Chapter 130: The Acquisition Falls Through (Please Subscribe)
After the meeting, several of the group executives walked into the adjacent general manager's office. The door closed behind them, and the room's soundproofing kept everything private.
"According to the intelligence provided by Guo Fengchun and Gaosheng Investment Bank, Coastal Resources holds high-quality mining assets, and their financial situation is quite clear," Hu Zhenchi began, stating his position first. "I believe this is a great opportunity. Our group, following higher-level instructions, is supposed to act as a vanguard—taking the lead to go abroad and explore. Even if we fail, it's still a worthwhile experience."
"I support General Manager Hu's view," another voice chimed in. "If we fear every risk before making a move, we'll never get anything done. Every business has risks. The key is how we manage and mitigate them."
"Let's secure Coastal Resources first. We can deal with mine development and infrastructure construction step by step afterward."
The staff from the International Investment Company were largely in favor of proceeding with the acquisition.
Besides the group vice president in charge of the investment company, most of the other senior executives sat in contemplative silence, lost in thought.
After a moment of pause, one of the group's VPs finally spoke: "I think the points raised by Li Tang earlier were an important wake-up call. Going global needs to be done step by step. One misstep and we could fall straight into deep water—it might be too late to pull ourselves out."
Everyone fell silent again.
It seemed Niu Fu had finished thinking things through. His authoritative gaze swept over the room. "I personally agree with Li Tang's opinion."
The mood in the room shifted immediately. The International Investment Company team, which had been full of optimism, suddenly slumped like deflated balloons.
"Why do most of our domestic steel mills and smelters operate along the coast?" Niu Fu asked rhetorically. Then he answered his own question. "Because coastal regions have better transportation and more accessible power supply. Without proper infrastructure, even the best mineral deposits are hard to convert into real value."
"President Niu's analysis is spot on."
"There are countless known, high-quality mineral resources worldwide, but only about 10% ever make it to actual production. Many large, rich deposits remain untouched due to poor infrastructure, unstable political environments, and other factors."
Niu Fu looked like he had made up his mind. "Wukuang Group's capital wasn't easy to accumulate. We can't afford to throw it all into a foreign venture. Yes, China has more and more foreign reserves—but not so much that we can afford to waste them."
He had made his stance very clear.
No one dared to argue against him.
Hu Zhenchi sighed softly, visibly disappointed. "President Niu, if we miss this opportunity, there's no telling when we'll see another one like it."
"I understand your eagerness to go abroad and make a mark on the international stage," Niu said. In fact, he admired that spirit. But as the person at the helm, he saw the bigger picture more clearly than anyone else.
Wukuang Group might be a giant within China, but in the global mining industry—competing head-on with multinational giants and the capital, funds, and even sovereign entities behind them—was like an egg colliding with a rock.
He had high hopes for Wukuang's international expansion—but not at the cost of reckless ambition.
"As for Coastal Resources, I share Li Tang's perspective. We don't truly understand the overseas mining environment. If we jump in blindly, we might find ourselves surrounded and unable to escape."
Seeing that everyone remained silent, he added, "Our team can continue gathering international intelligence. When the time comes—when we're fully prepared—we'll make a move that shakes the industry."
Now that his stance was unmistakably clear, others began to speak up:
"I agree with President Niu's decision."
"We definitely shouldn't rush."
"Opportunities exist both at home and abroad. As long as we're observant, we'll find the right target."
"You know, that kid Li Tang—his insight is incredibly sharp!"
"We were looking at the power plants and railways on the surface. We didn't think deeper. Mainly because we don't understand the environment abroad well enough to analyze it thoroughly."
"A lot of foreign railways are privately owned—built and operated by the companies themselves. Many major mining firms use this model. Li Tang's comments were truly a wake-up call."
"From now on, we need to dig deeper before discussing overseas deals."
"The key is to see past the surface—to tear away the glossy veneer and see the dark corners underneath. Coastal Resources looks great on the outside, but who knows how many flaws are hiding inside."
"Isn't Li Tang a mineral exploration expert? How does he know so much about foreign mining regulations?"
Now that Niu Fu had voiced his disapproval, everyone felt free to speak their minds.
The International Investment Company staff didn't argue. They accepted reality.
Without the support of Wukuang Group's parent company, they had no way of executing the acquisition on their own.
After a brief follow-up with the leadership, the group executives left the office.
In the leisure area, Alice sat surrounded by drinks and plates of fruit and snacks, but she had no appetite.
She waited anxiously, her gaze fixed on the general manager's office across the glass wall.
The door finally opened. Voices and footsteps followed.
The high-level meeting had ended. People began leaving one by one.
She stood up, scanning the faces nervously.
Guo Fengchun had also been waiting. Once the executives were gone, he rushed into the general manager's office.
"General Manager Hu, what's the verdict?"
"The acquisition project has been shelved," Hu Zhenchi replied with a disappointed sigh. "The group's leadership didn't support moving forward—especially President Niu, who explicitly stated that we won't participate in the acquisition of Coastal Resources."
"Why?" Guo Fengchun was crushed.
If the project had gone ahead, he would've been one of the main contributors. A successful deal would have been a major achievement.
"President Niu values Li Tang's opinion highly."
Hu himself was puzzled. "I only brought Li Tang onto the team because President Niu specifically instructed me to. Does he really have that much influence?"
"Li Tang, huh…"
After a moment of disappointment, Guo Fengchun accepted the outcome. "Well, forget it. There'll be more opportunities."
"Let's shelve this for now."
It was a done deal. Hu didn't dwell on it further.
Guo Fengchun exited the office and saw Alice pacing anxiously in the lounge area, behind the glass wall.
He walked in, casually picked up an orange, and sat down.
"Minister Guo, has your company made a decision?" Alice rushed over.
"Yes."
Peeling the orange, Guo replied absently, "We've decided not to move forward with the Coastal Resources acquisition. You might want to approach other companies in China—see if anyone's interested."
Alice slumped in her seat, completely disheartened.
How many Chinese companies had the capital to acquire Coastal Resources?
You could count them on one hand.
Gaosheng Bank had shared the opportunity with multiple firms, but only Wukuang showed serious interest.
Now that Wukuang had pulled out, there was truly no one left.
She knew this too well, which was why she had placed all her hopes on Wukuang.
Since first contacting the International Investment Company, they had expressed strong interest in the acquisition. She and her M&A team had worked tirelessly for months—traveling to South Australia no less than five times.
Now, it seemed all her efforts were about to amount to nothing.
"Is there any chance you'll reconsider?" she asked with a shred of hope.
"No chance."
Guo didn't even look up as he ate his fruit. "President Niu personally rejected the deal. It's a dead end—don't waste time hoping."
Alice's face turned completely pale. Her bright blue eyes dimmed, like a lightbulb that had burned out.
Guo didn't seem to notice or care. He tossed the orange peel aside, got up, and walked to the door of the investment department. "Xiao Wang, go down to the Exploration Company and bring Li Tang upstairs."
Li Tang had just returned to his office and thought the matter was settled.
Suddenly, someone from the investment team came to fetch him again.
As he arrived at the department, he heard Guo Fengchun's voice from across the lounge area. Spotting him, he walked over.
"Minister Guo, is something wrong?"
Guo stared at Li Tang's youthful face for a while, trying to see what was so special about this guy.
One thing was certain:
This young man had just influenced a top-level corporate decision.
"Sit down." Guo pulled over a chair. "Tea or coffee?"
"I'm good." Li Tang shook his head.
Guo didn't press. He got straight to the point. "I called you up to inform you of the leadership's decision."
"That fast?" Li Tang had assumed they'd debate the issue extensively.
"Based on your opinion, President Niu directly vetoed the acquisition," Guo said bitterly. "The project is officially shelved."
"My opinion?"
Li Tang noticed Guo didn't seem pleased. He quickly apologized. "Minister Guo, I'm really sorry—I didn't mean to disrupt your acquisition plans. There were things I could've chosen not to say, but I said them anyway."
"It's not your fault."
Guo showed some magnanimity. "Maybe you were right. Maybe you stopped us from making a mistake just in time."
"I really was just expressing my personal viewpoint. I never expected it would have such an impact."
"Junior… fellow alum!" Guo finally smiled. "You've underestimated your influence."
"I really didn't think it through," Li Tang replied honestly. He had only pointed out things that others hadn't considered. He hadn't expected it to shift the entire trajectory of the project.
"Let's not talk about that anymore."
Guo adjusted his mood quickly. "I'll pass on one more thing—President Niu wants to talk to you. When you leave here, head upstairs to his office."
"President Niu?"
Li Tang was confused. He couldn't imagine what Niu Fu would want to discuss.
"Just go. He's waiting."
Guo had been sitting in the lounge for a while—it was time to get moving. "I won't keep you any longer. When you're free, let's have dinner—bring Runqi too. I'll invite a few of our alumni who've done well in the company. It'll be a chance for everyone to meet, drink, and chat."
"Sounds good. I'd like to meet the senior alumni and learn from them."
Li Tang bid Guo farewell and made his way up to the group headquarters floor.
Just as he turned the corner of the stairwell, a gust of wind whooshed past—carrying a sweet scent of perfume.
A tall figure appeared in front of him, arms outstretched, blocking the stairway entirely.
It was none other than the foreign guest—Alice.
She was tall to begin with, and now, standing one step above him, she looked like a goddess of liberty towering from above.
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