Chapter 128: Stepping Beyond Borders
"Yes, I'm not quite used to it."
Li Tang took a closer look and remembered that the girl's name was Alice. "Hello."
It was a bench-style hanging chair; Alice was sitting on one end, so he naturally sat on the other.
"I've been to Mr. Guo's office many times, but I've never seen you before," Alice started the conversation.
"I'm with Wukuang Group, but not part of the International Investment Company," Li Tang replied casually, then asked, "You don't look like you're with Coastal Resources either."
"I'm with Gaosheng's Mergers and Acquisitions Department. I'm the investment advisor for this acquisition project."
"Oh, I see." Li Tang nodded. Small talk had to be forced in situations like this. "What about you? Why'd you come out here?"
"I'm not used to the bar scene either."
"I thought you Westerners loved parties."
"Not really. Actually, many people live quiet lives, working hard every day to support their families. Sure, some enjoy the party atmosphere, but not all."
"Oh." Li Tang nodded again.
He had met plenty of foreigners before but never dug into their lives deeply enough to really know what it was like.
There wasn't much common ground. They sat quietly, the hanging chair swaying gently. The stars overhead did ease some of the awkwardness.
"This is a good opportunity," Alice said, making small talk that revealed she wasn't a particularly chatty person either.
"What kind of opportunity?" Li Tang turned to look at her. Her high nose bridge glistened under the moonlight.
"Coastal Resources is in financial trouble. Their stock price has hit a historic low. You saw it today—the company holds some very high-quality assets, exactly the kind of iron ore Wukuang Group is looking for. If you acquire them, you'll be able to control both production and sales, which would significantly increase your profit margin."
Talking business—finally, a topic they both had in common.
Alice suddenly asked, "By the way, what role do you play in this delegation?"
"I'm a technical advisor."
"From a technical standpoint, do you think this is a worthwhile investment?"
"Maybe." Li Tang nodded.
"I hope you'll offer solid technical advice to your company's decision-makers."
"I will."
They chatted briefly. Li Tang wasn't too focused on whether the acquisition would succeed. Based on what he'd seen over the past two days and his memories from his previous life, he already had a judgment in mind about the pros and cons of acquiring Coastal Resources.
But from the tone of the young woman beside him, he sensed an eager anticipation.
"You're really hoping the acquisition goes through?" he asked curiously.
"Of course." Alice didn't hesitate to admit it. "As Wukuang Group's investment advisor, it's my job to give you accurate information and provide the financial data needed to make the right decision."
"And from a personal point of view?"
"You mean Gaosheng Bank? If the acquisition goes through, we get to bill for the deal. Naturally, that's an outcome both sides would like."
"Maybe this is a bit forward, but if the deal goes through, do you personally get a big cut?"
"I'll get a portion, but I can't tell you the exact number."
"As far as I know, Coastal Resources hasn't had any business dealings with Wukuang Group. The company's financial issues shouldn't be something we'd find out on our own. Was it you who personally uncovered the info and passed it to us?"
"No, not me directly. The intel came from our upper management. It was passed down to our Gaosheng China office, and then the project was assigned to me. I was the one who reached out to your group."
"Yeah, that makes sense. I didn't think Wukuang would initiate something like this on their own."
Li Tang had already guessed as much.
Most cross-border acquisitions are prompted by major investment banks. They monitor global capital trends and then reach out to potential buyers.
That's their job.
"That's why I chose to work in China," Alice said. "I think there are tons of opportunities here. Coastal Resources is my first big project since joining Gaosheng's China office. I really hope it goes through."
She turned her head toward Li Tang, though in the dark he couldn't see her expression. "I know the success rate for cross-border acquisitions isn't high, but this really is a great opportunity. Do you think it will succeed?"
Clearly, she saw herself as aligned with Wukuang Group.
"We'll see what the future holds," Li Tang gave a vague, noncommittal answer.
They chatted idly into the night. It wasn't until much later that Guo Fengchun finally emerged from the bar and found Li Tang. Together, they returned to the hotel.
Some people didn't return alone—like Patrick.
The next day, they boarded a charter flight from Karratha back to Perth.
Patrick and the Coastal Resources team flew back with them.
"He!" Patrick made a point of sitting next to He Runqi, giving him a hearty handshake. "Next time, we'll hit up that bar again—drink and dance all night!"
Last night, after a few drinks, He Runqi had turned into a dance floor legend, pulling off an entire night of ridiculous dance moves.
Strangely enough, his carefree antics earned everyone's affection. He even got a round of applause and became the star of the evening.
Now that he was sober, he remembered everything—but didn't really want to.
"Forget it, I can't dance," he muttered.
"As long as you had fun! Once our two companies start working together, you'll have plenty of chances to come back here. There's way more to see and do. I'll show you around!" Patrick laughed, clearly unfazed by He Runqi's antics the night before.
He Runqi felt a bit embarrassed—but in hindsight, he had to admit it had been fun. Especially those close-contact dances with tall foreign women—they'd been amazing.
Too bad he hadn't been bold enough to do what Patrick had done—bring someone home for the night.
Since there were more people on this leg of the trip, Li Tang ended up seated next to Alice. After their long talk the night before, they now felt somewhat acquainted.
"You look sharp today," she complimented him first.
"You too," Li Tang smiled back.
Patrick was quite the talker and kept the cabin lively with various topics. The atmosphere was relaxed.
After a 1,500-kilometer journey, the plane landed quickly.
Guo Fengchun, a seasoned operator, went straight to the South Australia Ministry of Industry to confirm Coastal Resources' mining rights. The records matched what they'd seen. He also looked into any ongoing lawsuits involving the company.
All findings so far suggested that Coastal Resources was indeed a worthy investment—and a rare opportunity to buy low.
At Patrick's invitation, they visited the company's headquarters in Perth.
After touring the offices, they sat down in a conference room with the company's full executive team.
Guo Fengchun sat across from them, with Li Tang and Alice on either side.
After some casual conversation, Patrick dropped the laid-back act and became serious. "You're not the only ones interested. We've had talks with companies from the U.S., Canada, and even some local firms. We hope you'll make a prompt decision and propose a sincere offer."
"I'll report everything to our upper management as soon as we return," Guo Fengchun replied concisely.
"This is our first formal meeting, so I'll share our board's position with you."
Patrick's tone grew more businesslike. "Our board is open to cooperation. We welcome interest from mining companies, investment funds—any country. We're open to private placements of shares or bonds. We also accept reasonable acquisition offers. However, if you're basing your offer on our current stock price, I'm sorry, the shareholders will never agree. We believe our assets are extremely valuable and that we have enormous growth potential. The only reason our stock is down is a temporary liquidity issue—and some misunderstandings from the outside world."
It was a long-winded way of saying one thing:
If you want to buy, you'd better be ready to pay.
"We understand the board's position," Guo Fengchun replied calmly.
"What's your side's perspective?"
"We're very satisfied with what we've seen so far. I can also reveal our purpose for being here—we're aiming to acquire a controlling stake in Coastal Resources."
After a short exchange of opinions, Patrick led the team to meet with the labor union—a necessary move to pave the way for future cooperation. They didn't talk about the acquisition terms yet.
In overseas deals, the unions often have real power. Their support or resistance can determine a deal's fate.
After saying goodbye to Coastal Resources, Guo Fengchun chose not to return to Yanjing immediately. He stayed in Perth.
He wasn't there to sightsee, but to further investigate Coastal's local reputation.
He also sought out fellow Chinese professionals working in Australia's mining industry to learn more about relevant laws, risks, and potential hurdles in international acquisitions.
Throughout the trip, Li Tang followed along and had to admit—Guo Fengchun might be fun-loving when it's time to relax, but when it came to work, he knew what he was doing.
These days, Chinese mining companies didn't have many overseas acquisition cases to learn from—not even clear successes or failures.
Their trip was largely exploratory—to gather experience and train the team.
Success wasn't mandatory.
After nearly half a month of field visits, the inspection trip concluded. After spending one last day relaxing at the beach, they boarded a flight back to Yanjing, China.
Alongside them were Alice and several staff members from Gaosheng's China division.
"Back from your overseas trip, you're both glowing with that international flair. Looks like you came back recharged," Qin Jianshe joked when he saw Li Tang and He Runqi walk into the office together.
"Flair? Hah, the food in Australia can't compare to ours at all—it was terrible," Li Tang shook his head. After being abroad for half a month, he was seriously craving the taste of home.
"Were they not hospitable?"
"Oh, they were friendly enough. It's just… the food itself really isn't good."
"You're lucky just to have access to foreign food. And still you complain?"
Qin Jianshe felt Li Tang was being ungrateful—so many people dream of traveling abroad but never get the chance.
He then noticed the paperwork in He Runqi's hand and gestured with his chin. "Runqi, what's that in your hand?"
"It's our overseas per diem. Based on the labor dispatch fee we reported to the Mining & Metallurgy Company, mine is 30 yuan per day, and Li Tang's is 50," He Runqi replied, still visibly shy in front of leadership—unless he'd had a few drinks, that is.
"Let me have a look."
Qin Jianshe glanced at the form, then quickly signed off with a few strokes of his pen. He handed the reimbursement sheet back to He Runqi. "Perfect timing—the International Investment Company was looking for you. Probably leadership wants to hear your feedback on the trip. After signing and collecting your allowance, stop by there."
"Got it."
Li Tang and He Runqi went upstairs to the International Investment Company, where they got the general manager's signature and successfully collected their per diem from Finance.
As they left the finance office, they rounded a corner and happened to pass the Investment Department.
Guo Fengchun saw them and welcomed them in with a broad smile. "Come in! Xiao Wang, bring over two cups of coffee and a couple plates of fruit."
Though the International Investment Company was a subsidiary of Wukuang Group just like the others, its atmosphere was far more comfortable. Their office had a designated leisure area complete with tea, coffee, fruit, and snacks—employees could take breaks and relax whenever they liked.
They said the leisure area was a necessity due to their frequent dealings with foreigners—it was good for appearances and aligned with modern standards.
Once the coffee and fruit arrived, Guo Fengchun casually started eating and said, "Don't be shy. We're relaxed here. You two graduated from Yanjing University of Geosciences, right?"
"Yes." Both Li Tang and He Runqi responded in unison.
"You," Guo pointed at Li Tang, "Your name's been in my ears nonstop lately. You're practically a celebrity within Wukuang Group now. I don't know about the outside world, but I've had friends from other mining companies asking me who you are."
"Really?" Li Tang smiled modestly.
"Of course!" Guo chuckled. He looked at them warmly. "Actually, we're alumni! I've been meaning to talk with you both. I'll have you know, there are quite a few of us from our school within Wukuang. One of these days I'll arrange a get-together—let's have a proper alumni reunion!"
"There are a couple grads from our school in our company too, but we're not that close," He Runqi chimed in.
"Get together for a few meals—you'll grow closer." Guo laughed heartily.
"Minister Guo, did you have something specific you wanted to discuss today?"
Li Tang had eaten a few pieces of fruit and, seeing the plate nearly empty, decided it was time to get to the point.
"Yes, yes. You two were key members of the delegation—responsible for technical evaluation."
Guo picked up a professionally printed document and handed it to Li Tang. "This is the final report from our trip. Most of it is photos and captions, but it summarizes our findings well. Take a look. If everything looks good, I'll submit it. We're scheduled to debrief leadership this afternoon."
Li Tang flipped through it. The pictures were high quality, and though the text was sparse, the report captured the essence of the trip.
When he finished reading, he passed the report to He Runqi.
"Well?" Guo asked as He reached the final page.
He Runqi looked uncertainly at Li Tang.
"You first," Li Tang said with a smile.
"Say whatever's on your mind—we're all colleagues here," Guo encouraged.
"It looks good," He Runqi said and handed the report back.
"What's your opinion?" Guo turned to Li Tang. "Our general manager specifically mentioned that your feedback is important."
Li Tang opened the report again and flipped to the summary section. He hesitated for a moment. "Minister Guo, if you don't mind, I'll speak frankly. Did you write this report yourself?"
"Yes. The data and materials were compiled by the team, but I wrote the conclusion you're reading."
"You're very optimistic about Coastal Resources?"
"Absolutely." Guo's expression was confident. "We saw the same things during our trip. Not just me—the entire team agreed this was a great opportunity. The company holds top-quality iron ore rights, and its stock price is at a historic low. It's a rare chance to buy at the bottom. If we miss it, it would be a huge regret."
"Hmm." Li Tang lowered his eyes to one of the report's photos, thinking.
"What's wrong with that picture?" Guo asked.
"Nothing."
"Then why are you staring at it?"
"I'm not entirely sure about something."
Li Tang had actually brought that very newspaper back from Perth—it was tucked in his backpack.
That article, which covered their delegation's visit to Coastal Resources, had been seen by everyone. During their stay in Perth, they came across the fresh issue at the hotel. It even included a group photo.
Most of the team was excited to see themselves in the news, but after others lost interest, Li Tang saved a copy to bring home.
"What's uncertain about it?" Guo asked.
"There's a photo of us with Coastal's executives. But I recall no journalists were present at that time," Li Tang said.
"What does that suggest?"
"That the photo was supplied to the press by Coastal Resources. Patrick wanted news of our visit to be public."
"That makes sense…" Guo furrowed his brow.
"I think we were used by Patrick—as leverage to raise the bidding price from other interested companies."
"You think they're not sincere about cooperating?"
"Not exactly." Li Tang shook his head. "If the price is right, they'll become very sincere."
"What's the right price?"
"For example, a 50% or even 100% premium over the current market valuation. In that case, I doubt their shareholders would refuse."
"You make a valid point." Guo respected Li Tang's independent thinking, though he stood by his own view. "Actually, Patrick already told us that others—like Rio Tinto—are also interested. We'll be facing serious competition."
"I think we shouldn't take Patrick's words at face value. That chubby guy's a clever businessman," Li Tang said, calmly but firmly.
"To judge his motives based solely on one newspaper article might be a bit biased."
"No."
Li Tang shook his head. "That's not the only reason I object. Coastal Resources' undeveloped mining rights are located in Pilbara. For us, the infrastructure there isn't ideal."
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