Chapter 169: I Didn't Expect That
"What do you mean?" Li Tang asked, wanting a clearer answer.
"The project is short on funding, right? I'll put in some money first to keep things moving," Xiao Yongyue said—he'd made up his mind.
"Okay, tell me—how much can you put in?" Li Tang was all ears.
"About twenty million," Xiao replied. Seeing that Li Tang's face remained blank, he quickly added, "Our potash chemical business only has that much cash flow available at the moment. And even that might need to be split up over two or three months."
Li Tang nodded slightly, then asked, "Based on a 200-million valuation, 20 million would get you another 10% stake."
"I want more than that," Xiao said.
He was generous in his usual dealings, but when it came to his own interests, he wasn't one to back down easily.
"How much more?" Li Tang asked.
"I want 30% total. So, an additional 20% of shares," Xiao said.
"That's too much." Li Tang shook his head.
"You'd still have 70%—that's absolute control," Xiao argued.
He deeply regretted not investing more in the beginning. If he had put in 20 million back then, he could've held almost half the company.
But the business world doesn't allow regrets.
Now that Gongcun had been confirmed as a major deposit, the 20 million didn't hold the same weight as before.
Just like Li Tang said, the market might recover in the next couple of years. Even if he couldn't secure further funding, just sitting on the license would attract attention.
Large-scale copper and gold deposits in China weren't common.
Li Tang didn't budge. "Two months ago, I asked you how much you were willing to invest. You said two million—and you got 10%. If you'd put in twenty million then, you would've had at least 49%."
"I wanted to wait and see at the time," Xiao admitted with a wry smile. "But I think now is the right moment to double down."
Li Tang thought for a moment. If he stuck rigidly to the 200-million valuation, even approaching major SOEs for funding wouldn't be easy. Back then, 50 million was still a terrifying number to them.
After all, at that time in China, money was tight. Average annual incomes barely topped 10,000 yuan.
"Given our partnership, I'll offer something better than anyone else would get. Let's compromise—you put in twenty million, and I'll give you 15% more equity."
Li Tang paused, then added, "But I have one condition. The 20 million must be fully transferred within two months."
Xiao thought about it for a moment, clearly torn, but eventually nodded. "Alright. We'll meet halfway. Deal!"
He reached out to shake hands, sealing the agreement.
"I'll need to go back and gather the funds from my company," he added.
"No problem," Li Tang said. "Before you leave, get a full copy of the technical data from Damba. Having real data will make your pitch much more convincing."
"Got it."
As Xiao stood to leave, he glanced back at Li Tang picking up his empty bowl and asked, "Hey, one more thing—do you have any intention of selling the Gongcun license outright?"
"You want to buy the whole thing?" Li Tang asked, already guessing what was on his mind.
"Just an idea. If you're willing, maybe you can help fulfill my little dream," Xiao said with a grin.
Under the dim light, his smile looked almost sinister.
Not far away, the men Xiao had brought with him—stocky, burly guys—were lounging under a tree chatting after dinner.
For a brief second, Li Tang thought Xiao was threatening him.
But the thought passed quickly.
"If you want to buy the whole license, or take control, then the valuation stands at 200 million," Li Tang said firmly. "That's my bottom line."
To buy him out completely would cost 150 million.
To gain control, Xiao would need another 26% of shares—valued at 52 million—plus the 20 million he just agreed to, bringing the total to 72 million.
Xiao calculated the numbers in his head. It was a tough pill to swallow, and he couldn't give an answer right away. He let out a bitter laugh. "Let me think about that."
"Honestly, I don't recommend taking control," Li Tang said sincerely.
"Why not?" Xiao asked, confused.
"Because neither of us can get a mining license."
Li Tang said it plainly, then turned and walked toward the canteen with his empty bowl.
"If we can't get a mining license, what's the point of all this?" Xiao muttered. "Don't worry—I'll find a way!"
…
Despite all the back-and-forth about the exploration rights, there wasn't much media attention.
And that made sense. The Gongcun license was, at the time, still in early exploration. It hadn't made enough noise to catch national headlines.
Even if the media wanted to blow it up, there wasn't enough material to make it go viral.
No one cared about an exploration license for an unknown deposit.
Chen Aimin, however, had kept a close eye on the Garan Financial Post. When their coverage finally came out, the Gongcun story was tucked into a corner, barely noticeable.
It merely described the event and complained vaguely about "unfair treatment" of Land Mining Company in China.
That was it. No storm, no scandal.
Chen felt relieved and stopped worrying about it. He buried himself in his regular work.
One morning, just like any other, he arrived at his office early. Deputy Minister Li Zhenbin called him over.
Chen, unaware of what it was about, quickly went to his superior's office.
"Director Li, what can I do for you?" he asked cheerfully.
Zhenbin didn't smile. Instead, he handed over a newspaper. "Read this first."
Chen accepted the paper. It was packed with foreign text.
Fortunately, his English was excellent. One glance and he recognized the name of the publication: Financial Post.
His eyes moved to the headline on the front page—it was a major feature about the merger between Broken Hill and Billiton, two mining giants from Austria and the UK.
This would be a historic merger, already approved by the Austrian government. If the relevant antitrust regulators also approved it, the deal would be finalized.
Chen read it carefully, confused. "Director, these companies have large operations in China. Their merger will definitely fall under China's antitrust laws."
He knew that much. "But… does this concern our Mineral Resources Department?"
Zhenbin frowned slightly. "That's not the point. Turn to page two."
"Huh?"
Chen flipped the page—and saw the word "China" jump out at him.
Suddenly, his attention sharpened.
He read the article line by line, and quickly realized why Zhenbin had called him in.
"This is… about the Gongcun Copper-Gold Mine!"
He read the entire article again, this time scanning for details. "This is nonsense! They claim we used heavy-handed tactics to strip the license from Land Mining. That's absolutely false!"
"These foreign media love to twist facts and smear China," Zhenbin said, visibly angry.
Still, they were overseas. There was little China could do to change the narrative right now.
"It's routine now. No big surprise."
But the article had clearly reached the higher-ups—Zhenbin had been instructed to follow up.
He looked Chen in the eye. "Are you absolutely certain there were no violations in how Gongcun Gold Company obtained its license?"
"Absolutely," Chen said without hesitation. "There wasn't even a real dispute. Land Mining only had a verbal agreement with Geological Team Six—nothing on paper."
"Good."
Zhenbin relaxed. "Then I need you to write a detailed report and submit it up the chain."
"I'll do it today."
"Great."
Seeing Chen's confidence, Zhenbin felt reassured.
He tapped the foreign newspaper. "What's your impression of this article?"
"The Financial Post really doesn't understand China," Chen said mildly.
"Exactly."
"We can't control their reporting," Chen continued. "But look at the numbers: copper reserves of 500,000 tons, gold reserves of 60 tons. The article says that's just the beginning—with more drilling, the numbers could grow."
"That's a major deposit!" Zhenbin said, visibly pleased.
As a leader in the Ministry of Resources, there was nothing more satisfying than seeing new discoveries on Chinese soil.
"This could be a major win."
"So far, the local government hasn't officially submitted the details," Chen added. "We'll need to follow up to get accurate data."
"Incredible," Zhenbin said with admiration.
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Johanssen