Four p.m., NB Electric Headquarters.

Wu Jinhua, who had just opened the guò remote conference system and finished a meeting with the head and above of the African company, was stunned as he looked at the phone message handed by the secretary.

The charter rarely invites guests, and even if they do, most of them invite scientists from the real yàn room, and they just gathered at Liu Siwei's house on the third night of the Lunar New Year. I called him inexplicably, asking him to go to the top of Taiping Mountain with Xu Sangcheng for dinner, what he thought about it.

"Jinhua, are you done?"

Xu Sangcheng knocked on the glass door and walked to the desk with his tie. Wu Jinhua glanced at the time on the computer monitor, and while beckoning him to sit down, he asked puzzledly: "Sang Cheng, do you know what happened to Zhang Gongjia today?" ”

"He has an early birthday, and so are Xia Yao, Qingqing and Xiao Zhanghan, and I'm also very strange, I don't know what to prepare."

"Spring Festival party?"

"It's not," Xu Sangcheng buttoned up his suit, shook his head and smiled: "You don't know about him, I'm afraid that it will be so troublesome that only others invite him, and besides, it's us at night, no one else." ”

"Inquired?"

"I asked, not only did Chen Hao and Mr. Xie not receive a call, but even Mr. Ding and Mr. Li didn't know what was going on at his house."

Ding Wenming's investment department became Xinsheng Investment, and Li Xiaoshan became the president of Jiangnan Road and Bridge, a Hong Kong-listed company independent of NB Electric. Even they revealed more than once that the charter not only did not ask them about the situation of Xinsheng and Jiangnan Road and Bridge, but also did not even ask Zhang Lin about the company.

In the past three years, there has not been a single intervention in the company's operations. It's just the best way to get the shopkeeper to the highest level.

Wu Jinhua directly believes that it should not be a business matter. Close your computer. While cleaning up the text, he muttered: "This is strange, is he really idle and wants to invite us to catch up." ”

Xu Sangcheng was also confused, helped him take off his coat from the hanger, and said with a smile as he walked: "You'll know when you go, and there are exactly two bottles of red wine in my car, one bottle per person." When you come to eat, you can't eat empty-handed, right? ”

"Or do you think about it, okay, let's go."

According to the customs of Dongshan's hometown, there can be no one at home during the New Year, so in the past few Spring Festivals, Xia Ning and Su Xingyun have spent their lives in Hong Kong. Charter and Xia Yao returned, and the family of three was finally freed, and on the twenty-eighth day of the lunar month, they returned to their hometown in Dongshan to visit distant relatives who had not seen each other for several years.

Nevertheless. The house is still lively.

Natasha, who rushed to Hong Kong since a year ago to prepare for the return ceremony. and Tengxi, the former vice president of Changsheng Commerce and Trade, who had just been "unemployed", claimed that the hotel was too expensive and moved in as if he had made an appointment. In addition, the three children Zhang Qing, Zhang Han and Auguste, Jan Joseph and Magdalena, are also a large table of people at every meal.

"Natasha, are the shrimp washed?"

"Alright, alright."

To deal with NB Electric, you must be proficient in English, and I haven't seen him for three years, Tengxi's English is also very slippery, although the accent is very strong. In terms of cooking skills, her level not only surpasses Xia Yao, but even competes with Xia Ning's "professional". Since BJ came, he has become the chef of the Zhang family.

Compared with the broad and profound Chinese food culture, Russia is simply "pig food".

In order to be able to show her boyfriend who is still peacekeeping in Bosnia and Herzegovina when she goes back, Natasha, a dignified Pulitzer Prize winner, actually put on an apron and was busy helping her.

Mrs. Zhang was happy to be idle, and after setting up the table, she leaned against the bar and quipped: "Natasha, a family banquet is a family banquet, and you are not allowed to talk about work." When I see Mr. Wu later, don't pester people to ask this and that as soon as your head is hot. ”

Based on the market capitalization on August 15 last year, NB Electric ranked 65th with $96.3 billion in the total market capitalization and total valuation ranking of the world's top 100 listed companies, while CE in the United States regained the championship with $562.9 billion.

Although there is a big gap in rankings, Tihi, a professor of management at the University of Michigan, made a very famous comment: The three greatest company leaders at the end of this century were Sloan of General Motors, Welch of CE in the United States, and Wu Jinhua of NB Electric in Hong Kong! He also believes that Wu Jinhua may be greater than CE President Welch, who has established a new model of modern management that will be emulated by companies in the 21st century.

During his four years at the helm of NB Electric, he carried out a series of consolidations across all businesses, and actively introduced quality improvement programs and the issuance of pre-emptive stock options as incentives, which led to the rapid growth of NB Electric. The company's valuation has grown dramatically from less than $10 billion in 1992 to nearly $100 billion today.

Some authoritative business weeklies in the world also believe that if they are ranked separately, CE in the United States should have 9 business divisions that can be selected into the world's top 500, but it is a company with a history of 100 years.

In just ten years, NB Electric has built two subsidiaries that have been selected as the world's top 500 and a media business that can be selected as the top 500. As a result, it has been ranked first in Fortune magazine's "America's Most Admired Companies" for three consecutive years since 1993.

Coincidentally, the results of the survey conducted by the Financial Times also ranked NB Electric first among the most respected companies in the world for two consecutive years. Last month, Wu Jinhua was called the "Manager of the Century" by Fortune magazine.

In the Hong Kong market, there are at least 20 versions of his "autobiography" and "part-time work history", and the limelight is overwhelming Li Chaoren, and he is an inspirational idol figure.

Natasha couldn't hear what she meant, and smiled back: "Xia, you can rest assured, I am not good at business and finance, and I am not interested, if possible, can you help me ask the governor to make an appointment." ”

Xia Yao bent down to pick up a vegetable leaf that had fallen to the ground, and smiled helplessly: "I'm sorry, we have hardly dealt with him, and if you want to have an exclusive interview with him, you can only rely on yourself to fight for it." ”

Speaking of this, Natasha couldn't help but complain: "Xia, I really don't understand, why don't you use such good resources?" As long as your husband wants to. He was able to help me get an appointment with the Governor, the Chief Executive, and all the senior I wanted to interview. In fact, it is based on this. I just agreed to President Daniel's visit to Hong Kong. And not to Africa. ”

"My uncrowned king, the Pulitzer Prize has been won, your dream has been realized, don't worry about it anymore, okay? You know you're almost going to God, and I don't want to actually go to your funeral. ”

used to fight to be able to become a female anchor, but after really becoming a female anchor, I found that the war zone should be where I should go.

Thinking of the women and children who were brutally slaughtered, Natasha said softly, "Xia." You haven't experienced it, you can't understand how I feel. Really, if I were there, I had a video camera, even a camera, that would change the fate of a lot of people. As Qingqing said, living this decent life in such a prosperous city makes me feel a very strong sense of guilt. ”

Colleagues who got along day and night were killed and wounded, and witnessed a horrific genocide. Xia Yao could understand her feelings and patted her arm. "Natasha, I have been to refugee camps in Rwanda, I have been to Gaza, and I have met many refugees who have been displaced by the war, are malnourished, and lack medical care, and I have also provided them with the help I can, and I will continue to provide it in the future," she said. But our power is limited after all, we can't help everyone, and we have our families and our lives, and we should think about them, don't you say? ”

Parents and many relatives and friends, including Xia Yao and Zhang Lin, were proud of her, and at the same time worried about her, thinking that every time she called home, the first thing her father asked was whether it was safe, Natasha shook her head and smiled bitterly: "Maybe I've been in Bosnia and Herzegovina for too long, I think I need a while to adjust." ”

"That's right, I'll accompany you to see a psychiatrist when I have time."

"Just see a psychiatrist, I'd rather go to church."

One is greater than the other, the other is nobler than the other, listening to their words, thinking of the bad things he has done in the past few years, Tengxi is very uncomfortable, put the shrimp that has finished the oil to the side, and turned around and asked, "Xia Yao, is there any place for your foundation?" Leave me one, and let me learn from you to do good deeds. ”

"Welcome!"

Xia Yao said with a smile: "I can hand over the domestic project to you, this year there are five hope primary schools, and there is a medical activity of 'caring for the health of children in poor areas', and I am worried that I can't keep busy." ”

Tengxi suddenly became interested, and couldn't help asking, "How much are you going to donate?" ”

"Just like last year, 10 million for Hope Primary School, 20 million for medical projects, 20 million for scholarships and grants, a total of 50 million."

"And what about your husband's foundation?"

"He is mainly in education, such as donating ten NB training bases to domestic engineering colleges, providing 10 million grants to high school students who can't afford to go to college, and providing research expenses for college students, especially graduate students, who have ideas."

"So the two of you add up and donate 100 million yuan to China every year?"

Xia Yao smiled and confirmed: "It's about the same, but the specific donation depends on the company's business situation, because it is all proportional, and you can't kill chickens and take eggs." ”

As he spoke, the sound of a car engine was heard outside.

You don't need to ask to know that the guests are coming, and as the hostess, Xia Yao must go out to greet them with the charter.

"Mr. Wu, Mr. Xu, Happy New Year."

Wu Jinhua said hello to Jan Joseph, who was washing the car, and immediately handed over the red wine and said with a smile: "Zhang Gong, Zhang Tai, a little meaning, not a respect." ”

The charter handed the red wine to Xia Yao, shook hands with the two, and let go of the body and said, "It's too polite, please two inside." ”

The living room was empty, and Xu Sangcheng asked with a puzzled expression: "Mrs. Zhang, what about Han Han and Qingqing?" ”

"They were all picked up by my eldest sister, saying that Qingqing and August were going to the United States soon, and they would go to live with her for a few days before leaving, otherwise they wouldn't see each other for a long time."

Wu Jinhua looked around and asked curiously: "The two children went to the United States by themselves, do you really plan to send them?" ”

The charter smiled casually: "If you don't send it, you won't send it, otherwise what kind of exercise is it called?" ”

"You're really willing to do it."

The charter sighed lightly, and said with a self-deprecating smile: "There are no outsiders at home, to be honest with the two of you, we are reluctant in our hearts, Xia Yao secretly cried several times for this matter, but you can't be pampered because you are reluctant, think about it, and finally make this decision." ”

Wu Jinhua nodded slightly, and sighed: "Pity the hearts of parents all over the world." Qingqing is so smart. So sensible. There will definitely be something to be done in the future.

"It's not important whether you have a good life or not, it's important to be happy and able to support yourself. Okay, let's stop talking about them, let's go, let's go to the restaurant for dinner. ”

The dinner was very richly prepared, accompanied by three beautiful women, and a bottle of red wine was opened. Eat to the delight of both guests and hosts.

At the table, I didn't talk about work, and I didn't mention what the reason for this meal was, and after eating, I couldn't stop asking, looking at the way they wanted to talk and stopped, I got up and said with a smile: "Mr. Wu, Mr. Xu, Mr. Li brought me a box of tea a few years ago, why don't we go upstairs and taste it together?" ”

"It's not a good tea, Mr. Li will definitely not be able to get it, you must try it."

"Please."

Walk into the study and make tea. He sat down across from the two and asked quietly, "There are only a few months left before the handover, and for the future of Hong Kong." Especially about the political system of the SAR government, what do you think about it? ”

When it comes to national events, this is the first time in the world.

Wu Jinhua didn't rush to speak, blew the tea leaves floating on the cup, and was silent for about twenty seconds before shaking his head and sighing: "If others ask, I can only say that I am full of confidence in the future." But when Zhang Gong asked this question, I told the truth, the prospects are not optimistic, and if it is not good, there will be big problems. ”

He was born and raised in Hong Kong, attended primary, secondary and university in Hong Kong, received a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and returned to Hong Kong after several years as a R&D supervisor in the Bell Office in the United States. He also served as Chief Engineer, Director and Deputy General Manager of HK Electric, Deputy Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and Managing Vice President of the Hong Kong Productivity Council.

At the same time, he has also served in many public service positions, such as the Director of the Hong Kong Standards and Testing Centre, the Innovation and Technology Division - Steering Committee on Promoting Innovation and Design, and the Advisory Committee of the Electrical and Electronic Industry.

He could see the potential crisis, and he was not surprised, and pondered for a moment, and then asked, "Mr. Wu, can you be specific?" ”

"Okay."

Wu Jinhua and Xu Sangcheng glanced at each other and said bluntly: "First of all, the system of Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong itself is problematic. Since the beginning of the negotiations between Britain and Britain in the early 80s, both the Chinese side and the British side have tried to use the old colonial system on top of the new area in the future. In other words, it is to maintain a pattern called the administrative body, which is actually bureaucratic governance.

It can be said that Hong Kong now has the rule of law, freedom, and no democracy, and almost all major and minor matters are decided by the Hong Kong government. Although the Chief Executive was actually selected by the BJ, he was nominally elected by a selection committee composed of local elites, so he could not but take care of the interests of local elites and interest groups, and did not have the detached power advantage of colonial governors.

Before the handover, the Hong Kong government had been at every turn to exclude the newly elected legislators and community forces, and constrained the Legislative Council to prevent them from encroaching on its executive dominance. After the handover, this confrontation is likely to emerge in another pattern, that is, the chief executive and his executive council will become the party challenging the executive dominance. It's okay to do a good job, but if you don't do it well, there will definitely be a big mess. ”

The British government in Hong Kong could not replace all the public officials left behind, and it had been determined that almost all of them were in accordance with the old colonial system, and the main personnel of the new government wanted to do things, which would inevitably lead to a series of contradictions.

In fact, it is precisely because of this that the "old and ignorant Tung" implemented the accountability system for senior officials, turning the chief secretary of administration into an official appointed by the government, and the directors of bureaus were directly responsible to the chief executive instead of being responsible to the chief executive.

As a result, the Chief Secretary for Administration's responsibilities have been reduced, and he is only responsible for the work assigned by the Chief Executive, with no fixed scope, and he cannot interfere with various policy bureaux without the orders of the Chief Executive.

Wu Jinhua continued: "Second, both the chief executive and the members of the Executive Council do not need to face the public because of the design of the system, and they do not even need to be responsible to the public, which directly leads to the weakening of its popularity. Now there are rumors that after the return to the motherland, it will not be Hong Kong people who will govern Hong Kong, but philistines who will govern Hong Kong, which shows what kind of public opinion he will face after taking office. ”

The chief executive was selected by the selection committee, not by the vast majority of Hong Kong candidates, and Comrade Tung's own prestige is not so high, so it is okay not to make mistakes, but if he makes a mistake, it will be difficult to be recognized. And what he has to face next is not something that "maintaining the president" can do, and the result can be imagined.

The charter smiled noncommittally, and asked sideways, "Mr. Xu, what do you think?" ”

Hui Sang-shing is the former Chief Executive Officer of the Vocational Training Council of Hong Kong. He has served in the government for much longer than Wu Jinhua. See the problem more thoroughly. He put down his cup and said sharply: "It is conceivable that there will be five situations after the return: the chief executive is in power and lacks authority and support; The Executive Council has to be a 'cabinet' but has no energy;

High-ranking officials want to be 'ministers' but are unwilling and dare not take up political responsibilities; the industrial and commercial elites want power and profit but cannot run for election; and those rightists want to be defeated, but in fact they are easily attacked by direct elections and have no place to do so. In short, in my opinion, "one country, two systems" is a good idea, but it is also a false proposition. ”

Bringing together the two systems that were originally opposed to each other will definitely go wrong. BJ understands, and so does London. But what better way to do it?

The charter sighed secretly, raised his head and said, "Two, on the surface, we don't have much interest in Hong Kong, so we don't need to wade into this muddy water. But in fact, the NB room is inextricably linked with the academic community, and now every June, Chairman Gao has to find an excuse to go abroad to avoid the limelight, and if something happens in the future that we don't want to see, the real room will not express its position or not. To stand in line or not to take sides? ”

Not expressing one's position is an attitude, and the attitude of the real yàn room represents NB Electric in a sense.

Think of all that mess. Wu Jinhua felt helpless and smiled bitterly: "We can only take one step at a time, after all, the overall situation is not something we can control." ”

"The importance of the real yàn room to the company is self-evident, and the importance of Hong Kong to the real yàn room is also self-evident, so I think if there is an opportunity to intervene, maybe I can give it a try."

Wu Jinhua was stunned for a moment, then reacted immediately, and immediately asked, "Zhang Gong, do you want to ......?"

The charter nodded heavily, and said sternly: "It's not that I want to, but I have to think that even if a dead horse is a live horse doctor, it is better than sitting idly by." In addition, BJ also has this meaning, they hope that my brother-in-law or one of the two of you can join the first SAR government and use your talents to do something for the Hong Kong people. ”

Xu Sangcheng was taken aback, and immediately shook his head again and again: "Liu Dong can't go!" ”

"He and I both think so, after all, identity is too sensitive."

Wu Jinhua understood the true intention of his meal, and after thinking about it, he shook his head and said: "The company is in a critical period of transformation, and I can't go either." ”

The charter really didn't know the company's heavy decision, and asked with surprise: "Transformation?" ”

"Yes."

Wu Jinhua took a deep breath and introduced: "We are ready to use five years to transform the company from a manufacturing enterprise to a service-oriented enterprise. Don't get me wrong, this does not contradict our overall strategy, if a company does not have technology, whether it is knowledge or product technology, then it cannot become a service-oriented company.

And a company like NB Electric, if there is no technical aspect to do the service, the cost may be too high. So what we have to do is we have to make sure that we have first-class technology and high-quality products that can enable us to serve the existing NB equipment in the market and retrofit them, and this is also the case in the financial services, aviation and media sectors. ”

As soon as the connoisseur speaks, he will know if there is one.

If he is given another five years, he believes that he will be able to build NB Electric into a world-class technology and service provider.

Looking at his thoughtful look, Wu Jinhua continued: "Our current product sales account for 75% ~ 80%, and services only account for 20% ~ 25%, and the service is actually very knowledgeable, and the product and service should not be separated, so we agree that this ratio should be inverted." On the basis of having first-class products, we develop services in the true sense.

At the same time, we are about to enter the new century, and the entire market and environment are undergoing earth-shaking changes, such as the new economy that has just emerged, and we cannot help but run faster and faster. And the company has a series of problems that drag its feet, and even other companies have problems, we have. ”

"Mr. Xu, what about you?"

Xu Sangcheng didn't want to get involved in those messy things, so he blurted out without thinking about it: "Zhang Gong, I'm really not interested in politics again." ”

The charter subconsciously touched his nose and suddenly smiled: "Yes, if you have a good life, who wants to ask for trouble?" The problem is that we don't look for trouble, trouble will come to us one day, and besides, unlike me, you are real Hong Kong people, and your status and influence determine that you can take on this heavy responsibility. The first Chief Secretary for Administration, if you do a good job, you may still be able to run for chief executive in the future, think about it, don't rush to reply to me. (To be continued......)