I'm in the county town, and you say I'm a big shot?

Chapter 765 "This game of chess needs to be played slowly"

Upon seeing Qiankai Port, Fang Qingye searched for its current situation on Baidu.

Chancay Port is now operated by Dubai Ports World as the "Chancay Terminal". It began operations in 2010 and was one of Peru's first dedicated multipurpose port terminals, designed to alleviate congestion at the Port of Callao.

It handles not only containers, but also bulk cargo, general cargo, and roll-on/roll-off cargo, serving multiple sectors such as mining, fishing, agriculture, and industry.

It was already quite large: compared to the aging facilities of Callao Port, Chancay Port was already one of the relatively modern and efficient ports in Peru at the time.

Of course, COSCO Shipping Group has not taken over yet.

And the transcontinental railway
Fang Qingye then began researching related materials.

In the past two days, O'Anli has sent some more information and materials about the negotiations, which Fang Qingye has been carefully reviewing.

Two days later, I received a call from Qiao Yongfeng, who said that at 9 a.m. local time, which is 10 p.m. in Beijing, we would have a video conference to make a final decision.

Fang Qing agreed.

In the evening, Fang Qingye went to his study in his villa, turned on his computer and logged into DingTalk—now Fang Qingye uses DingTalk to video chat with executives of his various companies to discuss business.

Fang Qingye sat in her computer chair, amber-colored teacup in front of her holding a cold-brewed Lion Peak Longjing tea. On the other end of the video call, in São Paulo, the morning sunlight streamed through floor-to-ceiling windows, where Qiao Yongfeng and two others sat in a conference room.

The two companies are similar in size, with Origin Agricultural Industries having slightly more farmland and output controlled through long-term contracts. Their bids were 8.25 million reais and 8.14 million reais, respectively, which translate to 2.06 million and 2.04 million US dollars at the real-time exchange rate. The former is slightly higher, which is ultimately due to geographical location.

“Mr. Fang, we don’t have any other supplementary information at the moment. We currently have a latest assessment report on the impact of ADM in the regions where the two companies are located.” O’Neill accepted the report, projected the data onto the screen, his Portuguese accent rising and falling between technical terms.

“ADM’s roots in Mato Grosso are deeper than we anticipated. Even after more than three months of logistical battles, they still control 42% of the high-quality soybean supply in the northern production area through their shareholdings in seventeen agricultural cooperatives.”

He Qingfeng also pulled up a logistics map and added: "More importantly, ADM has set up multiple layers of protection on the transportation chain from Sinop to Itaki Port. They have followed COFCO's example and signed an exclusive agreement with 'Northern Logistics,' and any competitor attempting to enter the region must pay a 15% premium."

Qiao Yongfeng frowned, listening to the two reports while silently smoking without saying a word.

"Therefore, relatively speaking, we have already established a relatively complete control network in the south. Choosing Southern Harvest Company can leverage our existing advantages to quickly achieve economies of scale," O'Neill concluded.

“But that also means living forever in ADM’s shadow,” Fang Qingye said.

He gently turned the teacup, the sweet white glaze shimmering with a warm luster under the light. "In the first three months, our partnership with COFCO was able to severely damage ADM precisely because they adhered to traditional logistics thinking."

He opened a map and projected it onto the screen: "As you can see, ADM's warehouse layout in Sinop is entirely along the existing road network, which is a typical example of path dependence. And the area where Orizant is located," Fang Qingye's finger traced across a piece of undeveloped highland, "is precisely the best passage for the future transcontinental railway."

O'Anli couldn't help but interject: "We also checked the relevant information, and President Qiao even made a special call to the Second Railway Survey and Design Institute of China Railway. The plan for the Two Oceans Railway does not pass through the Cuiabá region, the capital of Mato Grosso Oblast where Orizont is located."

Qiao Yongfeng looked at Fang Qingye and nodded, indicating his agreement with Ou Anli's statement.

Fang Qingye was not clear about how the transcontinental railway was planned in history; he only knew that it seemed to have been changed many times and was never completely finalized.

Thinking of this, he said, "Planning is static, but economic geography is dynamic. When we achieve an annual operating scale of 1000 million tons in this region, I think the country will take this factor into consideration when it actually implements the railway plan."

1000 million tons! On the other end of the video, the two young men exchanged shocked glances.

Orizant Agricultural and Industrial Company is now larger, but its annual soybean supply is only 63 tons. In other words, it would take the acquisition of 14 Orizant Agricultural and Industrial Companies to reach the scale Fang Qingye mentioned!

“President Fang, that’s impossible. Even if we had the capability, Mato Grosso State wouldn’t allow it.” He Qingfeng explained, “Mato Grosso State is the most important soybean producing region in Brazil and even the world, with an average annual soybean production of about 4000 million tons. We control nearly a quarter of the local soybean trade, so they definitely won’t allow it.”

Fang Qingye laughed: "I didn't say it was just soybeans, there's also corn. The data shows that the corn yield of the land contracted by Orizont Company is 123 million tons, and if we include the 63 tons of soybeans, the total is 186 million tons. So we only need to acquire 4 similar companies in Mato Grosso. I think acquiring 4 more is still possible."

corn?!
The two young men exchanged another glance, somewhat puzzled.

"The country's corn imports have been increasing year by year, mainly from the United States and Ukraine, but in the future, we will definitely increase imports from Brazil," Qiao Yongfeng added.

"And another thing," Fang Qingye said with a smile, looking at Qiao Yongfeng, "Brother Qiao, do you still remember those two summers when we went to Yanjing to have tea with President Ning of COFCO and Director Liu of the Commerce Department at Minghui Tea House?"

When Fang Qingye suddenly asked about this, Qiao Yongfeng was taken aback for a moment before answering, "I remember, what's wrong?"

"We chatted about Qiankai Port while drinking tea," Fang Qingye said, pulling up a map of South America.

"If the port of Chancay in Peru is leased and controlled by our country, ADM's advantage on the Atlantic coast will be meaningless on the Pacific side! Once the transcontinental railway is completed, we won't need to go around the Cape of Good Hope or through the Panama Canal. Wouldn't it be more convenient for Mato Grosso State to access the transcontinental railway?!"

Fang Qingye's words shocked the two young people once again.

The government will lease Qiankai Port?!
However, since it came from Fang Qingye, it has a certain degree of credibility.

You should know that even though they are about the same age as you, they have a very wide network of connections.

“But,” He Qingfeng couldn’t help but argue, “Both Qiankai Port and the Two Oceans Railway are currently in the planning stage and have not been implemented. Who knows when they will actually be opened and put into commercial use.”

“That’s right, you’re absolutely right.” Fang Qingye smiled faintly and picked up her teacup. “Our plans in Brazil weren’t originally about the present, but rather about ten years from now or even further ahead.”

Silence fell during the video conference.

Fang Qingye's meaning is clear: his investment in soybeans in Brazil is a strategic move, not a financial one.

He Qingfeng turned his gaze to Qiao Yongfeng.

He is my boss, and I have to listen to him.

“I agree with Aoba’s opinion on acquiring Orizon,” Qiao Yongfeng said finally. “This game needs to be played slowly.”

Since both CEOs agreed, the others had to carry it out. The meeting then discussed the specific details of the acquisition of Orizon, continuing until midnight.

Having said everything that needed to be said, Qiao Yongfeng said, "Ou Anli and Qingfeng, you two can leave first. I need to talk to President Fang about something else alone."

(End of this chapter)