vstars Chapter 22 Testing the Waters
Chapter 22 Testing the Waters
To get more detailed information about the restructuring of the municipal electronics factory, Lingyun decided to visit her uncle's house over the weekend to find out what he was up to.
Ling Yun pushed his bicycle and walked into a slightly old apartment building deep inside the municipal party committee's residential compound. The environment here was quiet and shady with green trees, as if it were a different world from the noisy city outside.
He was carrying two boxes of tea and pastries he had bought at the department store. The items weren't particularly expensive, but they were presentable enough—his mother had repeatedly told him that he couldn't go to his uncle's house empty-handed.
Auntie opened the door with a gentle smile on her face: "Xiaoyun is here, come in quickly. You haven't eaten yet, have you? Let's eat together. The food in the cafeteria isn't good for you, you've gotten so thin."
The interior was simply and neatly furnished. The sofa had an old-fashioned velvet cover, and a white crocheted tablecloth covered the coffee table. Several group photos and a calligraphy banner with the words "Tranquility Leads to Far-Reaching Vision" hung on the wall.
Uncle Ling Jun was sitting on the single sofa in the living room reading the newspaper. Hearing the noise, he put down the "Reference News" in his hand, looked up, glanced at Ling Yun calmly, and nodded slightly: "You're here."
He wore a gray jacket and maintained a meticulous demeanor even at home. His face was expressionless, but his eyes held a deep sense of caution.
"Uncle," Ling Yun greeted respectfully, placing the gifts on the cabinet by the door.
"You're here, why bring anything?" Ling Jun said calmly, his gaze lingering on Ling Yun's face for two seconds, as if trying to discern something from his recently "rising" nephew.
At this moment, a tall, well-built young man in his early thirties walked out from the inner room. It was Ling Yun's older cousin, Ling Guo, who worked in the municipal government's inspection office. He wore black-rimmed glasses, a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, revealing an old-fashioned Shanghai brand watch. He exuded an air of competence and integrity.
"Xiaoyun is here." Ling Guo nodded, saying little, but his eyes were clear and honest.
The meal was served quickly, a standard four dishes and a soup, with a home-style flavor. During the meal, Aunt asked Lingyun about his plans after graduation, and Lingjun occasionally chimed in with a few words, mostly admonitions such as "be down-to-earth" and "don't be too ambitious."
After dinner, Auntie cleared the dishes, and the three of them moved to the sofa in the living room. Ling Jun picked up his ceramic teacup, blew on the foam, and slowly sipped it before casually asking, "I heard you haven't been at school much lately? What have you been busy with?"
Ling Yun knew that this was the "main topic" for tonight. He sat up straighter and replied respectfully, "Uncle, I'm not just messing around. I'm mainly investigating the market to see if there are any suitable entrepreneurial directions."
"Start a business?" Ling Jun raised an eyebrow slightly, put down his teacup, and tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest. "The government now guarantees job placement, which is the best protection for you young people. Starting a business is risky and uncertain."
"I understand your concerns, Uncle," Ling Yun said calmly. "That's why I'd like to do some research, to find... well, points of integration with existing resources. I recently heard that the electronics factories in the city seem to be facing some operational difficulties? And are they going to undergo restructuring?"
He cautiously threw out the bait, observing his uncle's reaction.
Upon hearing this, Ling Jun simply said, "Oh? An electronics factory? There's more than one company in the city facing similar difficulties. As reforms enter deeper waters, growing pains are inevitable, and the city naturally has its own overall plans."
Ling Yun was somewhat disappointed, knowing it would be difficult to obtain valuable inside information directly from his uncle. Just as he was thinking of another way to subtly probe, Ling Guo, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up.
"An electronics factory? The inspection office just checked their assets and liabilities with the audit bureau last week." Ling Guo adjusted his glasses. "The situation is not optimistic. They have virtually no working capital, and they've been owing their employees wages for over four months, roughly estimated at nearly 800,000 yuan. The biggest problem is their bank debt, mainly loans from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the China Construction Bank, with principal and interest totaling over 6 million yuan."
He paused, then added, "Most of the equipment is from the early 1980s, and it's severely outdated. Our products lack market competitiveness. We're basically in a state of semi-shutdown now, with less than a third of our staff remaining. Many of our key technical personnel with connections have left." As he said this, his brow furrowed slightly, clearly showing his concern about the situation.
Ling Yun's heart skipped a beat! Six million in debt! Four months' salary! These concrete figures were far clearer and more shocking than anything he had heard secondhand. This was practically a powder keg ready to explode at any moment!
Ling Jun glanced at his son, then looked back at Ling Yun, his gaze becoming somewhat profound, his tone still steady: "The problems of state-owned enterprises are deeply entrenched, and a single hair can have far-reaching consequences. Dealing with them requires patience, but even more so, wisdom. The city is also under considerable pressure."
He abruptly changed the subject, as if it were just a casual remark, yet also a subtle warning to Ling Yun: "However, these are not things you should worry about. Your primary task now is to successfully complete your studies. Although you have made some money, the capital market is too volatile; you may be rolling in money today, but you may lose everything tomorrow. The reform of state-owned enterprises involves too many issues and is not suitable for a student like you who hasn't even graduated yet. It's easier to draw on a blank sheet of paper; if you want to do something real, it's better to start from scratch."
Lingyun didn't know how his uncle knew he had made money in the stock market, but he knew that his uncle was warning him not to get carried away by making money in the stock market, and even less to try to get involved in troublesome "mess" like electronics factories.
He quickly lowered his head, feigning acceptance: "Uncle's teachings are correct, I've remembered them. I'm just learning about it, I won't do anything reckless."
The conversation then shifted to current affairs and Lingyun's studies, and the atmosphere returned to the usual mundane family topics.
As I left my uncle's house, night had already fallen. The early spring evening breeze carried a slight chill.
Ling Yun pushed his bicycle slowly through the quiet family compound, his mind echoing with the data and facts that his older cousin Ling Guo had laid down like iron nails.
Six million in debt...insolvency...loss of key technical personnel...
These cold pieces of information quickly overlapped in his mind with the image of that dilapidated factory area.
His uncle disapproved of him getting involved in this mess, and Lingyun also needed to think carefully about whether he should participate. He couldn't just look at the benefits; he also had to see the risks.
Ling Yun stopped thinking about it. There was no rush regarding the electronics factory; he had plenty of time. He needed to accumulate capital first, as he would need a significant amount of funds whether he built the factory from scratch or acquired a municipal electronics factory.