The next morning, Yang Chen, dressed in civilian clothes casually, was accompanied by Yang Zaihua once again to the Feng family's mansion. Meanwhile, Zhou Di lay in bed, feeling sore and weak, drifting in and out of sleep. He had been preoccupied with sleep and had not cared about anything else. Yang Chen kissed him tenderly before leaving for the Feng's mansion.
Upon arrival, Yang Chen saw Feng Xiao, a robust figure larger than Feng Quan'an, with a full beard and sharp, lively eyes. Despite being the eldest among the four warlords, there was no sign of aging on him. Feng Quan'an was also present. Yang Chen hurried forward, bowing deeply and said:
"Being a junior, I come here to pay my respects to Uncle Feng. It is a regrettable oversight for me that I do not have the chance to witness Uncle Feng's demeanour as I grew up." With a wave of his hand, Yang Zaihua approached with a gift box. Yang Chen continued, " This is a token of respect from my father to Uncle Feng, a bottle of Yuquan wine, a specialty of our region. And this is a small gift from me to Uncle Feng."
Feng Xiao glanced at the bottle of Yuquan wine but didn't open it. Instead, he opened another small gift box, revealing a quaint pocket watch. Upon opening the lid, it was clear that this watch was no ordinary item adorned with a circle of diamonds and platinum for the hands. He was quite pleased and had his men store the gift safely. Then he asked:
"Are your parents well?"
Yang Chen replied:
"Thanks to Uncle Feng's blessings, they are fine. Since my mother's birthday is coming, my father told me that he misses Uncle Feng and the others so he wants to take this chance to meet all of you. So he sent invitations to Uncle Feng and other uncles."
Then Yang Chen handed Feng Xiao the invitation and a personal letter from Yang Tianhu. Feng Xiao took the invitation and the letter, opening the letter first. Apart from the usual greetings and expression of missing each other, the letter was two pages long, essentially echoing what Yang Chen had said. However, the last part caught Feng Xiao's attention. The requirement from Yang Tianhu was he hoped Feng Xiao come to Qudu a few days early for a private chat. After Feng Xiao read the letter, he understood that this part was the key point, suggesting that there was something important to discuss between them in private. However, Feng Xiao wondered if it concerned only him or involved the other two warlords but there was no answer in the letter. After reading the letter, he read the invitation and placed it on the table along with the letter. Then, looking at Yang Chen, he said:
"I have never expected that Young Marshal to be so young and capable. Your father must be very pleased to have you to help him."
Yang Chen modestly said:
"Thank you for your praise, Uncle Feng. I still have many shortcomings to improve upon."
Feng Xiao teased:
"Shortcomings? Are you trying to say you're flawless and want to catch my son on the battlefield?"
Yang Chen replied with a touch of modesty and mischief:
"Sorry, I have no guts to do this. It was all my fault last time when I was too young and aggressive. My father had already scolded me, saying I'm too arrogant. That's my shortcoming. I hope Uncle Feng and Bro. Feng will forgive my youthful ignorance and craziness."
"Forgive you? 30,000 soldier were killed by you. How do you expect me to forgive you? But you still have the guts to come here alone."
Yang Chen smiled and said:
"It's all thanks to Uncle Feng's affection and Bro. Feng's generosity that I don't need to worry about this."
Feng Xiao looked at Yang Chen with a dark expression, while Yang Chen looked back at him with a slightly playful smile. Feng Quan'an, on the other hand, looked at Yang Chen with the admiration. Yang Zaihua, standing behind Yang Chen, looked at the three of them, unsure whether to be nervous or relieved. Suddenly, Feng Xiao burst into laugher and said:
"You are quite interesting, boy! Alright, I admit that Quan'an is not as skilled as you in some aspects. But as for what you discussed with Quan'an before, I can't give you our decision now. Firstly, we don't have seen what that rifle looks like and we don't even know which type of rifle it is, including its material, weight, hardness and so on. Although Quan'an knows a little about it, it's from Ferceland, not from your arsenal. We will decide whether to buy it after we inspect it carefully."
"You're right. This is the verbal agreement between General Feng and me. If you come to Qudu for my mother's birthday, I will show the rifle to you and General Feng and then we can discuss more details about agreement if you are satisfied with the rifle."
"Great! But I'm more interested in that pistol. If you can provide it to us, I can sign the contract with you now. What do you think?"
This made Yang Chen a little surprised because he had never expected such a good thing. He pondered for a moment and then lowered his head, saying:
"I think it is a little difficult. Of course, the production is no problem but you have to know that we don't have a high iron output in our territory. Currently, our arsenal is mainly engaged in the production of rifles because the rifles will be replaced throughout our entire army. If we start to produce the pistol again for you at the same time, of course it is no problem, but first, the iron isn't enough for all of the production. This is one of our problems. Moreover, the production equipment for the pistol has already been moved from the assembly line. So if we provide this pistol to you, we have to open another line and install the equipment to produce it. Of course, it is no problem because we have another arsenal. If we do this, we must recruit new workers, who will also involve significant costs. If we supply you with the pistol, you also need the ammunition, which means opening another production line for bullets. For the bullets, we also have to recruit new workers and train them. This is also another significant cost. Bullets require iron and gunpowder, which would also impact our rifle bullet production..."
He spoke so quickly, almost unsure whether he was addressing Feng Xiao and Feng Quan'an or just muttering to himself. It was impossible for Feng Xiao and Feng Quan'an to keep up with his thoughts. Even they didn't understand what he was talking about. They exchanged puzzled looks with each other. Finally Feng Xiao grew impatient and shouted:
"Damn! What are you muttering about? Tongue twister? Just tell me yes or no. And what problem do you have and what do you need?"
Yang Chen replied:
"Iron, at a slightly higher price and your guarantee."
Fang Xiao asked:
"Iron, no problem and we can supply to you. As for the price, you can negotiate with Quan'an. But the guarantee, which guarantee do you want?"
Yang Chen proposed:
"Don't attack us for ten years."
"The same condition. Why?"
Yang Chen chuckled:
"Uncle Feng, come on. If you get the guns we supplied and then come back to attack us, we would be at a big loss. So we have to buy some insurance for ourselves, right?"
"Okay, we give you this guarantee. You can negotiate the price and iron with Quan'an. The quantity is 10,000 pistols first. As for the others, we can discuss with you in Qudu. Quan'an, let them prepare some special dishes. Let's have the simple meal at home. This afternoon Young Marshal and you will discuss more details about the contract for signature."
Feng Quan'an responded:
"Yes, dad."
"Uncle Feng, could I borrow the phone? I have a friend at the hotel now. I want to ask him whether to come here for lunch."
Yang Chen was led into a hall to make the call, while Yang Zaihua was also escorted away. Watching Yang Chen leave, Feng Xiao looked at him and remarked to Feng Quan'an:
"I have never expected that Yang Tianhu has such a shrewd and fearless son, who is also a bastard. As long as he is in the east, no one have the ability to occupy there."
Feng Quan'an responded:
"Dad, I think you are praising him exaggeratedly. How am I supposed to compete for the title of Young Marshal if you praise him like this?"
"Don't think about it too much. Frankly speaking, you are indeed not as good as him. To be honest, the thought of killing him is still in my mind. Keeping him alive is ultimately a threat to us."
"But do you have thought about the consequences of killing him?
"Of course I do. If we kill him, we will have to endure Yang Tianhu's wrath and the invasion of his troops until we are completely defenseless. It may even lead to the extermination of our entire family, not to mention the Liao family which we have to face. Perhaps the Chen family will take advantage of the chaos as well. By then, our fate may be very grim."
"Dad, we can't kill him."
"No, I can't kill him but it's not what I wish."
Yang Chen asked Zhou Di on the phone:
"What are you doing at the hotel?"
Zhou Di replied:
"I just woke up and it was a comfortable sleep."
Yang Chen chuckled:
"It seems that you're in good spirits so we will continue to make love tonight."
"Got away! Forget it! Last night I was almost exhausted. Did you finish your meeting?"
"Not yet, we will continue this afternoon. Do you want to come here for lunch with us?"
"Of course not, it's awkward to eat with your VIP."
"Then what will you do? Have a lunch at the hotel?"
"I will go for a stroll and find something to eat casually. Don't worry about me. I will do what I want."
"Don't go out. You have to stay in the hotel for your lunch. I can't rest assured if you go out alone, especially in an unfamiliar place. Wait for us to come back, understand? Be obedient!"
Zhou Di said with a lingering tone:
"Yes, sir! I follow you and stay at the hotel for lunch."
Yang Chen and Yang Zaihua sat in the car on their way to the hotel with the signed contract. Yang Chen said:
"It's much better than I expected. The contract is signed so quickly and smoothly. I originally planned to use the new rifle to exchange for their guarantee, but now we got it with 10,000 pistols. Actually I am unwilling to give them the rifles. After all, it doesn't take a long time for our soldiers to replace this rifle. We made a hug profit and imported a large amount of iron ore and their guarantee. Good deal!"
"If Marshal Feng becomes interested in the rifle, what shall we do?"
"Then we'll make him exchange with other things. It's impossible for him to get the rifle easily. I will make him pay a lot for what he wants."
"Young Marshal, why do you insist that they can't attack us for ten years?"
Yang Chen said:
"One of the reason is what I told Marshal Feng."
"This is what I understand but is there another reason? Or is it because of Wasoku?"
Yang Chen sighed and said:
"Yes, this is what I am scared of. If Wasoku attack us from the sea, I don't want that there is any trouble from the west. If not, there will be no way for us survive."
"Young Marshal, is there really going to be a war?"
Yang Chen didn't answer him but just glanced at him. Yang Zaihua understood immediately: Prepare for the worst.
"Let's go to the stone market tomorrow and return to Qudu the day after tomorrow. I have got what I want. It's not safe to stay here for us."