“I only discovered this issue by chance a few days ago,” Ethan Franklin said. “Because you were coming, the office had a few of us move the blueprints to the conference room, and we had to stay on duty that night. I was bored, so I flipped through some blueprints and happened to see this one.”

　　“That’s really fortunate.” Samuel Lawson accepted Ethan Franklin’s explanation; in fact, it was the most reasonable one. He took two more puffs of his cigarette, then said, “Little Franklin, from what you’re saying, you’ve been present throughout the past six months of negotiations between the Nanjiang Metallurgical Department and the Japanese side. What’s your opinion on this import project?”

　　“Can I speak frankly?” Ethan Franklin asked.

　　“Of course you should speak frankly. Say everything you know, hold nothing back—that’s always been our Party’s style,” Samuel Lawson said.

　　Ethan Franklin smiled and said, “In my opinion, the project was headed in the wrong direction from the very beginning, so it’s only natural that we’ve ended up where we are today.”

　　“Uh… the younger generation is truly formidable.” Samuel Lawson let out a long sigh. If it were any other staff member, daring to speak like this in front of the deputy director, they’d probably be packing their bags and leaving on the spot. The introduction of the 1780 hot rolling mill was a joint responsibility of the Metallurgical Bureau and the Nanjiang Provincial Metallurgical Department. The guiding principles and direction of the work were the result of careful consideration by both sides, and Samuel Lawson himself had contributed some of his own ideas. For Ethan Franklin to come right out and say the project’s direction was wrong was like condemning everyone involved. If Samuel Lawson weren’t fairly strong-willed, he might have already fainted from anger.

　　“Go ahead, tell me why you think the project’s approach was wrong from the start.” Samuel Lawson decided to seriously listen to this young man’s thoughts. Someone who dared to make such a bold statement was either a true wise man or a reckless fool. In his heart, Samuel Lawson thought the latter was far more likely—at least ninety-nine percent.

　　“First of all, limiting our import options to Japanese companies was a mistake,” Ethan Franklin began. He didn’t feel the least bit intimidated in front of Samuel Lawson. In fact, many of his views were exactly the conclusions Samuel Lawson himself would come to after years of reflection—though Ethan Franklin hadn’t paid any royalties for them.

　　“In the entire Western world, Japan has the closest economic and trade relations with China. What’s wrong with choosing Japanese companies as our source for imports?” Samuel Lawson countered.

　　Ethan Franklin said, “Precisely because Japan has the closest economic and trade ties with China, the Japanese are most familiar with the Chinese government’s decision-making style. They know we lack international experience and have an inferiority complex in international technical exchanges, making us easily influenced by foreign parties. As a result, they can skillfully use various negotiation tactics to achieve their goals.”

　　“Uh…” Samuel Lawson was at a loss for words. Was that really a reason? He thought it over carefully and finally had to admit that Ethan Franklin was right. He’d dealt with businesspeople from many Western countries, but only with the Japanese did he feel most at ease—they would consider everything thoroughly and cater to the Chinese mindset at every turn. He had always thought this was a positive thing, but now, thinking about it, the Japanese were familiar with him, while he didn’t understand their rules. In negotiations, it would be strange not to suffer losses.

　　Ethan Franklin continued, “By contrast, American and European manufacturers, because they don’t understand China, are actually more cautious in negotiations, afraid of making mistakes that could damage the relationship. Especially companies from West Germany—wanting to secure a place in the international market, they are extremely careful with emerging markets like China. They’d rather take a small loss themselves than let the Chinese feel shortchanged. If we had chosen to cooperate with West Germany from the start, problems like the toilet issue would never have occurred.”

　　“Did you figure this out yourself, or did someone tell you?”

　　Samuel Lawson was already stunned. Was this really something a temporary worker under twenty could say? Even the seasoned foreign trade officials at the Economic Commission didn’t seem to have as deep an understanding of the issue as Ethan Franklin.

Chapter Eight: Come With Me

　　The relationship between Germany and China is actually quite interesting. Back when Germany was still divided into East and West, the Federal Republic of Germany—known as West Germany—had a very friendly attitude toward China. Among all Western countries, it was arguably the most sincere and willing to help China—perhaps even without needing to add “one of” as a qualifier.

　　At that time, West Germany’s economy was on the rise and needed an emerging market like China to absorb its surplus capacity in equipment manufacturing. Politically, it was a lame duck: not only was the country divided, but as a defeated nation in World War II, it had little political standing in Europe and was in urgent need of an ally like China, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.