The template was processed at half price, and Yang Jian was quite satisfied. At least he could recover a small portion of the cost and clear out the warehouse. Although he didn't get cash, getting money from Zheng Guangyao was very stable.
After having lunch at Zheng Guangyao's construction site, Yang Jian took Liu Yong to the Dong Sheng Group's construction site and introduced him to Manager Fan.
From now on, Liu Yong would be responsible for coordinating template supply matters with the project department. In essence, he was an intermediary and didn't even need to be present, just coordinate by phone.
After handling these matters, Yang Jian took Liu Yong to the casino.
The casino was now more crowded than before, basically reaching the scale of Old Pan's casino, and a considerable portion of the patrons were from Xinhe District.
These gamblers were brought by construction bosses from the vicinity. Everyone knew that this casino was opened by Yang Jian from Xinhe, so they felt psychologically safer playing there.
Moreover, it was a remarkable feat for an outsider to open such a large casino in Hancheng. Yang Jian's reputation in the Xinhe underworld was soaring.
"Brother Yong, you're here."
Biao Biao, who was strolling around the periphery of the casino, greeted Liu Yong proactively.
Yang Jian went to discuss matters with Li Jin. Liu Yong pulled Biao Biao aside and asked, "Biao Biao, this place is so lively. What percentage of shares does Brother Jian hold?"
"Brother Jian only holds a two-tenths share, and he also pays our salaries. His income isn't high, not even as much as his previous place in Xichuan."
Biao Biao was somewhat wary of Liu Yong, knowing that Liu Yong had caused Yang Jian to incur huge debts. Therefore, he couldn't reveal Yang Jian's true income to him, lest he get any more crooked ideas.
"But he invested hundreds of thousands back at the factory not long after arriving in Hancheng. Isn't that from the casino dividends?"
Liu Yong clearly didn't quite believe Biao Biao's statement.
"That was a loan from his partner, Li Jin. Li Jin is the boss around here, and he opened this casino. He's the largest shareholder. Because he had cooperated with Brother Jian before, he invited Brother Jian to take a two-tenths share. I heard that Brother Jian was short of funds for his template factory, so he advanced him hundreds of thousands."
"Oh, then this Li Jin is quite righteous to treat Brother Jian so well."
"Indeed. Brother Jian has many friends outside. When Li Jin was still a petty hoodlum, Brother Jian helped him make a fortune. That's why he remembers Brother Jian's kindness and pulled him in for cooperation."
"Hmm, Brother Jian meets benefactors wherever he goes. You guys follow him and work hard. When he succeeds, you'll all have good lives. Don't be like me; I only drag him down and ended up in this state."
"Brother Yong, don't be discouraged. If Brother Jian succeeds, he won't leave you behind. After all, you are blood relatives. But you must remember, if you follow Brother Jian, first, don't touch drugs, and second, don't gamble. If you violate these two rules, you'll be kicked out of the team."
"Yes, yes, yes. It was these two bad habits that ruined me."
Liu Yong was so ashamed that he found an excuse to slip away.
In the lounge, Yang Jian and Li Jin sat in a corner sofa, and a subordinate served them a pot of tea.
"Little Yang, have you sorted out the factory's affairs?"
Li Jin was also aware of the old problems in the template factory and asked with concern as soon as they met.
"The technical standards are not up to par, so the factory has suspended production. We've been dealing with the inventory products for the past two days."
"That's quite a loss, isn't it?"
"It's not too bad. We just dealt with all the inventory templates at the resettlement building construction site, which reduced some of the losses. We estimate a loss of around four hundred thousand."
Li Jin laughed, "It's nothing, only four hundred thousand. With our place booming now, four hundred thousand is just your income for three days."
"Brother Jin, you can't say that. These are two different matters. Running a business requires calculating business accounts. Opening a casino is not a long-term plan, and an enterprise needs long-term planning. We can't rely on the casino to support ourselves."
"You're right. We should also know when to stop with the casino. We should focus on proper business. Now, there's a proper business I want to discuss with you."
Yang Jian was a little surprised, "What proper business?"
"Half of the earthwork projects in the Seventh Brigade area are completed, and we are about to enter the foundation construction phase. I plan to monopolize eighty percent of the concrete distribution and want you to participate."
"Brother Jin, you've already done me a favor by letting me partner with you in the casino. You have many brothers and high expenses. I won't participate in your other businesses."
Having worked on construction sites for many years, Yang Jian knew what Li Jin's so-called proper business was. It was nothing more than forcing construction companies to pay high prices for concrete from designated commercial concrete stations, and then he would take kickbacks from those stations.
This was essentially forced buying and selling, making money out of thin air. The profits from such large construction sites were very considerable.
This kind of thing happened at every construction site and was an important project for the competition among underworld forces. It all depended on whose influence or fists were stronger, and the construction companies always suffered.
At the same time, this was also an area that the police focused on cracking down. Before the advent of commercial concrete, it was called cracking down on sand and stone overlords.
Now that construction sites use commercial concrete, those who interfere with and monopolize concrete are classified as criminal gangs. However, the crackdown has not been strong enough, and some with protective umbrellas can always escape punishment.
Yang Jian was unwilling to get involved in this monopolistic behavior, which clearly bore the label of criminal gangs. He might even be prosecuted as a mob boss.
He had no foundation in Hancheng and no protective umbrella. If something went wrong, no one would help him, which was not worth it.
However, Li Jin did not intend to let him stay out of it. "Don't rush to refuse. Let me finish what I have to say."
"Alright, you say."
"I know you have concerns and don't want to get involved in the underworld disputes in the Xunsi River area. I don't ask you to deal with all the competitors on every construction site. You only need to secure the resettlement building project of Zheng Guangyao and the residential building project of Dong Sheng Group. This shouldn't be difficult for you."
"How will it work?"
"It's simple: make sure both of these construction sites use the concrete we provide and don't allow other commercial concrete stations to enter."
"What about the price? Will it be higher than other commercial concrete stations?"
"The price is the same. Any concrete entering the Seventh Brigade area has to go through us, so the price is no different, otherwise, it won't be allowed in."
"Then where is our profit margin?"
"As long as we sign a commercial concrete supply contract with the construction party, we can get a price difference of thirty yuan per cubic meter from the commercial concrete station. These two building projects have a total construction area of over three hundred thousand square meters, and the concrete usage is over one hundred thousand cubic meters. We can profit over five million yuan without investing a single penny."
"You mean even if we don't sign the contract, others will sign it, and the price won't change. The construction party will always pay the same amount?"
"Yes. Everyone in the Seventh Brigade area knows that these two building projects are under your protection. No one should compete with you for this contract. So, this is a piece of cake for you, and we don't have to fight with other forces."
"I'll give it a try. Give me a price list from a commercial concrete station, and I'll talk to them."
Yang Jian seemed unable to refuse. Li Jin claimed to be discussing it with him, but he was also somewhat holding him in check. "I've given you a profit share in the casino, so you have to help me do something, or else I'll just run the casino by myself."