The unparalleled talent of the country started from Harbin Institute of Technology

Late December 1998, Hidab, Somalia.

In a luxurious, spacious, and brightly lit conference room, most of Want Want Group's senior executives attended the meeting in person, while the remaining executives who were not present participated via video call.

Want Want Group's businesses span the globe, and many of these businesses require senior executives to be on-site at all times.

With the year-end summary meeting approaching in January, some senior executives did not attend in person.

Wang Duoyu sat in the head seat with a serious expression, but did not say a word.

The speaker was Zheng Baoyin, who personally explained the reasons for the meeting.

Due to geopolitical factors in the Middle East, where there is constant fighting, just three days ago, a cruise ship owned by the Want Want Group was attacked by local armed forces, resulting in the deaths of 89 people and injuries to 132 others.

This incident has had a very negative impact.

Although the incident was suppressed and the outside world is unaware of it, many institutions around the world that need to know about it already do.

The CIA, MI6, the External Security Service, the KGB, and other agencies learned of the attack within hours.

Unfortunately, the Middle East has always been a focal point for everyone, so it's impossible to completely avoid it.

Therefore, after receiving the news, Wang Duoyu immediately called the executives to a meeting in Xidebu to see how to handle the matter.

He asked Liu Xiaoli and the others for leave at the beginning of this month, then flew directly to Ali Camp before coming to the Somali Peninsula.

The Somali Peninsula is not only very important now, but also home to many experimental projects, so he has to make a trip there every now and then.

After Zheng Baoyin finished his statement, everyone was filled with indignation and expressed their determination to punish the local armed men.

Use money to crush the other party!

"Has there been a detailed investigation to determine whether there are individuals with ulterior motives trying to sow discord, such as dragging our group into the mess, or shifting blame?"

Wang Duoyu suddenly asked.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Baoyin frowned and said:

"Uncle, the investigation has basically been completed. It was a spontaneous action by local armed forces, and there shouldn't be any other forces or individuals behind it."

"Don't jump to conclusions so hastily!" Wang Duoyu objected.

"The situation is simple: we need to be vigilant and not rush to conclusions, but we do need to deploy our strongest armed forces to control that local armed group."

Direct revenge is definitely not an option, because if we were to start a war and eliminate that armed force, we might end up burying the truth completely.

But we can't just do nothing.

Based on the tone set by Wang Duoyu, Zheng Baoyin and his team began to discuss detailed action plans in that direction.

In fact, the negative impact of this incident is quite significant. The actual losses are not much, but if it is not handled properly, it could really lead to a major disaster.

Half an hour later, the matter had been discussed to a large extent, and Wang Duoyu spoke again:

"Alright, that's the end of this matter. From now on, just follow the plan we just discussed, keep in touch, and make sure there are no more mistakes."

"Since everyone is here now, I'd like to talk about the arrangements after the euro is issued on January 1st."

hum!
Inside the meeting room, everyone's expressions instantly became very excited, because this meant that a large sum of money was about to be deposited into their accounts.

Wang Duoyu had mentioned the issuance of the Euro several years ago, and had also alerted veteran executives like Zheng Baoyin to its importance.

Even last year and this year, Want Want Group had already made preparations in advance.

Since the formation of the European Union in May of this year, the European Central Bank has taken full control of the issuance of the euro.

Now that it's late December, the issuance of the euro is a done deal.

It's an unstoppable trend!

Once the euro is issued, it will cover eleven European member states, with a total economic output of $27 trillion, directly challenging the international currency status of the US dollar.

Therefore, whether Jefferson and Clinton wanted it or not, the United States was bound to attack the European Union and even eager to destroy the Euro.

Wang Duoyu has already explained the specific methods he will use, which will be nothing more than three main methods.

First, war; second, the economy; and third, finance.

The methods of warfare are self-evident; they are simple and brutal.

Economic measures take a relatively longer time and mainly involve restrictions on oil, the US dollar, and other commodities, as well as blocking the supply of goods within the EU, in order to cripple the EU economy.

Finally, there are financial tools, which come in a wide variety of forms. This is a traditional American skill, and Japan and Russia were brought down by such methods in the past.

"Professor, the issuance of the Euro is 100% certain, and the Americans will definitely take action, but we have no idea who will win between them."

Yabo Fein was the first to speak, frowning as he said:
"According to the plan we discussed earlier, once the euro is issued, the United States will inevitably attack it from multiple dimensions, including war, finance, and the economy, causing a severe shock to the euro exchange rate, leading to capital flight from the eurozone and crippling the entire EU economy."

If the United States were to launch a war, it could wield its financial power and target the European Union.

Therefore, European capital will inevitably flee in large quantities to avoid risks.

Because capital is inherently driven by profit and avoids risk, it's impossible for them to fight to the bitter end, as this doesn't align with their interests.

"However, such a situation analysis is too general, and it will be difficult for our Want Want Group to reap profits."

Zheng Baoyin echoed this sentiment:
"Yes, Uncle, the situation is quite clear now, but shouldn't we discuss the methods again? We have a large family and business now. If we act too quickly and invest too much, it could lead to frequent accidents, and we'll definitely suffer more losses in the end."

why?
It's all because they're afraid of being exposed and targeted by Wall Street financial giants.

Although companies under Maple Leaf Holdings Group, such as Maple Capital, are already bitter rivals with Wall Street financial giants such as Quantum Fund, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley.

However, in this wave of Euro turmoil, minimizing the risk of exposure is naturally the best approach.

So Zheng Baoyin's point is that taking action is certain, but the extent of resources and manpower invested needs to be carefully controlled.

Otherwise, if the financial companies under Maple Leaf Holdings Group profit too much in the future, they will inevitably be targeted by Wall Street financial giants, which will definitely cause a lot of trouble.

"But we won't be satisfied if we invest too little."

Dai Ronghua, Tong Zhigang, Xue Lisheng, Wang Meili, Reinhard Monroe, and others all nodded thoughtfully.

Today, Want Want Group is a large and powerful company with enormous assets.

Leaving aside the annual profits of the super dollar factory, let's just talk about the crude oil that Want Want Group has transported from the Middle East over the years.

The crude oil is mainly stored in several important Want Want Group locations, including mainland China, Hong Kong Island, and the United States. The crude oil warehouse on the Somali Peninsula was only started under construction two years ago.

However, the crude oil storage warehouses in the Somali Peninsula have seen the fastest growth, and are now almost equivalent to the storage capacity of Guangzhou.

Because the Somali Peninsula has a satellite launch base and will later build a large number of factories, the demand for crude oil is quite large.

In short, the Somali peninsula currently has a staggering 780 million barrels of crude oil stored there, which is an enormous amount.

The current international crude oil price is $9.75 per barrel, and 780 million barrels is equivalent to $7.6 billion.

With a scale of less than 10 billion US dollars, it is really a small asset for Want Want Group.

Major economic cities such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Chongqing, Harbin, Shanghai, Beijing, Wuhan, and Kunming have crude oil reserves ranging from 700 million to 1.2 billion barrels.

Only four cities have a scale of over one billion barrels: Chengdu, Beijing, Shanghai, and Harbin. Even Guangzhou doesn't have that many.

The reason Guangzhou doesn't have that many is because Shenzhen also has 700-800 million barrels, and Hong Kong Island also has 700-800 million barrels. All told, the Pearl River Delta region alone has more than 2 billion barrels, which is a very large scale.

Even so, the crude oil storage in so many cities, each only around 10 billion US dollars, adds up to only about 100 billion US dollars.

However, Want Want Group's annual profit is over 500 billion US dollars, so it's easy to see that this amount of crude oil storage is nothing special.

As for international crude oil prices, naturally we reduce our imports when oil prices are high and import large quantities when oil prices are low.

In mid-1997, due to the Asian financial crisis, international crude oil prices fell from $24.8 per barrel to the current $9.75 per barrel. Regardless of the fluctuations in international crude oil prices, Want Want Group's crude oil purchases may vary, but they remain at a scale of hundreds of billions of US dollars annually.

In other words, Want Want Group buys crude oil in large quantities from anywhere in the world, including the Middle East, other OPEC countries, and regions like South and North America.

Therefore, Want Want Group has enormous assets, it's a very large one.

But precisely because of this, we need to be even more cautious.

For example, these crude oil storage warehouses and factories are all affiliated with different companies and are located in different areas of each city.

On the surface, these crude oils in each city are the assets of dozens or even hundreds of companies, so once dispersed, there are naturally not that many.

Of course, the outside world wouldn't pay attention to this.

However, the CIA and other agencies are not fools. If it weren't for the fact that they have been drawing most of their firepower to the super-dollar factory in recent years, they would not have been fooled.

In addition, recent years have seen events such as the bursting of Japan's bubble economy triggering a global financial tsunami, the collapse of Russia caused by the ruble's depreciation, the Iran-Iraq War, and the Gulf War, all of which have attracted considerable attention.

Otherwise, the fact that Want Want Group purchases so much crude oil from all over the world and transports it back to the mainland would have already attracted attention.

Over the years, Want Want Group has managed to avoid being exposed for its misdeeds, thanks to its sufficient caution, correct guidance, and ample preparation.

With the imminent issuance of the Euro, this presents both an opportunity and a risk for the Want Want Group.

If they don't finalize the plan now that Wang Duoyu is in the meeting room, Zheng Baoyin and the other executives are unsure of what to do.

Wang Duoyu pondered for a moment and said:
"Let's proceed with it on a scale of two hundred billion US dollars!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Jianchao immediately said:
"Uncle Jiu, isn't this too little? The Eurozone has eleven member states with a combined GDP exceeding $27 trillion, while the US GDP last year was only $8.58 trillion."

"The Eurozone is so rich, Wall Street can't possibly ignore this lucrative prize. We've only put up two hundred billion dollars, which is probably not even enough to fill a gap in our teeth."

With this issuance of the euro, Wall Street will certainly keep the euro exchange rate fluctuating for a long time, because they need to prevent the euro from stabilizing and from having the opportunity to challenge the dollar's hegemony.

At the same time, through such exchange rate fluctuations, Wall Street can also make a killing.

Wall Street would certainly be very willing to do something like cutting into the enemy's flesh to increase its own strength.

Wang Jianchao was also very envious of such an opportunity.

Therefore, he felt that if two hundred billion US dollars were invested, it would probably not even make a ripple.

"Hehe, so how much money do you think needs to be invested? Five hundred billion US dollars? Or one trillion US dollars?" Wang Duoyu asked expressionlessly.

Upon hearing this, Wang Jianchao shrank back, his face filled with fear as he quickly lowered his head.

The two sisters, Wang Meili and Wang Meihe, almost burst out laughing. Luckily, they covered their mouths, otherwise, in such a serious occasion, they might have really been punished by their ninth brother.

So many years have passed, and the two sisters are no longer the little girls they once were.

Not only has their ninth brother changed drastically, but the two sisters have also shed their youthful naiveté and now exude the authority of those in positions of power.

However, in front of their ninth brother, they were still the younger sisters.

An eerie silence fell over the conference room; no one spoke.

"I know you all want to make money, but you can't rush it, and you shouldn't rush it."

"Do you think the EU is a pushover, letting the Americans bully it? Do you know who the biggest winner was after the Cold War?"

These two questions are very simple.

The EU looks like a very big cake; whoever gets a bite will be rolling in it.

The problem is, no one dares to act recklessly.

France, one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, is an important member state of the European Union.

How could this big scoundrel let others bully him?
Great Britain is awesome, isn't it?
Because Great Britain has many politicians, and these politicians are truly remarkable, such as Churchill.

During World War II, Roosevelt accelerated the disintegration of Great Britain through three major strategies: exchanging military bases, restructuring the economic system, and establishing financial hegemony.

The financial hegemony within it is, of course, the famous Bretton Woods system.

With these three strategies, Great Britain will be like a caged bird, a meal on a plate, unable to fly away even if it wants to.

It can be said that Great Britain had no way to counter such a strategy.

However, British politician Winston Churchill personally went to the United States to deliver the Iron Curtain speech, telling Americans that their enemy was not Great Britain but the Russians.

Truman, that idiot, didn't understand Roosevelt's strategy, so he accepted Churchill's advice.

And so the Cold War began.

As we all know, that's how it happened.

Great Britain is so awesome, but France is no less impressive.

In addition, the European Union is no longer just France, but an economy with $27 trillion and eleven member states.

Such a behemoth would require the Americans to proceed with extreme caution, even if they wanted to take action against it.

After all, Jefferson, Clinton, and others weren't fools; they wouldn't act recklessly and brutally.

They need to suppress the euro while preventing the other side from going all out.

Therefore, the size still needs to be properly determined.

As for the second question Wang Duoyu just asked, well, do you even need to ask?
"Europe, or rather the current European Union, is the biggest winner of the Cold War."

Zheng Baoyin frowned:
"Uncle, this doesn't make sense, does it? The Americans took over two trillion dollars worth of goods and wealth from Russia, and our Want Want Group also took several hundred billion dollars from that."

"No matter how you look at it, the EU isn't the biggest winner, is it?"

This statement was unanimously agreed by everyone.

Six or seven years have passed since this incident, but many people here are very clear about what happened back then, especially Martinez.

Back then, he was a key member in Russia, and it was because of his significant contributions there that he was able to successfully enter the senior management of Want Want Group.

"How many of you have never been to Europe? Do you really have a deep understanding of the European economic landscape?"

Wang Duoyu posed two more questions, immediately plunging everyone into deep thought.

This time, however, he didn't keep them in suspense and explained the situation directly to them.

"First, if you've looked into it, you'll know that France and Germany, two countries in the European Economic Community, are already building cradle-to-grave welfare systems, with a significant number of companies offering paid leave of more than three months."

"Secondly, Germany's external security now relies on the protection of the United States, which saves a significant amount of military spending each year."

"Third, after the establishment of the European Economic Community, a large number of high-quality and cheap laborers came to the heart of Europe, benefiting countries such as France and Germany."

Fourth, after the end of the Cold War, Europe and Russia formed a close energy cooperation relationship, so they have access to very cheap energy.

"Security is the responsibility of the United States, energy is the responsibility of Russia, and the production and consumption markets for goods are the responsibility of the world."

"So you're saying the EU isn't the biggest winner since the Cold War?"

After hearing this, everyone present looked at each other in bewilderment.

At first, no one took it seriously, after all, the United States and their Want Want Group were indeed the biggest winners.

But now that Wang Duoyu has spoken, the EU's economic landscape is indeed that of the biggest winner.

It's a complete passive income model.

"The EU's economic model has already been established. If we invest too much, and the EU retaliates, we won't have time to retreat, and wouldn't we suffer huge losses?" (End of Chapter)