ABT ### Chapter 137: Taunted by a British Gentleman

The bigger the tree, the more it catches the wind, and brittle wood breaks easily. This is an ancient, unchanging truth.

Reisfas, an established British sports car manufacturer, felt uneasy watching the meteoric rise of the X-power.

For a company like Zhengxin, with only one product, they didn’t feel particularly threatened. What troubled them was that Reisfas was about to launch a new model specifically for the Chinese market.

This car, named the RF-V12, was a two-door convertible sports car tailored for wealthy Chinese consumers. Its compact body and short wheelbase offered powerful performance and an exhilarating driving experience.

Most importantly, their concept aligned with the X-power's—lightweight and powerful. Like the X-power, the V12 featured a full aluminum body, a lightweight integrated cockpit, and was equipped with Reisfas's latest HU355 engine.

This 3.0L, 2995ml V6 engine, tuned with F1 technology, had a compression ratio of 10.5 and could produce 340 horsepower with a power output of 250KW. It was one of Reisfas's proudest achievements in recent years.

With a dominant, king-like attitude, they had been thoroughly promoting and warming up the Chinese market.

But then, an unexpected competitor emerged.

And to their annoyance, it happened to coincide with their launch, which was quite irritating.

Thus, at their new car launch event, the company's spokesperson, the nearly sixty-year-old Benjamin Godfrey, took aim at the X-power.

This British gentleman was known within the company for his self-deprecating humor and his skill in mocking others.

Reisfas, an old British sports car manufacturer, had a longstanding verbal rivalry with their Italian counterpart, Alfa Romeo. For the first seventy years, Reisfas often found itself on the losing end of these battles. But since Godfrey became their spokesperson, Alfa Romeo had been on the defensive.

The reason was simple—the cars were similar, but Godfrey had the sharper wit.

One notable incident that infuriated Alfa Romeo involved an ad Godfrey devised. In the ad, an elderly British gentleman, barely able to walk with a cane, drives the latest Reisfas sports car. A young Italian man, in a car resembling an Alfa Romeo, races him. When the light turns green, the old gentleman's car's superior acceleration leaves the young man in the dust.

At the end, the old gentleman smiles at the camera and says, "Reisfas keeps me young." He then disdainfully glances at the young man left behind.

Attentive fans quickly noticed that the old gentleman’s voice was dubbed by Godfrey. This ad infuriated Alfa Romeo, as it was a blatant provocation, but there was nothing they could do—Godfrey stayed within legal bounds and didn’t infringe or slander.

This incident shows Godfrey's character.

At this launch event, the old man had flown to China, eager to make a splash. Despite their discomfort with X-power, the company hadn't taken any specific actions. Competition between car manufacturers is always fierce, but some strategies harm both sides. For a small company like Zhengxin, while annoying, they didn't feel the need to act.

To the arrogant Brits, an obscure Chinese company making an unknown car couldn't compare to their purebred sports cars. They didn't see it as a serious threat.

However, during the Q&A session, Godfrey found himself bombarded with questions about the X-power.

"Mr. Godfrey, your company's V12 and the recently developed Chinese X-power share similar design philosophies. Are you aware of this car? Its market release is expected around the same time as the V12. Does your company see it as a threat?"

Godfrey smiled wryly and spread his hands, "My dear friend, there is no sports car in the world that I am unaware of." But then he frowned, "However, this X-power, I truly don't know."

The implication was clear—he didn’t consider the X-power a real sports car.

Some foreign media members in the audience chuckled knowingly.

The reporter persisted, "Sir, this may seem abrupt, but are you avoiding my question?"

Godfrey straightened his tie, took out his phone, and found a picture of the X-power. He held the screen up high for the reporter to see, "You call this monstrosity a sports car? Oh, if its creators claim it is, then my poor child, you've been fooled."

He then pointed to the massive V12 promotional poster behind him, "This is a sports car—sleek, sexy, full of passion. More importantly, it wasn't developed on a go-kart platform."

This drew laughter from the foreign journalists; the X-power claimed to be a street-legal race car, and Godfrey exploited the term 'race car,' since go-karts are also race cars.

Given the X-power’s short, wide body, it indeed resembled a go-kart from a distance. But depending on perspective, it also looked like an F1 car.

With the laughter from the audience, some domestic reporters were not pleased.

But Godfrey was a seasoned pro. Seeing the reporters' reactions, he quickly changed the topic and stopped mentioning the X-power.

However, news spread rapidly, and within minutes, some domestic news portals had reported Godfrey's remarks on their automotive sections.

Before the public reaction could build, Li Fanyu received a forward.

An editor from Pincar.com, Xiao Wu, had forwarded it—“@PleaseCallMeFanBro, Godfrey mocks X-power at the launch event: ‘This is not a sports car at all.’”

Li Fanyu watched the video and laughed.

Alright, my car isn't a sports car. So, what is your V12? A high-displacement lawnmower?

With nothing to lose, Li Fanyu wasn't afraid of them. Since he had no reputation to protect, he decided to use this as a stepping stone.

He immediately replied to Xiao Wu.

"Tell the on-site reporters to challenge him."

Xiao Wu got excited and pumped his fist, "Oh, this is going to be fun!"

The on-site reporter, upon receiving Xiao Wu’s message, was thrilled and quickly raised his hand to ask a question.

Godfrey was still elaborating on the V12’s performance when he saw that pesky reporter raise his hand again.

"Young man, don't you know it's rude to interrupt someone speaking?"

The reporter grinned, showing two rows of bright white teeth, "Sir, something ruder is coming. Mr. Li Fanyu, the developer of X-power, has heard your comments and issued a statement."

Godfrey was taken aback, "Oh, what did he say? Did he accuse me of making him cry?"

"No! He said he wants to challenge the Reisfas V12 with the X-power, for a showdown between a go-kart and a lawnmower!"

This statement shocked the reporters present—what bold words! The comparison to a go-kart had some basis, but calling the V12 a lawnmower was a bit much.

This response even made Godfrey laugh in anger.

"Tell this unknown newcomer that Reisfas does not fear any form of challenge!"


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