Chapter 196 - 167: The Shock of All Parties (Part 2)

Chapter 196: Chapter 167: The Shock of All Parties (Part 2)

While others were desperately pursuing asset-light business models, Chen Xiao did the exact opposite, specializing in acquiring mature commercial plazas and running heavy-asset operations. This was a clear sign that his cash flow was incredibly flush.

Xu Wu couldn’t even imagine where he got so much money, but she knew he definitely had plenty in reserve. To this day, he had never once mentioned needing a bank loan!

’Who’d ever seen anything like it? An investment of tens of billions, all those fixed assets, and not a single cent in loans.’

That was why Xu Wu asserted that Chen Xiao was wealthier than Leibus. Of course, her main objective was to shore up morale.

She spoke eloquently, her every word landing with resounding force.

Her voice was pleasant, brimming with a confidence so infectious it left Xu Gang stunned.

He wasn’t overly skeptical, however, because he had already been thinking along the same lines as Xu Wu. The acquisition and the increased investment had been made without a single cent in loans. This proved the corporation’s cash flow was more than sufficient.

A weight was lifted from his shoulders. As long as the corporation was determined and had the capital to back it, he, Xu Gang, would give it his all and fight for it with everything he had.

’So what if the outside world is pessimistic? Let them be. What can those people do besides run their mouths?’

The Hongmeng Intelligent Selection Car had faced the same thing: first, people looked down on it; then, they couldn’t understand it; and finally, they couldn’t catch up to it.

The pessimism surrounding Junxing Auto wasn’t about its operational methods. In fact, for an automaker to truly become a major player, it absolutely must control its own core technologies.

It was just that very few car companies had the financial strength to develop everything in-house.

This was precisely the point of pessimism for outsiders regarding Junxing Auto. How could a company fresh out of bankruptcy and restructuring possibly have the financial strength for such massive R&D investments?

The crucial point was that its sales had ground to a halt. Where would the massive funds needed for subsequent R&D come from?

But now that Xu Wu had guaranteed funding wouldn’t be an issue, none of those problems existed. In fact, Xu Gang now felt that all the corporation’s current strategies were moving in exactly the right direction!

’As for all that noise from the outside world, let them talk. It probably won’t be long before they have to eat their own words.’

The internet has a long memory. He would wait for the day he could use sales figures to slap them all in the face.

’For now, I just have to endure!’

’I’ll keep my head down, work hard, and bide my time. When the Junxing M7 is released, I’ll let the facts speak for themselves!’

In addition to funding, Xu Wu also told him the corporation would be investing heavily in the entire automotive supply chain. This would provide powerful support for Junxing Auto’s future parts procurement.

Xu Gang was filled with ambition. He felt he could now dismiss all the criticism on the internet as insignificant background noise.

But that night, a livestream hosted by a social media influencer nearly brought him to tears of anger.

It was a livestream discussion about the current auto market, hosted by a KOL.

The host was a well-known industry influencer with the screen name Xiangzi. He had his own insights into the auto market and was known for his fact-based discussions, free of brand bias.

This was why the data he shared was so credible within the industry, unlike some brands’ Key Opinion Consumers, who tend to praise their aligned brands to the high heavens while taking every opportunity to belittle competitors.

One segment of the livestream was a recap of the previous week’s sales data for the new energy vehicle market.

This data was handled by a Key Opinion Consumer with the screen name "Painless and Itchless," whose sources were known to be quite reliable.

Of course, the various companies’ sales data methodologies weren’t perfectly aligned—some counted insurance registrations, others counted wholesale volume—but the figures were largely accurate and still held considerable reference value.

He had a certain routine whenever he reported the data on his livestreams.

"First up, the total auto market sales last week were 420,000 units, with new energy vehicles accounting for 230,000 of those, a 55% share!"

"This means that in the domestic market, the share of new energy vehicles has completely overtaken that of traditional gas-powered cars."

"New energy vehicles are the rising sun, while gas-powered cars are heroes in their twilight years, fading into obsolescence!"

"Among new energy vehicles, Prince Di is once again far in the lead, with weekly sales of 100,000 units!"

"Given its powerful vertical integration, nationwide distribution network, and first-mover brand influence in the new energy vehicle space, its dominance in the low-to-mid-range market is absolute. Terrifyingly so!"

"If you look at the top ten on the sales charts, Prince Di alone sold more than second through ninth place combined."

"After Prince Di’s numbers, he moved on to the weekly sales for Lixiang and the Hongmeng Intelligent Selection Car. Both of these brands were excelling in volume and price."

"They have a firm grip on the luxury new energy market. The Hongmeng Intelligent Selection Car, in particular, has crushed the traditional German luxury trio with its terrifying average selling price of 390,000."

"After covering these major brands, he continued down the list."

He usually only reported on the top performers, but for some reason, today he suddenly added, "After all that, we have one brand whose sales data is particularly interesting! It’s the only brand still in business that had weekly sales of zero!"

Xu Gang, who was watching the livestream, felt his heart sink. He then heard Painless and Itchless continue, "And that brand is the recently infamous ’Junxing Auto.’ You could say it’s set a new miracle in automotive history!"

Xu Gang’s face instantly flushed red.

The thing was, the guy wasn’t smearing him; he was stating a fact. It was just that this particular fact was so damn embarrassing. The livestream was full of people from the auto industry, many of whom knew him personally.

People were already sending him private messages to confirm it. It was a goddamn public humiliation, and there was no way out.