The Grandmother in the Siheyuan

Chapter 466 Third Brother's Operation

“That’s a quagmire.” Liu Hua shook his head. “Boss, you may not understand the business environment in India, but I do. Without the courage of a bear and the guts of a leopard, who would dare to venture into that place?”

"We have lofty ambitions, do we lack a little bit of courage and boldness?"

Liu Hua shook his head: "What you're telling me is not the same thing. For example, when our country is developing nuclear power, we first inquire about foreign countries and find out if they have the technology. If we want to import it, we will negotiate with the people who have the technology. We will be targeted in our negotiations with them."

"Yes."

Liu Hua pointed south: "The news released by India this time is that they want to build a thorium-based molten salt reactor. Who in the world has this technology?"

"We have it."

Liu Hua nodded: "That's right, there's no one else besides us."

Liu Hua tapped his palm with the back of his hand: "He didn't approach us, but instead put out a tender worldwide. What does that mean?"

"You didn't know? You didn't know we had this technology?"

"Is there really such a coincidence in the world?" Liu Hua asked. "We just announced the successful commercialization of the thorium-based molten salt reactor, and they immediately announced to the world that they would build a thorium-based molten salt reactor."

"That can only be considered a coincidence. What other reason could there be besides that?"

“For a long time, India has had a strange confidence that anything we can do, they can do too.” Liu Hua said dismissively, “We have successfully built a thorium-based molten salt reactor, so they were spurred on and wanted to have one too, so as to prove that they are not lagging behind us.”

"Isn't this a disease?"

Liu Hua nodded: "You're right, conjunctivitis."

"That's not right." The leader shook his head: "We have mastered all the technology ourselves, but he has to learn from foreigners. How can that be the same?"

“People think differently. They believe that as long as they own it, no matter which country built it, as long as it wasn’t built with the help of China, it belongs to them.”

"Oh." The leader nodded. "So, they'll definitely exclude our bid?"

Liu Hua nodded: "That's right, he's just trying to mess with us. How could he possibly let us participate? Besides, even if he did let us participate, it would only be the first step in a nightmare."

"Are there any other difficulties?"

“You know about what’s going on in that country,” Liu Hua said with a smile. “Among the four classes of people, the Brahmins are the most noble. Most of the land in the country is in the hands of the Brahmins. The Third Brother government asks you to build, but they won’t help you with the land purchase. You have to do all of that yourself. You can imagine how difficult it is for an outsider to buy land from the Brahmins.”

"I have heard about that."

Liu Hua turned and asked, "What do you think is the most fundamental factor that has enabled our country to develop to its current state of prosperity?"

"The organization leads us."

Liu Hua nodded: "That's right. The organization has given us all equal status. There is no such thing as equality in that country. Seventy or eighty percent of the people are basically illiterate. That's why their industry hasn't developed to this day."

“Nuclear power plants are elite projects; not everyone needs to participate.”

“With fewer literate people, there are fewer elites, and elites are selected from among the literate population.” Liu Hua said with a smile, “According to their country’s logic, what would we do if they demanded that most of our components be made in India?” “That is indeed a difficult problem.”

Liu Hua spread his hands: "These are all minor issues. Their country's bureaucratic system is similar to our country's bureaucratic system in the 1930s and 40s, not much better."

"Fine, then let's not participate in this project." The leader shook his head: "I thought I had secured a good job for you, but it turned out to be a complete mess."

As the leader was leaving, he asked in bewilderment, "You know, he's so rotten, how could he become a little tyrant in Southeast Asia?"

"He has a good neighbor, which is us. The whole world is wary of us, so both major camps want to win him over. They flatter him and treat him politely, so he thinks it's because of his own strength."

"Another reason is that Southeast Asia is a terrible place, and it is the largest and most populous region in the country."

The leader smiled and said, "I understand, we'll pick the best among the worst."

"Yes, and he also bullied all the small countries around him, which is how he accumulated a little bit of insignificant reputation."

The leader laughed and said, "It's just a paper tiger; otherwise, there wouldn't be a New Delhi."

India quickly selected its former suzerain state, the United States of America, to build the thorium-based molten salt reactor. The signing ceremony was a grand affair that drew worldwide attention.

The two sides seemed to be working together seamlessly, but this pleasant situation lasted for less than two months.

John's country does not have the technology for thorium-based molten salt reactors; they are hoping to obtain funding from India to begin research.

However, the Indians refused to allocate funds, and they had their reasons. They said, "I sent you here to build a thorium-based molten salt reactor power plant. What do you mean by asking me to allocate funds for your research? At most, I can only allocate funds for your construction."

Moreover, this is a comprehensive project. I will pay you in full once it is completed. It is absolutely impossible for me to get my Indian friends to pay upfront.

John's country did not receive funding and could not proceed with further research, and they themselves did not have any plans to research thorium-based molten salt reactors.

So the two sides were deadlocked. In addition, the Kingdom of John was also negotiating land acquisition with the Brahmins. They knew a little about the methodology of overall planning, which could save a lot of time.

The companies in John's Country all wanted to slap themselves in the face. They were the ones who left this mess behind. Now, when they were negotiating with the Brahmins about buying the land, the Brahmins were sticking to an exorbitant price.

Therefore, John's company was unable to carry out the land acquisition on schedule, and after losing the deposit, it slunk away.

Other companies have seen what happened to John's country, and none of them are willing to take on this mess.

The leaders all admired Liu Hua for anticipating India's actions. They instructed his secretary to urge the commerce department to conduct thorough research and develop a set of guidelines for business cooperation with India, emphasizing that the people of their country should not be taken advantage of.

The thorium-based molten salt reactor power plant project in India was abandoned, but they did discover something else: someone was exporting thorium ore to China.

Liu Hua had long anticipated that things might change, so he increased the import of thorium ore in recent months, importing tens of thousands of tons in just a few months, filling up the warehouses of China National Nuclear Corporation.

As Liu Hua had predicted, India introduced a new policy, raising tariffs on thorium ore exports. Liu Hua's imports came to an abrupt halt because buying their thorium ore was more expensive than buying it domestically.

(End of this chapter)