Mining And Construction Tycoon [EN]: Chapter 187

Reunion (3)

[Very well. Let’s hear them one by one.]

[I’ll answer first as the person in charge of the western city development.]

Rahman put down his wine glass.

[Everything regarding Saudi oil facilities is information managed by the state. Therefore, no facilities will be shown to outsiders, and no answers will be given.]

As a state official, his answer was faithful to his position.

[Does that mean facility tours and technology disclosures are also impossible?]

[Saudi oil extraction facilities are not tourist attractions. They are also not museums, research institutes, event venues, or academic exchange events. There is no obligation or reason to disclose them.]

[I understand.]

[My authority as a public official is only this much. I hope you understand.]

Tae-soo nodded.

[Now, I’ll answer as a member of the Saudi royal family.]

Rahman said.

[The decision will be made by His Majesty the King of Saudi Arabia, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will handle the detailed procedures. The only answer I can give now is an unofficial statement strictly as one member of the Saudi royal family.]

What could be the reason for specifically stating ‘unofficial statement’?

It means the responsibility for the statement is that much heavier.

[Saudi Arabia, as a country highly dependent on oil exports, does not welcome the emergence of new oil-producing countries as a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).]

Again, the answer is negative.

Tae-soo probed slightly to understand the detailed circumstances.

[South Korea and Saudi Arabia are allied countries that have established diplomatic relations independently.]

[I know. But the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is not in a position to provide aid to allied countries.]

[Is it a matter of lacking loyalty or lacking resources?]

Frankly, during the Middle East war, South Korea sided with the United States, not Saudi Arabia.

It was a decision made based on national interest.

So, Saudi Arabia also has no need to be loyal to Korea regarding oil.

But Rahman answered cleanly.

[The latter.]

This is a bit strange.

[Since the oil shock [a period of significant increase in oil prices], Saudi Arabia has become rich with oil money. They should be promoting Saudi construction projects with that oil money.]

In short, it means it doesn’t make sense to say they don’t have money when they’ve made a fortune selling oil.

[Frankly, Saudi Arabia lacks both technical and capital resources. This is because we have relied on foreign powers for both until now.]

I know.

Western powers with abundant capital and technology have been siphoning oil from Saudi oil fields.

They paid huge exploration costs, extracted oil fields, established oil companies, and transported it to Europe and the United States.

[Therefore, it is difficult to provide the technical basis for exploring offshore oil fields and drilling for oil. We don’t know either. The core technology is held by foreign oil companies that developed Saudi oil.]

Foreign oil companies that developed Saudi offshore oil fields.

‘Rockefeller’s Standard Oil.’

A subsidiary of American Standard Oil found oil in the Arabian Peninsula and obtained oil field development rights from the Saudi government in 1933.

This company then began to discover oil fields in Saudi Arabia.

‘Standard Oil split the company to create a monopoly bypass route, eventually developing into major oil companies such as ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, and MPC.’

The super-giant oil companies recognized in 2020 originated from the Rockefeller family.

[That’s a shame. I honestly wanted to acquire oil-related technology from Saudi Arabia.]

Just like Pohang Steel received technology from Nippon Steel, a giant Japanese steel industry.

Tae-soo also wanted to receive oil exploration and extraction technology from Saudi Arabia in the same way.

[We can provide minor extraction technology. But offshore oil fields require much higher levels of exploration and drilling technology.]

Tae-soo readily accepted.

Wasn’t the Saudi oil industry just starting to become independent after the Middle East war?

‘I have no choice. I’ll eventually have to contact Western oil companies.’

But there was a problem.

‘There’s no way to contact the major oil companies that dominate the world. It’s not easy to meet them even if I write letters and send telegrams.’

Multinational, super-giant corporations don’t have time to spare.

In their view, would they meet the head of a mere 163rd-ranked company from South Korea, one of the poorest countries?

‘It’s unlikely that things will work out with a typical company-level approach. I need to think of another way.’

Rahman said quietly.

[Money is also difficult right now. Even if we help with Korean oil extraction, it will be possible at least 5 or 10 years later.]

Why set a time limit?

If there are inside circumstances that Tae-soo doesn’t know…

[Is there perhaps a diplomatic issue involved?]

[Not at all if it’s a matter between South Korea and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It should be seen as a matter between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the oil companies.]

Now I understand clearly.

[You mean there will be room after the Aramco [Saudi Arabian Oil Company] shareholding arrangement is completed.]

[Exactly. I knew you would understand right away.]

Only then did Rahman nod.

[You know that oil company nationalization has been underway since the Middle East war, right?]

[By now, the shareholding rate of American oil companies should be about 40% in total.]

[You know everything. That’s correct. So, we are rushing to acquire shares until 100% nationalization is achieved.]

It went similarly in my past life.

‘Saudi Arabia finally acquired 100% of Aramco shares in 1980, completing nationalization.’

That’s why Rahman was looking ahead 5 to 10 years.

[I’m sorry that I couldn’t give you a very good answer as a member of the Saudi royal family either.]

[Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much of an answer as the person in charge of the western city development or as a member of the Saudi royal family. Because with power, the scope of what is possible becomes greater.]

[I’m sorry. Because it’s related to oil, it’s beyond my authority.]

[I have no choice but to listen to the answer as a friend.]

Tae-soo also put down his wine glass and smiled.

[My answer as your friend is even more insignificant. I can only give personal help, is that okay?]

[It doesn’t matter. Friendship is a sufficient relationship with just the thought, regardless of personal help.]

Rahman smiled.

[I will hold my birthday party in the capital, Riyadh. I will hold it very grandly and send invitations to famous people from all over the world.]

Suddenly inviting me to a birthday party after talking about oil.

But as soon as Tae-soo heard Rahman’s answer, he jumped up from his seat.

Tae-soo bowed politely.

[Thank you, Rahman. I have heard the best answer.]

[What? It’s just a pity that the power I can wield is more trivial than personal help. I need to get promoted quickly.]

Even though he is in a good position as the successor to the Saudi king.

He is in a position where he cannot easily step in when it comes to national affairs related to oil.

So, Rahman had to change his mind, unlike at first.

He would hold his birthday party not at the Jubail house, but at the Khalid residence in the capital, Riyadh.

[Wouldn’t my father, the Saudi King, give you a better answer than me, a mere public official and a Saudi royal family member in name only?]

If the birthday party is held at the Khalid residence in the capital, Riyadh, you can go to meet the Saudi King Khalid.

Rahman also said that he would invite world-famous people and hold a grand party.

[There wouldn’t be many who would refuse an invitation from the successor to the Saudi King, would there?]

[Are you thinking of sending invitations to the American oil companies that used to extract oil in Saudi Arabia?]

[Of course. I don’t know if they will respond to my invitation, though.]

That’s why Tae-soo bowed as soon as he heard Rahman’s words.

[If possible, I’m thinking of inviting tycoons of my age to the birthday party.]

[Are there any tycoons of Rahman’s age?]

[I heard that there are successors of my age in the Rockefeller and Rothschild families.]

Rockefeller and Rothschild.

Saudi Prince Rahman is so generous.

He makes big bluffs, and the scale of the connections he invites to his birthday party is so great.

[Would they ignore my invitation? I should ask my father. If the Saudi King’s seal is stamped on the invitation envelope, their minds might change.]

How many people would ignore the invitation of the King of Saudi Arabia?

But the opponents are the world’s leading families.

‘Rockefeller and Rothschild. I haven’t even met them properly in my past life.’

Because they have so much, they also have many enemies.

They rarely showed their faces behind the veil.

Even when Tae-soo was the head of Cheongil Group in his past life, they were not easy people to meet.

Even if Cheongil, which dominated Korea, was only barely among the world’s top 100 groups.

No matter how much I flew, I wasn’t at the level to meet the heads of Rockefeller or Rothschild.

‘Thanks to Mr. Abraham, who was in charge of Dubai construction, I heard about them.’

Rahman used to gather world-famous people in tall Dubai buildings and hold parties.

People from the Rockefeller and Rothschild families had attended Rahman’s birthday parties several times.

Just like Tae-soo and Han Il-kwon were invited to the party and attended.

[Rockefeller, who tightly controls the world’s oil, and Rothschild, who tightly controls the world’s central banks. If you can get to know them by chance, wouldn’t your worries be easily resolved?]

It was the best opportunity Rahman could create.

[Thank you, Rahman.]

[What are you thanking me for? We’re friends.]

Rahman said, putting his arm around Tae-soo’s shoulder.

[It seems like it will be the most splendid birthday party ever. Don’t you think?]

* * *

Saudi capital, Riyadh.

The residence of Khalid, the Saudi Minister of Defense, was turned upside down.

There was only one reason why the workers had to work almost running around busily.

It was because of Rahman’s 27th birthday party.

[It’s Rahman’s birthday party, who will inherit this family in the future. There must be no negligence at all.]

[He revealed his intention to send invitations to the world and hold a grand party for the first time. We can never disappoint him.]

[We must show the dignity of the Saudi royal family to the world on this occasion.]

Tae-soo looked around the garden amidst the bustling people.

It was a garden well-maintained with large and tall tropical trees and grass, unlike the desert country of Saudi Arabia.

In Saudi Arabia, it took a lot of effort to properly maintain a garden.

Therefore, one of the things that wealthy families put effort into was the garden.

[Do you like my house’s garden?]

[Yes, there are strange trees, grass, and flowers that are hard to see in Korea. They blend well, and I think it’s exotic and wonderful.]

[Hahaha, the vegetation in Korea and here are bound to be different.]

Since the climate is different, the vegetation that grows cannot be the same.

[It’s been a while since I’ve seen you. Both you and my son.]

The father is busy as the Saudi King, and the son is busy going down as the western city developer.

[There was a lot of work in Korea. It was quite noisy, did you happen to hear the news?]

[I heard that a rebellion broke out this time, and many people, including the president, were killed and injured.]

As expected, Khalid knew well.

Because he is the Saudi King, he is receiving reports on international affairs without omission.

Also, Korea is a place that Khalid is deliberately paying attention to.

[Were you perhaps at the scene?]

[Yes, I was.]

It was also the country where Tae-soo lives.

[I heard that Han Cheong-ho of Cheongil was also involved in the incident and was arrested.]

It was also the country where the traitor Han Cheong-ho, who almost caused Rahman to be deported, lives.

Didn’t Han Cheong-ho’s discord cause the Saudi palace to be turned upside down?

People involved in rebellion and assassination.

At that time, Khalid lost more than 20 people, including his brothers and nephews.

[Han Cheong-ho will never disturb Saudi Arabia again in the future.]

[That’s very good news.]

Khalid sat on a bench in the corner of the garden.

Wasn’t Khalid the one who would repay his enemies someday?

[I was going to bury Han Cheong-ho directly in the desert, but it’s a shame.]

It was a voice with genuine regret dripping from it.

[I heard it was your handiwork? The bug in the VIP room of the Cheongil Hotel.]

How did that get to the ears of the Saudi King so far away?

Tae-soo didn’t answer, but that was enough.

Khalid tapped the seat next to the bench and offered.

[Thanks to you, Rahman and I feel refreshed.]

Khalid, laughing heartily.

He was a person who was clear about favors and grudges.

[How can I repay you?]