ABT Chapter 0198: Life is a Battlefield Everywhere

The two exchanged a round of words, then snorted coldly and stopped talking. Li Fanyu rested his hands on his knees, his mind racing. The Hongqi Shengshi C-Class executive car was a national project, which meant that after the Shengshi was launched, the government would procure it. This was a significant deal.

Just as he was pondering, he heard someone calling him. He looked up and saw it was still Xu Guangsheng.

"President Li, a young hero indeed, how enviable," Xu Guangsheng said, complimenting Li Fanyu, though his expression was somewhat mocking.

Li Fanyu was a bit puzzled; he had no connection with him. Why did it seem like this guy was coming at him so aggressively? Why did he act like a fighting cock?

Having never dealt with him before, Li Fanyu decided it was best to avoid unnecessary trouble. He pretended to be clueless and smiled without saying anything.

The saying goes, "One does not hit a smiling face," but this obviously did not apply to Xu Guangsheng. Seeing Li Fanyu silent, Xu Guangsheng pressed on.

"I heard that after this annual meeting, the higher-ups will decide on the new president of the association. It seems there is quite a strong voice for young Li in the association," Xu Guangsheng said, picking up some food and speaking indifferently.

Hearing this, Li Fanyu began to understand—was he blocking Xu Guangsheng's path?

"President Xu, you must be joking. I'm still young, and managing my own business is already exhausting. I haven't even thought about the association president position," Li Fanyu said with an innocent expression.

To be honest, Li Fanyu didn't care about this association president role at all.

Look at Zhang Yong's demeanor. If someone like him could be president, it showed the position wasn't that prestigious. He would feel embarrassed to take over Zhang Yong's role.

Such an association mainly served to align with national policies and act as a bridge between the government and the private sector. Although the president might have some advantage in getting information, let's not forget that An Ning was also part of the association's management. She could get first-hand information too, and with Zhengxin backing her, she had significant influence within the association.

So, the title of president held no real value for Li Fanyu.

Moreover, this position wasn’t something one could fight for. The president was appointed by higher-ups, with the lower ranks merely voicing their support. Li Fanyu knew his own limitations: no connections above, no foundation below. Even if he wanted to be president... well, it was laughable.

However, there were indeed some in the association who highly regarded him. Over the past six months, Zhengxin had made quite a stir.

This year, the domestic auto industry had shown some signs of vitality, largely due to Li Fanyu. With Zhengxin's strong performance in technology, many in the association hoped he would take over.

A new president would usually support others. With Zhengxin's demonstrated strength, many hoped to benefit from it.

Li Fanyu was unaware of all this. If it weren't for An Ning now serving as the company's director, Zhengxin wouldn’t even be associated with the association.

Despite Li Fanyu's high status this time, he technically wasn't even a member of the association. He had declined previous invitations from the Automobile Association.

But just because he didn't care didn't mean others didn't.

People like Xu Guangsheng and Lü Heming valued such titles as political capital. As they climbed higher, having such credentials was certainly beneficial.

So, Xu Guangsheng was like a fighting cock today. First, he targeted Lü Heming, then Li Fanyu. It was like a lion declaring its territory, showing he was determined to win. At his level, he certainly had composure, but when it came to competition, he had to show his determination.

Beiqi, the company Xu Guangsheng worked for, was unique. During the U.S.-China honeymoon period in the last century, they had collaborated with the American off-road vehicle brand Jeep.

Before the reform and opening-up period, they successfully launched the 212 off-road vehicle using Jeep's technology. Although the collaboration was brief, they remained strong in this field.

Leveraging this advantage, Beiqi was currently the main manufacturer of military vehicles in China, with strong military connections.

Though their recent attempts in the civilian car market had failed miserably, their strength in the military vehicle sector kept them among the top domestic automakers.

With this background, Xu Guangsheng had a better foundation than Lü Heming for climbing higher.

Because of this, others at the table noticed Xu Guangsheng's combative mood and continued eating and drinking without getting involved. This made the atmosphere at the table somewhat tense.

Other tables were filled with laughter and chatter, making this table seem particularly awkward. Seeing this, the host, Liu Wenhai, immediately approached.

Seating arrangements at the annual meeting were very particular, and Li Fanyu's table was filled with representatives from several northern car companies.

Both Hongqi and Beiqi are based in the Beijing-Tianjin area. Changqi, Longqi, and Shenqi are the leading car manufacturers in the three northeastern provinces. Although they mainly produce microvans and engineering vehicles, they still have a certain scale, maintaining a shred of dignity for the old industrial base's automotive industry. As for Li Fanyu's Tiancheng, strictly speaking, it is located at the junction of the north and south, but geographically, it is still considered part of the northern circle.

Liu Wenhai, holding a glass of wine, laughed and said, "Hey, when arranging the seating today, I specifically considered everyone's drinking capacity and seated you all together. How come no one has started drinking yet?"

Li Zhaokui from Longqi laughed and played along, "Old Liu, we're just building rapport. Don’t worry, we might even need more than the five bottles on your table! President Xu, you're the elder here, why don’t you take the lead!"

Li Zhaokui, a true Heilongjiang native, was straightforward yet tactful. He was actually older than Xu Guangsheng, and his words came across as flattering.

Having already established his dominance earlier, Xu Guangsheng saw no need to keep the atmosphere tense. After all, they were still in public, and it was important to leave some room for maneuver. Everyone knew what was going on, and his purpose had been achieved. He held his status and couldn't afford to tear things apart completely.

Acknowledging Li Zhaokui's subtle flattery, Xu Guangsheng picked up his glass. Although Lü Heming was displeased, with Liu Wenqing smoothing things over and the others playing along, the atmosphere at the table gradually livened up.

Li Fanyu realized that these people were no pushovers, each with their own agendas. Indeed, life everywhere was a battlefield.

His drinking capacity was decent, but this table was full of schemers who could hold their liquor. Especially Xu Guangsheng, who accepted every toast and insisted on reciprocating.

Li Fanyu had heard An Ning comment on Beiqi, mentioning two mysterious internal associations: the Beer Association and the Liquor Association. Those who couldn't hold their liquor couldn't advance in Beiqi. Clearly, Xu Guangsheng, as the head of Beiqi, had mastered both.

After several rounds, Li Fanyu felt overwhelmed. His stomach churned, his throat and intestines felt numb, and his vision blurred.

Xu Guangsheng, once Beiqi's drinking champion, was also quite tipsy by now due to his age. Seeing Li Fanyu near his limit, he felt triumphant—youth is indeed inexperienced.

Raising his glass, Xu Guangsheng stood up and slurred, "Come, come, this toast is to young Li. You've done well with Zhengxin. I hope we can collaborate in the future."

This was clearly ill-intentioned. Liu Wenhai, seeing Li Fanyu's state, quickly stood up, "President Xu, I think President Li has had enough. Young people can't handle too much alcohol. It would be inappropriate for him to lose his composure in front of so many people."

Xu Guangsheng, fueled by the alcohol and remembering the grand entrance Li Fanyu made earlier, felt his anger flare.

With a sarcastic tone, he said, "What's this, Director Liu? Have you heard something? Are you protecting your new boss?"

Liu Wenhai's face stiffened, and he sat back down. With all the speculation about the new president, he didn't want to offend anyone who might become his future superior. In his position, he had to maintain a delicate balance.

Lü Heming, seeing someone acting so recklessly, was secretly amused; provoking this troublemaker was a bad idea. Just wait and see—there would be consequences.

Li Fanyu noticed the situation, patted Liu Wenhai on the shoulder, and nodded to show he appreciated the gesture.

He picked up a bottle, filled his glass to the brim, and unsteadily stood up, approaching Xu Guangsheng.

Just as he was about to drink, the glass was snatched away.

Looking up, he saw a visibly upset An Ning.

An Ning shook her head at him, then turned and raised the glass to Xu Guangsheng, saying, "President Xu, long time no see. President Li can't handle much alcohol. I'll take this one for him."

With a slight frown, she downed the entire glass in one go.


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