Chapter 138 - Poverty Alleviation
On his last day, Su Yuanshan also made a courtesy visit to Jidian. After all, Jidian had recently renewed its EDA license, and they were clients too — it wouldn't do to show favoritism. On his way back through Hong Kong, Su Yuanshan and Chen Jing took a stroll around Sun Xihui's place before receiving a message indirectly relayed from the SEZ government.
After clearing customs, the director of the SEZ's investment bureau personally came to greet him and Chen Jing, giving them full honors.
At the Ronghua Hotel in the SEZ, after lunch and during afternoon tea, Su Yuanshan politely thanked Director Wang for personally serving him traditional tea, then smiled and said, "Director Wang, you're too kind. Yuanchip already has three electronics manufacturing companies operating here, so bringing in an advanced wafer fab would certainly benefit us as well."
"Haha, yes, bringing in UMC would be good for all of us," Director Wang said. Rather than seeming like a government official, he carried himself more like a refined businessman. He glanced at Su Yuanshan, then at Chen Jing, and said with a smile, "Honestly, I didn't expect young President Su to convince them in just one day. We negotiated with them so many times without success. We thought the deal was dead."
Su Yuanshan smiled modestly, "In truth, UMC just needed a way to save face. I came in as a third party, and they used me as an excuse to compromise."
"Not everyone could have provided that excuse," Director Wang said meaningfully.
"Well," Su Yuanshan mused for a moment, "UMC is the first semiconductor company supported heavily by the island's government. Even with cross-strait relations looking friendly on the surface, they still face many political constraints. So they need a solid, commercially viable proposal to justify building a factory on the mainland — and solid profit expectations."
Su Yuanshan glanced subtly at Chen Jing, then smiled self-deprecatingly. "From the island's perspective, sending their advanced companies to the mainland feels less like making money and more like doing charity work."
"Poverty alleviation..." Director Wang tasted the phrase carefully, then smiled bitterly. "That's an accurate way to put it."
Chen Jing glanced at Su Yuanshan thoughtfully.
"So when dealing with investors from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, we have to break that mindset," Su Yuanshan said. "We must showcase our real advantages — the development momentum of the mainland, the potential of a 1.2 billion population. Even if only one-tenth have purchasing power, that's still over a hundred million consumers."
Director Wang lightly slapped the table. "Exactly! I've always felt that simply handing out incentives and concessions made us look like beggars. Yes, we are poor, and yes, we need investment. But poverty doesn't mean we have no dignity!"
Su Yuanshan laughed heartily, "Exactly! Right now, many foreign enterprises can't see China's market potential clearly. That's why you need to promote boldly. So far, no company that built a factory in the SEZ has said they lost money, right? That's our bargaining chip. In my opinion, giving incoming enterprises a real chance to make money is more convincing than any amount of tax breaks."
Director Wang laughed too, "Yes, chasing profit is in a capitalist's nature."
Su Yuanshan smiled again, then thought for a moment and said, "However, Director Wang, I should remind you — wafer fabs require extremely stable electricity supply. They aren't like other electronics factories where a power outage just pauses production for a bit. For a fab, any interruption can delay production for days, even weeks. I hope the government fully considers this."
Director Wang nodded seriously, "Don't worry. When we first engaged with UMC, they specifically raised concerns about water, electricity, and municipal support. We've made corresponding plans."
"Good, then there should be no problems," Su Yuanshan said. "The SEZ's efforts in attracting investment are world-famous. Early arrivals reap the most benefits."
He paused, then added, "In the future, Yuanchip will also consider establishing an R&D center here. I hope the government can continue supporting us then."
Director Wang was visibly excited, "Yuanchip is coming too? When?"
"Maybe a year or two from now," Su Yuanshan said with a smile. "Maybe you could consider reserving some land for us in advance?"
Hearing him say "maybe a year or two," Director Wang realized it was still tentative. He chuckled, "When the time comes, we'll be ready."
"Good, I'll hold you to that."
Back at Yuanchip's Tech Park, Su Yuanshan continued emailing Meijie on the island, while also organizing technical documentation to help Meijie file patent applications for the diagnostic card. He planned to license it to them directly. For Su Yuanshan, that patent was barely worth mentioning, but for Meijie, it could be a sharp marketing tool. Since he had decided to support a motherboard company, he couldn't afford to be stingy.
Next came the biggest internal restructuring since Yuanchip's founding — the spin-off of the EDA department.
Although Yuanchip wasn't a listed company and wasn't under direct regulatory supervision, because of its special status, the spin-off still needed government approval. Of course, this approval was conditional: state capital would have to enter the new entity.
"But after the spin-off, Yuanchip's foreign exchange earnings will take a big hit," Jiang Wanchao said to Su Yuanshan, showing more concern for Yuanchip's future than for his own new position.
"That's not your worry, Brother Jiang," Su Yuanshan laughed. "If the EDA department stayed inside Yuanchip, it would be underfunded. With the spin-off, you can aggressively build development centers everywhere and recruit the best talent worldwide."
"Mmm." Jiang Wanchao stood by the window, gazing out at the burgeoning Tech Park, filled with a sense of longing. "I really wish I could stay here and focus purely on R&D."
"Heh, if you still feel that way after ten or twenty years, you're welcome to come back," Su Yuanshan said.
"Really?"
"As long as you never forget why you started."
Jiang Wanchao shook his head and smiled.
No one wanted to stay under someone else's shadow forever — especially someone from Peking University. In the early days, he and Li Mingliu had competed fiercely for the position of Yuanchip's third most important figure. But he and Li Mingliu were different. Li was more aggressive; Jiang was more reserved. In the end, it wasn't so much that Li Mingliu won, but that Jiang Wanchao had willingly stepped back for the sake of peace.
Still, Jiang Wanchao truly respected Su Yuanshan.
The deeper he delved into programming and IC design, the more he realized just how terrifying Su Yuanshan's abilities were. In this field, Su Yuanshan was simply unmatched — both in technical understanding and in strategic thinking.
Moreover, Su Yuanshan's respect for R&D and his willingness to invest heavily in technology were beyond anything an ordinary boss could imagine.
Jiang Wanchao had no doubt that Su Yuanshan was the best boss in the world for researchers.
Two years on, Yuanchip's employee attrition rate was under 1% — the best proof of that.
Leaving a boss like Su Yuanshan...
was nothing to celebrate.
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