Chapter 175 Seeds Nurtured by Money and Idealism

"Clang!"

The enamel mug Chen Guangwei had just picked up slipped from his hand again.

"To... Toray's production line?!"

In this era, let alone Toray's production line, even the scrap metal they threw away was considered a treasure in the country, obtainable only with special approval from ministry-level units.

Netizens in the live stream were happily flooding the screen:

[Hahahaha! Old Chen, hurry up and get some oxygen!]

[Happiness comes too fast, just like a tornado!]

[Toray: You want the junk I discarded? Manager Lin: That's my treasure! This is called the King of Pickups!]

[Old Chen's expression right now is exactly like me the first time I saw a max-level expert carrying the team.]

"I pulled some strings over in Xiangjiang."

"It went under the guise of 'scrap metal recycling'."

"It's a civilian production line, COCOM doesn't check it too strictly."

Lin Xi brushed over the thrilling games and operations behind this with an understatement,

"Although it's second-hand goods."

"But here, it's at least ten years ahead of the industry."

"It's more than enough for making export-grade fishing rods."

Chen Guangwei looked at the man in front of him who was excessively young.

He only felt his scalp tingle and goosebumps rise all over his body.

This wasn't a whim.

This was a long-planned scheme!

From the raw material base, to the transition plan, and then to the equipment introduction.

Each step was interlinked, so seamless that it was frightening.

Lin Xi wasn't here to inspect at all.

He had brought max-level equipment and ammunition, coming straight to this saline-alkali land to fight a hard battle!

After a long while, Chen Guangwei finally found his voice, his tone hoarse:

"Manager Lin..."

He was an honest man.

The more he saw how well-prepared Lin Xi was, the greater the pressure he felt inside.

Chen Guangwei took a deep breath and looked directly at Lin Xi,

"When the equipment arrives, it needs to be installed and tested, and when the raw fiber arrives, the final payment must be made."

"There are over a hundred people here who need to eat, and we still need to conduct R&D..."

"Manager Lin, this really isn't a small amount."

"Moreover, carbon fiber R&D has huge uncertainties."

"It's possible that even after investing for three to five years, we won't see any results."

"The pressure will be immense..."

Chen Guangwei didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear: Brother, don't get yourself dragged into this mess.

Lin Xi was silent for a moment.

He looked at Chen Guangwei's face, which looked exceptionally aged due to years of anxiety, and felt a surge of bitterness in his heart.

In his previous life,

this "Father of carbon fiber in China" had done everything to develop carbon fiber.

He cut everyone's wages, mortgaged the factory, mortgaged his own house, and borrowed money everywhere.

He had essentially taken a highly profitable factory and turned it into a loss-making one for over a decade!

It took over three billion RMB in total to successfully develop it.

He had used ten years of persistence to finally grope for a glimmer of light in the darkness.

In this life, since I am here, I will never let you suffer that again!

"Old Chen." Lin Xi's voice was somewhat low.

"You don't need to worry about money."

"Red Star Technology's revenue last year was 48 million USD alone."

"As for the future profits of the First Fishing Gear Factory, whatever it earns, I will invest."

Lin Xi took a step forward, his gaze locked firmly onto Chen Guangwei:

"I never worry about whether we can make money."

"I only worry about whether we can actually make the thing."

"Old Chen, I have the money, I have the technology, and I have already paved the way for you."

Lin Xi extended his right hand, hovering it in mid-air.

"Now, I'll make a bet with you."

"I'll give you one year."

"One year from now, I want the Haowei First Fishing Gear Factory."

"To produce a carbon fiber sample that benchmarks against the T300 strength!"

Lin Xi's voice suddenly rose:

"Not approximately, not almost, it's benchmarking!"

"Let the data do the talking!"

"If you can't do it..."

Lin Xi stared into Chen Guangwei's eyes, saying word by word,

"Then we'll both take off these uniforms and go home to farm, don't embarrass ourselves here!"

One year! T300!

This was simply a fantasy!

According to Chen Guangwei's previous understanding, this was at least a ten-year project.

But now... looking at the two flames in Lin Xi's eyes.

Feeling this unreasonable, overwhelming flood of resources and trust.

Chen Guangwei only felt the heart in his chest, which was about to rust, go "thump" and explode.

It was like someone threw a cigarette butt into a haystack, and the fire instantly spread.

Screw being safe!

Screw step-by-step!

Someone is giving money, someone is giving guns, and even the retreat route has been blocked.

If he still didn't dare to charge, would he still be a Jiaodong man?

Chen Guangwei suddenly grabbed the cup of leftover tea on the table and drank it in one gulp.

Clap!

He slammed the cup down heavily.

He reached out with those large, calloused hands and grabbed Lin Xi's hand firmly.

The force was so great that his knuckles turned white.

"Manager Lin! Boss Lin!"

Chen Guangwei gritted his back teeth, tears seemed to shimmer in the corners of his eyes, but he smiled with extreme ferocity:

"This bet, I accept!"

"As long as the equipment arrives."

"If I can't make the T300."

"You won't need to chase me away, I'll jump into the Yellow Sea myself to feed the fish!"

The two hands gripped each other tightly.

The live stream was completely boiling over:

[It's lit! This is our backbone!]

[Smelt me too! I want to be fuel too!]

[T300! The black pearl on the industrial crown is about to shine!]

[Black silk, here we come!]

[The spring for anglers is coming!]

Outside the window, the wind seemed to have stopped.

In the winter of 1982, in this dilapidated conference room.

A seed of China's material industry.

Watered by money power and idealism, it struck deep into the soil.

...

Chen Guangwei left.

He went to prepare for the installation of the production line in advance.

With the confidence given by Lin Xi, his back looked even sturdier than before.

The conference room quieted down.

The nerves that had been tense all day finally slumped down at this moment.

The big matter was settled.

The next few days would be about waiting.

Waiting for Director Sun to finish the paperwork.

Waiting for those two "foreign junk" production lines floating on the Yellow Sea to dock.

Lin Xi pushed open the window of the guesthouse.

A gust of salty, fishy sea breeze poured in.

That was the taste of the Yellow Sea in 1982.

Rough, fierce, unadorned.

In the distance, the breakwater of the old Haowei wharf extended into the sea, with a few seagulls rising and falling over there.

"Since I'm already here."

Lin Xi rubbed his stomach; the seafood dough soup from this morning had long since digested,

"If I don't cast a couple of lines, it would be a disservice to this sea."

...

Half an hour later.

Old Haowei wharf.

The wind here was much harder than at the guesthouse.

It blew on the face like fine sandpaper grinding.

Under his arm, Lin Xi carried the "high-end equipment" he had just spent a fortune—five RMB—to buy from the wharf's small shop.

A dark brown fiberglass hand rod.

It was truly "solid and sincere."

It felt heavy in his hand, like an iron rod.

The line set was a gift from the boss.

The fishing line was thick enough to be used for sewing shoe soles, and the fishhook was big enough to hang pork.

"This is only 1982."

Lin Xi found a sheltered stone pier.

While baiting the hook with red worms, he started chatting with the netizens in the live stream.

"Brothers, although I work in industry."

"But since I'm at the seaside, today I'll show you a trick or two."

Lin Xi adjusted into a sitting posture he deemed very professional, facing the void.

He lowered his voice, his tone exuding a mysterious self-confidence:

"To tell you all."

"Before I transmigrated, around East Lake, people nicknamed me the 'White-striped Fish Killer'."

"Today I'll show you what a strategic-level fishing technique is!"