"This... there doesn’t seem to have been any international export cases for such high-end aerospace equipment."

Lin Ju suppressed the urge to grab Hamand by the collar and demand answers, nodding calmly instead, as if outlining a logical argument in his mind.

Big brother, how did you even come up with this idea?

He had merely mentioned the space shuttle to imply that this plan could offer investment opportunities to Hamand—not actually planning to sell the thing.

Besides, even if I sold it to you, do you know how to launch it? Can you do maintenance? Do you have a reliable industrial chain?

Wait a minute... No, it’s precisely because you don’t have any of these!

A bolt of lightning struck Lin Ju’s mind:

Abe now has money, what is he still lacking? Prestige!

They should have a rough idea of whether they can build it themselves, so why did Hamand still bring it up?

Lin Ju slowly caught on, the pre-prepared plan gradually adjusting in his head, and his gaze towards Hamand softened.

"Silly camel, you’re the one who walked right into this trap (wicked rabbit smile)."

Hamand, originally a little disappointed by the sudden change in Lin Ju’s expression, was surprised when Lin Ju suddenly took his hand as if he had made some significant decision.

"Your Highness Crown Prince, forgive my frankness, but an aerospace vehicle with such a high level of technology is quite challenging to operate outside its home country. However, launching and landing outside the country is not impossible; it simply requires maintenance at the manufacturing plant at all other times."

"I see." Hamand thought it over carefully. Lin Ju’s point was clear—no matter what, the space shuttle couldn’t be stationed in Abe long-term.

And Hamand, having just experienced a day of aerospace atmosphere, understood that maintaining a space shuttle was complex and probably only the manufacturer could handle it. So he decided to persuade himself from a different angle:

Buying a space shuttle for Abe was like buying a sports car, except this car was more delicate, and after every use, it had to be sent back to the factory for maintenance. You just need to pick it up when you need it.

Crown Prince Hamand suddenly found it easy to accept and cautiously asked:

"Lin, may I ask, how much would it cost to build a launch site in Abe and purchase a complete space shuttle?"

This question stumped Lin Ju—he hadn’t anticipated this development!

But now was the time to strike while the iron was hot, so he started calculating in his head.

Taking the Wenchang Launch Site in Qiongzhou as an example, the investment is 20 billion, equivalent to 3 billion US dollars, but that has four launch towers. One launch tower would be 1 billion US dollars, and another 500 million for overseas labor isn’t outrageous, right?

America’s 100-ton space shuttle costs 1.7 billion US dollars. The H1 weighs 20 tons. Considering forty years of inflation, 1 billion dollars seems reasonable, right?

The launch vehicle New Yuan-2 has a cost of 45 million, let’s round it up to 50 million US dollars for simplicity’s sake.

+ 10 + 1 = 26, rounding it up to 30 billion is fine.

Every launch maintenance fee for H1 is 9 million... can be ignored.

Perhaps it was the cover of darkness that emboldened Lin Ju, as he blurted out the exaggerated figures he was considering:

"The construction of the launch base would be 2.5 billion, and considering the high cost of overseas operations, about 3.5 billion. We can only sell the H1 model of the space shuttle for 1.5 billion, and the launch cost... one billion, with a launch interval of no less than 45 days, and a total lifespan of no less than 15 launches."

Hamand did the math on his fingers, "Flying fifteen times, that’s a total of 6.5 billion, four hundred million per flight mission. If calculated for six people, that’s seventy million per person... doesn’t seem too expensive."

That’s not expensive? You’re practically a mathematical genius!

Lin Ju added weakly, "Your Highness Crown Prince, I was calculating in US dollars."

"Of course, in US dollars!" Hamand, after hearing the translation, dismissed it carelessly with a wave of his hand:

"Does Lin look down on Abdullah’s family? We only ever price in US Dollars!

Fifty billion US dollars can get at least 90 Abe people a chance to go to space, and they will have their own spacecraft and launch site. This is the most cost-effective deal!"

The interpreter arranged by China nearly doubted his hearing when he heard the figure and inwardly cursed Saudi Arabia, but translated Hamand’s words accurately nonetheless.

Lin Ju fell silent.

The executives behind him fell silent.

The leaders, who were simply spectating but were inexplicably shocked by the fifty billion US dollars, fell silent.

Androff, who was covertly observing from behind and was supposed to continue working through the night, saw that the group had stopped talking for a while and thought something had gone wrong, scratching his head anxiously from the back.

Lin Ju’s hands were clasped so tightly that his veins nearly bulged, and he said very sincerely,

"Your Highness, Crown Prince, your boldness is beyond my imagination."

"You flatter me; I only wish to do something for the kingdom," Hamand replied, pretending to be humbly amazed, though he truly felt ashamed.

He had just been complaining casually, looking for an excuse to see if he could snag a few tickets aboard New Yuan, to make some investment. They held shares in Ma’s operation, too, but less.

Then Lin Ju suddenly mentioned giving him a spacecraft, so he jokingly made a bet—and it really happened!

Fifty billion US dollars was nothing. Even if his father wouldn’t give him the money, he could afford it by tightening his belt!

At worst, he would refrain from buying new sports cars next year or sell one of his yachts... No, he couldn’t bear to part with it. He could sell the castle in Paris and a few medieval oil paintings; that should just about cover it, right?

It was all for Abe, so what if he had to suffer a bit?

No, there were his several hundred siblings, who should all contribute to the kingdom—one billion each!

Hamand left, carrying a big basket full of space gadget models and a stack of plans.

As Lin Ju and the others sent Hamand off with complex feelings, they, who should have been happy, found themselves speechless.

At that moment, they truly felt the power of a tycoon.

"So, did you sell the tickets?"

Anxious, Androff finally found an opportunity to run over and eagerly asked Lin Ju.

To hoodwink Saudi Arabia, they had worked overnight to create models and staged rehearsals with the workers.

The H2 spacecraft was, of course, fake, its unseen parts all steel pipes and wooden frames; sophisticated components like landing gear were borrowed stock parts from Ulanha Mountain repair shop, brought out for the performance.

The H1 prototype was real, but hastily assembled, and the quality was completely unusable; there was no time to tune the equipment, so to make the space look filled they even stuffed an air purifier in there.

And the miraculous space chair? Do you know how comfortable a TV shopping channel’s 8,800-dollar massage chair is? They worked hard to switch it to a sci-fi color leather and to remodel the appearance.

Luckily, Deng Lei was a rigorously trained pilot; he managed to simulate alongside a group of haphazard switches with a straight face, keeping himself from laughing for three hours straight until his cheeks started to hurt.

More than a hundred people performed a perfect show in the assembly workshop, successfully fooling Hamand. For the employees who participated, it was indeed more exhausting than overtime work.

Faced with Androff’s question, Lin Ju shook his head and walked away, leaving him to turn to a promotional girl who accompanied them.

The beautiful hostess, made uncomfortable by the Russian’s intense gaze, had to repeat the recent events.

Androff’s expression changed dramatically and, after listening, felt as uncomfortable as if he were constipated. It took him a while before he managed to spit out one word:

"Sukaburet."