Chapter 302 Billionaires also care about money
Xiao Peng had been in a bad mood for a long time, lying on the sofa at home every day, sighing and groaning. He didn't read or play games, and even when Ka Xin took the initiative to find him to "torture" him, he had no interest.
Seeing this scene, everyone unanimously recommended Pascal to comfort Xiao Peng and ask him what was going on.
"Xiao, would you like a glass of champagne?" Pascal walked over with champagne.
Xiao Peng shook his head. "Why champagne? That's too pretentious. Give me a beer."
Pascal blinked. "You clearly said we'd have champagne as a drink at home, why beer now? I asked Fabian to bring some beer."
Xiao Peng sighed and said, "Forget it, forget it. Don't let Fabian spend money. We need to increase revenue and reduce expenditure now!"
"Pfft!" Pascal spit out, "Slut! Xiao, what the hell are you doing? Don't tell me you're so worried about money!"
Xiao Peng nodded: "Of course it's for money! I'm going crazy now!"
It is now mid-March, and Xiao Peng has been waiting for the opportunity to go to the Black Sea.
He now regrets buying the sailboat, which has been unable to reach the Black Sea due to poor weather. While other ocean exploration companies have already begun operations in the Black Sea since early March, he still has to wait for the weather to improve, which, at the current rate, will take until at least April. This has severely impacted his work.
And what does this mean?
Money!
The monthly salary of all the people on board costs more than one million: although the wages of ordinary sailors are low, the salaries of the captain, first mate and the like are really not exaggerated. He can't pay them using the Chinese wage level and can only use the European wage standard!
This is all money!
In addition, the cost of mooring the 'Calypsope' in the New Port of Marseille was even more staggering. He enjoyed a 'discounted price', which was another million per month.
This is really a discounted price!
Look at those large ships. Apart from warships, how many of them are moored in the port year-round? All the large ships are floating on the sea year-round! It's because the port mooring fees are really too expensive! The owners of those large ships really can't afford it!
There are five sailboats moored at Pascal's dock. Although Pascal said he would not charge for it, after all, his dock was an investment when he bought it, so he still has to pay Pascal 50,000 euros a month.
Taking into account all the miscellaneous expenses, Xiao Peng's three million euros were wasted if he did nothing in a month!
Three million!
Xiao Peng might not have been able to earn this much in his entire life, but now, he's lost three million in a month without doing anything! Xiao Peng is really heartbroken!
A company needs business to develop, and no company can sit idle!
Pascal can also deal in antiques. Pascal has a good relationship with Zhang Qikun and has his own investments. However, Xiao Peng's entire business is in seabed salvage. If he doesn't get this ship out, he's going to collapse!
Moro has been spending every day in the library looking for clues about the shipwreck in the Mediterranean. However, Xiao Peng has taken a deposit of 5 million from Ivan after all. If he does not go to the Black Sea but instead salvages something in the Mediterranean, his reputation will be ruined if the news gets out!
Pascal said helplessly, "Xiao, please, you are not short of money now! Nassef paid a whopping 500 million, and you are now a billionaire."
Xiao Peng spread his hands and said, "I just stepped into the door. Is this guy crazy? He spent so much money on a few pieces of shabby jewelry and donated it. It's amazing!"
They were talking about the jewelry of Cleopatra VII. At that time, four wealthy men were vying for this set of jewelry, including Ivan. These people were not short of money. At that time, Ivan was determined to get it and offered a price of 200 million. As a result, Nassef from Egypt directly put forward a price: 500 million!
Everything has its value. The reason why many people like cultural relics is that they can be priced at a premium. However, no matter how much they are priced at a premium, those pieces of jewelry cannot reach this price!
So this set of jewelry became Nassef's collection, and after Nassef got the jewelry, the first thing he did was to donate it to the Egyptian National Museum! This caused a huge sensation in Egypt, and it was almost like the "Twelve Zodiac Animals of the Old Summer Palace" returning to China!
Nassef is so famous in Egypt! He can run for president now!
Spending 500 million to buy fame? This Egyptian tycoon really doesn't treat money as money, right? But thanks to him, Xiao Peng has reached the threshold of "billionaire".
After hearing what Xiao Peng said, Pascal took a sip of champagne and said, "Nassef has a background in the Egyptian military."
Xiao Peng asked in confusion, "Military background? What's wrong with that?"
"In Egypt, the real power lies with the military, not the president," Pascal explained.
"Ah?" Xiao Peng was stunned after hearing this.
Pascal said, "In addition to its massive military, the Egyptian military also controls a nationwide business empire. Almost all businesses in Egypt are tainted by the military, which owns vast tracts of land and businesses. Forty percent of Egypt's GDP is controlled by the military."
Xiao Peng curled his lips after hearing this.
This military-run business model is not unique to Egypt; it also applies to North Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, and Iran.
Are there any benefits to the military engaging in business? Yes! It can help address the nation's military budget shortfall, allowing the military to sustain itself and leaving more money to purchase weapons and equipment.
The Egyptian military is undoubtedly the richest of these countries.
The Egyptian Ministry of Military Production was established in 1954. Its original purpose was to help Egypt achieve self-sufficiency in arms production. However, over the years, the Egyptian military has become ubiquitous in Egypt's commercial activities, and its business operations are tax-free. This has made the Egyptian military truly wealthy enough to rival a nation.
However, the military's involvement in business has its own problems: it competes with the people for profits. With no taxes and a strong backing, any industry they invest in will fail. Furthermore, the quality of military personnel is also low. In Egypt, soldiers have even resorted to selling chicken legs on the street.
China also used this "military doing business" model for a period of time in the past, which resulted in chaos. Fortunately, it was stopped early, which led to the prosperous situation in China today.
But Egypt doesn't have the courage to make such a bold move, or even if it wants to, it can't. Now the Egyptian military's business empire is so huge that it is impossible to destroy it!
Now that the Egyptian tycoon Nassef has a military background, 500 million is just a drop in the bucket for him.
"Oh, I should have asked him for more." Xiao Peng still felt a little regretful. He said, "Pascal, we can't rest here any longer! We must act immediately. Let's move to the Black Sea now. Have you solved your problem?"
Pascal smiled bitterly after hearing this: "Xiao, we really didn't expect it to be so troublesome!"
Xiao Peng laughed heartily: "Finally, it's your turn to hold me back!"
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