Chapter 242.2: Since It’s a Win-Win Situation, Of Course I Want It All!
Liszt, who had returned to the tent, didn’t wait long.
Soon, the curtain of the tent was lifted, and two people walked in. One of them was shorter than the other and it was pretty easy to tell them apart.
"Boss, are you looking for us?" The tall one was called Qian Duo, and the short one was called Qian Lai. Both of them were Liszt’s apprentices and have been with him since they were 11 or 12 years old.
In the last 7 or 8 years, Liszt had been training them as his successors. Originally, he planned to wait a few more years to gradually hand over the business of the caravan to the two, while he went to the inner city of Boulder Town to live the upper-class life of his dreams.
As it turned out, it looked like his plan could be brought forward.
"I just got a shipment of 200 rifles and 50,000 rounds of ammunition from these blue coats. In exchange, I’m going to leave them twenty KV-1 exoskeletons we have in stock."
A set of exoskeletons for 10 rifles?
When the two heard this, a surprised expression appeared on their faces.
Qian Duo cautiously reminded, "But... Boss, aren’t you going to send this shipment to Red River Town to trade with the slave merchants there?"
Because of the recent turmoil in River Valley Province, the slave traders in Red River Town received a lot of slaves. However, the mine owners could not take in so many slaves, so the price of slaves dropped a lot.Slave owners in Red River Town needed exoskeletons to improve mining efficiency, as well as to improve the combat effectiveness of their soldiers.
According to information gathered in the tavern, a set of KV-1 exoskeletons powered by solid hydrogen power was said to be able to exchange for 4 to 5 able-bodied slaves.
In Boulder Town, the KV-1 exoskeleton was not a rare thing. Although Liszt usually would sell 800 to 1000 chips outside, in fact, the cost of purchasing it was only about 400 to 500 chips, and the actual production cost was only around 300 chips.
Among them, the cost of the battery accounted for half, the 12 motors distributed on the exoskeleton accounted for the other half, and the bamboo-like connecting parts were gifts.
After buying the KV-1 exoskeleton, most people would need to modify it before they could use it.
As for an assault rifle, the normal price was around 150 to 200 chips, and the actual cost may be only one-third or even a quarter of its normal price.
A set of exoskeletons was exchanged for 10 rifles, and it was also the rifles of the survivors’ settlement outside Boulder Town. The two apprentices didn’t know whether the deal was a profit or a loss.
The most important thing was that would these rifles be sold in the next stop?
However, compared to the worry of the two apprentices, the expression on Liszt’s face was full of confidence. "Don’t worry, Red River Town is preparing for a war with the Snake Clan of the Bonechewer Clan, and they need more than just exoskeletons, but also a lot of weapons. Rifles and bullets can be sold for good prices there, and the most important thing is, if we can open up the market, this trade route will become a gold mine!"
"The second thing the blue coats promised me was that if we could sell their weapons to Red River Town and bring in the phosphate ore, sulfur ore, rare metals, aluminum, and stuff like that they need, they could produce more goods for us... From those goods, we can at least make more than double the profit."
"The reason why I was looking for you is for this matter," Liszt paused for a moment and looked at the two people standing in front of him, "You have been with me for a long time, and I can see your improvement. Now, it’s time to put what you learned into practice. Follow my instructions, and take the caravan to Red River Town. Once you get there, follow the list I gave you and buy that shipment back with our goods."
The two revealed looks of shock.
Although they had thought that one day their boss would hand over the caravan to them, they did not expect this day to come so quickly.
Qian Lai asked hurriedly. "What about you, boss?"
Liszt said with a slight smile. "Me? Of course I have more important things to deal with. I plan to open a factory here to produce solid-state hydrogen batteries and the motors needed to assemble the exoskeleton." 𝙍аℕοβĚS
The two people standing in the tent looked at each other blankly.
Open a factory?
Here?
And produce solid-state hydrogen batteries and motors for exoskeletons?
This…
This Sounds so ridiculous.
Although there were some big shots who would open some simple factories outside of Boulder Town, the taxes and land rents that were usually saved were eventually lost in another form.
There was no order outside of Boulder Town. Not only would it need to hire a large number of guards, but it would also have to spend a lot of money to persuade the engineers and workers of Boulder Town to leave the giant wall full of safety.
The goods produced also wouldn’t be safe. No insurance company would provide them with insurance policies, so not only would they have to beware of the marauder’s raid, but they also had to watch out for the malicious sabotage by competitors, as well as theft from the dishonest working wastelanders.
On a soil that didn’t have orders, even seeds wouldn’t be able to germinate, let alone opening a factory.
However…
Their boss was very confident at the moment. It made them wonder what kind of shit he’d been smoking.
"Qian Duo, do what I just said and follow Han Long and the others to Red River Town to negotiate the deal. A small portion of the profit can be appropriately given out, but we must convince our customers that this is a long-term business and we can keep supplying them with weapons."
"Qian Lai, go back to Boulder Town and follow the list I gave you to purchase related production equipment. Whether it’s the ones that have been eliminated or the ones that people don’t normally sell, as long as you can get your hands on them, I want them. Also, remember to hire some engineers who can operate those equipment, you should know where to look for those people.”
Although there were some doubts in their hearts, Qian Duo and Qian Lai nodded. "Yes boss."
After giving the instructions clearly, Liszt let the two leave, while he sat down on the sleeping bag, took out the electric teapot from the package beside him, and made himself a cup of hot cocoa.
This was a habit he has developed over the years of his travels.
Drink something sweet and hot to help him fall asleep faster.
Holding the cup in his hand to warm up, and looking at the rising white mist, a smug smile suddenly appeared on Liszt’s face.
"I’m really a genius!"
This time, I’m really going to make a fortune!
...
When negotiating cooperation earlier, the administrator named Chu Guang gave him two sets of plans.
The first plan was to invest in setting up factories.
Shelter 404 would provide labor, and could also provide him with a loan of 100,000 silver coins. He only needed to haul the production equipment over, and then the work could be started immediately.
20% of the goods produced would go to the shelter, and the remaining 80% could be sold anywhere by him.
Whether exporting to Boulder Town or selling to local workshops in the industrial area.
Liszt was a little confused when he first heard about the plan, so he asked, "If silver coins can’t be exchanged for chips with you, what’s the point of earning more silver coins?"
For his doubts, the administrator patiently explained, "Silver coins can’t be exchanged directly for chips, but you can use them to buy what you want and take it back to Boulder Town and exchange it for your preferred piece of plastic... I mean those fancy chips. "
"Although rather than doing this, I recommend that you take a long-term view and use silver coins to build houses, open an inn or tavern, or expand production."
"Next month at the latest, there will be a lot more caravans passing by. Oh right, I forgot to tell you. Because we lent a hand to Enterprise’s Pioneer in a battle, we are now Enterprise’s Permanent Strategic Partner. You are a businessman, you should know what that represents. Caravans from the east coast are more inclined to stop by us. Imagine the goodies they carry, do you still think silver coins are useless?”
"Even if agriculture and industry were tossed away completely, the place would still prosper soon because of trade. Trust me, the silver coins in your pocket will never disappoint you, and you’ll make more money with them."
And as if he felt that what he said wasn’t persuasive enough, after he finished saying this, he made another promise.
"Next year, we will plant at least 1,800,000 square meters of Camu Trees, which will produce 30 times the supply of Brown’s Farm!"
“We’re going to export half of our raw materials and supply half of our raw materials to the local market, where industrial raw materials like rubber and alkanes will be very cheap. At that time, whether you sell it to Boulder Town or process them directly into commodities here, it will definitely make you a fortune."
After hearing these words, Liszt immediately completed the calculations.
1,800,000 square meters of Camu Tree.
If so much could be grown, the rubber and biomass oil produced here would be able to supply at least 13% of Boulder Town’s consumption.
It was a terrifying proportion.
Compared with the planting area, his plantation in the south and several nearby gatherings of small survivors were like child’s play.
For the first plan proposed by the administrator, he immediately agreed. He could hardly see the shortcomings of the proposed plan.
Especially when he learned from Chu Guang that these blue coats not only defeated the brigade of the Army, but also defeated the two troops sent by the Bonechewer Clan to the northern suburb of Clearspring City at a very small cost, his confidence in them grew!
Black Snake’s body was currently hanging on the gallows at the north gate, so it was easy to verify the authenticity of this information.
For a new survivor stronghold, such strength was already very strong!
Even Boulder Town’s militia would take time and money to deal with so many marauders.
The safety of industrial areas were guaranteed, and labor and raw materials would be provided. Coupled with the previous trades, the administrator’s words could be trusted.
Liszt felt like he could give it a shot.
What he needed to do was not difficult. He just needed to use the chips to buy some equipment, and then hire some unemployed engineers to operate them before guiding the refugees who were said to have received a little education to engage in production.
This would cost about 100,000 or even 200,000 chips, and advanced equipment may be more expensive, maybe 1,000,000 at most.
Although the money was not a small amount for him, his credit was good. Moreover, he had two properties in the inner city of Boulder Town that could be used as collateral, so it would not be difficult to get a loan from the bank.
In order to carry out his plan, he chose the safest product to make.
Solid-state hydrogen batteries and motors for exoskeletons.
Even if the local market wouldn’t be able to digest these two things, they could be dragged to Boulder Town and sold to the people there, or they could be assembled into simple exoskeletons, sold to places like Red River Town or exchanged for slaves or raw materials.
No matter how he looked at it, it would be a great business.
Not to mention the little risk he would need to take.
The second plan was the same.
However, this plan focused on cooperation in sales, which would require him to spend a little effort to sell the products produced here to farther places.
However… Was that really a problem for a merchant?
That was what he did for a living!
Liszt didn’t need to think too much and made the decision in less than a minute.
Since both choices are all win-win choices, why not choose both?