Big Data Cultivation
Chapter 1154: Bulk Commodities (Request for Double Monthly Pass)

Chapter 1154: Chapter 1154: Bulk Commodities (Request for Double Monthly Pass)

Elder Yu heard the reason and could only nod. "Alright, we’ll go with what you say."

Honestly, up until now, he hadn’t told anyone about Feng Jun having an enormous stash of gold. His plan was simple and crude: rely on his old face to solicit donations or loans everywhere.

If things spiraled out of control, or if someone outright refused to cooperate, he could have Feng Jun use the gold as collateral. It would merely serve as collateral, not something to take to the national treasury. Even if stored across the country, it might not necessarily draw attention.

As for the possibility that Feng Jun might not actually have that much gold? He didn’t believe it for a second. Even if Feng Jun were completely out of his mind and talking nonsense, wasn’t there still such a vast estate? Wasn’t there a Jade Tower in the manor?

In truth, he didn’t think it would ever come to that. As long as the young man was willing to teach two members of the Yu Family how to cultivate, the family could completely subsidize any shortfall.

Even if the cultivation was just a fraud, Feng Jun’s methods for treating illnesses were worth enough for Elder Yu to spend a fortune keeping him close.

Of course, he didn’t believe the worst-case scenario would happen. In his eyes, it was much more likely that Feng Jun really did have that much gold.

However, now that the young man made this proposal to prove his wealth, Elder Yu couldn’t object.

Fifty thousand tons of wheat, equating to about half a ton of gold — aside from those rich Middle Eastern tycoons, ordinary people wouldn’t possibly have this amount of gold stored. This was enough to test Feng Jun’s claim a little.

Then Elder Yu changed the subject. "About the crude oil—I also made some inquiries for you. Hmm... they laughed at me. Could we get some samples first? A few hundred barrels would suffice."

"Huh?" Feng Jun glanced at him in surprise. "Who has the guts to mock you, Elder?"

"You don’t understand," Elder Yu shook his head in frustration. "It’s professional mockery. Should I suppress them with my status?"

The old man had many quirks and was skilled in being unreasonable, but one upside was that he didn’t like using his status to pressure others.

He could rely on his position and network to create all sorts of laughable inconveniences for others, but when it really came to coercion, he felt it would be shameful—as if it proved he was in the wrong.

Feng Jun blinked and understood what he meant. Honestly, this was one of the things he admired about the old man. "Are they convinced there won’t be new oil fields on Earth, or that I couldn’t possibly acquire two major fields so silently?"

"I didn’t even mention you!" Elder Yu shot him a frustrated look. "I just said I might get my hands on two fields, and they suggested I should work on improving my sleep... Did they think I was hallucinating?"

Feng Jun laughed. It was rare to see the old man so dejected. "Good thing you still trust me, Elder."

Elder Yu’s frustration, truthfully, was about seventy percent an act—primarily to sell a favor. "Ungrateful brat! You’re still laughing. When can you give me the samples?"

"I don’t know," Feng Jun shook his head and replied straightforwardly. "I’m not focused on that project at the moment; it’ll probably take some time."

Hearing this, Elder Yu was stunned. "Why? Oil makes money fast."

Feng Jun chuckled nonchalantly. "I’m not short on money. I have my own plans for the future. If it weren’t for oil being tied to national energy security, I probably wouldn’t even bother with this deal."

Elder Yu nearly passed out at this statement. So, the oil business that everyone else fights tooth and nail for was merely optional in your eyes? Could you boast a little more outrageously?

That said, deep down, he acknowledged that Feng Jun might be telling the truth. Just the Jade Tower in Luohua Manor alone was enough to eclipse all the world’s billionaires.

For someone like this, conventional methods weren’t applicable. Elder Yu’s expression became serious as he spoke earnestly, "But Master Feng, the issue of energy security for our country is truly severe. The situation is highly dire."

You claim to be patriotic? Let me try touching that soft spot.

But Feng Jun wasn’t someone easily persuaded. He chuckled. "Don’t try to scare me. When energy security really becomes a problem, who would dare laugh at you? They’d grab at any straw they could to save themselves."

This kid really was tough to fool! Elder Yu coughed dryly. "If we wait until then, wouldn’t it already be too late? At least if we secure the crude oil you mentioned, the country can have a stronger foundation. When navigating through diplomatic maneuvers, we’d have more room to work."

Feng Jun thought this reasoning was sound, but he was someone who liked sticking firmly to his principles. "If that foundation is so critical, then they shouldn’t be mocking you in the first place. Elder Yu, you’re not just any ordinary citizen. Given your status and position, shouldn’t they at least check on what you say?"

Well, now I’ve shot myself in the foot, Elder Yu thought sadly. Turns out even playing the sympathy card requires proper technique.

He still had room for argument, like saying, "It’s not that they don’t care; they just want to see the crude oil samples first."

But doing so felt insincere, so he decisively said, "If there’s an urgent need for crude oil supply, how soon could you secure the supply chain?"

Anytime! Feng Jun could genuinely make such claims; with the Mobile Phone Plane, he could handle it so discreetly that no one would even see a trace!

Ultimately, though, he just smiled. "The things on my end are trivial. The real issue is that oil tanks can’t be built overnight. I think that’s where you should be focusing your efforts."

Although Elder Yu was getting on in years, he had encountered countless schemers and manipulators in his lifetime; his instincts were alarmingly sharp. "So, for you, time isn’t a factor?"

At this point, Feng Jun was genuinely a little annoyed. "Elder Yu, this business is really insignificant to me. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t waste time and energy verifying my statements or asking me to provide proof... I can live just fine without this deal."

Elder Yu instantly fell silent. He had no desire to provoke Feng Jun, and the other man’s words were indeed reasonable. The rise of Luohua Manor had not received any form of support from the state—at most, it benefited from a peaceful and stable social environment.

Take Wealthy King, for instance, who once said he’d set a modest target of earning a billion. Claiming his wealth was entirely self-made and invested as he pleased certainly rubbed the state the wrong way—after all, during his ascent, Huaxia’s financial system gave him significant backing.

So whenever trouble found him, there were those eager to undermine him—calling him ungrateful.

But Feng Jun didn’t have that problem.

His rise truly hadn’t relied on any state-level support—at most, the authorities didn’t audit his taxes.

However, how many in Huaxia hadn’t been audited? The loopholes in laws and systems weren’t his burden to bear.

In fact, Elder Yu knew well that if the state took auditing seriously, Feng Jun could relocate abroad and still thrive.

Jade might not be well-regarded overseas, but Gold? Surely Master Feng could sell that abroad.

At the end of the day, even at the national level, many still judged matters through a lens of common courtesy—whether someone’s actions were reasonable or their attitude sincere.

Elder Yu thought Feng Jun’s remarks carried little fault. Finally, he said, "I understand your point. Building some oil tanks first wouldn’t hurt. Our country’s current strategic oil reserve isn’t sufficient, and it’s always better to be prepared."

Feng Jun nodded, thinking, "Good that you see it that way." He said, "Then you handle it. I’ve got some other matters to attend to."

At this moment, Elder Yu couldn’t help but call out again, "Mountain Master Feng, aside from oil, do you have any other bulk commodities?"

"Two coal mines, maybe," Feng Jun said as he stepped out of the room.

"Coal mines?" Elder Yu’s voice rang sharply behind him. "Do you have iron mines as well?"

Feng Jun had already walked into the rain. Iron mines? He had no interest in them. The Mobile Phone Plane had plenty of iron mines, even including Mysterious Iron Mines, but bringing those to the Earth Plane would inevitably stir up a storm.

However, Feng Jun didn’t want to think about iron mines. From his perspective, Earth Realm already had plenty of iron mines. There was no need to import iron ore from other planes. After all, iron accounted for nearly five percent of the Earth’s crust.

People often said Huaxia didn’t have enough iron ore, but in truth, it was just that extraction costs were slightly higher—that, and the difficulty of mining the ore was also a significant factor.

Feng Jun’s stone ring was something he had picked up by chance in Bingzhou, and during that trip to Jin Province, he’d met a businessman dealing in iron mines in Bingzhou.

Bingzhou was home to a large state-owned enterprise involved in steel smelting, and this businessman supplied raw materials to the enterprise.

Their meeting was entirely coincidental, and there was no need to dwell on the story. The businessman, struggling with his trade, had vented over drinks about how tough the iron ore business had become in recent years, saying domestic iron ore couldn’t compete with foreign imports.

Feng Jun had been quite surprised at the time, asking, "Isn’t foreign iron ore consistently getting more expensive—what with long-term contracts and spot prices?"

That was the narrative he had been exposed to, especially before the subprime mortgage crisis erupted. Iron ore prices had been climbing rapidly, all due to one reason—Huaxia’s large-scale infrastructure projects that drove up steel demand.

And as was typical of the international market, anything Huaxia needed would see its price spike. From this perspective, capitalists around the world were all the same—if they could charge more, why wouldn’t they?

But after the subprime crisis, the global economy took a nosedive. Huaxia’s demand for iron ore plummeted, and those sitting on iron ore stockpiles began to panic. What do you do when you can’t sell it? Lower the price, of course.

Sounds satisfying, doesn’t it? It feels like revenge is served.

However, the reality was different. Iron mine operators complained repeatedly that they were being pummeled by imported iron ore.

Foreign iron ore didn’t even drop in price that much, yet domestic suppliers were being squeezed out of the market.

It boiled down to rising production costs domestically, with mining costs also seeing significant increases.

The same ton of iron ore, often of lower quality domestically, ended up costing more at the pithead—essentially, the price at which it was mined—than imported ore delivered to ports. What kind of business could survive under such conditions?

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