Chapter Twenty-One: Snatching the Order

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On the way.
“Mr. Anderson, our factory is indeed small. To be honest, relying on our company alone, we really don’t have the capacity to fulfill your company’s order on time.”
“Before I called you, I had already coordinated with three other companies in Linjiang City. The four of us will work together to complete the order.”
“I guarantee you two things: first, we will deliver on time; second, we will maintain strict quality control. Our quality will not be inferior to Qifeng’s!”
“I hope, Mr. Anderson, you can give us a chance.”
“...”
Wei Lin, gripping the steering wheel, lowered his posture and spoke honestly, without exaggeration, clearly explaining the preparations he had made for this order.
In the back seat, Anderson listened attentively, speaking very little, only occasionally nodding.
Fu Jintang, his assistant, kept asking about Xinlin’s annual output, the unit price per hat, and how much experience they had cooperating with large companies.
Wei Lin explained everything in detail, hiding nothing.
...
11:15 a.m., Xinlin Hat Industry Co., Ltd.
“Uncle An, this is Mr. Anderson, and this lady is his assistant, Fu Jintang.”
As soon as the car door opened, Wei Lin introduced them to An Yuntian with a smile, “It took quite some effort to invite them here.”
An Yuntian, who had been waiting, nervously rubbed his hands and said, “Welcome, both of you!”
He was still in a daze.
A few days ago, he had merely mentioned to Wei Lin in passing that Anderson from Fenglin Outdoor had come to Linjiang City.
But he never expected Wei Lin would actually manage to bring him over.
Having worked in this industry for many years, he naturally knew Fenglin Outdoor’s strength and, through his contacts, was aware of how large Fenglin’s annual orders to Qifeng were.
If Xinlin had a long-term cooperation partner like Fenglin, he would dare to expand the factory and hire more workers to increase the current scale.
“It’s almost lunchtime. Our company cafeteria is quite basic; how about we take you out to eat first?”
An Yuntian, accustomed to dealing with domestic personnel, suggested.
Anderson shook his head, “No need. I want to see your workshop and factory area first.”
“All right!”
An Yuntian led the way.
Fu Jintang opened the notes app on her phone, occasionally glancing at her records and asking a few questions.
Anderson, serious as ever, just observed quietly.
While touring the clean and orderly workshop, he casually picked up several unfinished hats, then compared them carefully with finished samples in the display area, scrutinizing the patterns and stitching.
An Yuntian watched him compare so meticulously, showing no worry and even puffing out his chest a little.
When it came to quality control, An Yuntian had absolute confidence in himself and his company.
—This was the part he was most proud of.
After a while, Anderson nodded silently.
This visit was impromptu; Xinlin had made no special preparations. The workers were following their usual routine.
The unfinished hats being made were not for Fenglin. Comparing the unfinished products with the finished samples, he found no obvious difference in craftsmanship.
In terms of quality, Xinlin was surprisingly not inferior to a large factory like Qifeng, which astonished him.

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“You must be hungry. How about a simple meal in our cafeteria?”
Seeing that it was past noon, Wei Lin, having dealt with foreigners many times and knowing they were easier to please than the cunning locals, offered proactively.
An Yuntian quickly said, “I’ve already booked a restaurant outside. Let’s eat there!”
“No need for formalities. Let’s eat at your company,” Anderson said, putting down the hats he was holding. “I usually take a lunch break. Please prepare a meeting room for us to rest later.”
“Of course, no problem!” An Yuntian nodded repeatedly.
...
Half an hour later, after escorting the two guests to the meeting room, An Yuntian and Wei Lin met in the office.
“Is there hope?”
An Yuntian paced anxiously, holding a teacup, “The factory has been a bit idle lately. I told you to pay more attention, but I never expected you to actually take on such an order!”
His worry was that Xinlin simply could not handle this order.
“I’ve talked to Uncle Hua, Uncle Ding, and Uncle Zhong. They’re all interested. If the four of us join forces, we can take on this order.”
Wei Lin said coldly, “Usually Tang Qiang snatches our orders. This time, everyone wants in on the rare opportunity!”
“Tang Qiang’s side is not easy to deal with,” An Yuntian said with a bitter smile.
“I’m not afraid of Tang Qiang if I go to Qifeng’s gates to steal customers,” Wei Lin took a deep breath. “I’ve smoothed things over with Uncle Hua and the others. If Mr. Anderson is interested, I’ll bring them to visit this afternoon!”
“If we land this order and establish a long-term partnership with Fenglin, we can expand the factory directly!”
“Uncle An, I know there might be problems later, but I want to take this gamble!”
Wei Lin said fiercely.
An Yuntian finally stopped pacing, looked at him quietly for a few seconds, then nodded, “Okay, Uncle An will accompany you!”
At this moment, the burning competitive spirit in Wei Lin’s eyes was even brighter than when his father resolutely chose to leave Qifeng years ago.
...
“Quality is fine, but the factory is too small.”
In the meeting room, Anderson didn’t rest at all but sat upright, looking at the spreadsheet Fu Jintang had sent on her phone, scanning rows of numbers and highlighted points.
Based on the machines and number of workers in the workshop, Fu Jintang estimated Xinlin’s maximum monthly output would not exceed 200,000 units.
Xinlin already had other orders to fulfill, so even if they pulled some resources for Fenglin, producing 100,000 units per month would be difficult.
But Fenglin required 600,000 units, and after subtracting shipping time, only a little over two months remained.
“He’s not lying. The product quality, factory operation, and capacity all match what he said,” Fu Jintang rubbed her eyes. “I’ve seen too many boastful types whose factories collapse later.”
She glanced at Wei Lin without revealing much.
“I’ll ask him one question before deciding whether to continue.” Anderson picked up his phone and dialed Wei Lin. Once connected, he said, “Lin, come here for a moment.”
Two minutes later, Wei Lin stood before Anderson.
“Lin, your company can only produce 100,000 units per month for Fenglin, right?” Anderson asked bluntly.
Wei Lin shook his head and smiled wryly, telling the truth, “Mr. Anderson, we have other orders that must be completed on time. The quantity we can produce for your company is only 70,000 units per month.”
“In just over two months, I estimate our company can produce no more than 160,000 units.”
“That’s our limit.”
Wei Lin gave the number he had calculated.
Anderson’s deep eyes flickered with surprise. “70,000 is your monthly maximum for Fenglin?”

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Wei Lin nodded gently.
“Good. Please take us to visit the other three companies.”
Anderson stood, signaling to Fu Jintang, then walked out of the meeting room.
Wei Lin exhaled softly, knowing the first hurdle was passed.
Fu Jintang smiled and winked at him, “Young Mr. Wei, please continue to be our driver.”
As Anderson’s assistant, she knew this gentleman disliked late deliveries and even more disliked exaggerations.
They estimated Xinlin’s monthly output. Based on worker and machine workload, even with overtime, Wei Lin could at most produce 100,000 units per month for Fenglin.
If Wei Lin had claimed more than 100,000, Anderson wouldn’t have continued.
If Wei Lin said he was willing to delay other orders for Fenglin, that would risk late deliveries elsewhere, which would also be rejected by Anderson.
If Xinlin could be late for others, they could also be late for Fenglin.
—Anderson would never take that risk.
“Please, this way!”
Wei Lin took the lead.
...
After getting in the car, Fu Jintang, who had sat in the back with Anderson earlier, moved to the front passenger seat.
“Mr. Wei is a man of integrity. We like business owners like you.”
Fu Jintang smiled.
“Small businesses have it tough,” Wei Lin sighed.
They then diligently visited the other three companies, all similar in scale to Xinlin, and wrapped up after six in the evening.
After the last visit, just as Anderson got into the car, he asked, “Lin, what’s your expected unit price?”
“Finally, the question!” Wei Lin was a bit nervous. After much thought, he gave a figure: “9.”
They were all small factories, struggling to survive between the big players. Even if their quality matched the big factories, their prices had to be slightly lower.
This was their way of survival.
Fenglin’s usual cooperation price with Qifeng was 10; he naturally lowered it by one.
A unit price of 9 was already very high for Xinlin, and with such a large quantity, it was still quite profitable.
Sitting in the back seat, Anderson looked at Wei Lin through the rearview mirror and said slowly, “We can offer 10, but I have one condition.”
“Please say it!” Wei Lin was overjoyed.
“Please oversee the other three companies to ensure their quality matches the level of your Xinlin products for Fenglin.” Anderson’s lips curled into a slight smile, then added, “Lin, I trust you, but I don’t trust them.”
“Mr. Anderson, I will personally supervise them!” Wei Lin promised solemnly.
“Lin, we’re helping each other. In fact, you’re helping me too.” Anderson nodded in satisfaction and said, “I like people who take their work seriously.”
...
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