Insufficient balance

  After the initial intention was established, Chen Jingyun and Henry's negotiations continued. Such a large-scale military procurement could not be settled by simply talking about it. They followed a single thread of conversation, during which Henry went back and forth to the governor's office several times and communicated with Shanghai headquarters via telegram, while Shanghai headquarters communicated with the local government, and only then was an initial agreement reached.

  50,000 unused 1888 rifles in storage, 25,000 second-hand refurbished 1888 rifles, 100 old artillery pieces of various types, 100 old heavy machine guns, 500 Ruger pistols, 1,500 Mauser C96 pistols, 150 old Madsen light machine guns, 15 million rounds of ammunition, and 50,000 cannonballs. All the above items except for the pistols are retired or soon-to-be-retired stock, not a single new item. The rifles are all old 1888 models, the artillery includes 36 75mm field cannons, 18 75mm mountain cannons, 40 60mm light quick-firing mountain cannons, and six 105mm light howitzers. Although they are old models from many years ago, they are all serviceable. The heavy machine guns are old models like the MG99/MG01, while the Madsen machine guns were purchased by Germany from Denmark in the past. Even items like ammunition, cannonballs, and telescopes are all stockpiled reserves from the German army's warehouses over the years.

  According to Henri, these military equipment were hard-won, especially the cannons. To have them decommissioned from the Imperial Army, Li and Yang had put in a great deal of effort.

  In Chen Jingyun's view, these things are all old and unwanted goods that others don't want. Selling them to himself is just a way of disposing of garbage and relieving warehouse pressure. Fortunately, although these military equipment are old, their performance can't be compared with today's advanced models, but there is no generation gap, and there won't be a huge difference like the one between muzzle-loading guns and breech-loading guns. Considering the domestic environment, these weapons are sufficient for use on the domestic battlefield.

  As for the only new goods, that is the pistol. The Ruger pistol is equipped with officers, and it's too embarrassing to use old ones. With only 500 branches, they simply bought brand new ones. And Mauser C96 has several Chinese names called "self-coming" and "twenty responses". Originally, it was a fully automatic pistol, but after adding a magazine and gunstock, it transformed into a "storming pistol". Chen Jingyun didn't have a good feeling about this thing, mainly because in his previous life he had seen many movies and TV shows where bandits and outlaws wore a "revolver" on their waist, which was too rustic. However, Lin Chengkun strongly advocated that the gun was powerful and convenient to carry, and it would be perfect for equipping artillery and guard troops. Chen Jingyun thought about it and felt that this automatic pistol did have some advantages, so he put aside his preconceptions and bought 1,500 branches first, and then replaced them with more suitable ones later. Since the German army itself didn't equip this gun, it couldn't be an old product, so they could only buy new ones.

  The price of the guns, ammunition and other miscellaneous items was settled at 360 million silver dollars after Chen Jingyun asked Henry to give a 5% discount.

  Overall, the price of this batch of military equipment is still quite reasonable, neither too expensive nor too cheap, it's just a normal standard.

  As there were not so many stocks in the Far East, Henry said that they needed to be transported from home, and in order for these weapons to leave the army's warehouse, they also had to operate domestically. After all, the German army's old stock of weapons couldn't just be sold, some means had to be used to get them out. However, this was a matter for Li and Yang themselves, Chen Jingyun only needed to prepare the money.

  For this, both parties signed a contract, which was divided into three phases. The first phase was the 5,000 used Model 1888 rifles and some artillery and heavy machine guns temporarily withdrawn from the Far East by Li and Yang Trading Company. Chen Jingyun paid an advance payment of 300,000 yuan for this. The next two batches were to be paid within three months, and the goods would also be paid in installments.

  Apart from the arms, Chen Jingyun strongly demanded military instructors, especially artillery instructors Henry did not directly refuse. He said he was just a businessman and this batch of arms transactions were purely commercial activities that did not involve military cooperation between countries. At the same time, he also said that he could help Chen Jingyun recruit some retired military instructors who were willing to come to the Far East to make a fortune from a business perspective.

  As for the loan that Chen Jingyun had originally held great hopes for, it was directly rejected by Henry, who made it clear that this batch of military supplies must be paid in cash, with one hand exchanging money and the other handing over goods!

  "I thought that in this day and age, foreigners would be clamoring to lend me money!" Chen Jingyun thought to himself with a wry smile. He also knew why the Germans were unwilling to lend him money - after all, he was just a local warlord, and who knows when he might collapse amidst China's chaotic situation? If they lent him money and he collapsed, wouldn't the Germans be left crying?

  Apart from this batch of military contracts, Chen Jingyun also inquired about machinery and equipment. He didn't understand these things, and Henry also said that he was a professional arms dealer and didn't quite understand industrial equipment either. They had to wait for the Shanghai headquarters to send someone over! Chen Jingyun knew that developing self-made military industry would take time, so he could only wait for now.

  Besides, Chen Jingyun didn't even know where to get the money for this batch of military supplies, let alone have enough to buy machinery and other things. As for things like opening up ports and education, developing industry and commerce, and abolishing the likin tax, Chen Jingyun didn't dare to think about them at all now.

  Chen Jingyun, who had been tired all day, had just sent away Chen Jingyun, who was also tired all day. He thought to himself whether he should go home for a while. Since the uprising, he first lived in the Yushan Command Center and then moved to the Governor's Mansion. Due to being too busy, he couldn't take time off, so during this period, he only went back twice. However, in order to avoid suspicion, he didn't bring his whole family to live in the Governor's Mansion. Now is a critical moment, and reputation is still something that needs to be taken care of.

  Chen Cai reported that the officials from the Machine Bureau and the Shipping Administration had arrived and were waiting!

  Chen Jingyun also dispelled his intention of returning after listening, and went to the main hall to meet the two men.

  As soon as they entered, two men quickly stood up and respectfully said: "Director Tang Hui-kang of the Machine Bureau and Director Hsi Tse-hsing of the Naval Bureau pay their respects to Your Excellency!"

  The two men, one old and one young, the younger one slightly chubby, wearing Western-style clothing, the older one slightly thinner, wearing a horse jacket. Chen Jingyun originally had no impression of these two people in his memory, but followed their instructions: "Tang Zongban, Xi Zongban, no need to be polite! Come on, sit down, sit down!"

  In terms of age, Chen Jingyun is actually much younger than them, but power is a strange thing. With tens of thousands of troops at his command and control over the city of Fuzhou, Chen Jingyun, no matter how young he is, cannot be underestimated by them.

  "Thank you, Director!" The two men were very respectful and didn't dare to sit properly after sitting down, their buttocks only touched the edge of the stool. Chen Jingyun saw this but didn't say anything, anyway he wasn't going to learn from those humble heroes, as a superior he had his own way of doing things, being too polite might make people look down on him or misunderstand him.

  After ordering tea, Chen Jingyun said: "Today I asked the two of you to come over, and it's really a heavy responsibility!"

  The two people below were stunned when they heard this, and Tang Hui Kang stood up: "Governor, please give orders directly, I absolutely have nothing to refuse!"

  Xizhi also stood up and said: "Please instruct, Governor!"

  Seeing them like this, Chen Jingyun pressed his hand and said: "You two don't have to be in a hurry to express your opinions, I haven't even spoken yet, sit down, all of you!"

  After Chen Jingyun's words, the two of them sat down again, but what they were thinking in their hearts was not something that others could know. Chen Jingyun then slowly opened his mouth and said: "You also know that the military government is newly established, and there are many Qing troops stationed in the province. Of course, this matter of fighting is not for you to worry about, but as for these military supplies, we still have to rely on the two of you!"

  Tang Hui Kang spoke up at this time, saying: "The governor's words are indeed correct. Since the recovery of Fuzhou, my machinery bureau has been working day and night to rush production. We produce 5,000 bullets per day, 100 rounds of 75mm shells, and 50 rounds of 57mm shells! Absolutely will not delay the governor's major event!"

  "Haha, good!" Chen Jingyun also knew that the machine factory had not recovered from the fire a few years ago and this production estimate was probably the result of overtime work.

  At this time, Xi Zhihang of the Ship Administration Bureau did not know what to say. The Ship Administration Bureau he presided over was no longer like it used to be. Although on the surface it still looked very large, since the defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Ship Administration Bureau had been struggling. From 1895 to 1907, only a few small warships were built, and after 1907, shipbuilding was completely halted. In recent years, they had been barely scraping by with repair work on ships and building a few small boats, but now they were so poor that they didn't even have the money for maintenance equipment. The vast factory buildings were mostly overgrown with weeds.

  When Chen Jingyun heard Xizhi say that the Matou Shipyard was overgrown with weeds, he also didn't come back to his senses for a long time. In his impression, this Matou Shipyard should be a large-scale shipyard, how did it become so dilapidated? He even wanted to say a few comforting words but didn't know what to say.

  "Since that's the case, your shipyard should also change its way of thinking. If you can't build warships, then build commercial ships or repair them. You can also do other things, such as making cannons and guns. If not, you can make other machines too. In short, we need to find a way out! Chen Jingyun thought that saying this wasn't a solution either, so he said: "Alright, go back and see if you can build airplanes. The equipment is already available anyway. If you can produce them, I'll take all of them."

  Although Xizhi was old, he was after all a businessman and had some knowledge of current events. Although he had never seen an airplane, he knew roughly how it was constructed. He thought that building such a wooden frame wouldn't require too much effort, and if they could make one to sell to the military, they might be able to make a bit of money. So he nodded and said: "Governor, I'll have them draw up a plan for you to review as soon as I get back!"

  "Hmm! Good!" Chen Jingyun said: "Actually, I didn't ask you to come mainly for this, but to let you make a list!"

  "What's going on?" Tang Hui Kang was somewhat perplexed.

  Chen Jingyun nodded: "In the past two days, I have done a deal with Lihe Yanghang, worth several hundred million. I asked them to purchase some machinery and equipment for me, and they agreed. However, when it comes to setting up a military factory, we need you to provide a list of what machines and equipment are needed!"

  When Chen Jingyun said this, the two of them were not fools and understood after a little thought that Chen Jingyun wanted to manufacture his own ammunition. After all, although military equipment can be purchased from outside, the price is not something that everyone can afford, so it's better to manufacture their own if possible.

  "I don't know what scale of factory the governor plans to build, or what kind of guns and artillery he wants to manufacture!" Tang Hui Kang asked, his mind already racing with calculations. If the governor really wanted to build a new factory or expand an existing one, it would fall on his own head. At this thought, a pleased expression also appeared on his face.

  Chen Jingyun also had no idea of the rough number, he was not good at these things, and directly asked: "How much would it cost to build a factory like Hanyang?"

  "Hanyang Factory!" Tan Hui Kang thought to himself, "This governor's ambition is not small. The Hanyang Factory is the country's largest military-industrial enterprise, and it took Zhang Zhidong hundreds of millions of taels of silver to build it. And this Chen Jingyun just mentions a Hanyang factory as if building industry was child's play." However, after thinking about it some more, he heard others say that Chen Jingyun came from a wealthy family and had even set up his own textile mill, so he shouldn't be so ignorant. After a brief moment of consideration, he said: "The Hanyang Factory is massive in scale, with all sorts of specialized branch factories. To build a factory similar in size to the Hanyang Factory would take at least ten years' effort from our Fujian province, and the silver expenditure would likely be in the tens of millions!"

  When he heard that it would take over a decade and tens of millions, Chen Jingyun also took in a breath of cold air. Well, well, well, didn't expect it to cost so much! Forget about the large-scale factory in Hanyang, he opened his mouth and said: "If we build on the machinery bureau's foundation, and want to produce guns, increase the production of bullets and shells, roughly how much would it take?"

  Tang Hui Kang heard Chen Jing Yun say this, and knew that Chen Jing Yun had given up on the idea of building a new large factory and was thinking of expanding instead. After thinking for a moment, he said: "Although our machinery bureau can't compare to the big factories like Hanyang Arsenal and Jinling Arsenal, we do have some foundation. If we add more equipment and expand, producing guns won't be a problem, and increasing production of bullets and shells is also feasible! The only thing is that I'm afraid it will cost around 3 million more!"

  Chen Jingyun listened and felt that 30 million was still a bit expensive, so he asked: "How much can be produced at that time?"

  Tang Hui Kang said: "When the equipment is in place, the workers are skilled, and the funds are sufficient, it's still possible to produce 1,000 guns per month, 10 million bullets, and 100,000 shells!"

  Chen Jingyun secretly calculated for a while, and although he still felt it was too expensive, he couldn't bear to part with the child or let the wolf go hungry. He decided to splurge on this hundreds of millions, thinking that in the future, his own firearms, bullets, and artillery shells could be self-produced, without having to spend a lot of money buying them from others. Moreover, who knows, maybe there would even be surplus production that could be exported to other warlords for profit.

  After this thought, Chen Jingyun gritted his teeth and said directly, "Okay! Mr. Tang, you first list the required equipment, and then find a foreigner to talk about it! As for the money, I'll think of a way!"

  When Chen Jingyun said this, Tang Zongbang also had a happy face: "The governor is wise!"

  After the decision to expand the arsenal was made, Chen Jingyun, although thinking about how to raise funds in his heart, still took this opportunity to speak out his ideas for hand grenades and mortars. Tang Hui-kang listened to Chen's words and looked at the rough sketches he drew, then said with a bitter expression: "According to your drawings, the cannon is simple, but I'm afraid we can't make the barrel ourselves. If we buy it from outside, I'm afraid it will be too expensive!"

  When he heard that the seamless steel tube couldn't be produced, Chen Jingyun wasn't surprised. He had never expected this machinery factory which could only produce bullets and shells to succeed now. He just said: "You go back and organize people to work on it. The cannon barrel inlet is also okay. First make something that can be used, and then we'll make the cannon barrel ourselves when we have the technology later!"

  The mortar is simple to make, but there's an important point that the barrel must be made of seamless steel pipe. With the current domestic technical level, it can't be produced and needs to be imported. Anyway, seamless steel pipes are not strategic materials, so importing them as civilian goods would be convenient.

  Tan Hui Kang said that there is no big technical problem, and after going back, he will try to make a batch first to see the effect!

  After sending away these two people, Chen Jingyun was thinking about how to make money all over his mind!