Chapter 156: Hidden Concerns of Land Speculation
"The factory that Mr. Lin mentioned is said to be eyeing the land of their old factory and wants to find a developer to cooperate with." Wei Xu mentioned.
Professor Qiao didn't have this news. Lin Ruoyan believed that Professor Qiao was not hiding it. Perhaps the people who had contact with Professor Qiao had other selfish motives. It seemed that this factory had a lot of ideas.
In a land auction, the fewer people participate and the weaker their power, the higher the chances of the factory securing the land.
So Professor Qiao was tricked into designing the landmark hotel and high-end residential complex in the new district, probably for the pursuit of design quality, using the label of a well-known architect and beautiful renderings to cater to the wishes of his superiors. He might even revise the design drawings again and again to please his superiors, and he might not even get the design fee.
Few professional clients understand and appreciate the value of design, let alone an unprofessional team like a factory. If things had unfolded this way, Professor Qiao would likely have wasted his energy and ultimately produced no real design work. It's likely that the project only requires beautiful blueprints, with no guarantee of when construction will take place, or whether it will be built according to the blueprints.
The factory also had to leverage this situation to negotiate with relevant departments to secure the land in the old city. By sacrificing an architect to please the boss, the factory would only lose the design fee, which could even be withheld on the grounds that the project didn't meet the boss's expectations. How cost-effective is that?
If the above speculation is true, then from the perspective of local people, the new district is still far away, and the old city area has great potential and higher value.
Lin Ruoyan's thoughts solidified her decision to focus on the old city instead of the new district. She would share her findings with Professor Qiao as soon as possible, letting him decide for himself whether or not to take on the design work.
Wei Xu looked at his watch. He had a dinner party in the evening and had to prepare now. He was reluctant to spend some time alone with Lin Ruoyan, but he still politely said goodbye.
Lin Ruoyan's mind was full of the project, wondering whether she should participate in the land auction in the old city. She had no intention of trying to keep the man and opened the door to see him off.
This once again left Wei Xu feeling an indescribable sense of frustration. Perhaps, Mr. Lin really only considered him an ordinary friend?
If Lin Ruoyan heard this, she would probably feel even more ashamed, because she just treated Wei Xu as a tool. At this time, Wei Xu didn't even charge her for chatting with him. After she asked for the information she wanted to know, she naturally sent him away.
Lin Ruoyan didn't care about continuing to stay alone with the handsome actor in a guest room, but it would easily affect Wei Xu's innocent image.
Qin Shuang happened to come back from a survey at this time. She went upstairs to find her leader to report a piece of important news that she accidentally learned. She glanced at the tall figure in the corridor and thought doubtfully that the person looked like Wei Xu.
When she entered Lin Ruoyan's room, she saw two cups of tea on the coffee table outside. She immediately realized, "Boss Lin, did you have guests here just now?"
Lin Ruoyan said generously, "Yes, Wei Xu lives next door. I originally wanted to book a suite for you to stay next to mine so that we could discuss things, but I didn't expect that it was already reserved by Wei Xu."
Qin Shuang knew that the hotel was chosen by the company's front desk. President Lin hadn't mentioned it beforehand, simply requesting the best room. If he hadn't known this, Qin Shuang would have thought that President Lin had deliberately chosen to stay next door to Wei Xu so that they could have a private rendezvous.
Now that President Lin is not being secretive, does it mean that he trusts her, his number one assistant, not to gossip about others, or is it that there is nothing between President Lin and Wei Xu at all and they are just friends?
Mr. Lin might not normally pay attention to gossip in the entertainment industry, but Qin Shuang, however, had to keep an eye on the various projects the company was investing in. The movie in which Wei Xu played the second male lead performed well at the box office, leaving some happy and some jealous. The story of him accompanying a wealthy woman on a night out was being resurfaced, and among them were rumors of a scandal between Lin Ruoyan and Wei Xu.
There is a group of curiosity seekers who are always curious about the private life of this single daughter of a wealthy family with a child, and whether she has any improper relationship with a popular male actor.
Seeing Qin Shuang's worried look, Lin Ruoyan comforted him, "Don't overthink it. Wei Xu and I are just ordinary friends. I just admire his acting skills. We don't have any romantic relationships, and our relationship has always been innocent. We haven't even had any physical contact."
Qin Shuang was extremely embarrassed, ashamed of his suspicions about Mr. Lin, and abruptly changed the subject: "Mr. Lin, I rushed back because I discovered something new. The factory may not have mentioned it to you, or they may have deliberately concealed it."
Lin Ruoyan thought that what Qin Shuang heard was that the factory was colluding with other developers to acquire land in the old city, so she asked calmly, "What's the situation?"
Qin Shuang said, "I have an old classmate here who's very well-informed. He told me another real estate developer is in talks with the factory about a partnership. The factory only has a little over 200 mu of land in the old city, but if they move to the new district, they'll be given over 1,000 mu of land. Besides the factory building, they'll also have resettlement housing, residential buildings, and commercial areas. Plus, there's a policy that allows the factory to acquire more land near the factory in the new district at a low price. They can hoard that land for a year or two and then sell it when the new district matures. They can make a fortune without doing anything."
Lin Ruoyan immediately realized, "This is land speculation, just like what happened to Qiong Island a few years ago. It's likely to collapse in the end. If some negative policies come out, we'll be in big trouble."
Qin Shuang didn't think too much about it, but he said indignantly, "That developer agreed to invest and set up a real estate company with the factory. They took the opportunity to acquire large tracts of residential land in the new district at low prices. They think that once the administrative center moves there, the new factory will be able to start production next year, the new district will definitely be popular, and the land price will double. Many people think this is a sure win. The land in the new district is cheap to begin with, and the factory can get an even lower price. Why didn't the factory mention this kind of profitable business to us?"
Lin Ruoyan didn't know the factory was in contact with several developers at the time, but intuitively, the project in the old city that Wei Xu mentioned seemed more reliable. Was it too optimistic to acquire land in the new district and hoard it, waiting for the price to rise and resell it?
"Which company is the factory currently negotiating with regarding land in the new district?"
Qin Shuang mentioned the name of a company.
Lin Ruoyan asked Qin Shuang to carefully investigate the company's background. If it was just a land grab, the company might be nothing more than a shell. If it was a well-established company, perhaps they could really afford to play around. Large companies usually had specialized sources and were aware of the province's actions in advance. Their optimism about the new district indicated that it could still develop rapidly.
Lin Ruoyan also mentioned the land auction at the old factory area. She also needed to inquire whether it was a formal auction. If it was a formal auction, what qualifications were required?
The next day, Qin Shuang gave further news.
While the old factory area does require formal bidding and auctioning, some companies in the new area are indeed interested in speculating on land. They exploit the policy to acquire low-priced land in the new area, but without any real intention of developing it, they pass the land around in a game of passing the parcel to the next owner, profiting from the difference. This is likely to delay development in the new area.
Lin Ruoyan decisively told Professor Qiao her judgment. When Professor Qiao thought that his design results would become something to cater to others, he felt it was not worth it and would not do it no matter how much the design fee was offered.
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