Chapter 303.1: With A Knife In Hand, I Shall Harvest My Leeks... But How?

Simeon thought he was a genius.

Only by relying on some data on paper, he could judge the next move of his neighbor.

After discovering the situation, he immediately arranged for his salesmen to go to the nearby mines to buy copper ore, sulfur, and other war supplies in large quantities.

At present, there were 200 tons of copper in the warehouse of the Horseshoe Merchants Association. According to his calculation, the full-power bullets produced by the New Alliance needed about 16 to 17 tons of copper.

To fight a local battle, 1,000,000 to 2,000,000 rounds of ammunition was needed. To take down the entire West Continent City, at least 20,000,000 million rounds of ammunition were required.

After all, marauders were not fools.

Under the training of those Army instructors, these people had already learned how to dig trenches and duck behind the covers. The war between Red River Town and Snake Clan has been going on for several months now, they had already experienced how difficult it was to deal with those people.

Because the Horseshoe Merchants Association had raised the inventory reserve line, increased the purchase of copper ore and other materials, and reduced the sales, the current price of copper ore in Red River Town had increased by 20%, and the price of sulfur had also increased by more than 30%.

And that was just the beginning.

He was still in the stage of hoarding the goods. When he finishes hoarding the goods, the warehouse would be full of copper ore. At that time, he would be able to control the source of the shipments, and take advantage of the long waiting time for buying the ores from the mines, doubling or tripling the price of copper in a short period of time.

Of course.

He wouldn't be able to do something like that alone.

Individual businesses didn't have the right to issue tickets. Those who could issue tickets were mine owners, and they were just dealers sandwiched between slave owners and traveling merchants.

If he wanted to increase the price of copper ore, he had to attract at least 1 or 2 mine owners with sufficient influence to cooperate with him.

But that was easy for Simeon.

He had always had a good relationship with the nearby mine owners, and it was not the first time they had cooperated.

...

In the Horseshoe Merchants Association's business chamber.

After listening to Simeon's proposal, the man in luxurious clothes frowned slightly hesitantly. "... That sounds like a good idea, but are you sure we should do that?"

The man who spoke was called Dempsey. He held a significant influence in Red River Town and even the Mining Association. All of his authority was guaranteed by his 500 vicious subordinates and the rubbish mountain that was making money every day.

He admitted that Simeon's proposal was indeed very attractive. In fact, not to mention doubling or tripling the price, by just increasing the price by a mere 20 to 30%, it was more than enough for him to make tons of money.

However, he still had some concerns.

The Bonechewer Clan was the common enemy of all survivors.

If the New Alliance intended to attack the Bonechewer Clan, it would definitely be a good thing for Red River Town, both strategically and commercially.

Once West Continent City was captured by the New Alliance, the Snake Clan's left buttock would basically be held at gunpoint by those blue coats, and the pressure on Red River Town would be much weaker.

Although the plan that Simeon proposed for him was very tempting, Dempsey still instinctively felt that it would be unkind to backstab the "ally" at this time.

But...

Simeon didn't think so.

"My dear friend, you must not think that this is a kind of betrayal. The price increase is a market behavior. According to their buying method, it will be a matter of time before the copper price rises. If you don't increase the price, how are you going to expand the production? We are just helping them to get what they want sooner."

Dempsey frowned. "Are you saying that they actually have to thank you for it?"

Simeon smiled in response. "Of course."

Dempsey always felt that what Simeon said was unreasonable, but he couldn't think of a reason to refute it.

"How do you need me to cooperate with you?"

"It's very simple. When necessary, I need you to issue a production reduction announcement. Whether it is a mining disaster or a failure of mining equipment, in short, you need to find an excuse to reduce the issuance of tickets for the next quarter, but the production rate will still remain the same.”

Grasping the arm of the chair unconsciously, Dempsey said nervously. "What if no one buys ores after we produce them?"

The reason why they issued tickets was to avoid problems like that.

There were too many uncertainties in spot trading. Before they used the ticket system, everyone just dug up a pile of garbage randomly, hoping someone would buy it. But the reality was that no one was interested in buying their garbage, and they would often starve for days because there was no business.

It wasn't until the merchants in Red River Town invented the ticket system, and stuffed the red and blue tickets into the pockets of those traveling merchants, that they slowly lived a good life.

It was precisely because of this that slave owners like them were more sensitive to the ticket trading model than those major merchants that really profited.

Knowing what the guy in front of him was worried about, Simeon gave him a confident smile. "Don't worry, my friend. Imagine if the New Alliance went to war with the Bonechewer Clan tomorrow, would you still have to worry that no one would buy the copper you produced? Once the war machine starts, it will not be stopped. We just hope they will be bought at a 'more reasonable' price."

"You don't need to take any risks, and you get to take the lion's share of the profit. Don't worry about the problem of not being able to sell, we are willing to help you!"

Hearing the last sentence, Dempsey finally heaved a sigh of relief, and his expression relaxed.

Picking up the pipe on the table, he got up from his chair. "Then we'll do as you say."

He didn't want to think about things that were too difficult, and he couldn't figure them out anyway.

The reason why these businesses existed in Red River Town was that these guys who were full of ideas could help them sell their worthless garbage at a better price.

His bionic organs, android companions, even the equipment of his subordinates, the mining equipment of his slaves, and the mercenaries who fought on the front line... They were all bought with money.

As for the concept of money...

His understanding of it was that it was those red and blue tickets, Army's Dinar, and Enterprise's credits. Although his intuition told him that everything was just a facade, it was too difficult to really figure it out.

Dempsey was well aware that he didn't have the ability to think that well, so he decided to let those who did know what to do worry about it.

He just needed to know he would be able to make more money.

Seeing Dempsey nod in agreement, Simeon stood up overjoyed and held out his right hand. "Thank you for your cooperation!"

Dempsey could only nod slowly. "Thank you for coming up with this idea."

After sending away the mine owners, Simeon who returned to his office finally couldn't hold back and laughed out loud. "Hahahahaha!"

Every time he dealt with those mine owners, it was the happiest time in his life.

Although he just gave them a small share of the profit, none of them doubted him when he lied that they would get the majority share.

"Copper ore, sulfur... It's a pity that they can produce steel and aluminum by themselves."

Refraining from laughing, Simeon, who walked to the wall, stared at the map for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "It's really a surprise though... I thought they'd expand west."

To the south of the New Alliance was Boulder Town, and to the east was nearly 100 kilometers of wasteland with no water source.

Compared with expanding north, the benefits of expanding west would obviously be greater.

After all, Clearspring City was located in the middle of the southern plains of the River Valley Province. To the west, there were lakes and rivers, and it was dominated by plains and forests, with only a few hills.

But if they expanded north, they would plunge into the mountains.

Why bother?

There was no treasure there after all.

At this time, a knock on the door of the office interrupted Simeon's thoughts.

"Please come in."