Chapter 17: We Have A Cannon, So Do We Still Need To Repay The Money?
“In the past, there was a Jewish merchant who had more than three thousand pigeons to sell, but he didn’t sell them directly. Instead, he went to the countryside to buy more pigeons. He found a family willing to sell their pigeons at double the price.”
“This family was extremely happy and without a word, immediately sold all 100 pigeons they were raising at home.”
“The second time, this Jewish merchant came to the village again. He spread the word that he was willing to buy 2000 pigeons at triple the price, only today, no waiting after.”
“At first, no one believed it, but after the first villager came out and explained the situation, everyone believed it. The whole village’s pigeons added up to exactly 2000. The villagers happily jumped up counting the money, and the Jewish merchant left with a smile.”
“The Jewish merchant came to the village a third time to buy pigeons, willing to buy them at five times the price. The villagers exclaimed in shock one after another, but they had no pigeons left; they had all sold out.”
“Later, the Jewish merchant came twice more, with the price skyrocketing to more than ten times. Although the villagers were green with envy, they could only look on helplessly.”
“Suddenly one day, the villagers heard that someone in a certain place was selling pigeons at an outrageous ten times the price. But buying at ten times and selling to the Jewish merchant at more than ten times, they could still earn some profit margin. So the villagers bought out all more than five thousand pigeons from that person.”
“However, what the villagers didn’t expect was that the Jewish merchant never appeared again. The person who sold them more than five thousand pigeons was also a shill hired by the Jewish people.”
“This was the trap set by the Jewish people: first buying up the villagers’ pigeons at high prices to let them taste the sweetness, then inflating the price even higher and selling to the villagers at even higher prices. The Jewish people’s original more than three thousand pigeons were also sold at high prices, earning them a fortune.”
After Li Muzhi finished telling the story to Zhang Wanhe, Zhang Wanhe couldn’t help saying, “Isn’t this just scamming money?”
However, Zhang Wanhe quite admired the lesson contained in this story.
We don’t have that many pigeons, but we can use other goods as substitutes.
“This sounds nice as business tactics. Not so nice, it is indeed a scam.” Li Muzhi nodded and said to Zhang Wanhe, “If we use it on traitors, is this still called scamming? This is called economic punishment for traitors!”
“But this takes a bit too long in terms of time.” Although Zhang Wanhe acknowledged it, he felt the time was too long.
We can’t wait to get money right away, to stockpile the Japanese invaders’ fertilizer as fast as possible.
“I do have a quick way to get money, but it has risks.” Li Muzhi said again.
“Tell me about it.”
“Aren’t there traitors lending at usurious interest? We can have people go borrow.” Borrowing money and not repaying it is the fastest way to make money.
“Go borrow at usurious interest?” Zhang Wanhe was stunned. “If we can’t repay the usurious loan, won’t our people be in danger?”
The traitors lending at usurious interest aren’t fools either; they check people before lending, not just anyone can borrow.
In other words, only our underground personnel can go borrow.
But these underground personnel have gone undercover with great difficulty; using them to borrow at usurious interest and not repay is no different from exposing them.
“Minister Zhang, how are you wise all your life but confused now.” Li Muzhi pointed out, “Once we have money, we produce cannonballs. Once our Hell Cannon can continue roaring, do you think we still need to repay the money?”
“Oh, right, right!” Zhang Wanhe slapped his forehead and immediately agreed, “Yes, once we have the Hell Cannon, why repay the damn money? At that time, we’ll directly deal with these dog traitors!”
When dealing with these traitors, we can conveniently raid their homes, and gather another wave of funds.
At that time, with money we can’t spend, we’ll use the selling pigeons trick on other traitors. Once set up properly, our logistics will have a steady stream of funds coming in.
Zhang Wanhe looked at Li Muzhi, full of praise: “Li Muzhi, I really didn’t expect that not only do you have extremely high talent in military industry, but your methods for raising funds for the organization are no less impressive. Maybe one day, my position as head of logistics really will…”
“Minister Zhang, don’t say such inauspicious words.” Li Muzhi quickly interrupted Zhang Wanhe and said, “At that time, even if we wipe out the traitors with cannons, our underground personnel will still have some risk. Minister Zhang, you handle it as you see fit.”
Those traitors daring to lend at usurious interest all have Japanese invader shares behind them.
After wiping out the traitors, there are still the Japanese invaders, who won’t let it go.
Our underground personnel might still face exposure risks.
“Nothing we do now is without risk; you don’t need to worry about how to operate it.” Zhang Wanhe nodded.
Is this risk greater than our combat troops fighting the Japanese invaders on the battlefield?
Our logistics is the backing of the troops, so we must do everything to support the logistics for the troops.
Otherwise, it would be dereliction of duty on my part as head of logistics!
In the time they spoke, they returned to the arsenal.
Looking at the quiet arsenal, Zhang Wanhe’s mood at this moment was completely different.
Previously it was fury, now it was ecstatic joy.
“Li Muzhi, when the arsenal workers come back, don’t do bullets and grenades first; make all the cannons for me first.” Zhang Wanhe said solemnly to Li Muzhi.
Being able to make cannons, Zhang Wanhe as head of logistics was proactively halting bullet and grenade production, suspending work.
“Yes, Minister Zhang.” Li Muzhi nodded.
Zhang Wanhe went to the production workshop to check.
“With just welding machine, cutting machine, generator and these few pieces of equipment, you can make cannons. It’s truly unbelievable.” Zhang Wanhe couldn’t help sighing again.
Zhang Wanhe was going to write a report to headquarters.
He was wondering what the headquarters leader would think upon seeing his report.
“Minister Zhang, power is the foundation of military industry production.” Li Muzhi said to Zhang Wanhe, “We still need to get the arsenal’s power up as soon as possible.”
“Don’t we have the generator?” Zhang Wanhe pointed at the generator.
“This generator’s power is too small, and it burns oil, which our army’s oil supply can’t keep up with.” Li Muzhi said.
“Then do you have any ideas?” Zhang Wanhe looked at Li Muzhi.
Since he said that, he should have a way.
“Once we have enough cannonballs made, have the combat troops go rob them.” Li Muzhi, as a top officer expert from later generations, could handmade a generator, but handmaking a high-power generator under Eighth Route Army logistics conditions was still very difficult.
So, the thinking still goes back to the most primitive way: have Li Yunlong go rob.
“Rob the enemy’s generator; this probably isn’t realistic.” Zhang Wanhe questioned. Generators are only in the enemy’s arsenals, and we don’t even know the locations of the enemy arsenals.
“Minister Zhang, once the cannonballs are made, I naturally have a way.” Li Muzhi was very confident.
“As long as you have a way, whatever you need, just tell me.” Zhang Wanhe didn’t ask further. The current urgent task is to hurry and gather raw materials for making cannonballs.
