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

Now that things had come to this point, the atmosphere at the negotiating table relaxed considerably.

The chief representative's composure deepened. Now that his most formidable opponent had conceded defeat, the rest, in his view, was merely a formality—putting this settled deal on paper.

He had his assistant bring over a newly drafted proposal, the paper still warm from the printer, and pushed it in front of Lin Che. It was clear that this proposal had been prepared long ago, just waiting for Lin Che to give his word.

"Since Mr. Lin is so straightforward, I won't beat around the bush either." He pointed to the clauses in the proposal, "These are our preliminary opinions, please take a look."

Lin Che picked up the plan.

The first clause clearly states that the mining rights for the northern section belong to the other party. The second clause assigns the mining rights for the central gentle slope to Weiguang. This is followed by a series of detailed rules regarding pricing and profit sharing.

After reading the whole thing, the division couldn't be clearer. The good stuff goes to them, and the rest goes to Weiguang.

The chief representative's tone conveyed a sense of magnanimity, as if he were giving them face.

"The northern section should have been put up for public bidding according to the rules," he said. "If it were put up for tender, we could have won it with our strength, but that process would take at least a few months, and everyone would be stuck in a rut. We're here to show our sincerity and are willing to simplify the process to save you the trouble. We're offering you the middle section, and we haven't pushed the price up too much, just to be friends."

That's a nice way of putting it. They're clearly handing over the core area to themselves, but it sounds like they're doing it for Lin Che's own good, deliberately giving up a piece of land and saving him a bidding war he couldn't win.

"And let me be frank with you," the chief representative lowered his voice, as if confiding in someone, "the locals have some concerns about your identities. You understand. If you insist on fighting for the northern section, you'll have a hard time getting past the government. This current division is more dignified for all parties."

He made Lin Che's reasons for backing down clear to his face, and even put on an act of considering the other party's feelings.

Lin Che listened without much change in expression, but nodded almost imperceptibly in agreement with the other party's words, as if acknowledging the concern.

This nod dispelled the last vestige of doubt in the chief representative's mind. Indeed, it was his identity that had held him back.

He Wei took notes, her fingertips tapping the edge of the table. She knew all too well what this proposal meant. The other party had taken that erroneous judgment, from a verbal assessment, and written it down in black and white. Once signed, they would have essentially nailed the error of "the northern section is the core" into an unalterable contract.

This is exactly what Lin Che wanted.

He wanted the other party to be absolutely certain, and now they've not only said it all, but put it all in black and white, effectively blocking any way out. When the truth is revealed, every word in this proposal will be a slap in the face to the other party.

Lin Che flipped through the plan, reading it very slowly.

Upon seeing the clause regarding the ownership of the northern section, he paused, a fleeting look of resentment crossing his face, which he quickly suppressed, as if accepting defeat. His resentment was perfectly acted, neither too much nor too little, portraying someone who had lost a struggle, making a final, desperate attempt to accept the outcome.

Upon seeing the clause regarding the right to mine in the middle section, his expression softened somewhat, and he nodded, as if he felt that the outcome was at least acceptable and hadn't driven anyone to the brink of despair.

He even paused a bit longer on the price lines, took a pen and did some calculations next to it, and then politely haggled over a profit-sharing ratio with the other party.

This haggling actually made the whole thing seem more real. Only someone who truly wants to back out would care about having a little more or less of the leftovers.

The chief representative observed all of his reactions and became even more convinced that the Chinese man had truly withdrawn. Someone who is still fussing over a fraction of a percentage point is incapable of playing a long game.

"How is it, Mr. Lin?" He leaned back, waiting for Lin Che to sign. "If there are no problems, let's finalize the framework first. We can let the staff handle the details later."

Lin Che did not pick up the pen immediately.

Those across the table assumed he was making final considerations before signing, given the scale of the deal; caution was warranted. Only he knew that he wasn't waiting to decide whether to sign, but rather for a pretext to solidify the agreement into irrefutable evidence.

He turned to the last page of the proposal, where the signature fields for both parties were still empty.

His fingertips lingered on that blank space for a moment.

"I have no objection to the framework," he finally spoke, his tone calm. "However, before signing, there's one thing I'd like to confirm first."

"Please speak."

"I'm still not entirely at ease with just an assessment of the specific direction and reserves of the mineral belt," Lin Che said, putting down the proposal. "I want to hire a neutral third-party organization to conduct an independent exploration and obtain actual measurement data before signing anything. It's not for anything else, just for peace of mind, and to make things easier to explain to the higher-ups and shareholders in the future."

He looked genuinely cautious when he said this.

This caution wasn't entirely feigned. The middle section was the core, and he was confident in that general direction. But he only had a rough idea of ​​how thick the enrichment zone was, where its boundaries were drawn, and what the reserves were. He would have to wait for a third-party report to confirm these specific figures. He was betting on the most fundamental aspect—the middle section—not on every decimal point.

Therefore, this exploration was also necessary for him.

Externally, it's an impeccably reasonable demand. Internally, it's the final step in solidifying the general direction into irrefutable evidence.

This request sounds perfectly normal. For a transaction this large, having a third party verify the data is something any prudent buyer would do.

The chief representative's face remained completely expressionless.

In his view, this would only make the outcome more secure. He had complete confidence in his global-level assessment, and any third-party evaluation would only yield the same results as his conclusion, merely reassuring Lin Che and making him sign more readily.

"Of course," he answered readily, almost without hesitation. "Data transparency is good for both parties. Please go ahead and do the survey. Once it's done, we can sit down and sign. Would you like me to recommend a couple of agencies? There are only a handful of reliable geological exploration companies in this area."

"No need," Lin Che waved his hand, his tone still polite. "We'll find one ourselves, so you won't be in any awkward situation. Neutrality is best, the cleaner the better."

"That's true." The chief representative smiled and agreed, showing even more appreciation for Lin Che's thoughtfulness.

He even felt that Lin Che's request was very sophisticated, every step meticulously planned, like that of a real big businessman. With such an opponent admitting defeat, his victory was equally satisfying.

He didn't know that what he had just agreed to was a fuse.