Yu Chunhe looked at Xie Changning, speechless.

Xie Changning grinned. "I was just being polite with our two leaders. You waited here just for me, so if I didn’t extend an invitation, wouldn’t that make me seem inconsiderate?"

"Go on, go on, get a move on."

Yu Chunhe irritably pushed Xie Changning forward.

-

The Guangzhou Trade Fair was a great success, and on the way back, everyone’s spirits were high.

It didn’t matter if they personally lost money; what was important was that Lin Province had generated foreign currency and earned over fifty million in foreign exchange from foreigners this year!

That was fifty million!

Everyone was incredibly excited. On the way back, they all asked Xie Changning how she managed to stay so composed.

"Probably because I have strong mental fortitude. My goal in going to the Guangzhou Trade Fair was to make money. If they weren’t going to let me make money, I’d rather go home with zero than lose money."

Xie Changning replied.

Her answer, it could be said, offended many people, but everyone also knew that she was definitely telling the truth.

In the entire machinery hall, she was the only one who had plenty of inquiries in the first three days but zero purchase intentions.

At the time, everyone thought Xie Changning was too arrogant. ’She shouldn’t be so cocky,’ they thought. ’She should just take whatever profit she can get and walk away.’

"But when they were haggling with you back then, wouldn’t you still have made a profit?" someone asked curiously. "Their offer was around twenty-three or twenty-four thousand, right?"

She hadn’t agreed.

Xie Changning looked at the person, her expression clearly showing she thought them naive. "This isn’t your first time at the Guangzhou Trade Fair, nor is it your first time dealing with those foreigners. Do they have any integrity?"

They start by pushing the price down two thousand US dollars. Let’s say I agree.

And then what?

Wouldn’t they see I’m an easy target and just keep pushing and pushing, only buying when they’ve reached the absolute lowest price?

If I don’t sell at their price, they don’t sign the contract.

After all, it was just a verbal agreement at that point. They could back out at any time.

"I don’t think I need to explain how you all ended up on the path to losing money." At Xie Changning’s words, the crowd looked a little ashamed. It hadn’t been like this for them at the start.

But later, after being squeezed so many times, they just...

"You’ve bent your backs for so long that they’ve forgotten whose territory this is. I’m just the beginning. I believe that next year, other factories will stand up, refusing to bend, even if it means breaking."

Better to end up with zero than to lose money.

Make no profit at all! At worst, you’re only out the shipping and travel costs.

But if you agree to their lowball prices, you’ll lose a lot more than just a little bit.

Xie Changning wasn’t just being a maverick; she was acting as the spark to ignite the fires of anger in the hearts of the Chinese people.

Perhaps what Xie Changning said made them feel ashamed of their own inferiority. Everyone hung their heads, and for a long time, no one made a sound, as if they were reflecting, or perhaps, escaping.

’The general environment is just like this...’

"Sister Changning, do you think... we’ll be able to make money with foreign exchange in the future?" Director Li, who had been quiet on the top bunk, suddenly spoke up.

As he asked, he actually already had an answer in his heart.

It wasn’t that it couldn’t be done; it was that they hadn’t dared to do it.

His wife was more daring than he was. After seeing Xie Changning’s success, she firmly believed in Xie Changning’s approach, refusing to make changes even when the workers were dissatisfied.

And then, she achieved great success!

"You know what happened with your wife, don’t you?" Xie Changning smiled. There was no way he didn’t know about Wang Shumei’s situation.

Speaking of Wang Shumei, Director Li’s voice was tinged with regret. "Sigh, it’s because I know that I feel so terrible!"

He clearly had his own quota too.

But what had his wife said to him?

"Are you earning foreign currency right now? Aren’t you just earning the government’s subsidies? No, you’re not even earning back the government subsidies yet. The US dollars that I, Wang Lisheng, and Changning earned probably aren’t even enough to cover your losses."

What his wife had said to him back then made him want to crawl into a hole.

He had only thought, ’If I generate a lot of foreign exchange, I’ll get to come back next year.’

Before Xie Changning opened everyone’s eyes, they all thought this was just how the environment for generating foreign exchange was. No one had ever thought about changing it.

They never once considered that they were holding the country back.

Only after Xie Changning pointed it out did they slowly begin to reflect. ’So, have we been dragging down the nation’s development all this time?’

"This is a necessary stage for us to go through. It won’t be like this later on. Next year, more and more factories will stop accepting lowball offers. They’ll only accept their cost price at a minimum, and ideally, they must make a profit."

Xie Changning felt her performance this time should have a positive guiding effect.

Everyone else was losing money while she raked in fifty million. Weren’t they jealous? Didn’t they want to earn it too?

If you want to earn, you have to learn from Xie Changning: maintain your composure, hold your ground, and don’t be scared just because some foreigner threatens you!

You have to be prepared to go home with nothing!

Director Li asked himself, did he have that kind of resilience?

At least right now, he didn’t.

’At next year’s spring trade fair, I have to be prepared. I’m determined to earn those foreigners’ money!’

Compared to Director Li’s misery, Wang Lisheng was smug. He had listened closely to Xie Changning. In his eyes, Sister Changning’s words were never wrong! Especially when it came to those foreigners!

Wang Lisheng’s high-quality screws didn’t generate a massive amount of foreign exchange this time—only just over a million.

But, that million-plus was in US Dollars! He would profit at least seven hundred thousand US Dollars!

For a director like him, who had just expanded his factory, this was an incredible surprise! With money in his account, he could buy machines from abroad that were more advanced than what he currently had in his factory!

Once production ramped up, he would earn even more at the spring trade fair!

"That’s easy for you to say, but didn’t you make money because your products are unique?" someone, feeling disgruntled, retorted at Xie Changning.

’If our products were unique, would we be in this situation?’

Xie Changning tilted her head. "Then why didn’t you all discuss it beforehand so that each factory could produce something different? If you know that having a unique product allows you to set a good price, why does everyone still swarm to do the same thing?"

"I’m aware that some factories’ technology can’t keep up and they don’t have newly developed machines. But you can still discuss pricing with the directors of factories that have the same machines, make an agreement, and write up a contract."

"As long as everyone is united, what can’t be done? Even the foreigners know to break your unity when they come in. Why can’t you think of bringing yourselves together?"

’We’re supposed to be the most united people.’

They should all remember how their ancestors fought to build this nation.

"But the country’s development really needs US dollars."

"The country’s development does need money, but you all aren’t earning it, are you?" Xie Changning said helplessly. "It’s true that the exchange rate tax is high, but the government is using our RMB to cover the difference. When you calculate it that way, the country is actually losing even more."

It would be better to just convert RMB to US dollars directly.

Everyone: "..."

With Xie Changning’s reminder, everyone’s spirits were ignited. Someone shouted, "To hell with those foreigners! At the next spring trade fair, I’d rather go home with a big fat zero than lose money!"

"Don’t worry. As long as everyone pulls in the same direction, you won’t be going home with zeros."

Shen Jiaci, who had been sitting quietly in the corner, spoke up at this moment.