Chapter 1681: Starting with Oil

"Judging by the tonnage, it should be over ten thousand tons."

Andrew held binoculars, observing the steel giant in the dock, "Which number ten-thousand-ton cargo ship is this that you've produced?"

Xu Sinuian didn't rush to answer his question but looked at Li Xuewu and raised his eyebrows, his eyes full of playfulness.

Catherine naturally didn't want to see her father make a fool of himself, so she reminded him, "Seven ships a year, this year's goal is ten ships."

"Ten ships?!" Andrew looked at Xu Sinuian in surprise, and seeing the confident smile on his face, he looked at Li Xuewu again.

Li Xuewu, however, was very calm, gazing at the distant harbor, seemingly thinking about something.

The group came to Yingcheng Shipping for research without as many cadres accompanying them as last night; two Hongtu passenger buses were enough to carry them.

"Mainly bulk cargo ships."

Xu Sinuian looked at Catherine and explained to Andrew with a smile, "Shunfeng Ocean ordered 17 25,000-ton mineral transport cargo ships."

"Shunfeng Ocean?" Andrew nodded knowingly and said, "They've really developed fast in the last two years."

This didn't sound sour at all; Hong Kong only had that much space, yet it was an important hub for shipping in Southeast Asia.

The "Shipping King of Asia" and "Shipping King of the World" would be born here, which was enough to show how prosperous the shipping market here was.

Shunfeng Ocean was established in 1967; it was very young, but its business scope was very wide, and its ways were very wild.

Routes that general freight companies dared not undertake, they dared to; the sailors on the ships were armed sailors, and the firepower on the ships was very strong.

Before 1968, there were situations where cargo ships were robbed and threatened in Asia, but since 1968, this situation had disappeared.

It is said that two cargo ships used anti-aircraft guns to sandwich three pirate boats, shattering two, and the other one luckily escaped; since then, no one in the underworld dared to touch Shunfeng Ocean's cargo ships.

He heard this in the club, but the real situation should be that they deliberately let that ship go, otherwise who would know the power of Shunfeng Ocean.

The sailors had strong discipline, high combat effectiveness, and strong equipment, truly achieving the basic conditions for ocean-going.

Of course, if you want to use destroyers or submarines, Shunfeng Ocean wouldn't even resist, after all, they were just commercial cargo ships.

In three or four years, with the support of Crown Prince Port Company in Hong Kong, Shunfeng Ocean started by undertaking the business of transporting goods with the mainland and was now a top-tier shipping company in Hong Kong.

To talk about those shipping companies in Hong Kong, such as the Bao family, etc., at this time they were still relying on chartering ships to run business, while Shunfeng Ocean had already started buying ships itself.

And compared to other shipping companies, Shunfeng Ocean's way of buying ships was very special—it was buying from the mainland.

In this era, who doesn't know that the mainland is synonymous with backwardness? Can ships bought from the mainland run?

Facts proved that ships bought from the mainland were not only cheap but could really run.

A cargo ship of the same level bought from Yingcheng Shipping could save at least 30%; what kind of concept is this?

To say that Shunfeng Ocean developed well and fast, one must understand the fundamental reason for this continuous exertion.

"Hmm, they order the most ships here."

Xu Sinuian nodded, supported the railing with both hands, and introduced, "Followed by the Santa Ya Group and a local shipping company."

He naturally knew the background relationship of Dongfeng Shipping; changing a vest is Shunfeng Ocean, and Xu Sinuian was clear about the relationship between the two.

Although he didn't know the specific actual controllers of Dongfeng Shipping and Shunfeng Ocean, he knew that both of these industries were related to Li Xuewu.

He also knew Ji Weidong's background very well; the situation inside was very complicated, and even if he could guess it, he wouldn't meddle in other people's business.

So when chatting with Andrew, he also chose to reserve the information about Dongfeng Shipping.

Even if Catherine knew, he didn't want to say it from his own mouth.

"Is the Red Steel Group's mining development in Australia going smoothly?"

Andrew looked at Li Xuewu unexpectedly and asked, "Ordering so many ships, are they all for this project?"

"Actually, our Group's investment share in this project is very small."

Li Xuewu gestured and explained, "It's mainly the shareholding mutual holding plan with the Oriental Times Bank in Hong Kong; this is very complicated."

"I've heard some content." Andrew nodded and said knowingly, "Cooperation between two financial institutions."

"Right, we are still the downstream industry."

Li Xuewu pointed to the sea and said, "The business we can truly touch is still after the ore from the sea arrives at the port."

"Actually, the mineral resources in Africa are also very rich; if possible, we are also considering transporting them back from further places."

"Hmm, that is a continent that even God is jealous of."

Andrew didn't hide his covetousness for Africa at all, nor his disdain for the managers of that land.

Li Xuewu didn't comment on his words, spread his hands, turned around, and spoke with his back to the wind, "The Red Steel Group lacks mineral resources in the mainland, especially iron ore."

"Hmm, you lack iron." Andrew nodded slowly and said, "Importing iron ore from Australia is indeed very appropriate."

"Saying it lacks, it lacks; saying it doesn't lack, it doesn't lack." Li Xuewu smiled helplessly and explained, "The Red Steel Group belongs to a market-oriented experimental enterprise."

"This is truly an interesting definition."

Andrew also felt it was funny, patted the railing in front of him, and said, "Either rely completely on planning, or rely completely on marketization."

He turned his head back to look at Li Xuewu and reminded, "Doing this won't experiment with any truth."

"We are better at induction and summary."

Li Xuewu said confidently, "If you stay in the mainland for a longer time, you will discover our secrets."

"Is that so, Catherine?"

After explaining to Andrew, he looked at Catherine and asked.

She, who was looking at the seagulls, turned her head and glanced at the few people, saying, "Don't you intend to talk about the business of the port agency company?"

She had her father here, plus her relationship with Li Xuewu, so she broke the tacit understanding in the business world without restraint.

Andrew looked at the two of them, both feeling it was a bit funny.

The group returned to the car, and Xu Sinuian told the driver to drive to the port area.

This car was transformed into the appearance of a meeting room, with two small folding tables in the middle, and everyone sat around the table; holding a meeting for six or seven people was no problem.

Li Xuewu sat on the left side of the inner position, Catherine sat beside Li Xuewu, and Yu Decai sat beside Catherine.

Xu Sinuian saw that only one position was left, so he could only sit beside Andrew.

Just like this, the few people started talking about cooperation in the car to the port area.

Both sides had the "I understand your feigned restraint" and "you understand my desire to refuse and welcome"; the tacit understanding already had a foundation.

"Then I wish us a happy cooperation."

Yu Decai smiled, stood up, took the initiative to shake hands with Catherine, and exchanged the port area cooperation documents just signed.

"Thank you, happy cooperation."

Catherine smiled and looked at her father sitting in the audience, but Li Xuewu's figure was not in the meeting hall.

Just the day before yesterday, after the group argued in the car, they finalized the general direction and intention, and after two days of fierce fighting, they finally produced a cooperation agreement that made both sides feel satisfied.

"Actually, we can also carry out cooperation in a broader field."

Yu Decai smiled and took a photo with Catherine, and explained softly, "Next year, our port area will form a Free Trade Experimental Center; at that time, I hope you and your enterprise can also participate."

"Free Trade Experimental Center?"

Catherine was a bit interested in this project, turned her head to look at Yu Decai, and asked, "What is the nature of it? What aspects of trade is it mainly?"

"All," Yu Decai raised his hand to invite her to go first, then followed her off the stage, explaining, "You can treat this experimental center as an external business institution similar to the Jinmen Trade Management Center."

"All means—"

Catherine already couldn't help but be interested, turned her head to look at him, and asked, "Are the products of the Jinmen Trade Management Center all on the shelves of the experimental center?"

"Actually, I am more concerned about whether any product entering the port area can be digested by your experimental center."

"This is what we are studying." Yu Decai explained with a smile, "Inviting you in advance is entirely out of the friendship between our two sides."

"Of course, I feel very honored."

Catherine pursed her lips, but a light flashed in her eyes; this news was told to her by Yu Decai, so what about Li Xuewu?

She absolutely didn't doubt that Li Xuewu knew this news earlier, so why hadn't he told her all along?

Could it be that he still felt she wasn't sincere enough?

Catherine had 36 postures to prove her sincerity; it was that bastard Li Xuewu who wasn't loyal.

"Congratulations, I am proud of you."

Andrew gently hugged his daughter, watching her move toward maturity and success, which was more satisfying than getting anything else.

"Thank you, Papa—"

Catherine gently patted her father's back, then stood up straight and explained, "I haven't done well enough yet."

"You are already very amazing."

Andrew smiled and comforted his daughter, saying, "At least better than I was at your age, couldn't be better."

"How can I compare to you," Catherine held her father's arm and said in a delicate tone, "You are always my idol, the example I learn from."

"Hahahaha—" Being worshipped by his daughter was more worth being happy about than being praised by others a hundred times.

The father and daughter ended the signing ceremony in the morning and walked in the small garden of the Tuanjie Hotel, chatting while walking.

"Just now at the ceremony, port area person-in-charge Yu Decai revealed to me that the Red Steel Group will form a Free Trade Experimental Center in the port area next year."

Catherine still couldn't help it and told her father the news she had just received.

"What do you think is their purpose in doing this?"

She said with some doubt, "Could it be that they aren't experimental enough in the mainland now? And they came up with a Free Trade Experimental Center."

"Hmm, Li Xuewu told me about this matter." Andrew sighed and said, "The development of the Red Steel Group is really fast."

"He told you this news?"

Catherine was even more surprised; she frowned and asked, "When? Why don't I know?"

"Hahaha—" Andrew looked at his daughter amusedly and said, "He made a bet with me, saying that you would definitely be very anxious after knowing this news."

"Who said that! I'm not anxious!"

Catherine saw her father laughing happily and emphasized stubbornly like a little girl, "He is just a big liar who knows how to bluff."

"Of course, even my daughter was bluffed away; his bluffing skills are still very high." Andrew said meaningfully, "I admire him a little."

"Hmph—big liar—"

Catherine was actually a bit older than Li Xuewu, but in front of her father, she was always a little girl.

Andrew didn't care much about these relationships, but he reminded his daughter very seriously, "I know he has a family and children."

"And I am also sure that he has better development in the mainland."

He looked at his daughter seriously, nodded, and emphasized, "You can't think about having it all; this is impossible."

"Hmm, I've asked him." Catherine nodded and explained, "He never had any intention of leaving here."

"You have studied Chinese traditional culture." Andrew looked at his daughter and said, "Does a fish have the power of life after leaving the water?"

"This is his water, and he is the fish here."

Andrew raised his eyebrows and said, "In this piece of water, he is an existence like a shark, an existence that even you need to look up to."

"I certainly don't deny his ability, but after leaving here, his influence will definitely disappoint you."

Looking at his daughter's expression, he said helplessly, "This is what I told you—you can't want everything."

"If he really decided to abandon everything here and follow you, would you still think he is the 'him' you admire in your heart?"

"Papa—"

Catherine said coquettishly, "You don't need to analyze it so thoroughly; I'm about to be ashamed."

"You are a smart child, always have been since you were small." Andrew looked at his daughter dotingly and said with a smile, "But sometimes, being smart is mistaken for being smart."

"I won't, not anymore."

Catherine gritted her teeth and said, "Next time I see him, I will teach him a good lesson."

"Hehe—" Andrew glanced at his daughter, his gaze fell to the front, and he said faintly, "You still don't want to return to Italy, right?"

"Papa—" Catherine shook her father's arm and said, "I thought we had a tacit understanding on this matter."

"Hmm, hmm, I already know."

Andrew nodded and said, "You have your own career; you don't need Papa's opinion anymore."

"You make me very embarrassed..." Catherine hesitated and explained, "It's not because of him; I want my own choice."

"Papa was also young once; I know all your thoughts." Andrew said earnestly to his daughter, "When you reach my age, you will see through many things and won't be able to help nagging your children."

"Because we always earnestly hope that you can take fewer detours, or master the experience we have accumulated, and move toward success faster."

"But I was born in a successful position." Catherine looked at her father and emphasized, "As your daughter, I feel very happy, very joyful, have no regrets, so where would I have the motivation to struggle?"

"You said I grew up and had my own ideas; actually, I want to try the joy of entrepreneurship, just like you did back then."

She shook her head slightly and said with some emotion, "If I don't understand your struggle, how can I inherit your will?"

"And I'm not afraid of failure; even if I fail in entrepreneurship, I can continue to be your daughter; if I succeed, it's the correctness of your will being implemented."

"You learned all this from him here?"

Andrew was a bit amused and a bit proud, saying, "I almost can't recognize my daughter; which philosopher is this?"

"Papa—" Catherine held his hand with a smile and said, "You should be proud of me, because you are my pride."

"I have heard countless kinds of flattering words," Andrew pointed at his daughter and said, "But this time today, I am most satisfied."

"If you like to hear it, I'll say it to you again."

Catherine laughed very happily, and as she walked, she couldn't help but ask, "Do you hope I go back and find an Italian man to marry?"

"Does my hope have any meaning?"

Andrew said regretfully, "This is your life; of course, you choose it yourself, because I believe the current you will make the correct decision."

He looked at his daughter and said, "Just like you are managing an enterprise, love and marriage also need to be properly managed, carefully cultivated, and cared for."

"Love doesn't necessarily bear the fruit of marriage, and marriage doesn't necessarily bear the fruit of children; this depends on what you want to get."

"Thank you, Papa; you are the best father in the world."

Catherine leaned on her father's shoulder and couldn't help but sigh, saying, "Perhaps I will have the day when I crave the fruit."

Li Xuewu wasn't in a hurry to return to Steel City; the itinerary didn't have any part about participating in the signing ceremony at all.

When he came, he didn't know if an agreement could be reached on the road, nor did he know how many days it would take to talk; how could he wait in Yingcheng to put pressure on Yu Decai?

Now he also lived a life of involuntary work and life, with almost no space for slackness and freedom in life, and in work, he listened entirely to the coordination and arrangements of Zhang Jing and Ma Baosen.

It's not that he became a puppet, left to be manipulated by them, but that work was filtered up, and he always had to deal with it.

Li Xuewu naturally had the leading power over work; even if he wanted to rest, or didn't want to worry, he could completely do so; no one could restrict him.

However, refusing work is equivalent to self-exile.

Readers who have done management know that management work is continuous; the time for business trips doesn't need to be long—if you don't manage things for a week, you will feel disconnected when you come back.

If you really take three months off for study, you don't need the leader to talk to you; you have to find a way to make up for the lessons yourself and work hard to catch up with the rhythm.

Li Xuewu's ability is considered okay; he runs between Steel City and Beijing and often comes down for research.

But even him, he has to give up work in Beijing, selectively take the big head, and let go of the small head.

Why does he stare so closely at the cadres of the Comprehensive Management Department? Anyone who dares to be a little presumptuous is kicked away by him.

Since he can't take care of specific business, he wants to learn from Old Li and manage people.

Things are all done by people; as long as he can restrain people well, things naturally won't easily deviate from the track.

Of course, things aren't personally instructed and arranged by him, so it's inevitable that there will be some differences from his ideas.

But as a leader, one must tolerate subordinates taking detours, having a learning process, and must trust that subordinates can create better handling methods than oneself.

The same is true in reverse; no one is perfect, even him, he doesn't dare to guarantee that his decisions are always right.

For example, letting Old Li and Old Su have a fight, the result was that Old Su couldn't take the fight, making Zhou Wanquan get what he wanted too easily.

According to the original plan, this process would last at least until September this year, and only then would there be a real good show to watch.

But now it's lukewarm, Old Li and Zhou Wanquan are both holding back big moves; when it gets hot, I don't know who will suffer.

Beijing in May has already become lively, but in the remote Steel City, it is still spring breeze rippling, calm and undisturbed.

In mid-May, the superior issued a notice, calling on industrial enterprises across the country to learn the "Great Qing Spirit," requiring all units to organize learning activities.

The slogan is "Industry Learns from Great Qing," simple and easy to remember.

I don't know who added a sentence to this slogan: "National Industry Learns from Great Qing, Liaodong Industry Learns from Red Steel."

Li Xuewu couldn't help but want to laugh when he heard it; this is too damn incisive.

Just when the Red Steel Group was actively participating in and organizing related activities, the head of Liaodong Industry, Hu Ke, came to Steel City again.

"Is there any watermelon? Bring one."

He was truly impolite; seeing Xiao Ma come in to make tea for him, he waved his hand and said, "I'm dying of heat; why is it so sunny today?"

"What did you go do? Sunburned like this?"

Li Xuewu looked at Hu Ke's flushed face amusedly; this old boy looked like a boiled shrimp.

Hu Ke still cared about his image; there were always cadres coming to Li Xuewu's office to ask for instructions, many of whom were female comrades.

He was a big man, and a big cadre; if he unbuttoned his collar and bared his chest, it would be too shabby, so he could only let the sweat soak his shirt and stick to his body.

Actually, it's the clothing material of this era that's not good, especially the white shirt, which sticks to the body after being soaked in sweat, looking like a transparent outfit.

In later generations, unscrupulous merchants who cut corners when making school uniforms for students would use this substandard material.

As a result, in physical education class, the boys' eyes were straight, some even had nosebleeds, while the female students would wear a school uniform jacket no matter how hot it was.

Hu Ke sat there like a Maitreya Buddha, panting like a big wolf dog, and everyone who came in had to look at him.

Ma Baosen got the leader's nod, so he naturally wouldn't be stingy with this little office expense; he called the cafeteria and asked for half a watermelon.

Li Xuewu is the Secretary-General of the Red Steel Group, Assistant General Manager, and also General Manager of the Northeast Industrial Development General Company; he has office expenses in his hands.

This quota naturally needs to be reimbursed, but it is all in Ma Baosen's hands.

General leaders don't have such generosity; if you really take it seriously, this is all money; if he wants to reimburse something, who dares to argue with him.

Just write "office supplies" for daily use; who knows what he spent it on.

However, Li Xuewu isn't this kind of person; from the first day of work, he hasn't taken advantage of the public for a penny.

Of course, he is also ruthless; to this day, he hasn't let the public take advantage of him for a penny either.

He wouldn't learn from the "Universe Master" Sun Liancheng, who could even let the public owe him more than sixty yuan; how wronged that is.

"You say, I'm so hard-working, is it any different from farming?"

Seeing Li Xuewu get a gap, he complained with a sigh, "But even farming grows some crops; I've been busy for a long time here, and looking back, there's no harvest!"

Li Xuewu didn't rush to answer, tightened the fountain pen Lou Jie gave him, put it aside, picked up his teacup, leaned back in his chair, and watched his performance.

"You tell me why it turned out like this."

Hu Ke pointed to the mud on his leather shoes and said, "Just came back from the Beijing Chemical construction site; I'm exhausted."

"This isn't right—"

Li Xuewu pointed at Ma Baosen, who was bringing in the watermelon, and signaled, "Xiao Ma, wait a moment."

Stopping Ma Baosen, he said to Hu Ke, "You went to the Beijing Chemical construction site; you should eat watermelon there; why run to me to 'beat the autumn wind' (beg for favors/food)?"

"Don't give it to him, he didn't serve us anyway," Li Xuewu really dared to say it, waved his hand, and signaled to Ma Baosen, "Don't indulge his bad habits."

Ma Baosen was really obedient; knowing the leader was joking, he really wanted to walk out with the tray.

"Hey! You kid—"

Hu Ke stood up amusedly, chased after him, took a slice of watermelon, and ate it, muttering, "Learn something good from your leader!"

"If it were up to our leader, I would have taken the watermelon away."

Ma Baosen said with a bad smile, "How could I let you snatch it away."

Hu Ke came often, and Li Xuewu went to Fengcheng often, especially privately, the two met frequently.

Ma Baosen is Li Xuewu's secretary, an existence that is inseparable except for sleeping time; he also saw Hu Ke more often.

Familiarity breeds no fear of status; when not talking about work, one can crack jokes.

Standing at the door, after eating a slice of watermelon fiercely, Hu Ke finally relieved the heat on his body.

"You, you've learned to be bad, kid!"

He took another slice of watermelon, walked back to the sofa, and said while eating in small bites, "Eating two slices of your watermelon and still so much talk..."

"... I went to see the site, isn't it also a project you invested in?"

"Next time you go to our Group's construction site, come find me for watermelon again."

Li Xuewu didn't move either; he sat in his chair and talked to him across the desk.

This kind of person has no sense of boundaries; he wants to take the initiative as soon as he comes up, to facilitate the next conversation.

He naturally didn't indulge the other party; in just a few sentences, he drew the lines, and no matter how shameless Hu Ke was, he had to speak within the circle he drew.

"I wanted to go, but I have to be able to get in!"

Hu Ke glanced at him and asked, "What's wrong with your construction site management? Why don't you let people see it?"

"Rules, have you heard of safety production?"

Li Xuewu put down his teacup indifferently; Xiao Ma had sharp ears, heard that the hot water in the teacup was low, and took the thermos to refill it.

"Even if I want to see the site, I have to call people from the engineering side; if anyone can go in, how can the site be managed?"

The Red Steel Group only had one project in Steel City, which was the underground three-defense project in the industrial zone.

Compared to the approach of building underground projects first and then ground projects in the Liangmahe Industrial Zone, this hard digging in the Steel City Industrial Zone was more difficult.

The underground project in the Liangmahe Industrial Zone was done for more than a year, while the scale of the Steel City Industrial Zone was larger, and it had been more than two years and was still doing infrastructure.

The main project was about to be completed, and the remaining projects would take at least until early next year.

By then, the ground of the Red Steel Steel City Industrial Zone would not see roaring large trucks, and wouldn't even see trains.

The cadres, employees, and family members of the industrial zone could enjoy the services of the underground supply market in all four seasons, warm and comfortable.

The third-phase project even planned an underground passage for the new workers' village, without going out the main gate, directly reaching the supply market.

Although the overall project hadn't been completed, units from Liaodong that came to visit had been endless.

This was an industrial system project, which had already been publicized in the newspapers and was hailed as the most creative three-defense project in Liaodong.

The three-defense project in the Liangmahe Industrial Zone was eye-catching enough, but the area was relatively narrow, not as open as the Steel City side.

"Give you a suggestion, go out more."

Hu Ke finished the watermelon, pointed at him, and said, "You've been in Liaodong for so long, and you haven't made many friends, right?"

"Friends, what's the use of having too many?" Li Xuewu said indifferently. "You can't find them when you need them, and they just hover before your eyes when you don't."

"One or two intimate friends are enough."

He stood up, walked to the window, picked up the watering can to water the flowers, and asked, "There's no good news this time, right?"

"I'll put the words up front; you should be able to know what I want; if it's not necessary, let's save the wasted breath."

"I don't know what you want," Hu Ke took the towel Ma Baosen handed him to wipe his hands and mouth, and said, "I just know what we have."

"Now the leader's meaning is, whatever you want, whatever we have, it can all be discussed."

"I want a lot of things."

Li Xuewu looked back at him amusedly and said, "Be sincere; you don't want me to waste your time either, right?"

"That's for sure; your time is precious."

Hu Ke thought for a while and said, "I also told the leader, this time if it happens, it happens; if not, forget it; consider it we have no fate."

"My idea is, if you want to follow the old routine, there's no need to experiment with us in Liaodong at all."

He looked at Li Xuewu and said seriously, "Using Deputy Director Lu's words, if you want to do it, do a big one; small things are boring."

"What's a big one?" Li Xuewu asked with a smile, "Shall we work together to make Shenfei a group company?"

"You want Shenfei?" Hu Ke paused, looking at him with a strange expression, and said, "That's not impossible, as long as you..."

"I was just saying that; you took it seriously?"

Li Xuewu put down the watering can and looked at him, saying, "No one wants your Shenfei, and we can't afford it either."

"Simply put, I'll state our conditions first, to save you from squeezing toothpaste."

He was a bit unimpressed by Hu Ke's stinginess and caution, but he was also thinking from his own perspective; changing the angle would be another matter.

Hu Ke, as the head of Liaodong Industry, any wrong decision could cause losses to Liaodong.

Li Xuewu was too shrewd; he had to guard against it.

"You say, you say." Hu Ke nodded and said, "I also want to hear your opinion."

"We don't oppose collecting scrap, but scrap must have recycling value; it's impossible not to go through auditing."

Li Xuewu said indifferently, "Not only must asset auditing be carried out, but organizational personnel screening must also be carried out; we don't play the 'big pot' game."

"Let me be specific: we don't accept financing-style mergers; if you want to participate, make a decision now, otherwise there will be nothing for you later."

He walked back to the sofa and sat down, looking at Hu Ke seriously, saying, "We aren't afraid of trouble, we're just afraid of suffering in vain after the trouble."

"You just said it yourself; if it were really like that, we might as well go back to farming, don't you think?"

"I can naturally understand you."

Hu Ke thought for a while and said, "I am also very hopeful that this project can be done, especially your time."

"You can rest assured about this."

Li Xuewu grabbed the conversation and emphasized, "Even if a cooperation agreement is reached, I won't be the person in charge of this project."

"We have a very mature and reliable technical team; you only need to cooperate."

"Let's talk about our conditions."

Hu Ke thought for a while, still couldn't help but sigh, and said, "The leader's sincerity is very sufficient; you'll know after you hear me finish."

"First is the land in Fengcheng for your Northeast Company; he is helping to coordinate, trying to find you a better location."

He nodded and continued, "Second is the Red Steel Group's Sales General Company; the leader's meaning is that it can completely enrich the lives of the people in Liaodong."

"So your Group can already lay out sales work in Liaodong; if you need our help and support, just say it."

"This is a good thing," Li Xuewu smiled and said, "The Red Steel Group also very much hopes to lay out the Sales Company in Liaodong."

He said, "Actually, it's not just Liaodong; the Sales Company's goal is actually the entire Northeast, and even the entire Northeast Asia."

"Maybe you've already heard some news; we are preparing to form a Free Trade Center within the Yingcheng Port area."

Li Xuewu pointed at the sofa armrest and asked, "Do you know what free trade means?"

"Opportunity!" Before Hu Ke could answer, he gave the answer directly and emphasized, "It is an opportunity to lay out the entire Northeast Asia."

"By then, raw materials will be transported from the sea to Yingcheng, and then all the way to Steel City by rail."

"In Steel City, these raw materials will be assembled into excellent commodities; one part will return to Yingcheng and leave by ship, while the other part will continue to spread from Steel City to the entire Liaodong, and to the entire Northeast."

Li Xuewu shrugged and said, "The Northeast has the best economic and industrial foundation in the country; developing sales work here is the most appropriate."

"And I have psychological preparation; Liaodong Industry will definitely have great development in these years, and the future will also be bright."

He nodded and looked at Hu Ke, saying, "The data you hold must be able to see that the industrial vitality of Liaodong is recovering, right?"

Hu Ke didn't speak, just nodded.

Whether the industrial and economic vitality of Liaodong had a trend of picking up, he was very clear, otherwise he wouldn't have come to find Li Xuewu.

Lu Qiming dared to toss like this, and even dared to work hard against the policy, because he had a bottom line in his heart.

No matter how it is assessed, Liaodong's industrial development data from last year is there.

Just talking about cars, in the past year, with the Red Steel Group's exertion, Liaodong surpassed the brother provinces across the country and became the country's number one car production base, and also the country's number one car export base.

Cars are like this, and electrical appliances are like this; even the country's best helicopter manufacturing factory is in Liaodong.

The industrial power network created by Red Steel United Energy is re-powering this old machine, providing more surging power.

Some people doubt the Red Steel Group's purpose in Liaodong, and its ability to truly do business.

But as long as you come to Steel City to take a look, you will know how strong the Red Steel Group's confidence in taking root in Liaodong is.

Because of this, Liaodong Industry, represented by Hu Ke, discussed countermeasures with the Red Steel Group and Li Xuewu in the first place.

"Cars, electronics, etc., cannot be merged anymore."

Li Xuewu looked at him and said, "If you don't mind, then carry out a wide range of energy resource concentration through United Energy."

"What do you mean?" Hu Ke raised his eyebrows and asked, "Can you explain it more clearly."

"Industry is also energy industry."

Li Xuewu emphasized, "Without energy, industry cannot develop; at this time, we might as well start with energy."

"What energy?" Hu Ke frowned and asked, "Oil? Coal? Or electric power resources?"

"Oil, this is the easiest to operate."

Li Xuewu reminded him, "Beijing Chemical is preparing to form a petrochemical refining plant in Yingcheng, and we also participated in this project."

"How many industrial enterprises need oil on this line from Yingcheng to Fengcheng?"

He pointed at the sofa armrest and said, "Even if they don't need oil, do they need the downstream industries of petroleum refining?"

"I'll just say one point: money shouldn't just be earned by looking inward; money outside is also very easy to earn."

"Hmm, I like listening to this."

Hu Ke hummed and said, "You tell me, how is this money outside easy to earn; I really want to earn some extra money."

"If you pay attention to the international resource situation, you will know about the upcoming energy scramble."

Li Xuewu nodded slowly and explained, "America needs to find a new sustenance for the US dollar; gold is no longer enough to toss, so they aimed at oil."

"Oil?" Hu Ke frowned and said, "But oil isn't worth money!"

This is true; in this era, oil just isn't worth money—not that the money of this era is very valuable, spending one or two cents, making oil look valuable, but when converted into US dollars, it isn't worth money either.

There is a supply and demand relationship problem here; for example, there aren't that many cars, and if you produce more and use less, oil won't be worth money.

Another point is that everyone hasn't noticed the importance of energy yet, and they are all in a state of chaotic economy.

At this time, America acted first, showing that they thought very comprehensively and very ahead of time, knowing how to earn money from outside.

And it's turning other people's money into their own money, exchanging their own money for others to spend; look at how smart they are.

Li Xuewu thinks that he doesn't dare to say he can snatch all the food from their mouths, but in key activities, he should always take some advantage.

Small advantages are also advantages!

Let's start with oil! ===== CHAPTER 1682 =====