mtl008 Chapter 180 Wei Wanqing in Despair
Chapter 180 Wei Wanqing in Despair
Although Wei Wanqing, a successful businesswoman, often treats clients to meals, this was her first time at a Western restaurant, so she was inevitably a little reserved.
To Wei Wanqing's surprise, Liu Weidong was very familiar with the place. He greeted everyone with a smile as soon as he entered, recognizing everyone from the manager to the waiters!
Liu Weidong led Wei Wanqing all the way to the kitchen, and from a distance he called out loudly, "Old Pi, I've come to see you!"
Just as the strong woman was wondering why someone would have the surname "Pi," she saw a foreigner approach her with a big smile and greet Liu Weidong warmly.
Wei Wanqing was even more surprised now, feeling that she understood her junior brother less and less. How could he be so familiar with foreigners? It was too strange!
After a few pleasantries, Liu Weidong pointed to the businesswoman and said to Pierre, "This is Miss Wei, my friend. She wants to buy a batch of industrial sewing machines, and heard that your customers might have some, so she brought her here to inquire."
"Oh, hello, Miss Wei, my name is Pierre!" The Frenchman greeted Wei Wanqing with great poise, opening his arms as if to give her a hug.
Liu Weidong had anticipated this move from the Frenchman, so he quickly stepped forward to stand between the two, hooked his arm around Pierre's neck, and laughed, "Old Pierre, just say hello, don't get physical!"
"I'm not named Pi!" the Frenchman protested futilely as usual, but ultimately failed to win the heart of the strong woman.
Seeing that Liu Weidong's relationship with this foreigner was even better than she had imagined, Wei Wanqing was so shocked that she couldn't express it in words and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Liu Weidong glared at Pierre and said, "Look, Miss Wei is frightened!"
"No, that's not true. I was just a little surprised." Wei Wanqing quickly recovered and smiled at Pierre, saying, "I really didn't expect that Weidong would have such a good foreign friend."
The Frenchman suddenly perked up at the mention of this, and said to the businesswoman in a serious tone, "Mr. Liu is not only my best friend in China, but also my business partner. We..."
Seeing that Pierre was still going on and on, Liu Weidong quickly interrupted him: "Stop talking nonsense and just tell me if there are any sewing machine manufacturers among the guests here!"
Although Wei Wanqing was also curious about how Liu Weidong had become Pierre's partner, buying the sewing machine was more important, so she quickly said to the Frenchman, "Mr. Pierre, Weidong is right. Do you know someone like that?"
The Frenchman pondered for a moment and said, "You know what, I actually do know him! I'll call him right now and introduce you two!"
Pierre was very efficient, and it wasn't long before Liu Weidong and Wei Wanqing met with the sewing machine manufacturer.
This guy is also a blond foreigner, but he gave himself the Chinese name Li Aihua. Just by hearing the name, you can tell he's Chinese.
After listening to Wei Wanqing's request, Li Aihua said earnestly, "Ms. Wei, the sewing machines produced by our company perfectly meet your requirements. We currently have two hundred units in our warehouse in Shanghai, and they can be delivered within three days."
The problem that had troubled her for so long was solved so easily that the strong woman could hardly believe it was real.
After a moment of daze, Wei Wanqing came to her senses and said with a face full of joy, "That's great, Mr. Li. May I ask how much these sewing machines cost?"
Li Aihua said, "Our sewing machines aren't expensive, only two hundred US dollars each. If you want more than one hundred, we can offer a discount."
Li Aihua now looked like she was genuinely interested in business, much more reliable than those two Hong Kongers. Liu Weidong, standing beside her, nodded in agreement.
Seeing that Wei Wanqing was still hesitating, Liu Weidong promptly helped her make a decision: "Mr. Li, if we want 120 sewing machines, what discount can you give us?"
Li Aihua thought for a moment and said, "If it's 120 units, I can give you a 5% discount."
The woman was already satisfied with just being able to buy a sewing machine, so she didn't hesitate about the price and quickly said, "No problem, let's go with this price. We definitely want 120 machines."
Li Aihua nodded and said, "You pay a deposit first, and I'll go back and tell the warehouse to ship the goods. We can exchange money for goods at the same time. Is that alright?"
Wei Wanqing and Liu Weidong naturally did not object, both saying that this was the best course of action.
Just when everyone thought the sewing machine purchase was settled, Li Aihua suddenly said, "Oh, right, there's something else I forgot to mention. Our company doesn't accept RMB or foreign exchange certificates; all business is settled in US dollars!"
"Huh?!" The strong woman was completely dumbfounded; her newly ignited hope was shattered once again.
These days, foreign exchange is strictly controlled by the state. Private business owners like Wei Wanqing simply don't have foreign exchange, so naturally they can't buy sewing machines from Li Aihua.
Even Liu Weidong hadn't expected that things would go wrong so soon after they were almost done. No wonder those two Hong Kongers were so arrogant, acting like they couldn't function without them; it turned out they had some reason to be so. After all, they could exchange their money for US dollars, which would allow them to easily buy a sewing machine from Li Aihua.
Wei Wanqing certainly couldn't go back to beg those two Hong Kongers, so she could only discuss it with Li Aihua: "Mr. Li, you know that foreign exchange is very difficult to obtain now. Could you make an exception and accept RMB?"
However, Li Aihua shook her head and said, "I'm sorry, Ms. Wei, this is company policy, and there's nothing I can do about it. If you can pay in US dollars, I'll immediately notify the warehouse to ship the goods. If not... then I can only apologize!"
Seeing Li Aihua's resolute attitude, Wei Wanqing knew there was no room for negotiation and felt utterly despondent.
The businesswoman was very optimistic about this industry and originally planned to use the garment factory as the starting point for her career. She envisioned combining her business with roasting sunflower seeds to expand and strengthen her enterprise!
Unexpectedly, reality dealt Wei Wanqing a heavy blow, making her realize that doing business is not so easy.
At this moment, even the strong woman felt disheartened, thinking that the garment factory was definitely doomed. For now, she could only barely survive by roasting sunflower seeds while searching for other suitable industries.
Judging from Wei Wanqing's reaction alone, Li Aihua guessed that she definitely couldn't come up with that many US dollars. This foreigner was also a straightforward person; without saying any more nonsense, he quickly stood up to take his leave.
"Ms. Wei, it seems our cooperation cannot continue. I'm sorry, but I hope there will be another opportunity next time." Li Aihua nodded to Wei Wanqing and then prepared to leave.
The strong woman gave Li Aihua a forced smile; she had completely given up hope.
However, at this moment, Liu Weidong suddenly said, "Mr. Li, we are sure we want this batch of sewing machines. Let's meet here again at this time tomorrow, and I'll give you the deposit first!"