Xu Xueming left a step ahead.
The meeting didn't yield any substantial content, so it couldn't be considered very pleasant.
Tan Jincheng and Li Shiqi chatted for a while longer in the teahouse, then Li Shiqi also got up and left.
It was Chinese New Year, and there were many guests at home, so being delayed at this time actually made Li Shiqi somewhat displeased.
However, this young man from Tan Lihua's family truly made people look at him in a new light.
He had many insightful views, whether on general trends or minor operations.
More importantly, this young man was firm and able to control his desires.
He completely ignored Xu Xueming's grand promises, believing he currently lacked the capability to undertake a car project.
Xu Xueming was helpless.
For Tan Jincheng, it wasn't a great experience either.
The twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month was supposed to be a relaxed day at home playing with Xiao Jinyue.
Instead, he was called out for a meeting, subjected to various forms of disdain, and the matter wasn't even concluded.
Getting up to leave with Li Shiqi, as they reached the front desk, the waitress called out to them:
"Sirs, the bill hasn't been paid yet. Please settle it."
Li Shiqi and Tan Jincheng looked at each other, Li Shiqi feeling a bit embarrassed.
Tan Jincheng composed himself and asked,
"How much is it?"
"For three people, including the tea, it's a total of 258 yuan."
How infuriating! Inviting people out and then not even paying the bill when leaving.
After going outside, even Li Shiqi felt a bit ashamed and said to Tan Jincheng,
"Xiao Tan, I was a bit negligent today. When you're free, come visit uncle's home, and I'll treat you then."
"It's fine, it's only right that I pay the bill, I'm the junior. Would you like me to see you off?"
"No, no need, I have other things to do,"
Li Shiqi quickly waved his hand.
If they had chatted happily, Li Shiqi certainly wouldn't have minded Tan Jincheng giving him a ride.
He had come on an electric scooter, and in this cold weather, riding in a car would have been much more comfortable than an electric scooter.
Speaking of which, the electric scooter he rode was a Shanchi product.
When the first batch of Shanchi retail stores opened in Yicheng, some promotions were held, and some were sent to him.
The one he had now was given to him back then.
Tan Jincheng didn't insist further.
He no longer lived in the petrochemical family housing complex, and it wasn't on the way, so he dropped the idea.
Back home, Tan Jincheng briefly told Tan Lihua about today's meeting and told him not to get involved anymore.
This matter seemed a bit complicated and probably wasn't as simple as it appeared.
If it works out, obtaining the automobile production license would naturally be best.
If not, it doesn't matter, as the production license for the first batch of new energy vehicles isn't particularly difficult to get anyway.
Zotye, the progenitor of domestic new energy vehicles, also started manufacturing cars without a license.
By borrowing licenses, they first manufactured and launched cars, and only later officially acquired manufacturing licenses through acquisitions.
Enterprises like Chery also initially launched vehicles by borrowing licenses.
By the way, Zotye's complete vehicle manufacturing plant was officially completed last year (2005), and the first batch of imitation vehicles had rolled off the production line.
Being in Zhejiang Province and paying close attention to the automotive industry, Tan Jincheng was aware of this.
Currently, Zotye automobiles can only be sold under the Dadi Motors logo.
Their first model, the Zotye 2008, has already been advertised, priced at only 43,800 yuan to 63,800 yuan.
It's a tall and slender model, almost like a toy car.
In recent years, the automobile market was actually quite similar to the electric scooter market, filled with various miscellaneous brands.
The main characteristic was affordability, and ordinary people didn't care much; if they could buy a car for tens of thousands of yuan, what brand did they need?
Unlike later generations, these miscellaneous brands would be renamed "new forces," especially with many expensive screens, making them not at all consumer-friendly.
Zotye's extremely low pricing felt like it should sell well, and it might even become a dark horse in the automotive industry in 2006.
In fact, doing business in those days was often this simple and crude; in all industries, you just did it first and talked later.
Therefore, for Tan Jincheng, who had no car manufacturing plans at this stage, if he couldn't cleanly secure Anda'er's automobile production license, he wasn't really in a hurry.
"Do whatever you want, I'm not in a rush anyway."
Tan Lihua was speechless after hearing this.
Although he wasn't proficient in business, he had been in state-owned enterprises for so many years and understood the complexities involved.
"Then let's not bother with him for now. Let's enjoy the New Year properly. We'll pack our things in the afternoon and go back to the countryside tomorrow."
"Understood. I plan to hand it over to Brother Xuhui to deal with later. He's my assistant now and has the authority to handle such minor matters."
After a while, Tan Lihua, who had been hesitant to speak, finally asked what was on his mind:
"Does Shanchi Technology really have no interest in investing in Yicheng?"
Tan Lihua was different from Tan Jincheng.
On one hand, due to his rebirth, Tan Jincheng prioritized time efficiency in his actions.
Coastal cities had better business environments, government departments were efficient, and they were willing to help without causing trouble.
On the other hand, the 38-year-old Tan Jincheng had lived in Beicang for nearly 20 years in his previous life.
The first 18 years were naive and ignorant, but the latter 20 years were the most important of his life.
Beicang could be considered his second hometown; in some sense, its importance to Tan Jincheng surpassed his hometown of Yicheng.
Tan Lihua, however, was different.
Tan Lihua had spent his entire life in this city, and his feelings for it ran much deeper than his son's.
Now that his son was successful, he inwardly hoped his son could return to develop their hometown and make a triumphant return.
On the other hand, having always lived in his hometown and worked in a state-owned enterprise, he knew deeply that if his son really came back to invest, it might not necessarily be a good thing.
Emotionally, he hoped his son would come back to invest, but rationally, he hoped his son wouldn't return, not wanting him to mess up the career he had worked so hard to establish.
Thus, he was very conflicted.
Seeing his son's attitude today, which suggested little interest in investing back home, Tan Lihua felt both relieved and a little sad.
"It's not that I'm not interested,"
Tan Jincheng said,
"it's mainly from a company strategic perspective. Our current sales network is primarily concentrated in East China, South China, and Guangxi Province. Our production base in Yongcheng can fully cover these regions. If we were to build a second or third production base, the location would definitely be in Yue Province and Jinmen in the north."
"Secondly, Yicheng's industrial base is too weak. It has absolutely no advantage in electric vehicle components and automotive parts. If I put the production base in Yicheng, it wouldn't only fail to lower costs but would actually increase them."
Yongcheng's transportation network is extensive, sufficient to cover both East China and South China by water or land.
In terms of logistics alone, Yicheng cannot compare with Yongcheng.
The road back to his hometown was still in disrepair.
Tan Jincheng was just a businessman.
If it benefited Shanchi Technology's development, even with a slightly worse business environment and some risks, he wouldn't mind coming back to set up a factory.
But without significant advantages, Tan Jincheng had no interest in returning.
In his previous life, Shenzhou International from Beicang had invested in his hometown, establishing the largest textile industrial base in Wan Province, but that was after 2008.
Additionally, Wen's Group later settled in his hometown, but even later, in 2015.
These two companies, one in textiles (i.e., clothing manufacturing) and the other in pig farming, had much simpler supply chains compared to automobiles.
Setting up factories in impoverished counties offered significant advantages in labor and taxes.
If there was a need in the future, Tan Jincheng could naturally return to build a factory, but certainly not now, nor would he place the core production capacity here, unless the Yicheng government could support his automotive venture with the same intensity as the Beicang government supported him.
Listening to his son's clear analysis, narrating business principles in a dispassionate tone, Tan Lihua truly lamented that he couldn't keep up with the thinking of young people today.
"Are you just thinking about making money? Don't you have any feelings for your hometown?"
Tan Lihua couldn't help but ask curiously.
He wasn't questioning his son's decision; this question was purely out of personal curiosity, wanting to know what young people nowadays thought.
"You can't put it that way,"
Tan Jincheng replied.
"Childhood memories are certainly beautiful, but memories are just memories. We have to look forward. Besides, I currently have over 600 people to feed, and I'll hire more employees next year. Also, the Beicang government has been good to me. I can't let my personal feelings guide my business decisions."
"I can donate some money, or make some other contributions. Also, regarding today's car factory matter, if we evaluate a full acquisition, it's worth roughly five to six hundred thousand. I could offer 800,000, or even more than a million without a problem, but a partnership is definitely not an option."
"Then what if other demands are made later, for example, if the car factory is sold to you cheaply, provided that Shanchi Technology sets up a production base here? What would you say then?"
"Impossible. I plan to acquire this production license with my own money; at most, it's an investment of just over a million, and Shanchi Technology doesn't even need to be involved. As for cooperation, the most I can accept is establishing a distribution center in Yicheng, meaning a warehouse, to handle freight for Wan Province and Yu Province in Yicheng, and it still has to be wholly owned by me."
Establishing a large logistics hub in Yicheng under the name of an agent was the biggest concession Tan Jincheng had considered previously, and it could also serve as preparation for future expansion into the central and western markets.
Jiangcheng was also a large city, and the number of electric vehicles owned there was not low.
In 2006, Shanchi Technology would certainly enter Jiangcheng, and other major cities like Shancheng, Rongcheng, and Chang'an were also key targets for expansion in 2006.
A maximum annual production capacity of 500,000 units, deploying the Shanchi and Fengchi series to major cities across the country, was entirely sufficient and a must-do.
Only then could they achieve a top three position in the industry.
If Shanchi Technology was a rising star in the electric vehicle industry in 2005, then in 2006, Tan Jincheng hoped Shanchi Technology would become a dark horse in the electric vehicle industry.
(End of Chapter)