Chapter 536: Everyone Has Their Own Problems (1/2)
Chapter 536: Everyone Has Their Own Problems
Translator: EndlessFantasy TranslationEditor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Kristen was not unfamiliar with trading, but the largest amount that she had ever dealt with was two million ao, and that was when she asked to be Ye Chong's student. She did not know how to handle this huge sum. Naturally, her thoughts went to her teacher, Ye Chong.
Ye Chong was experienced in dealing with huge sums, but usually the numbers mean nothing much to him. He was not experienced, nor was he expert in it. However, there was one thing that he was better at than Kristen – no matter the situation, he could still remain calm.
When Ye Chong saw Kristen looking to him for help, he considered the offer by Master Karu for a moment and said, ”The price is acceptable, but with some alterations. She will get 10 percent from every three million Lux graded energy activation chip made. For similar models at other energy grades, she will get five percent for each of them.”
Ye Chong knew what Kristen's energy activation chip meant to Eastern Cloud. Once they fully integrated this technology, their weapons will immediately reach a new level of power, and the first people to own these weapons were surely the military soldiers! In summary, Eastern Cloud's military was about to get a massive upgrade.
As a man who had led a whole fleet before, Ye Chong knew that replenishing an army's resources would cost a lot. If it were the army of an entire country, the amount would be staggering. The process of upgrading would be gradual, but the total expenditure remained the same.
As long as they continued to offer better and better technology, improving the energy activation chip to other energy grades and for more kinds of weapons, they would be able to benefit a whole lot more! How much more could they make? Ye Chong could not offer an estimate.
In the short term, their income might not seem significant, but two or three decades later they will reach an impressive sum. Ye Chong would leave this place sooner or later, but Kristen would still be here, and Ye Chong knew how to alter the terms to her advantage.
Ye Chong spoke calmly, but his words did not invite arguments.
Master Karu's face twitched. The man was a thief! It may not seem obvious, but Master Karu understood the plan behind Ye Chong's suggestion. Compared to his original proposal, they would now earn eight times more. In particular, ”similar models at other energy grades” meant that as long as they were manufacturing energy activation chips with similar structure, at any energy grade and for weapons, Kristen would be able to benefit from them all.
Karu knew the value of this small energy activation chip, or he would not have felt the urgency of acquiring rights for the technology. He believed that by acquiring the rights for this chip, they would be able to use it for all their weapons, regardless of energy grade. ”What a sly b*stard!” Master Karu thought to himself, wincing at the huge cost it would take. He could be grateful that the country was paying for it, instead of him.
Besides, Karu could not do anything against the young man's calm and confident expression. If it was anyone else selling the energy activation chip technology, they would surely be enticed by the 30 million ao offer. However, this young man's student here … Did she lack money? Her teacher would get 50 million ao every month for the cannon arrays – it was robbery!
These two were not in desperate need for cash. However, His Majesty would probably not agree to coerce them through other methods.
Karu hesitated for a moment before finally agreeing, ”Very well!” Did he have a choice? He saw the glazed look in Kristen's eyes and could not help but sighed to himself – when this young girl looked back at this agreement many years from now, she would appreciate how her teacher had helped her earn so much more.
What a fortunate lady!
The formalities of the deal were left to Karu and Kristen. Since it was possible to negotiate, Karu would not consider using other less courteous means. Since he knew the magnitude of financial impact this agreement would have, he drafted out the contract meticulously to avoid future disputes.
Kristen signed the contract without fully understanding the details. She was completely overwhelmed by the 30 million ao offer in the agreement. She still remembered clearly how giddy she felt when her teacher had sold off a cannon array at 20 million ao. Nevertheless, the money was not hers. This time, she was unprepared for the 30 million ao offered to her. It had momentarily left her stunned.
”Would Master Ye be available in the near future?” Master Karu asked respectfully.
Ye Chong nearly said no, but then he hesitated, and asked, ”What is it?”
”There will be a weapons design contest soon, perhaps Master Ye would be able to volunteer some time to serve in the contest's judge panel,” Master Karu asked expectantly. If he could get this heavyweight to become a judge, the contest would surely be something to look forward to!
”A weapons design contest?” Ye Chong inquired.
Master Karu smiled and explained, ”The King organizes the contest every four years as a way to encourage weapons development in Eastern Cloud. There will be many impressive weaponsmiths who will partake in this contest. There are many parts to the contest, such as live demonstration of the weapons and comparisons between theories. In the past, each contest has served as a platform for many new ideas to be introduced to the public. These young contestants may not be excellent weaponsmiths, but they can offer some bold ideas. These ideas are very valuable to us. Besides, this weapon design contest coincides with the largest and most well attended weapons trading market in Eastern Cloud. A good weapon is often expensive, so many shooters from other countries will visit the market to explore their options,” Master Karu tried his best to persuade Ye Chong.
Ye Chong considered the offer for a moment, then nodded and said, ”Alright.” Ye Chong had initially thought to decline, but then felt that it would be a good opportunity to understand the general state of technology in this world. Understanding the level of technology of Eastern Cloud, and perhaps even of the entire planet, would definitely provide him with great insight.
Karu was overjoyed. ”Excellent! With Master Ye as part of our judge panel, the coming contest will surely leave its mark in history!”
Ye Chong waved off the compliment flatly, ”You're too kind, Master Karu.”
Karu left Ye Chong's manor with a sense of accomplishment. There were still many questions that he wanted to ask about, but today's outcome had far exceeded his expectations. That tiny energy activation chip can surely bring about a revolution in Eastern Cloud's military weapons! He looked forward to it.
On the other hand, today's trade agreement had also allowed him to get to know the cold, young man personally. Knowing an expert weaponsmith like him might just pay off in future.
Karu respected the young man, but also felt that he could not hope to reach the same level as him. Even his student could improve an energy activation chip to this extent. Surely her teacher could do far more! The man was a mystery, but Karu was certain that the young man was far more capable than he was, and probably the most skilled weaponsmith in the world. Once upon a time, Karu had thought he had reached the pinnacle of weapons making, but now he found himself still at the bottom of the hill, looking up hopefully.
Nevertheless, the young man's cold and emotionless face dampened Karu's excitement.
What a difficult person to read! Karu dared not play any tricks with the young man. He could finally understand why the King felt so dissatisfied but helpless against him. In comparison, his beautiful student was more naive. Perhaps she would offer a point of vulnerability.
Of all the intel His Majesty had informed him of the young man, most of them were about his student, but there was almost nothing on the young man himself. They only knew that he came from Dual Forest. Both Karu and Sun Sieha were relieved that Ye Chong's student, Kristen, was a bona fide Eastern Cloud citizen.
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