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Chapter 735: Chapter 638: No Room for Bargaining (Please Subscribe!)_1
October 31st.
10 AM.
Myanmar Economic Zone.
Xin’an Town.
Today was just like any other day for the people of Xin’an Town.
Everything was as they had once only dared to imagine, with a sky just as blue, trees just as green, streets just as bustling. However, the meeting hall of Xin’an Town was currently under lockdown.
Ever since the Investment Promotion Conference was hosted at the Xin’an Town Exhibition Hall, weekly expos have been held to display various products from the region, making it convenient for merchants to understand and place orders.
In the city of Xin’an.
A larger exhibition hall was under construction.
This hall will be open around the clock to receive merchants and display goods.
Today.
The area was once again in lockdown.
It was surrounded by soldiers holding various weaponry.
The Myanmar Military Service Company, a subsidiary of the Myanmar Bank Group, theoretically does not possess the ability to deploy or own soldiers. However, this was merely in theory. While it may not be able to distribute, it could always hire, right?
To ensure safe operations in various minefields and to protect their equipment, the Myanmar Military Service Company was allowed to maintain its independent ’defensive’ capabilities outside of the Myanmar Economic Zone.
Within the Myanmar Economic Zone, these people weren’t allowed to carry weapons. They were all new exchange soldiers, totaling up to 300 individuals.
Although they were rented out.
However.
All of these individuals were, in name, soldiers under the regular combat sequence of the territory. 𝓃𝓸𝓋𝓅𝓾𝒷.𝒸ℴ𝓂
The reasoning behind this complexity was mainly to avoid gossip. Some superficial work still needed to be done. A military service company cannot hold weapons within the sovereignty of a nation as it would violate rules.
The Company and Ling turned a blind eye to this. They wanted to ensure deterrence, and if a problem ever occurred, they could rightfully support the company. All in all, they had comprehensive safeguards in place both theoretically and practically.
In the exhibition hall.
People from nearly thirty countries were seated.
Apart from them, there were also numerous journalists from Western and Asian media outlets.
This was the first press conference in the territory, marking its first step forward. Ling was also seated among the audience. On such an important day, he was certainly expected to say a few words.
Soon.
The press conference began.
According to the procedure, Ling was supposed to be a spectator, but the procedures were designed by people, after all.
The first to speak was Ling.
"...Next, let’s welcome Deputy Leader Ling," Su Yu once again acted as the emcee of the event. He was very pleased as successful business dealings meant taxable revenue.
"Applause..."
The applause resounded and was ongoing.
In another’s territory, they, of course, wouldn’t dare to be perfunctory. Ling was renowned among the elite and Western media worldwide. After the last event, this area had become a no-go zone for assassin organizations around the world.
Even now, no one dared to come close to it.
Looking at Ling’s face, every single one of them tried their best to memorize it.
The media acquired photographs of Ling for the first time. Previously, they had only heard descriptions. It was so thrilling.
"Click click...."
It was a rare opportunity.
They didn’t know when they would see Ling again, so the reporters’ camera flashes didn’t stop. Taking a few more shots could prove useful in the future, and judging from Ling’s appearance, he looked quite imposing.
Awe-inspiring.
That was their only feeling.
As for the term handsome.
Those near the soldiers wouldn’t be able to feel it.
Seeing this man, who had leapt from being a local warlord to become the Deputy Leader of Myanmar, everyone felt a profound sense of respect. Such incidents could only happen in special circumstances. In another place, it could mean death.
Even if it was another person.
It would still mean death.
Timing, geographical location, and coordination among people.
All were indispensable. It was easy to seize a piece of land, but to have the vision and boldness to develop the economy, possess substantial military strength and ascend to power in this manner was truly hard to come by.
Take the Middle East and Africa, for instance.
The Middle East.
A contested site for America and the Polar Bear, rich in oil and never peaceful. Every action involved the game between these two great powers. As for Africa, its infrastructure was even more backward, and its lifestyle was lackadaisical.
Work?
It was at their discretion.
Hence, even with exceptional capabilities, he could only find himself in a situation known as ’bewilderment’ in the past. It was only because of the unique circumstances here that Ling had the qualification to surrender peacefully, and still remain as he is now.
Therefore.
Everyone below felt that Ling was fortunate.
The only thing that is a bit strange is where Ling’s technology came from. Some of it could be explained through contract manufacturing, but many parts remain inexplicable, such as...the mine-clearing vehicle.
No mine-clearing equipment with such efficiency has ever appeared worldwide. Obviously, it wasn’t something that could be researched from the Myanmar side. If that’s not the case, could it be possible that Ling’s subordinates created it within such a short span of a year?
They felt it was a bit incredible.
If it were true.
The technology involved would be interesting.
The emergence and development of technology is never a one-to-one relationship. The advent of a new technology, and the new technical possibilities and industries it could give birth to, depend entirely on human imagination. Even if we don’t know what the technology is, it’s impossible to judge its specific value.
They are all ready to address their pressing concerns first.
Ling stepped onto the stage.
The flashlights never stopped.
Ling began, "I welcome everyone here and hope that in the next few days you will take a good look at the Myanmar Economic Zone. I think you will definitely find some unexpected gains."
"In regards to the issue of the Myanmar Military Services Company, I won’t say much. In the past, landmines have caused a lot of trouble and inconvenience to the people of various countries. I hope this service can help more people. Thank you."
Ling’s speech was incredibly brief.
However, he was not the protagonist of the day, so no one said anything.
The journalists knew Ling wouldn’t do interviews or Q&A sessions, so they dutifully kept taking photos and recording below. They would go back and write the full story later. There were soldiers with weapons everywhere around them, so the usual approach of rushing up to celebrities wasn’t dared to be used here.
They all felt quite weak.
Feeling frustrated inside.
After Ling stepped down.
A person dressed in strange armor stepped up.
This was Myanmar Military Services Company’s ’work uniform’. It was a brand new uniform designed by the command room, blue and white in color. Since the Myanmar Military Services Company did not undertake combat tasks, the blue and white colors looked pretty good.
A kind of harmless feeling.
However, if someone truly believed it was harmless and provoked it, that would be looking for death.
The head of the Myanmar Military Services Company was also a fighter, all of them were newly created. Now that Ling controlled the population records of the Myanmar Economic Zone, manufacturing legal identity information was not a problem at all.
The fighter gave a slight smile, saying, "Okay, I appreciate Deputy Leader Ling’s speech, and I thank everyone for joining in this press conference. Now, the official release concerning the mine-clearing service begins."
"Because we are selling demining services this time, we will not answer questions regarding specific technical and equipment conditions. I believe some of you already have some rumors saying that the removal cost for each landmine is one hundred dollars."
"Now, I formally announce, indeed the removal cost of a landmine is one hundred dollars each, and the services will be arranged according to the sequence of contracts. That’s it, anyone with a question can ask now."
"..."
They thought there would be a surprise, but it turned out to be nothing. Only those who had spoken with Lang Cai from different countries and cared about price knew about it. The media, however, didn’t know.
Now with each landmine costing one hundred dollars.
Isn’t this a robbery?
It’s much more expensive than the mines themselves.
"This reporter," the fighter called on a reporter who raised his hand.
The Caucasian reporter who was given permission was about to question, but remembering Ling, he immediately changed his tone.
"Hello, I am a reporter from BBC in the UK. I would like to ask, isn’t one hundred dollars per mine too expensive? Please note that the cost of more than ninety-nine percent of mines only ranges from five to twenty dollars. One hundred dollars is far more than that."
The fighter explained, "Regarding the issue of price, I want to say that life is priceless. The cost of removing a landmine varies from country to country, ranging from zero to several thousand dollars."
"After all, some mines are easy to remove, but the average cost is still around thirty dollars. However, life is priceless. Our mine-clearing technology guarantees one hundred percent clearance ability. Therefore, adding in our technology investment, operating costs, and risk, one hundred dollars is not considered high."
After being told this by the fighter.
It seems like one hundred dollars is indeed not that expensive... How strange. Luckily, the representatives from each country knew about using mineral resources as collateral, so they weren’t too concerned. They may not have dollars, but they have plenty of mineral resources.
The fighter didn’t immediately explain the use of mineral resources as collateral.
Because using mineral resources as collateral was for the poor countries that truly couldn’t afford it, and there were even other terms. It was not possible to use all mineral resources as collateral. Right now, territory did not lack these, so it wasn’t suitable to say it here.
Specific negotiations would still be on the formal negotiation table, not now.
That reporter didn’t say anything else. Life is priceless. This kind of thing is like a moral kidnapping. While others are saving lives, you are discussing money with them. This is somewhat disgraceful. You couldn’t possibly nitpick over their specific research and development costs.
More importantly.
They in the UK do not need this kind of service. They just came to join in the fun.
The fighter pointed at another reporter.
"Hello, I am a reporter from ABC TV station in America. I would like to ask, if you fail to achieve a hundred percent clearance and subsequently cause casualties, how will this be handled?"
The question was very sharp, blame it on the fighter’s definitive statements. But with something like this, if you don’t mention one hundred percent, similar questions will arise. You would rather be ’honest’ or ’brash’.
The fighter answered, "Thank you for your question. Regarding this issue, we will clear the landmines according to different areas. Once we confirm the completion of clearance, the service requester will conduct a check under our supervision. You can proceed in any way you wish. Once it’s confirmed that there are no mines in that section of land, any harm that occurs in the future is not related to us."
This answer.
Those who were doing it approved of it.
There is no product with unlimited value,
