Why are you here?
At that time, we were having a conversation in a room on one side of the banquet hall.
There was a knock on the door and Boshirai's secretary came in.
He whispered to Boshirai.
Boshirai, who had been listening quietly, nodded and spoke to me.
"I heard that Premier Wen Jiabao has arrived. I will go out to greet him and bring him back."
"Shall we go together?"
Boshirai shook his head.
"Is there really a need for that?"
He was saying that he was the main character today. There would be no benefit in stealing the spotlight for no reason.
"Okay, I'll be waiting."
After Boshirai left, I asked Chairman Song Chan-seong.
"It doesn't matter if it's not Shanghai Automobile, right? As long as we can get the business going right away."
"Yes. Beijing Automobile is fine with it. But they are too lukewarm about establishing a joint venture······."
"What is the biggest issue they are demanding?"
The Chinese government, which is desperately trying to attract foreign companies' factories, had no reason to waste time with the automobile factory that creates the most jobs.
"······They asked me to transfer the technology."
I couldn't help but laugh out loud at Song Chan-seong's words.
"Are you saying you're going to steal the technology?"
"Yes. This is a condition that we absolutely cannot accept."
"But didn't you say you would localize the parts in China?"
"That too can be solved by having all of our partners build factories in China."
The strategy was to maximize profits while minimizing the risk of technology theft.
Beijing Automobile doesn't like that.
"So, if that problem is solved, you're saying it's okay to work with Beijing Automobile?"
"Yes, it doesn't matter. It's more important for us to establish a factory in China and start production as soon as possible. It doesn't matter who our partner is."
"All right."
"Are you saying this because you are afraid that Premier Wen Jiabao will object?"
In response to Song Chan-seong's question, he shrugged his shoulders and answered.
"Well······. Bo Xilai is not yet in a position to stand up to the central government, so he can't just push things forward. His power base is possible under the support of the central government. It may change in a few years, but that's how it is for now."
"I see. I will only trust you, sir."
How much time had passed? Boshirai, who had been away for quite some time, returned.
"Haha. It's a little late."
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Bo Xilai came in first with an embarrassed smile, followed by Premier Wen Jiabao.
I got up from my seat and approached Wen Jiabao.
"Prime Minister, it's been a long time."
"That's right, Mr. Kim. It's been a long time since we last saw each other like this."
After a brief greeting, I introduced Kim Byung-woo and Song Chan-sung to Premier Wen Jiabao one by one.
As soon as everyone finished greeting each other and sat down, Wen Jiabao opened his mouth.
"I can't stay here long because of other schedules. I have to go straight to Beijing at dawn."
It may seem rude at first, but I could completely understand it.
Premier Wen Jiabao originally had no intention of attending the inauguration ceremony.
But when I heard that he was going to come to the inauguration ceremony, he took time out of his busy schedule to visit me.
"What is the atmosphere like in Beijing?"
"It's not bad. Relations with North Korea have somewhat recovered, and we've decided to restart the gas pipeline project with Russia."
"That's fortunate."
"It's all thanks to President Kim Mu-hyeok."
"Isn't it just going to happen naturally? If you left it alone, businesses that would have been doing well would have gone wrong because you artificially interfered with them."
Wen Jiabao also nodded quietly, as if he had the same thought.
Then, as if he had been curious all along, he cleared his throat and opened his mouth.
"More than that, I don't see Chairman Jiang Zemin······."
The person who answered that question was Boshirai.
"You left during the inauguration ceremony."
"Huh······. What happened?"
"We said that we would maintain good relations with Korea and attract a lot of investment. President Kim Moo-hyuk was also there."
"Haha, I see what happened. I should have seen Chairman Jang's face. Too bad. Are you okay? This is Chairman Jang's front yard."
Bo Xilai answered Wen Jiabao's question confidently.
"I know. But I am not Chairman Jiang's puppet. I intend to run and develop Shanghai as I wish."
"Good. Good."
That bold answer seemed to have struck a chord with Wen Jiabao.
Wen Jiabao nodded with satisfaction and gave Bo Xilai some words of encouragement.
"Look, I trust you."
"Don't worry. We will work with the central government to make Shanghai the best city in Asia."
"Shanghai is one of the most important cities in mainland China. The more Shanghai grows, the stronger China's economy will become."
"Yes. Please believe me."
Wen Jiabao, who was looking at Bo Xilai with pleasure, then looked at Kim Byung-woo and Song Chan-seong alternately and asked.
"But why are the two people next to you here?"
"Chairman Kim Byung-woo came to attend the inauguration ceremony. And Chairman Song Chan-seong······."
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As I trailed off, Song Chan-seong took my words and answered in fluent Chinese.
"I visited China due to factory issues."
"Then you should come to Beijing. Why are you here? As far as I know, Daewoo Motors has established a joint venture with Beijing Motors."
"······The business progress is too slow. That's why I had no choice but to visit in person."
"The business is progressing slowly? This is really strange. Shouldn't it be done according to the contract?"
It's true, but there's no way that would work in China.
Song Chan-seong answered with an embarrassed face.
"We haven't even decided on a factory site yet. Beijing Automobile is stalling."
"Ahem······."
Wen Jiabao looked at the secretary standing behind him as if asking for an explanation.
The secretary whispered to Wen Jiabao and explained to him, and Wen Jiabao's face remained expressionless throughout the explanation.
"So that's what happened. Listen here. Chairman Song."
"Yes, Prime Minister."
"It seems like the project is progressing slowly because we have some differences of opinion. So why won't you transfer the technology?"
"······."
"I understand that Daehyun Motors also started as a company that received technology transfer from another company."
Song Chan-sung answered Wen Jiabao's question in a firm voice.
"No, we did not receive any technology transfer."
"Is that so? I heard that Daehyun Motors' own model was developed with Japan's help?"
"That is a misunderstanding. Of course, it was created through technical cooperation, but it was not a complete technology transfer. The current Daewoo Motors is the result of the failure of the technology transfer negotiations with Ford and the company focusing on developing its own models."
"Hmm······. They won't transfer the technology, they'll just build a production plant and assemble it······."
Wen Jiabao showed his discomfort.
Since most Chinese factories are merely manufacturing plants, it was understandable why he felt uncomfortable.
That doesn't mean I can take Wen Jiabao's side.
"Prime Minister."
I looked at Song Chan-seong and Wen Jiabao in turn and then opened my mouth.
Wen Jiabao's gaze turned towards me.
"I understand that Beijing Automotive is currently in talks with Benz."
Wen Jiabao turned his gaze to the secretary behind him, as if he had no idea what was going on.
The secretary nodded slightly instead of answering.
"Did that happen? I had no idea."
"It's not an issue that the Prime Minister should personally take care of. I heard that no technology transfer was requested from Benz."
"······Is that so?"
"Yes. And Volkswagen and GM, which are producing complete vehicles in joint ventures with Shanghai Automotive, also did not transfer technology."
When the uncomfortable topic came up, Wen Jiabao kept his mouth shut.
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"Why are you forcing technology transfer only on Korean companies? Daehyun Motors is not planning to build one or two factories and stop there. Isn't that right, Chairman Song Chan-seong?"
Song Chan-seong answered my question right away as if he had been waiting for it.
"Yes. Starting with Plant 1, we plan to build Plants 2 and 3 right away. Our initial goal is to produce 2 million units per year."
After hearing Song Chan-seong's answer, I continued speaking.
"The automobile industry is a sector that creates jobs and has a large economic impact. In addition, Daehyun Motors is trying to do everything in one place in China by producing parts in China. But would you give that up just for a technology transfer?"
"······."
"If you continue to demand technology transfer, Daewoo Motors will have no choice but to withdraw from the Chinese market. Is that what you want?"
Wen Jiabao swallowed with an embarrassed expression.
"If the same standards had been applied to other companies, Daehyun Group would have accepted it without a second thought. But that's not the case, is it?"
Requesting technology transfer only from Korean companies was an act of making fun of Korea.
Wen Jiabao, who understood the meaning of my words, quickly opened his mouth.
"What can I do for you?"
"Please let us proceed with the business quickly. Or, please transfer 50% of the shares of our joint venture, Beijing Daxian, to Shanghai Automotive and allow us to do business with Shanghai Automotive."
"Hmm. Have you talked to Shanghai Automotive?"
"No. I know that nothing can be done without the permission of the Chinese government. Even Party Secretary Bo Xilai said that we cannot rashly proceed with business without the permission of the central government."
Wen Jiabao looked at Bo Xilai. Bo Xilai nodded slightly and answered.
"I heard about it in advance. But I said it would be difficult because I was already doing business with Beijing Automobile."
"I see."
Premier Wen Jiabao nodded slightly and let out a small sigh.
After some time, he carefully lifted his hand.
"It's not a matter that can be decided right away. Let's go back to Beijing and take a look."
"I would appreciate it if you could do so. If possible, I would like to do business with Beijing Automobile."
"I'll take note of that."
Premier Wen Jiabao looked at Song Chansung and said:
"Chairman Song, please wait and see."
"Thank you, Prime Minister."
After that, we spent time having various conversations.
How long has it been? The secretary standing behind Wen Jiabao said to him.
"Prime Minister, we must leave now."
"Oh, time has passed so quickly as we were talking. It seems like time flies when you talk to President Kim."
"Should I go?"
Wen Jiabao nodded and rubbed his eyes.
He looked very tired.
"Yes, I should. I have to go to Beijing this morning for an important meeting."
"I see. It's been so long, I can't even have a drink."
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"Haha. Then, please visit Beijing next time. I'll prepare some good alcohol for you."
Premier Wen Jiabao stood up from his seat with a smile.
He greeted Song Chan-seong and Kim Byung-woo by shaking their hands, and patted Bo Xilai on the shoulder and said:
"Look. This time, you can't make even one small mistake. Shouldn't you be included in the next leadership?"
Bosilai's face brightened at the words promising a future.
"Yes! I will never disappoint you."
"Okay. I'll tell President Hu Jintao."
We had a brief conversation and parted ways as we headed out to the banquet hall to see off Wen Jiabao.
Just as I was about to return to the banquet hall.
"What! Let go! Let go!"
Korean was heard from one side of the banquet hall.
But the voice was familiar. It was a voice that shouldn't be heard here.
I quickly turned my head and looked in the direction where the voice came from.
"Shut up! Who the hell are you to act so expensive! Don't you know who I am?"
A man was holding a woman's wrist.
I quickly walked towards him and grabbed the man's hand, squeezing it tightly.
"Eww!"
"Oh, brother."
The woman who was holding the man's hand was Cheon Ji-yeong.
"Why are you here? I told my agency not to do any activities in China for the time being."
He told Cheon Ji-young to stop her activities in China because of any possible accidents.
"Hey, this kid won't let go?"
The man with the broken arm was screaming and swearing.
"Well, we'll talk about that later. What's with this kid?"
"This is someone who kept contacting me to ask me to have a meal. I kept rejecting him, but then he saw me here and out of the blue······."
I can see why. I asked them to refrain from activities in China because I was worried something like this might happen.
I let go of the man's arm and said,
"How dare you harass my sister?"
The released man raised his head, grunting, and then pointed his finger at me.
"Do you know who I am? Police! Where are the police!"
The eyes of those enjoying the party at the banquet hall turned this way.
"It doesn't matter who you are. What matters is that you molested my sister, righteousness."
"You know who I am, and you just broke my arm? Do you have multiple lives?"
The man barking in front of me, Wi Jeong-seong. He was Boshirai's friend and a member of the crown prince's party.
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< When did I say I could go? >