The richest man started taking advantage of loopholes after joining Alibaba.

The chief representative concluded his assessment of the northern section, and the conference room fell silent for a moment. The skyline outside the floor-to-ceiling windows was bright and clear, and no one touched the open report on the table. He had said everything he needed to say; all that remained was to wait for the Chinese guest who had traveled from afar to give his opinion.

Everyone thought that Lin Che would either refute or admit it.

He didn't rush to do either of those two things.

"I think I understand what you've said."

Lin Che put down his pen, his expression still showing that he hadn't quite caught up, as if it had taken him a while to process what he was going to say.

"However, there are a few areas where I'm not an expert and would like to ask you for advice."

The chief representative smiled and gestured for him to speak. He wasn't surprised by this request for advice; in his view, it was perfectly normal for someone unfamiliar with the field to ask a few layman's questions when faced with such a professional assessment.

"Please feel free to ask."

"The drilling samples in your assessment," Lin Che flipped to a page of the report, pointing to a set of data, "when were these data taken?"

"The earliest batch was from a few years ago," the chief representative answered smoothly, "and we've added a few more batches since then. Our evaluation emphasizes the continuity of data; the longer the time span, the more accurate the model."

"So the model is built using historical data from these years," Lin Che said, as if confirming. "It calculates what this land looked like in the past and what it looks like now."

"That's one way to understand it."

Lin Che nodded and turned another page.

"Then how does it take future events into account?" he asked. "For example, you said it will only have value after 2024. Is this time point generated by the model itself, or is it determined separately?"

The chief representative paused for half a second, then relaxed. To him, this was the kind of question someone with only a superficial understanding of the market would ask.

"It's derived from the model," he explained patiently. "We took into account mining costs, mineral price trends, and the infrastructure in the area. The model shows that around 2024, all the conditions will meet the threshold for mining."

"Infrastructure," Lin Che caught the word, "I mean roads, electricity, and the like."

"Yes, mainly electricity," the chief representative said. "There's a huge power shortage in this area, and mining is an energy-intensive activity. If the power supply can't keep up, costs can't be reduced. In our model, the electricity cost is calculated based on the current situation and past growth rates."

"Past growth rates," Lin Che casually remarked, "What if, in the next year or two, the electricity supply here suddenly increases? For example, if a large power plant is built?"

The chief representative smiled.

"Theoretically, it will change the cost structure." He shook his head. "But power plants aren't built overnight. From project initiation to grid connection, it takes at least three to five years. Our model roughly includes these long-term variables, and the conclusion hasn't changed much. Even if there are changes, they'll be after 2024, which matches our prediction."

"I see." Lin Che nodded, noting this point down as well. "I had oversimplified things."

He Wei was taking notes, her pen pausing slightly.

She understood. Every question Lin Che asked seemed disjointed and full of details that only an outsider would get hung up on, but when put together, they all asked the same thing: what exactly was used to feed this model to the other party?

The answer is already on the table: historical data, past growth rates, and current projections.

It's all about looking back.

This model is like a mirror, reflecting the past and present of this land, but not its future. Once the future encounters variables that the model could not predict, this mirror becomes blind.

Lin Che was still asking.

"The policies you just mentioned," he turned to a previous page, "how did you incorporate the relevant policies for minerals in this area into your model?"

"Based on the existing policy framework," the chief representative said without hesitation. "When we talk about policies, we only consider those that have already taken effect at the time of the assessment. Policies that haven't been introduced yet can't be included, nor should they be, in a rigorous assessment."

"That makes sense." Lin Che nodded, his expression sincere. "Things that haven't been revealed are indeed difficult to calculate."

He didn't pursue the matter any further.

Endertu listened intently, his expression unchanged. In his view, the Chinese man's questions stemmed from his lack of worldly experience; he couldn't grasp the key points of a professional report and could only dabble in the minutiae. He even mentally concluded that this man was all bark and no bite and wouldn't last long.

The official had the same expression. He was even a little worried for Lin Che, feeling that the other party had already made the core conclusions clear, so why was he still getting bogged down in these trivial details? In his eyes, this Chinese guest was probably intimidated by the other party's assessment and was trying to find something to supplement, but couldn't find the right approach.

None of the people at the table took Lin Che's questions seriously.

They all felt that this outsider had shown his inexperience.

Only He Wei knew.

The policy question Lin Che asked about was not addressed in this report at all.

She remembered the date, set long ago but not yet announced: February 1st. A date their model could never predict. From that day forward, the main mineral produced in this mine would be classified as a strategic resource and subject to strict control. Land prices would fluctuate, mining thresholds would change—everything would have to be rewritten. But their model, which only recognized historical data, was completely unaware of all this.

Lin Che didn't dwell on how accurate his calculations were. He knew he was betting on the most basic thing: this land was worth exploring, and the core was in the middle section. As for the thickness of the rich deposit in the middle section and where its boundaries were drawn, he had to wait for a third-party report. He was betting on the general direction, not every single number.

But what he wants today is never just numbers.

What he wanted was to confirm exactly where the other party's model began to fall behind reality.

Now, he's sure.

Lin Che finished turning the last page of the report, gently closed it, and placed his hands on the cover.

"I've learned a lot today." He nodded to the chief representative, his tone full of sincerity. "You've gone to so much trouble to explain things to someone as uninformed as me. I need to go back and digest all of this."

"Not at all." The chief representative was pleased and waved his hand. "It's my honor to talk to someone like you. I can see that Mr. Lin is genuinely considering our opinions. I'm willing to befriend someone like you from the bottom of my heart."

He thought that the Chinese man had been persuaded by his professional assessment and was now reconsidering whether the land he owned was worth it.

He even felt that today's round of talks went quite smoothly.

Lin Che put the notebook with the small symbols on it, along with the pen, into the inside pocket of his suit.

He smiled at the other person but didn't say anything more.