55: Chapter 55: The Red Flag Reborn, Internal Reform

In the third month of spring, the air in the northern spring city of Changchun still carried a hint of biting chill.

The news of Spark Group's acquisition of Hongqi Automobile had already spread across the country, and countless eyes—some expectant, some skeptical, some worried—were fixed on this former 'Eldest Son of the Republic,' waiting for the new owner's next move.

A motorcade consisting of old black Red Flag H3s silently drove into the old factory area of Hongqi Automobile in Changchun.

Su Chen led the team personally, accompanied by Lin Wan, Shen Nanpeng, and several elite personnel urgently transferred from the xinghuo system.

The factory gates opened slowly, and the scene that met their eyes made the hearts of everyone, accustomed to Spark's modern industrial parks, sink.

The mottled exterior walls of the Soviet-style factory buildings told of the vicissitudes of time; withered weeds were scattered sparsely on the empty factory roads; in the workshops, most of the production lines had stalled, covered in thick dust, with only a few workstations still performing piecemeal work, using mostly equipment from the last century—rusted robotic arms and aging conveyor belts.

The air was permeated with the smell of machine oil, rust, and an indescribable, stale odor.

In a corner of the final assembly workshop, parts and semi-finished products were piled up like mountains, almost reaching the ceiling; many were clearly 'lying' there due to quality issues or obsolete models, like a massive industrial graveyard.

What was even more disheartening was the morale of the employees.

Many workers gathered to chat, and upon seeing their group, they only glanced lazily, their eyes lacking luster, let alone any enthusiasm.

A sense of numbness—'doing a good job or a bad job is the same, doing it or not doing it makes little difference'—permeated the entire space.

Su Chen walked to a stalled production line, where an Old Master Craftsman with graying hair and a face full of wrinkles was silently wiping down an old machine tool.

Su Chen crouched down and asked in a gentle tone, 'Old Master Craftsman, how many years have you worked here?'

The Old Master Craftsman raised his head, his cloudy eyes looking at Su Chen, then lowered his head again, his voice hoarse: 'Thirty-eight years... I've been on this line since I joined the factory.'

'What do you think of our Red Flag cars?' Su Chen continued to ask.

The Old Master Craftsman was silent for a while, then let out a long sigh, his voice so low that almost only the two of them could hear: 'President Su, I know you are here to do great things. I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, Red Flag... used to be a good car, with solid materials and exquisite craftsmanship. But later... sigh, it's not that we old folks didn't want to do a good job, it's this system... this atmosphere, it drains people's spirit! Doing more or less is the same, doing a good job or a bad job makes no difference. People who slack off get promoted quickly, while those who work hard suffer... My heart has long since gone cold.'

These words were like a needle, deeply piercing Su Chen's heart.

He patted the Old Master Craftsman's calloused hand, said nothing, but his gaze became even more determined.

Subsequently, in the old conference room of the Red Flag factory, filled with the mixed smell of old leather and tobacco, Su Chen held the first, and also the last, meeting with most of the former Red Flag middle and senior management.

The people sitting below had complex expressions—some uneasy, some watchful, and some disdainful.

Su Chen didn't exchange pleasantries; he walked directly to the front, his gaze like a torch, sweeping over every face in the audience.

The very first sentence he spoke made the temperature in the conference room drop to freezing:

'Today, I do not see a 'Eldest Son' carrying the glory and memories of the Republic. What I see is an industrial museum left far behind by the times, its interior almost eaten away from the inside!'

There was an instant uproar below, and many people showed signs of indignation on their faces.

'Outdated production lines, backward management, rigid thinking, and... numb hearts!' Su Chen's voice rose sharply, carrying an unquestionable majesty, 'Is this the answer you are giving to the country, to history?!'

He slammed the table heavily, making the cup lids jump: 'I tell you, from this moment on, the old era of Red Flag is over! Everything, tear it down and start over!'

He no longer looked at the pale or flushed faces below and directly announced the core of the 'Thunderous Reform Plan':

'First, Spark Group will invest an initial 10 billion in funds for the comprehensive intelligent and digital upgrading of Red Flag's production lines, clearing out bad assets and redundant inventory, and properly resettling employees diverted due to the reform!'

'Second, a technological revolution! Red Flag will fully introduce Spark Group's most advanced 'Qingtian' electric drive platform, 'Divine Travel' / 'Bedrock' battery systems, and intelligent cockpits and autonomous driving technology based on 'Flint' chips! Furthermore, we have completed the R&D preparations for three brand-new vehicle platforms that cover different markets and possess disruptive competitiveness!'

Although many in management wanted to struggle a bit, Su Chen was unwilling to engage with them and directly arranged for the Spark Human Resources Department to dismiss them in accordance with laws and regulations, with some who had broken the law subsequently handed over to judicial authorities.

That night, Su Chen stayed in the best hotel suite in Changchun.

He dismissed his attendants and sank his consciousness into the system space.

Facing the dazzling array of options in the [Technology Exchange] list, he locked onto his target—[Full Series Red Flag Vehicle Technology Package].

This technology package not only contained the complete design blueprints, engineering data, and performance parameters for the three vehicle models he envisioned, but even included supporting supply chain management plans and preliminary production process guidance.

'Exchange, consume 300 million system funds.'

[Command confirmed... Technology transferring...]

A massive stream of data flooded his mind.

From the exterior to the interior, from the chassis structure to the three-electric system integration, every detail of the H9, H7, and H5 models became incredibly clear.

Their designs retained the classic Eastern aesthetic elements of the Red Flag brand, such as the through-type flag emblem and the grille design inspired by the outline of Tiananmen, while incorporating cutting-edge aerodynamics and intelligent design.

The overall style was grand, steady, and full of technological sense.

Red Flag H9: Positioned as the 'National Choice,' focusing on high cost-performance and ultimate practicality.

Offering pure electric, hybrid, and fuel power options, with a pre-sale price starting at 150,000, aiming to become the first reliable car for ordinary families.

Red Flag H7: Positioned as 'Cutting-edge Luxury,' aimed at the middle class pursuing quality and technology.

Also with three power options, pre-sale price starting at 450,000, it will comprehensively benchmark or even surpass BBA models of the same class in intelligent driving assistance and luxury comfort configurations.

Red Flag H5: Positioned as 'Eastern Business Hospitality,' as the brand flagship, focusing on top-tier luxury and prestigious experience.

Mainly providing hybrid and fuel versions, pre-sale price starting at 800,000, with extremely exquisite materials, rear space and comfort configurations reaching the peak of executive class, aiming to reshape the benchmark for China's top luxury sedans.

[Supporting engineering team generated...]

A flash of light passed, and three middle-aged men with steady temperaments and eyes revealing professionalism and persistence appeared in Su Chen's system panel consciousness perception.

They were respectively proficient in chassis tuning and vehicle handling, body structure safety and lightweighting, and the matching and optimization of complex powertrains.

The next day, these three 'suddenly appearing' top engineers took the transfer orders from the Xinghuo Headquarters and low-key and quickly integrated into the newly established R&D center of Red Flag.

Funds and technology are just the skeleton; to truly make Red Flag reborn, it must have new blood and a new brain.

A few days later, a middle-aged man with an extraordinary temperament appeared at the Red Flag factory.

He was wearing a well-tailored dark suit, walking steadily, with sharp and confident eyes.

He was exactly the new CEO Su Chen had identified for Red Flag—Zhou Qingyu.

At the all-staff meeting, Su Chen introduced him to everyone personally: 'This is Mr. Zhou Qingyu, the new CEO of Hongqi Automobile.'

'He holds a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT and has served as the Global Vice President of Volkswagen Group, leading the R&D and strategy of several global best-selling models.'

'Today, he has given up his high annual salary and prominent position overseas, coming here with the dream of 'building a world-class car brand for China'! From now on, all affairs of Red Flag, including technology, production, marketing, and management, will be fully responsible by President Zhou!'

Zhou Qingyu walked to the front.

Without too much small talk, his voice was clear and powerful, carrying a kind of seasoned capability:

'My name is Zhou Qingyu. I came here for only one goal—to let Red Flag, this car brand of our own Chinese people, stand up again, and to stand higher and straighter than anyone else!'

He looked around the audience, his gaze sweeping over those blank, skeptical, and even hostile faces, his tone suddenly becoming stern:

'I know many people are still watching, even waiting to see a joke. But I don't have time to play office politics or slack off games with you! My management style is very simple: the capable ones go up, the average ones make way, and the incompetent ones go down!'

'From today on, Red Flag will introduce Spark Group's performance appraisal system. Everything will be based on data, results, and the market! We don't need grandstanding speakers; we need doers who can solve problems! We don't need conservatives who stick to the rules; we need innovators who dare to break through!'

As his voice fell, a personnel earthquake sweeping through the entire Red Flag began.

The Spark Group Human Resources Department, in conjunction with the professional team brought by Zhou Qingyu, conducted an almost brutal assessment of the original Red Flag management.

The 80% of middle and senior management who had risen through seniority and connections but were mediocre in ability, rigid in thinking, or even hindered reform, were ruthlessly purged.

In front of Zhou Qingyu's office, people with ashen faces went in and out every day, receiving their 'graduation notices.'

At the same time, the vast employee workforce was strictly optimized.

Employees who had long been drawing pay without working, whose skills could not meet the requirements of the new production line, or who had serious problems with their work attitude were dismissed in accordance with laws and regulations.

However, Spark showed its benevolent side; all optimized employees received generous compensation packages of N+2 (years of service compensation plus two months' salary), far higher than the statutory standard.

Professional career introduction and re-employment counseling services were also provided simultaneously, ensuring the stability of the reform to the greatest extent and avoiding major social disturbances.

Of course, the reform was not one-size-fits-all.

That Old Master Craftsman who had talked with Su Chen, because of his superb craftsmanship and down-to-earth attitude, was exceptionally promoted to 'Skill Mentor' on the new production line.

Some core R&D backbones and technical workers who were respected, had excellent skills, and were willing to embrace change were retained, becoming the precious seeds of the new Red Flag.

By the end of March, a swift and violent reform was initially completed.

The total number of employees at Hongqi Automobile was streamlined from its originally bloated state to about 5,000.

This new team gathered elites from the original factory, backbones injected by the xinghuo system, talents with international vision introduced by Zhou Qingyu, and a group of newly recruited, vibrant excellent graduates.

Although the number of people decreased, the spirit of the entire team was brand new, and a long-lost sense of urgency and goal-orientation began to permeate.

At the last management meeting, Zhou Qingyu issued a death order: 'The company has entered a 6-month 'wartime state'! Everyone, cancel all non-essential vacations. There is only one goal—to ensure that our three new cars, H9, H7, and H5, must be a hit at the global launch in September! This concerns the life and death of Red Flag, and also the future of everyone here! We have no way out!'

Hongqi Automobile, this battle-hardened giant, after experiencing an internal reform that was almost like scraping poison off the bone, stripped off its heavy historical baggage, took off the rusted shackles of the system, injected new technology and management blood, and finally stood on the starting line again with a light and vigorous posture, starting a full sprint towards an unknown but hopeful future.