Chapter 66: The Advantages of Mastering a Unique Skill

The current situation is that low-end products are saturated domestically, and when exported, foreigners look down upon them, rendering them completely unsellable.
Why bother exhausting oneself with manufacturing them?
However, the majority of the profits from high-end products are swallowed up by various foreign component suppliers. Even if they can be sold, there is no money to be made.
Consequently, the shipyard has fallen into a vicious circle: whether manufacturing high-end or low-end products, it is all wasted effort.

Cheng Shi said, "How about this? You write down your requirements in detail once more. I will machine a sample for you to inspect. If it is usable, we can then discuss the price and supply volume. If it is unusable, then so be it."

Director Tang exclaimed, "Ah, if that is the case, it would be wonderful. Comrade Cheng Shi is truly thoughtful."

He rewrote the precision requirements for the main engine bearings.
Cheng Shi glanced at them and saw that within thirty micrometers, his existing equipment and processing capabilities could fully satisfy the demands, so he took his leave.

Zhang Ziqiang had hardly uttered a word the entire time.
Once outside, Cheng Shi asked him, "What is the matter? Did you bite your tongue?"

Zhang Ziqiang replied, "No, I just feel a bit demoralized. I never expected that he would present such a hodgepodge of conflicting requirements just to test us."
No wonder Director Tang's smile had seemed a bit strange that day when he guaranteed they could do the job.
Thinking about it now, it seemed tinged with a degree of disdain.

Cheng Shi patted him on the shoulder and said, "Every beginning is difficult. You are already better than many salespeople. I once met a salesman who was so afraid of rejection that he didn't even dare make a phone call, let alone visit clients in person."

Zhang Ziqiang sighed lightly, "Only you would comfort me like this."

Cheng Shi remarked, "There is only one person in this world who can truly defeat you, and that is yourself. No matter what others say, it is merely a breeze blowing past the hills."

In the afternoon, they visited the sewing machine factory.
The director of the sewing machine factory had also attended the boiler safety meeting that day, so he was relatively polite to them.
After sitting down, the director asked, "Is Comrade Cheng Shi here today to provide a price quote and sign a contract?"

Cheng Shi responded, "I would like to ask the director whether your esteemed factory is currently developing high-end products or electric sewing machines?"

The director was momentarily taken aback and replied, "Ah, not really. Our products have always been exported overseas."

During the seventies and eighties, sewing machines were scarce commodities that required ration tickets to purchase.
Now that production had increased, they were readily available on the open market.

Cheng Shi nodded slightly. "I see. Then your esteemed factory temporarily has no use for the parts we machine."

The director was equally surprised.

Cheng Shi explained, "We primarily machine precision stainless steel components. Even a tiny bearing costs one to two hundred to sell. For your factory to use such expensive parts would make the production costs prohibitively high."
The pedal-operated sewing machines produced by this factory sold for only a little over two hundred each, so major accessories could only be made of integrated cast-iron elements, and small parts could not possibly demand overly high precision.

The director nodded slightly. "Indeed. Comrade Cheng Shi is entirely correct."

Cheng Shi stood up and shook his hand. "I will not take up any more of the director's time. If the factory has any needs in the future, please feel free to contact me."

In truth, Cheng Shi had guessed the outcome long ago and didn't really want to waste time visiting this place, but not wanting to discourage Zhang Ziqiang, he could only treat it as a teaching moment for him.

Zhang Ziqiang grew even more dejected, feeling that the whole day's efforts had come to nothing.

Cheng Shi said, "It is fine, sales work is always like this. If you visit ten places and manage to negotiate with one, that is already considered a very high success rate. Besides, the sewing machine factory will have to transform sooner or later, so we can consider this as laying the groundwork for the future."

When they returned to the company, they found that Lu Zaixue had arrived.
Accompanying Lu Zaixue were a fourth-generation CNC machine tool that was eighty percent new and a desktop computer.

Cheng Shi was pleasantly surprised. "Oh, Miss Lu is remarkably efficient. How much does all this cost? I will pay you."

Lu Zaixue answered, "Mr. Cheng can use them first. We can just deduct the cost from future payments for the goods."
The price was undoubtedly steep, and Lu Zaixue did not want to state the amount and put him in an awkward position.

Cheng Shi did not press the matter further. "Very well. Then I am deeply grateful."

Lu Zaixue asked, "When will Mr. Cheng be able to machine the first batch of gears?"

Cheng Shi replied, "I need some time to unlock and calibrate this machine tool. Give me the dimensions of the gears. I will strive to produce them within three days."

After Lu Zaixue left, Cai Aiping sighed, "This young lady is truly wonderful, more magnanimous and open-minded than most girls. I wonder who will be fortunate enough to marry her."

Hearing her subtle hints, Cheng Shi could not help laughing. "Mom, why does every girl you look at seem wonderful to you?"

After Zhang Ziqiang moved out, that small partitioned room had become vacant.
Cheng Shi now moved the new machine tool and computer inside, closed the door, and stayed in there for the entire day.

In reality, unlocking the machine wasn't the difficult part; rather, the computers of this era were utterly exasperating.
The processing speed was far too slow. Writing a single program required half a day just to run.
Consequently, he spent a full day simply unlocking the machine and another two days calibrating its precision.

Cheng Shi called Lu Zaixue and said, "I apologize, I am still fine-tuning the machine's precision and will need another two days to produce the bearings."

Lu Zaixue responded, "Mr. Cheng is always so conscientious in following up. It does not matter, there is no need to rush for a day or two. After all, the problem went unresolved for so many years previously."

In truth, many people within Lu Zaixue's company harbored complaints about this. The money spent buying this second-hand machine tool and computer for Cheng Shi would have been enough to purchase a good number of imported gears.
Was it really necessary to invest so much money in this young man?

Now that Cheng Shi had failed to deliver the samples on time, the voices of opposition grew even louder. "He is undoubtedly stalling for time. He probably wants to use our equipment for free while machining parts for other factories to make a profit."
"Miss Lu must not allow herself to be deceived by him."

Lu Zaixue's response remained consistently the same: "Let's wait and see a little longer."

Actually, she was somewhat anxious herself.
She was supporting a large number of technical staff and workers.
There were factory spaces, machinery, and various overhead expenses.
Wasting even a single day resulted in frighteningly high costs.

Near the end of the workday, Cheng Shi called to say, "I have finished making a few pieces. Should I send them over to you now, or bring them over tomorrow morning?"

A wave of relief washed over Lu Zaixue, and she said, "Tomorrow morning, please. I will come to pick you up. There is no need to rush for just this moment."

After hanging up the phone, her eyes reddened as she muttered to herself, "Thank goodness you did not let me down."

-----

Lu Zaixue came to find Cheng Shi early the next morning.
Cheng Shi said, "I am a bit busy. You can take the gears directly for testing. Just let me know the results once the testing is complete."

Lu Zaixue replied, "Very well."

After Lu Zaixue left, Zhang Ziqiang lowered his voice and asked, "Aren't you afraid that even if she tests them and finds them qualified, she will claim they failed just to drive the price down?"
In truth, he didn't want to be so suspicious. But even his own biological father had pulled such deceitful tricks on people, let alone others.

Cheng Shi replied, "It will be fine. She is our long-term client; we still need to maintain a basic level of trust. Besides, she still has a machine tool and a computer here. Right now, she should be the one who is more anxious. Furthermore, as I have repeatedly told you: at present, I am the only one who can manufacture this part. She is the one begging me to help machine it for her, rather than me begging her to be a client. That is the advantage of mastering a unique proprietary technology. While we can still reap the benefits of this monopoly, we must strive to earn more and accumulate capital for future technological research and development."