Because of the language barrier, Chen Ze couldn't understand what the black people were saying at all. He could only smile and shake hands with the black man in a friendly manner.
After the handshake, the Black man suddenly took out a bag from behind his back and handed it to Chen Ze without hesitation, seemingly to express his gratitude.
Upon seeing this, Chen Ze quickly waved his hand to indicate his refusal. His gaze inadvertently swept over the feet of the group of black people, and he was surprised to find that they were all walking barefoot.
Chen Ze sighed inwardly, "African farmers are so poor that they can't even afford a pair of shoes."
He glanced curiously at the contents of the bag and saw a dead pheasant, some corn, and some wild fruit.
Chen Ze couldn't help but feel a sense of respect for these Africans. He felt that the people of this small tribe were very simple and honest, and compared with the Chinese, they were much less cunning.
However, although Chen Ze was somewhat touched by the gift, he couldn't bear to accept it. After all, he could see that these Black people lived in very difficult conditions, and this gift was probably very precious to them as well.
However, the Black man was unusually persistent. He kept using gestures and simple pronunciations to try to explain to Chen Ze, hoping that he would accept the gift.
Despite the Black man's insistence, Chen Ze remained unmoved and resolutely refused to accept the money.
Seeing Chen Ze's resolute attitude, the Black man seemed to misunderstand him, thinking that he disliked these things. So, he suddenly grabbed a little Black girl from behind and forcefully pushed her into Chen Ze's arms.
Then they started chattering away, roughly meaning that they wanted their eldest daughter to marry him.
Chen Ze looked down at the shy girl in his arms, who was only thirteen or fourteen years old, and felt ashamed.
He thought to himself: "Brother, your daughter is not yet an adult! This is illegal."
Just then, a white man walked slowly over with a blonde woman.
The visitors were Pierre and his assistant Onif.
Pierre approached the black man and said loudly in French, “Hey, Mayor Marula, you don’t need to give him anything. This gentleman in front of you has plenty of money.”
“Oh, Mr. Pierre, please tell him for me that I want to give my daughter to him as my wife,” the village chief of Marula pleaded.
Pierre shook his head with a smile. "Please, Chief Marula, your daughter is not yet an adult. He will not accept her."
The village chief of Marula said helplessly.
“But these are all the things I have at home, and you know our village isn’t well-off.”
Pierre advised.
"It's alright, Chief Marula, the Chinese are very kind, they won't mind!"
At Pierre's urging, the village chief of Marula led the villagers away.
Wang Zhengang whispered in Chen Ze's ear, "Boss, he's Pierre, the farmer across the street, a Frenchman."
Upon hearing this
Chen Ze stepped forward and shook hands with Pierre to greet him, "Hey, friend, thank you for your help."
"You're welcome. It's only right for neighbors to help each other. I'm very interested in Chinese tea ceremony. May I ask if I can come in and have a cup of tea?" Pierre had already planned it all out; drinking tea was just a pretext, selling land was his main purpose.
Chen Ze politely gestured for them to come in, "Please come in, both of you!"
The group sat down in the wooden cabin, and Wang Zhengang skillfully brewed tea for them. While brewing the tea, he introduced Pierre to his boss and their acquaintance.
A moment later, the aroma of tea filled the air. Wang Zhengang poured them tea and then sat down beside them.
Pierre picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and exclaimed, "This tea tastes wonderful; it truly lives up to its reputation as Chinese tea."
He put down his teacup and changed the subject, "Mr. Chen, I heard that you are planning to develop agriculture here. I happen to have a piece of land right across the street. The soil is fertile, the water source is plentiful, and there is a lot of modern equipment. It is very suitable for farming. Due to some personal reasons, I want to transfer this land. Are you interested?"
Chen Ze's heart skipped a beat. He had originally planned to go and discuss things with them, but they hadn't expected to come to him on their own. It seemed that this guy was in a hurry to make a move.
He had to get the price down, so he asked expressionlessly, "Mr. Pierre, how much are you planning to sell this land for?"
Pierre held up two fingers. “Two hundred million dollars, Mr. Chen. That’s a very fair price. You know, my farm is freehold and covers more than fifty hectares.”
Chen Ze did not respond immediately, but fell into thought.
At this moment, Wang Zhengang whispered a reminder from the side: "Boss, as far as I know, the land price here isn't that high."
Chen Ze nodded and smiled at Pierre, saying, "Mr. Pierre, two hundred million dollars is too high. You must understand that this is Cameroon in Africa, not Paris, France. If it were Paris, I could accept this price, but that's not the case, is it?"
Pierre's smile remained, but his eyes held a calculating glint. He picked up his cup, downed his tea in one gulp, and said, "Then we can talk some more and try to reach a price that satisfies both of us."
"One hundred and fifty million US dollars," Chen Ze shouted out the price he had in mind.
Upon hearing the price Chen Ze called out, Pierre immediately shouted.
"NO! NO! NO! Mr. Chen, I'm selling land, not clothes. I can only offer you a discount of ten million US dollars. One hundred and ninety million US dollars is a very reasonable price. My farm still has five hectares of vineyards and a beautiful villa. In addition, there is a huge artificial lake in front of the villa."
Chen Ze smiled and said calmly, "Mr. Pierre, what you said is indeed valuable, but I also know the price of similar land in the surrounding area. Although your farm has these facilities, there are some problems, such as the equipment needing to be updated and maintained. As for the five hectares of vineyards you mentioned, I have no plans to produce wine. How about this, 160 million, this price is already very sincere."
Pierre frowned, his eyes flickering as if he were weighing the pros and cons. He remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking.
"Mr. Chen, are all Chinese people so good at bargaining? Here's the deal: 180 million, that's my bottom line."
Chen Ze shook his head firmly, tapping his fingers on the table. "Mr. Pierre, let's compromise on $170 million. And once my people have inspected your farm and found no problems, I'll settle the payment immediately. You know, it's not easy to find a buyer as straightforward as me."
Pierre gritted his teeth, a look of hesitation on his face.
At that moment, Onif, who had been silent all along, whispered a few words in his ear.
After hearing this, Pierre took a deep breath and said, "Alright, Mr. Chen, it'll be 170 million. Once your people have checked and found no problems, you must transfer the money to me immediately."
Seeing Pierre compromise, Chen Ze smiled and extended his hand to shake Pierre's hand again, saying, "It's a pleasure to cooperate with you."
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