This is difficult

"How do I learn it?"

"Let's trade our technology." Chen Feng's eyes gleamed. "The 'Cheetah's' steam turbine layout is more advanced than the Westphalian-class, and its oil-fired boilers are more efficient. Let's use these 'non-core' but enticing technologies to trade for their truly valuable assets."

Uncle Wang smiled knowingly: "Young master is trying to get something for nothing."

"No," Chen Feng shook his head, "it's technology for technology, a fair trade. It's just... we know what's truly valuable, but they might not."

Outside the window, the setting sun began to sink, turning the surface of the Persian Gulf into gold.

A long day is coming to an end.

But Lanfang's advance has only just begun.

Suite at Raffles Hotel, Singapore.

Wang Wenwu stood on the balcony, a glass of ice water in his hand, watching the bustling crowds on the street below. This most important British colonial city in the Far East was just beginning to light up.

But he wasn't in the mood to appreciate the night view.

In the suite's living room, three telephones rang incessantly. Three assistants answered calls from all over the world in English, French, and German, quickly taking notes before handing them to Wang Wenwu for review.

"Boss, Sydney is calling." An assistant handed over a notepad. "BHP has agreed to sell five-year mining rights to two mines in the Pilbara region, but requires a 30% prepayment, and all payments must be made in pounds sterling."

Wang Wenwu glanced at the price: "Agree to their terms. But demand an additional clause: if exports are interrupted due to political reasons, they must compensate us three times the amount of all our advance payments."

"Will they... agree?"

"Yes." Wang Wenwu sneered. "The British are short of money to build warships right now, and the mining companies are even more eager to cash out. Go and talk, be firm."

As soon as one assistant left, another arrived.

"The Chilean nitrate company has replied. They are willing to sell a 49% stake in the Atacama Desert III mine, but require us to provide mining equipment and technical support."

"We don't want equity; we want long-term purchase contracts," Wang Wenwu quickly instructed. "Tell them that Lanfang Trading Company can sign a ten-year contract to purchase 50,000 tons of saltpeter annually, with prices fluctuating according to international market rates. But we must have priority purchasing rights."

"That equipment and technology..."

"We can provide it." Wang Wenwu thought for a moment, "We'll buy secondhand mining equipment from Germany and resell it to them, making a profit on the difference. We'll send two engineers over for technical support—find them among the new immigrants who have mining experience."

"Yes."

The third assistant waited until the first two had left before approaching, his voice very low:

"Boss, people from the Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co. want to see you. They say... they have special channels to obtain precision machine tools, including five-axis milling machines that are banned from export by Germany."

Wang Wenwu whirled around: "The Japanese? How did they know we needed this?"

"I don't know. But the person who came showed a letter of introduction from a machine factory in Kobe, so he seems to be a legitimate businessman."

"I won't see you." Wang Wenwu shook his head decisively. "Tell the front desk I'm not here. Also, notify all our purchasing agents in Japan to suspend all transactions and await my further instructions."

The assistant was somewhat puzzled: "Boss, we urgently need a five-axis milling machine. If the Japanese could provide one..."

"Anything the Japanese provide has its price listed somewhere you can't see it." Wang Wenwu walked to the liquor cabinet, poured half a glass of whiskey, and drank it all in one gulp. "They're now like hungry wolves searching for the source of the Dreadnoughts. Their sudden approach to us is definitely not a good thing."

He put down his wine glass, walked to his desk, and spread out a world map.

The map is marked with more than a dozen red dots—iron mines in Australia, copper and nitrate mines in Chile, tin mines in Malaya, chromium mines in South Africa, manganese mines in India… Each red dot represents a procurement channel that Lanfang is establishing or has already established.

But these are all public and legal business transactions.

There are also some blue dots, marked in more concealed places: Swiss bank accounts, offshore companies in Panama, trust funds in the Cayman Islands... These are financial networks that Wang Wenwu spent three months building to diversify the flow of funds and hide the identities of the real buyers.

The phone rang again.

This time it was a call from the British.

Wang Wenwu answered the receiver; the other party spoke English with a Scottish accent.

"Mr. Wang? This is McDonald from Edinburgh Trust. The acquisition of five percent of Clyde Bank's shares, which you entrusted to us, has been completed. You are now the bank's fifth-largest shareholder and have the right to nominate one director."

"Very good," Wang Wenwu replied in fluent English. "Nominate my assistant, Robert Chen. Also, acquire 10 percent of the shares of Liverpool Shipbuilding Equipment Company through banking channels—distributed under at least five different names."

"Understood. However, Mr. Wang, the UK Department for Trade has recently strengthened its scrutiny of foreign acquisitions in strategic industries, particularly those involving shipbuilding and the defense industry..."

"So we need to use a UK-based trust company as an intermediary," Wang Wenwu interrupted him. "I can add another 0.5% to the commission. But I require it to be completed within one month."

"We will do our best."

After hanging up the phone, Wang Wenwu rubbed his temples.

This is a massive scheme. Using German gold, transferred through Swiss banks to British trust companies, they acquired shares in British shipbuilding companies, then used these companies to purchase equipment that was originally prohibited from export, and finally shipped it to the Persian Gulf…

Every step is in a legal gray area, and every step could be watched by British intelligence.

But it has to be done.

Because many of the equipment needed for "Operation Cheetah" were things the Germans were unwilling to provide and the British prohibited from exporting, this roundabout method was the only way to gradually acquire them.

"Boss." The first assistant returned, his face grim. "We just received a telegram from the Mumbai office. The British Indian colonial authorities have suddenly announced a 15% 'strategic resource tax' on all exported iron ore, manganese ore, and chromium ore. Our procurement costs are going to increase significantly."

Wang Wenwu frowned.

This is no coincidence. The British are tightening export controls on strategic resources, clearly targeting one or more specific buyers.

"Notify all purchasing points," he quickly decided, "and immediately implement Plan B: amend all purchase contracts to 'CIF' terms, shifting the tax costs to the sellers. If they disagree, threaten to cancel the contracts—while simultaneously preparing alternative suppliers to take over the orders."

"But that would offend our current suppliers..."

"They wouldn't dare," Wang Wenwu sneered. "The global mining market is currently oversupplied, and we're the big buyers. The British can raise taxes, but the mine owners won't want to lose orders. Go and negotiate, but be firm."

The assistant left in a hurry.

Wang Wenwu went to the balcony and lit a cigar—his only luxury habit.

The port of Singapore at night is filled with ships from all over the world. British cargo ships, German ocean liners, Japanese merchant ships, Dutch oil tankers... It is a microcosm of the world, where great powers converge, compete, and trade.

Lanfang, an unrecognized name, is quietly weaving a global resource network through the power of money.

The cigar smoke dissipated in the night breeze.

Wang Wenwu recalled what Chen Feng had said to him before he left the Persian Gulf:

"Wenwu, what you need to do is not simply purchase goods. You need to use money to pave the way, to tear a hole in the global trade system controlled by the great powers. Let resources flow to where we need them, while concealing our true intentions."

"This is difficult, young master."

"That's why I sent you." Chen Feng looked at him then, his eyes holding a depth beyond his years, "Because you are the one among us who understands the rules of this world best. You know how to use their rules to achieve our goals."