Chapter 69

When it came to his wife's surgery, Kindler immediately broke into a broad smile, repeatedly saying, "Good! Very good! The surgery went very smoothly, and her recovery has been normal. The doctor said that in three months, my wife will be completely fine."

As he spoke, Kindler looked at Chen Geng with deep gratitude in his eyes.

"Congratulations," Chen Geng said sincerely, "You have done everything a husband can do for your wife."

Chen Geng's words were heartfelt. Kindler had truly done everything for his wife, which Chen Geng admired greatly. There is a saying, "Husbands and wives are like birds in the forest, flying away when disaster strikes," but Kindler had shown Chen Geng the greatness and brilliance of love. Despite being a foreigner, the greatness of love transcends national boundaries.

Feeling Chen Geng's deep respect, Kindler seemed a bit surprised, but the next moment, he understood Chen Geng's meaning.

"Who is this?" After their conversation, Kindler finally asked Chen Geng about Zhang Zhonghua, assuming he was someone Chen Geng had brought along.

"Mr. Kindler, hello, I am from the Shanghai Animation Film Studio," Zhang Zhonghua stepped forward and said, "I met you at the last month's Bu Sang localization meeting."

Not Chen's companion? Kindler was taken aback for a moment, then turned to look at Chen Geng.

Chen Geng said, "Mr. Zhang is someone I met on the train, a good friend."

Understanding Chen Geng's explanation, Kindler shook hands with Zhang Zhonghua with a certain reserve, "Mr. Zhang, hello."

Though somewhat perfunctory, Zhang Zhonghua did not mind. Germans are arrogant? They have every right to be. Their country is powerful, everyone lives in villas and drives cars, with annual incomes in the tens of thousands of dollars. Why shouldn't they be arrogant? It's Chen Geng's courtesy that is unusual. Enthusiastically, he said, "Since you are a friend of Xiao Chen, I am reassured... Comrade Xiao Chen, you must come to our unit to visit."

Compared to his previous perfunctory attitude, this time he was genuinely and sincerely inviting Chen Geng to the Shanghai Animation Film Studio, all because of Chen Geng's relationship with Kindler.

"Sure," Chen Geng readily agreed.

...

To pick up Chen Geng, Kindler had gone all out, driving an Audi 100. Zhang Xiangyang, who had never sat in such a high-end car before, was so cautious that he didn't dare to move, for fear of damaging the luxurious vehicle.

Seeing his brother being so careful, as if admiring a delicate piece of porcelain, Chen Geng felt a sudden surge of frustration. What was the point of making so much money if he had to hide it and his brother couldn't even sit in a car without being so cautious?

Chen Geng, always an emotional person, especially as a designer, immediately asked Kindler, "Mr. Kindler, can you help me get a car?"

"Get?" Kindler blinked. Although he had been working in China for several years and could handle simple Chinese conversations, he still found it difficult to adapt to the multiple expressions of a single word in Chinese, like "hole," "cave," "eye," and so on, or the word "get" that Chen Geng had just used.

However, despite the difficulty, Kindler quickly understood, "You want a car?"

Chen Geng replied seriously, "Not that I want it, but that I will buy it."

Kindler looked hesitant, "Chen, you know, I am only responsible for technology and processes. The sales of Bu Sang are handled by a professional sales company, and Bu Sang is very popular right now. However, if you don't mind getting a Shanghai instead, there would be no problem."

Replace Bu Sang with Shanghai? No problem at all. Chen Geng patted Zhang Xiangyang, who was carefully examining the dashboard filled with buttons, and asked, "Lao Er, what do you think about us buying a car?"

"Of course, that would be great," Zhang Xiangyang replied without hesitation.

He thought Chen Geng was just saying it and didn't take it seriously.

"Alright, then it's settled. We'll buy a car."

"Oh..." Zhang Xiangyang responded absentmindedly, then suddenly realized, "What did you just say?"

Ignoring Zhang Xiangyang, Chen Geng switched to German, "Mr. Kindler, are you sure this is no problem?"

"I am certain and absolutely sure there is no problem. If you really want a Shanghai car, I can guarantee you the best price," Kindler said calmly.

"Old Jin, you've changed," pointing at Kindler, Chen Geng laughed, "You used to look down on such things."

"Times have changed," Kindler said nonchalantly, "I've found that this is very good. My colleagues and your compatriots respect me more."

Chen Geng believed Kindler. Chinese society values relationships and reciprocity. Kindler, a German, had adapted to this and given him face. Those who received Kindler's "favor" felt honored, and the units he approached felt flattered: even a foreigner is seeking our help, how much face that gives us! It's something to boast about in the future.

However, before Chen Geng could thank him, Kindler added, "But I don't think you need to pay for it."

"Oh?" Chen Geng wasn't surprised. No one said he had to buy a car if he wanted one. In his previous life, the car he drove wasn't bought with his own money. He was more curious about how Kindler planned to arrange it.

Kindler found Chen Geng's reaction strange, "Aren't you surprised?"

Chen Geng countered, "Why should I be surprised?"

"Alright, I forgot you are Chinese, and I learned this trick from you," Kindler shook his head in frustration, then got to the point, "I know a guy from Rongzhou. Do you know how he got a car?"

Without waiting for Chen Geng's answer, he said admiringly, "That guy had business dealings with your Shanghai Zhongnan Tobacco Station and had a good relationship with its leaders. One day, a leader from Zhongnan Tobacco Station told him, 'Put 10,000 yuan here, take the car, and bring the receipts for fuel and maintenance to me for reimbursement. When the car breaks down or can't be used anymore, bring it back.'"

Sure enough, that's how it works!

Chen Geng wasn't surprised at all. This was very common. The only thing he was interested in was, "Can you do that?"

"Coincidentally, SAIC has provided five Shanghai SH760A sedans for our German team, but we prefer Bu Sang and Audi, so those five cars have been sitting there," Kindler smiled, "If these cars were for someone else, as you Chinese would say, 'they wouldn't have the face,' but you are an exception."

If someone else came to "borrow" the car, the German team wouldn't care who they were, but if it was Chen Geng, it was different. The Wolfsburg headquarters was still wary of this guy. Although Chen Geng had confidently stated that there were no more loopholes or potential faults, Wolfsburg didn't fully trust him. Therefore, the headquarters instructed the high-level staff in China to be as friendly as possible with this Chinese guy.

Chen Geng didn't know about this, but he was never one to be humble. Hearing this, he immediately said, "Then let's take two."

"..." Kindler stared at Chen Geng in shock, "Chen, you are even more shameless than I imagined."

"Wrong!" Chen Geng rebutted with a righteous expression, "I am just helping you maintain the good mechanical condition of those two cars. As a car engineer, you know, cars are not driven to ruin, but left to ruin."

"I have a deeper understanding of your shamelessness," Kindler said bluntly, giving Chen Geng the middle finger, "You have shown me the limits of human shamelessness."

"I will continue to help you refresh that limit," Chen Geng said shamelessly.

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

"What are you talking about?" Zhang Xiangyang, who had been counting the buttons on the dashboard for the third time, was finally drawn to the laughter of Chen Geng and Kindler, looking puzzled, but feeling relieved: if Lao San and this German foreigner have such a good relationship, the chances of success this time are really high.

"Oh, Mr. Kindler said he will lend us two Shanghai sedans," Chen Geng emphasized the word "lend," "We can use them for as long as we want, no need to rush to return them, even if we go to Hai Zhou for a meeting, they will cover the fuel and maintenance costs."

Zhang Xiangyang was stunned for a moment, then became excited. Growing up in a military compound, he had seen this kind of situation many times and found it unremarkable. The only thing he was interested in was, "Can we really get the cars? When can we get them?"

"Of course, we can get them," Chen Geng nodded, "These cars are provided by SAIC for the Wolfsburg Bu Sang team. If I remember correctly, they are only about two years old, with less than 1,000 kilometers on the odometer..."

"Aren't they brand new?" Zhang Xiangyang interrupted excitedly.

By the standards of this era, a car with less than 1,000 kilometers and only two years old was indeed brand new.

"Sure, you can call them new," Chen Geng nodded, "The Wolfsburg Bu Sang team prefers Bu Sang and Audi, so these cars have been sitting there. They can be 'borrowed' by us. The only issue is that we won't be able to fly back when we return..."