After the Divorce, I Could Hear the Voice of the Future-Chapter 374 - 371: Offending Old Xu
On the afternoon of the 17th, the conference declared its conclusion.
The first New Energy Conference was somewhat hastily organized for two main reasons: firstly, East Country’s eagerness was widely known, resulting in limited participation from other countries.
Secondly, it was constrained by the industry’s development; if the market could grow rapidly next year, the next conference would definitely be better.
After the conference, Li Bing approached Lu Liang. Li Xiang noticed and quickly followed suit, as if afraid of missing something.
"Still no response? I’ve got some things to take care of—it’s a trip to Tokyo, and I should be able to get there the day after tomorrow."
Lu Liang was discussing the imminent birth with Lu Ya when suddenly two figures appeared behind him.
"Let’s leave it at that." Startled, he hung up quickly, casting a dark glance, "What do you want?" frёewebηovel.cѳm
"Why don’t you go first, Mr. Li?" Li Bing and Li Xiang exchanged a glance and a smile as they suddenly deferred to each other.
Lu Liang frowned and asked impatiently, "What is it, Li Bing? You go first."
He would soon be rushing to catch a plane to Tokyo. Xu Jiawei had booked a ticket for a little past six,
from chicken feet to chicken feed, roughly a five-hour journey, likely landing around midnight.
"Mr. Lu, the board has decided that NIO will officially start preparing for an IPO," Li Bing hurriedly said.
If it went public in China, with just one model and a little over three thousand in sales, NIO would never make it in this lifetime.
But US stocks were different; if Old Jia’s PPT company could prepare to go public, then why not them since they had already built a factory and started sales?
NIO was currently valued at approximately 4.5 billion US dollars, and they planned to release 20% of their equity for IPO financing.
"Go ahead with the preparations, and let me know if you need any help."
Lu Liang calculated the time and felt it was about right.
The seeds he had planted two years ago would bear fruit over the next year or two.
He turned to Li Xiang: "Does Li Xiang also want to go public?"
Li Xiang shook his head hastily, smiling sheepishly, "Mr. Lu, Li Xiang plans to hold a Series D financing round at the end of the month."
Li Xiang’s development path differed from NIO’s; the response to ONE was very positive, and he aimed to increase the valuation before going public, aiming for at least ten billion US dollars.
But now, the company was running out of funds again, despite the sales breaking ten thousand, with over seven thousand units yet to be delivered.
Along with investing ten billion with the Lifan Group for a production base, they were about to start building the second phase.
Money was needed on all fronts.
Lu Liang rubbed his temples and contemplated for a moment: "Then go ahead with the financing; let me know if you’re short on funds, but I won’t have much time at the end of the month and probably won’t be there in person."
He suddenly admired Shen Peng and Zhu Hu; with Redwood and Golden Sand River’s large portfolios, they invested in a hundred companies each year.
Picking out one or two from hundreds, following through until the IPO, and then reaping tens or hundreds of times the investment were truly enviable feats.
After all, Lu Liang mainly invested in four companies, and other than Douyin, which he handed over to Byte, could slightly relax him.
The other three—Panda, NIO, and Li Xiang—didn’t allow him a moment’s peace, especially Panda, which was like being both a mother and a father.
While they were talking, Old Xu walked over and joined the conversation. Hearing that Lu Liang would soon be heading to Tokyo, he enthusiastically invited, "Mr. Lu, what a coincidence! I was just planning to visit Toyota, how about we go together tomorrow at noon?"
Last time in Yangcheng, they agreed that Lu Liang must experience his private jet, the mobile palace.
It’s known that whenever he travels far, several lead dancers from the Hengtai Dance Troupe accompany him to add some artistic flair to the otherwise monotonous trip.
Lu Liang was taken aback, even imagining the inside of the plane shaking. If he weren’t in a hurry, he’d indeed be intrigued.
Last year, on the 42nd floor, he had an unforgettable experience with the Dunhuang squatting dances, each squat making his heart tremble.
But he could only stay in Tokyo for a few days before heading off to Edinburgh; business awaited, and he had to decline Old Xu’s kind offer.
Lu Liang apologetically said, "Mr. Xu, I’m truly sorry, but I have other matters to attend to and I’m a bit pressed for time. I’ve booked a flight for tonight and, regrettably, can’t accompany you."
"Well then, we’ll talk next time."
Mr. Xu frowned, his face already showing signs of embarrassment.
After all, he was this year’s First Rich, and he even surpassed the First Rich of the East Country, directly becoming the richest Chinese in the world.
A famous calligrapher even wrote a piece of calligraphy for him that contained an acrostic poem: ’Xu Emperor is outstanding and great’.
Yet after being repeatedly invited, he had been turned down by Lu Liang, which displeased him greatly.
Although Lu Liang helped him earn nearly a billion, that was not a reason for Lu Liang to neglect him.
"Gentlemen, Mr. Li and Mr. Xu, I’ll see you next time."
Lu Liang couldn’t be bothered to ponder over Mr. Xu’s hidden intentions and, without looking back, he got into the car.
Whether it was finance or car manufacturing, he was an outsider, but real estate was his destined career.
Especially now that he knew more,
The inflated property market was merely to counteract the quantitative easing of the US Dollar.
A single credit withdrawal forced Wanda to amputate for survival and made Old Wang fall from his pedestal. Mr. Xu, who was so arrogant, would sooner or later face trouble.
Real estate conglomerates might be formidable, tied to the livelihood of hundreds of millions, but what’s mighty is the industry, not the individuals or businesses.
If Wanda falls, Hengtai might stand up; if Hengtai falls, it could be Country Garden, Rongchuang, or perhaps Huaxin that rises.
A group that could be replaced, a First Rich that could be replaced, didn’t intimidate Lu Liang in the slightest. If he offended, then so be it.
At six twenty, the plane took off from Boao Airport, stopped over at Modu for half an hour, and arrived in Tokyo in the early hours of the morning.
Wen Chao had received the news early and from eleven p.m., he had been waiting at the airport for Lu Liang’s arrival.
"How’s the situation in Detroit? Is our cooperation with General Motors still smooth?"
As Lu Liang walked, he asked. Initially, Ota Ling, that old fox, had detained his assets in Tokyo under the pretext of asset protection.
He simply went with the flow, investing all the money he earned in Tokyo into the United States, making the father ask his son for money.
The results proved to be very effective. The two hundred million dollars flowed silky smooth from Tokyo to the joint factory in Detroit.
Because it was under the name of Xingheng Investment Company, Wen Chao was fully responsible for this matter, and Lu Liang normally didn’t intervene.
Wen Chao replied, "Mr. Lu, the project is progressing very smoothly. President Trump and General Motors have been looking after us, and the 48 engineers arranged by Vice President Wang also arrived in Detroit smoothly half a month ago, joining General Motors’ R&D project."
In this period, he had visited Detroit twice.
The first time was to sign the factory construction contract with the funds, and the second time was to take the 48 engineers dispatched by Wang Xiaofeng to discuss the joint development of a new car chassis with General Motors.
President Trump was different from other leaders. The first time Wen Chao went there, he was warmly received, and President Trump even took him for a tour around General Motors, as if endorsing him.
So much so that he felt surprisingly honored.
Lu Liang smirked and said, "Don’t treat him like a national leader but as a shrewd businessman, and you’ll find that all his actions are traceable, though they don’t conform to our definition of maturity and stability, but he maximizes his own interests."
He had learned the hard way about preconceptions; thinking a national leader should be mature, steady, methodical, and sparing in speech and laughter.
However, Trump proved to be an outlier, running the country like a company. As long as there was profit to be made, personal reputation mattered little.
He knew well that respect is earned, not given by others. Even if he was the capricious and erratic Joker, it wouldn’t change the fact that he was the leader of the mightiest country on this planet.
Wen Chao pondered, and it did indeed seem that way.
During their conversation, the two arrived at the airport’s underground parking lot, where Wen Chao and his assistant had brought three cars.
Two Mercedes and one van; one for Lu Liang, one for the security personnel, and one for himself.
Lu Liang got into the back seat of the Mercedes and rolled down the window to instruct, "Wen Chao, it’s getting late, you should head back to rest early. Arrange a meeting with Ota Ling for me tomorrow afternoon, tell him I’ve already arrived."
Having said this, he also told his driver, "Go to the Kanzaki Apartment in Roppongi."
The last time he left, Lu Liang mentioned he would return in about one or two months; he was not breaking his word, and he wondered how Erii and Miyuki, mother and daughter, were doing recently.
