Chapter 781: Pioneer Furniture Factory!

Lin’an. Pioneer Furniture Factory!

Early in the morning, the factory entrance was already jammed with vehicles.

These vehicles were all heavy-duty trucks, lined up in two rows—one on the left and one on the right.

The convoy on the left was larger; some trucks were loaded with lumber, while others carried metal drums of various colors—likely paint or glue—all essential raw materials for furniture production.

The trucks on the right, however, were loaded with finished furniture, each one packed to the brim—a clear sign that the factory’s sales were quite strong.

However, that wasn’t the main issue. The real problem was that the presence of these trucks, combined with the narrow road and the workers entering and exiting the facility, had made the traffic in this area extremely congested.

Seeing the traffic conditions, Li Yi couldn’t help but sigh, his brow furrowing.

According to the case files he had reviewed at the Municipal Bureau, the severe consequences of that fire years ago were partly due to the road conditions in this area.

After the fire broke out, the factory workers tried to put out the flames and save themselves while also calling for help. But by the time the fire trucks arrived at the factory, the entrance was completely blocked.

Although everyone worked together to clear the traffic, by the time the fire trucks finally managed to drive into the factory, half an hour had already passed.

By then, the fire had already engulfed everything flammable on the entire first floor. They had missed the optimal window for extinguishing the blaze, ultimately leading to the fire spiraling completely out of control.

When Li Yi reviewed the case files, he had some reservations about the firefighters responsible for the rescue operation. With the trucks already at the gate, wasting so much time had needlessly cost them the prime opportunity to extinguish the fire and save lives.

But seeing the scene before him—crowds of people and rows of cars—Li Yi came to understand the firefighters’ helplessness at the time.

After a slow drive and a long wait, Li Yi and his group finally arrived at the main gate of the Lin’an Furniture Factory at 8:30.

Since their vehicle wasn’t registered with the factory, they were immediately stopped by the security guards at the gate.

After the car was stopped, a middle-aged man in his forties approached.

He first glanced at the people in the car, noticed none were wearing uniforms, and immediately asked, “Who are you, and what are you doing here at our factory?”

Li Yi replied immediately, “Comrade, we are representatives from Star Investment Company. We’re here to place an order for a batch of office furniture from your factory. Please report this to the factory management!”

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged security guard didn’t dare to delay and immediately said, “In that case, comrades, please drive the car in first. I’ll call the management right away!”

The security guard was well aware of the factory’s situation. Orders had plummeted over the past two years; while the factory was still barely managing to stay afloat, it was nowhere near as prosperous as it once was.

Lately, even the factory director and several deputy directors had been forced to personally go out and drum up business and secure orders. Now that a customer had finally come knocking, they certainly couldn’t turn away a potential source of revenue!

After the car pulled into the furniture factory, Zhang Ziqiang asked, somewhat surprised, “Brother Yi, are we really going to buy furniture? If so, I suggest we go to…”

Before he could finish, Li Yi shook his head and said, “No, I actually have my eye on this factory!”

“You want to buy the factory?”

“I’m considering it!”

The only reason he hadn’t told the security guard his true intentions was simple: he was afraid of getting beaten up.

After all, these factories—big and small—belong to the state. The workers here are in charge of their own lives; their status is different.

“You’re a ‘capitalist’ coming here to buy a factory, treating us workers like slaves to be exploited—have you even considered how we feel?”

“Brother Yi, if you want to buy this factory, you should go to City Hall—the people here don’t have the authority to make that decision!” Zhou Wen said.

“I’m just here today to check out the factory’s condition. As for whether to submit an acquisition application to the city, I’ll have to wait until I’ve fully assessed the situation!” Li Yi replied.

“I see…”

Just as they were speaking, a group of people dressed in official uniforms appeared directly ahead, moving toward them at a rapid pace.

Upon seeing them, Li Yi immediately said, “The real decision-makers are here. Let’s get out of the car!”

With that, he opened the car door and stepped out first!

Zhang Ziqiang and Zhou Wen followed him out, while Yang Zhiwen and Xiao Wu remained in the car.

Soon, a group of men who looked like managers approached Li Yi and his companions. The leader, a man in his fifties, immediately greeted them warmly: “Comrades, are you here to buy furniture?”

Li Yi stepped forward and said, “That’s me. Are you from a furniture factory?”

“My name is Xu Feng, and I’m the director of Pioneer Furniture Factory. May I ask which organization you represent, comrade?”

“Hello, Director Xu. My name is Li Yi. I’m the head of Star Investment Company, and I’m primarily responsible for expanding our business in the Jiangnan region!” Li Yi said, half-jokingly.

“Stellar Investment… is that the Hong Kong-funded subsidiary in Beijing?” Director Xu asked in surprise.

“Oh? Director Xu, you know our company?”

“I’ve seen reports about you on TV and in the newspapers. I never expected to have business dealings with you so soon!”

Then Director Xu added, “I’ve been talking nonstop—let’s head to the factory office and talk there!”

“Alright!”

Shortly after, the group, flanked by Director Xu and his staff, made their way into the Pioneer Furniture Factory.

Once inside, they realized the factory wasn’t very large. Aside from a three-story office building, the rest consisted of only two production workshops and a combined warehouse and dormitory building.

Upon arriving at the factory’s small conference room, after a brief exchange of pleasantries, Li Yi cut straight to the chase: “Director Xu, our time is precious, so I’ll get right to the point regarding the purpose of my visit!”

“Please go ahead!”

“Our company plans to establish a branch office and a large convention and exhibition center in Lin’an, which will require a substantial amount of furniture and display cases. I’ve come to your factory to assess whether you have the capacity to take on this order!” Li Yi said.

Although Li Yi had said all this specifically for Factory Director Xu and the others to hear, the fact that Star Company was planning to establish a branch office and build an exhibition center in Lin’an was indeed true!

Upon hearing this, Factory Director Xu immediately replied with excitement, “We are deeply grateful to Comrade Li Yi for giving Pioneer Furniture Factory this opportunity. Please tell us exactly how we can assist you.”

“First, I’d like to get a sense of your factory’s basic operations. Is that okay?” Li Yi asked.

“Certainly!”

Factory Director Xu then continued, “Our Pioneer Furniture Factory was established in 1962 and has a history of 20 years. Currently, we have 587 workers, two large production workshops, one multi-purpose building, and one office building. Our annual production…”

After Director Xu had briefly outlined the factory’s situation, Li Yi said again, “Just hearing this doesn’t give us a clear picture. Director Xu, could you take us on a tour of the factory?”

“Sure… sure, please follow me!”

The group then left the conference room and, led by Factory Director Xu and his team, prepared to tour the rest of the factory.

Originally, Director Xu and his team had planned to take Li Yi and the others to see the two production workshops first, as those areas best demonstrated the factory’s capabilities.

However, after coming down from the office building, Li Yi pointed to the multi-purpose building nearby and said he wanted to check that out first.

Factory Director Xu explained that the building housed the factory’s warehouse and employee dormitories, and there wasn’t much to see there, but Li Yi insisted on visiting it first, saying he wanted to check the quality of the factory’s finished products.

Seeing how insistent Li Yi was, Director Xu and the others felt they couldn’t say anything more and could only lead them to the multi-purpose building.

What Director Xu didn’t know was that Li Yi’s primary reason for inspecting this area first was that this very complex would be the site of a fire just a few days later—a fire that would claim the lives of over a hundred people.

Therefore, Li Yi had to assess the situation here first to determine whether it was worth his investment to buy the factory.

However, when Li Yi followed Factory Director Xu and the others into the administrative building and saw the scene before him, he was completely stunned…

……….

PS: Another chapter coming around 10 PM!

I’ve been busy with my professional title application these past few days—please bear with me!