The door swung open, revealing over a dozen people seated inside. Each person offered a smile and a nod to the corporate representatives entering.
What caught Ou Yunchen’s attention was a familiar face. She was seated in the central position, the primary spokesperson for this negotiation.
Zhang Mengni: "Please, have a seat."
Ou Yunchen dared not stare, fearing he was mistaken, yet this person was indeed Ren Xiaoguang's friend...
Zhang Mengni: "Allow me to briefly introduce myself. I am the medical insurance representative for this negotiation. My name is Zhang Mengni…"
Ou Yunchen’s head buzzed. It was her!
Despite all his calculations, he never expected the woman he’d met once to be today’s负责人 (person in charge)!
Zhang Mengni was no longer humorous at all...
Zhang Mengni: "Please, state your bid."
Ou Yunchen had prepared an opening speech, anticipating some pleasantries or a product introduction. He hadn't expected to jump straight into the first round of bidding.
Yang Danzhou, seeing Ou Yunchen stunned, nudged him.
Ou Yunchen: "Per..."
Ou Yunchen took a deep breath, repeatedly telling himself not to be nervous...
Zhang Mengni: "Mr. Ou, please proceed."
Ou Yunchen: "Our bid is two hundred and twenty-nine thousand, eight hundred yuan per square centimeter."
Zhang Mengni glanced down at the document in her hand. Without consulting anyone behind her, she spoke directly.
Zhang Mengni: "We hope companies will demonstrate their utmost sincerity in the first round of bidding. We don't play games. Mr. Ou, please discuss with your corporate representatives again. This bid has a significant gap."
It was no surprise that the first bid failed. Fortunately, there was still room for negotiation.
Ou Yunchen and his team stood up, led by a staff member, preparing to go to the corridor to discuss. Zhang Mengni spoke again.
Zhang Mengni: "Mr. Ou, you have three minutes."
Ou Yunchen nodded, his palms sweating.
As soon as they left the conference room, Yang Danzhou gasped for air. For some reason, inside, she hadn't dared to utter a single falsehood.
Yang Danzhou: "Too high, right? That's what we bid?"
Yang Danzhou pointed to their prepared quotation sheet, which listed both the lowest and highest possible bids.
Whether the selected number would be chosen felt like a gamble, a leap of faith!
In less than a minute, Ou Yunchen and his team returned to the conference room.
Zhang Mengni: "Please bid."
Ou Yunchen: "Our second bid is two hundred and twenty-eight thousand yuan."
Zhang Mengni: "This bid is very difficult. Please don't treat it like squeezing toothpaste. It's not conducive to a successful negotiation. Please discuss further."
Ou Yunchen nodded, and the four of them returned to the corridor.
After two failed attempts, Ou Yunchen abandoned the high-price strategy and suggested a direct reduction.
Yang Danzhou felt there was still a chance to try again, but Ou Yunchen's words made her give up struggling.
Sitting with representatives negotiating on behalf of the nation, the power was entirely out of the companies' hands. After two failures, would the other party still have patience?
This was the most unsettling aspect of this gamble, making one feel compelled to surrender.
When Ou Yunchen and his team re-entered the conference room, Zhang Mengni spoke.
Zhang Mengni: "Mr. Ou, if your bid does not reach our target price, you will be eliminated. Therefore, we are all here with the utmost sincerity. Tactics are meaningless for drugs of this price range."
Suddenly, Zhang Mengni's tone shifted. Before the third bid even began, this statement alone shattered Ou Yunchen's psychological defenses.
Before speaking, Ou Yunchen made a decision.
Ou Yunchen: "We have adjusted our plan temporarily. Our third bid is... one hundred and ninety-nine thousand, three hundred..."
Ou Yunchen directly stated their lowest written price. This price was already very low compared to the initial over three hundred thousand.
Zhang Mengni: "Your drug is truly excellent. Any misstep during this negotiation would be a great regret for the patients in need, for the efforts we have already made, and for the earnest hopes of the expert panel. I can say we will be disappointed for a long time."
Ou Yunchen’s heart pounded. They had no more bids to offer from their papers; this was their absolute lowest, yet it still hadn't succeeded...
Zhang Mengni: "No small group should be abandoned. This includes its future inclusion, its market potential, our country's population base, and the government's commitment to serving patients. I believe no market in the world has a stronger government commitment than ours."
Zhang Mengni: "Please, discuss it one more time."
This time, it was Ou Yunchen who was helped to his feet. He had never felt such a burning sensation in his chest, as if he had to succeed in this negotiation to honor the patients who needed this medicine!
Back in the corridor, everyone was silent for more than ten seconds. Looking at the useless quotation sheet, they didn't know how to begin.
Ou Yunchen: "Do we have room to lower the price further?"
Yang Danzhou quickly fixed her gaze on the finance and marketing personnel calculating the bids.
They quickly pulled out their prepared documents and began calculating.
Yang Danzhou: "I didn't expect them to push the price down so much. This is already like a fifty percent discount..."
Ou Yunchen: "This was your father's hard work. You decide if we continue."
Yang Danzhou: "Yes, I won't give up. As long as the country needs it, I can earn less."
Soon, Ou Yunchen received two other prices. However, they still suggested being more conservative.
Back in the conference room, Ou Yunchen's voice trembled slightly. He didn't know if the fourth bid would succeed, and he could only look at Zhang Danni, hoping to discern some sign of approval.
Zhang Danni: "Please bid."
Ou Yunchen: "Our drug is already unique globally, and the price reduction has exceeded our minimum price.
"Earlier, while discussing outside, our General Manager Yang said that as long as the country needs it, we would not give up.
"Therefore, we have decided to lower the price further to one hundred and ninety-eight thousand yuan..."
Zhang Danni: "We are all medical insurance personnel on the front lines, directly interacting with these patient groups. We hope companies can make a greater effort. To provide clear guidance, please discuss again."
Back in the corridor, the pressure on everyone here only intensified. It wasn't because their previous strategy had failed, nor because they had chosen the higher price in a two-option scenario.
It was because they realized Zhang Danni must have a lower price in her hand. If Ou Yunchen's bid was far from that price, they would repeatedly be asked to leave and discuss.
As Zhang Danni had said, she had given Ou Yunchen clear guidance: they needed to continue lowering the price.
Yang Danzhou: "Lower it."
With Yang Danzhou's words, the other two provided another price.
Yang Danzhou returned to the conference room, wiping away tears. She wasn't doing it intentionally, but she truly felt that her father's dying wish could not be ruined by her.
Ou Yunchen: "One hundred and ninety-five thousand yuan."
Zhang Danni: "One hundred and ninety thousand doesn't sound good. How about one hundred and eighty thousand?"
This statement made Yang Danzhou cry even harder. Not just her, but even the financial manager was secretly wiping away tears. This was no longer about profit; it was even below cost.
Ou Yunchen: "One hundred and eighty-eight thousand yuan. We truly cannot go any lower..."
Zhang Danni looked at the table in her hand. A smile finally appeared on her face.
Zhang Danni: "I'm almost moved to tears by you. Really, thank you..."
Ou Yunchen's eyes also suddenly turned red. The pressure from the team had all fallen on him. Each bid felt like a gamble.
At this moment, a staff member brought over the agreement. Yang Danzhou had already taken out her pen and signed it immediately.
Zhang Danni: "Alright, deal. Congratulations."
The staff members seated opposite applauded. Yang Danzhou, wiping her tears, joined in the applause.
They succeeded! After five rounds of negotiation, Yang Danzhou's father's wish was finally fulfilled!!!