Chapter 376: Decisive
"If you say it's a go, then it's a go!" Li Fuzhen said, looking at Wang Chenning with a gentle smile. "You understand the situation in Huaxia far better than I do. Plus, Mr. Wang is an old friend of Xiao'an's and has been so warm and welcoming. I think this is a great idea!"
Wang Chenning nodded immediately. "Then it's settled!"
Wang Jiangxing was overjoyed. He hadn't expected Wang Chenning and Li Fuzhen to be so supportive of investing in Qiantang. From the sound of it, the deal was practically sealed.
As a man in charge of administrative affairs, Wang Jiangxing had certainly seen his fair share of big events and personally signed off on numerous investment projects. But he'd never seen a deal come together this quickly. It caught him a little off guard.
"You're both so decisive, I'm at a loss for words!" Wang Jiangxing said with a hearty laugh. "Should I call my secretary or the relevant department heads in here to join us?"
"No rush," Wang Chenning said, waving a hand. "Let's just drink our tea and chat for a while. We can get to the details of the investment later."
Wang Jiangxing understood Wang Chenning's intention but still had his secretary and a few other relevant staff members come in.
Wang Chenning didn't seem to mind. After they were seated, he casually started a new topic.
He began by mentioning his partnerships: his cooperation with Li Yanxian and the Pu family in South Korea, with the Tian family in Japan, and with people like Yang Xiaofei, Luo Yuqing, and Li Mingchao in Yandu. He also mentioned the preliminary agreement he'd reached with Li Fuzhen, Bai Qianxun, and Li Mingchao before coming to Qiantang.
"The annual production value for the few patented medicines I've licensed to Miss Yang Xiaofei should reach around five to ten billion, and my other partnerships are on a similar scale." After recapping his prior collaborations, Wang Chenning got to the heart of the matter. "But I've been considering establishing my own pharmaceutical company. After all, our national-level laboratory is about to be approved. Once the lab is up and running, it will start producing results very quickly—we expect no fewer than a hundred new developments each year. Even with an enterprise in Yandu, we won't be able to commercialize all that research. This trip to the south wasn't just for sightseeing; I also wanted to survey the investment climate. We just never expected Mr. Wang to be so enthusiastic. It makes me feel that *not* investing here would be a tremendous waste!"
Zhao Xiao'an immediately chimed in. "Then you should base your most important enterprise here! I think having assets in Qiantang, Chang'an, and Yandu would be an excellent choice. It would create a stable, three-pronged foundation."
"That would make me absolutely delighted!" Wang Jiangxing replied with a smile. "Thank you, Xiao'an and Chenning, for your trust in us. And I am also very grateful to have Miss Li and Mr. Li visit us here in Qiantang."
After a moment of thought, Wang Chenning said to Wang Jiangxing, "How about this: once our trip through Jiangnan is over and I'm back in Yandu, I'll draft a detailed investment proposal and send it to you, Mr. Wang. Then we can discuss the specific methods and scale of the investment."
Then he turned to Li Fuzhen. "Sister Li, if you decide to get involved, and if Yang Xiaofei, Luo Yuqing, Bai Qianxun, and Li Mingchao are also willing to join, then the total investment should be no less than ten billion US dollars. It might not be a massive sum, but it's certainly not small."
"Young Chenning, you're truly bold. Calling a ten-billion-US-dollar investment 'not massive'... you're a true prodigy!" If Wang Jiangxing hadn't been aware of Wang Chenning's background, he would have thought the young man was just bragging. After all, Wang Chenning was only twenty-six!
But this was the same twenty-six-year-old who had donated a national treasure worth hundreds of millions, possibly even over a billion, to the country. He had refused compensation for the one million US Dollar insurance premium he'd paid out of pocket and asked for no reward. He already had billions in assets to his name. In less than two months since arriving in Yandu, he had built a fortune of at least a billion from scratch. And his personal assets back in Chang'an were also considerable.
Moreover, Wang Chenning was on such good terms with the Zhao family that he was very likely their future son-in-law.
What's more, his reputation in the world of traditional medicine was currently unmatched. At such a young age, he had already humbled the traditional medical communities of both South Korea and Japan.
'A man like him is a once-in-a-century talent!'
And then there were his companions. Traveling with him were two generations of scions from the Shanxing Group, and Li Fuzhen herself held a high-ranking spot on the world's billionaires list.
Even if Wang Chenning's personal investment wasn't huge, just bringing in Li Fuzhen and Li Yanxian would be a magnificent coup.
That was why Wang Jiangxing didn't doubt for a second when Wang Chenning casually mentioned an investment in the tens of billions.
'By proactively contacting Wang Chenning tonight, he really had seized the initiative.'
He was also thankful that Wang Chenning had come to Qiantang first, instead of Zhonghai or Jiangdong Province.
If he'd gone to Zhonghai or Jiangdong Province first, the people there had sharp instincts for opportunity, and this prize likely would have been snatched from his grasp.
They talked for over an hour, and it was nearly eleven o'clock before the meeting concluded and everyone prepared to leave.
Wang Jiangxing personally saw Wang Chenning, Zhao Xiao'an, Li Fuzhen, and Li Yanxian to the hotel entrance and offered to have his secretary drive them back.
Both Wang Chenning and Li Fuzhen politely declined the offer, saying they preferred to walk back slowly and enjoy the Qiantang night scenery.
They'd eaten quite a lot that evening and wanted a little exercise to help digest the meal and walk it off.
Wang Jiangxing didn't insist. He waved goodbye to them at the entrance of the teahouse.
After Wang Chenning and his companions had left, the secretary asked Wang Jiangxing, somewhat perplexed, why he had shown Wang Chenning so much respect.
He thought Wang Chenning was just all talk. How could someone so young possibly pull together an investment of ten billion, and in US dollars, no less?
"It just means you haven't done your homework," Wang Jiangxing criticized his secretary sternly. "If you took a moment to look into his accomplishments, you wouldn't think that. Setting aside everything else, just look at his friends. You should know perfectly well who Li Fuzhen and Li Yanxian are. And Zhao Xiao'an? Forget her family background for a moment; her status as the leading star of the national television station is impressive enough. And the others? Yang Xiaofei, President of the Lingyang Group. For him to have earned the high esteem of so many influential friends, you should have a pretty good idea of what kind of person he is."
The secretary quickly apologized, admitting that his preparation had indeed been lacking. He promised to thoroughly research Wang Chenning's background as soon as he got back.
After a moment's thought, Wang Jiangxing gave his secretary another order. "Contact our media team. I want you to make an official social media post with a few photos from our meeting tonight. Be careful—don't include any pictures with Zhao Xiao'an, just me and the other three. Keep the caption simple. Just say that I held a meeting with them, and let the public guess what it was about."
He thought for another moment, then added, "And arrange for a couple of comments to be posted under it, suggesting that we should invite Wang Chenning to be the official ambassador for West Lake."
"Understood!" The secretary immediately left to make the arrangements.