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

Chapter 1334, page 1321: Taking their seats in the front row of the dais.

The press conference only announced the transaction amount, without disclosing the specific cooperation projects or the transaction methods.

But the fact that so many departments released this information together is enough to spark a lot of speculation.

$1600 billion! That's equivalent to 5.7% of the UAE's annual GDP. That figure is truly staggering.

Then, Mansur was in Alxa League before the opening ceremony of the Naadam Festival.

He gave an exclusive interview to Dubai TV, revealing some details to the people of Dubai in Arabic, which further reinforced this imagination.

Dubai Television is a television station under the Dubai City Media Group, with an Arabic-language news channel covering the Middle East and North Africa.

They were originally invited to report on the Naadam Festival, but they never expected to suddenly get such a big job.

Then, this interview became Mansour's solo performance stage.

There was no way around it; the news that was released was too shocking.

Mansour first announced a $160 billion economic cooperation agreement with the East, but he further emphasized that the main body of the cooperation, more than 70 percent of the projects, will be in Dubai, and only in Dubai.

The first piece of news was earth-shattering: it turns out that the 160 billion wasn't divided among the entire UAE, but mostly belonged to Dubai exclusively—70%? That's at least 100 billion! Have the people of Dubai gone mad? How much stuff would they have to buy with that?
What are they buying? Weapons? Buildings? Ports? Are they planning to build a few more islands?

I think I heard that the technology for building islands in the sea in the East has made another breakthrough. Now it's faster and better to build an island.

Is Dubai planning to create another world map at sea?
That wouldn't cost a hundred billion.

However, Mansour's second message was...

"The entire project will be completed within five to ten years, mainly focusing on people's livelihood. The most core part, and the first part to be completed, is agriculture, which will be used to improve the living standards of ordinary people and enrich their diet."

“I hereby promise…” Mansour drew out his words, building anticipation for what he was about to say, “I hereby promise all the people of Dubai… that within three years, the price of fresh fruits and vegetables will be reduced by one-third; within five years, by half!”

"Bring down vegetable prices first—that's a promise I, Mansour Tariq bin Zayed Owais, have made!"

Mansour solemnly read out his full name, making sure he claimed all the credit.

The voice just fell.

boom!
The effect is very good and very significant.

We can't see how people in Dubai, far away in the Middle East, react.

The people from Dubai TV seemed to be frozen in place.

Staring wide-eyed, his face filled with shock, his mouth agape and his eyes practically popping out, he froze, completely oblivious to what he was doing.

The photographer was secretly scratching his back, his arm twisted behind his back in an awkward position, and he remained motionless.

Their subtle actions were exposed to everyone.

Nobody was paying attention to him.

They're all from Dubai. Dubai, the financial city, the city of luxury, high incomes, even higher prices, vegetables and fruits are so expensive, how could they be half price?
Um... um... does that mean I don't need to take vitamin supplements anymore?
Working in television is considered a high-income group among ordinary people in Dubai, but even they can't afford fresh fruits and vegetables, which are considered luxuries, let alone meet the recommended intake of more than five kinds of fruits and vegetables per day to ensure a balanced diet.

They could only afford beef, mutton, and seafood, along with rice and flatbread.

Meat is cheap.

In fact, in most countries, meat is cheaper than vegetables, and in many places, both meat and vegetables are expensive.

Vegetables and fruits are the real luxuries.

Therefore, in Dubai, it is recommended to use vitamin supplements to replenish the body's dietary fiber, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin D, and folic acid... because the diet is unbalanced and there are many things that need to be supplemented.

"Your Highness, are you telling the truth?" The reporter, having forgotten his professional ethics, asked this dry question.

Mansour didn't seem to mind, and instead reiterated his commitment, stating, "This is my promise, Mansour Owais!"

He emphasized his own contribution once again.

After this exchange, the reporter finally regained his professionalism, perhaps even a little more. In a moment of impulsiveness, he asked a pointed question, "Your Highness, with such a massive collaboration, will the financial burden be passed on to the public?"

The words had barely left his mouth when he felt a jolt in his heart. He wanted to punch himself for what he had just said. The man in front of him was a prince, even if he was known for his gentleness. He was still a prince.

If you anger him, he's finished.

Fortunately, Mansour did not mind or get angry. Instead, he calmly replied, "Investment in people's livelihood is not something the people will foot the bill for! This cooperation is based on mutual benefit. The specific payment details are still under negotiation, and I cannot say more, but there will definitely be no increase in taxes, nor will it be paid through issuing bonds or increasing the fiscal deficit. This is the bottom line of the agreement."

"The price reduction of vegetables and fruits is mainly achieved through advanced science and technology, and the savings will be returned to families tenfold—imagine, the money that used to buy one kilogram of vegetables can now buy two or even three kilograms! Saving money is the most direct way to 'get a raise'!"

Upon hearing this, the reporter clapped enthusiastically, firstly to quickly make amends for his mistake, and secondly because Mansour's words were truly insightful: saving money is the most direct way to increase wages, which really resonated with the working class.

This reporter is also a working-class person; he exposes the drudgery of those below the nobility.

The reporter finally regained his professionalism and asked another question: "You have repeatedly emphasized 'people-oriented,' how exactly will this be implemented?"

Mansour did not give a specific answer to this question, but instead uttered another memorable quote.

"If a policy can't make housewives smile while shopping at the market, it's a failure! Dubai's governing logic has never changed: 'Water and electricity bills can be discussed, but the grocery basket must be filled with smiles'—this is the ultimate answer to 'people-centered and people's happiness-centered'."

Cow batch!

The reporter was about to give a thumbs up.

But then Mansur spoke again, saying in a serious tone, "Of course, there will be all sorts of difficulties and challenges along the way."

The reporter was taken aback and immediately asked, "What kind of challenge is it? What do we need to do?"

Mansour replied seriously, "In addition to lowering the prices of fruits and vegetables, this collaboration will also enrich the variety of food. Soon, countless novel fruits and vegetables will flood into the kitchen, such as purple carrots, bell peppers, or rare mushrooms that require special handling."

"Housewons, are you ready? Ready to take on the challenge of new ingredients? I suggest you dig out the cookbook tonight, learn new cooking techniques, research new dishes, and get your pots and pans ready with the seasonings."

“Your husbands and children will be furious if you cook precious fresh vegetables badly…”

Hahahaha, the whole audience burst into enthusiastic laughter.

I thought it was going to be some kind of challenge, my heart was pounding, but... but... His Highness telling a corny joke with such seriousness was so cool, such noble demeanor, that's true noble demeanor!!!

"Your Highness...Your Highness...cough cough, so how should we deal with this 'challenge'?" The reporter, barely suppressing a laugh, couldn't help but ask again.

He has also lost his professional competence.

Mansour laughed as well, “At the invitation of our Chinese friends, Dubai will send a 300-person high-level delegation to visit the East.”

"They include 100 professionals such as farmers, farm owners, and logistics and retail workers, as well as 200 ordinary people."

"Professionals will learn about technology and exchange information on cooperation matters at various partner companies."

"Ordinary citizens' representatives will be selected through open application and will undertake arduous tasks."

"They will travel to various parts of the East to investigate, experience, and select the most suitable varieties of vegetables and fruits for the tastes of Dubai residents."

"All expenses of the delegation were paid by the Chinese side."

"This is also part of the cooperation..."
-
The delegation was just a side trip, so spending a little money is nothing.

The food that Dubai residents like is probably from the Northwest region, such as Xinjiang, Ningxia, and Shaanxi provinces, where the dietary structure is quite similar.

The reception arrangements have been made public, and farms and seed companies in these provinces were already gearing up and ready to bring out their best to welcome their major clients.

Dubai lacks everything – seeds, fertilizers, aquatic products, seedlings – and has to import everything.

The hospitality expenses were minimal.

After Mansour's interview was published, the international reaction was particularly swift and intense.

Listen to how foreign media are reporting this.
"Middle East Spends 1600 Billion to the East," "A Century-Long Deal Reshapes the Middle East's Food Landscape," "China's Agricultural Technology Monopolizes the Middle East," "Middle Eastern Oil Capital Shifts East"...

A trending post on Twitter questioned whether "China is using a debt trap to control Dubai," while a YouTube channel analyzed a "food weaponization strategy."

Greenpeace protested against "desert engineering projects that damage the ecosystem," while the Bank for International Settlements warned of "the impact of non-monetary transactions on the financial system."

A whole bunch of celebrities are posting on social media saying that China's technology exports are jeopardizing food safety in the Middle East. Why don't we see them caring about the Middle East normally?

They've mastered the art of multi-party collaboration.

Then, due to concerns that Chinese technology would replace their market share, the stock prices of a number of seed and agricultural companies, including Limagrain, Bayer, Corteva, and DuPont Pioneer, collapsed.

That's why they say capital is ruthless, astute, and borderless.

How fast the reaction is.

Other organizations, including international agricultural organizations, the Organic Agriculture Movement Alliance, and the Agricultural Development Foundation, held an emergency meeting demanding that China "make its desert planting technology transparent."

Several laboratories in Europe and the United States have revealed that they are increasing their investment in rapid reverse engineering of Chinese equipment.

The Gates Foundation announced funding for drought-resistant crop research in Africa, and SoftBank Vision Fund quickly met with Chinese agricultural technology startups.

This is so lively!

But in Dubai, it was a time of national jubilation, with singing and dancing.

What Prince Mansur said must be true.

They have already tasted the benefits in the past two years.

The pea shoots that the prince brought back are a rare, affordable vegetable in Dubai, and they taste so good that every household has them and eats them every few days.

If it weren't for the extremely limited production, with high-end restaurants able to supply it at any time and the general public only receiving it two or three times a month.

They wish they could eat it every day.

To reiterate, it's not that Middle Easterners don't like fresh vegetables; the love of good food is universal. They ate less of it in the past because it wasn't available.

That's why vegetarianism is so popular and has become fashionable.

Because it's expensive.

The delegation had 200 slots available, and in just one day, more than 80,000 people submitted applications. If the requirements weren't so high, such as asking for information on your favorite dishes and cooking tips, the number would have easily exceeded 800,000.

Mansour's status as a non-government official was overlooked by everyone.

Because the royal family and nobles are the happiest.

It's a complete scheme to get something for nothing.

A total of 160 billion seems like a lot, but the bulk of it, 120 billion, came from the profits generated by shorting European and American industrial groups through the Jiao 77 project initiated by Luo Yihang.

The actual investment was not much; it was just a few people who came and waited for more than half a year.

Besides, the principal has been recovered.

The rest, though the bulk of the profits, are all pure profit.

We can't get it back.

Their national strength is far inferior to that of Europe and America; they may have the ability to earn money, but they may not have the life to collect it.

This time, Mansour took the lead, made a roundabout move, and after a series of operations, essentially cashed in the profits.

Becoming a domestic industry is far more advantageous than holding shares abroad.

Whether it's vegetables, fish, electricity, or even ships and refrigerated trucks, you can make money, a steady stream that will last for generations.

You have to eat all the time.

Moreover, it can also appease the anger of ordinary people and maintain one's rule.

The remaining 40 billion.

Oil? Doesn't that just spring up from underground?

Gold? Isn't that something you can just get from African warlords by exchanging some other things?

Although the warlords' gold was not obtained cleanly.

But there is also clean gold in banks.

Go through the formalities once.

Which of these two pieces of gold is clean, and which is dirty?
I didn't spend any money at all.

Mansur is a good young man, a really good young man, and his family is royal, with a tribal elder.

The clan name can be traced back to the time of the Emirs in the 18th century, with a long and rich history.

They are definitely one of our own, with impeccable revolutionary credentials.

Pushing him up is tantamount to pushing ourselves up.

Royal families and nobles appreciate talented young people like this.

挺！
This is pretty good too, 160 billion in real money... no, it's more real than real money, something that can't be bought.

What was paid for?
Steel, pipelines, ships, automobiles...

Why build so many power stations in the desert and so many hydroelectric power stations on the river? What's the point of generating so much electricity? Isn't it just for producing these things?

We can't just let the products pile up; we have to sell them.

Such a large order must support countless factories, workers, and related businesses such as barbershops, small restaurants, shopping malls, supermarkets, and courier stations.

Mansour is a really good young man.

Mansour's father, Abdullah, was an even older friend.

At the opening ceremony of this Naadam Festival, the people sitting in the front row of the dais were present.

Enjoying the envious glances from representatives of many countries.

The massive cooperation worth $160 billion completely stole the spotlight from the Kazakh delegation.

It was clearly described as a "cultural exchange activity," but you turned a huge order into a "globally renowned economic and trade cooperation platform," completely changing its nature. This is not fair.

Unless you take me with you...
-
"Yes, yes, let's talk about it again."

Abdullah, beaming, sat in the front row, chatting animatedly with a group of representatives from Central Asian countries behind him, showing off to his heart's content.

However, the opening ceremony of the Naadam Festival officially began as eight armed police officers marched in step to escort the national flag into the venue.

Abdullah stopped talking and pointed into the distance.

His son was in the ceremony procession...

(End of this chapter)