Traveling through the sword to engage in military industry

Main plane, Hanyang.

Hu Rentao of the Steel Institute didn't expect his trading partner to drive from Jincheng to Hanyang overnight.

"Boss Ren, did you bring all the samples?" Hu Rentao didn't waste any time and went straight to the point.

"Professor Hu, they're all in my car. Do you want me to take them to your lab now?" Ren Zhong nodded and said.

"Boss Ren," Hu Rentao suddenly paused, a little embarrassed, "Our previous cooperation was private, and basically didn't use any lab resources, so contracts weren't necessary."

"But now, to test these things, we need to use the lab's equipment, so we need to sign a horizontal technical cooperation agreement to operate. I didn't explain this clearly to Boss Ren yesterday, and I'm really sorry."

Hu Rentao was truly embarrassed. In his opinion, this was somewhat opportunistic, but with people coming and going in the lab, he couldn't get over the feeling of doing this secretly.

"No problem." Ren Zhong was stunned for a moment, and then, hearing that Hu Rentao was worried about this, he immediately felt relieved. Signing a contract was good. With a contract, he wouldn't have to worry about Professor Hu not doing his best.

"Professor Hu, I'll sign the contract however you say. You can ask for any amount of funding. Also, I want us to establish a long-term cooperative relationship as much as possible. In addition to the quality analysis, optimization, and improvement of this open-hearth steelmaking, we will also use this open-hearth furnace to refine some special alloy steels, such as nickel steel and high-manganese steel. I think it's best to include everything."

Ren Zhong said readily. Money was not a problem for him now. The amount of money for Hu Rentao's horizontal contract was much less than for new product research. These were very mature formula designs in the main plane, but Ren Zhong needed Hu Rentao to customize them for his designed open-hearth furnace.

Hu Rentao didn't expect Ren Zhong to be so straightforward. His old face turned slightly red. He thought for a moment, "For projects that require the use of laboratory testing instruments, we will charge according to the actual costs incurred. I estimate that 300,000 yuan a year will be enough. I can personally solve the alloy steel process design and optimization you mentioned. I'll calculate half a year's workload, 30,000 yuan a month, so let's say 180,000 yuan. We'll sign this technical testing and consulting service contract for 480,000 yuan. If you need to issue an invoice, there may be an additional 6% tax, slightly exceeding 500,000 yuan."

Hu Rentao didn't overcharge. For him, after signing this contract, the school would directly take away 20%, or 100,000 yuan, as a management fee. The remaining amount would be submitted to the lab, which would cost about 100,000 yuan for experimental equipment. He would keep more than 200,000 yuan for half a year, which was basically the standard price for university teachers. After all, this would take a year to complete intermittently.

"I have no problem with that. Professor Hu, just draft the contract according to this. I'll sign it today. Should I use my personal name or must I find a company legal person? I currently have three companies in different industries under my name, which may not be suitable for the steel industry. One is a battery factory, one is engaged in communication equipment, and the other is a toy factory. If signing with a company is not appropriate, I can also entrust a mechanical processing factory." Ren Zhong had never done this before, so he directly asked Hu Rentao for advice.

Anyway, he would pay the money himself, so it didn't matter to him how it was done.

"If Mr. Ren doesn't require cooperation with the school in the name of a horizontal project, but rather cooperates with me personally as a scientific and technological worker, it is also possible to cooperate with Mr. Ren personally," Hu Rentao said. "The school's policies on horizontal projects are now flexible, so it doesn't matter."

"Then let's cooperate in my personal name, so as to avoid the trouble of official seals and paperwork," Ren Zhong decided directly. "This is not a project that requires applying for awards or local subsidies, so the school's name is useless."

"Professor Hu, that's settled for the contract. Next, during the execution of the contract, if Professor Hu solves a process optimization of a new product and achieves our production capacity design goals, then I will personally give you an additional 100,000 yuan as a reward for each item. This work will be effective for a long time. I hope we have a pleasant cooperation!"

If you want the horse to run fast, you must feed it well. Although Ren Zhong didn't have much work experience, he still understood this principle.

Sure enough, as soon as he said this, Hu Rentao's expression changed slightly.

"Mr. Ren, is this true?" Hu Rentao didn't pretend to be polite. Middle-aged people need real money to buy necessities. He was an associate professor at a university, and although it sounded glamorous on the outside, his annual income at the school was not very high. Under normal circumstances, it was less than 300,000 yuan. If there was no additional income from horizontal projects, and his wife's job was also average, the combined annual income of the two was less than 500,000 yuan, which was not very good in Hanyang.

After all, rigid demands such as mortgage and children's education cost at least two to three hundred thousand a year.

If Ren Zhong's project could really be realized, Hu Rentao's annual income would be more than doubled at once, and it would be based on his own ability to earn money. Ren Zhong didn't attach any difficult conditions, which was equivalent to earning money while standing. This was the lifestyle that Hu Rentao most hoped for.

"Of course it's true, Professor Hu. Let's sign our horizontal cooperation contract first. I don't need to issue an invoice, so let's sign it for 500,000 yuan. Then I'll directly transfer all the contract funds to you. In addition, I'll personally transfer another 100,000 yuan as a reward for this process optimization. We haven't cooperated much before, so we lack mutual understanding. I will continue to do this business for a long time, and it will definitely become bigger and bigger. After a long time, Professor Hu will know what kind of person I am." Ren Zhong didn't say anything else and directly threw money at him!

This direct use of money was more persuasive.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Hu Rentao's breathing immediately became much faster. He thought that although what this Boss Ren was doing seemed a bit weird, he was indeed throwing down real money. Thinking of this, Hu Rentao had no more doubts. Although he didn't understand what the point of the other party doing these things was, the money was really attractive!

Horizontal technical cooperation contracts were readily available templates. Consulting services were very vague. Ren Zhong didn't need to set too strict restrictions to prevent Hu Rentao from slacking off, so everyone had nothing to discuss about the terms of the contract. It was completed in less than half an hour. The remaining school procedures were not urgent, so they could be done slowly. Professor Hu also told Ren Zhong not to rush the matter of paying the school, and it would only be possible to establish a project at the school after the contract procedures were completed.

As for the 100,000 yuan bonus, Hu Rentao also declined it for a while, but Ren Zhong didn't care and directly transferred 100,000 yuan to Professor Hu's personal account.

Ren Zhong didn't mention a word about the construction period, but he knew that Professor Hu must have put him first and started working hard! In addition to the required school courses and teaching, Professor Hu put all other things behind and called on several graduate students to start analyzing the steel samples and raw material samples brought back by Ren Zhong, as well as things related to the entire process flow.