Under the guidance of the servant, Feng Quan'an and his son, Feng Ning, saw from a distance as a group of two men, three women and two boys worked together to set up a large tent. The basic frame was already set up, with one of three women and the two boys tying the canvas to the tent's frame. It was evident that the older boy was more proficient, while the younger one, around two or three years old, was still learning how to tie the strings with the assistance of that woman. Meanwhile, Yang Chen and another young man were carrying tables into the tent, while two women were decorating the tent with balloons and flowers. Upon seeing Feng Quan'an approaching, Yang Chen was momentarily surprised before quickly approached with a smile, saying:
"Bro. Feng, welcome, welcome! We weren't aware of your arrival just now. I was informed that you would come this afternoon."
"We changed our plans."
They shook hands and Feng Quan'an introduced his son to Yang Chen, who then in turn introduced Yang Jing and his family, as well as his own wife, his son and his younger sister, Yang Sihua, to Feng Quan'an. Feng Quan'an remarked:
"Mrs. Yang hopes two madams to the living room." Then he turned to Yang Chen and continued, "I never expected that the Young Marshal to do this yourself."
Yang Chen replied:
"Well, all of us are usually occupied with our own affairs, rarely finding time to accompany our parents, especially my mother. With her birthday approaching, we decided to do what we can do for her."
Feng Quan'an nodded in agreement, saying:
"Yes, as the younger generation, it is our duty to do this. Young Marshal, I'm here for the HK G36 rifle."
Yang Chen smiled and said:
"I knew you couldn't wait. But don't come to me for this. You should ask him."
He gestured towards his younger brother, Yang Jing. At that moment, Yang Sihua said:
"Elder brothers., you two go ahead and attend to your business. We can handle this ourselves, right, Zichun?"
Yang Zichun nodded at his father, who affectionately patted him on the head. Yang Chen said:
"Okay, I will have Zaihua help you."
With that, he and Yang Jing accompanied Feng Quan'an and his son to the shooting range.
Meanwhile, as Yang Tianhu was enjoying his tea with Feng Xiao, he broached the topic, saying:
"Mr. Feng, the reason I invited you here early is to discuss our cooperation. I'm curious if you have been keeping an eye on the actions of Wasoku. I heard your daughter married Jin Quan's son."
Feng Xiao was taken aback at this and asked:
"Wasoku? No, I don't have heard anything about them. As you know, we have no interaction with them. Is there something related to my daughter's marriage?"
Yang Tianhu clarified:
"No, I assumed that you had obtained information about Wasoku through Jin Quan due to her marriage. I heard Jin Quan is quite close to Wasoku."
Feng Xiao furrowed his brow and said:
"No, my daughter had never mentioned anything about Wasoku to me. Wait a moment!" It seemed that he recalled something, "I remember a complain from my concubine about my son-in-law, Jin Quan's son, having a lover from Wasoku. My daughter told her mother about this, who wanted me to intervene on behalf of my daughter."
Yang Tianhu nodded, adding:
"Actually I knew it is not only your son-in-law but also other officials and officers in the north have relationships with women from Wasoku. This is the reason that I wanted to discuss this with you in advance."
Feng Xiao pondered for a moment before asking:
"Do Chen Yutian and Liao Feng know about this?"
"Even if they didn't know this before but now they do. I have already instructed them to pay attention to such information. But I believe Chen Yutian might be more informed than me. Liao Feng and you, like me, were unaware of this before. After all, if the people of Wasoku were to attack, they would have to come by sea to attack Liao Feng and me. Additionally, there are numerous islands in Wasoku, making it possible for them to launch an attack from any of these islands at any time."
"Is the information you've received accurate? How dare they, a small country, attempt to attack our mighty nation that has thrived for thousands of years?"
"Mr. Feng, over the past hundred years or so, our once mighty nation has fallen far behind in various aspects compared to this small country. Let's not even mention others aspects, just talk about the industrial technology. We are an era behind other countries in terms of industrial technology. You know my second son, Yang Jing, studied in Ferceland and my eldest daughter also lives in Aron Kingdom. They deeply felt the backwardness of our nation. It seems that our country has been far behing these two countries, not only in industrial technology but also in ideology and education system. Just by looking at the weapons my second brother brought back from Ferceland, we can clearly see that they are much more advanced than ours. I heard that these weapons are not even the most advanced in Ferceland. That was the reason that Yang Jing could purchase them along with their blueprints. Although the technology in Wasoku may not match up to these two countries, their weapons are also more advanced than ours. It's said that they've already outfitted themselves with advanced weapons, many of which derives from Aron Kingdom's technology. Meanwhile, we've always advocated for a closed-door policy, maintaining distance from the outside world, unable to see the rapid progress of other countries. We're falling behind."
Feng Xiao fell into a contemplative silent. He couldn't hep but acknowledge the validity of Yang Tianhu's words. If Tang Tianhu conceded that the entire nation was falling behind, then what did that imply for his own territory? As the ruler of his territory, dominating the barren land in the northwest, he couldn't shake off a sense of inadequacy. Not only was his territory lacking in advanced industrial technology, but even the most basic industrial facilities lagged behind those of the other three warlords. Finally, he let out a long sigh and said:
"You are right and it's evident that we are falling behind. So I'm eager to hear your plans for cooperation."
"Well, if Wasoku starts to attack us, I mean, any of the four territories, I hope that all of us can set aside our past grievances and unite to fight against our common enemy."
"What do Chen and Liao say about this?"
"That's why I've taken this chance for my wife's birthday to invite all of you here for a serious discussion. And the reason I invited you come here in advance is to hope that we can reach an agreement beforehand. Of course, this is also the reason that Yang Chen signed the contract with you, asking for your assistance in my times of need."
Feng Xiao understood that when Yang Tianhu spoke to him in this manner, it was a gesture of respect towards him. According to his character, not only was it impossible for him to assist Yang Tianhu, but he would likely worsen Yang Tianhu's situation. Even Yang Tianhu obviously understood this as well as Yang Chen. What they wanted from him was his neutral in the event of an attack by the people of Wasoku.
When they signed the contract in Pingliang previously, he didn't fully understood Yang Chen's intentions. Now everything was clear as to why Yang Chen had consistently insisted on his guarantee of "not attacking for ten years". With the contract signed and Yang Tianhu having secured his guarantee. Now Yang Tianhu's willingness to engage in negotiation with him once more showed respect, providing him an avenue out of his predicament. Why wouldn't he take advantage of this opportunity to fulfil his wishes? So he responded accordingly:
"Mr. Yang, I can assure you that we will do our utmost. The terms of the contract, signed by our children, include a provision that we will not attack you for ten years. Moreover, our conflicts are internal matters. However, if we were to be attacked by another country, it would be a different matter. Speaking of which, I'd like to ask for a promise from you."
"What promise?"
"That you assist us in upgrading our weapons, and in turn, we can provide you with iron ore."
Yang Tianhu smiled and said:
"That's no problem. But, to be honest, it is Yang Chen and Yang Jing who are busy with the upgrading and equipping of our weapons. Actually I'm not well-versed in the technology of these weapons. Yes, I'm truly falling behind. When it comes to handling this matter, it's best to discuss with them as they know better than me. Alternatively, let the children talk about the details and we can oversee the main objectives to prevent any mistake."
Feng Xiao didn't have the confidence to let Feng Quan'an take full control of this matter. While Feng Quan'an might have more knowledge about weapons than him, Yang Chen was undoubtedly superior to his son in cunning. Feng Xiao still had enough self-awareness to acknowledge this fact. However, one thing he was certain of was that Feng Quan'an would keep him informed and wouldn't make decisions without consulting him. But this trait sometimes made Feng Quan'an hesitate to take decisive action during critical moments. He said:
"Okay. Actually I'm not very familiar with these new weapons either. But the pistol Yang Marshal took last time was indeed impressive. I also want to see the rifle Young Marshal mentioned this time."
Yang Tianhu called out:
"Come in." A servant entered, and Yang Tianhu asked, "Where are Chen and Jing now?"
"They are at the shooting range with General Feng."
"Come, Mr. Feng, let's go to the shooting range."
Four days later, major media outlets published a joint declaration from the four warlords, stating that they would abstain from engaging in warfare for twenty years for the prosperity of the country and the safety of the people. Should any party breach this agreement, the other three parties would unite to suppress them without hesitation.
The Feng family returned to Pingliang with the new contract. In this agreement, they would receive 10% of the annual production of rifles from the Yang family. In addition to iron ore, the Yang family would also receive petroleum and natural gas. Yang Chen also added a small condition: the precious stone materials from the western region. He intended to invest in a large jade carving company himself, fully managed by Zhou Di. Although he didn't have discussed this with Zhou Di yet, he felt it was a waste for Zhou Di to work as a small employee at the Yucheng Cultural Relics Bureau. Yang Chen was reported by his business adviser, Sun Jiancheng, that the items carved by Zhou Di had sold very well at the auction house, making Yang Chen earn a substantial amount of money. Yang Chen knew that Zhou Di's carving skills could shine brightly, and he wanted his beloved to excel in his chosen field, becoming a shining gem.
He missed Zhou Di a lot! It had been over a month since he last saw him. He didn't even know if Zhou Di had moved to his new house or not. It was then that he realized neither of them had the habit of writing letters to each other. Why couldn't he write a letter to Zhou Di? But when he sat at his desk with pen in hand, he didn't know what to write. He sighed and smiled: Forget it! Go to Yucheng at once!