btmnovel Chapter 3356 Cash on Delivery
Chapter 3356 Cash on Delivery
Chapter 3356 Cash on Delivery
"President Peng, how about an aircraft carrier?"
Yang Xiaotao's words immediately silenced President Peng.
On the other end of the phone, Mr. Peng held a satellite phone, looking somewhat uncomfortable.
I recently received a request from a shipyard in Shanghai, saying that their research and development was at a bottleneck and they wanted to find an aircraft carrier to conduct actual surveys, learn from, and gain experience.
Otherwise, this kind of closed-door approach, even with models for comparison, will not improve speed.
Moreover, they simply cannot manufacture those specialized instruments used on aircraft carriers.
Without physical references, even the most skilled cook cannot make a meal without ingredients.
However, after the matter was submitted, President Peng put it aside and did not issue it.
There's no other reason than who would sell an aircraft carrier these days?
Oh, Britain is a different story.
They're really trying to recoup their losses by selling at a loss.
Moreover, given the current international situation, no one would sell to them anyway, so he could only laugh it off to everyone, though he was powerless to do anything about it.
As for Shanghai, all we can do is urge them to overcome the difficulties and complete the task.
As for how to overcome it, that depends on their own abilities.
I thought there was no hope in this matter, but when the phone rang, I heard Yang Xiaotao say those words.
For a moment, even he himself could hardly believe it.
"President Peng, did you hear me?"
Yang Xiaotao's voice came through the phone again.
Peng finally came to his senses and hummed twice, "I heard you, I heard you. What did you just say? Say it again."
Yang Xiaotao had no choice but to repeat the story again, "President Peng, would you like an aircraft carrier?"
This time, Mr. Peng finally understood and immediately said, "What do you mean by 'I don't want it'? What aircraft carrier!"
"Explain things more clearly."
Boss Peng immediately reprimanded him, and Yang Xiaotao then recounted everything that Faisal had mentioned to Boss Peng.
Finally, he explained, "Faisal is a man who tends to exaggerate, but he's unlikely to lie when it comes to serious matters."
"Although the French aircraft carrier is a bit old, it has everything it needs. I personally think that as long as the price is right, we can give it a try."
"Of course, this matter needs to be kept secret. If others find out, it may fail halfway through."
After Yang Xiaotao finished explaining everything, President Peng finally realized what was going on and started to think carefully about whether he should buy it and how much he should spend.
At the same time, I couldn't help but think that Yang Xiaotao always brought different surprises every time he went on a business trip. Could this guy be a lucky star?
"Xiao Tao, here's what we'll do: you contact him first, find out the situation, and I'll call a meeting to discuss it right away. Let's stay in touch."
"Okay, Mr. Peng, you need to hurry, I have to go back now."
Before Yang Xiaotao could finish speaking, President Peng hung up the phone as quickly as possible.
Yang Xiaotao glanced at the satellite phone and then hung up.
However, he did not rush to find Faisal. Instead, he returned to his residence and pondered why France had approached them and why they were selling the aircraft carrier. These were all for the purpose of the upcoming negotiations.
If I don't understand these things, I feel uneasy about doing this business.
On the other side, after hanging up the phone, Mr. Peng didn't care that it was still past 10 p.m. and immediately picked up the red phone to make a call.
In the middle of the night, the lights in President Peng's office were still on.
Before long, we saw Old Chen yawning as he walked in, Old Zhang looking confused, Uncle walking in while smoking, and Li Rong looking disgusted and unhappy.
Several people walked in quickly, sat down to one side, and remained silent.
They couldn't understand why they had been called over so late at night, but they were certain it was something very important.
After everyone sat down, Mr. Peng briefly recounted what Yang Xiaotao had told him.
At first, everyone was a little confused and couldn't open their eyes, but when Boss Peng finished speaking, they all looked shocked.
Old Chen, in particular, was in high spirits but looked anxious.
For no other reason than that buying things costs money.
Sure enough, the next moment, Boss Peng looked at Old Chen and asked, "Old Chen, how much money can you come up with here?"
Old Chen was a little restless, and then said, "Old Peng, don't be fooled by how much money we've made in the past two years. We've also spent a lot of money. For the sake of domestic economic development, most of our foreign currency has been used to purchase instruments and equipment, petroleum products, and so on. Some of it is also used for foreign exchange reserves. We can't possibly use it all."
So this…
"I don't have much money to spare!"
Old Chen's meaning was self-evident: he rejected the deal.
Seeing what Elder Chen said, Li Rong chimed in, "President Peng, it's just a decommissioned aircraft carrier. What's the use of buying it? Are we just going to scrap it? Besides, I've heard that most of these carriers are scrapped. France probably wants to sell it to us because they're looking for someone to take over."
"Besides, we're almost finished building our own aircraft carrier, there's no need to buy some junk."
After listening to the two men finish speaking, Mr. Peng did not speak, but instead looked at his uncle and Old Zhang standing to the side.
Old Zhang, known for his straightforward nature, slammed his hand on the table and exclaimed, "Buy! Why not buy such a great opportunity? You'll miss this chance forever. You know, aircraft carriers aren't something you can just sell anytime these days!"
"There are only a handful of countries in the world capable of building aircraft carriers, and only a handful possess them. We don't have any yet..."
Now that there's an opportunity, why not buy?
After Mr. Zhang finished speaking, Mr. Peng looked at his uncle again.
Since my uncle came in, he has been smoking nonstop, and now the ashtray in front of him is full of cigarette butts.
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, he flicked off the ash and calmly said, "Money can be earned back, but opportunities don't come often."
"Especially before our aircraft carrier was even built."
"Also, Old Zhang is right! There are so many countries in the world that build aircraft carriers, but there are probably very few that can actually sell them. At least I know that the United States will not sell them, for fear that the technology on the aircraft carriers will be learned by others."
"Britain may sell, but it will only sell to its allies. As for other countries, like the Allies, they don't yet have a decent aircraft carrier." "The aircraft carrier that France wants to sell now, although outdated, represents a breakthrough from zero to one for our country."
"So I agreed to buy it."
As his uncle finished speaking, President Peng looked at the four people, two to two.
In fact, everyone had already guessed what Boss Peng meant, otherwise he wouldn't have called them over so late.
So Mr. Peng said, "This is a golden opportunity, and I agree to purchase it."
After saying this, Old Chen sighed, then his expression hardened again, "Since we're going to buy it, we'll go all out."
He then sat up straight and looked at everyone, "Have Yang Xiaotao contact that person; we need to talk."
When Yang Xiaotao received the call again, it was already evening.
After Peng finished explaining the matter to Yang Xiaotao, he immediately said, "The price must be agreed upon, and we must make sure that the other party delivers the aircraft carrier to our country. Payment can only be made upon delivery. This is the most important thing."
Upon hearing what President Peng said, Yang Xiaotao understood that the domestic demand was still to buy the aircraft carrier, so he nodded to President Peng and said, "Leave this matter to me."
After hanging up the phone, Yang Xiaotao went straight to Faisal's office.
Upon arriving at Faisal's residence, Yang Xiaotao knocked on the door and slowly walked in.
Seeing Yang Xiaotao's smiling face, Faisal knew that the deal was going to be done. He warmly welcomed them, and the two quickly took their seats before getting down to business.
"Mr. Faisal, I'd like to know, can you make decisions regarding the aircraft carrier?"
When Yang Xiaotao said those words, Faisal's hand, which was under the table, clenched slightly. It seemed that the deal was done.
So he looked at Yang Xiaotao seriously and said, "I'm just a middleman relaying a message. The specifics are up to you. But I can convey your message, since you haven't had direct contact yet."
Yang Xiaotao nodded. Having Faisal as an intermediary was good, avoiding direct contact. So he asked directly, "So, Mr. Faisal, what price did they offer?"
Faisal chuckled and said, "Let me first mention that India purchased the Hermes from Britain for over 25 million pounds, which is about 56 million US dollars. Of course, the French also know that the Hermes is far superior to the Arromanche, so their offer was 50 million US dollars!"
"Fifty million US dollars? Impossible!"
Yang Xiaotao waved his hand dismissively, looking utterly incredulous. "A 30-year-old aircraft carrier costs 50 million US dollars? That's simply a fantasy."
Faisal did not rush to refute, but instead took out a document from the drawer, which contained the performance data of the Arromanche.
Yang Xiaotao took the document and looked at it. Faisal, who was standing next to him, explained, "Yang, this aircraft carrier is 212 meters long, 24.4 meters wide, has a full-load displacement of 13600 tons, a range of 22000 km, and a speed of 25 knots."
"Of course, these are just basic data. Now I'll tell you something you'll be interested in. The Arromanche has undergone a major refit, including the installation of early catapults, landing mirrors, and a landing deck with a 40° angle."
"In other words, this Arromanche is equipped with the latest steam catapult."
"In addition, to better accommodate the landing of modern jet aircraft, the French have also installed arresting cables on the aircraft carrier. These are also things you would be interested in. I remember you are developing a carrier-based aircraft, so I think you would need these things."
The news of China building carrier-based aircraft has been widely publicized by Britain and the United States. If there are no aircraft carriers, why design carrier-based aircraft?
Since China is designing carrier-based aircraft, it means they are researching aircraft carriers, which is why France and Faisal believe China will buy them.
Of course, what they didn't know was that China was indeed researching an aircraft carrier, but it wasn't a conventionally powered one; it was a nuclear-powered one, and it would be the same type of aircraft carrier as the USS Enterprise.
However, just as Faisal said, China needs these technologies, needs to learn more experience through them, and also needs to use this aircraft carrier to train more airmen.
Yang Xiaotao tapped his fingers lightly on the table, looking at the data in the document. He could only say that this was a light aircraft carrier, and even among light aircraft carriers, it was a small one.
Compared to the Enterprise's weight of over 94,000 tons, it's like a child trying to outmuscle an adult.
However, every beginning is difficult, and this small aircraft carrier may become a mentor for China's naval air force.
However, Yang Xiaotao did not show any particular urgency. Instead, he pointed out the data listed in the document to Faisal one by one, saying, "Old Faisal, don't take advantage of me because I don't know anything."
"The Hermes that India purchased has a full-load displacement of over 27,000 tons and is 227 meters long. It's much larger than the Aromache. The other party asked for 56 million US dollars, which is well worth the price."
"Look at the Arromanche. What does it have? It's not as fast as others, it's not as fully loaded, and it doesn't even carry as many fighter jets. And it still costs fifty million US dollars? We can't accept this price. I hope they can show some sincerity."
Faisal glanced at Yang Xiaotao, then smiled and said, "Alright then, I'll contact them again tonight and give you an answer tomorrow morning!"
Yang Xiaotao nodded, took the data, and left immediately.
Haste makes waste; you can't rush into a sale. Besides, if it's really not going to work out, then don't buy it.
Of course, in Mr. Peng's eyes, this aircraft carrier already belongs to China.
Back at his residence, Yang Xiaotao picked up the phone again and, without waiting for Peng to rest, dialed directly.
The call was answered quickly, and Yang Xiaotao told them the price.
When President Peng heard the price was fifty million US dollars, a moment of hesitation flashed through his mind. Fifty million US dollars—how many computers could that buy? But thinking of how much help an aircraft carrier would provide, he steeled himself and said to Yang Xiaotao, "Let's continue negotiating the price, but we must buy the aircraft carrier."
Yang Xiaotao nodded and then ended the call.
The next day, Faisal approached Yang Xiaotao again. "Yang, the French have given their final terms: forty-five million US dollars. That's the final price."
Yang Xiaotao looked at Faisal intently, then suddenly laughed, "Alright, since they've shown sincerity, we can't push our luck. We'll accept the 45 million US dollars."
Upon hearing Yang Xiaotao's agreement, Faisal was initially taken aback, but then quickly broke into a smile.
He had originally thought that Yang Xiaotao would continue to haggle and lower the price, and he was prepared for a long battle with Yang Xiaotao. But to his surprise, Yang Xiaotao agreed so readily.
Faisal beamed with joy at the thought of the profits he would extract.
However, Yang Xiaotao's expression suddenly changed, and Faisal's smile vanished. Yang Xiaotao continued, "But we need payment upon delivery, and it has to be a complete aircraft carrier!"
"Cash on delivery?"
Faisal paused for a moment, then understood Yang Xiaotao's concerns.
Like the aircraft carrier purchased by India, although India has already paid half of the money to Britain, the Hermes is still outside Britain, and it is still unknown when it will arrive in India.
There is another layer of meaning: it is hard to say whether this aircraft carrier can reach China, whether other countries will make things difficult for it, or whether it will be sunk midway.
After all, there are still many people in this world who do not want to see China become powerful.
"I need to confirm with the other party."
Faisal, not daring to make the decision, continued speaking.
Yang Xiaotao nodded. "Then please do it as soon as possible. I'll wait for news."
Faisal got up and left the room immediately.