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墨書 Inktalez
At this moment, Chen Si's mind was filled with question marks: Why is this happening? What just occurred? Why did my sword break?
A series of questions left Chen Si at a loss, but cold sweat trickled down his temples. When he purchased the weapons and armor, he had confidently assured Severe Winter that the equipment from the Imperial Forest Guard was the best available from the New Home Chamber of Commerce, crafted by the finest blacksmiths in the Blacksmith Guild.
However, he was unaware that what he referred to as top-quality weapons were actually just ordinary goods. They had been made to appear superior through some special techniques during their crafting, giving them a faint glow that made them look better than typical weapons. In reality, these weapons and armor were comparable to those made by regular blacksmiths, with some even being inferior.
The New Home Chamber of Commerce specifically prepared such weapons for the Imperial Forest Guard. Guo Leigang understood that while the Imperial Forest Guard seemed formidable, these individuals rarely needed to engage in combat. Although there were many reactionary organizations on Luo Heng Island, like the New World, none could truly challenge Severe Winter. Therefore, it sufficed to equip the Imperial Forest Guard with seemingly good weapons; usually, they did not need to use them.
This way, they could allocate more funds to honor Chen Si, and future orders might continue to increase, leading to greater profits.
Unexpectedly, a simple confrontation today resulted in Chen Si's so-called top-quality weapon being broken. This left him speechless, especially since he had just claimed that these were subpar goods from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Now he understood the implication behind Severe Winter's earlier questioning—he had indeed been too hasty.
If it weren't for wanting to gain some benefits from the New Home Chamber of Commerce, this situation might not have arisen at all. Now, Chen Si regretted it immensely and had cursed Guo Leigang over a hundred times in his heart.
"Chen Aiqing, is this what you bought for me? Are these truly the best weapons and armor on all of Luo Heng Island? How much benefit did the New Home Chamber of Commerce give you?"
Severe Winter could be considered a tyrant but was certainly not a foolish ruler. He would thoroughly investigate such an obvious matter; the emergence of a new Merchant Guild would primarily impact its competitors. Moreover, Chen Si had repeatedly suppressed the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, indicating that there must be some involvement from the New Home Chamber of Commerce. If he couldn't figure this out, he wouldn't deserve to be king.
Hearing Severe Winter's inquiry, Chen Si immediately knelt on the ground, banging his head like a chicken pecking at rice grains, repeatedly pleading, "Your Majesty spare me! Your Majesty spare me!"
Severe Winter no longer looked at him and shouted outside, "Come here! Take Chen Si away and hand him over to the Interrogation Department for investigation." The Interrogation Department was a division established by Severe Winter specifically tasked with extracting information through various forms of punishment.
With a command from Severe Winter, another Imperial Forest Guard entered through the door and together with the guard present, they dragged Chen Si out.
Severe Winter glanced at Zhu Xiao before asking, "Zhu Yuan Shuai, Mr. Cai is now your aide, right?"
"Indeed."
"Then I will grant him a position so that Mr. Cai can serve as an official. I wonder if Zhu Yuan Shuai would be willing."
"It is an honor for Mr. Cai to serve Your Majesty, and of course, I am willing."
"Very well, Cai Sidong, step forward to receive your title."
Hearing Severe Winter call his name, Mr. Cai quickly took two steps forward and knelt on the ground: "Commoner Cai Sidong is here to receive the decree."
"Cai Sidong, I hereby appoint you as the Supervisor of the Quartermaster, responsible for all matters of the Military Supply Office."
"I thank Your Majesty for your great favor."
"Rise, my dear minister. I hope you will cooperate with Zhu Yuan Shuai as much as possible and meet all the needs of the army."
"I will obey your command."
"Minister Cai, one of your main tasks going forward is to contact the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and procure weapons and equipment from them as much as possible. The success of next year's war depends on your efforts."
"I will do my utmost to ensure that Zhu Yuan Shuai has enough weapons and armor for battle next year."
"Good. With both of you, I am at ease. You may leave now."
"We take our leave." The two men, accompanied by ten soldiers, left Severe Winter's study. Outside, Zhu Xiao said to Cai Sidong, "Congratulations, my brother Cai."
"As for what Grand Marshal has done for me, if it weren't for Grand Marshal taking me in back then, I wouldn't be where I am today. I must thank you even more, Grand Marshal."
"You don't need to be so polite, my brother Cai. We are no longer master and servant; from now on, you are also an official. We are colleagues now, so there's no need for such formality when we speak."
"I understand, Grand Marshal."
"Cai, you need to keep an eye on the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. There's only one year left, and I hope we can produce as much equipment as possible during this time."
"Don't worry, Grand Marshal. If necessary, I'll have the Chinese Chamber of Commerce focus solely on our needs this year. I'll buy all the weapons and armor they produce."
"That would be best. Let's go have a couple of drinks to celebrate Wise Brother's promotion."
The two of them walked out of the palace together.
The fighting at the Gates of Hell has stopped this year, and now there are only a few soldiers left in the fortress on Luo Heng Island for defense.
Cai Sidong has spent half a month adjusting and familiarizing himself with everything in the Military Supply Office. He used this time to get the entire Military Supply Office running smoothly.
To avoid influencing the operation of the entire Military Supply Office, Cai Sidong only moved one of his guards to his side as an assistant, while the rest remained the same team. What he needed to do was understand his responsibilities and review the daily accounts. From this, Cai Sidong discovered many unclear areas; however, in order to win people's hearts, he decided to turn over a new leaf and start fresh.
Seeing that the Military Supply Office was back on track, he was ready to begin his procurement tasks.
That morning, Cai Sidong sat at his desk and called out, "Someone, please bring Zhao Jun, who is responsible for procurement in Winter City."
"Yes," replied the guard at the door. After about ten minutes, someone returned with news:
"Reporting, my lord, Lord Zhao has arrived."
"Let him in."
Footsteps were heard outside, and a figure appeared before Cai Sidong. The newcomer was in his thirties with fair skin; however, it was clear from his complexion that he had been overexerting himself. His face looked pale, and he walked with a somewhat unsteady gait.
Seeing the newcomer, Cai Sidong shook his head slightly, thinking: These people must have been enjoying their lives excessively and benefiting greatly from it.
"Lord Zhao, I have a task for you today that you must complete diligently."
"Please rest assured, Lord, I, Zhao Jun, will definitely complete the mission."
Cai Sidong nodded, "You should set off for Winter City now and negotiate with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. We need to purchase their weapons and equipment."
Zhao Jun was taken aback, "Cai Daren, our Military Supply Office has always cooperated with the New Home Chamber of Commerce. Moreover, their Merchant Guild's weapons and equipment are recognized as the best in our entire country."
"Then you don't need to worry about that. I am acting according to His Majesty's orders. You just need to carry out your duties seriously. Remember, this order is very important; you must not mess it up."
"Rest assured, my lord. I have been here for many years and know how to deal with merchants very well. How much weaponry and equipment are we ordering?"
"The quality should be the same as what they supply to the army. As for the quantity... we want their annual production."
Zhao Jun gaped at Cai Sidong, "My lord, are you saying we want to purchase all their weapons and armor for the entire year?"
Cai Sidong nodded, "And we also want them to work overtime this year to produce more. Whatever they produce, we will buy."
"My lord, what about the New Home Chamber of Commerce?"
"What about the New Home Chamber of Commerce? Lord Zhao, you keep mentioning them. Have you received benefits from them?"
"My lord, that's not what I meant; I was just considering your interests."
"You don't need to worry about the New Home Chamber of Commerce; just focus on acquiring goods from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. You may leave now and hurry to take care of this."
"I obey." After turning around, Zhao Jun wiped the sweat from his forehead. The reason he always spoke up for the New Home Chamber of Commerce was simple: they had indeed received many benefits from them. Ever since Chen Si collaborated with the New Home Chamber of Commerce, they had been able to purchase over seventy percent of its annual output every year. All personnel in the Military Supply Office had benefited from the New Home Chamber of Commerce; from Chen Si down to the gatekeepers, everyone hoped that the Military Supply Office would continue this relationship with them. Not to mention someone like Zhao Jun who was responsible for procurement in a city.
Every year, the benefits he received from the New Home Chamber of Commerce were certainly a considerable amount.
After leaving the Military Supply Office, Zhao Jun immediately went to the headquarters of the New Home Chamber of Commerce in Spring City. At that time, Guo Leigang was not in Spring City. So he informed a manager about the situation and then left to pack his bags, setting off for Winter City early the next morning.
On the way to Winter City, he felt a sense of joy in his heart. Even the New Home Chamber of Commerce, such a large Merchant Guild, gave him quite a bit of gift money every year, not to mention the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. This was something we organized ourselves; surely the Chinese Chamber of Commerce would give me a generous gift.
At this time, along with Zhao Jun heading to Winter City, there was also a Messenger. This Messenger had flown out from the headquarters of the New Home Chamber of Commerce in Spring City, with the same destination: Winter City. Recently, their sales situation had not been good, especially since Winter City was closest to the headquarters of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Only at Guo Leigang could they obtain first-hand information. Thanks to Guo Leigang's efforts, the situation had now stabilized.
In addition to Severe Winter and Zhu Xiao on Luo Heng Island paying attention to the equipment of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, people on Said Island had also begun to take notice.
Inside a fortress on Said Island, a man in his fifties sat at the main seat, surrounded by a group of armored generals. The man at the main seat was Ouyang Qingfeng, the Grand Marshal of Said Island. They were puzzled by Luo Heng Island's sudden ceasefire.
Ouyang Qingfeng asked, "Did the scouts say why those Little Guys on Luo Heng Island suddenly ceased fire? Is there some conspiracy here?"
A general stepped forward and stood in the center: "Grand Marshal, according to reports from the scouts, there was a small incident in Spring City on Luo Heng Island. Their Quartermaster was captured for some unknown reason, and Severe Winter even raided their home."
"The Quartermaster was captured and their home raided? How could this happen? Was it because the weapons and armor purchased by the Quartermaster were of poor quality?"
Standing nearby, Liao Shunyu immediately stepped forward: "Grand Marshal, I don't think it's an issue with equipment quality. When I faced defeat last time, I couldn't even understand what happened myself. Our soldiers collapsed as soon as they engaged with theirs and could hardly organize any decent resistance. Moreover, when I retreated, I struck two soldiers with my iron rod, but those two soldiers seemed fine and immediately got back up to continue fighting. This is usually impossible."
"You held back?"
"Grand Marshal, how could I hold back at that point? I definitely struck them with all my strength. Please take a look." Liao Shunyu raised his iron rod in front of him. Ouyang Qingfeng and the other generals looked at the iron rod in Liao Shunyu's hand; after glancing at it, Ouyang Qingfeng frowned in confusion. How could this be?
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