Chapter 124: Receiving the Payment
The acceptance process for the Yunshang Bauxite Project had officially concluded.
Li Tang went to Huazhou Aluminum Plant to meet with Lai Xiangrong and discuss the payment settlement.
The confirmed figure submitted for reserves was 28.7 million tons.
According to the agreement between both parties, Huazhou Aluminum Plant owed Li Tang a bonus of 2.9 million yuan.
This meeting had been initiated by Lai Xiangrong himself, who invited Li Tang for a face-to-face discussion.
Luo Qinzhong was also present.
"The 5,000 yuan technical consulting fee for Wukuang Exploration Company has already been transferred successfully. As for the invoice they're sending us, it might take a few more days to arrive," Luo Qinzhong reported to Lai Xiangrong.
"Only 5,000 yuan for Wukuang?" Lai Xiangrong felt like they'd gotten quite the bargain.
Because the amount was small, it hadn't required his signature. Luo Qinzhong's approval alone was enough for Finance to process it.
"When the contract was first signed, President Qin of Wukuang Exploration gave us a friendly price, so the amount was pretty low," Luo explained.
Lai Xiangrong laughed. "President Qin probably never imagined you'd help us discover a large-scale bauxite deposit through that consulting deal."
Qin Jianshe hadn't foreseen it—but Li Tang certainly had. Still, that contract was largely symbolic.
"It wasn't just President Qin. In the beginning, no one thought we'd find a large deposit," Luo Qinzhong said, having been involved in every step of the project.
From initiation to budget approvals and through every phase of exploration, the Yunshang Bauxite Project had been riddled with difficulties.
The biggest obstacle, really, had been the skepticism of nearly everyone involved.
Had Li Tang wavered even slightly in his conviction, the project might have been dead in the cradle.
Even the slightest doubt could've buried this large bauxite deposit for who knows how much longer.
Praise for Li Tang had already poured in from all sides.
But beyond his technical capabilities, Luo Qinzhong deeply admired his perseverance and clarity of vision.
"No need to say more."
Lai Xiangrong turned to Li Tang. "The reason I asked you both to come today is to finalize our agreement regarding your cooperation with Huazhou Aluminum. According to our arrangement: for every 1 million tons of bauxite discovered, we pay you 100,000 yuan in bonuses. Based on the verified 28.7 million tons, rounded off to 29 million, we owe you 2.9 million yuan."
He looked up at Li Tang with a questioning gaze. "Do you have any issue with that figure?"
"No issues at all," Li Tang nodded.
"Great. Then we'll pay you based on that amount." Lai Xiangrong gestured subtly.
Luo Qinzhong took out the prepared settlement documents. "Here's the paperwork for the bonus. If everything looks good, just sign at the indicated spots. Then our Finance Department can process the full payment via bank transfer."
"By the way," Lai Xiangrong added, "since this is a personal reward and the amount is significant, it's subject to income tax. Once you've paid, give us one copy of the tax receipt for our records. We're all law-abiding citizens here—paying taxes is honorable!"
"That's quite a bit in taxes."
Li Tang hesitated. "I might not be able to front that much tax all at once."
"We'll transfer the payment first. Once you receive it, you'll have the cash to pay the taxes. Just send us the receipt afterward," Lai said, clearly trusting Li Tang and showing no concern about him running off.
Of course, even if Li Tang vanished, he could always be tracked down through Niu Fu.
"Thank you, Director Lai, Director Luo, for your trust and support."
Li Tang skimmed through the documents, then—under Luo Qinzhong's guidance—filled out his personal and bank details and signed his name.
"Because of the large sum, Finance will need some time to process everything. But within two or three days, the full amount should hit your account."
Luo Qinzhong picked up the documents and led Li Tang toward the Finance Department.
Lai Xiangrong watched them disappear down the hallway and couldn't help but mutter, "Why didn't I think to set a fixed-rate fee of 100,000 yuan for hiring him as a special consultant? Would've saved me over two million… but still, that money was well spent."
Sighing, he picked up his tea, took a big gulp—only to have the tea leaves slip into his mouth. He quickly spat them out and returned to his office.
The very next day, Li Tang received confirmation from Luo Qinzhong that the full 2.9 million yuan had been transferred.
He went to the bank to check and was stunned by the long string of digits in his account. Right there at the counter, he withdrew 100,000 yuan in cash.
Then, on his way out, he went to the local tax bureau to pay his personal income tax.
When the cashier heard he needed a tax receipt for 2.9 million yuan in income, she panicked and ran to get a supervisor to confirm the tax rate.
The personal income tax rate was high—Li Tang ended up paying nearly 1 million yuan in taxes.
He had anticipated this.
When working with Huazhou Aluminum, he hadn't operated through a company-to-company arrangement. He'd chosen to receive the bonus personally, since he needed the money for his own expenses.
After all, money was meant to be spent—meant to improve quality of life.
He'd already decided: once back in Yanjing, he would buy a new apartment, and if possible, a car.
For his cooperation with Zise Mining, he had established a company called Zhenguan Exploration Technologies—that was a different strategy altogether.
Still, receiving this large sum validated his belief: the information he held was monetizable.
Handled properly, it could generate serious wealth.
Just the thought made him happy. After wrapping up, he returned to Huazhou Aluminum and handed over one copy of the tax receipt to the Finance Office. Everything was officially settled.
At the Huazhou Aluminum guesthouse…
After months of grueling fieldwork—climbing mountains daily and ending each day exhausted—He Runqi was finally getting some rest. Lately, he had been sleeping in late every morning, allowing himself to relax fully.
Knowing how tired he was, Li Tang had left him to sleep. Only when everything was wrapped up and it was nearly noon did he go to knock on He Runqi's door.
"What?" He Runqi rubbed his eyes, clearly just waking up.
"The sun's already burning your butt!"
Li Tang walked in and pulled open the curtains. The bright sunlight instantly drove out the darkness in the room.
"Give me a second to brush my teeth. Then we'll grab lunch."
He Runqi washed up quickly, dressing as he spoke. "Now that the project's over, what's next? Heading back to the company?"
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