Becoming a Russian Oligarch After Rebirth
Chapter 1185 - 992: Greatness Redefined_2

Chapter 1185: Chapter 992: Greatness Redefined_2

Before the pipeline was built, the crude oil and natural gas sold to the Chinese side could only be transported by sea shipping, and not to mention the high cost of shipping, the quantity was simply not large enough.

Now, with the pipeline in place, it can continuously transport crude oil and natural gas 24 hours a day, with transportation costs being almost negligible, requiring only regular maintenance and inspection of the pipeline.

It can be said that the revenue of Yukos and Russian Gas Industry will surge this year.

Wang Ye’s dividend at the end of this year will be very substantial...

...

Originally, the Kremlin had said they would personally attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony, but due to schedule conflicts with an important international conference, they had to delegate full authority to Wang Ye to represent them.

It was quite appropriate for Wang Ye to take the stage, as he was the one who had negotiated the contract in the first place, and he is also the chairman and a major shareholder of Yukos Group, as well as a major shareholder in Russian Gas Industry Group.

The Chinese side also attached great importance to this and sent a vice president to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in Irkutsk, the largest city in Siberia, so Wang Ye flew there a day in advance to prepare for the arrival of the Chinese delegation.

It was already November, and Siberia was already experiencing heavy snowfall.

Luckily, the Russian pilots are extremely experienced at flying in such severe weather, and the pilots on Wang Ye’s private jet were certainly among the elite of the elite. So despite the heavy snow, Wang Ye’s private jet still landed steadily at Irkutsk Airport.

There were quite a few people who came to greet him, including high-ranking officials from the local government of Irkutsk State, senior members of the local assembly, and a security team from Wagner!

Let’s not forget, Wagner has a large base here in Siberia, located in the suburbs of Irkutsk.

With Wang Ye’s status, he certainly represented a "Dimension Reduction Attack" to those local officials!

Although the governor and assembly of this region are elected and, in theory, could disregard a Vice Speaker of the Duma like Wang Ye, even the Kremlin might not care.

But that’s only in theory. There are plenty of ways for those above to manipulate these governors!

Not to mention anything else, just the annual allocation of the finance budget can easily choke you, which would be more than enough for a governor to handle...

And let’s not forget that Wang Ye is not simply a Vice Speaker of the Duma, he also concurrently serves as the Director of the National Economic Committee, which is an institution that can directly review the government’s finance budget.

With control over the purse strings and the ability to decide how much money is allocated to which department, his power is indeed immense.

After all, the true powers lie in human resources, finance, and military...

Under normal circumstances, military power is unlikely to be utilized, especially domestically – it’s merely a "ballast stone."

Therefore, the significance of personnel authority and financial power becomes evident!

Now holding great financial power, Wang Ye knew that the local officials were putting in considerable effort to "please" this big shot...

As soon as Wang Ye walked down the gangway, the governor of Irkutsk State led a group of officials to greet him.

"Chairman Mikhail, welcome to the beautiful city of Irkutsk!"

He said warmly, extending both hands.

Wang Ye smiled and shook his hand. It was his first time meeting this governor, Vasily.

Oh, perhaps they had met before, but he hadn’t paid attention...

This time Wang Ye brought quite a number of people, including officials from the government and personnel from Yukos Group and Russian Gas Industry Group.

A large group of people boarded the welcoming vehicles, and the convoy began to head towards the city.

Wang Ye rode in a vehicle specially provided by Wagner, a uniform fleet of Land Rovers, and he also invited Vasily to share the ride with him.

Regarding security, Wang Ye dared not be careless.

Even within the borders of Russia, danger is always present, and as soon as he left Moscow, he would inevitably be accompanied by a number of armed security personnel.

Of course, with his current level, such security measures were definitely justified!

Once the fleet set off, Vasily began to enthusiastically introduce Wang Ye to the situation in Irkutsk.

Siberia is actually a name for a large region known fully as the "Siberian Federal District".

The area includes: Kemerovo Region, Altai Territory, Tyumen Region, Novosibirsk Region, Omsk Region, Tomsk Region, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Irkutsk Region, Chita Region, Republic of Buryatia, and Tuva Republic, a total of 11 administrative regions.

One can only say that the territory of Russia is simply too vast...

Among these, Irkutsk is a state with relatively better economic development. The state capital is also called "Irkutsk," and it has a history of over three hundred years.

It is the largest industrial city in the Siberian region and a hub for transportation, trade, and commerce, with a total population of... over half a million.

While that might not seem like a lot, it’s all about comparisons.

With that population, placed among the many cities of the entire Siberia region, it ranks as the second largest!

In most countries, a city with tens of thousands of people is considered relatively large; if it surpasses a million, then it truly qualifies as a "metropolis!"

One can’t compare to China and India, though...

Even though the city is well-known within Russia, it might be unheard of internationally.

But when it comes to Lake Baikal, surely there’s no one who hasn’t heard of it.

And Lake Baikal is not far from Irkutsk, with the city being the closest urban area to the lake.

Unfortunately, Wang Ye came here on official business and probably won’t have time to visit Lake Baikal...

...

On the way, looking at the vast expanse of forests blanketed by heavy snow on both sides of the road, Wang Ye felt somewhat dazed, not even hearing what Vasily was saying.

He seemed to suddenly return to that night just after his rebirth, sitting in the minibus from the airport to Friendship University.

But now, compared to that time, he had undergone a complete transformation.

Back then, he rode in a rickety minibus provided by the school, clanking and drafty all over.

He was just an ordinary student, hardly known by anyone.

But now, he was riding in a Land Rover fleet, accompanied by a governor!

The name "Mikhail" was known to everyone in Russia...

Seeing Wang Ye staring blankly at the snowy landscape outside the window, Vasily tactfully closed his mouth. Although he was much older than Wang Ye, rank in the bureaucracy was not determined by age, but by one’s level!

The gap between him and Wang Ye might be as profound as the depths of Lake Baikal...

Most importantly, he was in need of Wang Ye’s favor. After all, who wouldn’t call Wang Ye "The God of Wealth" at the moment!

The recently established Industrial Fund Office he controlled had access to over a hundred billion US dollars, a sum that made many salivate.

Clearly, Vasily was one of them.

Since he was an elected governor, he naturally had to consider the interests of his state. If during his tenure, the state’s economic development was poor, or if no significant projects were secured,

then he shouldn’t expect to be re-elected for the next term.

So, Vasily had his eye on that hefty sum of money in the hands of the Industrial Fund Office.

His ambition wasn’t too great; a few billion US dollars would suffice. That would already constitute the largest investment in the history of Irkutsk State!

As long as he could pull that off, his re-election would be no issue.

That’s why he was so enthusiastic about Wang Ye’s visit.

He not only personally led a large number of officials to welcome him at the airport but also arranged a very grand welcome ceremony, and he even prepared a little "surprise" for Wang Ye!

...

After some time, Wang Ye came back to his senses and gave Vasily an apologetic smile, saying, "Ah, I’ve been so busy with public affairs, it seems like it’s been a long time since I’ve seen such beautiful snowscapes.

After the ceremony, I’ll stay for another day. I’ll go see Lake Baikal then."

Originally, this was not part of Wang Ye’s itinerary, but what’s the harm in being capricious just this once...