Chapter 105: The Final Solution

When an official is one rank higher, they can crush you; Manager Tan didn't even have lunch, daring to be angry but not daring to speak.

After all, President Jiang was his immediate superior, the Vice President of Yebei Bank!

Swallowing his grievances, Manager Tan had no choice but to call over a few colleagues, bring over the equipment, and count the money right in front of Zheng Qian and President Jiang.

He knew this was President Jiang's punishment for him.

Who told him to be so disrespectful to Zheng Qian just a moment ago?

Sigh, there was no helping it; he just had to accept it!

President Jiang's side was very efficient; there were no time-wasting procedures, just a form for Zheng Qian to fill out, and it was done in about five minutes.

After filling out the form, the two continued chatting.

Manager Tan's side was miserable; it took several people a full half-hour to finish counting all that money.

"President... President Jiang, I've finished counting. It's thirty million in total."

"Hmm, I see. You and these colleagues can move the money into the vault." President Jiang nodded. It wasn't that he didn't trust Zheng Qian; if the man promised thirty million, he would certainly deliver thirty million.

Let alone thirty million, even if it were fifty million, Zheng Qian could still produce it.

"President Jiang, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

"Good, good, good. I'll see you out."

Before leaving, President Jiang had the staff open the safe and pack all the gold bars, commemorative coins, commemorative banknotes, foreign currency, and other miscellaneous items into a black travel bag for Zheng Qian to carry away.

By the time he returned to Jiangshan International, it was already one o'clock in the afternoon.

The food was still covered with a thermal lid, and Jin Lu was sitting at the dining table doing problems.

"Honey, I'm back."

"Hmm, it's good that you're back. Hurry and eat; it's almost cold."

"Hey, I told you to eat first." Zheng Qian saw that Jin Lu hadn't even touched her chopsticks.

"How could I do that? You're the head of the household; don't I have to wait for you?" Jin Lu walked over to help Zheng Qian take off his coat.

"Right, this is for you." Zheng Qian handed the travel bag in his hand to Jin Lu.

"What is it?"

Jin Lu curiously opened it and took a look; there were various gold bars and commemorative coins inside.

"Whoa... did you go and rob a bank?"

"No, the bank gave it to me. I have no use for these things, so you keep them. They can be exchanged for quite a bit of money on the market."

The commemorative gold bars from the bank weren't worth much, just the price of gold; the commemorative coins were even more deceptive, no different from regular banknotes.

As for the gold bars, they were only worth the price of gold, but the ones President Jiang stuffed into his bag were quite numerous—a full dozen or so, enough to pile into a small mountain on the table.

This was also Zheng Qian's first time seeing gold bars; he had only ever seen them in movies before.

"And this too." Zheng Qian pulled a bank deposit slip out of his pocket.

"Although it's not much, if you spend it sparingly, it should be enough for your expenses for the rest of your life."

Jin Lu took it and looked. Thirty million? A two-year term?

"Did something happen? You're giving me your living expenses for the rest of your life in advance?"

"Nothing happened. I'm just afraid that if my luck turns bad and I go bankrupt and become a pauper one day..."

"At that time, at least there will be a sum of money left to support us in living the life of an ordinary person."

Thirty million—how is that an ordinary person's life! Some families don't even earn thirty million in a lifetime.

In the end, Jin Lu accepted the bank draft: "Don't worry, I will keep it safe. Unless it's an absolute last resort, I won't touch this money."

Over the next few days, Zhengxin Shipyard was busy formulating a plan to battle Yamei Group.

In the business world, whoever has the larger scale is the market leader and plays defense. An up-and-comer like Zhengxin Shipyard can only play offense.

The preliminary plan of Chen Weiqiang, Liu Shiqi, and Zheng Qian was to engage Yamei Group in a price war.

After returning from the Maritime Trade Summit, Zhengxin Shipyard had only secured fifteen million in financing from the boss of Tianxia Shipping, Zhuo Xiuwen.

Elder Hu from Yamei Group had stepped in and snatched the lion's share, obtaining eighty-five million.

Even with the one hundred million that Liu Shiqi and Zheng Qian had cashed out, this price war would still be difficult to fight.

Forced by the situation, this was the only option Zhengxin Shipyard had. If they wanted to compete with Yamei Group for market share, they had no choice but to adopt this strategy.

The final plan was: For inland routes, the price per shipment would be reduced by 15%. For international routes, the price per shipment would be reduced by 20%. If a long-term contract of two years or more was signed with Zhengxin Shipyard, the price would be reduced by 25%.

As for the vessels, Chen Weiqiang did not buy new ships this time; he bought ships that were about three to five years old. Although these ships had been used for five years, for a cargo ship that typically has a service life of decades, they could even be called nearly new.

Originally, Chen Weiqiang wanted to go the route of brand-new ships, but because of Yamei Group, he had to settle for second-hand ships.

Ships of this age could immediately handle the company's orders; there was no break-in period, and the subsequent maintenance costs were also very low.

Yamei Group had really pushed Chen Weiqiang, with his obsessive-compulsive disorder, to the limit.

After the plan was finalized, the three discussed matters regarding the Five Shipping Alliance.

"Wait a moment, President Chen. Didn't we say last time that the Five Shipping Alliance had nothing to do with us?"

"It doesn't have anything to do with us; we certainly can't join the Five Shipping Alliance, but reaching a cooperation agreement with a few of the shipping companies within it is still possible."

"I've contacted Duster Shipping, Huaxia Shipping, and Asia Shipping. In a few days, they will send representatives to our terminal for an inspection. If it goes well, both sides can sign a one-year strategic cooperation agreement."

Through Chen Weiqiang's introduction, Zheng Qian learned that this was just an insurance policy to ensure the company's normal operations. If they lost the price war, at least they could still eat the scraps that leaked through the gaps in their fingers, which would be enough to support Zhengxin Shipyard.

"Just accompany me to receive those representatives when the time comes; there shouldn't be any big issues."

After the meeting, Zheng Qian returned to his office.

Xia Xixi's Favorability had been a bit unstable these past few days—up 5 today, down 5 the next.

Zheng Qian believed that it was probably because she had tied herself to Xiao Xinhao, and the things Xiao Xinhao had done were causing Xia Xixi's Favorability toward him to drop.

"Secretary Xia, come over here and close the door."

Zheng Qian hadn't been paying attention to Xiao Xinhao these past few days, so he didn't know the situation. Since he was free today, he decided to ask about it.

"Is something the matter, President Zheng?" Xia Xixi's tone was more gentle and considerate than before; she looked more like a secretary now.

"How has Manager Xiao been doing at the company these past few days? Is he performing well?"

"Hmm, Manager Xiao is indeed capable. He's only been here for a few days, and he's already brought in two big orders for the company. I heard these two clients used to be with Asia Shipping, but Manager Xiao, relying on his silver tongue, managed to pull them over."

Zheng Qian nodded. He didn't doubt Xiao Xinhao's ability; otherwise, he wouldn't have been promoted by Jiang Yanran.

"Alright, it's just the two of us here. Just tell me the truth."

"..."