To be honest, after hearing the financing terms set by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, Li Yi’s first reaction was: “Bullshit!”
Although he knew the government was currently very cautious about attracting foreign investment and had extremely strict regulations in place, the lower-level departments weren’t exactly enthusiastic about the matter either, as they sought to avoid risks.
But setting such outrageous conditions still left him speechless.
Li Yi was well aware of the situation at the Beijing TV Factory. Even after his efforts had turned the factory from a loss-making to a profitable enterprise, its annual profit still topped out at 40 million yuan.
And the total fixed assets of the factory wouldn’t even reach 200 million yuan.
The Ministry of State-Owned Assets’ intention to sell a 49% stake in the Yanjing Television Factory for 200 million yuan clearly stemmed from a desire to fleece an unsuspecting buyer.
And the stipulation that they could not interfere in the company’s management and operations was simply outrageous!
No matter who invests this money, the goal is undoubtedly to make a profit.
Yet the Ministry of State-owned Assets refuses to grant even the most basic management and operational rights. Is this supposed to make investors trust the business judgment of state-owned enterprise leaders with their capital?
That’s ridiculous—if they were truly capable, would they even need to raise capital?
“Brother-in-law, don’t get upset. To be honest, we also think the terms are a bit harsh, but these are all negotiable!”
Jiang Longyin then added, “Brother-in-law, just tell me your thoughts—how you plan to invest and what rights you want. I’ll act as the intermediary and negotiate on your behalf!”
“Second Brother, did you tell them that the investor is my company?” Li Yi suddenly asked.
“Yeah, I did. Why? Does that matter?” Jiang Longyin replied.
“Of course it matters. Second Brother, you should look into other companies that have accepted foreign investment and see what terms they offered when raising capital!”
Before Jiang Longyin could respond, Li Yi continued, “Whether it’s Beijing Aviation Catering, the Jian Guo Hotel, the Great Wall Hotel, or other enterprises, the terms they offer foreign investors are extremely favorable. Not only do they sell equity at a discount, but they also provide every possible policy subsidy. So why are the terms so much stricter for me?”
Li Yi didn’t believe that the people at the Ministry of State-Owned Assets were unaware of just how difficult the environment for attracting foreign investment was.
“Right now, we’re facing a ‘double deficit’—a severe shortage of savings and foreign exchange. Under these circumstances, it’s extremely difficult to attract foreign investment.”
It is precisely for this reason that, at this time, we have no choice but to offer foreign capital highly favorable terms to attract investment.
Yet now these people are imposing such harsh conditions. It’s not that they don’t want the investment; it’s because they know the investors aren’t genuine foreigners—they’re downright malicious and foolish.
Jiang Longyin paused briefly before saying, “Brother-in-law, are you suggesting that the Ministry of State-Owned Assets is deliberately making things difficult for you?”
“It’s not so much making things difficult as it is a classic case of ‘better to give to outsiders than to one’s own people,’” Li Yi said calmly.
Jiang Longyin could clearly sense Li Yi’s displeasure, and he too felt a pang of unease. If things were really as his brother-in-law described, then this matter wouldn’t be so simple.
“I’ll look into this. If it really is the case, then we’ll just let it go. After all, who knows what state the TV factory will be in a few years from now, or who’ll be in charge of it then!” Jiang Longyin said.
“Mm-hmm!”
Li Yi then continued, “Second Brother, talk to those bigwigs at the State-owned Assets Department. We’ll acquire 49% of the shares in the Yanjing TV Factory for 100 million yuan. Additionally, we need management and operational control of the company, and we also require certain tax incentives!”
“If they accept these terms, let me know. But if they try to haggle, just tell them to take it or leave it on my behalf!”
“Alright, I’ll report this to the city authorities right away and get back to you as soon as possible!” Jiang Longyin said.
“Great!”
With that, Li Yi hung up the phone!
Just as Li Yi was about to call Jiang Longcheng again, his father-in-law’s voice suddenly rang out: “Xiao Yi, did those bastards from the State-owned Assets Department get under your skin?”
Jiang Shiying had been sitting nearby, listening to the phone call between his son-in-law and nephew.
Although he couldn’t make out every word, he had a general idea of what had happened.
“It’s nothing much. They probably just think I’m not a foreigner, so I don’t deserve those favorable financing terms!” Li Yi said.
“I don’t think it’s that simple. It’s probably just a case of jealousy running wild. I’ll give Wang Tianrong a call in a minute. If he doesn’t give me a satisfactory answer, we’re really not going to bother with this anymore!” Jiang Shiying said.
Hearing the name Wang Tianrong, Li Yi immediately remembered—wasn’t he currently the second-in-command at the Ministry of State-Owned Assets?
Given his relationship with his father-in-law, it wouldn’t hurt to give him a call and sound him out!
“It’s worth asking. Otherwise, they’ll really take me for a sucker!” Li Yi said.
However, Jiang Shiying just smiled and said, “I don’t think this is the intention of the higher-ups at the Ministry of State-Owned Assets. At the very least, it certainly isn’t the intention of Wang Tianrong and his crew!”
“Why?”
“Look at who they are—how could they be so foolish as to make things difficult for you over something like this? Besides, the Jiang family is different now!” Jiang Shiying said.
“How is it different now?” Li Yi asked, puzzled.
“I was actually planning to tell you later, but since you asked, I’ll go ahead and tell you now. You probably don’t know this yet, but your uncle has been promoted!”
“Uncle got promoted? When did that happen?” Li Yi asked, sounding a little surprised.
“It’s been a little over half a month now!”
“So what position does Uncle hold now?”
“He’s been sent to the southwest to serve as provincial governor!” Jiang Shiying replied.
Hearing this, Li Yi was slightly taken aback.
As far as he knew, in his previous life, his eldest uncle, Jiang Shirong, had remained in his current position until retirement, with little to no advancement in the last decade or so.
It wasn’t just his eldest uncle; his second uncle, Jiang Shiming, was the same—he’d only managed to secure provincial-ministerial-level benefits in the end, but in reality, he’d been treading water as well.
It was his father-in-law, on the other hand, who had advanced further in his political career thanks to his iron-fisted methods.
He never expected his eldest uncle to have been promoted now; this truly struck Li Yi as somewhat unbelievable.
But what surprised Li Yi even more were his father-in-law’s next words. With a look of satisfaction on his face, he said, “The old man said that the reason your eldest uncle was able to take another step forward is entirely thanks to you!”
“My influence? I had no idea I was that capable,” Li Yi said with a laugh.
“Do you remember when you brought back over 200 million in foreign exchange for the country a while back?”
“What? Is my uncle’s promotion related to that?”
“Yes. You have no idea how tight foreign exchange was back home at the time. We were just a hair’s breadth away from running out completely. Your funds arrived at the critical moment, averting a crisis!”
Jiang Shiying continued, “Not long after that, the Old Man was summoned to the Forbidden City. When he returned, your uncle was promoted!”
“So it seems your uncle’s promotion really was related to this!” Li Yi said.
“Exchanging two hundred million in foreign exchange for your uncle’s promotion—the higher-ups didn’t lose out on that!” Jiang Shiying said.
“Dad, that two hundred million in foreign exchange was obtained by the state in exchange for ten tons of gold—it wasn’t my money. I merely helped them sell it!” Li Yi said.
“That was still a major contribution. Just look at the current gold price—if you hadn’t helped sell it in time, the value of that gold would have been significantly reduced!” Jiang Shiying said.
“If that’s enough to get Uncle promoted by one rank, then if I bring in even more money for the country, wouldn’t that mean you and Second Uncle could also move up a rank?” Li Yi asked.
“Haha, it’s not as simple as you think, kid. Do you think this is a feudal dynasty where titles and offices can be bought?” Jiang Shiying said with a laugh.
“What if it were 2 billion US dollars?” Li Yi said, dropping a bombshell.
“20… billion US dollars?”
“Right!”
After receiving Li Yi’s affirmative reply, Jiang Shiying grew serious.
After pondering for a long time, he said immediately, “If you can really bring in 2 billion US dollars in foreign exchange for the country, your second uncle might actually have a chance to move up the ranks!”
“Dad, what about you?”
“It hasn’t been long since I was promoted, so I certainly won’t be promoted again anytime soon. But the younger generation—like Long Yin, Long Cheng, Long Ze, Jianhua, and Jianying—will definitely reap some benefits. Of course, that’s assuming you can actually secure 2 billion US dollars in foreign exchange for the country!” Jiang Shiying said.
“Just wait for the good news!”
With that, Li Yi picked up the phone again and dialed the Second State-Owned Cotton Mill…
………