NOVEL NEXT Chapter 100 - 94 Contract Trap
Chapter 100: Chapter 94 Contract Trap
Lu Jiaxin wasn’t idle either; first, she joined Gu Wenfeng on a stroll around Gao Di Street, and then sought to inquire about the prices of leather. After getting a clear picture of the situation, the two of them went to the leather factory introduced by Manager He. The factory operated with a range of leathers including synthetic leather as well as natural leathers, such as sheepskin, cowhide, horsehide, and pigskin.
Lu Jiaxin prepared to make three grades of leather shoes with synthetic leather, cowhide, and sheepskin. This factory had an abundant supply of synthetic leather, while the sheepskin, cowhide, and horsehide were in limited supply and needed to be pre-ordered.
Lu Jiaxin had already calculated the quantity of leather she needed, but since she was looking for a shoe manufacturing contractor, the materials could be delivered in batches, and thus there was no need to buy everything at once.
After inquiring about the price of these leathers, she found that the owner of the leather factory, Sun Weiliang, quoted prices that were slightly lower than the market.
Lu Jiaxin wasn’t satisfied with this price and said, “Boss Sun, I will need a large amount of leather in the future. If you can offer a preferential price, I will come back to you for more supplies.”
After some bargaining, the final price Lu Jiaxin offered was ten percent lower than what Factory Manager Sun had initially quoted.
Lu Jiaxin said, “We didn’t bring any money today. Boss Sun, let’s go to the bank tomorrow, and after signing the contract, I’ll withdraw the money and pay you.”
The local security wasn’t good, and she certainly wouldn’t carry a large amount of cash on her. Gu Wenfeng was capable of fighting—taking on three or four adult men was no problem for him. But what if there were more than ten opponents? And if he had to deal with the assailants, he would be unable to protect her. If she were to be taken hostage or kidnapped… she valued her life too much to take such risks.
Sun Weiliang knew that she had deposited a large sum of money in the Construction Bank, so naturally, he had no objections.
After leaving the factory, Gu Wenfeng felt she was too impulsive, “Why did you decide on the price so soon? Manager He promised us that she would negotiate a preferential price for us.”
Lu Jiaxin laughed and replied, “It’s not necessary. The price quoted by Factory Manager Sun was already below the market rate, and I managed to get it reduced by another ten percent. If Manager He intervened, it would not only be a waste of personal favors but might also not secure us this price.”
Gu Wenfeng didn’t understand the intricacies of business and said, “I’ve heard that many people mess with contracts. Let’s find a lawyer, and have one look over the contract before we sign it tomorrow.”
Lu Jiaxin looked at him with surprise, “Brother Gu, you know about this too?”
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Gu Wenfeng had heard many stories about contract traps, “Some unscrupulous businessmen deliberately set traps in contracts, and many people who don’t understand get taken advantage of, ending up losing a lot of money.”
Lu Jiaxin nodded and said, “You’re absolutely right, having a lawyer check the contract before signing is best. Let’s go and see if we can find one, and if we can have a lawyer accompany us to the bank tomorrow, that’d be great. If not, it’s okay too. With Director He acting as a mediator, Sun Weiliang shouldn’t cheat us. Otherwise, it would be a slap in the face to Director He, and he would find it hard to get a loan in the future—not just from the Construction Bank but from other banks as well.”
It wasn’t because the banks were united, but that people with narrow vision cannot go far. Knowing that the loans they give out might not be recoverable and turn into bad debt, naturally, they wouldn’t offer them.
Gu Wenfeng felt that they couldn’t rely solely on Director He; after all, who knew what their relationship was. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Lu Jiaxin wasn’t just trusting Director He, she trusted herself, “It’s okay, I will scrutinize the contract carefully. If you’re not at ease, you can help check it tomorrow too.”
Gu Wenfeng said helplessly, “I don’t understand business, and I couldn’t identify a problem in the contract either. Jiaxin, I think it would be better to wait for Lu Jiajie and the others to come over before signing the contract.”
Lu Jiaxin didn’t want to wait that long, and Lu Jiajie might not necessarily understand these matters, “Fifth Brother needs to apply for his unpaid leave and find a few people, and with the travel time, it will take at least six or seven days. By then, the goods might have already arrived. Brother Gu, don’t worry, I have a clear understanding of the situation.”
Gu Wenfeng was quite helpless. It was good that the lady was resolute, but sometimes it could be quite a headache.
The next day, Lu Jiaxin arrived at the bank at the agreed time, and Sun Weiliang arrived a step ahead of them. After exchanging pleasantries, Lu Jiaxin got the contract.
After reading the contract, Lu Jiaxin pointed out a few issues, “Factory Manager Sun, your contract only lists cowhide and sheepskin but doesn’t specify that it is cowhide from yellow cattle and sheepskin from young sheep. Also, there is no clause on the penalty for delayed delivery.”
Cowhide comes in many varieties, like yellow cattle hide, water buffalo hide, and yak hide, with significant price differences; sheepskin is the same, with many types and price variations.
Director He glanced at Sun Weiliang with displeasure. It was she who had introduced the client, and now such issues had arisen, which was embarrassing for her.
Sun Weiliang passed the blame onto his subordinates, “I’ll have someone revise the contract right away.”
Lu Jiaxin said with a displeased face, “Boss Sun, please ensure the contract is checked thoroughly this time. We can’t afford such basic mistakes again.”
She wasn’t really angry. Her young age made it easy for others to underestimate her, and Gu Wenfeng was clearly not a businessman. Many businessmen want to make more money by finding loopholes, but such people can only be short-term partners. In the long run, forget it; they just can’t be trusted.
Sun Weiliang promised straight-faced that such errors would not happen again.
The contract was quickly amended and brought over. This time, Lu Jiaxin scrutinized the revised contract even more carefully, and it contained no traps. First, she signed and stamped the contract, then turned the page upside down and wrote a ‘Lu’ before stamping it again. Doing so was to prevent them from swapping out the first few pages of the contract. It was Sun Weiliang’s actions that made Lu Jiaxin feel this person was unreliable, so she became extra cautious.
Director He observed Lu Jiaxin with surprise; this youngster was as shrewd as the most experienced businessmen.
Once Sun Weiliang received the money, he left.
Concerned that Lu Jiaxin might hold a grudge, Director He took the initiative to ask, “Have you decided on a shoe manufacturing contractor? I know a few with good reputations.”
Lu Jiaxin didn’t take out her frustration on Director He. Although helping was for her own benefit, her intentions were good, “Please bother Director He to note down the information about those contractors, and we will visit them tomorrow.”
Director He swiftly wrote down the names and addresses of six shoe manufacturing contractors.
After thanking her, Lu Jiaxin left.
Gu Wenfeng frowned and said, “This Sun clearly has ill intentions; why didn’t you switch to another provider, instead of continuing the contract with him?”
In his view, finding issues in the contract should have been a dealbreaker.
Lu Jiaxin replied, “You can’t guarantee that the ones we find on our own will certainly be better than Sun Weiliang. With the incident that just occurred, I believe he won’t dare to cheat on this batch of goods.”
Knowing that she was knowledgeable, they wouldn’t dare to fool her any longer. When the goods arrive, Fifth Brother and his friends will be there, and with them inspecting, there’s no fear of receiving substandard or even counterfeit products.