Anling City, Baoying Grand Hotel.
The Little Landlady chose it, and there was good reason for her choice.
This building, situated halfway up the hill, stood at a high point, nestled next to mountains and water, luxurious yet low-key, very suitable for vacations and receiving guests.
On the 28th floor, in the luxurious suite numbered SV2888, there was an open-air balcony under two sun umbrellas where Lin Chuan and Leo were meeting.
"Mr. Lin, thank you for your hospitality. I’ve never seen such beautiful scenery," Leo said with a delighted expression, gazing at the view from the balcony.
In front of him, the sunshine was bright, the light soft and warm, filtering through a veil-like layer of clouds, casting sparkling light over the wide, flat river surface, with towering buildings on the opposite bank, and lush greenery on this side. To the right, in the distance, one could even see the mottled city wall of Anling Ancient City.
This was a peace he had never seen amidst the flames of war.
Lin Chuan discerned the yearning in Leo’s words, and sincerely said, "Mr. Leo, peace will soon return to your region, and such beautiful scenery will reappear."
Under the sun umbrellas.
Leo was somewhat surprised.
He was surprised to hear such words coming from an arms dealer.
As it’s known, the existence of arms suppliers is due to armed conflicts in various regions, needing a large supply of military equipment.
In fact, arms suppliers depend on war.
They are certainly among those who most desire the onset of war, as the war forms their primary source of income!
"Mr. Lin, I find that you don’t seem like a mere arms dealer," said Leo, swiftly shifting his focus from the scenery to Lin Chuan.
Lin Chuan smiled, "Here, we adhere to a certain way of thinking."
"What kind of thinking?" asked Leo, showing a keen interest, eager to learn.
"Winning a battle without a fight," quoted Lin Chuan from an ancient saying.
Leo didn’t quite understand, "Mr. Lin, I’ve heard that saying before but I don’t quite grasp its meaning."
Lin Chuan explained with a smile, "It’s simple. Once you become powerful, the enemy won’t dare attack you."
Leo appeared thoughtful.
"Let me give you an example," Lin Chuan continued with a smile, "Suppose you’re a bandit targeting someone’s food supply, and they are unarmed. What would you do?"
Without any hesitation, Leo responded, "If I were a bandit, I’d just snatch it!"
"And if he had a knife?"
"If I also had a knife, I might hesitate a little, but I’d think of a way to ambush him!"
"And if he had trained a team of armed guards to protect the food?"
Leo said outright, "Mr. Lin, the answer is clear, no bandit would target such a household’s food!"
"So, shouldn’t you also be equipping yourselves with more weapons?"
Lin Chuan segued smoothly.
Leo suddenly saw the light and then laughed, "Mr. Lin, I see your point now. I must admit, you are a very successful arms dealer. Whether in war or peace, you manage to sell your military weapons."
"If I told you my wish is for world peace, would you believe me?" Lin Chuan laughed heartily.
Confronted with Lin Chuan’s joking remark, Leo pondered for a moment, "I think, I should believe."
The two shared a knowing smile.
Lin Chuan’s logic was simple.
Advanced weapons might remain unused, but one cannot be without them.
Because, bandits won’t disappear.
They might show a friendly facade, but they haven’t shed their intrinsic nature as bandits; rather, they have just disguised it.
Lin Chuan and Leo had a lengthy conversation.
Leo and his companions were very eager, urgently hoping to enter into negotiations for a weapons cooperation with Lin Chuan.
Leo stated, "I can see it, Mr. Lin, you are a good partner, and thus, we hope to discuss the cooperation as soon as possible, my compatriots are still waiting for the support of these weapons."
Lin Chuan took a sip of orange juice and then asked, "Mr. Leo, you’re a straightforward person, which I like. For an initial cooperation, I need to see your weapons order."
"OK!"
Leo was indeed direct, pulling out a document from his briefcase and handing it to Lin Chuan.
Lin Chuan took the document.
It was written in English, which Lin Chuan could comprehend.
[191 Rifle]
[Type 15 Light Tank]
[ZBL-08 Wheeled Infantry Fighting Vehicle]
[PLZ-05 Type 155mm Self-Propelled Howitzer]
[KJ-2000 Early Warning Aircraft]
[J-16D Electronic Warfare Aircraft]
[PHL-191 Remote Box-Type Rocket Launcher]
After reading, Lin Chuan showed a brilliant smile; these were all the weapons he had described in "Arms Tycoon".
It seemed that this Mr. Leo was indeed his loyal fan!
Others read novels for fun, he treated the novel like a shopping mall. After reading, he made a list and bought goods from the author.
If it hadn’t actually happened, who would believe it?
"Mr. Lin, these shouldn’t pose any difficulty for you, should they?" Leo raised an eyebrow at Lin Chuan.
Lin Chuan smiled lightly, "You should know, weapons are just toys to me."
"Truly an arms tycoon."
Leo showed a look of admiration, nodded, "About the specific prices, for instance, this PHL-191 Remote Box-Type Rocket Launcher?"
He leaned toward Lin Chuan, extending a finger to point at the document, his eyes holding some anticipation and probing.
Without a doubt, this was the weapon he was most concerned about.
Yu Qin’s ’Remote Box-Type Rocket Launcher,’ with a range of 350 km, was priced at 10 million US dollars. What about Lin Chuan’s offer?
Lin Chuan slightly turned his head, his eyes meeting Leo’s.
Soon, Lin Chuan guessed what Leo was concerned about.
Then, he smiled and said, "This ’PHL-191 Remote Box-type Rocket Launcher’ comes in three versions, 70 kilometers, 370 kilometers, and 600 kilometers. The 600-kilometer version is currently not for sale. Which version would you like to purchase?"
"370 kilometers."
Leo did not doubt it.
This range was already leading the world, even 20 kilometers further than Yu Qin’s version with a range of 350 kilometers.
Of course.
Not only did it lead in range, but its power couldn’t be inferior either.
Lin Chuan didn’t know about Leo and Yu Qin’s negotiation, and after thinking, he quoted, "6 million US Dollars."
This quote was a probing one.
Generally speaking, a probing quote in negotiations shouldn’t be too low, otherwise, there would be little room for bargaining.
The other party might press the price so low that it goes below one’s anticipated price.
Such negotiations could easily end in dissatisfaction.
The reason Lin Chuan set this price was based on the market price, using HIMARS M142’s price of 5 million US Dollars as a benchmark, and increased it by 1 million US Dollars, which was quite fair in market terms.
However, there was a fundamental difference between them.
As everyone knows.
The development of cutting-edge weapons requires a significant amount of financial investment, and a considerable part of their market price is attributed to research and development costs.
Buyers must pay for the technology.
A significant portion of the HIMARS M142’s price consisted of R&D costs.
The ’PHL-191 Remote Box-type Rocket Launcher’ Lin Chuan offered did not have R&D investments.
Thus, its price could be much lower!
Lin Chuan could even manage to dump the ’PHL-191 Remote Box-type Rocket Launcher’ for 1 million US Dollars and still have a substantial profit margin!
This was a tremendous advantage other arms suppliers did not have!
After all, there’s a catch!
But the price of 6 million US Dollars fell into Leo’s ears, stirring a big wave.
It was even lower than his estimated price!
He glanced at Lin Chuan, trying hard to control the disbelief in his heart, then immediately turned to look at his adjutant next to him.
The adjutant’s breath quickened, his eyes widened.
Last night, they had already held a video conference with the heads of Haas Armed Forces.
If Lin Chuan genuinely had a rocket launcher comparable to Yu Qin’s, their ideal price was 7 million US Dollars.
But with Lin Chuan starting at 6 million US Dollars, this threw them off.
Leo secretly took a deep breath, pretended to be calm, picked up the orange juice from the small coffee table in front of him, took a sip, and then said, "Mr. Lin, how powerful is this ’PHL-191 Remote Box-type Rocket Launcher’?"
"Just like the one described in the novel!"
Lin Chuan confidently stated.
"6 million US Dollars..."
Leo drank another sip of orange juice. If it indeed had such power, it would be more cost-effective than Yu Qin’s rocket launcher!
He hesitated, feeling slightly tempted.
He even thought Lin Chuan’s quote of 6 million US Dollars was the final price.
"Mr. Leo, what do you think of this price?"
Lin Chuan noticed Leo’s hesitation, assuming it was because Haas Armed Forces, constantly embroiled in warfare, did not have enough funds available to purchase weapons.
"Is there room for negotiation on the 6 million US Dollars?"
Leo asked tentatively, his expression stern.
Lin Chuan pondered for a moment, "How many units of the ’PHL-191 Remote Box-type Rocket Launcher’ would you like to buy?"
"Three."
Leo stretched out three fingers.
Lin Chuan stroked his chin, then ’bit the bullet’, "If you purchase four units, I will sell them to you at this unit price."
Leo looked up.
Lin Chuan stretched out a palm.
"Five hundred... five hundred thousand US Dollars?" Leo couldn’t help but exclaim, his brows furrowing deeply.
This was frighteningly low!
200,000 US Dollars below their ideal price!
The adjutant next to him breathed rapidly.
He believed that if it were him, he would have agreed to Lin Chuan’s offer of 500,000 US Dollars per unit right then!
"For a first-time cooperation, I’ll also include four corresponding rockets, as well as training and service fees." Lin Chuan laid out an offer they couldn’t refuse!
Leo was greatly shaken.
He had never encountered such a powerful arms dealer who could achieve a technical upgrade, far surpassing the HIMARS Rocket Launcher, but without raising the price!
For the same price, they could purchase the ’PHL-191 Remote Box-type Rocket Launcher.’
This arms dealer was too capable!
"How about it?"
Lin Chuan asked with a beaming smile.
"At this price, we’ll take five units!"
Leo suddenly stood up, startling everyone around.
He couldn’t sit still!
This design not only improved the convenience of using the rocket launcher,

Comments

Loading...