Rebirth of the Age of Wealth

Chapter 409: One Whale Falls and Everything Lives

At the base airport, Li Weidong watched several soldiers deliver the aircraft carrier model to the bottom cargo compartment of the aircraft before he felt relieved. Several white-haired old men not far away were looking at him with bright eyes. If it was an open robbery, Li Weidong must admit defeat.

"Director Li, you really don't need us to send you back?" Colonel Liu looked at Li Weidong, how could he look like a billionaire?

"No need, you'll be home when you get to Qizhou!" Li Weidong waved his hand and said, when he gets to Qizhou, it will be his grassland and his horse, he can play whatever he wants!

Colonel Liu was no longer polite, saluted Li Weidong and said, "Director Li, I wish you a safe journey!"

Li Weidong shook hands with Colonel Liu, "Colonel Liu, thank you for your hospitality. If you come to Qizhou to contact me someday, I will do my best to serve as a landlord!"

The two said goodbye to each other, and Li Weidong and his family boarded the plane, ending his fantasy journey of just over a day.

Today is different from yesterday. There was almost no sound on the plane when we arrived. Now it seems that everyone is less stressed and more familiar with each other on the return trip.

And there is a common language. Everyone on the plane is thinking about the benefits of aircraft carriers and talking about when China will have the second, third, and Nth aircraft carrier.

These serious people with stars on their shoulders are very kind to Li Weidong's family. There is no airtight wall in the world. They admire what Li Weidong has done.

An hour later, a small passenger plane landed smoothly at Qizhou Zhangzhuang Airport and began to slow down and taxi until it slowly stopped. The cabin opened and everyone stepped out one after another.

This is a military airport, and there are not many planes taking off and landing in normal times. At this time, several cars have driven past the plane, and they all have special license plates. After seeing them, you know to stay away.

"Chairman, our car is over there, and we also have an eight-ton truck. Is it enough?" Zhang Dongshuo ran to Li Weidong and pointed to the car in the distance.

Li Weidong's car was parked farthest away. This is a reflection of status. Rich people have nothing to do at this time and can only stay behind. It is not a question of whether to give face or not, this is the rule.

"Why are you driving such a big car? Do you think it's to pull a plane? Wait for them to leave first and bring the car over later!" Li Weidong said in a deep voice while looking at the particularly conspicuous heavy truck in the distance.

Zhang Dongshuo almost choked to death. An hour ago, Li Weidong informed him that he would be picked up at the airport and that he would drive a truck. When Zhang Dongshuo was about to hesitate and ask how old he would be, a busy signal came from the phone, and Li Weidong had already hung up the phone.

He wondered why Ding Yuan was not calling, what was the situation, and how could he take care of himself again.

But Zhang Dongshuo couldn't refute the leader's words. He quite understood Li Weidong's temper. Many of his words were just true words, especially those that were said casually to criticize others, which basically had no meaning.

If Zhang Dongshuo is really serious, then he will be further and further away from this position.

"I'll go over and make arrangements right away!" Zhang Dongshuo didn't dare to stay. After talking to Li Weidong, he smiled respectfully at Liu Jinhui and said hello. How enthusiastic do you want the boss's wife to be? It's too enthusiastic. The boss must have

Got an idea.

At this time, Xia Guoqiang came over from behind, smiled and said to Li Weidong, "Chairman, you have worked hard all the way. I just saw the news on the Internet. I didn't expect the chairman to be so powerful!"

Xia Guoqiang really thinks Li Weidong is awesome. He has been following Li Weidong for several years. He doesn't know when Li Weidong completed this matter. He is absolutely awesome at keeping secrets.

Now he feels that the gap between himself and Li Weidong is getting bigger and bigger. When Xia Guoqiang first started to follow Li Weidong, he only felt that he was powerful, and did not feel that he could not be surpassed.

He is also a college graduate, a few years earlier than Li Weidong, but he is unlucky. Subconsciously, he thinks that Li Weidong is just luckier than him. He can work hard and jump to shorten the gap.

Now I find that even if I take a rocket, I can't reach it. The gap is too big and it's not the same realm at all.

Xia Guoqiang is the deputy general manager of Xinsheng Holdings, a core executive, and has a relatively clear understanding of Li Weidong's industry situation.

However, this knowledge is limited to domestic assets. Xia Guoqiang knows very little about Li Weidong's overseas assets, but from what little he learned from Li Weidong, he can estimate that they are much larger than his domestic assets.

Counting only domestic assets, Li Weidong is already the richest man in the country. If overseas assets are included, Li Weidong's name will definitely be on the world's richest list.

The key is that he is so rich and yet so low-key. He rarely announces the company's marketing and profits to the outside world unless necessary.

Even the speculation on the rich list only relies on some assumptions and conjectures based on the annual reports released by several listed companies.

Xia Guoqiang couldn't learn from it. He returned home in fine clothes and felt radiant after listening to it. Therefore, Xia Guoqiang felt that the gap between him and Li Weidong was getting bigger and bigger, and their ideological realms were different.

Confucius said, although it is not as good as seeing a wise man and thinking about him, it is not illegal if you think about it. Communicating with such people can always improve your realm.

"Why are you here too?" Li Weidong said slightly puzzled after seeing Xia Guoqiang.

"I just met Director Zhang at the company and said he was here to pick you up. I haven't reported to you for several days, so why don't I just follow you?" Xia Guoqiang said with a flattering smile, taking out a box of foreign cigarettes and handing one to Li Weidong.

As soon as Li Weidong took the cigarette, Xia Guoqiang's lighter was already coming. The awareness of lighting cigarettes for leaders must be cultivated.

Li Weidong took a sip, exhaled the smoke and said, "Why are you joining in the fun? I see you eight hundred times a day!"

At the end of every year, the heads of companies under Li Weidong's name who consider themselves to have some strength will come to Li Weidong to contact him under the guise of reporting on their work.

They were all people who did the work for Li Weidong. They had worked hard for a year and earned a lot of money. It was not easy for Li Weidong to refuse, and he had to show encouragement and support and entertain him well.

While Li Weidong and Xia Guoqiang were talking, the passengers on the same flight were leaving one after another, and Li Weidong's cargo was also carried from the cabin to the truck.

Liu Jinhui had already taken her two children into a black Mercedes-Benz and asked Dai Mei to drive away first. He and Xia Guoqiang got into another Mercedes-Benz and left together.

Li Weidong doesn't have much requirements for cars, but he has a special liking for Mercedes-Benz, so he has changed many cars to Mercedes-Benz before and after. The cars at home are mainly Mercedes-Benz.

As soon as Li Weidong and his party left the airport, there were several cars following them at a short distance. This was the security team prepared by the company for Li Weidong's trip.

These people are different from Ding Yuan, who is Li Weidong's personal bodyguard and personal assistant, and these people are the security personnel provided by the company for Li Weidong.

Although Xia Guoqiang said he was reporting to Li Weidong, he was actually just talking about family matters. When he was with his boss, he didn't have to talk about work. Talking about daily topics could actually bring him closer to the boss.

Qizhou Automobile Factory, where Xia Guoqiang is the general manager, and Qizhou Skoda, where he is the chairman, are both located in the eastern suburbs. Even the suburbs are in Qizhou, which belongs to the same city as Li Weidong.

Although it is not possible to meet 800 times a day as Li Weidong said, it is still possible to meet every two days in three days.

Li Weidong is not a meddlesome leader, and he doesn't usually interfere with the company's affairs. He doesn't need Xia Guoqiang to report to Li Weidong, so he can report to Li Weidong wherever there is work.

Even if Xia Guoqiang wanted to tell Li Weidong about the company's affairs in detail, Li Weidong didn't have the time, mood or interest. He might even say, "You have to report these things to me. What do I want you to do?"

?”

But today was a bit unusual. After walking for a while, Li Weidong asked, "What do you think about Wu Gang being appointed as Vice President of Sales?"

Xia Guoqiang looked at Li Weidong's face, considered it and said, "Chairman, in addition to the general manager, Skoda also has two vice presidents sent by Skoda!"

"This power is a bit too strong, and the two vice presidents of sales and technology are held by outsiders. I am a little worried!" Xia Guoqiang knew that his little thoughts could not be hidden from Li Weidong, so he said truthfully.

"Some time ago, Skoda Holdings was very interested in several of our models and proposed to share this patent. The manager would discuss that we could license it through patent exchange with Skoda, but I refused!"

"You came up with these novel looks, which are completely different from theirs. If you exchange those backward models with us, we will definitely suffer!" Xia Guoqiang boasted without leaving any trace.

"I have a 35% stake in Skoda Holdings in the Czech Republic, and their output this year is 450,000 vehicles!" Li Weidong emphasized.

The final equity ownership of Skoda was completed the year before last. Li Weidong and Volkswagen argued for a long time over these five points of shares. These few more points of shares may seem insignificant, but in fact the difference is too big.

More than one-third means that it has a security control line and can exercise one-vote veto power on major matters. It also means that the shares held by the public will not reach two-thirds, and many major matters require Li Weidong's consent.

In the end, this equity dispute was won by Li Weidong at a price that far exceeded the value of the shares, which made the Czech side laugh from ear to ear, but this year they probably won't be able to laugh anymore.

Based on Skoda's sales and profits this year, the money Li Weidong paid for these five points can be repaid within three to four years.

When Xia Guoqiang heard what Li Weidong said, he suddenly felt a toothache. He couldn't even chat with such a rich boss.

He wants to say that the entire Qizhou Automobile belongs to you, but he cannot say this. The profit earned is

But this year, their output is only 100,000 vehicles, which is far behind others. Even if Li Weidong's shares in Qizhou Skoda exceed 80%, it is still European Skoda that makes money!

"Don't be too petty. Skoda has developed over the past century and there are many things we need to learn. Don't think that just because we poached some skilled workers from others to build a car is awesome!"

"When your wings are not strong, don't fly like others!" Li Weidong's criticism was a bit harsh, but this is also true. Qizhou Skoda has only built a factory for a few years, so how much can it accumulate.

Regardless of the current annual output of hundreds of thousands of vehicles, without the technology provided by Skoda, it is estimated that not a single car will be built next year.

"Yes!" Xia Guoqiang felt sweat on his forehead.

"I have no objection to Wu Gang as vice president, but the chief technical engineer should not move for at least five years. Not only should we not move, we should also develop others into our own and learn more from others!"

Li Weidong does not object to these people engaging in small tricks, but they cannot affect the company's operation. In the field of small cars, the country is far behind, and even some large manufacturers do not have this strength.

Without enough accumulation, building a car is simply impossible.

"Yes!" Xia Guoqiang said again.

"I heard that you are about to empty out the heavy truck workers in Qizhou?" Li Weidong looked at Xia Guoqiang, relaxed the atmosphere, and said jokingly.

"What's the matter? There are nearly 100,000 people here. Where can we find these talents?" Xia Guoqiang said with an embarrassed smile.

"And their recent performance is not very good. They haven't paid wages for more than a year. They come to us as a way out!" Xia Guoqiang explained.

"No wages have been paid for more than a year. Is it so difficult?" Li Weidong said in surprise. He also knew that the factory was not doing well recently, but he did not expect it to be so bad.

"No, we have only paid living expenses for more than a year, and sometimes they are not on time. The main reason is that the factory really has no money. It is said that the debt is tens of billions and the loss is billions!" Xia Guoqiang said with a complicated expression.

In 2000, a company had a debt of 12.8 billion. This was an unimaginable thing. It was almost equal to the annual output value of a county.

Debt is not terrible, the key is that the debt ratio is as high as 130%, completely insolvent, and this is a debt situation that occurs when assets are overvalued.

If a company reaches this level, its assets are no longer assets. When a mold that produces a certain part of a car no longer produces this part, the value of the mold is only the price of the scrap.

One can imagine the difficulty in refinancing with this kind of debt ratio. If a pot can no longer steam steamed buns, it is no longer a pot. No one will be willing to add firewood to the pot. Instead, the pot has to be dismantled.

In his last life, Li Weidong experienced the days when his machine factory only paid living expenses. He can still remember how difficult those days were. Li Weidong has experienced how hard it is for a hero to be stumped by a penny.

Having the opportunity to find a new home is definitely a lifeline, so Xia Guoqiang is right, Qizhou Skoda is simply a living Buddha to these people.

"The truck factory cannot pay wages, and some workers with good skills and poor family conditions are beginning to look for jobs with us, and we cannot refuse!" Xia Guoqiang continued to explain.

"Although trucks are different from cars, they are still cars and have similar structures. These workers can learn quickly and can be considered semi-skilled workers."

"And since all our production lines were completed last year, the market has opened up and sales have increased significantly. Our production pressure is very high. We have production lines, but we lack skilled workers."

"Now that the workers at the truck factory are looking for jobs, it is an opportunity for us. Of course, it is also a good thing for these workers. After all, the most important thing is to support their families!"

"And the wages we offer are also high. As long as you have the ability, we can afford a reasonable wage. It's true that more work brings more gain. It's basically no problem to support a family!"

"Speaking of which, we should help the truck factory reduce its workforce and reduce their labor costs!"

"Why did they suddenly lose so much that they couldn't even pay their employees' wages?" Li Weidong only knew the result of the truck factory's losses, but he really didn't know how they lost money.

"There are many middle-level cadres in our factory who came from SINOTRUK. I have also heard them discuss this matter. The efficiency of the factory in the past two years has not been very good, but in the past two years, many parts factories that supply them have increased a lot.

!”

"And in such a difficult situation, these parts factories can still get cash for settlement. The only cash flow in the factories is gone. The key is that the quality of these parts is not very good, and the products they make cannot be sold, which also causes

The backlog is a dead end!"

After Xia Guoqiang finished speaking, he shook his head and sighed.

"Normal, everything comes from a whale!" Li Weidong also shook his head and sighed.

"They are definitely going to reorganize like this. Go and ask around and see if we can take a shareholding or make an acquisition!" Li Weidong took out a cigarette and lit it, and said after a while.

(End of chapter)