That Would Scare Him Off! (Please Vote)

Things at the Factory were going smoothly. Once the money came through, the paperwork for the land was completed in no time.

Because funds were tight, Shen Bing leased only ten acres for a ten-year term.

It was far from cheap. The land alone cost 200,000 yuan—and that was the rent for one year, not ten.

Wang Sheng then found a Construction Company to put up the factory building. He paid five percent up front, with the balance due on completion.

Of course, the planned building was only a shell. The interior facilities and layout would have to wait until the equipment was finalized and its supplier provided a construction plan.

Three days later, Shen Bing got up early, made himself look sharp, and headed out.

He carried a briefcase, too. There were no documents inside, though—only a Cat Demon, Little Doudou.

Today, he needed to meet someone.

Over the past few days, besides handling factory business, Wang Sheng had hired two people.

One was an accountant named Zhuang Xin. She was under thirty, had a graduate degree, and was quite capable, though she lacked experience. Fortunately, the company was still small enough for her to manage.

The other was a salesman named Wei Changjia, an old hand in the trade. He looked perfectly respectable, but once he opened his mouth, he could talk anyone into anything.

Wei Changjia had brought this matter to their attention. He had been following the Nancy Building project for days, and the person they were meeting was connected to it.

That person was the Procurement Department Manager for the Nancy Building project—a plum position no one could land without the right connections.

According to Wei Changjia, after seeing the Phantom Immortal Company's product, the Procurement Department Manager was inclined to use Illusion Immortal Glass for the building's curtain wall.

Of course, a procurement manager could not make the call on a project this large. He could, however, make a recommendation to the Gao-level executives.

Once the company's Glass reached the Gao-level executives, it would win them over completely.

The trouble was that the procurement manager was the highest-ranking person Wei Changjia could reach. He could not even get a meeting with anyone at a higher Gao level.

It could not be helped. A small company was easily overlooked.

Wang Sheng was already waiting at the entrance to the Residential Compound.

Wang Sheng drove an Audi A4, which put him comfortably in the middle class. He had, after all, been a Gao-level corporate executive and had some savings.

If an unexpected incident had not forced him to resign, he probably would never have climbed aboard the good ship Phantom Immortal Technology.

"Boss, since I'm using my own car for company business, shouldn't I get an allowance?" Wang Sheng said with a grin as he started the engine.

A voice came from the back seat. "Exactly, boss. You could practically call me the Sales Department manager already, couldn't you? Yet I don't even have a company car. That's hardly a good look for a company with as bright a future as Phantom Immortal Technology."

The speaker was an alert-looking young man: Wei Changjia.

They were all young, so outside formal settings, they joked around without much restraint.

That suited Shen Bing just fine. If every meeting felt stiff and lifeless, getting along with people would be no fun at all.

"Don't worry. The perks will come. I told you when I hired you: if you land the Nancy Building project on your own, you'll be Phantom Immortal Technology Sales Department manager. A company car won't be a problem then."

Shen Bing was making promises freely, but he saw no reason not to. If Wei Changjia really landed a project worth over a hundred million yuan by himself, what was a car?

“Let's not get ahead of ourselves, boss. I looked into that Procurement Department Manager. He won't lift a finger without something in return, and I'm afraid we can't satisfy his appetite as things stand,” Wei Changjia said worriedly.

“Tell me more about him.” Shen Bing was unusually calm. Wei Changjia had already mentioned this to him.

"His name is Chang Lu. I've met him a few times over the past few days and asked around about him. Two words sum him up: cautious and greedy. He's cautious because he knows exactly when to make a move. If the timing is wrong, he won't reach for a cent. I even suspect he favors our Glass because standard glass curtain-wall prices are too transparent for him to skim much off. As for greedy, whenever he deals with a supplier he can push around, he takes his cut. They're lucky if they get away with only losing a layer of skin."

Wang Sheng frowned. “How can the Nancy Group let a parasite like that stay?”

Wei Changjia looked helpless. “That's where he's clever. On large procurement projects, or ones with transparent prices, he follows the rules to the letter. No outsider can find fault with him. But on smaller projects, or when he's buying goods with unclear prices, he starts playing tricks. Even if someone raises questions, he can talk his way out of them. Most importantly, he seems to be the brother-in-law of one of the Nancy Group's directors. As long as he doesn't cause a major problem, nobody wants to offend someone with connections like that, right?”

The three men fell silent. Illusion Immortal Technology Company's product happened to be exactly the sort with no clear market price. It was the only one of its kind, so Phantom Immortal Technology could set whatever price it liked.

That should have been a good thing. But to someone with ulterior motives, it was an opportunity for profit.

Worse, Phantom Immortal Technology was an obscure little company—practically a workshop. To others, it looked like an easy target.

“We'll play it by ear,” Shen Bing said.

Chang Lu had already chosen the meeting place: Wei Family Restaurant.

It was a fairly well-known Private Restaurant in Rongcheng, and he had arrived ahead of them.

It was not because Chang Lu was polite or held Phantom Immortal Technology in high regard. He wanted to make sure no one had secretly installed a camera.

He was even less worried about recording devices. He carried a small jammer; even the best voice recorder would be useless against it.

His awareness of surveillance nearly rivaled that of a veteran detective with decades on the job.

Chang Lu was excited. He had not felt this way in more than ten years.

As the Procurement Department Manager for the Nancy Building Project, he had not actually been able to skim much each year—only a few hundred thousand yuan.

With the main structure nearing completion, he had thought his chances to profit were almost over. Then an enormous windfall had dropped into his lap.

Someone from a small Glass Factory had come to him selling a remarkable kind of Glass he had never seen before.

At first, he had assumed it was an expensive decorative product. To his surprise, they said it was for a Glass Curtain Wall.

He would bet anything that if the whole building used this Glass Curtain Wall, the Nancy Building would become a dreamlike landmark that stunned the world.

With a little publicity, headlines at home and abroad would come pouring in.

What mattered most for a commercial building?

Name recognition, of course. Whether through a distinctive design, an imposing exterior, or any other gimmick, the point was to get people talking.

Even the fierce race to build the world's tallest Gao-rise was about making a name for oneself, wasn't it?

With Dream Glass, designs and Gao-rises could go straight to hell.

Replacing the standard Glass Curtain Wall with Dream Glass would add twenty or thirty million yuan to the budget, but compared with the effect, that was pocket change.

Chang Lu was sure the Nancy Group's bigwigs would approve the change unless they had taken leave of their senses.

And when they did, he would get most of the credit.

But with an opportunity this good, why would he settle for recognition? Money was what he really wanted.

He had investigated the Glass Factory. It was just a small Factory that had been lucky enough to master this remarkable glass-making technology. It had neither strength nor connections.

Wasn't that an opportunity handed to him by heaven?

If he didn't pocket at least several million yuan from this deal, Chang Lu would feel he had let heaven down.

Just as Chang Lu was imagining himself getting rich overnight, the private room's door opened and a server led three people inside.

Chang Lu stood at once, smiling warmly. "Manager Wei, you're here already! Please, have a seat. Server, bring out the food."

Wei Changjia stepped forward and shook his hand enthusiastically. “Manager Chang, you got here before us. Let me introduce you. This is our company’s owner, Shen Bing, and this is our General Manager, Wang Sheng. Boss, Mr. Wang, this is Manager Chang, the man I told you about.”

They exchanged greetings and handshakes, and everything seemed perfectly cordial.

Something's definitely up with this guy. What procurement manager acts this friendly?

Shen Bing had made up his mind.

Once they were seated, they exchanged a few pleasantries and got down to business. By then, all the dishes had arrived.

Every dish was a house specialty. The cost made Shen Bing wince. Did Chang Lu think his money grew on trees?

No wonder the bastard was so fat.

"Mr. Shen, I've seen your product, and it's excellent. But this is complicated. We've already reached an understanding with another Glass Curtain Wall manufacturer. We haven't signed a contract yet, but they're a friend of our Chairman's son, and they've even spoken to Director Chen from our project department. You can see the position that puts me in," Chang Lu said with a troubled expression. His eyes, though, practically begged them to ask for his help.

Wei Changjia smiled. "Manager Chang, you're the procurement manager. Surely what gets purchased is up to you?"

Chang Lu clearly enjoyed the Gao-hat flattery, but he showed no sign of relenting.

The conversation went back and forth. Wei Changjia and Chang Lu did most of the talking, Wang Sheng chimed in, and Shen Bing spoke now and then. All three kept their manner deferential.

Chang Lu held their first deal in his hands. If they had to swallow their pride, so be it.

They had gone through several rounds of drinks, but still had not reached any conclusion.

That was normal enough in business. Even a deal worth a few hundred thousand yuan could not necessarily be settled over one meal, let alone one worth over a hundred million.

But Shen Bing was a novice at this. He had never had to grovel like this before, and his temper flared.

"Manager Chang, we're all adults. There's no need to beat around the bush. Just tell us how much you want."

The atmosphere in the room turned strange at once.

It was like a man and woman courting each other. Even if they both wanted to end up in bed, he could not say so the moment they met. That would scare her off!

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