Chapter 137: The Aircraft Special Task Force

It was a truly incomprehensible matter.

Mou Qizhong was undoubtedly the most colorful and respected entrepreneur in the Chinese business world. He was extremely humble, and his resilience was nothing short of a human miracle. Like all entrepreneurs of that era, he grew up reading the "Selected Works of Mao Zedong" and possessed a profound sense of national consciousness.

Yet, this man’s life was fraught with misfortune. He was imprisoned several times and even brushed against the gates of death on more than one occasion. Had it been anyone else, they would have been crushed by such hardships. But he was like an indestructible cockroach; every time he was imprisoned due to the shifting political climate just as he reached his peak, he would climb back to the top upon his release, only to face imprisonment again.

By the time he was finally released after more than a decade behind bars, he was an old man of seventy-seven. Upon walking out, he discovered, "Well, look at that, these two hundred properties I own in the capital have become so valuable."

For anyone else, at that age, it would be time to settle down. But he simply continued his grand ambitions, announcing plans to raise trillions to launch a massive enterprise for hatching shark fry. He spent his life pursuing macroeconomic plans that ordinary people could not comprehend, each one sounding more like a tall tale than the last.

Honestly, Chai Jin was very eager to meet this man at his current zenith. He smiled and said, "If one day Mou Qizhong stopped spouting such crazy talk, I think he wouldn't be himself anymore."

"So, are you participating in the 'Great Development' in Manzhouli?" Yu Pengfei asked.

"I had thoughts of investing initially, but after listening to one of 'Cannon' Mou's speeches, I gave up," Yu continued. "I always felt like my feet weren't touching the ground; it didn't feel real. How could outsiders endure that frozen wasteland? If it weren't for the border crossing to the Soviets, who would go to such a hellish place? The climate alone dictates that it can never become a Shenzhen of the North."

Chai Jin had originally intended to offer some persuasion, but hearing Yu Pengfei’s reasoning put his mind at ease. The Soviet Union and Russia were currently suffering from a lack of light industry, and given the unique historical context of the Soviet collapse, China's trade with Western European systems was negligible. This was what had led to the prosperity of the border cities. In a few years, as Russia’s own light industry enterprises recovered, the "daoye" (speculative traders) would dwindle. Furthermore, as China further opened its trade policies with Europe, Manzhouli would sooner or later become a wasteland.

Chai Jin smiled. "Your head is still quite level. Let’s talk about the matter with Nyevanov."

Yu Pengfei became serious, and the two moved on to the main topic. Later, Fang Yi and the others returned. Chai Jin called them over to arrange everything at once. He established the "Zhonghao Aircraft Group," divided into five departments:

The First Department, led by Old Huang, was responsible for coordinating upcoming work in Russia; his image was enough to command authority.
The Second Department, led by Fang Yi, was responsible for coordinating with national large-scale machinery companies.
The Third Department, led by Liu Shan, was responsible for coordinating with Shenzhen Airlines.
The Fourth Department, led by Su Wenbin, was crucial: once cooperation was reached, they would need to begin large-scale domestic procurement of daily consumer goods to exchange for the unsalable aircraft held by the Soviets.
The Fifth Department was for subsequent banking coordination.

"As for the staff in your departments, start recruiting from society immediately!"

In a sense, Chai Jin was secretly replicating the path Mou Qizhong had taken in trading aircraft. As they talked, Chai Jin’s ambition grew. Mou Qizhong had managed to bring in four planes with only ten million; Chai Jin had two hundred million in cash on hand. Why couldn't he aim bigger?

He sipped his tea calmly, but his heart was racing. The distillery and the mobile phone business both required massive capital injections. He had no choice but to bite the bullet and find the money.

...

The dinner with Nyevanov the next day had become the goal of many tycoons in the city. Everyone wanted to find a way to ship their products to Russia. Zheng Hejin’s phone was being bombarded to the point that he finally had to turn it off. The matter had also gained the serious attention of the mayor, who called Zheng into his office for a long deliberation. They discussed whether it was possible to use Nyevanov to open a trade route between Shenzhen and Russia.

However, Zheng Hejin replied with a bitter smile, "Nyevanov is an old Soviet official. Now that the Soviet Union has collapsed, the internal situation in Russia is chaotic, and his future is uncertain. Even if we sign documents with him, they might not be recognized by Russia in the end. It’s better to wait."

The mayor agreed. He changed the subject and asked, "How far has the approval process for the land belonging to General Manager Feng of United Industries progressed? We need to speed it up. I had dinner with Feng yesterday; the investment there is significant, and several large enterprises might emerge from it. That will greatly promote local development."

Chai Jin had no idea that the reason Feng Haodong was able to secure that plot of land in such a prime location was largely due to the status of United Industries in the south. It was a company the Shenzhen government had been striving to court.

Zheng Hejin offered a wry smile. "Don't worry, old leader, I’ve had my eye on it the whole time. It should be settled soon. But, old leader, you have a good relationship with General Manager Feng—do you know the relationship between Zhonghao Group and United Industries?"

"Zhonghao Group? I haven't heard of them," the mayor replied, turning back in surprise. "Why do you suddenly bring up this company?"

Zheng Hejin shook his head helplessly. "The two thousand acres you personally supervised were split in two by General Manager Feng. His reasoning was that United Industries didn't need that much land and wanted to give half to enterprises that needed it more. The paperwork for this Zhonghao Group was submitted by Feng personally. We investigated, and the company was founded less than half a month ago with a registered capital of only five hundred thousand. It’s stuck at this point; my subordinates don't dare to sign off on it, so I’ve come to ask for your instructions."

The mayor looked at him curiously. "Recommended by Feng?" He paced the office, brow furrowed. After a long silence, he looked up and said, "I don't know what Feng is planning, but I assume they have some capital operation in mind. Have a talk with the employees from Feng’s side. Tell them that the land is zoned for industrial use; the municipal government does not want the nature of the land changed to end up as a residential development."

Zheng Hejin nodded. "I'll find a time to visit United Industries personally. Don't worry."

After leaving the office, Zheng Hejin passed by a department and decided to stop in to ask a few questions.

"Opening a distillery and an electronics factory?" he asked. "Under Feng’s company?"

The staff member replied, "We checked carefully. It seems there is no substantive connection to Feng. They only explained that it belongs to a friend of Feng’s. The total investment might exceed five hundred million, with the goal of building a distillery with annual sales exceeding one billion."

"One billion in annual sales?" Zheng Hejin paused. "Moutai?"

"No."

"Xifeng?"

"No."

"Qinchi?"

"Probably not that either."

"Then who else in the domestic liquor industry has that kind of capability?"