20 years of restarting life

Chapter 3620

Therefore, Xia Wenzhuo really didn't want Zhao Chang'an to cause trouble in the past. Last time, it was Zhao Chang'an who interfered and acted recklessly, killing Geng Erxi and making Xia Wenzhuo depressed for a long time.

"Lu Xiaotian refused."

Zhao Chang'an asked with a smile, but he didn't need to ask to guess what Lu Xiaotian meant. How could he possibly buy Yin Wenxi a plane ticket to invite him back? Yin Wenxi wasn't Lu Xiaotian's godfather.

"Lu Feifei said that her father and Yin Wenxi talked about the past for more than ten minutes, until they used up Yin Wenxi's phone credit."

"As expected of a ruthless and powerful figure, he doesn't skimp on even the smallest things."

Zhao Chang'an chuckled: "These ten minutes of nonsense would take Yin Wenxi and his wife several days to string the beads, or Yin Wan to go out and sell them a few times."

"So, do you mean to cooperate with Lu Feifei and the others, or not?"

Xia Wenzhuo was a little confused about Zhao Chang'an's thoughts.

Zhao Chang'an said, "If you hire a group of people to wash sand and pan for gold in the river with basins, it certainly won't cost much. However, this kind of mining method can only yield a few kilograms of gold a year. Only with large-scale mechanized mining and smelting can the annual gold output be calculated in the tens of tons. Currently, international gold prices are sluggish, and the price of ten tons of gold is only one billion. After deducting various costs, it would take at least five or six years for a mega-mine to just recoup its costs. Moreover, this is full of variables and is a risky investment. Therefore, a risk-reward assessment must be conducted. Only if the return is greater than the risk is this business worthwhile."

"Besides, to put it bluntly, I could easily double those hundreds of millions by investing them domestically in five or six years. I could make money while lying down, so why bother with all this hard work? This deal might even force me to make concessions and compromises in other areas, and threaten me."

"However, the allure of this industry lies in the fact that the initial investment is large and the returns are slow, but the returns are very stable. A high-quality gold mine can provide stable output for thirty or forty years or even longer, so it can even be given financial attributes."

"Lu Tanhua and his team want to benchmark against the Mulongtao Gold Mine in Uzbekistan, a world-class mega-mine. Even just securing the mining rights for such a rich mine, to avoid future problems, would cost at least 100 million. Then there's the water, electricity, roads, and smelting plant; large-scale mining, transportation, and smelting equipment—a whole host of complexities. A single investment could easily cost several hundred million more. If they hadn't embezzled 40 million from China, I estimate they wouldn't have been able to scrape together 10 million even with all their savings. Clearly, they're only partially funding this project; the real financial contribution comes from Tianyue Group. How could we possibly cooperate with such a disreputable company?"

You mean we should do it ourselves?

Xia Wenzhuo couldn't help but ask, "You're so confident in your connections over there. Right now, no one's blocking OneNanometer's internet business is doing well, because even if they went to great lengths to block it for profit, it would be very difficult to get any benefits. Other industries like real estate and mobile phones have caused so much trouble in recent years. I dare say that once you've established your automotive industry, all sorts of monsters and demons will emerge, eager to plunder. Not to mention a well-developed, modern gold mine—that would drive local powers crazy. Even if they can't seize it outright, they can use the voice of the people, under the guise of national resources, to justify high taxes with new legislation. Using these methods, they can openly plunder from a moral high ground, and you'll be powerless to stop them."

Zhao Chang'an laughed upon hearing this and praised Xia Wenzhuo: "Not bad, you've actually seen through the despicable tactics of small countries like trapping dogs behind closed doors."

Xia Wenzhu smiled: "Is it that hard to see? If you look at some international business cases from recent years, this kind of tactic is perfectly normal. And I've felt it even more deeply here. When I went to countries like Malaysia for business trips, the local managers made all sorts of promises, hosted lavish banquets, took me to tourist attractions, and were so enthusiastic that you felt like you were heartless if you didn't invest something. But once you put your money in and it becomes land, factory buildings, equipment, and other real estate, they immediately change their tune, demanding all sorts of overt and covert extortion and bribes, asking for shares and dividends, and stuffing a bunch of people into your company. That's still a tolerable marginal cost. The worst thing is when they see you making money and get jealous, wanting to buy things for just one dollar." Xia Wenzhuo grew increasingly angry: "I admit I suffered a loss this time in the rubber plantation in Malaysia. Although I temporarily used my master's reputation to push back the outstretched hand, the company is currently not profitable, and according to our previous plan, we will continue to invest. Once the scale of investment and the amount of profit reach a medium to high level, the hand that withdrew and the others that have been watching will all reach out. My master still has a certain influence in Siam, but here, due to different beliefs, it's just that the interests haven't reached the point of open hostility. Moreover, they don't even need to openly and shamelessly rob us of this kind of thing; they only need to incite a large number of growers to force us to bow down, unless we are willing to fight to the death."

Zhao Chang'an then realized that when Xia Wenzhuo first talked about the layout of One Nano Star City in Southeast Asia, he kept emphasizing entering their resource fields such as oil, natural gas, coal fields, and metal mines.

Since such greed is unavoidable and must be succumbed to, the choice is to select resource mining areas with minimal contact with locals, where destructive and rampant exploitation can be carried out.

"Do you regret coming to Southeast Asia?"

Zhao Chang'an placed his hand on Xia Wenzhuo's slightly plump thighs. Her thighs were not thick, but they felt fleshy. When she was standing, even naked, they did not feel thick at all, but when she sat down wearing pants, they had that kind of feeling.

"Of course I don't regret it, but I feel a little sorry for you."

“It’s alright. Your mother is my mother-in-law. Besides, Nanostar City has been profitable so far. The companies you’ve built or acquired have all been progressing according to the company’s requirements.”

“Using public office for personal gain is using public office for personal gain, and no amount of reasoning can change that fact.”

Xia Wenzhuo gently placed his left hand on the back of Zhao Chang'an's hand: "I have no regrets. I was just grumbling when I was weak. This subcontinent may be the most suitable soil for me to survive. However, the premise is that you have to untie me. Otherwise, you can come to Star City too, and I will listen to you."

"Haha, I'm not coming. There are too many lunatics here. I'm a normal person."

Although Zhao Chang'an was joking, it was also true. He encountered Bai Ling, a crazy woman, in Gotham City. She inexplicably insisted on having a martial arts contest with him, and he displayed his prowess, beating Bai Ling up.

As it turned out, when they guessed Nanyang, an even more eccentric senior brother named Bai Yide appeared, wanting to win people over with virtue and have a friendly competition with him.

Zhao Chang'an was thoroughly fed up with these lunatics.

(End of this chapter)