African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1156 Soft Knife

It is obvious that the primary suspect behind the collapse of the Laidani gang is the East African Oil Company, but Chavez and others cannot find any evidence.

And judging from Endel's attitude, the East Africans are not afraid that Chavez will find evidence, because although this incident was caused by the East African Oil Company, it was done by someone else and has nothing to do with the East African Oil Company.

However, this also reminded local forces that those companies in East Africa are not easy to deal with. If they can wipe out the Laidani gang today, they can be replaced by other forces tomorrow. Even the local dignitaries are nothing more than bigger ants in front of the East African state machine.

Lagan Green Tavern, Maracaibo.

With the influx of a large number of East African companies, the employment rate in Maracaibo has increased significantly. The Lagan Green Tavern is a small tavern that has been in business for only a few years and was built in the dock area.

Many dock workers come back here to have a few sips of cheap beer after get off work, so the Lagan Green pub business is particularly good.

"Mr. Rice, long time no see. Our boss has been waiting for you in the private room!" Kana, the tavern waitress, said to the boss's friend.

"Yeah." Rice just nodded, then walked towards the stairs to the second floor familiarly.

Rice is the owner of a local barber shop and a fishing buddy of Anthony, the owner of the tavern. The two often go fishing together in Lake Maracaibo or the Gulf of Venezuela.

Walking to the door of the private room, Rice knocked on the door. After a while, a voice came from inside.

"Please be quiet."

Rice walked into the private room where Anthony was lying on the sofa, sipping a glass of red wine. Rice sat down opposite him without any hesitation.

"This matter ended very well. None of our people were exposed and no unnecessary traces were left at the scene." Anthony put down his glass and said to Rice.

Rice: "It's just that the action was too big. This time it shocked the entire city of Maracaibo. However, this kind of case will definitely become a mystery in the end."

Anthony laughed and said, "We just need to make a bigger move and not offend the local powerful families. The Laidani gang is just the right person to make an example of. Anyway, the Laidani gang is just the thugs they fostered and can be easily discarded."

Rice: "I didn't support this action originally, but now that it has been done, there is nothing to say. However, this matter is far from over. After all, where there are people, there are disputes."

"We can help East African Oil Company this time, but will they do the same thing next time? We are not East African Oil Company's thugs, and our actions would be a waste of effort."

Anthony said: "The main reason is that we entered East Africa too late, so our foundation is relatively weak. We will have to wait until we have laid the groundwork."

"My superiors told me this time that these newcomers from China have no experience, so they have to rely on our help. But I never expected that this would be the first time we received an important mission in Venezuela."

Anthony and Rice are both from the East African Defense and Security Bureau. The Defense and Security Bureau had planted secret lines in Maracaibo long before the arrival of these state-owned enterprises in East Africa.

This is something Ernst naturally took into consideration. If it were based on the character of the National Defense Security Agency, it would be impossible for them to send people to this remote place. London, Paris, and Berlin are all better than Maracaibo.

And from a practical point of view, there are not many cities worth looking at in Venezuela right now, including its capital, Caracas.

……

Rhine City.

What happened in Venezuela even alarmed Ernst. After all, that was nearly 200 lives lost, which is a bloodbath in any region. As the mastermind behind the incident, Ernst naturally would not feel sad for these 200 social scums, but was considering how to further deepen his influence in the Lake Maracaibo region.

Ernst tapped the table and said, "The Laidani gang incident has given us a wake-up call. I was worried that the Americans were behind this, but I didn't expect it was just a small gang."

"Therefore, we must strengthen the protection of our overseas assets, especially in some countries and regions with weak public security and social unrest."

Ning Xiabo, Minister of Commerce, said: "In fact, the trouble that East African Oil Company encountered in Maracaibo this time was largely caused by lack of experience. They also have business operations in Russia, Romania and other countries, but the new manager sent to Venezuela this time is obviously inexperienced. After all, we have more than one company in Maracaibo. If they can unite, they will be a force that cannot be ignored."

“Although Venezuela is only a small country, our roots in South America were weak in the past, and Maracaibo was not well-received in Venezuela.”

Ernst: "I won't listen to these excuses. You have to find a way to fully unite the local forces and work together as one."

"I'm sure you all know how important the Lake Maracaibo region is to our country. The first group of surveyors we sent here alone discovered a large amount of oil and gas resources. Oil and gas reserves are our shortcoming in East Africa, and they are also the lifeblood of our current economic development."

"The annual oil consumption of automobiles alone is an astronomical figure, not to mention other industries. Therefore, to stabilize the country's energy security, we must ensure the diversification of our country's overseas oil assets."

East Africa's oil consumption has completely surpassed that of other countries of the same era. The only country that can be compared is the United States. However, after the American automobile industry was hit hard by East Africa, it can only close its doors and play by itself. Its development is not as impressive as in the past.

The largest automobile manufacturer in the United States ranks only seventh in annual output in East Africa, and does not make much money due to malicious competition in East Africa.

On the contrary, East Africa has made rapid progress in the oil industry. This is not only the credit of the automobile industry, but the result of the joint efforts of the entire industrial system. Now East Africa has completely bid farewell to the steam age and has made rapid progress in electrification and internal combustion engines.

Instead, the status of oil and natural gas is also rapidly increasing in East Africa. Although East Africa is rich in natural oil resources, it is still several levels behind other production areas.

As for the Persian Gulf region, which is the most favored by Ernst, East Africa does not plan to exploit it now. After all, the Persian Gulf region is relatively sensitive and can easily cause disputes and conflicts. It can be dealt with after East Africa has completely established a foothold in the local area.

However, Venezuela’s oil resources are completely different. The reason why East Africa is so eager to get involved is mainly to prevent it from benefiting the United States.

Although the quality of Venezuela's oil is not very good, there is enough of it, and with sufficient supply, some negative factors can be completely ignored.

Oil is oil after all. Even if there is a difference in quality, as long as it can be used well, it can still help the development of East Africa. For example, a large part of the asphalt used in road construction in East Africa is obtained from Venezuela.

In the past, Venezuela's oil was extracted on a large scale almost after the end of World War I, so East Africa rushed to grab land before the outbreak of World War I.

However, being too impatient for quick results can easily lead to an unstable foundation, as is the case with the Laidani gang incident. After all, East African companies have only been developing in Venezuela for a few years, and their ties with local forces are not strong.

This is why the violent East African Defense and Security Agency had to personally take action to make an example of someone else. This is already a relatively mild measure. After all, for a region like Venezuela that not many countries have paid attention to before, it is not impossible for East Africa to take forceful action.

The so-called "forcing the issue" is naturally to send troops to invade directly and carry out colonial activities. In this way, East Africa can directly occupy the local resource development rights without even paying any money.

However, the consequences of doing so are obviously enormous. After all, Venezuela is also a sovereign state and is located in South America. Using violence alone is obviously not enough to solve the problem and it is easy to backfire. Therefore, Ernst will definitely use some soft knives to solve Venezuela's problems.

The key to solving the Venezuelan issue is to use both soft and hard tactics. Moreover, Europe and the United States' attention to Venezuela is at its most vulnerable time, which also facilitates the layout in East Africa.

(End of this chapter)