The car drove to a large complex of factory buildings backed against a mountain. The main gate was open, and people could be seen moving about inside.
I glanced around. The mobile team members were hidden in the surroundings and should not have been discovered.
Wen Siqiang said, "This is it. Should we drive in?"
I said, "Drive in."
The car didn't stop at the entrance. I saw the security guards at the gate rush out of their booth, chasing after our car, demanding we stop.
Wen Siqiang ignored them and accelerated to an office building-like structure.
Wen Siqiang and Qian Fugui quickly got out and opened the doors for the two of us.
I accompanied the senior, took out a cigar from my bag, trimmed it, and handed it to him. He skillfully put it in his mouth, and I quickly lit it for him.
Just then, two security guards ran over, panting, and said breathlessly, "What are you doing? Why did you run in without registering?"
Wen Siqiang went up and slapped the speaking security guard twice, scolding, "Open your damn eyes and see, do I need to register wherever I go?"
The man covered his face, saying in terror, "How can you hit someone?"
Wen Siqiang moved to strike again, but I stopped him, saying, "Have him quickly report that Chairman Fan, a businessman from country H, is here and wishes to see your boss."
The security guard looked at me hesitantly, unsure whether to report.
Wen Siqiang pressed forward and punched him in the chest, saying, "You don't want to drink the toast, so you want to face the punishment?"
I said, "You can't do that. We are civilized and law-abiding businessmen; be polite to people."
The security guard was punched again. Fearing further blows, he quickly ran into the office building to report.
We stood in front of the building. It was a three-story detached building, each floor probably over a thousand square meters. Such a building looked very out of place in this deep mountain forest.
Behind the building were several rows of factory buildings, at least a hundred meters long and over twenty meters wide. They were all made of metal keel and color steel structure. Cement passages separated the workshops, and tall bushes were planted along the roads. The entire factory area looked high-end, grand, and tasteful.
I had learned beforehand that this enterprise had repeatedly been awarded as one of the top ten outstanding taxpayers in the province, a model of ten pillar industries in the province, and its boss, Xie Jiabao, was a provincial science and technology innovation leader, an outstanding young entrepreneur representative, a provincial labor model, and a member of a certain association, among other accolades. In short, he received countless titles and honors.
This Xie Jiabao was Brother Hui's elder brother. Xie Jiabao was the eldest, Hui was the third, and there was an intermediate brother, Xie Jiakui, who worked as a sales manager in the factory. Brother Hui's given name was Xie Jiahui.
We didn't know how much of these titles and honors were fabricated. What we knew for sure was that his tax payments were real. However, to put it another way, if he was dumping entire containers of products into the sea, where did his tax revenue come from? The intrigue behind this was self-evident.
At this moment, the security guard brought over a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing loose-fitting casual pants and a short-sleeved t-shirt.
The security guard led the man to us and said to him, "It's them!"
I stepped forward and clasped my fists in greeting, saying, "This is Chairman Fan from the H country Financial and Trade Company. He has come mainly to meet your chairman by reputation. May I ask who you are?"
The man sized up the senior a few times and said, "I am Xie Jiakui, the Vice General Manager. Our chairman is in a meeting and cannot see you. Please speak with me if you have something."
I said, "We came here by reputation, but we were met with violence at the entrance, and you, as the vice president, are so impolite. I seriously doubt the authenticity of your so-called star enterprise!"
Xie Jiakui looked at me askance, with a disdainful expression, and said, "Who do you think you are? A rich businessman from country H? Who are you trying to scare? Do you know how many bosses from all over the world come here every day? You'd be scared to death if I told you!"
I said, "Do you run your business by scaring people? Guests are guests. We traveled thousands of miles from abroad for your company's advertised reputation, only to get this result. It's very disappointing."
Xie Jiakui: "Don't try to pull this with me. What does it have to do with you if our company is good or not? Would we starve if you didn't come here? Let me tell you, I don't care what kind of boss you are. You are neither more nor less to us. Go wherever it's cool. You are not welcome here."
At this moment, the senior spoke, "Young man, don't speak so definitively. Perhaps your boss will indeed do business with me."
Xie Jiakui was about to say something when a voice came from behind, "Second brother, do not be rude!"
I looked up. A man in his fifties with grayish-white hair walked out of the main building. He looked very much like Xie Jiakui. It went without saying that this person was Xie Jiabao.
The biggest difference between Xie Jiabao and Xie Jiakui was their attire. Xie Jiabao wore a snow-white shirt, gray-white trousers, and a pair of gleaming white leather shoes. Although his hair was graying, it was meticulously combed. He wore gold-rimmed glasses on his straight nose. The whole person looked less like an entrepreneur and more like a scholarly professor.
Xie Jiabao clasped his fists in greeting towards the senior and said, "I am Xie Jiabao. Please forgive my rudeness just now, Elder Sir!"
The senior replied, "I am Fan Dingjun, doing a small business overseas. I heard of Chairman Xie's great name and came to seek advice. Seeing Chairman Fan's demeanor today, it is indeed as rumored. It is a pleasure to meet you!"
After speaking, he extended his hand. Xie Jiabao saw it and quickly extended his to shake it.
Xie Jiabao released the senior's hand and invited us inside to talk.
Xie Jiakui glared at us with unconcealed defiance, his feet rooted to the spot.
Xie Jiabao ignored him and bent over to invite us in.
I asked Wen Siqiang and Qian Fugui to guard the entrance, and I accompanied the senior inside.
Xie Jiabao invited us into the reception hall, seating the senior in the guest of honor's position. I sat beside him, and he signaled a lady usher to serve us tea.
Xie Jiabao sat down and asked the senior, "Chairman Fan, what projects do you mainly operate overseas?"
The senior: "I am mainly involved in finance and textile trade. Recently, I have also been involved in some specialty products from Southeast Asia. However, due to recent changes in international policy guidelines, my business has been impacted. I have been identifying several capable companies in the mainland for a new round of cooperation and am currently inspecting them one by one. Your company is the first. Other companies are in the provincial capital or other provinces."
Xie Jiabao: "Is that so? Then I am truly honored. I just don't know the scope of cooperation Chairman Fan is looking for with us, and whether we meet your conditions."
The senior: "I am involved in a wide range of industries, covering almost every sector. Since I chose your company, I have certainly conducted in-depth research on it. We will definitely have conditions for cooperation."
Xie Jiabao: "I didn't expect Chairman Fan to be so well-prepared. Then I am truly honored. I will notify the cafeteria to prepare fine wine and dishes for us. We will move to the restaurant later to talk while we eat."