Chapter 45

Li Mengcheng, the CEO, elegantly wiped his mouth, put down the napkin, and slowly said, "Samsung Heavy Industries is the world's largest shipyard, with orders exceeding 8.5 million compensated gross tons last year. Our technology..."

"Stop." Gao Yang extended his hand to interrupt Li Mengcheng's introduction. "CEO Li, I'm sorry, but I don't want to hear a summary of your company. I just want to know what you plan to use to impress me and make me buy your oil tankers?"

Li Mengcheng's face turned a bit awkward. Li Fuzhen, standing beside him, smiled and said, "President Gao, Samsung Heavy Industries will certainly impress you with sincerity."

Gao Yang leaned back in his chair, took out a cigarette, and said slowly, "Oh? Sincerity?"

"Yes, sincerity." Li Mengcheng continued, "President Gao, although you have ordered eight VLCCs from two shipyards in China, it will take at least two years before they are launched. Right now, you only have two 74,000-ton oil tankers available. I think they are not enough to transport more than 4.5 million barrels of crude oil per month, right?" As he said this, Li Mengcheng smiled at Gao Yang.

Gao Yang silently smoked without saying a word. Li Mengcheng picked up his water cup, took a sip, and continued, "Samsung Heavy Industries currently has three completed VLCCs. I think President Gao needs them very much."

"Would you start building such large oil tankers without an order?" Gao Yang's lips curled into a light smile. "Could it be that the buyer has backed out, and you are looking for me to take over?"

Li Mengcheng adjusted his glasses, a bit awkwardly, and it turned out that Gao Yang was right. The buyer of these three ships had suddenly declared bankruptcy not long ago! The final 40% of the payment could not be recovered, so Samsung Heavy Industries had to put the completed ships on hold, waiting for a new buyer to take over.

However, there are not many buyers for such large oil tankers worldwide, and who knows when they will be sold? Just as Samsung Heavy Industries was scratching their heads, Gao Yang appeared. Upon hearing that Gao Yang wanted to buy oil tankers, CEO Li rushed back to Seoul from Ulsan City overnight. After all, seven of the world's top ten shipyards are in South Korea! It's really a matter of who acts quickly.

"President Gao, Samsung Heavy Industries will sell them to you at a reasonable price, without haggling over the price. Our Samsung Group doesn't care about the money from these ships; we just want to activate our assets." Li Fuzhen picked up her water cup, took a sip, and looked at Gao Yang seriously, "And you will gain the friendship of the Samsung Group!"

Gao Yang extinguished his cigarette and said leisurely, "The friendship of Samsung."

Over the course of the morning, representatives from several South Korean shipyards visited one after another. After rejecting the new ship contracts from a few shipyards, Gao Yang bought four second-hand oil tankers from the remaining three shipyards: two Panamax, one Aframax, and one Suezmax.

Thus, not counting the eight VLCCs under construction, Gao Yang now owned a total of nine oil tankers, with a total deadweight tonnage exceeding 1.51 million tons!

Based on a round trip between Africa and Asia every two months, he could transport more than 5.5 million barrels of crude oil per month. Before the eight new VLCCs come into service, this is the maximum he could achieve.

Although he could buy more ships, doing so would attract more attention. Even now, many eyes are already focused on the African mining area, and even the Samsung Group can send people to inspect and estimate the actual oil field production.

Gao Yang named the nine oil tankers after the nine sons of the Chinese dragon, and all ownership was consolidated under the maritime subsidiary of SC Trade. In the short term, Gao Yang did not plan to expand further, and he also needed to find time to handle some issues in Africa.

The registration of SC Trade in South Korea was completed very quickly, and Kim Yongnam became the CEO of the South Korean branch. His first task was to purchase a 498-square-meter top-tier duplex apartment in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam District, as Gao Yang's residence in Seoul, valued at over 3.7 billion won!

Kim Yongnam originally planned to buy a luxury villa, but it was impossible to find a fully renovated luxury villa in the center of Seoul's wealthy district in one night. As a second choice, he bought this luxury fully furnished apartment in Cheongdam-dong, which was used as a model unit.

After lunch, Gao Yang moved into the apartment. This apartment was located on the top floor of the building, with 12 rooms, 3 bathrooms, and 2 bathrooms. It also had a sunroom and an indoor garden.

Although it was a model unit, the decoration was top-notch, with a minimalist and elegant French leisure style design, primarily in light blue. The central garden on the upper floor of the apartment was a naturally lit constant temperature pool, surrounded by various beautiful flowers. The crystal-clear glass ceiling and the pure water reflections combined to create a modern atmosphere.

Standing on the balcony, one could see the Han River flowing in the distance, with traffic and pedestrians bustling on the streets below, like a swarm of ants. Gao Yang was satisfied with the place, as it was spacious. Entering the living room, Gao Yang took out a cigarette and asked, "Do you want to smoke?" Kim Yongnam stepped forward, took the cigarette, and offered to light it for his boss.

Gao Yang sat down at the piano, and an SC Trade staff member brought a ashtray and placed it on the piano. Gao Yang waved his hand to dismiss everyone. Looking at Kim Yongnam, he smiled and said, "I opened a branch in South Korea just to do one thing." Kim Yongnam leaned forward, waiting for his boss's instructions.

"I acquired ** Company last night," Gao Yang said lightly.

Kim Yongnam was startled. As a South Korean, he naturally knew about the famous ** Company being acquired. He didn't expect the mysterious buyer to be his boss. He already had a vague idea of what his boss meant but kept a calm expression.

Gao Yang smiled and said, "I am pursuing a female artist from ** Company, Chae Soo-jung. You will represent me as the president of ** Company. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Yes, boss, I understand everything. I will take care of it discreetly, like a nanny, without revealing myself or your identity," Kim Yongnam bowed slightly and said.

"Right, talking to smart people is simple. I have a date this afternoon, and you will go to ** Company to take over," Gao Yang stood up, extinguished his cigarette, and continued, "As a top student from Seoul National University, this should be no problem, right?"

"Boss, please rest assured, I will do my best," Kim Yongnam bowed deeply and said.

It was already past three in the afternoon, and the summer in Seoul this year was unusually hot, with the weather forecast predicting a high of over 38 degrees Celsius!

Chae Soo-jung, looking out the window, saw a cloudless sky and no wind, with all the trees standing listlessly and lazily. There were almost no pedestrians on the streets, and even the vehicles were few.

She stuck out her tongue slightly, changed into blue denim shorts, a white short-sleeved T-shirt, and white canvas shoes, and sat on the living room sofa, enjoying the air conditioning. Gao Yang had already sent a text message saying he was on his way to pick her up.

While she was idly playing with her phone, her sister, Chae Soo-yeon, wearing sunglasses and carrying a handbag, dressed for going out, came out of her room. The two sisters were surprised to see each other's outfits.

"Where are you going, sister?"

"Are you going out?"

Chae Soo-jung pouted slightly and said, "It's so hot, where are you going, sister, instead of sleeping?" After lunch, her sister, who loved to sleep, had lain down to rest, and Chae Soo-jung, feeling safe to go out, was waiting in the living room for Gao Yang. She didn't expect her sister to suddenly want to go out, and now she was caught.

Chae Soo-yeon frowned slightly and said, "I just received a notice from the company that the new president is coming to the office for a meeting, and my agent, oppa, asked me to go to the office to check it out. As for you, your leg hasn't fully recovered yet. Where are you going?"

Chae Soo-jung pouted and said, "My leg is fine. I just made plans to have ice cream with a friend."

"Friend? Which friend?" Chae Soo-yeon continued to ask, but her mind suddenly flashed back to the Gao Yang she had seen in the hospital that day.

"What do you mean, sister? I'm an adult. What's wrong with having dinner with a friend?" Chae Soo-jung looked at her sister coldly.

Chae Soo-yeon sighed slightly, sat on the sofa, and looked into her sister's eyes seriously, "Dae-mo, tell me, is it him?"

"Um." Chae Soo-jung hesitated slightly and then softly replied.

Chae Soo-yeon rubbed her forehead and, pulling her sister's hand, tried to speak calmly, "I've seen many rich people like him, and they are all playboys..."

"Sister!" Chae Soo-jung interrupted her sister, "Gao Yang oppa is not a playboy!"

"Let me finish!" Chae Soo-jung tried to control her emotions and said, "I've been in the entertainment industry for many years and know that many rich kids use the strategy of a wolf in sheep's clothing. Once they get what they want..."

Chae Soo-jung suddenly pulled her hand away, stood up from the sofa, and said coldly, "Sister, I'm telling you again, Gao Yang oppa and I are just good friends! And Gao Yang oppa is definitely not the kind of person you think he is!" She then picked up her handbag and left the house in large strides.

Chae Soo-yeon sat on the sofa, rubbing her forehead forcefully. Her sister's personality was too stubborn, and her words just now might have had the opposite effect. After sitting for a while, she got up and left, thinking, "I'll go to the company first and find a chance to talk to Dae-mo again." As she walked to her car, she looked up and saw Chae Soo-jung getting into a silver-gray BMW across the street! The driver was Gao Yang!

Chae Soo-jung left the house in a huff, came to the roadside, and her phone rang. It was Gao Yang's call! Without hesitation, Chae Soo-jung answered, "Oppa, where are you?"

"Look at the two o'clock direction." Chae Soo-jung looked up and saw Gao Yang getting out of a BMW, holding his phone and waving to her.

Putting away her phone, Chae Soo-jung walked over quickly. When Chae Soo-jung came to him, Gao Yang saw her looking unhappy and asked urgently, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Chae Soo-jung calmed down and said, "Oppa, it's too hot. Let's get in the car first."

"Okay." Gao Yang didn't say anything more, opened the car door, and got back in.

Closing the window and starting the car, Gao Yang said with a smile, "It's very hot today. How about I take you to have some cool ice cream?"

"Okay..." Chae Soo-jung was about to say something when her phone rang again. It was Chae Soo-yeon's call. After hesitating, Chae Soo-jung didn't answer and turned off her phone directly!

(PS: I just saw that some friends have voted for an update, and I am truly grateful for your support. Thank you very much.

Here, I would like to explain the update situation to all the friends. I am not a professional author, and I work during the day. I usually spend three to four hours writing a chapter in the evening. Generally, I only have one chapter stored on my computer, which I use to post after work. Thank you for your support, and I can write at most one chapter every evening. If I don't work overtime on weekends, I will definitely try my best to write more and update for you.

Thank you again for your support, and I appreciate it very much.)

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