"Brother Li, you remembered your little brother for good things. Great kindness goes unspoken. It's already this late, let's not go back until after dinner," Lin Qi said with a smile, offering a cigarette and slinging an arm around the other man's shoulder as they walked outside.
Meanwhile, at the Meihua Hotel, Zhu Changgui was enjoying Western cuisine and sipping foreign wine, his eyes lasciviously following the passing waitresses. This was a joint venture hotel, even boasting a few blonde, blue-eyed beauties. It seemed his trip here was indeed worthwhile.
"Brother Gui, as soon as we let it out that we have steel, several companies immediately wanted to meet us. Who would have thought this stuff would be so in demand?"
The subordinate opposite him downed a large glass of red wine, then smacked his lips. He thought with some disdain, *I really don't understand these foreigners' stuff, it's sweet, yet so expensive. It's nowhere as potent as Erguotou.*
"No rush, let's wait a bit longer. We finally got tens of tons of goods, shouldn't we make a good profit?"
"Brother Gui, that's over a dozen truckloads of steel, at least over a hundred thousand, right? It looks like we're really going to get rich this time."
After Lin Qi treated Foreman Li to a meal, he headed to the Meihua Hotel according to the address provided.
"Hello, I'm from Hongyuan Construction Company. Is Mr. Zhu Changgui staying here?"
"You're also here to buy steel, aren't you?"
Seeing the man nod, the man who opened the door stepped aside and said, "Come in."
As Lin Qi entered the room, he saw several people sitting in the living room. The man in charge was in his forties, with a square face and a mustache. He was laughing heartily, as if he'd heard something amusing. Upon seeing Lin Qi, he stopped laughing and looked at his subordinate questioningly.
"Brother Gui, this is from Hongyuan Construction Company, also here for the batch of steel we have."
Upon hearing the man's introduction, everyone present turned their gaze towards Lin Qi.
Hongyuan Construction Company was no ordinary entity these days. Who would have paid attention to such a small private company before? Yet, in just a month or two, not only had it appeared on television and in newspapers, but it had also taken on the Jiangpan Garden project, undertaking municipal engineering. The government itself had even provided guarantees to banks, making even state-owned companies dare not underestimate them. They certainly didn't believe there was no backing behind them.
"Haha, everyone thinks highly of me, Zhu Changgui. Little brother, please sit. Let's have a chat."
Seeing Lin Qi sit down, Zhu Changgui cut to the chase. "I'm just a rough fellow who happened to hoard some steel by chance. I'm grateful for everyone's regard. I don't understand all those roundabout ways. I just know whoever offers a higher price, I sell to them."
"To be frank, I have less than a hundred tons of rebar on hand. According to previous market prices, it was five hundred yuan per ton. In the black market, it's nine hundred per ton. I'm new here, and the most important thing is that I want to make friends. You can offer whatever price you think is fair."
As soon as Zhu Changgui finished speaking, the others began to whisper amongst themselves.
"From Boss Zhu's words, it seems he won't sell below nine hundred yuan per ton."
"For the two projects we have on hand, the contracts are all signed. With the rise in raw material prices, just breaking even this year would be good."
"We're not much better off. But we're halfway through the work, we can't just abandon it, can we? We have to push through. We initially thought nine hundred was the ceiling, but judging by the situation, it might even reach a thousand."
Most of them were crying poverty on the surface, but in their hearts, they hoped the other party would withdraw early. After all, if it was nine hundred yuan per ton, it was still勉强 acceptable. But if there were too many competitors, the price would inevitably rise, which would be unfavorable.
Lin Qi remained silent, but he was calculating in his mind. According to the design drawings, each square meter required approximately 20-30 kg of rebar. However, with Ding Chen's proposal to use prefabricated panels, the rebar consumption was greatly reduced. If he could take over the rebar Zhu Changgui had, the amount would likely be sufficient. Furthermore, due to the shortened construction period and reduced costs, if the price of this batch of rebar was within a thousand yuan, it would still be within the company's acceptable range. Any more, and he would have to find other solutions.
"Everyone knows the prices. I'll be in the provincial capital for the next couple of days. If there's anything, you can come find me."
The crowd's expressions changed slightly upon hearing his words. Was he intending to solicit private bids?
...
Gu Xingdong had been busy for the past two days, running back and forth between home, the company, the hospital, and the construction site. This day, as soon as he arrived at the company, Lin Qi informed him about Zhu Changgui having a batch of steel.
"If it were an open bidding, it would be easier. But now that they've done this, it's difficult for us to make a bid rashly." At times like these, no one would tell the truth.
Gu Xingdong rubbed his temples. "Have Ding Chen and Accountant Qin carefully re-calculate the budget. We'll submit our bid on the last day. If it works out, it works out. If not, don't feel burdened, and we'll think of other solutions."
Lin Qi nodded and quickly set about the task. Although Gu Xingdong had told him not to feel burdened, Lin Qi still wanted to control costs as much as possible within a manageable range. Therefore, after discussing with Ding Chen, he spent the next two days staking out the vicinity of the Meihua Hotel, trying to find connections to ascertain the bottom prices of his competitors.
Three days passed in a flash. Combining data from various sources, Lin Qi finally submitted a bid of nine hundred and sixty yuan. As he awaited the result from Zhu Changgui's end, Li Xiulan was wheeled into the operating room at the hospital. Although He Ziyu had been unfriendly from the beginning, he was extremely diligent, visiting every day to check on the situation. The surgery was to be performed by He Ziyu, and the hospital attached great importance to such a rare opportunity for practical learning and experience, assigning two of the most authoritative attending physicians to assist. The surgery had already been underway for a full three hours.
"Dad, we don't know when Mom's surgery will finish. You haven't eaten since morning, why don't you go eat something first." Looking at the still-closed operating room door, Gu Xingdong said.
"Yes, Dad, why don't I take you out to eat something first," Gu Xingping also chimed in.
"I'd rather stay here. It's closer to your mother, and I feel more at ease," Gu Xingdong replied.
Time trickled by. No one spoke further. The entire corridor was quiet. Occasionally, people passed by on the stairs from either side. Through the long, silent corridor, their sounds seemed particularly clear. After an unknown period, as the operating room door was pushed open, He Ziyu emerged first. After hours of focused surgery, his complexion looked somewhat weary.
Gu Xingdong stood up and stepped forward. "Dr. He, how is my mother?"
"Yes, young Dr. He, how is my old woman?" Gu Shufu asked hoarsely. He had been staying at the hospital for the past two days, ignoring all persuasion from Gu Xingdong and Chen Lishu.