boyutpedia Chapter 163 Financial Crisis, Supply and Marketing Cooperatives Offer Assistance
Chapter 163 Financial Crisis, Supply and Marketing Cooperatives Offer Assistance
The early spring rain of 1981 carried a chilly feel, pattering on the freshly varnished wooden doors of Chenqing Hardware Factory, leaving streaks of varying depths. Lin Chen stood by the office window, clutching a crumpled IOU, his knuckles white from the pressure. Outside, in the workshop, several technicians chatted idly around an idle furnace. The raw material area, which should have been piled high with scrap steel, was now empty, with only a few heaps of cooled slag gleaming grayish-brown in the rain and mist.
"Director Lin, Station Chief Wang from Qingxi Commune's agricultural machinery station says again that they're having cash flow problems and can't settle this month's payments." Xiao Zhou, who was in charge of reconciliation, walked in carrying the ledger, his nose red from the cold. "Liuxi Commune is even more outrageous. They said that although our parts are good, they want to deduct 20% as a warranty deposit, and we won't get paid until after a year. It's already March, and we owe the scrap yard for scrap steel, the canteen for food, and the technicians' wages—it adds up to almost a thousand yuan."
Lin Chen turned around, his gaze sweeping over the densely packed records of outstanding debts in the ledger, his brows furrowing deeply. After the delivery of the first batch of 1,500 sets of plowshare parts, he had thought he could smoothly recoup his funds and purchase another batch of chromium alloy powder to expand production. However, the agricultural machinery stations all delayed payment, citing reasons such as "cumbersome approval process for collective funds" and "high expenses during the spring farming season." To make matters worse, the bonuses promised to the technicians had not yet been paid, and Old Chen from the canteen had already come three times to collect payment for vegetables, saying that if he didn't get the money soon, he wouldn't be able to buy vegetables.
"I'm going to Qingxi Commune to talk to Station Chief Wang." Lin Chen grabbed his old military overcoat hanging on the wall and was about to leave when Su Qing, who had rushed over, stopped him. She held several delivery slips in her hand, her face flushed with anxiety: "I just went to the scrap yard and they just got a new batch of scrap gears from the state-owned machine tool factory. They have a high chromium content, but they want cash on delivery, 180 yuan per ton. Also, the mold release agent in the workshop is almost used up, and the supply and marketing cooperative said they won't ship without cash."
Lin Chen stopped in his tracks. He looked at the delivery slip in Su Qing's hand, then at the listless technicians outside the window, and felt a weight pressing on his heart. This batch of scrap gears from the junkyard was exactly the raw material he desperately needed. With these materials, he could develop more durable second-generation plowshare parts. But the words "cash payment" seemed like an insurmountable chasm. He touched the only thirty-odd yuan in his pocket—his reserve money for buying lubricating oil for the workshop.
"How about we try to talk to the agricultural machinery station again?" Su Qing looked at Lin Chen's serious expression, her voice tinged with uncertainty. "Didn't Station Chief Wang say he really liked our products? Maybe if we offer a discount, he can settle part of the payment first."
Lin Chen shook his head. He had just been to Qingxi Commune yesterday. Station Chief Wang slammed his fist on his desk, saying that the commune's account only had money left for spring planting subsidies for farmers, and that touching even a penny would result in punishment. Station Chief Li of Liuxi Commune was even more evasive, sending his accountant to say that they would discuss it after the autumn harvest. He knew that these agricultural machinery stations weren't truly short of money; rather, they prioritized payments from individual businesses the lowest in their eyes, delaying them as much as possible.
The two stood silently in the office, the rain outside growing heavier, pattering against the asbestos-tiled roof. Su Qing looked down at the account book in her hands, then suddenly her gaze fell on a page, her eyes lighting up: "Lin Chen, do you remember last winter when we helped the Zhangcheng Supply and Marketing Cooperative organize its accounts?"
Lin Chen was taken aback, then recalled what happened last December. The supply and marketing cooperative's old accountant had suddenly fallen seriously ill, leaving six months' worth of accounts unorganized, much to the dismay of Director Zhang Jianguo. Su Qing, who had worked in finance at a state-owned factory, volunteered to help, while he used a simple calculator integrated into the system to verify the data. The two spent three days clarifying the chaotic accounts and even helped the cooperative uncover a previously overlooked account receivable. Zhang Jianguo had held their hands then, telling them not to hesitate to ask for help in the future.
"You mean... ask Director Zhang for help?" Lin Chen hesitated. The supply and marketing cooperative mainly sells daily necessities and agricultural supplies, which has nothing to do with their hardware accessories. "They don't need our plow accessories either."
"Even if we don't need it, we can still give it a try!" Su Qing grabbed the product certificate and test report from the table, pulled Lin Chen, and walked out. "Director Zhang is a loyal and kind person, and the supply and marketing cooperative has a stable cash flow. Maybe he can help us find a solution. Even if it doesn't work, we won't lose anything."
When the two arrived at the supply and marketing cooperative in the spring rain, Zhang Jianguo was in his office checking the inventory list of agricultural supplies for spring plowing. Seeing Lin Chen and Su Qing, who were soaking wet, he quickly got up and poured two cups of hot tea: "What brings you two here? Please sit down, this spring rain is quite chilly."
Su Qing took the hot tea to warm her hands and got straight to the point, explaining the predicament of Chenqing Hardware Factory in detail. Finally, she took out a sample of plowshare parts and placed it on the table: "Director Zhang, these are parts produced by our factory. The quality is even better than that of state-owned factories. It's just that we are currently experiencing cash flow problems and can't even get raw materials."
Zhang Jianguo picked up the parts and examined them carefully, then flipped through the test report, his brow furrowing slightly. He pondered for a moment, then sighed and said, "To be honest, the supply and marketing cooperative does have working capital, but according to regulations, we can't lend it directly to individual businesses. Besides, we mainly sell agricultural supplies like fertilizers and seeds; your plowshare parts…"
Lin Chen's heart sank. Just as he was about to thank Zhang Jianguo and leave, Zhang Jianguo changed the subject: "However, spring plowing is about to begin, and many farmers are coming to the supply and marketing cooperative to ask if we have any durable plowshare parts. The state-owned factory's products are not only expensive, but they are also often out of stock. If your parts are really as wear-resistant as the test report says, perhaps we can cooperate."
"Cooperation?" Lin Chen and Su Qing exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.
"Yes, commission-based sales!" Zhang Jianguo put down the parts and drew a simple cooperation plan on the paper. "The supply and marketing cooperative will be responsible for placing your parts in the sales outlets in various towns and villages. The price will be jointly set by us. After deducting the commission of the sales outlets, we will split the profits 50/50. Most importantly, I can pay you 30% of the payment as a deposit in advance, and settle the remaining payment after the parts are sold."
Lin Chen was so excited he almost dropped his teacup. This plan was practically tailor-made for them. A 30 percent prepayment would perfectly solve the problems of raw material procurement and wage payments, and the supply and marketing cooperative's sales network would allow their products to reach farmers directly, covering a much wider sales area than relying solely on the agricultural machinery station. He quickly picked up a pen, about to sign the letter of intent, when Su Qing gently tugged at his sleeve.
Su Qing winked at Lin Chen, then turned to Zhang Jianguo and asked, "Director Zhang, thank you for your help. I have a few more questions I'd like to confirm: How will our pricing be determined? What will the commission rates be for the distributors? When will the prepayment arrive?"
Zhang Jianguo smiled and nodded, clearly satisfied with Su Qing's meticulousness: "As for pricing, a set of plowshare parts from the state-owned factory sells for 3.2 yuan. Ours is of better quality, so how about 3.5 yuan? It reflects our advantage, and the farmers can accept it. The commission for the sales outlets is 10% of the sales revenue, so they are more motivated. As for the deposit, as long as you leave the samples today, I will apply to the finance department this afternoon and send them to you first thing tomorrow morning."
"That's great!" Su Qing immediately took out paper and pen and wrote down the details of the cooperation. "In addition, we also want to hang a promotional sign at the sales point and write down the wear resistance test data and usage instructions for the accessories. This will allow farmers to understand our products more intuitively."
Zhang Jianguo readily agreed: "No problem. I'll have the GG team design and manufacture it for you, and the cost will be covered by the supply and marketing cooperative. By the way, the regional agricultural materials bureau is holding a spring agricultural materials fair next month. I'll register you. If you can win an award at the fair, our parts will be included in the regional procurement catalog, and then we won't have to worry about sales anymore."
When they left the supply and marketing cooperative, the spring rain had stopped, and a faint sunset glow appeared on the horizon. Lin Chen clutched the letter of intent in his hand, feeling as if he held a key to unlock a door of hope. Su Qing skipped ahead, her face beaming with a long-lost smile: "I told you Director Zhang would help us! Tomorrow, after we get the deposit, we'll settle the payment with the scrap yard, then pay the technicians their wages and bonuses, have the canteen cook a nice meal, and everyone can celebrate!"
"Yes!" Lin Chen nodded vigorously, his heart filled with gratitude as he watched Su Qing's retreating figure. Since starting the business, whenever they encountered difficulties, Su Qing had always been able to calmly come up with solutions. Her meticulousness and resilience were like a pillar supporting the entire factory. He quickly caught up, walking alongside Su Qing, and said softly, "Once this crisis is over, we'll hire a full-time accountant and salesperson. You won't have to manage both finances and sales anymore; it's too tiring."
Su Qing's cheeks flushed slightly, and she softly hummed in agreement, but her steps became even lighter.
The next morning, the deposit from the supply and marketing cooperative arrived on time, a full four hundred and fifty yuan, wrapped in a heavy kraft paper envelope. Lin Chen and Su Qing split up; Lin Chen went to the scrap yard to purchase scrap gears and raw materials, while Su Qing went to settle outstanding debts and distribute wages.
When Lin Chen arrived at the scrap yard, the owner, Old Wang, was frowning at a pile of scrap gears. It turned out these gears were too hard; ordinary furnaces couldn't melt them, and several hardware factories had come to inspect them but all had left. Lin Chen picked up a piece of scrap gear and tested it with his portable hardness tester. Its Rockwell hardness was 60, indeed harder to melt than the previous scrap steel. However, he possessed the "All Things Fusion System," which allowed him to solve this problem by adjusting the melting temperature and adding flux.
"Boss Wang, I'll take this whole batch, and add another fifty kilograms of chromium alloy powder." Lin Chen made the decision. "Cash payment, and you can find a vehicle to deliver it to the factory."
Old Wang was overjoyed that Lin Chen was willing to accept this batch of "tough nuts to crack," and immediately ordered his men to load it onto the truck, even adding an extra twenty kilograms of scrap steel as a bonus. When the truck, fully loaded with raw materials, drove into the factory, the technicians all gathered around. Seeing the mountain of scrap gears, Old Chen rubbed his hands excitedly and said, "Director Lin, with these good materials, we can refine even better alloys and make the second-generation parts!"
Meanwhile, Su Qing successfully settled all her debts. When she distributed wages and bonuses to the technicians, a burst of enthusiastic cheers erupted in the workshop. Holding her brand-new bonus, Xiao Zhou excitedly said, "I knew working with Factory Director Lin and Accountant Su was the right choice! Some people said our privately-owned factory wasn't stable, but now it seems even more reliable than a state-owned factory!"
The canteen was bustling at lunchtime, tables laden with chicken, fish, and vegetables. The technicians raised their glasses in celebration, their faces beaming with long-lost smiles. Lin Chen, holding his glass, stood up and said to everyone, "Thank you all for your trust and hard work during this time. The factory's ability to weather this crisis wouldn't have been possible without everyone's efforts. Now we've reached a cooperation agreement with the supply and marketing cooperative and have even signed up for the regional trade fair. The future looks brighter than ever. I promise that as long as everyone works hard, we'll distribute profits at the end of the year, ensuring everyone receives tangible benefits!"
"Great!" the technicians cheered in unison, raising their glasses in response.
In the afternoon, Lin Chen and his technicians immediately began smelting experiments with the new raw materials. Following the formula provided by the system, he added an appropriate amount of silicon-manganese alloy as a flux to the waste gears, raising the furnace temperature to 1450 degrees Celsius. The molten iron in the furnace gradually became viscous, and the previously difficult-to-melt waste gears slowly melted into it, emitting a hissing sound.
"Open the furnace and pour the casting!" Once the furnace temperature stabilized, Lin Chen gave the order, and the orange-red molten iron flowed into the mold through the tapping nozzle. The improved cooling system allowed the parts to cool down faster, and the finished parts had a smooth, mirror-like surface with a Rockwell hardness of 55, making them more wear-resistant than the first-generation product.
Old Chen picked up a newly finished part, tapped it with a hammer, producing a crisp metallic sound, and exclaimed with admiration, "Director Lin, your craftsmanship is absolutely superb! With this second-generation part, we're sure to win an award at the trade fair!"
Lin Chen smiled and nodded, his gaze drifting out the window. The supply and marketing cooperative's sales network was expanding, and they had already secured tickets to the regional trade fair. Chenqing Hardware Factory was like a small boat that had navigated treacherous shoals, finally entering open waters. But he knew this was just a small milestone on their entrepreneurial journey; many more challenges awaited them in the future.
As evening fell, Su Qing walked into the workshop with a freshly printed trade fair preparation checklist, which detailed the samples, promotional materials, and personnel assignments that needed to be prepared. She went to Lin Chen and handed him a towel to wipe his sweat: "The trade fair is still two weeks away. We need to prepare our samples in advance, and we also need to make a display stand to put the first and second generation products side by side for comparison. That will be more convincing."
Lin Chen took the towel and wiped the sweat from his face. Looking at the densely written list, he felt a surge of confidence. He knew that as long as he and Su Qing worked side by side, relying on their excellent skills and honest business philosophy, Chenqing Hardware Factory would definitely be able to stand firm in the wave of reform and opening up and create their own glory.
The furnace in the workshop was reignited, its orange-red flames illuminating everyone's faces and lighting up the hopeful future of Chenqing Hardware Factory. The evening breeze blew in through the open windows, carrying the fragrance of earth from the fields—the scent of spring planting and the promise of new life.