If you traveled back to ancient times, while others ate Guanyin clay, you would actually have giant

"What idea is it? Tell me quickly."

The others seemed to have grasped at a straw.

"Although we don't have much money, our Ministry of War has plenty of supplies. If necessary, we can talk to the shipyard owner and try to barter with them?"

"No, no, if the higher-ups find out, I'll lose my head too!"

Those who had still held a sliver of hope immediately lost heart upon hearing this plan.

The Ministry of War's supplies were mostly for war preparedness. Without orders from above, they could use them at will, and if caught, they would all be executed.

"Do you have a better idea?"

"If the higher-ups find out, we'll be dead anyway."

"We can just attribute these things to the Fourth Prince's bandit suppression efforts, then who will check his accounts?"

The room fell silent instantly upon hearing this. Yes, this way it would be perfect, satisfying the Fourth Prince's needs without having to take the blame.

. . . . . . .

Niujia Town Shipyard.

"Shopkeeper, a customer is looking for you."

Gong Sheng was conducting his routine inspection when his subordinates informed him that a group of mysterious clients insisted on seeing him.

"Please have a seat, guests."

Gong Sheng had tea and snacks served to the guests, a level of hospitality that left the mysterious group bewildered.

Little did they know that Zhou Wu's service philosophy for river-dwelling restaurants meant that since they had made a lot of money from their customers, providing them with excellent service was only right.

"We're here to buy a boat."

The visitors were several officials from the Ministry of War. Because they intended to barter, they did not reveal their true identities.

"Please have a seat, sir. This is a catalog; please take a look."

Gong Sheng didn't know what was going on. He used to be the manager of this shipyard, but almost all the customers were normal. Ever since he started working for Lord Zhou, the customers who came to buy ships were always acting mysteriously and strangely.

"We want to buy this one."

"Oh."

The other party immediately placed him at the Bull Demon King level, pointing and saying.

"Yes, how many do you all have?"

"Twenty ships."

"No problem, but since you have found us, you must know that the delivery cycle is relatively long, so we need to collect a deposit."

When can we deliver the goods?

About a year later.

"What? Are you kidding me? No way, I need it in stock right now."

If they really can't get the boat for another year, I bet they'll be too eager to go back.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we produce according to the order of priority. It is true that the earliest you can expect to wait is a year. We treat every customer with sincerity and would never cut in line."

This kind of scene happens almost every day, so Gong Sheng wasn't flustered.

"No, we can pay more."

"Oh, how much?"

This is also what Zhou Wu called Gong Sheng. The name Shang means "deceptive means," and it means never to go against money.

"I don't know if the boss will accept bartering."

"That depends on what goods you can offer."

Many people who buy boats here also barter for goods. Gong Sheng, who works in this line of work, has some idea of ​​the identities of those people. However, although the people in front of him are also bartering, they are completely different from those people, and Gong Sheng can't figure out their identities.

"iron ore?"

"iron ore?"

Gong Sheng had initially thought the other party would be some other valuable commodity, but unexpectedly it was iron ore. This put Gong Sheng in a difficult position. Iron ore was a strategic material in Dalong, and blacksmiths in various places could only purchase it from the government, and even then, the supply was limited.

Now the other party is proposing to exchange iron ore for ships, which is no small amount. Gong Sheng can only ask them to wait a moment and say that he will go and ask his boss.

He turned around and came to Zhou Wu.

"Iron ore? Are you sure they said they'd trade iron ore for ships? And a whole twenty ships?"

"Yes, I heard it clearly."

Does the other person resemble those kinds of people?

"No, those people were too obvious. They were vulgar, dirty, and of low quality. But these people don't have any of those flaws. On the contrary, they look refined and have an air of arrogance."

The identity of the person who came this time was truly mysterious, and Zhou Wu didn't know what to do for a moment.

To be honest, he desperately needs iron ore right now, because Zhou Wu is currently preparing to develop artillery, which will use a lot of iron ore. At this critical juncture, someone is actually offering iron ore in exchange for ships. It's like someone has delivered a pillow to someone who wants to sleep.

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Wu decided to secretly meet these mysterious people to see who they really were.

Zhou Wu hid in the inner room, looked at the people sitting inside, and felt that they looked familiar. Suddenly he realized that they were those little devils from the Ministry of War.

"The Ministry of War actually dared to exchange strategic materials for ships. Has something happened in the capital?"

Zhou Wu instructed Gong Sheng to deal with the other party first, while he himself quickly sent someone to inquire about **An.

. . . . .

"Manager Gong, just give me a straight answer. How long will it take at the earliest? We've been waiting here for two days already. Give me a definite answer."

Gong Sheng had already used all his skills to stall the enemy for two days, and now he could only hope that Zhou Wu would appear soon, otherwise he would be helpless.

Just as Gong Sheng was at a loss, someone came down and called him out. It was Zhou Wu who had the results.

"My lord, you've finally arrived! We simply couldn't delay any longer."

“Agree to their terms, but not entirely with iron ore. I have a list here; negotiate with them based on this.”

"Good."

For Gong Sheng, as long as there is a plan, negotiations are a minor matter.

Seeing Gong Sheng turn around and go inside to negotiate with the other party, Zhou Wu felt more confident. From An's reply, Zhou Wu roughly understood what was going on.

It turns out that the Fourth Prince wanted to build a navy to suppress bandits, and he insisted that the Ministry of War provide twenty Bull Demon King-level tanks. The Ministry of War did not dare to offend the Fourth Prince and did not have the money, so it resorted to this desperate measure.

Since it was the Ministry of War, Zhou Wu naturally wasn't afraid of anything being illegal or not, because the Ministry of War would definitely not let this matter be exposed.

The list Zhou Wu gave Gong Sheng was basically all the materials needed for artillery, and of course, the materials needed for gunpowder were also included.

The materials that can be obtained from twenty Bull Demon King ships are enough to last Niujia Town for quite some time, saving Zhou Wu a lot of trouble.

. . . . . .

"No, shopkeeper, you're trying to raise the price on the spot."

“Guest, I’m taking a huge risk by giving you someone else’s ship first. This not only affects my shipyard’s reputation, but I also have to compensate other customers. Do you think I’m asking for too much?”

The shopkeeper's words left the Ministry of War officials speechless. Although the other party was right, they couldn't let themselves be taken advantage of.

After several rounds of bargaining, Gong Sheng reluctantly gave each boat extra buckets of fresh water.

The two sides finally reached an agreement, and the ship would be delivered a month later, which was the fastest possible delivery. The Ministry of War officials left satisfied, agreeing to return a month later to receive the ship.