empty shell, truly equivalent to scrap metal.
Ivanov was so angry he laughed: "What, you changed your mind again and gave the steel mill to someone else; so you're making me come here to collect scrap metal as compensation?"
Yura's eyes widened like goldfish as she looked at him as if he were an idiot: "What nonsense are you spouting? What do they have to do with you?"
Ivanov, unusually, was rebuffed by him: "Isn't it them?"
“Of course!” Yura said, dissatisfied. “Drive forward.”
He was done for, and then he started teasing Wang Xiao, saying, "Heh, Ivanov, you've really been spending too much time with junk collectors, and your thinking has been skewed."
Wang Xiao was furious. Ha, for the sake of the airplane—
She's not looking at a ghost!
She immediately turned to look at Ivanov: "He said I'm a junk collector, and since I collected you, you're junk."
Ha, she wouldn't be able to bear it!
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The following information is from the internet.
Russia's privatization was based on an inaccurate valuation of state-owned enterprise assets. The valuation used the book value of Russian companies as of July 1992 as the base value, failing to consider intangible assets or adjust for inflation. This decision allowed investors to purchase state assets on very favorable terms, whether through auctions or internal purchases. Therefore, it is not surprising that the total value of Russia's entire industry was extremely low. When securities privatization ended in June 1994, Russia's total industrial value was less than $12 billion. Even Chubais's advisors were shocked, asking themselves, "Is all of Russia's industrial assets, including oil, gas, parts of transportation, and most of manufacturing, worth less than a single American company like Kellogg?"
According to V. Lisichkin, a member of the Russian State Duma's Committee on the Analysis of Privatization Results, the average selling price of the 125,000 state-owned enterprises sold in Russia was only $1,300, a record low in the world. For example, the Uralvagonzavod plant, a large state-owned machinery manufacturing enterprise with over 34,000 employees, sold for only $3.72 million; the Chelyabinsk steel plant, with over 35,000 employees, sold for only $3.73 million; the Kovrov military plant, with over 10,500 employees, sold for only $2.7 million; and the Chelyabinsk tractor plant, with over 54,300 employees, sold for only $2.2 million. In contrast, a medium-sized bakery in a European country is worth $2 million.
Statistics show that Russia's 500 large state-owned enterprises were actually worth over $1 trillion, but were only sold for $7.2 billion, resulting in losses of over $1 trillion for the country. From 1992 to 1996, privatization proceeds accounted for only 0.13%–0.16% of government budget revenue. As for the "privatization vouchers" given to residents free of charge, the government received nothing.
According to figures provided by the government's finance department, cited by Lisichkin, from 1992 to 1996, the privatization revenue turned over to the budget each year accounted for only about 0.15% of the total budget revenue. In 1996 alone, the losses caused by the privatization of state-owned enterprises were greater than the losses to state property caused by Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union.
Scandals have frequently occurred during the auctions of state-owned enterprises. In 1994, among 30 of Russia's largest enterprises, 23 companies had only one bidder, raising serious suspicions of insider trading.
Compared to the many bizarre measures taken by Russia's so-called "State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission," this behavior is still considered "routine."
From 1992 to 1994, the World Bank provided a huge loan to Russia's State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) to support reforms, but the loan and receipts have since disappeared. During the same period, G7 aid loans also vanished, with the whereabouts of over $3 billion in foreign aid funds remaining unknown.
Most incredibly, the Russian Federation Property Fund, which was responsible for managing Russian state-owned assets, was also in a precarious situation at the time.
When Russia auctions off state-owned assets, the Federal Property Fund entrusts the proceeds to Sberbank Moscow as its agent. Subsequently, the bank was exposed for embezzling more than 29 billion rubles and was prosecuted in court, prompting an investigation by the Russian prosecutor's office.
The leaders of the Russian Federation Property Foundation intervened urgently, demanding that Sberbank Moscow return the large sum of money stored in the foundation within a three-day period.
Given the current situation, is it unrealistic for the Russian Federation Property Fund to attempt to recover the funds?
Sberbank Moscow quickly reversed its stance, rejecting the Russian Federation Property Fund's request without any consideration, citing its inability to fulfill its obligations.
After the auction of state-owned assets, they went through multiple rounds of exploitation and twists and turns, eventually becoming the property of the Russian Federation, totaling more than 40 billion rubles, but unfortunately they became bad debts.
What is particularly serious is that some of the more than 40 billion rubles came from deposits paid by bidders to the Russian Federation Property Fund during auctions of state-owned assets. After the fund was defrauded, these deposits became bad debts, severely damaging the Russian government's credibility.
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