Building Cars: And You Call This Going Bankrupt?

Car Manufacturing: You Call This a Bankrupt Automaker?

Shen Yan, a former technical director at an automaker, takes over his uncle’s near-bankrupt Qitu Motors. Facing unpaid wages and debts, along with a blockade by local giant Dongchen, which cuts off supply chains, spreads rumors, and poaches staff, he relies on a lightweight, safety-focused car-body patent left by his uncle. Joining forces with veteran employees and allies, he fights tooth and nail to build a safe car for ordinary people. From proving his company’s worth with makeshift crash tests to breaking through production bottlenecks, landing rural contracts, and beating back provocations from Dongchen and its foreign partners, he turns a car built by a “washed-up factory” into a runaway hit. The company rises to become the industry’s dark horse and reshapes the domestic auto market.