Chapter 349 - 346: You're So Great, You're So High and Mighty

January 5, 2023.

Hongku Port.

With the inspection tour concluded, the leaders of the delegation from Cairo had reached an internal consensus.

They had witnessed the technology and power of the Homo Sapiens Company, as well as its determination. Realizing they could not stop it, the vast majority of the delegation members agreed to sign a deep cooperation agreement.

Cairo immediately granted the delegation full authority, instantly transforming the inspection team into a negotiation team. The two sides began partnership negotiations in Hongku Port.

The core of these negotiations concerned the property and management rights for the cities, agricultural zones, and infrastructure that the Homo Sapiens Company would invest in and build within Suez.

Ultimately, it was all about drawing clear lines.

As for the Homo Sapiens Company's plan to build a security base on the Sinai Peninsula, east of the Suez Canal, Cairo actually viewed it as a positive development.

After all, Cairo feared interference from Europe and America and hoped the Homo Sapiens Company could provide them with backing.

In fact, right as the Cairo delegation was arriving in Hongku Port, the Homo Sapiens Company headquarters convened a provisional meeting to begin preparations for the Red Sea Escort Fleet and the Suez Security Corps.

Cairo's ability to maintain secrecy, however, was naturally no match for the intelligence agencies of Europe and America.

Even though it had been severely weakened by America's "harvesting," the joint council of the European Union still quickly convened an emergency meeting.

In the conference hall.

Martin, head of the European intelligence agency's Mediterranean Special Affairs Office, addressed the attendees with a grave expression.

"Ladies and gentlemen, just 34 hours ago, according to reliable sources, Cairo agreed to sign a deep cooperation agreement with the Homo Sapiens Company. Here are the specific details of the agreement..."

Several staff members quickly distributed the printed documents to the council members present.

At this time, the big three of Europe were France, Germany, and Western Rome.

France and Western Rome in particular, with their immense interests in the Mediterranean and Africa, had already learned the details of the relevant cooperation agreement through their own intelligence channels.

Evidently, the Homo Sapiens Company's westward expansion was simply too rapid.

Previously, they were still in Southeast Asia and South Asia; now, they had already charged into Eastern Africa and the West Asia Region.

The French council member, Charles Sobon, wore a look that was both serious and resigned. As a leader of the European Union, they were currently beset by troubles both at home and abroad.

The war in Kyiv was still ongoing. Although both sides were fighting listlessly, it remained a fishbone stuck firmly in the throat of the European Union.

The collapse of America's semiconductor industry had triggered a global economic crisis, plunging Europe's entire economy into a deep freeze.

Meanwhile, the Homo Sapiens Company was entrenched in Southeast Asia and was ambitiously and aggressively expanding toward Africa and West Asia.

With the signing of this deep cooperation agreement between the Homo Sapiens Company and the Suez Region, it meant the company had pushed its frontline to the Mediterranean. It was like holding a knife to the European Union's stomach.

Charles Sobon's head throbbed. He glanced again at the council members present.

The council members from the Mediterranean coastal states generally looked worried.

The members from Northern and Eastern Europe, however, appeared relatively calm. This included the German council member, Vit Flauen, whose expression was more conflicted than anything.

The Western Roman council member, Flaminio Bellamino, looked at Charles Sobon. A persistent shadow of gloom hung in both their eyes.

After a short while, the council members present began to voice their opinions one after another.

They debated for over three hours yet still failed to reach a consensus. This was the frustrating reality of the European Union at this moment.

Because every member state had veto power, it was exceptionally difficult to pass anything in the council as long as there were one or two cowardly wimps or opportunistic fence-sitters with ulterior motives.

To stop the Homo Sapiens Company from entering the Suez Region now, empty threats were useless. Success would only be possible by using both fists and gold coins—a two-pronged approach.

But the moment the Eastern European and Balkan Peninsula member states heard about providing billions of euros in aid to the Suez Region, they immediately refused.

After all, there was a global economic crisis. They barely had any meat in their own bowls, yet France wanted the European Union to cut off its own flesh to feed Suez.

How noble of you!

How righteous!

I flatly refuse, unless France pays for it itself.

The previous aid package for the Kyiv Duchy had already made the European Union bleed. Now they were being asked to do it all over again. They didn't think this was like opening a bottle of iced tea and getting a "win a free one" cap. The smaller Eastern European nations directly cast their votes in opposition.

After all, the Homo Sapiens Company and Lucia were not in the same league.

Lucia had fought listlessly in the Kyiv war.

The Homo Sapiens Company, on the other hand, was planning to invest hundreds of billions of gold dollars in comprehensive aid for Suez, and its combat strength was also terrifying.

The European Union could barely fend for itself right now. Trying to compete with the Homo Sapiens Company in terms of financial strength was simply an overestimation of its own abilities.

Never mind that Charles Sobon's proposed 8 billion euro economic aid package was rejected; even if it had passed, it likely would have had no effect.

Distribute 8 billion euros among 110 million Suez People, and that's only 72.7 euros per person. What could that little bit of money even do? Buy KFC for a week?

What's more, that money would certainly never reach every individual. After being skimmed off at every level, they'd be lucky if even a tenth of it reached the common people.

But the Homo Sapiens Company was different.

An investment on the scale of hundreds of billions of gold dollars, a huge number of jobs, and a massive supply of grain, food, and daily necessities.

Even for the shortfall of about 25 million tons of refined oil and petroleum products, the Homo Sapiens Company could procure it from oil-exporting countries like Persia and Saudia Arabia and have it diverted over.

Most people can tell the difference between one full meal and being full at every meal.

They couldn't win a fistfight, they were too broke to compete in throwing money around, and even when it came to influence, Europe and America's sway in the Suez Region was rapidly fading.

This was because the Homo Sapiens Company's three major internet groups had recently launched a content creation incentive program, supporting a large number of public relations staff around the globe.

In Suez alone, 37,000 people were successfully hired. These individuals would promote the company's benefits, corporate system, and various heartwarming little stories on the internet and in daily life throughout Suez.

The Homo Sapiens Company's public relations department had already organized a large workforce to write a mountain of short essays, soft articles, templated posts, pop-science advertorials, and related videos.

For example: "Global Rankings of Humane Corporations," "Regional Happiness Index Rankings," "What Can 100 Gold Dollars Buy?", "Reborn: I Became a Food Delivery Driver on Xing Island," "Why Doesn't the Homo Sapiens Company Have Accessibility Facilities?", "True Education," and so on.

Soft articles and videos like these, using all sorts of templates, were accurately translated into local scripts and languages and then pushed out to the entire world.

The Homo Sapiens Company's PR department, never hesitant to spend money, disbursed as much as 34.7 billion gold dollars in monthly salaries and bonuses to its international public relations staff across the globe.

Thanks to such insane investment, combined with the management abilities of its New Human employees and the support of supercomputer processing power, the Homo Sapiens Company's global image had transformed from completely tarnished to a mixed bag of good and bad.

This was especially true in the Suez Region, a key focus for the Homo Sapiens Company. The vast majority of ordinary people there now knew the company was coming and were just waiting to live in villas, drive luxury cars, and feast on gourmet meals every day.

In the face of such fervent public opinion, what could the European Union possibly use to stop it?

Unless the European Union could offer the same economic aid terms, who would be willing to side with them?

This was also why the Eastern European member states were so vehemently opposed. Their own countries were already struggling. To aid Suez, with its population of over one hundred million? They must be out of their minds.

Faced with the fierce opposition from the various member state councilors, Charles Sobon was both furious and frustrated. 'These guys have no foresight at all,' he cursed inwardly. 'All they ever do is hold everyone back.'