Meeting

At Chen Qianjun's deliberate insistence, the officials and ordinary workers ate a simple meal together.

The food couldn't compare with what you'd get at a big hotel, of course, but it was still pretty tasty. The Jiangzhou City officials enjoyed it, too.

After lunch, they began the next important part of the afternoon's inspection.

The main purpose was for Chen Qianjun and the other officials to discuss policy support for Jiuzhou Automobile Factory with its managers, led by Xu Yifan.

Before the meeting began, Chen Qianjun and the other officials held a brief meeting of their own.

It lasted about half an hour.

Afterward, they gathered in the meeting room at Jiuzhou Automobile Factory.

The factory's department managers, led by Xu Yifan, sat along one side of the rectangular conference table.

Chen Qianjun and the other officials sat along the opposite side.

The meeting officially began, and Chen Qianjun was once again the first to speak.

After thinking it over, the mayor, who focused mainly on economic affairs, smiled and began.

"We toured Jiuzhou Automobile Factory together this morning. The changes have been so dramatic that even I find them hard to believe.

"Jiuzhou Automobile Factory is doing very well now, from employee benefits to the production and sale of its products, all the way to the consumers who buy them.

"It's clear that everyone likes Jiuzhou Automobile Factory very much.

"And a company like this is undoubtedly better for Jiangzhou City the more of them we have, and the stronger they become.

"It's the kind of excellent company that our citizens, the government, the factory itself, and its workers all want to see."

Chen Qianjun paused briefly, then continued.

"A popular factory that provides jobs for so many people naturally deserves the government's support.

"But exactly what kind of support it needs depends on President Xu and your vision for Jiuzhou Automobile Factory's future.

"Could you tell us what you plan to do next?

"Will you continue operating as you have been, or do you want to expand into more markets and grow stronger quickly?"

As Chen Qianjun spoke, the officials and even the managers on Xu Yifan's side couldn't help turning their attention to the man who was really in charge of Jiuzhou Automobile Factory.

After pondering for a moment and gathering his thoughts, Xu Yifan spoke calmly.

"Leaders, Jiuzhou Automobile Factory is poor—very poor. We desperately need the government's strong support!"

When in doubt, follow the playbook: complain about being broke first!

Only then did Xu Yifan continue.

"Besides, we can't keep operating for long by staying in one little corner of the market.

"You may not realize this, but although Jiuzhou Automobile Factory seems to be doing pretty well right now, a crisis is already brewing. I'm certain that in less than three months, a whole slew of cars similar to the Jiuzhou Mini will flood the market.

"If Jiuzhou Automobile Factory doesn't strive to improve, the best we can hope for is to maintain our current scale in this city and two or three nearby cities.

"Worse, similar models made by some major car companies may eventually take our market share.

"The ability of car manufacturers to copy and produce vehicles is frightening!

"I'm not exaggerating. Almost every car company started out by imitating others.

"Once they see a profit and discover an untapped market, the joint venture brands may not care, but domestic brands will swarm in like sharks smelling blood. That's when Jiuzhou Automobile Factory will face its real challenge."

As he spoke, Xu Yifan looked troubled.

"Maybe in two or three years, Jiuzhou Automobile Factory will be back where it was when I first took over: the factory shut down, with only a few key technicians left, and no products being made at all."

Everyone present furrowed their brows at Xu Yifan's words.

Chen Qianjun thought of the many car manufacturers he had studied and nodded in agreement. "Automobile manufacturing really is difficult!"

But then he changed tack and asked, "Since you've already identified the problem, what do you think Jiuzhou Automobile Factory should do in the future?"

Xu Yifan nodded. "Staying in one corner of the market is absolutely out of the question. It's just a slow death. Jiuzhou Automobile Factory needs to expand!

"While our competitors are still small and haven't grown strong, we should seize as much market share as possible and sell our products in more places.

"We need to take advantage of being first and gain a head start. Maybe that advantage will last three or five months, but having that time will make all the difference to our future.

"The earlier we enter the market, the sooner consumers will get to know us, and the more confident they'll feel about our products."

"Besides, according to my plans for the factory, we can't put all our eggs in one basket. Jiuzhou Automobile Factory needs another profitable product."

Chen Qianjun praised him. "It's a good idea to reduce risk. But what would the second product be?"

Xu Yifan shared the second product he had already planned for Jiuzhou Automobile Factory.

"Electric two-wheelers. They're a lot like low-speed electric vehicles, but they only have two wheels and no cabin. I'm sure everyone is familiar with them.

"Compared with low-speed electric vehicles, electric two-wheelers are simpler to manufacture and require less investment. But we can produce more of them, and they'll also make it easier for the Jiuzhou brand to reach the public."

Chen Qianjun considered the idea. "Electric two-wheelers could work. But the market is already crowded with brands of all kinds, and quality is all over the place. How will you make sure our electric two-wheelers sell well?"

Xu Yifan smiled. "That brings us to the technical achievement of our company's R&D team: a new type of lithium iron phosphate battery. Whether you're talking about electric cars or electric two-wheelers, the battery is one of the key components.

"The quality of the battery determines how far an electric car or electric two-wheeler can travel on a charge. It's also one of the things consumers care about most.

"Our factory's R&D team has nearly finished developing the new lithium iron phosphate battery. They're testing the product's stability, safety, and other performance metrics.

"We expect to achieve a breakthrough in a few days. Then I'll build another battery factory to produce batteries mainly for our Jiuzhou Mini and the Jiuzhou Electric Vehicle we plan to make next.

"Our products will have advantages the others don't: a longer driving range, longer battery life, and better performance in cold weather.

"Other car companies don't have this technology. Well, except BYD, which started out making batteries.

"BYD has comparable battery technology, but the vast majority of other car brands don't.

"When the coming battle over low-speed electric vehicles begins, we'll have a huge advantage.

"Better product quality and a longer battery range will be our core competitive strengths.

"We'll be able to break into new markets and hold on to the market share we've already won instead of letting other vehicle manufacturers take it away.

"That's my general idea for developing Jiuzhou Automobile Factory. But there's still one problem: we're running short on funds.

"We need to open two new factories, expand car production, and find other factories to manufacture our products for us. It's a lot of pressure!"

After a long speech, he finally got to the point.

"If possible, I hope the government can provide us with some support!"