The city of Pilsen is about 80 kilometers away from Prague. The Czech road system is relatively complete and the road conditions are much better than those in China. The convoy entered the city in just one hour after galloping all the way.
The winter in Eastern Europe was very cold, so Yao Yuan didn't care about his image, so he wore a Soviet-style military coat and a velvet hat, making himself look like he was spending the winter with Siberians.
Lin Xiaohu and Jiang Yong amazed Yao Yuan. They were only wearing autumn clothes. Compared with the bloated Yao Yuan, they were like the difference between summer and winter.
Lu Sen and the others are already used to the climate here, and Moscow is even colder.
Pilsen is an industrial city. It can be said that this city was developed based on the state-owned United Machinery Factory. It has dozens of upstream and downstream supporting factories. It is a very typical European industrial city layout.
Having been a socialist country for decades, the streets still have traces of the characteristics of the times, such as vaguely identifiable slogans and buildings with Soviet characteristics. For example, the Khrushchev Building is a five-story building.
Small-sized simple residential buildings greatly solved the housing problem of the Soviet people at that time.
China's industrial system learned from the Soviet Union and almost copied it, so you can see a large number of these small and simple residential buildings in state-owned units.
The staff dormitory building where Yao Yuan's family lives was transformed from this kind of building.
They did not stay, but directly entered the Pilsen Machinery Factory (State-owned United Machinery Factory). The bustling scene in the past was gone, replaced by calmness. Only in the innermost workshop did they see some workers persisting in production.
The situation is worse than it was a few months ago.
The big shots are busy fighting for power and profit. Factories that have lost effective management are almost shut down. The workers need to eat, and the big shots who want to win votes simply sell what can be sold in exchange for money to pay the workers' wages. The entire society and the country appear to be in chaos.
The auction held today will sell more than half of the factory in Pilsen. Of course, compared with the German Volkswagen buying Skoda, today's auction can only be considered a small step.
Many people arrived earlier than Yao Yuan, and the auction site was located in the open space in front of the workshop. These people kept stomping around in circles to keep out the cold.
There are a few Asians who are particularly conspicuous. They have average builds and wear suits and leather shoes. At first glance, they look like they often participate in business activities but have a more rigid mindset. The comparison with the white people who dress a lot regardless of their image is very obvious.
Those Asians were in a circle by themselves, clearly separated from the white group. Instead, there were a few short Asians mixed in with the white people, who seemed to be chatting and laughing.
A rough calculation shows that there are dozens of companies participating in the auction. They are all sharks that have smelled the smell of blood and want to take a bite out of the Czech Republic when it is at its weakest.
Yao Yuan did not ask the bodyguards to follow him, but there were still six of them. The team was not too big or too small. As soon as they walked over, they attracted everyone's wary eyes. Generally speaking, the more people sent, the stronger the company is.
Since they are competitors, they will naturally not let go of the opportunity to observe.
Several Europeans were talking loudly.
"Japanese? Korean?"
"Maybe they are Koreans. They have been very active in recent years and can be seen everywhere."
"What an annoying fly, George. Maybe you should show them who the masters of world industry are."
"Laud, you can do it too."
The Europeans discussed unscrupulously, ignoring the gazes of others. In their eyes, it is not surprising that the Japanese appear here, and it is not surprising that the Koreans appear here. Some people say that the 1980s belonged to Japan, and the Japanese economy was at this stage.
It reached its peak and claimed to be able to buy the United States. After the Plaza Accord, Japan began to decline, and South Korea emerged as the leader of the Four Asian Tigers. So the Koreans said that the 1990s were theirs.
But when the Chinese people stood up and spoke to the world with their rapid economic growth and huge market potential, no one could hear the voices of Koreans anymore.
However, at this time, in the eyes of many Chinese people, South Korea is a developed country. Everyone does not even know that South Korea was poorer than North Korea before the 1980s!
Of course, to be honest, South Korea should not be underestimated at this time. They also have some technologies that are worth borrowing.
The open space in front of the workshop is the auction site, with several rows of chairs scattered around and a blackboard in front of it.
The organizer is either a talent or an idiot. In the cold winter, letting customers freeze outdoors is very helpful in speeding up the auction process and will save customers a lot of hesitation. For this purpose, he is a genius.
If he doesn't consider the customer's feelings at all, then he is an idiot.
Yao Yuan sat down in the last row, and was quite interested in this kind of auction, which was more like a street stall displaying goods. He believed that the organizer was neither a talent nor a fool, and was purely trying to cash out as quickly as possible.
He is still the mayor today, but he may not be the mayor tomorrow. He has the right not to invalidate it when it becomes obsolete. Those who are not confident in keeping the power in their hands are crazy and sell state-owned assets to cash out. Those who are confident in gaining power speed up the fight for power and try every means to acquire state-owned assets.
In your own hands.
You are chasing after me, just because the sales are too slow!
"Ayuan, I saw Sanmeji Taro." Lin Xiaohu leaned over and whispered.
Yao Yuan raised his eyebrows and looked where Lin Xiaohu was pointing. Sure enough, Jitaro Sanmu was standing with a few Japanese people and talking to a few Eastern Europeans. He gave Lu Sen a wink, and Lu Sen understood it.
, went quietly.
Not long after, several Eastern European men came over in a hurry and went straight to the blackboard. Everyone became quiet, some were sitting, and some simply stood with their arms folded, stamping their feet from time to time.
The host was a local official, and two people posted photos on the blackboard, including photos of factories and photos of large machinery.
The host pointed to the photo and said straight to the point, "The starting price for the first factory is US$800,000. The bidding begins."
There was no introduction, no warm-up, and no information was even sent to the bidders. It looked like they were finishing the get off work quickly and then getting off work. It was so simple and crude that Yao Yuan was amazed.
At this point it depends on who is fully prepared.
The starting price of US$800,000 can be said to be as cheap as yellow mud.
The bidding entered a fierce state from the beginning. Everyone had the same idea, they all wanted to get a bargain, and the price went up little by little.
Yao Yuan has no interest in this factory. He only has so much money in his hands. He must prioritize it and spend it on heavy machinery and equipment and acquiring technology.
The first factory was finally bought by an American company for $1.2 million, then the second factory fell into the hands of the Germans, and the third factory was bought by the Japanese.
The fourth bid was a heavy-duty boring machine from Pilsen Machinery Factory, and the starting price was only US$20,000.
Yao Yuan raised his hand and joined the bidding.
The competition is very fierce this time.
After the price reached US$200,000, Yao Yuan gave up.
Wu Ning, who was sitting next to him, was extremely anxious. He knew a lot about mechanical equipment and the importance of heavy boring machines.
He couldn't help but whisper, "Mr. Yao, this heavy-duty boring machine is very important. It must be used to process large mechanical parts. Moreover, this heavy-duty boring machine is CNC-controlled, which is of great significance to the advancement of our machine tool technology."
China has no way to buy key industrial equipment from Western countries. When the Czech Republic was still a Warsaw Pact country, many of China's machine tools and equipment came from the Czech Republic. Later, Japanese and Korean products entered the Chinese market, and the number of Czech products gradually declined.
.
As far as heavy-duty boring machine technology is concerned, the Czech Republic is way ahead of Japan and South Korea.
Yao Yuan said in a deep voice, "Don't worry, just wait."
At this time, the Korean suddenly raised his sign and said, "Five million dollars!"
A direct price increase of US$300,000 was determined to acquire this heavy-duty boring machine weighing hundreds of tons.
Wu Ning stopped trying to persuade him and was stunned. For a second-hand heavy-duty boring machine, the price of US$500,000 is not high, but in the current market conditions in the Czech Republic, this price is a bit outrageous.
Unexpectedly, Yao Yuan suddenly raised his hand, "Six hundred thousand dollars!"
The Korean in front looked back in surprise, and everyone else also looked over curiously. Only then did they notice that the Asian face behind him looked like a Chinese!
The host raised his hammer and said, "Six hundred thousand dollars for the first time!"
The Korean did not hesitate, "Seven hundred thousand dollars!"
Before the host spoke, Yao Yuan smiled faintly and said, "One million dollars."
Everyone was shocked.
You can already buy a brand new product at this price.
The host became excited for a rare moment and said loudly and joyfully, "The Ocean Trading Company from Hong Kong bids one million US dollars! Is there any higher price? Everyone, is there any higher price than one million US dollars?"
It turns out to be a Hong Kong company.
Everyone suddenly realized that it was not surprising that Yao Yuan was so generous.
"Dignified guests from Korea, do you have a higher bid? One million dollars for the first time!" The host raised the hammer and looked around at everyone.
The hammer is a serious hammer, not the kind used by auctioneers. What is struck is an iron plate, and when it is hit, it will make a loud and reverberating sound.
"One million dollars for the second time!" The host stared at the Koreans, his eyes seeming to say, are you still not bidding? Are you admitting defeat?
The Korean gritted his teeth and raised his hand, "One million and one million dollars!"
Wu Ning became anxious, grabbed Yao Yuan's arm, shook his head and whispered, "Mr. Yao, stop bidding, it's not worth the price."
"Okay." Yao Yuan smiled and nodded.
Wu Ning breathed a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, he looked at Yao Yuan doubtfully and asked, "Mr. Yao, do you understand Czech?"
As soon as these words were asked, Lin Xiaohu and Jiang Yong suddenly came back to their senses.
Yes, Yao Yuan didn't ask for translation after getting off the plane. Everyone came here with habitual thinking and didn't even notice it.
Yao Yuan said with a smile, "I can basically speak English, German, Russian, Czech, Japanese, Korean and Spanish, but I am more proficient in Russian and German."
"What?" The people in Wuning were dumbfounded, "Do you know seven foreign languages?"
"Ang, I am quite talented in languages. I am interested in learning foreign languages. I usually study by myself. I am studying mechanical design, and Russian is a must, so I am quite proficient in it." Yao Yuan explained.
Wu Ning was stunned, "Mr. Yao, you are a language genius! I think you can work in our diplomatic department, and you can be stationed in almost any country."
"Hahaha, if I don't have that ability, I can only do small business." Yao Yuan said with a smile.
At this time, the host dropped the hammer, pointed at the Koreans and said, "The fourth bid belongs to the distinguished guests from South Korea, US$1.1 million! Please come here to complete the formalities and pay!"
The table on the side is where you go through the formalities and sign the contract and pay the money. They only accept cash, and the payment is made on the spot. They don't care about the rest. You can do whatever you want with your things.
Several bids followed, and Yao Yuan made crazy bids. Coupled with the host's impatient look, everyone's rhythm was carried away. Unknowingly, when the final bid came on the scene, many people realized that they had spent too much money.
Too much money, beyond the budget.
"The last bid is a production line from the Pilsen Machinery Factory and a heavy-duty truck production line from Tailuo. The two production lines will not be sold separately. We will accept Swiss bank cashier's checks and we will verify and connect with the bank on site." The host made a big announcement.
bomb.
"The starting bid is $3 million."
Wu Ning's heart was racing, but he could only shake his head helplessly.
The starting price is not high, but they are two heavy-duty machinery production lines. With the production lines of the Pilsen Machinery Factory, the production of heavy-duty machine tools is not a problem. With the heavy-duty truck production line that is too long, the domestic heavy-duty truck manufacturing technology will reach a higher level.
However, everyone knows that the final price will definitely increase several times.
Sure enough, all companies joined the bidding and the price rose rapidly.
Wu Ning knew that Yao Yuan had to do a lot with his thirty million dollars, and he couldn't afford these two production lines. Wu Ning couldn't help but sigh, "If we can buy one of these production lines, our heavy machinery manufacturing technology will improve by at least two percent."
ten years."
"Manufacturing technology is not only related to production technology. Twenty years of progress is a bit exaggerated, but the technical significance is indeed very important. From the perspective of the enterprise, the heavy truck production line can be put back into production directly, which can produce benefits in a short time.
." Yao Yuan said.
Wu Ning sighed and pointed at the European man who was raising his hand to bid, "Yeah, but it's too expensive. That's the American General Motors Company. They are very powerful companies and they can't compete with them."
Yao Yuan smiled and said, "Secretary Wu, don't worry."
At this time, the sixty-year-old man sitting next to Jitaro Mitsubishi raised his hand, "Mitsubishi Corporation, US$9.5 million."
The price is approaching the tens of millions of dollars mark.
This price is beyond the psychological range of most companies.
The host also rarely left more time for everyone to think.
Since he couldn't win, he could just watch the show with peace of mind. Wu Ning simply stood up, folded his arms and started paying attention. The last bid came, but Yao Yuan didn't win any of the bids, which made Wu Ning somewhat disappointed.
Lu Sen came over and whispered a few words to Yao Yuan. Yao Yuan nodded slightly.
Several representatives from General Motors whispered to each other and discussed nervously.
Wu Ning shook his head when he saw them.
The host gave the hammer and a heavy machinery production line and a heavy truck production line were purchased by Mitsubishi Corporation for US$9.5 million.
Yao Yuan suddenly clenched his fists and said excitedly, "I got it."
Wu Ning was confused when he heard this. Mitsubishi Corporation of Japan has taken over. Why are you so excited?