SFS Chapter 307 The Wayward Young Lady
Chapter 307 The Wayward Young Lady
The following morning. Conference room on the third floor of the Shanghai Foreign Investment Promotion Bureau.
A scale map of industrial land use planning for Shenhai City, at a ratio of 1:5:00, was laid out on the long conference table.
The left half of the drawing—the area west of the Huangpu River—is densely marked with red, blue, and green blocks. Next to each block is a small handwritten note indicating the development zone's name, the companies already established, and the remaining available space.
The right half of the drawing—east of the Huangpu River—is almost entirely blank. There are only a few planned roads marked with dotted lines, and a small circle drawn in pencil with the words "Lujiazui" written on it.
Chen Zhiyuan sat in the main seat, with two staff members standing behind him holding folders. His finger rested on a blue patch in the Minhang District of Puxi.
"Mr. Endo, this is the Minhang Economic and Technological Development Zone. Established in 1986 with the approval of the State Council, it currently houses twelve Japanese companies, including Hitachi and Fujitsu. The infrastructure is complete; all 'seven connections and one leveling' (water supply, drainage, electricity, communications, roads, gas, heating, and land leveling) are in place." Chen Zhiyuan's finger moved to another colored area. "If you prefer a joint venture model, we can recommend Shenhai Electric Group as our Chinese partner—"
"Director Chen," Endo interrupted him.
Endo took two documents out of his briefcase and placed them flat on top of the drawings.
The first document was an A3 sheet of paper folded into thirds. When unfolded, it was filled with a list of equipment—three Komatsu H2F-400 stamping presses, six Sumitomo SE-280 all-electric injection molding machines, two Hitachi Seiko 5-axis machining centers… The list continued to the back of the paper, totaling more than 120 items.
The second document was a certificate of funds bearing the Citibank logo. The amount on it was spelled out in capital letters: 100,000,000 USD.
One hundred million US dollars in cash.
Chen Zhiyuan removed his finger from the drawing.
He stared at the Citibank certificate of funds for a full three seconds, his Adam's apple bobbing.
In 1990, the government had to weigh the options repeatedly among ministries for import quotas worth a few million dollars. Yet, this enormous sum of demand foreign exchange, enough to affect a region's foreign exchange reserve indicators, was simply handed to him with a casual gesture.
"Mr. Endo," Chen Zhiyuan said, his speech slowing down, "this scale..."
"The Saionji Group's board of directors has a globally unified compliance red line," Endo said in a flat voice. "Any overseas manufacturing base must be established as a wholly foreign-owned enterprise. Joint ventures, Chinese shareholding, and joint management committees are not accepted."
After the translator finished relaying the words, the meeting room was silent for a few seconds.
The staff members behind Chen Zhiyuan exchanged glances.
"Mr. Endo," Chen Zhiyuan leaned back in his chair, placing his hands clasped over his stomach, "Frankly speaking, under the current policy framework, the approval process for wholly foreign-owned enterprises is much more complicated than for joint ventures. Especially in the heavy industry sector, it involves changes in land use, environmental impact assessments, the establishment of customs-supervised warehouses..." He spread his hands, making a troubled gesture, "It's not that we don't want to help, it's just that the existing Puxi development zone plan doesn't actually reserve such a large plot of land for wholly foreign-owned enterprises."
Endo did not back down. He pressed his finger on the first line of the equipment list.
"Director Chen. Every piece of equipment on this list is a current mainstay model in Japanese manufacturing. They are not secondhand scrap metal, but precision heavy equipment still within tolerance limits." Endo's finger slowly slid down, "Stamping, injection molding, precision casting, motor winding, electroplating—five complete production lines, connected end to end. From steel plate feeding to finished product output, no external supplier is needed."
Endo raised his head and looked directly at Chen Zhiyuan.
"This is not just a factory. It's an entire supply chain."
The air in the conference room grew thick. Chen Zhiyuan's fingers unconsciously traced the seam of his trousers under the table. One hundred million US dollars in cash, plus the in-kind contribution of one hundred and twenty sets of equipment—the total investment exceeded the total Japanese investment introduced to the Minhang Development Zone in the past three years.
The most crucial element is that batch of heavy industrial equipment. At this point in time, these industrial machine tools, representing top-tier manufacturing capabilities, are worth far more than gold.
But Puxi really can't fit any more land. The land in Minhang has long been divided into small squares of fifty or eighty acres, allocated to more than a dozen foreign companies that have already moved in. To squeeze out a contiguous plot of land that can accommodate five production lines from the existing plan is tantamount to scrapping all the land that has already been approved and starting over.
As Chen Zhiyuan was rapidly calculating a compromise in his mind, a voice that didn't belong at the negotiating table suddenly broke in.
Endo.
All eyes turned to the end of the conference table.
Satsuki put down the Puxi planning map she had been repeatedly looking at. Her fingertips gripped the edge of the map as if she were holding a used napkin.
"These places," Satsuki pushed the blueprints to the center of the table, her tone filled with undisguised disdain, "are all crammed together. When I look out the window, all I see are chimneys and dusty factory buildings."
Endo turned slightly to the side. "Young Miss, this is a formal business meeting—"
"I don't care." Satsuki crossed her arms over her chest, raised her chin slightly, and looked displeased. "You promised me last time that we could build a beautiful park this time. I want an endless expanse of open space, with nothing around it, all clean and tidy. Like those manor houses outside London, with large lawns and trees."
She looked at Endo, her brow furrowing.
"I don't want to be crammed into those dirty factories."
Endo's expression remained unchanged, but his left hand, resting under the table, clenched slightly, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly. He seemed to be racking his brains trying to figure out how to deal with the young lady's sudden capriciousness.
"Young lady, investment site selection requires comprehensive consideration of infrastructure, logistical accessibility, and policy support—"
"That's your job," Satsuki interrupted him, her tone firm. "I'm only responsible for telling you what I want. I want open space, a large one, and a quiet one. You figure it out."
The Chinese personnel in the conference room exchanged bewildered glances. The translator lowered his voice and relayed the conversation to Chen Zhiyuan, using as tactful a word as possible.
After listening, Chen Zhiyuan looked down at the planning map in front of him.
His gaze slowly shifted to the almost blank area on the right half of the drawing.
East of the Huangpu River. Pudong.
This land was only announced for development this April. Currently, it consists of vast stretches of farmland, fishponds, and mudflats.
The roads weren't built, the power grid wasn't installed, and the planned water pipe lines were still just on paper. The start-up funds allocated by the city were a drop in the bucket, and what was most needed was foreign exchange—US dollars, the hard currency used to import bulldozers, buy asphalt, and lay substations.
No conventional foreign company would be willing to become a pioneer in a wasteland without even streetlights.
But if...
Chen Zhiyuan looked up and glanced at the young lady who was arguing with Endo.
An open space. Vast and quiet. It stretches as far as the eye can see.
This is exactly what Pudong has in abundance right now.
"Mr. Endo." Chen Zhiyuan stood up, his troubled expression replaced by just the right amount of enthusiasm. "I completely understand Miss's concerns. To be honest, the old town in Puxi is indeed a bit crowded and doesn't suit the size of the Saionji Group."
He walked around the conference table to the planning map and pressed his finger on the blank space on the east bank of the Huangpu River.
"I don't know if you've heard, but this April, the national government just approved the development plan for Pudong New Area." Chen Zhiyuan drew a large circle on the blank space with his finger. "This area is currently a completely undeveloped virgin land. It's as large as you can imagine, and so quiet you can even hear the birds chirping."
He turned around and looked at Endo and Satsuki.
"If the young lady wants a private industrial park with a 'large garden'—I can say with certainty that in the entire Shenhai area, only Pudong can meet this requirement."
Chen Zhiyuan clapped his hands.
"Alright. I'll adjust the afternoon's itinerary. I'll personally take you all across the river to Pudong to see the area in person. Seeing is believing."
He looked at Satsuki with a gentle smile, like an elder comforting a younger person.
"Don't worry, Miss, the air over there is definitely better than in the city. With the river breeze blowing, you can't smell any smoke from the chimneys."
Satsuki's eyelashes trembled.
Her lips pursed slightly, as if she were seriously considering the suggestion—or perhaps hesitating whether to continue to make things difficult for the overly enthusiastic Chinese official in front of her.
"Really?"
Satsuki tilted her head slightly, her voice tinged with doubt. She raised her hand and gently rubbed the tip of her nose with the knuckle of her index finger—as if the industrial fumes drifting from the direction of the Puxi Development Zone still lingered in her olfactory memory.
"But... if there's nothing there, we won't even be able to find a place to eat, right?"
Chen Zhiyuan chuckled at this utterly illogical concern. He quickly waved his hand.
"Miss, you don't need to worry about meals at all. I've already had local specialties prepared in Pudong, which are definitely ten times better than the food at the guesthouse. You must try Shenhai's braised pork and sweet and sour spare ribs."
Satsuki blinked, a clear hint of excitement flashing across her face. But she quickly pouted, turned her head, and looked at Endo.
The meaning in that look was clear—I want to go, but you have to make the decision for me.
Endo was silent for two seconds.
His gaze met Satsuki's for a brief moment, then he nodded slightly.
"Since Director Chen is so kind, then I'll trouble you to make the arrangements."
After hearing the translator's account, Satsuki slightly relaxed her brows. She didn't speak again, but simply lowered her head and adjusted the length of the Polaroid camera's strap so that it hung comfortably in front of her chest.
Chen Zhiyuan breathed a long sigh of relief as he watched this action.
The fish has taken the bait.
He turned and whispered a few instructions to the staff member behind him. The staff member quickly left the conference room to contact the Pudong Development Command's reception vehicle.
Chen Zhiyuan sat back down in his chair, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
The tea was freshly brewed this morning, Longjing, with a refreshing and sweet aftertaste.
Through the steam rising from his teacup, he looked at the Japanese girl across from him who was fiddling with her camera, and began to plan which piece of land in Pudong to offer—it had to be large enough and desolate enough that this young lady would feel that it was "endless"; it also had to be within the radiation range of the future Lujiazui Financial District to ensure that Japanese investment in infrastructure could drive up the surrounding land prices to the maximum extent.
Let the vanity of the tycoon's daughter pay the price for Pudong's century-long plan.
No matter how you look at it, this is a win-win situation.