Chapter 421: A Brand New Negotiation

After Huang Fengwen left, only Su Hao and the silent Lin Fan remained in the office.
"What do you think?" Su Hao asked.
Lin Fan, a composed middle-aged man, hesitated for a moment before cautiously speaking:
"Chairman Huang's concerns are not without merit. Natural gas prices are one of the lifelines of the global economy. With this rate of increase, the collapse of European manufacturing is inevitable.
The chain reaction will not be limited to Europe; the whole world will suffer, and our country will naturally not be immune.
I think we can change our approach, using price reductions as leverage to negotiate with domestic companies again, getting them to offer some tangible benefits in exchange."
Just as Chairman Huang said, those bigwigs have already stated they are willing to pay any price to lower prices.
"..."
Su Hao fell into a brief moment of contemplation.
This price... was initially determined by his intuition.
That unseen voice told him it had to be this number.
Should he ask again?
"This matter... let me think about it some more. You go ahead with your work, we can discuss it in detail later."
"Okay, Chairman Su, please call me anytime."
After seeing Lin Fan off, Su Hao returned to his desk and opened the bottom drawer.
He took out a pirated self-help book that looked like it had been picked up from a street stall, and muttered to himself as if chatting with an old friend:
"Brother, give me a hint. You asked me to set this price, and now the whole world is about to explode. Should I go all the way, or take it easy and offer a discount?"
He acted on impulse, his fingertips tracing the pages, casually turning the page.
Several words appeared on the page: 【Everything is going according to plan.】
Going according to plan?
This means... I should keep going recklessly, without stopping?
But if I keep going recklessly, domestic companies will be the first to be swept away by the tide.
Should I just stand by and watch?
Seemingly sensing his confusion, a sudden impulse led him to turn a new page:
[Sometimes, listening to the other person's opinion is more important than racking your brains.]
The other person's opinion?
Su Hao was stunned.
Who was the other person?
A company employee? Lin Fan? Or Huang Fengwen who had just run away?
For a moment, he considered both a business partner and a potential enemy, but that "it's him" intuition was slow to materialize.
"It can't be...it can't be that I should ask the Germans for their opinion, right? Hmm?"
The moment this thought crossed his mind, a jolt of electricity shot through his body!
Bingo! It was him!
"Holy crap...it really is the Germans?" Su Hao's expression froze instantly.
"...Those guys, they probably want to devour me alive right now."
***
Far away on the other side of the European continent.
Inside the German Prime Minister's Office.
"What...what's going on?"
A series of freshly printed economic forecast reports, like death notices, were laid out before the Prime Minister of Germany.
He stared at the data on the reports, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
"Mr. Prime Minister, this is a projection of Germany's future economic trajectory based on our current situation.
The eleven-fold surge in natural gas prices will bring Germany a direct loss of over three hundred billion US dollars!"
What kind of country is Germany?
It's the industrial heart of continental Europe, a manufacturing behemoth!
For such a country, the dependence on basic industrial raw materials like nickel and natural gas is as ingrained as a person's dependence on air and water.
It was precisely to avoid this massive loss of three hundred billion US dollars that they previously chose to secretly collude with a major power.
An aide's voice was dry and desperate:
"But, Mr. Prime Minister, with the pipeline blown up, our deal with the major power has completely fallen through.
Now, Fanghuan Investment has offered us a price that's practically murderous—11 times the original price—making our future prospects…
incredibly grim."
The report clearly presented the economic trajectory of the country under two hypothetical scenarios:
1. If the country is forced to buy natural gas from Fanghuan at 11 times the price.
2. If the country also buys nickel from Fanghuan at a high price.
The result would be an absolute economic apocalypse!
"Natural gas is directly related to heating and electricity, and its price is expected to surge more than sevenfold.
As a chain reaction, wheat prices will skyrocket, and everything from bread to livestock feed will be affected; prices will multiply several times over."
"The most devastating blow will be to manufacturing! Especially the automotive industry, which is heavily reliant on nickel and natural gas, will be utterly crushed in global price competition, suffering total annihilation!"
Consumer Price Index (CPI) will explode!
GDP will plummet!
The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which should have remained above the 50-point threshold, will crash below 20!
Unemployment will soar!
The De Nation's stock market will experience an epic collapse!
This is the bloody, shocking future facing De Nation.
"..."
All the data, all the projections, point to one single, chilling outcome—
De Nation will face its most severe national crisis ever!
Some might think this is alarmist, but for an industrialized nation, an eleven-fold increase in energy prices is an absolute nightmare.
"So... what are you trying to say? Are you suggesting I refuse Fang Huan's natural gas?
The European Union has already passed a resolution; do we have a choice?
We can only grit our teeth and weather the storm! If we can get through this, we'll see other alternatives, right?"
The Prime Minister's voice carried a hint of struggle.
They reluctantly accepted this exorbitant deal because they had no other option.
They couldn't rely on the major powers' gas, and even if other countries worked overtime to extract it, it would still take time.
Until a new energy supply system was established, they had to rely on Fang Huan's investment in natural gas to "stay alive."
If they didn't buy it, the entire social system of Germany, and even the entire European continent, would instantly collapse.
The resulting economic losses would be a hundred times more devastating than the figures in this report!
"The problem is, Mr. Prime Minister, we simply can't withstand this wave! This wave alone is enough to plunge us into an abyss of no return!"
"Then what do you want? Renegotiate? Do you think those ruthless devils like Fang Huan would be willing to sit down and talk with us?"
In the eyes of the Prime Minister, Fang Huan Investment was synonymous with devils.
From the outbreak of war between small nations to the bombing of the pipeline, he was certain these guys were behind it all!
Otherwise, how could they dare to so arrogantly demand such an insane price as eleven times the original amount?
From the very beginning until now, the entire European continent has been manipulated by them!
“Yes, Prime Minister, things have taken a turn for the better now. In negotiations, we can use a… brand new negotiating card.”
“A new card? What cards do we have left?” The Prime Minister's ears perked up instantly.
“Yes. A card that Fang Huan desperately needs right now, and perhaps our country can give them just the right card.”
“We have such a thing?”