Chapter 138: Chapter 138: Business Should Be Done This Way

Lu Jun picked up the call quickly, but there was some noise on his side..."Bro Wolf, what do you need? I'm hunting lions, haha, don't let it get away." Hearing the bustle on the other end of the phone, Joe Ga didn't know how to describe this guy's wicked sense of humor. This guy really was a rich second-generation with a playful heart, but what was rare about him was his strong sense of responsibility and the bold ambition and execution to match. There are plenty of dissipated scions, but most legitimate rich second-generations are well-educated, and because of family reasons, they have a much higher tolerance for failure in life. As a result, rich second-generations generally tend to be more daring than kids from ordinary families. When kids from ordinary families hesitate about whether to let their parents go broke to support a potentially profitable business, sigh, those rich kids have already entered the arena. When kids from ordinary families confirm that a business can make money and convince their parents to go all-in to support them, sigh, those rich kids have already made a fortune and started preparing to exit the game. This is what they call 'being too late even for the leftovers'! It's not because ordinary folks are truly dumb, but because their lives lack the margin for error—once they stumble, they can't get back up. When someone's eating three meals a day with four dishes and a soup, how many could resolve to risk it all on a 50% chance of feasting every day in the future? Everyone loves to talk about the rags-to-riches stories of self-made millionaires, but they don't realize that when someone has nothing, that's when they're the most daring, ambitious, and have the least to lose—the last point being the most crucial! When the noise on the other end quieted down a bit, Joe Ga said, "There's something I need your advice on." Upon hearing this, Lu Jun loudly asked the driver to stop the car, then closed the car window and said, "Bro Wolf, what's up? There's no need to be so polite between us. Just tell me what it is, and as long as I can help, I definitely will without a second thought." After a few seconds of silence, Joe Ga said, "Now, someone has offered me a deal involving some mineral properties near Central Africa, but for the mines to start producing, a significant initial investment is required, and it's a very long-term process..." Joe Ga roughly described the situation he was facing, and on the other end of the phone, after listening, Lu Jun laughed and said, "Bro Wolf, is that it? What's there to hesitate about? Just take it! My dad told me, natural resources are always scarce commodities; as long as the price is right, you should take as much as you can." Joe Ga was amused by Lu Jun's grandiosity and said helplessly, "But it takes time to liquidate them, and my funds are limited, not to mention my manpower." Lu Jun replied incredulously, "Bro Wolf, don't tell me you've acquired the mines and are planning to invest your own money into developing them. That would be a bottomless pit. Even if you have the money to invest, only gold and copper mines are worth the trouble of exporting. But with iron mines, given Central Africa's transportation conditions and shipping costs, the price can never beat Australia." Joe Ga retorted, "Then why did you say you should take as much as you can if the price is right?" Lu Jun 'hehe'd' with a laugh and said, "Bro Wolf, mines are inanimate, but people are not. Regardless of other issues, as long as the mines and land are cheap enough, take as much as you can. If you're short on initial funds, get someone to do an appraisal and make an attractive investment report. As long as there's security assurance on-site, you can use the mines as collateral for a loan from the African Union Development Bank. An appraisal of mines worth 500 million might let you successfully borrow two hundred million US dollars. If you want to make quick money, use the mines to take out a loan with the national banks of Central Africa or Burundi. Exchange their money for US dollars and save it. Given the inflation rates in those countries, if you exchange the dollars back into local currency in two years to repay them, you'll have made a huge profit, and the mines will still be yours. Though, this method can attract quite a bit of resentment. If you want to develop them yourself but lack the funds, it's best to go through the African Union Development Bank. Anyway, first get the money, slowly invest bit by bit, and if anything goes wrong, just get out. In the worst-case scenario, you just make a little less money. I don't know the price of your mines, but if you're uncertain, you can send me a detailed report, and I'll have someone evaluate it for you. As long as it's legitimately sourced and the cost is below market price, I guarantee it will be profitable!" Joe Ga sighed with emotion after listening and thanked Lu Jun before hanging up the phone. Sёarᴄh the Novelƒire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. 'Business' really isn't just about simple buying and selling. Ordinary people can't wrap their heads around it and will never catch up to those rich second-generations who've been steeped in family business culture for a long time. Joe Ga could never have thought of such a scheme himself, earning money, land, and mines while using the land and mines as collateral with the bank to secure funds, investing Africa's money in Africa. More aggressively, you could even entangle Burundi's national bank with the loan. With their annual GDP of 2 billion, securing a loan worth 2 billion US dollars in local currency, then exchanging it for dollars and moving it away, might force Burundi's president to call him 'Daddy' after a few years. Because if Joe Ga chose to repay the loan with the devalued Burundi francs, their national bank might end up bankrupt. However, as Lu Jun mentioned, this move is too hateful and with Joe Ga's fragile background, it could easily lead to being attacked from all sides. Europa and America are experts in this field, and the things that those big capitals do with their sickles truly deserve a one-way ticket to hell. It's precisely because they've done too many shitty things in the past to make a quick buck at any cost that they not only formed the habit of making fast money but also led to their poor credit. Africa people don't trust them, otherwise, such trade deals would probably be more common. Now, the real capable defense companies, willing to invest time in this business, are all giants with inscrutable backgrounds. They can integrate an entire supply chain, but the more participants involved, the higher the cost to maintain the entire chain. So those giants are very formidable, but they are also very bloated. Ordinary defense companies can't handle this because they don't have that many resources. If the time to liquidate is extended, it can drag down most defense companies that are not sufficiently large. Joe Ga found a loophole and took orders that the giants were unwilling to take and ordinary defense companies were unable to take. Joe Ga, having understood everything, now looked at Batista with a gentler gaze. Batista couldn't understand the conversation between Joe Ga and Lu Jun, but the fierce-looking Africa security minister saw the result in Joe Ga's expression. The guy stood up with great poise, straightened his collar, then extended his hand towards Joe Ga and said, "So, we have a deal!" Joe Ga reached out and gave Batista a solid handshake, nodding as he said, "Deal. Please leave your contact information. My lawyer will come to Tunisia in a few days. Then I'll organize a banquet, and after we sign the contract, you'll deposit the money into the specified account, after which you can go back and wait for the good news." Batista, revealing a mouthful of white teeth with a grin, said, "Mary was right, you are a capable man. I'll wait for your news in Tunisia. Burundi is an inconspicuous small country, but it has beautiful scenery. As locals, we still hope it can prosper. Our population structure is the same as Rwanda's. If Rwanda can become a stable country by learning from you, so can Burundi. We need people like you there." After sending away the Africa minister with such presence and a strong Africa aura, Joe Ga sat on the sofa and pondered for a long time, realizing that he was still too naive. Batista and Mary Aenola were actually taking the same path, getting what they wanted in exchange for overpriced minerals and then hoping Joe Ga would bring in foreign capital to turn those minerals into tangible industries, expecting the resulting industry chain to drive a series of other industries. Listening to Batista's last hint, "They hope for national prosperity and need people like Joe Ga," it was clear they didn't just hope he would deplete their national treasury through financial maneuvers… Who says Africa people are naive and simple? They, like people anywhere else, crave development because only by growing their economy can they eat more and take more. The same operating tactics could not be executed by Burundi itself because it was already overburdened with debt and had a very low credit rating, and the African Union Development Bank would not trust them. This is like my hometown in the eighties and nineties, when foreign enterprises enjoyed high-status treatment in China while private businesses faced all sorts of hurdles trying to get loans. This wasn't just about blind admiration for foreigners or discrimination at the early stage; it was because foreigners did bring advanced technology and foreign trade channels and, more often than not, your experience really wasn't enough, corporate systems were not mature, and they couldn't withstand the impact of market storms, making lending to you riskier. And so, in those early years, domestic banks incurred a huge amount of bad debts. If the government hadn't stripped off all the non-performing assets back then and established management companies to let the Big Four banks start afresh, following the so-called market rules of the West, the Big Four would have gone bankrupt a hundred times over. This is the core conflict between East and West. If we speak only of results, a market economy can never outdo a policy economy where the referees are on the field. Those capital-dominated countries will never tolerate such a situation; those who think bowing their heads will bring peace are just dreaming. When you can't win with money, isn't that when you resort to guns? But none of this concerns Joe Ga. According to the local situation in Burundi, as long as he is truly ready to invest in mining, he will be a financial backer who even the president would bow to. Lu Jun's words opened a whole new door for Joe Ga, which certainly has many challenges, but as long as he knows that the path exists, he has the courage to try. What's there to lose? At worst, he'll just earn a bit less! Sometimes blockades really do have their advantages. The more the West imposes sanctions, the higher Joe Ga's profits from arms sales become! The 'Professor' had been sitting opposite Joe Ga until he fully regained his composure, then said, "So, you've made a deal?" Joe Ga nodded vigorously, "Made a deal! You quickly check the stock of Lazar 3. This client is in a hurry; they have elections in a couple of months and he needs to ensure the Capital City's peace during that time. Compared to their own obsolete tanks, the more advanced Lazar 3 armored vehicles are better suited for what they're going to face." As he spoke, Joe Ga suddenly realized something, shook his head and chuckled, "I never thought that my business could guarantee the peace of a national capital. I feel like a good person now, and you better not burst my bubble, let me stay deluded as a 'good person' a little longer." The 'Professor' listened, looked into Joe Ga's eyes, and said, "You indeed are a good person, a respectable one at that!" Explore new worlds at M-V-L