GBP Chapter 904 Superfluous move
Chapter 904 Superfluous move
Du Qianqian bit her lower lip lightly, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the edge of the document: "How long will it take this time?"
"It's hard to say, it shouldn't take too long."
Zhou Qi sorted the encrypted documents in his briefcase. The metal buckle made a crisp sound in the silent office: "If there is any important agreement during this period, please contact me."
"I see."
Du Qianqian took over the conversation, her eyes sweeping across the deepening dusk outside the French window: "The plans are all ready."
The blue flame of the metal lighter illuminated Zhou Qi's angular face, and he took out his phone to check flight information. The cold light from the screen refracted two sharp light marks on the lens.
Gao Qingliang suddenly stepped forward from the shadows, his custom leather shoes leaving a semicircular track on the carpet: "Boss Zhou, I just happen to be going to Beijing to take care of some personal matters."
He waved the e-ticket he had just booked, and the Patek Philippe on his wrist flashed a dim light under the chandelier.
During the ride, Gao Qingliang held onto the leather seat and turned his head: “I didn’t expect you would allow me to go with you.”
"Didn't you prepare your excuses a long time ago?"
Zhou Qi closed his eyes and rested. The neon lights outside the car window cast light and dark lines on his face.
"About chip architecture..."
Gao Qingliang rubbed his thumb back and forth on the crocodile leather briefcase.
"Mr. Gao."
Zhou Qi suddenly opened his eyes, his hawk-like gaze piercing the other person's pupils: "Sometimes being too attentive can actually expose your intentions."
He tapped his temple with his fingertips: "It's like the redundant design of quantum chips. It's unnecessary."
When the cabin broadcast sounded, Gao Qingliang looked out the window at the rolling sea of clouds, and the whiskey in the crystal glass began to ripple.
Beads of sweat formed on the back of his neck, and the collar of his tailored shirt suddenly seemed overly restrictive.
In the draft of the Beijing Airport Terminal, Liang Ranran leaned against the front of a black Mercedes-Benz.
The moment she took off her sunglasses, the searchlight from the tower in the distance happened to sweep over, freezing the subtle expressions of the three people into a film picture with distinct light and dark.
In a private room of a high-end restaurant in Beijing, four people sat around a mahogany round table.
When Zhou Qi raised his hand to pour tea for his partner Gao Qingliang beside him, he noticed that Liang Ranran was looking at Lin Xindie with a scrutinizing look.
The rich young lady in a Chanel suit was trying hard to stay alert, and her fingertips turning slightly white as she held the bone china teacup.
"Mr. Zhou, what you said on the phone..."
Liang Ranran put down the teacup and tapped the table with her crystal nails: "I checked the group's production reports for the past three days. The workshop suddenly switched to the production of hydraulic seals, but the finance department..."
She suddenly stopped talking and glanced at Lin Xindie who was studying the menu.
Zhou Qi signaled the waiter to serve the cold dishes first, and waited until the door of the box was closed again before speaking: "Ms. Liang, you should have heard about the Putzmeister acquisition case?"
Seeing the other party nod, he turned the teacup and continued: "The Germans now hold two trump cards, the core patent of the concrete pump and the hydraulic control module, which is like strangling the throat of construction machinery."
Liang Ranran's Gucci handbag fell to the ground. She didn't bother to pick it up and asked anxiously: "But we have our own research and development..."
“Patent barriers.”
Zhou Qi interrupted the conversation and pulled out a document from his briefcase: "These are the 17 new derivative technologies they registered in the EU. As long as domestic projects adopt European and American standards..."
Gao Qingliang suddenly interrupted: "Ms. Liang, do you know Caterpillar's parts pricing strategy?"
The investment bank elite pushed his gold-rimmed glasses and said, "The unit price of their hydraulic valves is three times that of domestic ones, but they are bound by an equipment insurance agreement..."
Lin Xindie handed over the tablet computer at the right time: "This is the fluctuation curve of the construction machinery rental market in the past three months."
The precipitous drop on the screen made Liang Ranran gasp.
"The most fatal thing is the default clause."
Zhou Qi clicked on a certain page of the contract: "In the supply agreement your company signed three years ago..."
He pointed to the densely packed additional items: "This column about device compatibility..."
Liang Ranran suddenly stood up and knocked over the soup bowl. She was unaware that her light-colored skirt was stained. "In other words, those pump trucks that have been delivered..."
"All 327 pieces of equipment in operation are at risk of shutting down."
Zhou Qi took out a handkerchief and handed it over: "What's more troublesome is that the class action lawsuit for this amount..."
He lowered his voice and said a number.
Zhou Qi put down his teacup and analyzed: "Foreign companies have already calculated the economic accounts. They would rather pay the penalty for breach of contract than force the new product. The reason is that the market benefits brought by the new equipment far exceed the cost of breach of contract."
He dipped his hand in tea and drew a triangular closed loop on the table:
"On the surface, we can pursue liability and claim compensation, but the other party used the huge profits from new technology and equipment to cover the compensation expenses, and eventually they were able to fully occupy the domestic market."
"What's even more troublesome is that these compensations may not be able to offset the overseas default losses of Yamaichi Heavy Industry."
Zhou Qi tapped his fingertips on the glass turntable. "Even if all legal disputes are properly resolved, the loss of market share is the fatal blow. The siege of technology patents has put manufacturing giants like Yamaichi Heavy Industries in a passive position."
Liang Ranran clenched the napkin and asked, "Then how can we break the deadlock?"
She noticed that her father had been spending all day in the lab recently and there was engine oil on his collar.
“The key lies in the speed of breaking through the technological blockade.”
Zhou Qi pulled up an industry report on his phone: "Heavy machinery is different from ordinary commodities. Customers use it for at least five years after purchasing it, and it involves a full set of maintenance systems.
If foreign capital is allowed to complete its market layout, the difficulty of subsequent counterattacks will increase exponentially.”
Seeing the girl's red eyes, Zhou Qi said in a gentle tone: "But your father is working on a core patent. As long as the technology iteration is completed within the window period..."
Before he finished speaking, Liang Ranran suddenly grabbed his sleeve: "Take me to the R&D center! Now!"
"calm down."
Zhou Qi held her shaking hands and said, "I understand the technical route, but the actual operation requires a professional team. Let's meet with some industry experts tomorrow."
He caught a glimpse of secretary Gao Qingliang's cell phone screen flashing in the dark, and an encrypted text message popped up in the notification bar.
When Gao Qingliang left the table on the pretext of going to the toilet, a man in a baseball cap was adjusting a miniature camera in the fire escape at the end of the corridor.
Outside the glass curtain wall of the revolving restaurant, the city neon lights were distorted into bizarre blocks of color in the rainstorm.
The cigarette burned at their fingertips, and the two looked at each other in silence.
The man in the baseball cap gently placed a black bag on the sink, while Gao Qingliang took out a wad of banknotes from his pocket and threw it aside casually.
The man in the baseball cap flicked the ash off his cigarette, reached out to take the money, quickly put it in his trouser pocket, and turned to leave.
Gao Qingliang picked up the black bag, pushed open a side door, walked in, and locked the door.
After opening the bag, a black pistol and a transparent bag of white powder were revealed.
The meal didn't last long.
After dinner, Liang Ranran drove them to the hotel and said to Zhou Qi, "I'll pick you up tomorrow morning."
"Okay." Zhou Qi responded briefly. After watching the three people enter the hotel, Liang Ranran drove away.