CHAPTER 98: CHAPTER 98: RAISING THE PRICE

"Lin Yun, you were born to be a soldier. Instead of living a life of mediocrity in the Li Hua Team, why not join me in enlisting? You can protect our country and bring the greatest value, while your monthly allowance can support your family."

"You don’t have to worry about your family being unattended after you leave. Once you’re in the army, there will be someone to look after your family. If you make a name for yourself in the military, you’ll be even better able to protect your mother and sister."

"You’re in your early twenties now, so it’s not too late to enlist. If you delay a few more years, even if you want to, it might not be possible."

Lin Yun lay on the bed, extending his right hand. There was a wound on his arm, a cut made while capturing someone in the back hills.

Originally, he intended to go to the back hills to cut wood, wait for Lin Xiang to finish, and then boil the soup base for the spicy powder, so he could sell it at the big market.

But the current wood supply at home was insufficient.

Unexpectedly, he encountered some criminals in the back hills and got involved inadvertently, helping the police capture one of them. Although he was slightly injured, the operation went smoothly.

The high-ranking officer didn’t expect Lin An, a village man, to be so adept, leading him to think of recruiting talent and persuading him to enlist.

Lin Yun turned over, gazing at the moonlight outside the window, unsure of what decision to make.

The next morning, Lin Xiang left home early, skipping breakfast.

Just as she reached the village entrance, she saw Director Chen’s special vehicle parked there, with Secretary Hu in the passenger seat.

Once Lin Xiang got into the car, Secretary Hu handed her an aluminum lunchbox: "I stopped by the state-run restaurant on my way and bought some large meat buns. Knowing you get up early and might miss breakfast, have some first."

Lin Xiang was indeed hungry, thanked Secretary Hu, and began eating.

Just after finishing one large meat bun, Secretary Hu handed over his military water bottle, "Have a sip, be careful not to choke."

During this era, due to material shortages, items like water bottles and mugs were generally shared.

But Lin Xiang was not accustomed to using items others had used, thus she declined Secretary Hu’s kindness.

The large meat buns from the state-run restaurant were sizable, and Lin Xiang was full after eating just one. She covered the lunchbox and returned it to Secretary Hu.

"The leader sent Secretary Wang to the guesthouse to pick up Mr. Wilson, so we’ll head directly to the cotton spinning factory."

Lin Xiang nodded, "Alright."

By the time Lin Xiang arrived at the cotton spinning factory, Wilson and his party hadn’t arrived yet. She seized the opportunity to discuss prices with Director Chen.

"Right now, it’s not us eagerly seeking foreign business cooperation, but foreign businesses eagerly seeking us to supply fabric. So we can moderately raise the price."

Director Chen said, "But we had a previous collaboration with Mr. Wilson, and he knows the fabric prices well. What if raising the prices now gives a bad impression to the foreign business?"

While making money is important, shaping the image of Hua Country is even more so!

"In the last collaboration, Wilson only ordered three types of fabric, and the patterns and colors were very simple. Didn’t he mention on the phone he wanted to add more colors? We can appropriately raise the price for the newly added colors and patterns. Not too much, just an extra three to five yuan per bolt of cloth."

If the quantity Wilson orders is large enough, even a slight increase of three to five yuan per bolt would amount to a notable sum.

Anyhow, once the fabric is transported back to the United States and made into ready-to-wear clothing, they’ll easily flip the price two to three times.

For successful businessmen, this amount of cost means little; they inevitably recover it from consumers.

Moreover, Lin Xiang wasn’t exploiting the situation. After all, developing new colors and patterns does require some investment, which Director Chen had overlooked for the sake of the order.

"Alright, I’ll go with your suggestion."

Just as they finalized their discussion, Wilson arrived.

This time John did not accompany them.

After all, they were competitors. Both sides were conscientious about matters involving confidentiality.

Lin Xiang was impartial, presented the new patterned fabrics, and even sketched some design drafts in front of Wilson.

Wilson was surprised by the additional service of receiving design drafts with fabric purchase. He was delighted, holding Lin Xiang’s designs, "Lin, come to the United States with me and be my designer! I’ll offer you a high salary!"

Lin Xiang couldn’t help but twitch her lips.

She never had the talent to be a designer, only possessing good drawing skills and slightly modifying the beautiful clothes she had seen in her past life to suit American tastes.

All efforts were for the foreign exchange order!

Wilson was straightforward, ordering all the new patterns, in quite a significant amount. Overall, the order’s value was comparable to John’s.

Director Chen was moved to the point of tears.

Five million, another five million!

Their Cotton Textile Factory surpassed even the city’s cotton spinning factory!

And all of this was thanks to Lin Xiang!

"I am unworthy of such praise." Lin Xiang broke into a cold sweat, "Director Chen, I just played the role of a translator and used some sales tactics to market our cotton spinning factory’s fabrics. But the fact that both foreign businessmen are willing to sign such large orders ultimately lies in the quality of our cotton spinning factory’s fabrics."

Foreign businessmen aren’t fools. It’s not just due to her chatter they’d sign such a large order, right?

Though she did contribute a bit, ultimately, it comes down to the quality of Hua Country manufacturing passing muster.

"After Mr. John’s previous order, our cotton spinning factory’s leadership had already deliberated over your compensation. Once this order is signed, your compensation will be doubled on the existing basis. You handle your immediate tasks, and once done, give me a call so we can sit down and discuss it slowly."

Lin Xiang still had to head to the city’s food factory with the Township Party Secretary, so she didn’t stay at the cotton spinning factory. After dropping Wilson at the guesthouse and explaining briefly, she went to the town government, got into the Township Party Secretary’s vehicle, and headed together to the city’s food factory.

"The instant noodles you mentioned last time have already had their relevant technology introduced in Beijing and Shanghai, but the technology isn’t quite mature yet. When Director Wu from the City Food Factory attended a meeting in Shanghai earlier, he saw the production machines. If we want to modify them, it’s not a big issue."

Given the importance of the foreign exchange order, both the Township Party Secretary and Director Wu from the City Food Factory were very invested.

"Sweet potato vermicelli is inherently dry, with no significant issues concerning prolonged storage and transportation. The challenge lies in transforming the soup base into a package that’s easily transportable. Overcome this challenge, and this foreign exchange order can surely be signed."

The Township Party Secretary couldn’t help but give Lin Xiang another look.

Though young in age, her speech and actions were calm and composed, indeed a remarkable talent.

Regrettably, Mianyang Town is destined not to keep her!