Wang Fugui's original intention was to return to the Central Plains as soon as possible. After all, Ren Xiaosu was in the Central Plains, so why did he have to come all the way to the Northwest?
Furthermore, Old Wang was very sure that Ren Xiaosu had gone to the Central Plains to look for them. So he had to go back!
However, Zhang Xiaoman refused to let him leave. He forced them to stay at the military camp and even prepared them good food and hot water. He said it would not be too late for them to leave in a few days.
The reason Zhang Xiaoman convinced Wang Fugui was very simple. "The Central Plains is so big, and our people from Fortress 178 are also looking for Ren Xiaosu in the Central Plains. With so many of us here, isn't it better for us to try our luck instead of you? You don't know where Ren Xiaosu will appear either. "
Zhang Xiaoman said, "Don't worry, we're still quite confident of finding him."
"What do you mean by that?" Wang Fugui was stunned. "Why are y 'all so confident of finding him?"
"Since you're old friends with Ren Xiaosu, do you know Xu Xianchu?" Zhang Xiaoman asked.
"I don't really know him, but I know he's Xiaosu's good friend." Wang Fugui wondered, "Can Xu Xianchu find Ren Xiaosu?"
Wang Fugui did not believe this. After all, they were the closest to Ren Xiaosu. If they did not even know where to look for him, how could Xu Xianchu possibly know?
Zhang Xiaoman lowered his voice and said, "Old Xu told us that wherever Ren Xiaosu goes, the strongholds will collapse. Look, Stronghold 74 is currently under siege in the south of the Central Plains, and it might collapse at any moment. He suspects that Ren Xiaosu is there, so Wang Fengyuan has already sent people to Stronghold 74. Who knows, they might be able to find him in a few days!"
Wang Fugui was dumbfounded when he heard that. So they were relying on metaphysics?!
What the fuck, wherever Ren Xiaosu went, the strongholds would collapse.
Wang Fugui carefully recalled. Eh, it really seemed like that was the case!
After thinking for a long time, Wang Fugui did not know how to refute Zhang Xiaoman's words!
But on second thought, Wang Fugui felt it was indeed more reliable for Fortress 178 to find someone than them. He might as well wait for the news here first.
At this moment, the news of Stronghold 74's destruction had not spread to the Northwest yet. In fact, most of the people in the Barrier Alliance still did not know what had happened to Stronghold 74. All they knew was that they had lost contact with the people there.
Zhang Xiaoman dragged Wang Fugui to eat, and then he enthusiastically arranged the goods for Wang Fugui. "We originally thought that we would only open the trade with the Central Plains in half a year, but we underestimated the enthusiasm of the peddlers. You can't go back empty-handed, or else you'll be wasting gas money. I've arranged everything here for you. I won't ask you to bring too much for the first time, but I'll prepare dozens of tons of potassium chloride for you first."
Wang Fugui was dumbfounded. He knew what potassium chloride was for. It had many uses, and he could definitely sell it for money if he brought it back.
In fact, most of the minerals from the Northwest could be sold directly to the Wang Clan if they were brought back to the Central Plains. The reason the Wang Clan had opened up the trade route was precisely for the mineral deposits in the Northwest.
But when Zhang Xiaoman mentioned dozens of tons right off the bat, Wang Fugui could not form any concept of what this unit of measurement was.
He hesitated for a moment before saying, "We only have four secondhand trucks …."
Zhang Xiaoman did not mind. "I'll get you a vehicle."
With that, he got the orderlies to call for people. The people he called were all the big shots in the stronghold and the bosses of various companies.
These people had once sought refuge with the Soong Clan. After Fortress 178 took over the stronghold, Zhang Jinglin told them not to make things too difficult for these people.
Zhang Xiaoman and the others immediately understood what he meant. "Don't make things too difficult for them" meant that they could make things difficult for them as long as they did not force them to their deaths.
Therefore, Zhang Xiaoman was looking for an opportunity to make things difficult for these big shots. Now was the perfect time to make these people contribute to Wang Fugui.
When the big shots arrived, Zhang Xiaoman asked to borrow a convoy of vehicles. If there were any extra vehicles left after loading the potassium chloride, he would then use them to load up some nickel ore for Wang Fugui.
Although the other influential families felt their hearts ache, they did not dare to say anything. They watched as Zhang Xiaoman led his troops and stationed themselves next to Stronghold 144. He usually had the power to decide their lives and deaths. He was practically their father.
However, it was not over yet. Zhang Xiaoman felt that it would be too hard for Wang Fugui to personally sell the lipstick. So he decided to let these big shots buy up the goods that Wang Fugui had brought from the Central Plains. In the future, when Wang Fugui brought the goods back from the Central Plains, he could just sell them directly to them.
The big shots were complaining in their hearts. However, some of the smarter ones suddenly realized this couldn't be one of Zhang Xiaoman's ways of making money, right?
Zhang Xiaoman might not be able to ask for money directly, so he was using this business excuse to exploit them?
But at this time, any smart person would not refuse. In fact, they would even respond positively on the surface!
After the big shots left, Wang Fugui sat in the military camp in a daze for a long time. He had been in business for half his life, but this was the first time he felt that doing business was not difficult at all!
The four trucks of goods they brought were all sold out before they could even start selling.
However, Old Wang did not go to the extreme. He offered these big shots a higher price than the cost, but it was not ridiculously high. After all, if he wanted them to be his distributors for a long time in the future, it had to be a win-win situation, right?
Old Wang was not blinded by everything that was happening in front of him. He was still thinking about the future, not a one-time deal.
As a matter of fact, Old Wang's mind was already racing. With this connection, he might even become the toughest and most powerful businessman in the Northwest trade route. In that case, his entire family would be able to live a good life.
An extremely good life!
Furthermore, he clearly realized that everything Zhang Xiaoman had done was all because of Ren Xiaosu.
It was because he was the "good friend" that Ren Xiaosu had been painstakingly searching for. That was why he was given a higher status in Fortress 178's territory. Old Wang had told Wang Yuchi that one had to have connections in order to do business. However, Old Wang did not expect that his connections would be so strong.
However, Old Wang still could not understand. Ren Xiaosu had indeed helped Fortress 178 fight the war, but that did not warrant such an attitude from Zhang Xiaoman, right? How could Zhang Xiaoman have such great authority to sell dozens of tons of potassium chloride on credit just like that? That was worth over a million yuan in supplies!
While Wang Fugui was trying to figure it out, Jiao Xiaochen asked Zhang Xiaoman in private, "Commander, aren't you being a little too bold? Did you really sell it on credit just like that? We don't have to do that, right? "
"What do you know?" Zhang Xiaoman said smugly, "Why else would I be the commander and you're only the deputy commander?"
Jiao Xiaochen's face instantly darkened. He wanted to kick Zhang Xiaoman. "Why don't you tell me your reason for doing that?"
Zhang Xiaoman said softly, "Didn't you hear what Old Wang said? He's actually Ren Xiaosu's manager, and all the assets and money are meant for Ren Xiaosu. In other words, all the money is earned by Ren Xiaosu. If Ren Xiaosu came to you and asked for dozens of tons of potassium chloride on credit, would you say no? When Ren Xiaosu finds Old Wang and realizes he owns such a large business in the Northwest, will he not return to the Northwest? We're going to use this business to tie down Old Wang and the others first. If they can't run away, Ren Xiaosu can't run away either. "
Jiao Xiaochen pondered for a moment. "That sounds reasonable. Go on."
"Besides, now that Ren Xiaosu has returned, he might even become the commander of Fortress 178 in a few years." Zhang Xiaoman muttered mysteriously, "I heard from Old Zhou a few days ago that Wang Fengyuan has suggested increasing the search for Ren Xiaosu during a meeting with the higher-ups. He hopes to bring him back to systematically learn about military command and then familiarize him with the various fighting forces. The other commanders did not object to that. Since they didn't object, that means they tacitly agreed."
Jiao Xiaochen gasped. Systematically learn about military command and familiarize him with the various fighting forces? What kind of officer would need to learn in this direction? Wouldn't that be the fucking commander?!
Zhang Xiaoman chuckled and said, "Actually, the most important thing is that all the commanders have acknowledged Ren Xiaosu. It's not that everyone thinks Ren Xiaosu can become the commander right now, but they've acknowledged his potential. They've acknowledged his strength, courage, and character! It's already not easy for him to achieve this. Therefore, some of the obstacles for Ren Xiaosu to take over as the commander in a few or more years have been cleared during the battle with the Soong Clan. Think about it, we're saving up for the next commander now. Don't you think it's worth it?! "
"But if the commander asks about this batch of potassium chloride …"
"Don't worry. If we can get Ren Xiaosu to come back, the commander will probably be willing to give this batch of potassium chloride to Old Wang instead of putting it on credit."
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