Chapter 70: Earning foreign exchange is hard; spending it is harder

Capital, Guang'anmen South Street, No. 12 Jia.

At the entrance of the small building hung a sign for Northern Industry Company; it looked unimpressive, and the sign was even brand new, apparently just put up not long ago.

No one knew how powerful this company would become in the future.

"Comrade Qin Miao, our company has only just been established; we currently have no branch dedicated to the Middle East region. Your trip to the Middle East is to open up a new market for our Northern Industry Company…… Our company will fully cooperate! The local embassy will also fully cooperate. What do you need?"

"Our school's classmate Chu Miaomiao knows Arabic; I've already invited her to go with me. Please ask Northern Industry Company to help coordinate with the relevant departments, quickly issue the certificates, handle passport procedures and other overseas formalities, and buy us round‑trip tickets to Yuetuo."

"Comrade Qin Miao, are just the two of you going? Or are you going to Yuetuo?"

"We're just going to feel things out, scout the route, export arms—nothing that easy gets settled. As for Yuetuo…… naturally for safety we'll book straight tickets to Baghdad; you tell me, could we possibly be shot down by a missile en route?"

"Alright, your considerations are thorough; any other requests?"

"Prepare some foreign exchange for us; the amount doesn't need to be large—just one hundred thousand US dollars will do……"

Seeing the person opposite widen their eyes, Qin Miao's words trailed off: "Section Chief Zhao, are these requests…… too much for our company to meet?"

Zhao Gang took a deep breath: "One hundred thousand dollars…… isn't that a bit too much?"

"Our Truck Cannon project received several million dollars in R&D funding from Dr. Bu'er Boshi, yet we didn't keep a cent—we turned it all over to the state. Now we're going abroad to discuss a deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and for this modest request the company can't even agree?"

"When your Truck Cannon project kicked off, our Northern Company wasn't even formally established yet…… so the funds went straight to the Foreign Exchange Management Department. Now the state is desperately short of foreign exchange—it's easy for money to go into their pockets, but hard to get it out."

"What's so hard about that." Qin Miao said: "Take me with you to talk to the people at the Foreign Exchange Management Department."

Zhao Gang sized Qin Miao up and down, then nodded: "Good!"

In 1979, the Foreign Exchange Management Bureau was officially established, responsible for centrally managing and uniformly conducting the nation's foreign exchange business. Apart from this unit, the Bank of China also had a Foreign Exchange Section dedicated to foreign exchange operations.

This arrangement lasted two years, after which the Foreign Exchange Management Department was placed under the leadership of the People's Bank of China, renamed the People's Bank of China Foreign Exchange Management Bureau, and later renamed the State Foreign Exchange Administration.

When Zhao Gang brought Qin Miao to the Foreign Exchange Management Bureau, it was nearly quitting time; the liaison officer, Guo Rui Xiang, wearily listened to Zhao Gang explain their purpose, sizing Qin Miao up and down.

"In other words, the two going abroad this time are college students from Ha Gong Da?"

"Yes."

"Isn't this just playing around?" Guo Rui Xiang's face grew stern: "Many of our senior comrades in the Foreign Exchange Management Department have never had a chance to go abroad; they're still young and full of opportunities! Let them give up this overseas slot!"

"We have no objection, though…… this trip is to the war‑torn Yetuo. Since the senior comrades of our Foreign Exchange Management Department are willing to risk life and limb for the country, let them go—we'll stay out of the way."

Qin Miao's remark left Guo Rui Xiang speechless.

A place to fight a war?

"Cough, cough, well, young comrades need training; we won't begrudge them their overseas quota. However, foreign‑exchange usage requires advance approval, and this year's quota has already been exhausted, so you might as well wait until next year to go abroad."

"The foreign‑exchange quota is set in advance; the four hundred twenty thousand US dollars that Ha Gong Da earned for the state should be off‑plan, right? We don't want more—just allocate the foreign exchange we earned to us."

Guo Rui Xiang's face grew stern.

"Comrade Qin Miao, remember this: the Foreign Exchange Management General Bureau is the department in charge of nationwide foreign‑exchange business; any unit that earns foreign exchange must turn it over to us! We allocate it uniformly! Even if the money was earned by Ha Gong Da, it belongs to the state! It needs state‑wide allocation! Young people, you'd better learn the state's basic system, or you'll wind up in there clueless as to why!"

"As long as foreign exchange is earned back, it has to be handed over to you, right?"

"That's only natural! Hoarding it privately is a serious mistake!"

"What if the foreign exchange is spent directly abroad? Then you wouldn't have jurisdiction over it, would you?"

Guo Rui Xiang stood frozen in place.

Qin Miao turned to the person beside him: "Section Chief Zhao, we're going abroad to discuss arms exports, expecting to sell one hundred million dollars' worth, but at the same time Ha Gong Da has many things we need to purchase; we'd like to use all the money we earn to buy the equipment and products we urgently require—would that be acceptable?"

Zhao Gang naturally understood Qin Miao's meaning and immediately nodded: "That's right—our Northern Industry Company handles the import and export of ground‑weapon systems; the state has granted us these powers. We also have overseas accounts, so customers can transfer payment to our foreign account, and you can purchase goods by drawing directly from that account."

At first Zhao Gang thought Qin Miao's request for one hundred thousand dollars of foreign exchange was a bit much, but since they refused to give even a cent and even tried to seize Qin Miao's overseas quota—such blatant self‑interest—he now had to side with Qin Miao.

If we don't give these people a lesson this time, the Foreign Exchange Management Department will likely keep putting obstacles in the way of Northern Industry Company from now on!

"Hah, one hundred million dollars? You're blowing smoke—if you could actually sell our domestic junk for a hundred million abroad, I'd take your surname!"

"Old Guo, what do you mean by that? Are you slandering our military‑industry enterprise?" Zhao Gang's face also darkened.

Guo Rui Xiang only then realized he had misspoken…… but the Foreign Exchange Management Department is a powerful organ, accustomed to looking down on others, so naturally it cannot back down.

"I'm not slandering; it's a fact—once the nation's doors open, we realize we're just frogs at the bottom of a well……"

"It's not us, it's just you!" Qin Miao gave that guy a disgusted look: "Ha Gong Da's developed technology is number one in the world! It seems you're destined to obstruct our overseas arms‑sales trip; talking more with you is pointless. Section Chief Zhao, let's go find Old Zhang."

"Which Old Zhang?"

"The one who works at Zhongnanhai and oversees our military‑industry affairs—Old Zhang."