Chapter 986: Harsh Environment and Hard Work
"Xiao! You're really here!" Ismail ran over excitedly: "I saw your car and knew you were here!"
Xiao Peng burped with a happy look on his face. When he heard Ismail's voice, he lazily stretched out his hand and said, "Hey, Ismail! Why are you alone? Where are Sheikh, Beida, and Xidia?"
Ismail coughed dryly and said, "They were forbidden to enter here... They drove their own sheep into the nursery and caused a lot of trouble. Beida was allowed in, but he sent those three guys with their butts beaten to Nouakchott!"
"Three?" Xiao Peng frowned slightly: "Should it be four?"
"Huh?" Ismael thought for a moment. "Well, maybe. I didn't notice it either!"
Xiao Peng smiled and said, "Ismail, thank you so much. If you hadn't told me I wouldn't have come to Akrut. This is such a great place. If every place in your country could be like this, your country would become a major livestock farming country... Of course, this possibility is not great. It requires the whole country to work hard. Unless you position greening as a 'national policy' and vigorously develop the population. Of course, this is beyond the control of ordinary people like us. But I can be sure of one thing: if you can maintain this place, your future life will be great."
Ismail did not respond after hearing this, and looked as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
"Hmm?" Xiao Peng asked, "Ismail, do you have anything else to talk to me about?"
Ismail nodded: "Xiao, can we go out and talk?"
"Of course!" Xiao Peng stood up. "I'll eat and drink enough to help digest the food. I just felt too hot! It's really comfortable here at night!"
The temperature here is over 40 degrees Celsius during the day, but only around 20 degrees Celsius at night. Plus, there's a green area here, so it's very pleasant to take a walk outside. However, they weren't just taking a walk, they were taking a ride; they also had to patrol the area at night.
In fact, Xiao Peng felt that this was unnecessary: there were surveillance cameras here. Wouldn't it be enough to send someone in when they saw someone coming? But they didn't. In addition to surveillance, there were also manual patrols and sentries at night, which showed how much they valued this green space.
Many people think Africans are lazy or something. This is a very broad assessment. At least in North Africa, people are very hardworking: the environment here is very harsh, and without hard work, you simply can't survive!
This is like the Chinese people: for 5,000 years of Chinese history, ordinary people have basically been concerned with the same issue: how to fill their stomachs. And it is this harsh living environment that has cultivated the hardworking and pragmatic character of the Chinese people today.
But just as Xiao Peng said, the people here have fallen into a vicious cycle because they are too hardworking: because they are poor, they raise more cattle and sheep to improve their lives, but due to poor protection and backward planting technology, raising more cattle and sheep has caused serious desertification problems. The more they raise, the poorer they become, and the poorer they become, the more they raise. As an agricultural nation, the Chinese people help them with greening, which is a real improvement in their lives.
Although there have been constant conflicts between nomadic and farming peoples throughout world history, the people in this world who can help nomadic people the most are actually farming peoples.
Northwest Africa was France's traditional sphere of influence, but China had quietly entered the region by changing the quality of life for the locals, becoming their largest trading partner. This infuriated the French.
"Don't you have to be on duty for a while? Why are you back so early?"
Xiao Peng asked Xie He who was driving.
Sheikh was a little embarrassed and didn't say anything. It was Ismail who answered his question: "Um...Xiao, in fact, we went directly to Marrakech after parting with you."
"Marrakech?" Xiao Peng was stunned. "What are you going to Morocco for?"
Marrakech is a city in southwestern Morocco with a population of over one million. It has the busiest souk in all of Africa. Xiao Peng has also visited there. It's an impressive city.
Ismail didn't beat around the bush and simply told the truth: "We went to Marrakech to sell Moulay Ismail's mask for a good price. After all, it's more prosperous there than here, right?"
Xiao Peng had actually guessed this result. He pretended to be confused and asked, "So how are your sales?"
Ismail sighed and said, "Xiao, we really admire your discerning eye. What you said is basically the same as what the antique appraiser in Marrakech said. However, since there is no proof that this is the mask used by Moulay Ismail himself and it should not be matched, the price is not high."
Xiao Peng said: "Yes, I said it was 3,000 to 5,000 euros."
Ismael said with a bitter face, "But the highest offer from the antique dealer over there is only 1,200 euros!"
Xiao Peng laughed and said, "Isn't that surprising? Those antique dealers are also trying to make money. Middlemen make money by taking the difference, right? You have to find a collector to sell it to you at a high price - refuse to let middlemen take the difference!"
After hearing this, Xidia said bluntly: "How could we know any collectors? If we knew rich people, would we still have to work so hard in the army?"
Ismail glared at Xidia and said to Xiao Peng, "Xiao, you should be the collector, right?"
"Ah?" Xiao Peng was stunned: "Me? I really am not! I just know a little bit."
Ismail said hurriedly, "Xiao, don't be so modest. The moment you saw this thing, you immediately told me the origin of this mask and its price. This shows that you know a lot about it. You must be a collector."
Xiao Peng shook his head and said, "I'm really not, but I have a friend who likes these weird things. I learned all my knowledge from him."
"Is your friend in Mauritania now?" Ismail asked hurriedly.
Xiao Peng shook his head and said, "No, he is in France now!"
Everyone in the car looked disappointed.
Ismail hurriedly asked, "Xiao, can you buy this mask?"
"Ah? Me?" Xiao Peng pointed at his nose, confused: "Why should I buy it?"
Xiao Peng now said something arrogant: I have seen a lot of good things, and he really doesn't like this kind of sacrificial mask.
Ismail said, "Can you give this thing to your friend? To be honest, the four of us have been friends since childhood, but we almost got into a fight over this mask! And the longer this thing stays, the more like a bomb it is to us! You Chinese are our best friends, aren't you? We need your help!"
This mask does have an ignominious origin, having been stolen from the Korean, Soo Jung-seok. If they don't act quickly, it will be a real problem for them.
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