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Chapter 1236: Chapter 1093: Sugar Coats Are Still Tasty (Please subscribe!)
One of them blurted out,
"WTF?"
He had articulated the collective sentiment of everyone present.
We hadn’t made a move yet.
And you’ve just blocked our last exit. This shuffling is way too "timely," how on earth did Ling manage to pull off such a crazy shuffle without any turmoil happening!
Not even a hint of a rumor had leaked out.
Let alone a warning.
He skipped the hardest part, "coordinating," and went straight to the finish line.
This move...
Was truly beyond their comprehension.
The person in charge also helplessly massaged his somewhat aching head.
This information...
Had been transmitted at great risk by intelligence officers, not only that, but their operatives had been steadily uncovered over the past few months, some of them turned over to them, others disappeared.
Of course.
There weren’t many, to begin with.
Just over twenty.
For such an unimportant country.
They had not been interested in building a vast intelligence network, and many relied on bribed informants for information. Now, those previously bribed on the other side were gradually cutting ties with them, overall, it was highly unsmooth.
This meant...
From now on...
Their intelligence presence in Myanmar would be virtually wiped out. For the short term, they would be in the dark, and any attempts to rebuild could take a while and still risk exposure.
After a long while...
They calmed down their emotions.
"What do we do?"
"What else can we do? Negotiate. Didn’t they say they’re short on funds to develop the two states? Let’s see if we can use loans to decrease the necessity of the expansion. If that doesn’t work... then we’ll think about collaboration."
"Is there really no other way?"
"Unless you can make Ling step down."
"...That’s almost impossible."
"Will Ling agree to our conditions? There’s not much time left, if the expansion becomes a reality, our ’bargaining power’ over there will be severely diminished."
"Just a hundred billion dollars, I doubt that will sway Ling. You should know their Asia Dollar is very stable in the region. Even if by issuing Asia Dollars, they have the capability to fund the construction."
"Yes, the Asia Dollar is a big problem. No one knows why, but the Myanmar Bank Group has always been controlling the issuance. But once they let go, the internal economic cycle alone could ensure normal project progression."
"We can’t just do nothing."
"We must act, the funds stay the same, but we need to loosen the conditions. Otherwise, we can only watch the expansion happen."
"..."
"Let’s try with money first, lower the conditions. If that doesn’t work, we’ll have to switch to support, but at any rate, we must not sour the relationship; we were planning on deepening cooperation anyhow."
Soon...
The discussion entered an almost unanimous consensus, they had no choice since most of their main tactics were nullified.
Things had progressed to such an extent...
That they had very few options left.
The United States might be powerful...
But they couldn’t just attack someone without reason.
Economic sanctions?
What would be the reasons?
The other party wasn’t researching nuclear weapons, nor did they have oil, and they didn’t even want to buy their weapons. To sanction such a ’peace-loving’ country could well backfire.
Their territory was vast.
With a large population.
And access to the sea.
Plus, a coastline stretching 3,200 kilometers.
Rich in resources and primarily agricultural, even with economic sanctions, they wouldn’t worry about food and drink, and might even take the time to curse the United States out.
And their geographical position was unique.
Truly a strategic location.
In the eyes of the United States...
Its importance might even exceed the combined significance of Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. If the United States sanctioned them and they completely turned to Huaxia, they’d be chewed out by their superiors and be out on their ears the next minute.
They hadn’t felt this frustrated in a long time.
...
The next day...
Annesley, with dark circles under his eyes,
Arrived at Ling’s office.
He got right to the point, saying that in order to alleviate the pressure on the Myanmar Economic Zone, the United States was willing to provide loan support for the development of the two states and hoped Ling would carefully consider it to avoid burdening the enterprises.
In essence...
This was for the good of Ling.
And for the financial health of the Myanmar Bank Group.
"No problem, let the rich lead the poor, once money is made, businesses have to take on their social responsibility, helping more people to live a life full of food, clothing, dignity, and value."
With that reasoning...
Annesley was speechless.
It seemed...
The first plan of those guys in the United States was completely ineffective. They were determined to expand their domain and were even preparing to fire up the money printers once again, recklessly printing money to spend.
As for this bit of money,
they could take it or leave it.
Therefore,
Annesley had to adopt a second plan.
Give money.
...
Half an hour later,
Annesley walked out of the Presidential Office.
The sunlight outside was brilliant, but what he saw was the rebirth of this land. Having someone like Ling who would haggle over every penny and was extraordinarily tough on matters of fundamental national interests was also the land’s fortune.
Of course,
for the United States,
it was a misfortune.
For example, just now,
Ling had barely agreed to any terms.
Yet the United States had gratuitously offered a ten billion-dollar interest-free loan. Yes, it was an interest-free loan, because the loan was categorized as aid, which could have an interest rate or not.
The term was twenty years. 𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝙤𝒎
Even so, Ling seemed rather reluctant.
Annesley’s mouth had gone dry from talking.
Ling made no concessions.
In the end,
he was rendered speechless by a question from Ling.
"If you truly wish to fulfill the conditions you mentioned, then completely lift the blockade on high-end technology and equipment. If not, it means you don’t really wish for us to keep up with the forefront of the era. Do you dare to promise that?"
Annesley was silent at the moment.
Dare he?
Of course, he didn’t dare.
If they opened up high-end equipment and technology, what if it was turned around and sold to Huaxia?
This clearly did not align with the interests of the United States.
Ling’s question struck too deep.
It defied common sense and pushed him to a cliff-hanger decision. In the end, Annesley chose to save himself, as well as the people behind him. No one dared to accept this condition.
Therefore,
ten billion dollars
just like that, ’donated’.
It was also today,
for this land,
that Annesley unexpectedly couldn’t help but feel a ’grave’ sensation because any country that escapes internal strife has boundless potential, capable of concentrating its power to accomplish anything they wish to.
Like Huaxia.
To put it vividly, aside from itself, no one can stop this behemoth’s progress. As long as there are no issues internally, proceeding step by step, the path to rejuvenation can be achieved.
This point
is recognized by all strategic scholars in the United States.
However,
with the ’help’ of the United States,
such countries
number fewer than the fingers of two hands worldwide.
...
Just like that,
the sugar-coated bullets,
had the bullets removed,
leaving just the sugar coating. Although not much, it was still enough for a snack, and upon receiving the news, Tang Qing already had plans for this money—to spend it, all in one shot.
Money, this thing,
is not significant on paper. It generates value when it gets converted into assets. During this process, the transfer of wealth can be realized. For instance, setting up several large-scale photovoltaic projects could boost the revenue for Microcrystalline Technology.
This isn’t misappropriation.
Keep in mind,
when dollars come in,
according to the laws of the Myanmar Economic Zone, they must be forcibly exchanged, and given to the Central Bank.
But this time,
since it was for the use of two regions,
it didn’t go through the accounts of the Myanmar Central Bank.
Instead, it was exchanged with Myanmar Bank, which would print the corresponding Asia Dollars for allocation to the two regions for development. The one hundred billion dollars, meanwhile, would lie in the accounts of Myanmar Bank.
Temporarily owned by the ’Central Bank’ of Asia Dollars.
If it’s owned,
of course, it can be spent.
In other words, after passing through the hands of Myanmar Bank, this one hundred billion dollars could, in fact, be spent twice, domestically and internationally. As for what to do after spending it? That’s a matter to consider in the future.
The loan repayment is still a long way off.
The first time to repay the dollars is still five years away.
In five years,
only six point seven billion dollars need to be repaid each year until the debt is cleared in the twentieth year. Such a long span of time completely allows for flexible handling of this hundred billion dollars. It’s not a problem at all.
