Industrial Overlord 129 Contracted Agricultural Machinery Factory

  Accompanied by Cen Youjun, Lin Zhenhua walked into the workshop of the agricultural machinery factory. Cen Youxin followed behind them, looking left and right, but actually couldn't see anything special.

  As Cen Youjun said, the agricultural machinery factory received a little business today, so it looks quite busy. More than a dozen workers are focused on processing parts at their respective workstations, and there is also an instructor-like person who is guiding back and forth.

  Outsiders watch the excitement, insiders watch the doorway. In mechanical processing, Lin Zhenhua is absolutely an insider, he walked back and forth in the workshop, carefully evaluating the strength of this factory.

  Compared with many township enterprises, Yonghe Agricultural Machinery Factory is relatively well-equipped. The workshop has three lathes, two milling machines, and one drilling machine, planer and punch press each. Although they look a bit old, they should be able to process some ordinary parts without any problem.

  The workers in the workshop are still relatively skilled and not newcomers. Especially that instructor who keeps guiding, looks like a senior worker and also a versatile person, he guides various types of work and seems to have a good grasp of it.

  "This teacher's name is Chen Jinfu, originally a worker in a large factory in Tanzhou. After retiring and letting his children take over, he returned to Yonghe to farm. Seeing that our factory's technology was not good, he volunteered to come and help. The technical skills of the workers in our factory were all taught by him." Xian Youjun introduced Lin Zhenhua, saying this, he shouted to Chen Jinfu: "Teacher Chen, let me introduce you, this is my soldier from when I was in the army, named Lin Zhenhua, now the deputy director of the technical department of Jiangnan Province's Hanhua Machinery Factory."

  Chen Jinfu walked over and looked at Lin Zhenhua with suspicion, asking: "You're very young, aren't you?"

  "This year is full of sharpness, right?" Cen Youjun asked Lin Zhenhua.

  Lin Zhenhua nodded: "It's already passed, after the New Year it will be two years." Is that when you became deputy department head? Do you have some connections?" Chen Jinfu asked bluntly.

  Cen Youjun felt a bit embarrassed, but Lin Zhenhua was not bothered at all. For this kind of questioning, those who have a guilty conscience will naturally feel annoyed and humiliated, but people who truly rely on their abilities to win positions won't care at all. On the contrary, they will even feel a little proud. Lin Zhenhua was exactly like that, he smiled and said to Chen Jinfu: "Master Chen, the team leader knows, I'm just from a working-class family, my parents are both deceased, no background whatsoever."

  "How can you become the deputy department head?" Chen Jinfu asked in surprise.

  "I made a technological innovation and the factory director appreciated it," said Lin Zhenhua.

  "What kind of innovation?"

  Lin Zhenhua then told Chen Jinfu about making a simple rolling gear, and as a senior technician, Chen had a strong intuition for such things. Although Lin only gestured with his hands and didn't show him the actual object, Chen still grasped the entire principle clearly. After listening, he nodded repeatedly: "Not bad, really not bad. Right, you said earlier that the whole machine was made by yourself?"

  Lin Zhenhua said: "The first one was made by myself, except for a few castings that were helped by the sanding workshop. However, the ones used in our factory later on were all made by the masters in the workshop. The one I made had too rough workmanship, and the masters didn't think much of it."

  Chen Jinfu said, "It's not easy to do rough work either. This requires both turning and milling skills, and several steps such as turning threads and milling keyways need to be done with precision, which takes a few years of experience."

  "Yes, I'm a person who likes to learn. When I was young, I also fiddled with the lathe with my father, so I can barely figure it out," said Lin Zhenhua.

  Chen Jinfu's face broke into a smile. He had originally thought that Lin Zhenhua was an official second-generation who relied on his background to get ahead, but now it seemed that he was actually a young man who understood technology and was willing to work hard. Chen Jinfu had always liked young people like this.

  Cen Youjun saw Chen Jinfu accept Lin Zhenhua and smiled, saying: "Master Chen, this time Xiao Lin came to see if he can help us come up with some new products. If it's possible, maybe we can find a way out for our agricultural machinery factory."

  Chen Jinfu became more interested and asked Lin Zhenhua: "Little Lin, tell me, what do you want to do?"

  Lin Zhenhua asked: "Master Chen, what I just said about that simple gear grinder, do you think it has any potential?"

  Chen Jinfu thought for a moment, nodded and said: "This thing is indeed a bit clever, like the big factory I used to be in, it's not useful at all. We already have gear hobbing machines that are much better than yours. Some small machinery factories might find it useful. Every factory will encounter the problem of cutting gears, and technicians who are not good at cutting gears will often have trouble aligning the tools after dividing the degrees. With your thing, it can save a lot of trouble."

  "Chen Shibo, do you think if our factory produces such machines and sells them to those small machinery factories, can we make some money?"

  Chen Jinfu said, "This is worth a try. I just listened to you and think that with our factory's technology, we should be able to make it. I'll personally take care of the key components. However, if we want to sell them to those factories, someone needs to go promote them."

  Cen Youxin had been standing by the side, listening to their conversation. Now that he heard the word "sales", he thought of his conversation with Lin Zhenhua on the road and immediately stepped forward, saying: "I don't understand production matters, but if it's sales, I can go and run around."

  "Really?" Cen Youjun was taken aback for a moment. "Youxinge, you also thought of coming to our factory to work?"

  Lin Zhenhua said, "Paichang, I talked to Youxin Ge on the road and I think he's quite suitable for running sales. Your factory doesn't even have a single salesman now, how can it not lose money if you just close the door and run the factory?"

  Cen Youjun looked at his elder brother and thought for a moment before bursting out laughing, saying: "Yes, if it weren't for Xiao Lin reminding me, I really wouldn't have noticed. When we were young and selling vegetables on the street, Right Xin Ge always sold faster than me. Now that I think about it, Right Xin Ge really has a talent for doing business."

  Lin Zhenhua saw that Cen Youjun had somewhat entered the door, so he said: "Squad leader, let's go outside and discuss this matter."

  Chen Jinfu would naturally not get involved in these matters. Lin Zhenhua and the Xian brothers walked out of the workshop together, went to a pile of iron tools in the grass, each picked up a piece of scrap iron as a stool and sat down. Lin Zhenhua said: "Boss, I've taken a look just now, the foundation of this factory is not bad, if there are several products that sell well on the market, making a few hundred thousand yuan a year should not be a problem. So I think you'd better take over the factory."

  Cen Youjun hesitated, "Xiao Lin, if the factory can really make tens of thousands, I don't need to take it over, do I? If the factory is doing well, I can receive my salary every month, isn't that good enough? After all, I'm still a state cadre, taking over the factory wouldn't be quite right."

  Lin Zhenhua said, "Don't think like that, Pai Chang. First of all, I'm helping you find products, it's doing you a favor. If it wasn't for your company, I wouldn't bother taking on this trouble. In the end, if we make money and it's all taken away by the commune, who knows, it might just become the capital for those cadres to indulge in food and drink, that's not something I'd be happy to do."

  Cen Youjun sighed and said, "Xiao Lin, your thinking has always been so extreme. But on the other hand, what you said makes some sense. Some cadres in the commune really are very corrupt. Even a big family business can be bankrupted by them."

  "This is it," said Lin Zhenhua. "Secondly, for an enterprise to develop, it must have stable operations and cannot have too many meddling mothers-in-law. It also cannot be taken over by others after reaching a certain level of development. If you take over the factory through a contract, say for five or ten years, no one else can interfere. You are in charge of what happens in the factory, only then can you work freely without worrying about others gossiping."

  Cen Youxin interrupted, "It's like this, Right Army. If it weren't for your contracted factory, I'd help you with sales." Others wouldn't be convinced and would say you're using your own family members. This is a matter of great importance, requiring even closer brothers. If not for my help, others helping you wouldn't be so dedicated.

  Cen Youjun hesitated for a moment before saying, "What you've all said makes sense.

  "But Kobayashi, don't you really think that I can make money after taking over the contract? What if I end up losing money?"

  Lin Zhenhua said, "Boss, no one can give you a guarantee for this kind of thing. I have a few product ideas here, and after we discuss them with Chen Shibo, we'll see how to do it. If nothing unexpected happens, relying on these products should be enough to support your small factory. Of course, everything has risks, and if something unusual happens, there's also the possibility of losing money."

  Cen Youjun said, "That's right, I'm worried about losing money now. If we make money, it's easy to talk about, but if we lose money, with my current family situation, what can I use to compensate?"

  Lin Zhenhua said: "It's not that serious, is it? We're just starting out now. The worst-case scenario is that the product doesn't sell, and we waste materials and labor time. That won't cost us much money."

  Cen Youjun said with some embarrassment: "Xiao Lin, actually, after I came over at noon today, I went to find the deputy secretary in charge of industry in the commune and asked about the contracting. He said that if we want to contract, it's okay, but we have to pay 50,000 yuan as a contracting fee every year, and all the expenses left in the factory are borne by me, whether I make or lose money, the commune doesn't care. Now I'm worried, what if I don't make back the 50,000 yuan in a year?"

  "It's 5,000 yuan!" Xun Youxin's eyes widened in shock.

  "Only 5,000 yuan?" Lin Zhenhua's eyes widened in surprise.

  Two people each said a sentence and then found that their tone and stance were quite inconsistent, so they looked at each other in dismay.

  "Kobayashi, don't you think 5,000 yuan is a bit too much?" asked Xun Youjun cautiously.

  Lin Zhenhua nodded: "I don't think it's too high."

  "But this factory has been losing money for two years," said Cen Youxin. "Does the commune just want to take our money now?"

  Cen Youjun has turned around and stood on Lin Zhenhua's side this time, saying: "Little Lin is also right, after all, there are tens of millions of assets in the factory. Even if it's put in a bank to earn interest, it would be several thousand yuan. If I take over the contract without paying a single penny, it wouldn't be appropriate either."

  Cen Youxin hesitated and said: "If we have to pay 5,000 yuan in contract fees every year, it's really a bit risky. If we lose money, selling the ancestral house won't even be enough to pay back."

  Lin Zhenhua couldn't help but feel a sense of awe, this is indeed the case where one cent can bring down a hero. Those who dare to stake their lives and fortunes on a gamble are after all in the minority, and it's only among these few that true entrepreneurs can emerge. Some people call entrepreneurship "playing with the tide", which also makes sense, without any adventurous spirit, it's really impossible to start a business. The Shen brothers are both family men, asking them to take a direct gamble is indeed somewhat difficult.

  "Take over the factory, I'll cover the contract fee. If it loses money, consider it my loss. If it makes a profit..." Lin Zhenhua originally wanted to say that as long as he returned the contract fee, it would be fine, but when he saw Cen Youxin's gaze, he suddenly thought of the saying "a grain of rice for gratitude, a peck of rice for resentment", so he changed his words: "If it makes a profit, give me a share."

  Cen Youjun looked at Cen Youxin, who nodded and said: "Youjun, I think Xiao Lin's idea is feasible. If not, you two can join forces to do it. You contribute your efforts, he contributes the money. Of course, he also needs to put in effort, since he still has to design products for you. As for the shares, you two can each take half."

  "This won't do," said Cen Youjun, turning to Lin Zhenhua and asking, "Little Lin, are you really confident? If you're really confident, then I'll take over this factory for you. Right Xin and I will help you run it, and if we make money, we'll just take 20%."

  "I can't have it, I'll help you run errands, and if we succeed in getting a commission from the business, that's great," said Cen Youxin.

  Lin Zhenhua said, "Since the captain has spoken, let's do it this way. The captain will go and take over the factory, You Xin will help with running the business, I'll be responsible for providing the funds for taking over the contract and bearing the risks. As for the shares in the end, I'll have three portions, You Xin will have two portions, and the captain will have five portions."

  Cen Youjun said: "No way, no way. Since you put out the money, you should take the lion's share. You can have 60%, and Right Xin and I will each take 20%."

  After mutual persuasion, the final result was that Cen Youjun agreed to go to the commune immediately to discuss the contracting of the farm machinery factory. The contract fee would be borne by Lin Zhenhua, and the loss would also be borne by Lin Zhenhua. If the farm machinery factory made money, Lin Zhenhua would get 50%, Cen Youjun would get 40%, and Cen Youxin would get 10%.

  Additionally, it is stipulated that Xun Youxin is responsible for running business. For each successful transaction, he can deduct a certain percentage of the turnover as his business fee. In the initial stage, Xun Youxin's travel expenses and necessary entertainment expenses are borne by the factory, which can be reimbursed after confirmation and signature by Xun Youjun. From the time he receives his first business fee, all travel expenses will be borne by himself.

  After discussing and settling on a plan, Cen Youjun immediately went to the commune to find the leader for a face-to-face talk. By evening, he had brought back a contract for the land lease.

  According to the agreement, Cen Youjun will henceforth have full management decision-making power over Yonghe Agricultural Machinery Factory and pay an annual contract fee of 5,000 yuan to the commune. The first payment is 1,000 yuan, and the remaining amount will be paid at the end of the year.

  Lin Zhenhua brought 2,000 yuan when he came to Yuefeng. He gave 500 yuan to Cen Youjun for his wife's surgery fee, leaving him with 1,500 yuan. At this time, he took out 1,000 yuan and handed it over to Cen Youjun as the down payment.

  Although Cen Youjun seemed to be forced by Lin Zhenhua to take on the contract, after getting his hands on the contract agreement, a hint of vigor and spirit also seemed to surge up between his eyebrows. A man always needs to have some ambition; now he urgently wants to make a big move.