Abandoned the Immortal Cultivator, returned to his hometown to farm and sing

Chapter 1331, Section 1318: The Gift
Both sides decided to adjourn the meeting temporarily.

Mansour and his men also need to report back to their home countries.

The original plan was simply to solve the problem of vegetables and fruits, giving Mansur a political achievement.

I never expected that the things they brought out would be so good, and that they would "snag" out so many other great things.

That's why they say a big spender like G is a big spender; they understand the temperament of the East perfectly.

If you offer something good in exchange, the other side will really give you something good in return.

The Chinese side did the same, immediately booking a banquet hall.

The meeting room is too small to fit.

Call for more players, keep calling for more players.

The transaction has expanded significantly, far beyond a small amount, involving a very wide range of areas.

We need to compile quotes for the proposed photovoltaic, seawater desalination, and desert fish farming projects.

The acquired shares also need to be valued.

See what you should want and what you shouldn't want...

They're all good things, I want them all, it's just a matter of how to get them all "reasonably," "fairly," and "appropriately."

We also need to communicate with the relevant industrial enterprises.

Oh dear, I'm busy.

Seeing that there was nothing for him to do, Luo Yihang simply took on the task of decorating the peach blossoms and willows.

Use your network to make some phone calls and ask around.

I can't believe I actually found it, and it was so easy...

The local agricultural technology station in Wuwei was the first to report the news.

There was a capable person there who planted peaches in the desert of Wuwei, and after several years of practice, he actually succeeded in growing them.

The capable man is Fang Zhili, a graduate of the agronomy major at Gansu Agricultural University. In 2015, he returned to his hometown, Liangzhou District, WW City, Gansu Province, and contracted more than 120 mu of desert land to grow peaches.

In the early stages of planting, peach seedlings often fail to survive due to wind, sand, drought, and large temperature differences.

However, after several years of continuous trials and improvements, Fang Zhili successfully bred peach varieties suitable for planting in desert and wasteland areas.

That's right, he specially cultivated a variety of peaches in order to grow them in the desert.

Moreover, due to the abundant sunshine and large temperature difference between day and night in the desert, the peaches grown there are red and sweet.

His own brand, "Mo Shang Yun Tao," is very popular.

Then XJ and Tian also sent back a message.

A local man named Abdurahman Maimaiti contracted 380 acres of wasteland and grew peaches on the edge of the Taklamakan Desert.

However, he used an intercropping method with desert roses and peaches.

Desert roses can stabilize sand and improve soil structure during their growth, while peach trees can provide shade for desert roses. Fallen leaves and pruned branches can increase the organic matter in the soil.

The two complement each other, allowing one piece of land to earn two incomes while also improving the soil.

Finally, there was one from Ningxia as well.

It was an agricultural technology company that transformed 1100 acres of desert land into a peach orchard suitable for peach trees.

They used a third planting method, spending a lot of money to improve the soil by replacing the soil, sunning the pits, and burying fertilizer, improving the soil before planting trees.

They planted more than twenty varieties, and even managed to grow peaches.

The Chinese are indeed a people who love farming; they can grow things anywhere. Even growing peaches in the desert—well… a "heretical" thing—has been accomplished by three groups of people in different places.

Moreover, the three groups of people used three different methods.

As for which one Dubai uses?
Naturally, all of them should be used.

Big spenders are not short of money.

First, soil improvement. Luo Yihang has more advanced improvement methods that do not require soil replacement or sun-drying pits. Qi Ruomu's "top-covering and bottom-improvement" salt control and fertilization technology is more efficient.

The variety is naturally Fang Zhili's Moshang Yuntao. Luo Yihang contacted Fang Zhili himself, who said that the Moshang Yuntao also blooms with pink flowers that are particularly beautiful.

While we're at it, let's plant a ring of desert roses under the peach trees; the two complement each other.

Bonus secured.

There are also green willows.

In KEL city, there is a retired veteran named Wang Chengbang who works in landscaping after retiring from the military.

In the deep winter of 2001, 65-year-old Wang Chengbang discovered a special willow tree on the south bank of the Peacock River in Kel City.

The temperature was below zero at the time, but the tree trunk remained green, the branches were golden, and the canopy was like an umbrella, forming a stark contrast with the withered scenery around it.

This willow tree is called "Chengbang Willow".

After discovering this unusual willow tree, Wang Chengbang immediately began cultivation experiments, gradually expanding the scale with the support of the KEL City Gardening Department.

The Chinese willow can adapt to arid climates and survive even in environments with annual rainfall of only 30-50 mm.

The incidence of pests and diseases is also significantly lower than that of ordinary willows, and they remain green even in the low temperatures of winter.

The Chengbang Willow has been cultivated for twenty-one generations this year, with a total of more than 10,000 trees planted in Kel City, making it the only tree species in the Bazhou region named after a person.

In addition to the "Chengbang Willow", Wang Chengbang has been planting trees voluntarily for more than 30 years since his retirement, cultivating and planting more than 150 million trees of various types.
-
Whether it's Fang Zhili from Wuwei, Abdurahman Maimaiti from Xinjiang, or the agricultural science team from Ningxia.

There are also Wang Chengbang and "Chengbang Liu" who continue to dedicate themselves to charity even after retirement.

The significance of these stories far exceeds the agricultural achievements themselves; they have become a heart-stirring hymn to humanity, illuminating a beacon for the human spirit! Every peach blossom blooming in the desert, every willow tree standing tall in the wind and snow, represents how people have watered hope with their blood and sweat on barren land, writing the myth of "turning the desert into paradise" with perseverance and wisdom.

These stories shouldn't just be hidden in the yellow sand and drift away with the wind; more people should know about them and understand them.

Luo Yihang called Chu Jie and asked him to arrange for people to go to Wuwei, Ningxia, Hotan, and Korla to make the story into a documentary.

We must use the best personnel, the best equipment, and the best performances to create the best story.

Don't be afraid to spend money; if you're going to do something, do it the best you can.

However, money doesn't grow on trees. We should save where we can and spend where we can. We can add a zero to the filming costs and include them in the Dubai project budget, so that the big spenders will foot the bill.

At worst, we can make it into a bilingual (Chinese and Arabic) series, including the domestic portion of the first part.

The story of peach and willow trees taking root overseas in Dubai and transforming the banks of the Dubai Creek into a lush and verdant landscape will also be filmed as a sequel.

Add to that some national strategies that promote sustainable development, enhance international recognition of their environmental contributions, highlight their technological integration capabilities, attract agricultural technology investment, promote local high-value-added agricultural products, and embrace economic diversification, and they will definitely be happy.

It was nominally a gift, a token of friendship between the two countries.

Ok, deal.

Next, let's calculate the cost. How much should we spend to create a beautiful scene of peach blossoms and willows?
Tree species, desert rose, vermicompost, irrigation equipment, fertilizer, labor...

To achieve results as soon as possible, it is best to use mature trees directly.

Even if you transplant an established tree by cutting its roots, it still has to travel overseas, and there's no guarantee it will survive.

Well... we have inulin water-retaining agent, so use more of it and wrap the entire tree root area, making sure the wrapping is large.

As long as the seedlings can survive the transplanting recovery period, the survival rate will increase. Keeping 30% as a surplus for replanting shouldn't be a problem.

If the survival rate is high, we can plant the surplus trees too, and plant them densely; they can even serve as a protective forest...

Luo Yihang took the calculator and listed out all the possible values, trying to calculate them as high as possible.

Finally, add them all up and calculate the total.

It doesn't seem to cost much. The Dubai Creek is only ten kilometers long, with twenty kilometers on both banks.

Even if you take a high estimate, it's only a few tens of millions of RMB.

Or how about we take two hundred million US dollars?
They don't care if they're paid with shares anyway.
-
Two days later.

Negotiations have begun again.

This time, the scale has expanded again.

In Dubai, the main negotiator became Mansour's father, Abdullah, with Amar assisting.

Representatives from the royal families of all seven emirates in the UAE were present to listen in.

Two rows of people were seated on one side of the conference table.

The second row contains translations.

The same applies to the Chinese side; there are several more people, and their levels have been raised.

Luo Yihang and Mansur, you two step aside and sit at the children's table.

Then, the two of them went to a corner and sat together, listening to the "adults" pontificating, arguing back and forth, but never breaking down each other, just going through the motions.

How is this project? What are its effects? What is the construction period, investment amount, payment method, and who owns it?

The question of who owns it is being debated among the royal representatives of the UAE.

Often, one project becomes seven.

The Chinese side is happy to see this happen, offering discounts for bulk orders and larger purchases.

The negotiation process was truly tedious.

The children at the table were so tired from listening that they kept dozing off.

It's a pity I can't sleep, so I'll just slack off.

Mansur secretly took out his phone, opened the photo album, and showed Luo Yihang a picture.

"Brother Luo, want to play football?" Mansur whispered.

Luo Yihang isn't very interested in football; he watches it occasionally.

He likes the NBA and used to watch it all the time, but he stopped watching after Tim Duncan retired, so it's a bit of a niche sport. Luo Yihang is a Spurs fan.

Old Jiang likes football; he watches the English Premier League and La Liga. When he and his gang get together and have nothing else to do, they'll watch a couple of games.

So it can only be considered familiar.

Mansour looks quite familiar in the photos.

The light blue jerseys with white stripes... "Isn't this Manchester City? What, want to watch a game?"

Mansour lowered his voice and muttered mysteriously, "No, it's about giving me Manchester City. If you're interested, Brother Luo, you can have half of it. We'll sweep through the Premier League together."

Luo Yihang was startled. Was this something to be played with casually?
"Wait, you gave it to me? Who gave it to you?" Luo Yihang noticed something suspicious.

“Sister Manar, Manar Bint Al-Maktoum,” Mansur said, uttering a name he had never heard before.

Al Maktoum? Is that the surname of the Dubai royal family, or a member of the royal family?

"She and Ale?" Luo Yihang asked curiously.

Al-Aal is the Crown Prince of Dubai, the big boss behind the Burj Al Arab hotel, and the leader of Mansour and his group of princes, the one with the highest status.

“The Crown Prince’s aunt,” Mansur replied, then explained, “My sister Manar gave me the gift not because of the royal family, but because of her husband’s side, Sheikh Mansur, who shares my name, is my second sister’s husband’s uncle, whose surname is Al-Nahyan.”

Al Nahyan is the surname of the Abu Dhabi royal family.

Wait, this is a bit confusing.

The husband of one of his sisters is the uncle of the husband of another sister.

Don't you chiefs consider seniority when you arrange marriages?

I've never met Mansour's second sister, Luo Yihang; I've only heard about her in casual conversations. She married into the Abu Dhabi royal family, becoming the sixth son of the current King of the UAE.

The King of the UAE is exceptionally fertile, having fathered twenty-five children with his four wives.

The eldest is over forty, and the youngest has just learned to walk.

Therefore, the sister Manar that Mansour mentioned is the one who married the brother of the current King of the UAE.

It's still a bit chaotic; the marriage alliances among these princes are too complicated.

They're all relatives anyway.

"Why did I give you your family's football club?" Luo Yihang asked curiously.

Mansur shrugged and replied, "No reason, it's a coming-of-age gift. If I had to give a reason, it's because I'm willing to take on responsibilities now. I'm a rising star in the family now, a capable and responsible prodigy of the sect."

Wow, even the sect's top talents have learned it; they have quite a broad knowledge base.

Mansour continued flipping through the album, "Don't you like Manchester City? There are other options, let me pick one."

Wow, there are quite a few. Besides Manchester City, there's Girona from Spain, Tocue from Uruguay, Melbourne City Football, Yokohama F. Marinos... there are several football clubs in total.

Besides football, there's the Ferrari F1 team, the SGG esports competition, and the G8 esports tournament in Riyadh. These involve partial ownership and organizational rights.

In addition, several international horse racing and equestrian events that Mansour likes are also included.

After sports, there is art.

A 38.4% stake in Sotheby's auction house plus three board seats; a Hollywood investment firm; a British film production company; and a European artist and independent film development fund…

Damn, there's even the Louvre!
When Luo Yihang flipped through the Louvre exhibit, he was astonished. "You guys bought this too?"

Mansour sighed helplessly, "How could that be? We only bought the operating company. Managing things like ticket sales, exhibitions, and cultural exchanges is a real hassle and incredibly boring."

They're getting a good deal and still complaining; they're taking other people's money and still not satisfied?
Luo Yihang also found the so-called sister Manar, or rather her husband Sheikh Mansur.

The fifth son of the former King of the UAE and the younger brother of the current King.

Super oil tycoon.

The UAE's money bag, controlling the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, manages assets exceeding $1.7 trillion, with family assets exceeding $1.2 trillion.

They're throwing money around the world; they're everywhere.

These gifts given to Mansour are worth between one or two billion US dollars.

It's just like when you visit a relative and hear that their child got a perfect score on a test, you're so happy that you let your child pick out a toy to play with.

I'm going to fight these rich people to the death!

The kid who got a perfect score, Mansur was still happy, and he urged Luo Yihang to join him in choosing which one he liked to play.

Is it to dominate the Premier League, or to create a golden e-sports league? Or maybe we should make a movie for our Ding Xiaoman, bring in all the Hollywood guys, lock them in a dark room to work on it, and not let them leave until it grosses a billion at the box office?

If that's not enough, we'll bring in those European artists and make art films too, winning some awards at Cannes and Venice. The only concern is that those artists might make the same old mistakes and turn cat films into pornographic films.

It's quite a beautiful thought.

Why don't you put two stone lions at the entrance of Versailles?
However, as they chatted, Mansour casually brought up another matter.

"Sister Manar also wants me to buy used cars in the East for entrepot trade."

"...This is the price?" Luo Yihang scratched his head, clearly puzzled. "Their family even deals in used cars?"

A trillionaire? A member of royalty? A used car dealer?

The art style is a bit off...

(End of this chapter)