Cheng had recognized in the burgeoning populations of Africa a unique opportunity.
That was the main reason that Lucky Dragon was drawn so irresistibly to this continent. That was why he was going now to a meeting with the president of this country which would soon be made to render up its wealth to him. He would suck the juice from it, throw away the empty skin, and pluck another from the tree. He smiled at the metaphor and raised his eyes to the green hill above the town on which Government House stood.
President Ephrem Taffari had an honour guard in maroon uniforms and white sun-helmets drawn up to welcome him and a red carpet laid across the green lawn. He came down the to meet Ning Cheng Gong personally and to shake his hand. He led him up on to the wide verandah and seated him in one of the carved armchairs under the revolving fan that hung from the ceiling.
An Uhali servant in ankle-length white robes, scarlet sash and to sselled fez offered him a silver tray of frosted glasses.
Cheng refused the champagne and chose a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Ephrem Taffari took the armchair opposite him and crossed one long leg clad in crisp white cotton trousers over the other.
He smiled at Cheng with all his charm. I wanted our first meeting to be informal and relaxed he explained, and made a deprecatory gesture towards his own open-neck sports shirt and sandals. So you will excuse my casual attire and the fact that I have none of my ministers with me.
'Of course, Your Excellency. Cheng sipped the orange juice. I am also delighted by this opportunity to get to know you and to be able to speak freely without the inhibition of having other people present.
Sir Peter Harrison speaks very highly of you, Mr. Ning. He is a man whose opinion I value. I am sure that our relationship will be mutually rewarding. For another ten minutes they traded compliments and ploicstations of friendship and goodwill. Both of them were at ease with this flowery circumlocution; it was part of their separate cultures and they understood instinctively the moves and countermoves as they circled and closed in on the real business of their meeting.
Finally Cheng took a sealed envelope from the inside pocket of his white silk tropical suit. It was a piece of expensive stationery, glossy and cream-coloured with a dragon motif embossed on the back flap. My father and I want you to believe, Mr. President, that our commitment to your country is unswerving. We would like you to accept this as an earnest token of our friendship and concern.
Cheng made his offering seem like a free and unsolicited gift, whereas both of them were aware that it had been the subject of intense and protracted bargaining. There had been other bidders in the market, not least of them the Arab oil sheikh who had provided the gunboat and the presidential Mercedes.
It had taken all Sir Peter Harrison's influence to secure the deal for the BOSS and Lucky Dragon syndicate.
The envelope contained the second instalment due to Ephrem Taffari in his personal capacity. The first instalment had been paid over ten months previously, on signature of the original agreement.
President Taffari picked up the envelope -and turned it over to examine the seal His fingers were long and elegantly shaped, and very dark against the stiff creamy paper.
He split the corner of the envelope with his thumbnail and unfolded the two documents it contained. One was a deposit receipt to a numbered bank account in Switzerland. The amount of the deposit was ten million US dollars. The other was a share transfer document, notarised in Luxembourg. A total of thirty percent of the syndicate's share equity was now registered in the name of Ephrem Taffari. The syndicate's formally registered -name was The Ubomo Development Corporation.
The president returned the documents to the open envelope -and slipped it into the pocket of his flowered sports shirt. Progress has not been as rapid as I had hoped, he said, his tone still courteous but underlaid with steel. I hope that will change with your arrival, Mr.
Ning. I am aware of the delays. As you know, my field-manager has been in Kahali for the last week or so. He has given me a full report of the situation. I believe that some of the blame must attach to the previous management, put in place by BOSS.
There has been some reluctance to exploit all the available assets.
Cheng made a delicately pejorative gesture. Mr. Purvis of BOSS, who is now safely on his way back to London, was a sensitive man. You know how squeamish these Englishmen can be. My field-manager informs me that we are short of labour. I assure you, Mr. Ning, that you will have all the labour you require. Taffari's smile became strained at the thinly veiled complaint. Thirty thousand, Cheng said softly. That was the original estimate approved by you, Your Excellency. So far we have been given fewer than ten thousand. You will have the rest before the beginning of next month.
Taffari was no longer smiling. I have given orders to the army.
All political detainees and dissidents are to be rounded up and sent to the labour camps in the forest. These will be members of the Uhah tribe?
Cheng asked. Of course, Taffari snapped. You didn't think for a moment that I would send you Hita, did you? Cheng smiled at the absurdity of that notion. My fieldmanager tells me that the Uhali are good workers, hardy and intelligent and compliant. We will need most of them in the forest to begin with. it seems that we are experiencing problems there caused by the terrain and the climate. The roads are bad and machinery is bogging down, We will be forced to use More men.
Yes, I warned the BOSS people of that, Taffari agreed. They were reluctant to use what they considered to be. . . He hesitated. That man Purvis referred to our convict labour as slave labour. He looked mildly amused by such pedantic definitions. These Westerners, Clieng sympathized, The English are bad enough, but the Americans are even-worse. They do not understand Africa or the orient. Their minds stop at Suez. .
he broke off. I assure you, Mr. President, that an easterner is now in control of the syndicate's operation. You will find that I do not suffer from these Western scruples. It is a relief to be able to work with somebody who understands the necessities of life, Taffari agreed.
Which brings me to the hotel and casino project at Fish Eagle Bay. I understand from my field-manager that nothing has been done there, apart from the original survey of the area.
He tells me that there is still a fishing village on the hotel site.
Not any longer, Taffari smiled. The area was cleared two days ago, soon after Purvis left for London. The village was a hotbed of counter-revolutionary activity. My soldiers rounded up all the dissidents. Two hundred able-bodied prisoners are already on their way to the concession area in the forest to join Your labour force. The hotel site is ready for construction to begin. Your Excellency, I can see that you and I are going to work well together. May I show you the modifications that I have made to the schedule of works drawn up by Purvis? He opened his briefcase and unfolded a large computer spreadsheet that covered the entire table between them.
Taffari, leaned forward and listened with interest as Cheng pointed out the way in which he had restructured almost the entire syndicate operation.
At the end of the lecture Taffari's admiration was unconcealed. You have accomplished all this in the short time since you arrived in Ubomo? he asked, but Cheng shook his head. Not all of it, Your Excellency. Some of the replanning was done before I left Taipei. I had the benefits of my father's advice and the assistance of his headquarters staff at Lucky Dragon.
Only part of the planning was necessitated after my arrival in Kahali, on the advice of my field-manager, and his report on the conditions and problems we have encountered in the forest. Remarkable!