A commotion and panic erupted at the scene, with Crocodile Head, nobles, and high-ranking officials all showing expressions of fear.
The leader, Jiao Mu, and his master led the group to the door, their hands behind their backs, without uttering a word.
Ding ding ding.
Wei Tuozhi tapped his wine glass with a spoon, drawing everyone's attention.
"Everyone, please don't panic. I have something to say at today's banquet."
He stepped to the front of the stage, cleared his throat under the watchful eyes of everyone, and said, "Before our team arrived at Purple Castle, we received orders from Wall One. The Council of Elders hopes to establish an alliance between Purple Castle and Old City, specifically in the area of military production and manufacturing. Purple Castle possesses unimaginable strength, so why not cooperate?"
Wei Tuozhi smiled slightly, “The Purple Light Gun Clan has its strengths and advantages. I heard that the leader of Purple Fortress spent two generations to complete the entire design and manufacturing chain. We admire it very much. Elder Qin of the Old City repeatedly instructed that if Purple Fortress needs anything, West Fortress, Sand Fortress and other places will provide full support. Of course, negotiations will be conducted on the basis of mutual exchange.”
"Among those of you who are here today, there are friends who have been in the arms business in Purple Castle for many years. You should all know which products are currently the scarcest and most popular in the firearms market. Apart from the Golden Eagle and Rapid Fire from Wall One, there are of course only the Sand Crocodile Gun Clan in the eastern region and the Purple Light Gun Clan in the southwestern region."
"Elder Qin has stated beforehand that firearms from the eastern region will be sold on a large scale to Wall One and the southwest region in the future. Currently, the troops in the Old City are fully equipped with the Crocodile series of firearms and ammunition because they are cheaper, more practical, and perform very well on the battlefield. In order to seek cooperation, we can reduce the export price of the Crocodile and provide everyone present with sufficient weaponry resources in order to seek long-term cooperation..."
Now you understand.
This is blatant robbery.
Over the years, the clients that Purple Castle has accumulated in the Southwest region include not only the people operated by the Scorpion Gang, but also many collaborators of the organization, all of whom are cities and forces that have an alliance with Purple Castle.
Old City is clearly trying to disrupt Zibao's downstream operations and steal Ziguang's customers.
These people are all downstream arms dealers who get the cheapest prices. If the eastern region representing Sandcastle can offer better terms, they are actually willing to seek long-term cooperation. Compared with Sand Crocodile, Ziguang is much more expensive.
The principle of Gresham's Law (bad money drives out good money) applies everywhere.
In addition, Li Jiuyuan had been running his businesses and industries for many years.
At that time, Ziguang's production and design were not mature, and Zibao's reliance on raw material supply was a weakness. As a result, it was overtaken by Crocodile, lost market recognition and the trust of arms dealers in several regions, leading to a series of mistakes.
After hearing Wei Tuozhi's words, everyone fell silent.
Wu Ming and Zhou Sen, standing not far away, sighed upon hearing Wei Tuozhi's announcement.
"Will Yao Yunli hold a grudge?"
"They definitely will. They've been operating in the Southwest region for so many years, and many of the people here tonight have been partners since the design plant was built. It's not difficult to persuade them. Crocodile's inherent advantages are there. We have oil fields and mineral deposits, and our processing capacity is not low. We can produce and sell our own products and be self-sufficient. But Purple Castle can't do that. Their production costs are naturally much higher than ours."
Wu Ming said, "We even have the support of the Elder Council. Sand Crocodile is now rampant in Wall One and can even go toe-to-toe with Old Gun."
Zhou Sen laughed and said, "Actually, you're wrong. In the end, it's not the council that matters, but Advisor Qin. Without his endorsement, the council of elders won't relax the restrictions, and then it's all just empty talk."
Wu Ming: "I heard this is to counter the parliament's new weapons censorship policy?"
"Yes, the vital interests of the Yin Party and the Su Party have indeed been affected. In order to make the new policy a blank sheet of paper, the firearms of Sandcastle must be advanced into Wall One and actually appear in the weapons resource arsenal of the violent institutions. Yin Mu and Su Pei will not say anything, because the Fu Party has already gained the upper hand."
Zhou Sen said, "There's another prerequisite that you've overlooked."
"What are the conditions?"
"food."
"Um……"
"Controlling the grain supply is our trump card. The eastern region has synthetic starch, and the southwest region has a strong livestock industry. Advisor Qin has already grasped both of these weapons. We are not afraid that they will not cooperate. Even if Yao Yunli dares to refuse, we can let those workers starve to death. At that time, the strike movement alone will make Yao Yunli very upset, not to mention the suppliers under his control and the core personnel of the design plant. With the pitifully small amount of arable land in Zibao and the surrounding cities, even if No. 1 Wall continues to supply them with crops in accordance with the desert constitution, Zibao cannot support so many people who need to eat."
"Let's see how Yao Yunli responds to this three-pronged approach."
"Believe me, he will be very angry."
...
At this very moment, a similar banquet is being held at the leader's residence.
Those invited included raw material suppliers, mine owners, gun barrel manufacturers, manufacturers of various grips, ammunition groups, and core personnel from design plants—a total of over a hundred people who came from all over the country. In order to avoid clashing with the old city's diplomatic ambassador, Yao Yunli deliberately hosted a gathering.
Yao Yunli, who was originally in high spirits, was chatting with several big factory bosses when his secretary suddenly came up to him and whispered a few words in his ear. His expression immediately turned gloomy and extremely serious. He asked, "Have they all agreed?"
"Yes, all the arms dealers present agreed."
Yao Yunli remained silent for a while before saying, "It seems we can't delay any longer. Let's wait for them to submit their negotiation proposal and prepare for an earlier meeting."
"yes."
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