The expeditionary force began to dominate Southeast Asia by recruiting defeated soldiers

Zhang Chi was overjoyed.

He originally thought that Chen Qiyuan was not worthy of being appointed, so he wanted to appoint Gu Gengyu as the head of the Animal Husbandry Department. Unexpectedly, the other party was more courageous and wanted to personally take action with real money and a complete plan.

This is more in line with his expectations than simply being an official, using market means to solve people's livelihood problems.

"Good, excellent." Zhang Chi took the plan and put it aside without even glancing at it. He stared at Gu Gengyu with a burning gaze. "Mr. Gu is willing to use his status as a businessman to benefit the country and the people. This is a blessing for Nanyang. I, Zhang Chi, fully support it. If you have any needs, please feel free to tell me."

Gu Gengyu's spirits lifted, knowing this was a critical moment. He explained clearly:

"First, land. Large-scale farming requires sufficient and suitable land. It needs to be far from water sources (to prevent water pollution) and residential areas, on high ground with good drainage, and preferably with natural forests or hills as disease prevention barriers. Gu has initially set his sights on several wastelands in northern Bago and central southern Siam, covering tens of thousands of acres."

"No problem." Zhang Chi waved his hand. "Any place you fancy, as long as it's unowned or the compensation is reasonable, will be allocated first, with preferential land prices. You can even use the land as equity in the early stages. Please discuss the specific location with Minister Chen in detail."

Chen Qiyuan nodded quickly and took note of it.

"Secondly, the seed source," Gu Gengyu continued. "Local humped cattle, water buffalo, and black pigs each have their merits, but their efficiency for meat production is too low."

"We must introduce improved breeds. For pigs, we prefer White Eagle's Yorkshire (Large White) and Duroc, as they grow quickly and have a high lean meat percentage. For cattle, we should introduce drought- and heat-resistant Brahman cattle and crossbreed them with high-quality beef cattle like Hereford or Angus. We should develop new breeds suitable for tropical climates and with a shorter growth cycle. Our goal is to be able to market them within 18-24 months."

For sheep, consider introducing Boer goats, which are tolerant to roughage, reproduce quickly, and have good meat quality.”

"Introduction, quarantine, and breeding require strong official support to open up channels and establish core breeding farms."

"Approved." Zhang Chi said without hesitation, "The Ministry of Agriculture and the General Administration of Customs will fully cooperate. If you have any funding difficulties, you can go through special channels. Breeding is a long-term plan and must be taken seriously."

In later generations, the three major grain traders ABC and their affiliated companies, such as Syngenta and Bayer, have deeply controlled the core links of the global agricultural industry chain through monopolies on staple grain seeds, hegemony in livestock and poultry breeding, and strangleholds on fruit and vegetable seedlings. Their control capabilities far exceed those of simple grain trade.

Now, even the Marshall Plan, which focuses on exporting surplus agricultural products to Europe, has just taken shape, and the three major grain traders ABC are just getting started.

What Zhang Chi wants is to plan ahead, compete with the future ABCs, and completely control the core issue of food in the hands of the Chinese.

"Third, funding," Gu Gengyu admitted. "Modern farms are not something that can be run by individual households. Pig and cattle sheds must be scientifically designed, with ventilation and cooling, automatic drinking water, and manure disposal systems all essential."

"We need to build a feed processing plant, establish a disease prevention and control system, and maintain adequate vaccine and veterinary drug reserves. We also need to establish a stable supply chain for feed ingredients like corn, soybean meal, and fish meal. Preliminary estimates indicate that the initial investment, including land, infrastructure, introduced species, equipment, and working capital, will require at least $5 million."

"I can provide the 500 million, but the total investment in the first five years cannot be less than 3000 million."

Historically, it took Gu Gengyu only eight years to monopolize the pig bristle export industry in Sichuan Province, making his "Tiger Brand" pig bristles famous in the European and American markets. He was hailed as the "Bristle King".

The large white pigs eaten by the people of Daxia in later generations were a species introduced later, while the native pigs of Daxia were black pigs, which had a very hard layer of bristles on their backs and could be made into bristle brushes.

Pig bristles have been Daxia's flagship export product since the Qing Dynasty, accounting for 95% of the world's production at its peak.

As the "Bristle King", Gu Gengyu's financial resources should not be underestimated. There are millions of dollars in his White Eagle Bank account.

By comparison, when New Daxia was founded, its available foreign exchange was less than $5000 million. Gu Gengyu alone was worth only one-tenth of that.

But compared with building a nationwide large-scale livestock farm in Southeast Asia, $500 million is still a drop in the bucket.

No less than 3000 million dollars, this figure made Chen Qiyuan gasp.

Zhang Chi remained calm and smiled:

"Mr. Gu is indeed generous. 3000 million dollars is indeed not a small amount. But..."

He leaned forward, exuding the confidence of someone who had long held a high position.

"Sir, are you aware that Nanyang is planning to establish Southeast Asia's first modern stock and exchange in Singapore? It will open on March 1st."

Gu Gengyu's eyes lit up: "What does the commander-in-chief mean?"

"Sir, you can use your livestock company as the main body, integrate the projects in the plan, package it into a high-quality enterprise with bright prospects and benefits to the country and the people, and list it on the Singapore Stock Exchange to raise shares."

Zhang Chi's voice is full of motivation:

"Investors who are optimistic about Nanyang's future and the meat, egg and dairy markets, whether they are wealthy local Chinese businessmen, international investors who are optimistic about Nanyang's development, or even ordinary people who are eager to improve their lives, can all become your shareholders by purchasing shares and share in the dividends of development."

"This..." Gu Gengyu was shocked by this bold idea.

"Excellent! This plan, Commander-in-Chief, is truly brilliant. This not only addresses the enormous capital demand and disperses investment risks, but also deeply ties corporate development with national interests, forming a virtuous cycle. Gu... I deeply admire it."

Of course, the stock market has its pros and cons, and Zhang Chi knew that if it wasn't properly regulated, the Xingzhou Stock Exchange, which was originally designed to meet similar investment needs, would soon create a huge bubble...

Before World War II, the Republic of China's stock market was limited to Shanghai, and the actual market cap was very small.

The Xingzhou Stock Exchange, which Zhang Chi was planning to establish, was open to all capital from Southeast Asia, and even to all Chinese and foreign capital internationally. Gu Gengyu seemed to see a brand new financial world full of infinite possibilities beckoning him.

Seeing that Gu Gengyu received a good response, Zhang Chi also struck while the iron was hot:

"As for the sales that you are concerned about, there is no need to worry.

First, the local market in Southeast Asia has huge potential and is growing rapidly. Second, the centralized purchasing of the military, schools, and factories will be stable and large customers.

Third, in the future, high-quality frozen meat, meat products, and milk powder can be exported to earn foreign exchange. If White Eagle and John's luncheon meat can be sold here, why can't our high-quality meat be sold there?

Gu Gengyu was completely ignited by the blueprint drawn by Zhang Chi. He suddenly stood up and issued a military order:

"With the great support of the Great Commander, Gu Gengyu hereby swears that within one year, the first batch of ten modern 10,000-head pig farms, five 1,000-head beef cattle breeding farms, and three large-scale laying hen farms will rise from the ground in Nanyang.

Within three years, the price of pork and beef on the tables of ordinary people in Southeast Asia will be reduced by 30%, and our children will be able to drink a glass of fresh milk every day."

"Okay, it's a deal." Zhang Chi also stood up excitedly and shook Gu Gengyu's hand firmly. "Mr. Gu, the prosperity of Nanyang and the health of our people are in your hands. Go ahead and do it. If the sky falls, I, Zhang Chi, will hold it up."