Extraordinary Genius

The Bing city Government meeting. The Mayor had just finished talking about the directives from the Provincial Government, and then he asked everybody if they had any other matters to discuss. This was an indication that he wants to end the meeting.

But today was different. Zhang Ruiqiang raised his hand and said: “Mayor, I have a suggestion.”

Everyone, especially the Mayor, looked at him surprised. Under normal circumstances, if they had something to voice out during the meeting, the deputies will have to discuss with the Mayor before the meeting. But today, Zhang Ruiqiang did not notify him beforehand.

The Mayor frowned and said: “Deputy Zhang, what do you want to say?”

“Everyone should know that the Machinery Company will be starting their automobile project and if everything goes smoothly, the production will start at the end of this year, and the cars will be in the market early next year. Earlier today, I received news that the major shareholder of the Machinery Company, Feng Yu, will be investing more funds to set up branch factories……”

“Wait a minute. Deputy Zhang, I am in-charge of Bing city’s industrial and how come I am unaware of this? Why Li Mingde from the Machinery Company did not report this to me?” Deputy Xu rudely interrupted Zhang Ruiqiang.

Every deputy mayor was in charge of different things, and no one likes others to interfere with their business. If it were the Mayor who had talked about this, Deputy Xu would not interrupt. But this was Zhang Ruiqiang, and the both of them did not get along well. All this while, Deputy Xu felt that Zhang Ruiqiang had snatched away the position of Executive Deputy Mayor from him.

“I had said that it was Feng Yu who told me this information. I am in-charge of organizational restructuring, and the Machinery Company is one of the restructured enterprises. What’s wrong with him reporting this to me?” zhang Ruiqiang retorted.

Zhang Ruiqiang wanted to be the next Mayor, and if he can’t even deal with this deputy who was of a lower rank than him, the higher-ups will think that he was not capable! Furthermore, he was the Executive Deputy and had the authority to look into the jurisdiction of other deputies.

“Deputy Xu, let Deputy Zhang finish what he wanted to say.” The Mayor frowned. Do these two wants get into an argument in front of him?

Zhang Ruiqiang continued: “Feng Yu said that he will be building 10 branch factories. This included 5 motorcycle factories, 4 saloon cars factory and a truck factory. His investment for the first phase will be 1 billion!”

Hiss~~~

Everyone drew in a deep breath. Initial invest was 1 billion RMB! That means this 1 billion was only the start and he will continue to invest more in this project?

They had heard of these types of investments in the coastal areas and were all by foreign investors. The inland cities, especially Bing City which was located near the borders, never had such large-scale investment. Needless to say, investments from a Chinese businessman.

“1 billion? Deputy Zhang, did I hear it correctly?” Deputy Xu asked.

“Yes. It is 1 billion RMB! This will be his initial investment, and Feng Yu said that this sum will be injected into the Machinery Company. He will also continue to procure automobile and motorcycle production lines from the Soviet Union. He is planning to start full production of all the factories within two years……”

“Wait a minute. How much is the market value of the Machinery Company? From what I know, it is worth only a few hundred million. Feng Yu wants to invest 1 billion in the company? Have you ever thought about where did he get so much money? Did he use his Machinery Company shares as collateral to get a loan from the bank? This is a promising enterprise, and if it expands too aggressively, it will be bankrupt! When that happens, our Bing City will have one less enterprise. What about the workers?” Deputy Xu sneered.

Zhang Ruiqiang glanced at Deputy Xu and then turn to the Mayor: “Feng Yu had promised not to use his Machinery Company shares to get loans. His Tai Hua Trading’s account has 1 billion funds!”

What? Tai Hua Trading’s account has 1 billion RMB!

All the City government leaders had weird expressions on their faces. They all know about Tai Hua Trading, but how is it possible for the company to have 1 billion RMB?

“Deputy Zhang, have you confirm this with the banks?”

“I had contacted ICBC, and they verified this. Feng Yu also said that once this proposal starts, this 1 billion will be freeze and Tai Hua Trading will not touch it.”

The Mayor was overjoyed. Investment of 1 billion RMB. That means the Machinery Company’s market value will be more than a billion RMB? This company will be a massive enterprise!

This was when he was the Mayor. A company from his city that had grown from a few million RMB to over a billion RMB within a few years. This was a significant political achievement for him!

But at the same time, he thought about Deputy Xu’s words. The Machinery Company was now worth only a few hundred million, and if 1 billion was invested, then the City’s shares will be diluted further.

“Deputy Xu, how much is the Machinery Company worth?”

“About 400 million and it is still growing! The city owns 28% shares.”

28%, 400 million RMB. If the investment was more than a billion RMB, then the City Government shares will shrink by more than 2 thirds. That means it will be less than 10%?

“Mayor Zhang, must this sum be invested all at once? Can’t it be invested in the company slowly?” Mayor asked. If this amount was invested over 2 to 3 years, then the City could afford to invest their proportion. This way, their shares will not be diluted so severely.

“Mayor, this is a type of business strategy. The overseas companies were also using the same strategy. Now, the motorcycle and automobile industry are expanding, and Japanese and German cars are taking up the market share. We are building our own automobile brand, and this is in-line with the 1985’s 5 year plan!”

“We do not talk about SAIC Motors from Shanghai. Just the FAW from Lin Province, a large state-owned enterprise and is supported by the government. They also dare not to increase their scale so aggressively. Yet Feng Yu wants to blow up the scale? A kid that is not even 20 years’ old and have not even graduate from high school? It is normal for young men to be overly ambitious, but Deputy Zhang, you should not be the same as him!” These words from Deputy Xu can be considered scolding Zhang Ruiqiang.

Deputy Xu had the experience, and also, Zhang Ruiqiang had lost his support from the Provincial Government number 1. Zhang Ruiqiang had asked the to publish his article on the disintegration of the Soviet Union, despite the objections of the Provincial Government Number 1. Even the top management could not conclude the Soviet Union political situation, and Zhang Ruiqiang dares to openly make such claims. This was the reason why the Provincial Government no longer support him.

With the number 1 support, what can Zhang Ruiqiang do? This Executive Deputy Mayor will be Zhang Ruiqiang’s highest rank. Zhang Ruiqiang will be a joke at the end of the year. He might even lose his current position of Executive Deputy Mayor. Deputy Xu still had the chance to get this position.

“Young man? A kid? Deputy Xu, what have you done when you are 18 years’ old? Can you help Bing City import so many cheap and advanced machinery and technologies from the Soviet Union? When you are in charge of the Machinery Company, how much is the profits? How much taxes have you generated for the City? How much were your worker’s salaries? Was it above the national average?”

Zhang Ruiqiang’s series of questions shut Deputy Xu up.

Seeing that the both of them started arguing, the Mayor knocked on the table and said: “It is late now and all of you have other matters to attend to. We shall end today’s meeting now and continue the meeting at 10 am tomorrow morning!”

The Mayor decided to let the City’s Party Secretary know about this, and he will also report this matter to the Provincial number 2, before making the final decision if we will support Zhang Ruiqiang!