Chapter 173 – This is the real Master Designer!
Michael Liu was dumbfounded. He had never expected that someone in this remote Bing City would know about American Chopper! He thought this was a simple job and he could make use of this project to increase the credibility of his company. But now, it seems that he and his company is finished.
For a new company, failing to clinch the first business deal and there’s still news of plagiarizing, the reputation would be all gone!
“Mr. Feng, I think I had misunderstood the design concept. Please give me another chance. I promised to come up with a different design which you will be satisfied.”
Michael Liu could tell that Feng Yu was the one who had the final say on the design.
“Fine. Then I will raise 2 points and see how you amend the design. Amend the design on the spot. Can you, do it?” Feng Yu stared at Michael Liu and smiled.
“No problem. I am confident of my skills. Please tell me what you want.” Michael Liu was speaking politely to Feng Yu who was much younger than him.
“First, how can you make the rider more comfortable; Second, how can you make this motorcycle suits the lifestyle of our people? The back of the motorcycle must be able to carry goods.”
Everyone understood the first point. But Li Mingde was confused about the second point. This is a motorcycle and not a truck. Why would it carry goods?
Before he said anything, Michael Liu lowered his head and started sketching with a pencil on a piece of paper. It seems like he was inspired by what Feng Yu said.
Feng Yu sat down on the sofa and crossed his legs: “Manager Li, I am in your office for quite some time. Why isn’t there a cup of tea?”
Manager Li’s secretary went out to get a cup of tea angrily. When Feng Xingtai was there, he does not even need to serve tea. This troublesome kid wanted him to make tea? Does he think that importing technologies and machines from the Soviet Union makes him special? In this company, General Manager Li still have the final say!
Michael Liu finished his sketch within 10 minutes. He checked it and made sure that this design fulfilled Feng Yu’s requirements!
“Manager Feng, please look at this sketch. Does it fulfill your requirements?”
Feng Yu took the sketch from him and looked at it. The handlebars and seats were lowered, and this would allow the rider to ride comfortably. He had fulfilled the first requirement.
But at the back of the motorcycle there was a bracket and the front there was a small basket. It looks like the lady’s bicycle from his previous life. There was nothing wrong with this, but it was not practical. The basket at the front would block the headlights, and the brackets at the back were too big. The motorcycle could not really be a truck.
This Michael Liu could finish a sketch within 10 minutes proves that he does have some skills. Feng Yu does not know the speed of others, but the designers from the Aviation Factory, Motor Factory, and the Machinery Company does not have this speed. The idea of putting a basket in front of the motorcycle let Feng Yu thinks that this person had lots of creativity.
“Are you American or Canadian?”
“I am Chinese, and my nationality is China, but I am also holding US green card.” Michael Liu looked at Feng Yu anxiously. Can this design meet the requirements? Why was Feng Yu not saying anything about the design?
Feng Yu nodded. That’s good. He is also Chinese.
What’s your real name?”
“Liu Michael.”
“I am asking for your Chinese name!” Feng Yu was pissed, stop acting like a foreigner!
“My Chinese name is really Liu Michael. This name was named by my mother. If you don’t believe me, I can show you my I.D.” Liu Michael immediately took out his identification card. He was only acting and did not really wanted to show Feng Yu.
But Feng Yu snatched his I.D. from his hands and looked. Liu Michael, Michael Liu. Damned, this guy’s parents had excellent naming sense. They must be xenophilia.
“How many staffs are there in your company? I meant the designers like yourself.”
“There are 3, including myself. The other 2 are my classmates. We had studied design in the US previously.” Michael Liu still does not understand why Feng Yu was asking about his company. Could it be Feng Yu wanted the 3 of them to work on a design?
“Are their skills the same as you?”
“That’s right. Maybe they are slightly better than me.”
“Feng Yu what are the both you talking about? What you think of this design? It looks fine to me.” Li Mingde interrupted Feng Yu and Michael Liu. I am the boss here. Am I invisible here?
Only the Aviation Factory Director Hou Haitao kept to himself in a corner on the sofa. He was drinking tea and smoking. He knew that Feng Yu was interested in this designer from the way Feng Yu looks at him!
Feng Yu smiled: “Right. Let’s talk about the design first. This design is still considered satisfactory. However, I have a lot more requirements. You must come up with a design that meets my expectations within the shortest time. Are there any problems?”
“No problem!” Michael Liu was overjoyed. This troublesome kid like his talent?
“Good! Then I will tell you want I want and you tell me which part you are not able to fulfill. Here is still a bit high. You must consider if those shorter people will feel comfortable when riding the bike. You can use 1.7m height as reference. Secondly, the fuel tank is too big. There is no need for a 15 liters fuel tank. 10 liters will be fine. There is no one in the country that will use a motorcycle to travel long distance. 300 KM will be sufficient. Thirdly, the motorcycle must be the same as bicycle. There must be a back seat. But it is not for passenger. It is used for carrying goods. The width must not be wider than the seat. That will be too ugly. It must be all metal and sturdy. It must be able to carry at least 5 sacks of rice. Fourth, ……”
Michael Liu was taking down the things Feng Yu said, and he felt that every request made by Feng Yu was very reasonable. Why didn’t he take all these into consideration when he did the design? He thought that Feng Yu would have the most one or two more requirements, but in the end, Feng Yu made 8 requests.
“Feng Yu, I will not talk about the other requests you made. But why does this motorcycle need a crash bar? Who in the right mind would ride a motorcycle into a tree?” Li Mingde felt that this was a waste of money and would increase the cost of each unit by a lot.
“What is the top speed of our motorcycle? It is not slower than a small car, right? If traveling on the villages dirt road and one is not careful, a small branch hitting the leg would cause a fracture. It’s fine for the first model of the motorcycle to not have a crash bar. But it is a must for the 2nd generation of the motorcycles!” Feng Yu said firmly.
“Fine. There will not be any crash bar on the first model. Smaller fuel tanks and a bracket for goods are also fine. We can settle the issue with the reserve tank too. There would be no problems with the bike getting out of fuel during traveling. So, are you going to let the Master Designer, Michael Liu, to design our motorcycle?”
Michael Liu immediately raised his hands and said: “Manager Li, please do not address me as a master designer. I am only a novice. The real master is Manager Feng!”
Feng Yu glanced at Li Mingde with a smirk and did not say anything. His expression caused Li Mingde to have no appetite for that day!
Damn, this designer was hired by me and why in the end, he just followed Feng Yu’s instructions? What overseas graduate? Did he learn how to curry favor overseas?