Chapter 104: Tang Yun

At the Private Enterprise Symposium.

Zhang Yuwen was casually chatting with other entrepreneurs, waiting for the meeting to commence.

A staff member came over with a kettle, refilling the tea cups of those present.

After finishing, he did not leave.

He greeted Zhang Yuwen and politely asked, “Excuse me, are you responsible for Heze Tang Yun Apparel Co., Ltd.?”

Zhang Yuwen was puzzled, unsure why this was being brought up.

“I’m not directly in charge. Tang Yun Apparel is a subsidiary of our group, managed by a dedicated team.”

“That doesn’t make much difference,” the staff member gestured invitingly. “Ms. Zhang, someone is looking for you outside the venue.”

Zhang Yuwen found this increasingly strange.

However, given the heavy security at the venue, it was unlikely to be a trap. After a brief consideration, she decided to go.

Outside the venue, two Grey Jackets confirmed Zhang Yuwen’s identity, and she, along with her accompanying secretary, was escorted away from the venue.

Zhang Yuwen only had time to notice that the Grey Jackets’ credentials bore the words “Ministry of State Security.”

Beyond that, she knew nothing.

Her questions went unanswered by the Grey Jackets.

Zhang Yuwen truly had no idea what was going on.

She had taken over the group from her elders, and while she couldn’t claim to work tirelessly day and night, she had always conducted business conscientiously, adhering to principles and ethics.

Despite ups and downs, she had never engaged in anything illegal, even in the toughest times.

This was the first time she had encountered such a situation.

What could possibly warrant the involvement of the Ministry of State Security?

Zhang Yuwen thought she would be taken to some government office, but instead, she and her secretary were placed in a hotel.

The two were not allowed to communicate, each in separate rooms.

All her communication devices were confiscated, the room phone was disabled, and someone was stationed outside the door 24/7.

She was under “house arrest.” The documents shown by the Grey Jackets before they left indicated that she was involved in an international smuggling case, which was still under investigation, and she was currently under legal scrutiny.

The hotel room was well-equipped, and the meals were of a high standard. Any other needs could be communicated to the guard outside, and they would be met.

But external communication was impossible.

Zhang Yuwen couldn’t eat or sleep well.

She racked her brains but couldn’t figure out how she was connected to international smuggling.

Could it be that illegal items were found hidden in their company’s foreign orders?

But even so, it should only require cooperation with the investigation, not this level of restriction.

She spent a day and a night in anxiety.

It wasn’t until after breakfast the next day that Zhang Yuwen finally met two Black Jackets.

“Let’s talk about the situation.”

Zhang Yuwen said, “Comrades, to be honest, I really don’t know anything. Could you give me a hint?”

The Black Jacket responsible for taking notes glanced up but said nothing.

Zhang Yuwen speculated, “Yesterday someone asked me if I was responsible for Tang Yun Apparel. Did something happen over there?”

“Then tell us about Tang Yun Apparel.”

“In recent years, with the rise of ‘guochao’ (national trends), our company opened a production line specializing in Hanfu and new Chinese styles, which is Tang Yun Apparel. It was registered five years ago, targeting the mid to high-end market, and sales have been decent. What specific aspects do you want to know?”

The Black Jacket in charge of questioning saw that she was genuinely unaware.

He took out a folder from his bag and handed it to Zhang Yuwen.

Zhang Yuwen opened it, and each page contained different swatches of fabric.

From the texture and patterns, she recognized these as fabrics produced by Tang Yun’s factory, Imitation Tang Brocade.

Black Jackets: “These are samples of fabric we intercepted last night at Qingdao Port, about to be shipped out.”

Zhang Yuwen still didn’t understand what they were trying to convey.

A few thin pieces of fabric couldn’t possibly conceal anything.

But the Black Jackets remained silent.

She had no choice but to introduce it herself.

“Initially, we used more common acetate, silk, and silk-blend fabrics for Hanfu and new Chinese styles. Later, the market feedback was that our products were expensive but had short color retention, were prone to wrinkles, and snagged easily. So, we decided to develop our own fabric. There were technical bottlenecks until our R&D team saw a piece of Tang Dynasty brocade in a museum, and its colorfastness and abrasion resistance were even stronger than modern fabrics. That’s when we decided to pursue the ‘antique fabric’ route…”

The Black Jackets interrupted her, “As the head of a group, you must be very busy. How do you know so much about the fabric development of a subsidiary?”

Zhang Yuwen replied, “You might ask about other things I’m not so familiar with, but it happens that I was fully involved in the development of this fabric. The main technical lead for this ‘Imitation Tang Brocade’ is my aunt. She was the one who visited the museum. She used to work in a chemical lab at another institution and had retired, but couldn’t stay idle, so she helped me research fabrics. The Imitation Tang Brocade is just one of her achievements.

During the research, she discovered that silk protein, under specific pH conditions and with ultrasonic intervention, could form a special beta-fold structure, providing strong abrasion resistance. But actually, this is considered a failed fabric.”

Black Jackets: “How so?”

“The cost is high, and it tends to gray, lacking brightness. We once used this fabric to make several batches of ma mian skirts with gold weaving, but the sales data wasn’t great. We weren’t planning to produce this fabric anymore. Later, a foreign fashion designer came to China for inspiration, visited our factory, and bought a few pieces to take back. It was reportedly well-received by his friends.

That fashion designer’s brand, an established clothing brand, was willing to purchase in large quantities, saying they wanted to make clothes with Chinese elements. The brand is an old one, and they initially ordered 30,000 tons.

Currently, Tang Yun’s production capacity couldn’t keep up. They wanted to invest in expanding Tang Yun’s production line, but I didn’t agree. Without meticulous craftsmanship, we couldn’t deliver quality. Eventually, we agreed on 10,000 tons, signing a five-year contract with phased deliveries, once per quarter. Most are Imitation Tang Brocade, with some other fabrics.”

Black Jackets: “How many shipments have you made?”

Zhang Yuwen replied, “The contract was signed last November, and this is the first shipment.”

After thinking for a moment, she added, “Last year, when they came for an inspection, they took away dozens of rolls of stock from our warehouse. Other than that, there’s been nothing.”

Despite saying all this, Zhang Yuwen still didn’t understand what had happened.

The Black Jacket recording received a notification on his phone, glanced at it, and handed it to the questioning Black Jacket.

After looking at it, the questioning officer nodded, closed the folder, stood up, and extended his hand to Zhang Yuwen, “Your review is over. Ms. Zhang, thank you for your cooperation, and sorry for the inconvenience.”

Zhang Yuwen shook his hand.

Black Jackets: “We’d appreciate it if you could join us elsewhere. There are some matters we’d like to discuss.”

Zhang Yuwen followed the two Black Jackets not far, just to a conference room downstairs in the hotel.

Inside the conference room, the general manager of Tang Yun Apparel was already there.

Seeing Zhang Yuwen, he was delighted, having found his backbone.

He exclaimed excitedly, “President Zhang, I’m so glad to see you.”

Zhang Yuwen asked, “What’s going on?”

“I’m not sure. I was on a business trip when I got a call from someone claiming to be from the Ministry of National Defense Science and Technology, wanting to discuss business and asking me to head north. I was confused and couldn’t reach you. Then they called again, saying you were already here waiting. So I came, bewildered.”

Zhang Yuwen sighed, “Let’s just wait.”

They received an experimental test report.

The testing date was fresh, conducted overnight.

The report showed that the ‘Imitation Tang Brocade’ had been subjected to a series of rigorous tests, including 9mm bullet impact, plasma burning, liquid nitrogen immersion and recovery, and strong acid soaking.

The report provided a series of data indicators.

To summarize simply, compared to Kevlar and several other fiber materials, the Imitation Tang Brocade exhibited superior performance in high-temperature resistance, low-temperature resistance, corrosion resistance, and impact resistance. In some data points, it was unparalleled.

In short, the Imitation Tang Brocade was extremely durable!

Zhang Yuwen felt like she was reading a foreign language.

She knew the Imitation Tang Brocade was durable, as it was originally produced to overcome market challenges.

But!!!!

No one told her it was this durable!!!!

The general manager of Tang Yun Apparel beside her had eyes even wider than Zhang Yuwen’s.

“This is the situation.”

The person negotiating with Zhang Yuwen and her team was a comrade in uniform with epaulettes.

The comrade was very amiable, smiling, “Now I understand why you produced such a fabric without filing a technical record.”

Zhang Yuwen was embarrassed, “Honestly, looking at your report, I almost feel like someone swapped my fabric.”

The comrade said, “It’s not too late to know now. As you can see, given the performance data of this fabric, it is not suitable for circulation in the civilian market, let alone being exported.”

Zhang Yuwen saw another investigation report.

The foreign clothing brand she signed the fabric procurement contract with wasn’t well-known internationally, but during World War II, it had been requisitioned for military supplies manufacturing, and currently, there were traces of national defense holdings.

It wasn’t hard to guess where this batch of fabric was ultimately headed.

Now, Zhang Yuwen finally felt a chill, breaking into a cold sweat.

Fortunately, the shipment was intercepted.

The power of the national machinery rose another notch in Zhang Yuwen’s heart.

A disaster was averted before it could manifest.

Putting down the document, Zhang Yuwen asked seriously, “May I ask, what is your purpose today?”

Naturally, it was to acquire the patent on behalf of the state.

With last night’s events as a precedent, the subsequent negotiations, or rather cooperation, proceeded relatively smoothly.

The losses and penalties for breaching the export contract would be covered by the state.

Subsequent cooperation would be conducted under an “ownership transfer + military licensing” model.

The military team would structure the company’s core technology chain and buy out the technology, with an initial estimated offer of 840 million yuan.

Meanwhile, Tang Yun Apparel and its affiliated group companies would enjoy certain tax reductions, with Tang Yun receiving the highest reduction rate and duration.

The company could still retain the production rights for Hanfu using this fabric but would need to downgrade the fabric technology.

The core technical team involved in the fabric research could voluntarily transfer to the military system, enjoying civilian officer benefits.

Additionally, if the military team achieved breakthroughs in this fabric technology, they could receive a free derivative technology authorization. Other derivative technologies could be purchased with priority.

One could say the terms were exceptionally generous.

The general manager of Tang Yun, in a daze, arrived and left with the contract in hand, still in a daze.

Besides the terms written in black and white, Tang Yun also became part of the 【National Procurement and Supply Unit】.

This was a tangible benefit he couldn’t have achieved even if he drank himself into liver failure or kidney collapse.

Not to mention the wave of resources and connections that would soon follow.

Tang Yun Apparel is about to rise!!!

He wasn’t even sure which deity he had prayed to during the New Year, and now he didn’t even have a place to fulfill his vows.

Oh well, he decided to revisit every Taoist Temple he had visited during the New Year.