A speedboat was sailing along the coastline of the Verdant Island, an island not far from the Ferman Peninsula called Greenforna Island, which literally means Green Cloud Island.
The island's land area is over 1,000 square kilometers, and it normally takes two to three hours for a speedboat to sail around it.
Lu Ming was on the speedboat, listening to Chen Huanxing introduce the situation on the island.
This is a rubber plantation island with about 30,000 hectares of rubber trees, or nearly 450,000 acres.
Almost all of the 20,000 to 30,000 Mitai people on the island depend on rubber plantations for their livelihood.
"Lao Gao, you tell the story yourself!" While introducing the situation on the island, Chen Huanxing suddenly laughed and scolded, "You old man, you really want to save trouble."
The old man in his fifties with slightly gray temples, who was about the same age as Chen Huanxing, was called Gao Youchang. From the tone of their conversation, one could tell that they were real old friends.
Gao Youchang smiled and said, "If it weren't for what you said, would Mr. Zhang be more convinced?"
Gao Youchang is the owner of this rubber plantation. The entire island's land belongs to him, and he is also one of Feldman's rubber kings.
He plans to transfer the entire rubber plantation away from Antigua.
It just happened that there was such an opportunity, and maybe I met a big buyer.
Five million, real money, can be taken out immediately.
For most people in Central China, even if they want to leave, it is difficult due to the various factors involved.
Moreover, many people in Zhongzhou have already regarded this place as their home and are reluctant to leave their hometown.
"Are the Mitai workers here easy to manage?" Lu Ming asked.
The Mitai people are a bit like the Southeast Asians in their previous lives, with darker skin, flat noses, protruding mouths and chins, and a low sense of presence. They are the indigenous people here, accounting for about four-fifths of the population.
The Yassia people migrated here later. They have high noses and fair skin. Their population is less than 10 million, and they live on more than 20 remote islands. Among them are large islands with millions of people, and small islands with tens of thousands of residents.
"It's easy to manage your own workers who depend on you for a living." Gao Youchang hesitated, "But, to be honest, I'm afraid it will be a little difficult to say in the future."
Lu Ming smiled and said, "It's okay. It is said that people from Central China are most afraid of meeting people from Central China when they are outside. People from Central China are the most ruthless when it comes to betraying each other. But for the top wealthy people in these places, there is still a way of doing business."
After thinking it over, he nodded and said, "In principle, I agree to buy this rubber plantation, but it still needs professional evaluation, including account auditing and so on. My team will contact you soon, Mr. Gao." In fact, five million is not a high price for the entire island, including nearly 500,000 acres of oak orchards with mature trees, as long as there is nothing special. Gao Youchang should be eager to get rid of it, but he doesn't want to let those greedy and hateful Mitai upper class get a bargain, so he set himself a very affordable price.
Over there, Gao Youchang and Chen Huanxing were stunned after hearing Lu Ming's words. It was the first time they encountered such a huge deal and they reached an agreement so easily.
Today was just the first time that everyone met, and even Mr. Zhang hadn't even stepped onto the island to take a look.
At this time, the speedboat slowly docked at the small pier of the island. Several Zhongzhou people were already waiting there. They should be Gao Youchang's employees and also the management of this rubber plantation.
The rubber trees are arranged neatly and divided into several large areas on the island, and there are various wooden house areas scattered on the island.
Walking slowly in the rubber forest, Gao Youchang's employees introduced the tree varieties, yields, etc., and naturally said good things.
The rubber trees here can theoretically be harvested every day, but usually the harvest starts in April and ends in November, with August being the peak harvesting period.
It is now the end of September and there are not many workers harvesting rubber. They are busy working on trees with more rubber flow, and are doing shallow cutting rather than deep cutting as in the peak season. Moreover, harvesting can be done during the day in autumn, while in the rainy summer, tapping must be finished before dawn, otherwise the bark will be damaged.
Lu Ming walked around and suddenly said, "Actually, I want to invest in a travel company."
Chen Huanxing was stunned, and Gao Youchang looked even more disappointed.
Lu Ming smiled at Gao Youchang, "It won't affect our cooperation. I'm thinking that with the emergence of air passenger transport, the tourism industry may usher in a period of rapid development. This travel company mainly relies on airline passengers and also takes charter passengers. The scenery here is very beautiful, and it feels different from coastal cities. In short, the travel company I invested in must open a fixed route from the East China Sea to here. Once every three days or once a week? We'll see when the time comes. Of course, it must stop in several cities. I'll study other routes later." The rest of the words were mainly said to Chen Huanxing.
Chen Huanxing and Gao Youchang looked at each other in bewilderment. Tourism? The outside world is not peaceful, and there are wars in many places. No matter how you think about it, the golden age of tourism will not come soon.
Fixed passenger routes by air were unheard of in the empire, and there was a fear that they would lose money.
Lu Ming smiled and said, "Brother Chen, are you interested in doing this with me?"
Chen Huanxing was a little embarrassed and laughed, "I can consider it, I can consider it."
Lu Ming smiled in his heart. When it comes to developing tourism in Ferman and Antigua, it is certainly not done from the perspective of economic benefits.
The most important thing is the long fixed route from Donghai to Feldman.
It would be the best exercise for my secret air force to train long-distance air transport capabilities.
Even when there are no guests, paratroopers can be transported for training, etc., or additional flights can be added temporarily.
It is also a test and promotion for the development of Sanmai's aircraft technology, and a release of the production capacity of Sanmai's transport aircraft.
As long as this travel agency does not lose money and the income can cover the investment in secretly training its own flight crew, then it has fulfilled its mission.
After pondering, Lu Ming said, "In fact, tourism is also a way to promote Ferman. With more tourists, the economy will be boosted, and frequent information exchange will also make many people pay attention to what is happening here. Some organizations and ambitious people will have concerns when they want to cause trouble. In addition, Ferman is already a famous tourist destination, but it has not been explored enough. I still think there is a lot of room for development if we explore it well."
After hearing what Lu Ming said, Chen Huanxing's eyes flickered. He thought for a moment and said, "It sounds like charity. Mr. Zhang, the Chamber of Commerce does charity every year, but I am not the only one who has the final say in the Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Zhang can make a plan and we can discuss it with the Chamber of Commerce. Perhaps, we can provide free financial assistance to Mr. Zhang's travel company for charity publicity."
Lu Ming smiled and said, "Okay, actually, once the rubber plantation deal is settled, I can also join our Chamber of Commerce, right?"
"Then Mr. Zhang is certainly qualified. I'm afraid that Mr. Zhang is unwilling to compromise!" Chen Huanxing smiled happily.
…
Erika was wearing snow-white casual clothes, which was extremely beautiful. Although she was frightened at the moment, she had to sit on the chair obediently according to her husband's orders, allowing her husband's warm big hands to grab her snow-socked feet and put them into her beautiful and lovely little hiking shoes. She also watched her husband carefully tie her shoelaces, and he was so doting on her. Her heart was filled with sweetness and shyness.
"Alright!" Lu Ming stood up with a smile, "Today is your first time in a public school in your life, right? I'll take you there!"
Erika quickly stood up and nodded: "Okay."
Lu Ming suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, did you and Chen Xiaoya ask about the business school here?"
Chen Xiaoya, the granddaughter of Chen Huanxing, came here yesterday and played with Erika for half a day.
Erika secretly glanced at Lu Ming's expression and whispered, "Yes."
Lu Ming smiled and said, "Why, do you want to apply to a business school in the future? By then, we may not be here anymore!" At this point, he sighed softly, "You are so young, but you have been wandering around with me all the time."
I had originally mentioned this to Lu Yoshimitsu, also known as Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, and wanted him and his wife to go to Montenegro, and Erika would stay with them. She would also feel at ease if she went to school in Montenegro, and the family of three should be able to live a good life this way.
Who knew that Ashikaga Yoshimitsu would be so grief-stricken immediately, as if he thought that after he had ruined Erika, she wanted to abandon his lovely daughter. It seemed that when he thought of his daughter's tragic experience, he blamed himself so much that he even wanted to commit suicide.
There was no other way but to keep Erika by my side. Besides, I really liked Erika from the bottom of my heart. Apart from anything else, this super beautiful girl who blooms colorfully wherever she goes, like a comic book girl, makes me happy just looking at her. If I couldn't see her often, I would really miss her.
"I, I want to go to business school and study with you, my master..." Erika hesitated for a long time and finally said it in a low voice. Then, she lowered her head and dared not look up again. Her little body even trembled slightly with nervousness. This was the first time she expressed her little idea to her husband.
In the Japanese language context, "master" is also a respectful title used by the aristocratic class to refer to the "husband" of high status.
Want to study with me? Lu Ming was startled, then burst into laughter. After thinking for a while, he said, "Okay, let's go to the business school. However, I definitely can't go. You can be my teacher after learning something!"
Erika looked up in a daze. She probably never expected that her husband would agree to her request so readily. This thought had troubled her for a long time, but she didn't dare to say it. Today, she finally mustered up the courage. After she finished speaking, her legs felt a little weak, and she had no strength in her body. She felt like she was going to collapse.
Lu Ming was thinking that Erika went to junior high school because he wanted her to have a happy girlhood and make more friends. From the perspective of gaining knowledge, it was a complete waste of time.
Since Erika wants to go to college, she can go to college. The Santoro Business School in Chinatown is small and has few students, but it is very famous in Antigua. It was originally a school run by wealthy businessmen in Central China to educate their children, but now it has become the most desirable economic university in the state. Mitai students are flocking to it. Being admitted to Santoro Business School means a complete transformation and a class leap, not to mention the opportunities and chances in the future if you can enter the circle of descendants of the Central China elite.
In terms of teaching quality, Santolo Business School is much better than Shengjing Business School and they are completely not on the same level.
Moreover, as it is a private school, with sufficient sponsorship, Erika will have no difficulty getting in.
Graduation is difficult and requires serious study and practice, but it shouldn't be a problem for Erika.
When he looked up, he saw Erika seemed to be wiping tears. She was probably too happy. Lu Ming couldn't help but laugh: "Silly child, oh, you are such a silly child!" He reached out and gently wiped away the tears on her delicate face. "Then let's not go to middle school today. Let's go out for a walk together. Tomorrow I will arrange your admission to the business school."
Erika nodded gently and whispered softly, "Thank you, Master..." Her hot little face was held in her husband's warm big hands, and it seemed as if her heart melted, as if she was in cotton candy, sweet and warm, unable to extricate herself.