The final goal was to attract the attention of the official who was in charge of buying all supplies for the Imperial Army, Li Qingyou.
Wang Chong was confident that as long as Li Qingyou were to witness the might of the Wootz steel sword for himself, he would surely be enticed. Otherwise, he wouldn't have convinced the Royal Court to mass purchase Wootz steel sword in Wang Chong’s previous life.
It was just that Wang Chong hadn't expected Li Qingyou to move so swiftly. That matter only happened two days ago, and he had already gotten into action and contacted Big Uncle Wang Gen.
"Hahaha, I truly didn't expect this. This is really an unexpected surprise!"
Wang Chong clenched his fists tightly in excitement.
Wootz steel swords were extremely valuable, and they could easily rake in a huge profit. However, the sales would have to be carefully controlled to maintain such a profit margin. As the saying went, “rarity determines the value of an object”. Even though Wang Chong had sold a weapon to the Grand Marshal at 300,000 gold coins, that was a price unimaginable to the ordinary civilians.
To maintain such a profit margin, Wang Chong could only sell one of such swords per month, and it was unlikely that it would fetch such a price in the future.
Wang Chong could earn around three million each year from the sales of these swords, but no amount of money would be sufficient for him if he wanted to change the destiny of Great Tang, and time was clearly not on his side.
The quickest way for him to maximize his profit was selling straight to the Royal Court!
Not everyone had the financial ability to fork out 300,000 gold taels to buy a weapon like the Imperial Army's Grand Marshal. However, the Royal Court didn't face such a limitation.
In Wang Chong's plans, the main seller he was looking at for his Hyderabad ores was the Royal Court!
He would have to grasp the timing well. Too early, and the Wootz steel sword might still be too obscure for the Royal Court to be willing to fork out a generous sum to purchase it.
However, after Wang Chong's effort in building up the reputation of the Wootz steel over the past few months, the timing had finally ripened!
------
"Wang gongzi, pleased to meet you."
Under Wang Gen's lead, Wang Chong met the famous Logistics Official Li Qingyou in the Jade Tavern.
"Lord Li, you are too polite," Wang Chong chuckled as he took a seat opposite to Li Qingyou.
Li Qingyou was a figure that was extremely hard to catch in Great Tang.
His scope of activities was mainly limited to the Royal Palace, and he maintained a low profile as well. Even though he did leave the Royal Palace at times to inspect and collect goods from the swordsmithing clans, he would leave as soon as his business was done.
Wang Chong had long heard of the other party's name, but this was the first time he had met him in person.
"Lord Wang should have told you about the matter?" Li Qingyou seemed to be a candid person. Instead of starting with pleasantries, he dove straight into the topic when he spoke. "The Royal Court hopes to purchase a thousand Wootz steel swords from gongzi!"
"Since Lord Li is so candid, allow me to reply frankly as well. A thousand Wootz steel sword is impossible!" Wang Chong chuckled and waved his hands.
"Why? Are you unsatisfied with the price?" A glint flashed across Li Qingyou's eyes. He seemed to be unsurprised by Wang Chong's reaction. "Pardon my bluntness, but it's impossible for the Royal Court to purchase it at the same price as gongzi usually sells them outside. 20,000 gold taels is already quite a high price for us."
20,000 gold taels was an extremely low price compared to the current market condition outside. But this was how the Royal Court usually worked.
"Hahaha, Lord Li. You're misunderstanding me," Wang Chong chuckled. "It's not that I'm unwilling to sell to the Royal Court, but that I am unable to do so."
"Oh? Why is that?"
"That is because I only have a hundred ingots of Wootz steel in my inventory," Wang Chong replied with a smile.
Wang Chong had only bought three hundred jun of Wootz steel from Arloja and Ablonodan, but Li Qingyou wanted a thousand weapons in total. He didn't have sufficient material to meet Li Qingyou's demand.
No matter how high Li Qingyou were to raise the price, this request was an impossible one.
But since Wang Chong had come to a meeting with Li Qingyou, there was no doubt that he had a purpose in mind.
"Pardon me, but Lord Li intends to purchase the swords to build an army equipped with Wootz steel right? However, is 1000 really sufficient?" Wang Chong asked with a smile.
In truth, Imperial Army Marshal Zhao Fengchen had mentioned to him the incredible aspects of organizing an army equipped with Wootz steel sword multiple times. Now, Li Qingyou was harboring the same thoughts as well.
It wasn't too hard to see the potential of an army equipped with Wootz steel swords on the battlefield.
"This..." Li Qingyou was taken aback. He had only intended on buying a batch of weapon to give it a try. He hadn't really thought through the details.
"Lord Li, if you wish to build an army equipped with Wootz steel swords, a thousand men won't be sufficient. On top of that, 20,000 gold taels for each sword is indeed a little too low for me to accept. However, if Lord Li can pay me 8,000,000 gold taels in advance, I might be able to find a way to equip ten thousand of your men with Wootz steel weapons. In fact, I could even lower the price of it to just 18,000 gold taels each," Wang Chong said.
Watching the negotiations by the side, a deep frown appeared on Wang Gen's forehead. However, Li Qingyou's eyes lit up instead. What that attracted him was the discounted price of the Wootz steel sword to 18,000 gold taels.
"Would 8,000,000 gold taels be sufficient?" Li Qingyou asked for confirmation.
Those were very casual words from him, but they resounded loudly in the Jade Tavern. It was so haughty that even Wang Chong couldn't help but blink.
He sure is rich!, Wang Chong thought.
This was the difference between the a logistics official of the Royal Court and an average prestigious clan.
Eight million gold taels was a sum so huge that very few clans could fork it out.
And yet, to Li Qingyou, it seemed nothing more than pocket change.
However, this was to be expected. After all, Li Qingyou had the entire wealth of the Great Tang Royal Court behind him.
Once again, Wang Chong felt that his plan of working with the Royal Court was right.
Li Qingyou swiftly came to a deal with Wang Chong, and he made use of this chance to make Wang Chong affirm it by sealing it with a contract.
After all, words are empty.
As the logistics official, it seemed like Li Qingyou was well-accustomed to such practices.
---
"Chong-er, why did you agree to his deal? Isn't that a huge loss to us?"
After leaving the Jade Tavern, Wang Gen finally couldn't hold himself back anymore.
The current Wang Clan floated and sank as one. Even though the one making the loss was Wang Chong, Wang Gen didn't think that he was completely unrelated to the matter.
"Big uncle, the other party has already come knocking on our door. Do you think that we can turn down the offer?" Wang Chong smiled.
"This..." Wang Gen was taken aback. If it was just Li Qingyou by himself, there would be no need for the Wang Clan to fear him. However, Wang Gen knew that the Sage Emperor was standing behind Li Qingyou.
This was also the main reason why Wang Gen remained silent throughout the entire negotiation in the tavern.
"Big uncle, don't worry. This isn't a losing deal to us!" Wang Chong consoled with a smile.
He knew what his big uncle was frustrated with. The main reason why Li Qingyou looked for Wang Gen instead of him or Li Lin straight was to suppress Wang Chong and gain leverage over the negotiation.
And this was exactly the reason why Wang Gen felt frustrated upon seeing the formation of the deal.
However, Wang Chong really didn't think too much of it.
"Five years! Who knows what will happen within five years?" Wang Chong sighed beneath his breath.
Probably even Li Qingyou couldn't understand the true nature of the deal he had just made.
Too many things could happen within five years.
If that catastrophe didn't strike within the next five years, and Wang Chong was still living then, he could consider completing the deal with Li Qingyou...
Shaking his head, Wang Chong quickly came to.
After seeing Big Uncle Wang Gen off, Wang Chong looked at the drifting clouds in the sky with a head full of thoughts.
Of the 8,000,000 gold taels, around three million to five million will be expended on the fortress in Jiannan's Lion Rock Hill. As for the rest, I'll use it to fulfill the next step of my plan.
The expenditure on the Lion Rock Hill was likely to be an endless abyss. Never had there been a precedent of a private fortress being built before Wang Chong. The barriers, walls, storage facilities... There were simply too many requirements in the construction of a fortress for a private party to build one.
However, the fortress in the Lion Rock Hill was currently at the top of Wang Chong's priority list. No matter how much money he had to pump into that endless abyss, he was determined to push through with it.
This was also the reason why Wang Chong asked for an 8,000,000 prepayment from the Imperial Army Logistics Official.
If even five million wasn't enough, he was willing to pump more into it.
But with such immense investment, the fortress should be up to par to Wang Chong's expectations.
However, with the sealing of this deal, there was something else he would have to settle as soon as possible.
Chapter 286: Wang Chong's Ambitions
Chapter 286: Wang Chong's Ambitions
Wang Chong met Arloja and Ablonodan in his residence.
It had been long since they had met, and the two monks had grown visibly darker—a result of being basked under the sun for long hours. When Wang Chong was in Kunwu Training Camp for the past few months, the duo had made a return trip to Sindhu.
The duo had to meet the High Priest to settle some affairs, and they were worried about the famine there as well.
"Gongzi!"
Upon seeing Wang Chong, the duo immediately clapped their hands together and bowed deeply in respect.
What was rare was that even though the two monks only spoke Sanskrit previously, this time, they actually spoke using nonfluent Han language. This could be considered as a gesture of respect toward Wang Chong and Great Tang as a whole.
"Masters, there's no need to be so courteous." Wang Chong waved his hands casually.
Arloja and Ablonodan had stayed in the Wang Clan for a period of time previously, and they had even taught Wang Chong the Tortoise Breathing Art. Thus, the relationship between them was quite close.
"We must. Gongzi is a true living Bodhisattva for our Sindhu. You have saved our homeland from a huge disaster. Please accept our bow."
With reddened eyes, the duo placed their hands together and persistently bowed deeply to Wang Chong once more.
Those who had never been to Sindhu couldn't possibly imagine the tragedies that were occurring there on a daily basis. Even though poverty was rife there, and constantly were there those who died of starvation, the problem had never been so severe before.
All around one could see emaciated corpses and skeletons buzzing with pesky flies. If not for the aid that Wang Chong offered, who knew how many more lives would have been lost.
Thus, they were filled with gratitude toward their benefactor.
Seeing the two masters insisting on the matter, Wang Chong understood that the both of them were doing this on behalf of those who had been saved through his aid, and thus, he decided to accept their gesture of respect.
From the less tense faces of the duo, Wang Chong could see that the conditions at Sindhu should have been alleviated significantly.
"It's good that Sindhu is faring better now. But masters, the supply of food from Great Tang isn't a permanent solution. If Sindhu wants to rid itself of famine, it has to depend on itself!" Wang Chong said. The relationship between him and Ablonodan and Arloja was centered around mutual benefits. However, the sincerity in the gestures from the latter had left him moved, so he decided to point out something essential to the duo.
While the famine did worsen in recent years, Sindhu had never fared well in the aspect of food.
Thus, Wang Chong sent over many goats, chicken, ducks, and other poultry along with dry rations in his agreement with Arloja and Ablonodan. If Sindhu were to make full use of this resource, they could always plant a portion of it as crops and rear the livestock.
The goats could bear new calves every year whereas the chicken and ducks would ensure a continuous supply of eggs.
Perhaps, this might help to improve the rampant famine condition in Sindhu in the long-run.
However, Wang Chong knew that it was unlikely to happen.
The Sindhi High Priest was so focused on getting past this extreme famine at this moment that he was neglecting the future of the nation.
This situation reminded Wang Chong of a story he had heard many years ago.
There was once a boy who lived in a very poor family. His neighbor, taking pity on him after seeing him starve, decided to help improve his living condition and free him from poverty. Thus, the neighbor spent a huge sum to purchase a cow for him.
Receiving the cow, the boy was determined to use this cow to change his life and free himself from poverty.
But starvation struck. Recalling how cows were worth more than goats, the boy decided to sell the cow for a goat so that he could use the extra money from the exchange to fill his stomach. In any case, goats could produce milk and bear offsprings as well.
But he feared that his neighbor would blame for it, so he struggled with the decision. But eventually, unable to stop himself, he sold the cow, bought a goat in exchange, and had the meal of his life.
However, on the second day, he found that he had spent all of the money he earned from the exchange. Thus, the boy thought that since goats are worth more than a chicken, and chicken could lay eggs anyway, why doesn't he sell the goat and buy a chicken in exchange? This way, he could take the profit from the exchange to eat yet another sumptuous meal.
With a precedent before him, he felt no guilt whatsoever doing it once more.
But on the third day, the boy realized that the chicken he bought hasn't laid any eggs at all. Panicked, the boy slew the chicken and ate it.
And on the fourth day, when hunger struck him once more, he circled around his house and he realized that he had nothing left.
This was the current situation Sindhu was facing. No matter how many times aid was given to them, if they didn't make the effort to change their circumstances, their suffering would only continue in the future.
There was nothing Wang Chong could do to help them on this point.
Arloja and Ablonodan looked at one another awkwardly after hearing those words.
How could they possibly not understand the circumstances? Even the High Priest understood this logic as well, but they were helpless before this matter. Holding back the rations could bring them a brighter future, but that would mean that they would have to give up on some and watch as they starved to death. It would take immense determination to do so.
"Let's not talk about this." Luckily, Wang Chong flung his sleeves and changed the topic at this moment.
"Masters, the reason why I called you over is because there's a matter which I would like to negotiate with your High Priest about." Wang Chong dove right into the topic. The reason why he called for this meeting with Ablonodan and Arloja wasn't to worry about the plight of the Sindhis.
"Gongzi, please do speak," the duo gestured.
"I would like to negotiate a deal with your High Priest regarding the Hyderabad ore. I
would like to increase the distribution of Hyderabad ore to our Central Plains... Masters, there's no need to feel troubled over this matter yet. Allow me to finish my words before coming to a decision."
Seeing the troubled expression on the two monks, Wang Chong lifted a finger, and with a confident expression and a peculiarly persuasive force in his words, he said, "One thousand gold taels! This is the new price I am willing to offer for the Hyderabad ores. I believe that your High Priest will be satisfied with this price!"
Those words sounded loud and clear in the room.
"A thousand gold taels?"
Arloja and Ablonodan who were just about to turn down Wang Chong's proposal were immediately rendered speechless.
"Gongzi, are you jesting with us?" Arloja asked with lips quivering in shock. He dared not believe that Wang Chong was serious about this offer. The price that the latter had just offered was far higher than the current one.
"Hahaha, of course I won't joke with you two on such a matter!" Wang Chong laughed. Getting to his feet, he emanated an aura of maturity and composure that too many of his age lacked.
Before him, even Arloja and Ablonodan couldn't help but regard him seriously. Whenever he spoke, they would listen with all of their attention, fearful that they might miss a single detail he spoke of.
And all of this happened subconsciously.
It wasn't like that initially. At the start, they even rejected Wang Chong.
"... The main reason why I offered such a high price is because I hope that the High Priest could offer me the lion's share of the Hyderabad ore to me this year," Wang Chong explained.
The annual production of Hyderabad ore was extremely low, so the sales would have to be allocated across various buyers. In other words, if one faction was distributed more ores, another faction would be distributed less.
Indeed! Wang Chong was intending to snatch the share from the Abbasid Caliphate and Charax Spasinu!
In his previous life, the Abbasid Caliphate and Charax Spasinu managed to slaughter every last one of the Great Tang elites in the Western Regions with their Wootz steel scimitars.
“With money, one can move even the demons”. Wang Chong was intending to use his powerful financial power to steal the share of Hyderabad ore from the Abbasid Caliphate and Charax Spasinu, thus preventing them from building an army equipped with Wootz steel.
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 212
