Chapter 277: Do You Trust Him?

“Politburo Member Liu, why don’t we settle the matter of that gold deal from three years ago first?”

Three years ago, Politburo Member Liu Peiqi had purchased 100 gold bars weighing 10 kilograms each from Chairman Zhen Weiliang. However, just before the final payment was due, the global price of gold suddenly plunged by nearly 10%. Using that as a convenient excuse, Liu Peiqi simply refused to pay the remaining 10%. Chairman Zhen repeatedly demanded repayment, but Liu pretended not to hear him.

“All right, let’s do that. How much do I owe you, including the outstanding balance and late fees?”

“The remaining principal is 900 million dollars, and the late-payment penalty is 720 million dollars.”

“How did the late fees get so enormous?!”

“The contract clearly states in black and white that if payment for the purchase of the gold bars is delayed, a penalty rate of 24% per annum will be charged. As you know, Politburo Member Liu, you have failed to pay the remaining balance for three years and four months.” 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

Liu Peiqi found himself facing a difficult dilemma. If he did not pay Chairman Zhen Weiliang the outstanding balance along with the interest, he would not be able to buy the diamonds. In that case, Zhen Weiliang would undoubtedly sell them to his direct rival for a seat on the Politburo Standing Committee, Vice Chairman Tang Guochang. And Tang would immediately present those diamonds as an offering to President Xi Jinping.

If events unfolded that way, the seat on the Standing Committee would most likely go to Tang Guochang. And would Tang Guochang, who knew perfectly well about his corruption schemes, leave him alive?

The thought instantly sobered Liu Peiqi up.

“Phew... It can’t be helped. I’ll transfer the remaining debt and interest right now.”

“Now that’s how business should be done. It’s a pleasure dealing with you.”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang took a note with an account number from his pocket and handed it to Liu Peiqi. Liu unfolded the paper, glanced over the numbers, and passed it to Director Liu Haoran. Liu Haoran immediately dialed someone’s number, gave a brief instruction, and hung up.

“Within thirty minutes, 1.62 billion dollars will be deposited into the account you provided, Chairman Zhen.”

“Excellent.”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang gave only a brief reply before turning back to Liu Peiqi.

“Well then, shall we move on to serious negotiations over the sale of the diamonds?”

“Haha! That’s exactly what I’ve been waiting for.”

At that moment, Vice Chairman Wei Chen brazenly cut into the conversation, as though he had long been waiting for an opportunity to speak.

“Chairman Zhen, before we begin negotiations, shouldn’t we show the diamonds to Politburo Member Liu?”

“I support that suggestion as well,” Director Liu Haoran immediately chimed in, as though he too had been waiting for this very moment.

“If that’s what you want, it can’t be helped. Follow me.”

“Chairman Zhen, aren’t the diamonds going to be brought here?”

“The appraisers are currently conducting another appraisal.”

In truth, Chairman Zhen Weiliang saw no need whatsoever to have the precious stones appraised again. After all, the initial appraisal had been conducted by Paul Bachmann himself, a world-renowned expert. However, Cha Jiham had insisted on another examination. Realizing there had to be something behind the request, Zhen Weiliang accepted his suggestion without asking unnecessary questions.

“Weren’t they appraised by an expert with a worldwide reputation?”

“Of course, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“Hmm, I see.”

Liu Peiqi rose from the sofa. Chairman Zhen Weiliang led him and the others to the appraisal room. There, more than twenty appraisers were meticulously examining the rough diamonds with specialized professional equipment. Watching them work, Liu Peiqi curiously asked Zhen Weiliang,

“Chairman Zhen, approximately when will the appraisal be finished?”

“I ordered the appraisers to finish everything by tomorrow evening at the latest.”

“And how many have they examined so far?”

“I was told that they had appraised around 300 before you arrived.”

“And... did they find anything that differed from the original appraisal?”

“If they had, the appraisers would have already reported it to me.”

In other words, everything was perfectly fine. Liu Peiqi decided there was no point standing there watching the appraisers work when the outcome was already obvious.

“Chairman Zhen, why don’t we return to the reception room and resume negotiations?”

***

Reception room.

Liu Peiqi lowered himself onto an empty sofa and addressed Chairman Zhen Weiliang.

“Chairman Zhen, who did you acquire these diamonds from?”

The true owner of the diamonds had been the notorious drug lord Gabriel. He had invested part of the money he earned from the drug trade in precious stones and hidden them along with cash and bonds at his villa in Interlaken, Switzerland. Cha Jiham had managed to discover that cache. In recognition of his contribution, the CIA and FIS had officially acknowledged his right to a share, and he received his portion of the diamonds.

Naturally, Chairman Zhen Weiliang could not reveal the truth even if someone put a knife to his throat.

“In our line of business, you need to know how to keep your mouth shut.”

Zhen Weiliang’s answer clearly conveyed his refusal to share any details.

“It seems I asked something I shouldn’t have. Please forgive me.”

“It’s all right. There’s only one thing I can tell you: these diamonds came from Switzerland.”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang told Liu Peiqi that much only because of the appraisal certificate. Paul Bachmann’s documents clearly stated that he had conducted the appraisal under an official commission from the Swiss government.

“Switzerland... So the previous owner bought them with dirty money?”

Liu Peiqi had hit the nail on the head. But Chairman Zhen Weiliang had no intention whatsoever of confirming his suspicions.

“That, I truly don’t know.”

“I won’t breathe a word of it to anyone, so tell me who he was.”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang could see straight through Liu Peiqi. Liu had concluded that if the diamonds had been purchased with dirty money, they could not have been sold at market value. That meant Zhen Weiliang must have bought them for next to nothing. That was precisely why Liu Peiqi was trying to pry the owner’s identity out of him—he intended to drive down the price.

There was only one way to nip that scheme in the bud.

“I bought them from the Swiss government. How would I know who the original owner was?”

“From the Swiss government?!”

A wave of disappointment washed over Liu Peiqi. His attempt to drive down the price had failed. However, he still could not give up on buying them.

“I see... Chairman Zhen, I have one more question, if you’ll allow it.”

“I’ll decide whether to answer after I hear the question. Is that acceptable?”

“As you wish. Why are you in such a hurry to sell them? You could make far more money if you had these diamonds cut.”

The real reason, of course, was lab-grown diamonds. But Zhen Weiliang had absolutely no intention of revealing that to Liu Peiqi.

“It takes about a month to cut a single diamond. Our company can process no more than five at a time. I purchased 615 rough diamonds, which means the cutting alone would take more than ten years.”

Chairman Zhen paused to catch his breath before continuing.

“I turn eighty-five this year. At my age, no one would be surprised if I dropped dead tomorrow. That’s why I decided to sell everything as quickly as possible.”

“Ah, now I understand. How much are you planning to sell them for?”

Originally, Chairman Zhen Weiliang had intended to receive 11 billion dollars. Naturally, that amount included Liu Peiqi’s unpaid debt and late-payment penalty. But since he had already recovered the debt and interest, even 9.5 billion would now be enough.

‘Hmm... How much should I ask for?’

Bzzzt!

Before he could sink too deeply into thought, the phone in his trouser pocket briefly vibrated. Taking it out, Chairman Zhen saw a message from Cha Jiham, who was watching the negotiations through a hidden microcamera.

-Ask for as much as possible.

-How much should I ask for?

-How about boldly naming 15 billion dollars?

-Do you think Politburo Member Liu will agree?

-He has to get his hands on those diamonds no matter what.

After sending a brief reply agreeing to the suggestion, Zhen Weiliang slipped his phone back into his pocket. At that very moment, Liu Peiqi impatiently asked,

“Who was the message from?”

Chairman Zhen naturally did not tell him the truth.

“Ah, my granddaughter sent me a message.”

“I see. So when are you going to answer my question?”

“15 billion dollars...”

“Whaaat?!”

Liu Peiqi was genuinely dumbfounded and rudely cut Chairman Zhen Weiliang off. Chairman Zhen gave him a long, displeased look before saying,

“Politburo Member Liu, what are you so surprised about?”

“Chairman Zhen, do you really think 15 billion dollars is a reasonable price?”

“Paul Bachmann, an expert with a worldwide reputation, appraised these diamonds at 7 billion dollars. How much do you think I paid the Swiss government for them?”

“How would I know?” Liu Peiqi grumbled dryly.

Although Chairman Zhen Weiliang disliked lying, he had no other choice if he wanted to achieve his goal.

“I bought them from the Swiss government for 10 billion dollars.”

“But then you only need to add a small margin and sell them!”

“Once these diamonds are cut, their value will increase by at least three to four times. Taking that into account, I named a price of 15 billion.”

At that moment, Vice Chairman Wei Chen once again intervened.

“Politburo Member Liu, if you refuse to buy the diamonds, this opportunity will go to Vice Chairman Tang Guochang.”

Bam!

It was as though Liu Peiqi had been struck over the head with a club. He and Tang Guochang were locked in a vicious struggle for a seat on the Politburo Standing Committee. If Tang got his hands on the diamonds, Liu’s own chances would fall to zero.

How could he have forgotten that and started quibbling over the price?!

“Chairman Zhen, I was being shortsighted.”

“May I take that as your acceptance of my offer?”

“When I secure a seat on the Standing Committee, I’ll reward you generously. Knock at least 3 billion dollars off the price.”

In truth, Chairman Zhen Weiliang would have been perfectly satisfied with even 10 billion. And here Liu Peiqi himself was offering 12 billion dollars!

He desperately wanted to take the bait immediately, but suddenly felt the urge to hear Cha Jiham’s opinion. Clasping his hands together, he rose from the sofa under the pretext of going to the restroom. After leaving the reception room, he headed to the situation room set up in the adjoining room.

Opening the door to the situation room, he saw Cha Jiham there, just as expected.

“Director Cha, what do you think of Liu’s offer?”

“Chairman Zhen, do you trust him?”

Cha Jiham’s question clearly implied that he should not accept Liu Peiqi’s terms.

“If you insist on 15 billion dollars, you risk having that man stab you in the back.”

I thought it necessary to put Chairman Zhen Weiliang’s concerns to rest.

“Politburo Member Liu won’t be able to secure a seat on the Standing Committee anyway.”

“Explain why you’re so certain.”

“To fulfill his greatest ambition, Vice Chairman Tang Guochang first has to cut off President Xi Jinping’s arms and legs. Tang Guochang intends to eliminate him in the near future.”

“Ah! That hadn’t even occurred to me. All right, I’m going back to the reception room.”

“Please wait a moment.”

I called out to Chairman Zhen Weiliang just as he was about to open the door.

“Director Cha, is there something else?”

“You’ll soon receive a call from an unfamiliar number.”

“Do you mean Chairman Bongard?”

“You’re absolutely right, Chairman Zhen.”

“Hahaha!”

Chairman Zhen Weiliang laughed delightedly and left the situation room. Returning to the reception room, he sat down on the sofa and resumed negotiations with Liu Peiqi.

“I gave it some thought in the restroom, and I came to the conclusion that I need to receive at least 15 billion dollars.”

“I told you I’d reward you generously later!”

Brrrr!

At that moment, Chairman Zhen Weiliang’s phone, lying on the table, began to vibrate. As though he knew exactly who was calling, he immediately pressed the answer button.

“I’m listening, Chairman Bongard.”