Chapter 8: Provisional Cabinet

That afternoon, the Lanfang Republic's first cabinet meeting was held on the second floor of the Administration Building.

Calling it a cabinet is generous; it was pitifully simple: a long wooden table, seven chairs, and an old Lanfang flag on the wall—a yellow field with a red giant dragon. The seven attendees averaged over fifty years of age, and only Chen Feng was a twenty‑year‑old youth.

"Everyone, let me introduce you formally," Chen Feng said, sitting at the head seat, his gaze sweeping each face in the room. "Although we've been working together for three years, today the Lanfang Republic's provisional cabinet is officially established."

He paused briefly, then began the introductions:

"Minister of Industry, Wang Lixin—known to everyone as Wang Bo. Over the past three years, our factories, shipyards, and power plants have all been built under Minister Wang's sole direction."

Wang Bo stood and gave a slight bow to the crowd. The sixty‑year‑old elder wore a plain Zhongshan suit, his hair meticulously combed.

"Minister of Agriculture, Qian Shengli. Minister Qian comes from an old plantation in Borneo and has managed a 5,000‑mu rubber estate. In the past three years, the 32,200 mu of farmland and 800 mu of vegetable greenhouses we cleared on the desert edge are all thanks to Minister Qian's efforts."

Qian Shengli was a gaunt, dark‑skinned man with thick, old calluses on his hands. He stood and said only two words: "It's my duty."

"Minister of Education, Zhao Qianli. Minister Zhao was a former scholar of the Lanfang Republic and later taught in Singapore for thirty years. The textbooks for our twelve primary schools and three technical schools were compiled word by word by Minister Zhao together with seven senior gentlemen."

Zhao Qianli wore round glasses and had a genteel demeanor. He inclined his head and said, "I, an old man, am ashamed; I can only do literary work."

"Minister of Infrastructure, Zhou Nian. Minister Zhou is a renowned builder from the South Ocean, having overseen the construction of Penang's clock tower and Singapore's warehouses. Our current residential districts, factory buildings, and dock facilities are all the work of Minister Zhou."

Zhou Nian was a silent middle‑aged man who merely nodded.

"The Minister of Finance, this position is temporarily held by me," Chen Feng continued, "but today I will appoint a Minister of Commerce."

Everyone's gaze turned toward the conference room door.

A man in his early thirties pushed the door open. He wore a Western‑style shirt and vest, his hair slicked with pomade, and carried a leather briefcase. Compared with the modest attire of those seated, he appeared somewhat… overly refined.

"Wang Wenwu, I've invited him," Chen Feng introduced, "He worked as a comprador for a British trading house in Singapore in his early years, then ran his own shipping business, traveling as far as New York and Liverpool. He is fluent in English, French, and Dutch, and familiar with international trade regulations."

Wang Wenwu smiled at the crowd, his grin measured as if with a ruler: "Esteemed seniors, Wang Wenwu at your service. To serve Lanfang's revival is the honor of my entire life."

A low murmur of discussion rose in the conference room. Clearly, this suddenly parachuted Minister of Commerce surprised several of the senior ministers.

"I know you all have doubts," Chen Feng said bluntly, "Wang Wenwu comes from a comprador background, working for foreigners, a reputation that sounds unsavory. But let me ask: who here understands better how to do business with foreigners? Who knows the financial markets of London, New York, Rotterdam better? Who comprehends every link of international shipping more than he does?"

No one answered.

"We need money, we need resources, we need technology," Chen Feng's voice was calm and powerful, "and these things are in the hands of the foreigners. To take them from them, we must use a language they understand, follow the rules they set—or change the rules. And Wang Wenwu at least knows what the rules are."

Wang Bo nodded slowly, "Young Master is right. The great revival cannot rely solely on us old bones. We need fresh blood, people who understand the outside world."

Seeing Wang Bo's stance, the others also nodded in succession.

"Very well, let's get to the point," Chen Feng took a stack of documents from his briefcase, "Today's meeting has only one agenda: how to spend this money."

He handed the documents to each person. Each file was over twenty pages thick, listing detailed procurement lists, budget allocations, and timelines.

"Four million two hundred thousand pounds, equivalent to 105 tons of gold. My allocation plan is as follows—"

Chen Feng stood and walked to the map.

"First, 1.2 million pounds for industrial expansion," he said, pointing with a wooden stick at the area around Dubai Port on the map. "We need to enlarge the steel plant, increasing annual output from 100,000 tons to 500,000 tons. We need a new special‑alloy workshop to produce armor steel and cannon steel. We need to expand the machine‑tool factory, adding large gantry cranes, heavy lathes, and boring machines. We also need a new chemical plant to boost TNT production and begin research on synthetic ammonia—a foundation for making fertilizer and explosives."

Wang Bo listened while quickly jotting notes on paper. His hand trembled—not from fear, but from excitement.

"Second, 800,000 pounds for infrastructure construction," he said, moving the stick to the residential and planned new city zones. "We now have 300,000 people, with nearly 100,000 still living in temporary wooden shacks. Within a year we must build permanent housing for 200,000 people, lay water pipelines, construct sewage treatment, expand power plants, and build an internal railway network—from the dock to the factory zone, from the mining area to the residential area."

Zhou Nian looked up: "President, water supply and sewage treatment… those are rare in the South Ocean. The technical requirements are high; our people…"

"Technology can be learned, can be bought," Chen Feng cut him off, "The Deguo and Austro‑Hungarian people will bring us technology and equipment. Minister Zhou, your task is to organize manpower and turn the blueprints into reality."

"Understood," Zhou Nian nodded heavily.

"Third, 500,000 pounds for agricultural development," he said, moving the stick to several green zones marked on the map. "The Persian Gulf coast has groundwater that can support irrigated agriculture. We will drill deep wells, build pump stations, and expand cultivated land to 100,000 mu. At the same time, we will import drought‑resistant crop varieties from India and Southeast Asia. Three hundred thousand people need food; we cannot rely forever on imported grain."

Qian Shengli's eyes lit up: "President, if we truly have 500,000 pounds, Old Qian guarantees that within two years we will raise our food self‑sufficiency to sixty percent!"

"I want eighty percent," Chen Feng said, looking at him. "Minister Qian, can you achieve that?"

Qian Shengli gritted his teeth: "Can!"

"Fourth, 300,000 pounds for education," Chen Feng's gaze shifted to Zhao Qianli, "Expand schools, establish technical training centers, open night‑school literacy classes. Hire teachers and engineers from Germany and Austro‑Hungary to build a systematic vocational‑technical education system. Minister Zhao, our children cannot only study the Four Books and Five Classics; they must learn mathematics, physics, chemistry, be able to read blueprints and operate machinery."

Zhao Qianli adjusted his glasses: "President, hiring foreign teachers… the cost is high. Moreover, the language barrier…"

"If the language is a barrier, we teach it," Chen Feng declared firmly, "From now on, all schools will add German and English courses. Our next generation must be able to read the latest scientific literature directly. This money cannot be saved."

"I, the old man, understand,"

"Fifth," Chen Feng paused, his gaze deepening, "1.4 million pounds for global procurement."

The conference room fell silent. Everyone knew this was the main event.

Chen Feng returned to his seat and looked at Wang Wenwu: "Minister of Commerce, you are responsible for this portion."

Wang Wenwu immediately stood, opened his briefcase, and took out a more detailed list.

"Esteemed seniors, Wang Wenwu, following the President's instructions, has drafted this global procurement plan," his voice was clear and rhythmic, like reporting to a foreign firm boss, "The core principles are: remain unobtrusive, diversify purchases, use multiple channels."

He walked to the map and began his briefing:

"Category One: strategic minerals."

"Australia, Western Australia," he said, pointing the stick at the northwest corner of the continent, "Here lies the world's highest‑grade iron ore, with a grade over 65%, mostly open‑pit and easy to mine. The British have only a few small exploration sites there and have not undertaken large‑scale development. We will quietly purchase land, use intermediaries, and under the name of a 'private mining company' control at least three large mines."

"South Africa, Transvaal," the stick moved to the southern tip of Africa, "We don't need gold mines, but there are chromium and manganese mines. Chromium is key for stainless steel and armor steel; manganese is an essential deoxidizer for steelmaking. The British have just won the Boer War and their control over mining is not yet strict. We can invest in local mines through Dutch merchants."

"Malaya, Johor," the stick returned to Southeast Asia, "Tin mines. We need large quantities of tin—for bearing alloys, solder, and tin‑plated steel sheets. The British control the major mines, but we can purchase from small and medium miners through Chinese chambers of commerce."

"Chile, Atacama Desert," the stick spanned the Pacific, "Nitrate mines. These are essential for fertilizer and explosives. Currently controlled by British and Deguo capital, but the Chilean government urgently needs funds; we can negotiate directly with the government to obtain mining rights."

Wang Wenwu finished in one breath, paused to sip water. The conference room was dead silent; everyone was stunned by the grandeur and detail of the plan.

"This… so many places, how will we manage them?" Qian Shengli couldn't help but ask.

"We don't manage, we only hold shares," Chen Feng took over, "We are not mine owners, only shareholders. Through offshore companies, trust funds, and local agents we diversify holdings. The goal is not to control the mines but to ensure our factories have a stable, low‑cost raw material supply."

Wang Bo, thoughtful, said, "Young Master means… we don't appear directly, we stay hidden behind the scenes?"

"Correct," Chen Feng nodded, "The name Lanfang cannot yet attract too much attention. We are now 'multiple international mining investment companies', 'a group of visionary Chinese capitalists', but we must not be a 'ZZ entity building a nation in the Persian Gulf'."

"Understood," Wang Bo said slowly, "Hide our light and nurture obscurity."