UGB #159 - Win-win
#159 - Win-win
"This is it!" After riding the horse for nearly 20 kilometers on the rugged and uneven mountain in the target area, the detector in Ren Zhong's hand beeped non-stop. Looking at the terrain and some scattered stones, Ren Zhong said excitedly to Wang Jingwen beside him.
"Mr. Wang, there must be iron ore that can be mined in this vicinity. Let's dig up some stones nearby and take them back. I'll study and see how high the grade of iron ore is here."
Wang Jingwen looked around. The mountain was bare and empty. The black and gray stones that appeared from time to time seemed to have a large reserve. Could these stones really be iron ore?
"Mr. Ren, are you sure there is iron ore here?" Wang Jingwen asked hesitantly.
"That's right, I'm sure!" Ren Zhong said very definitely.
"Let's get off our horses and find some ore to take back for testing, and it will be clear."
After speaking, Ren Zhong jumped off his horse. He was no stranger to iron ore. After searching on the mountain for a while, he found more than a dozen pieces of iron ore and put them into a sample collection cloth bag.
Wang Jingwen also got off his horse and picked up a few stones everywhere. He looked left and right but couldn't see any clues. They didn't seem to be much different from the stones outside.
However, he was a water conservancy expert, not a mineral expert. Seeing Ren Zhong's certainty about this matter, Wang Jingwen said nothing more, instructed his subordinates to record this place, and everyone got back on their horses and returned to Wuyuan.
"Brother Haoran, did Mr. Ren confirm that he found iron ore?" Qi Luban suddenly stood up after listening to Wang Jingwen's report, staring closely at Wang Jingwen.
"Mr. Ren said so, but I am inexperienced and ignorant, and I can't recognize what kind of mineral this is?" Wang Jingwen took out the stones he had picked up and placed them on the table. "Commander, do you see any difference between these stones and other stones? Mr. Ren picked up a dozen such stones and said he would test them, and we will know the result tomorrow."
"This..." Qi Luban was so stimulated that he walked back and forth in the hall, like an ant on a hot pot, but this was out of excitement.
The other party really came prepared, without any pretense. I have to accept this great gift.
Otherwise, I would be sorry for my painstaking efforts in managing the border area for more than ten years!
I originally thought that the border area was bitterly cold, and it would be a blessing to have enough to eat. I didn't expect God to give me such a good opportunity. If I can solve the independent production of ammunition, then my capital to bargain with the orders from the capital will be even greater.
"Haoran, today Staff Officer Ye has already offered a price, iron-cased bullet processing equipment, in exchange for 10,000 tons of grain from us. How should we respond next to take down this iron ore smelting and bullet processing at the smallest cost!" Qi Luban asked Wang Jingwen after pacing around for a while and calming down.
"The border area lacks grain, and we lack ammunition. Now that we each have what we need, Commander, let's cut the other party's price in half and try to exchange iron ore smelting and bullet processing complete sets of equipment for 5,000 tons of grain to see if it is feasible. The Commander has personally tested the bullets, and there is no problem. We will only use the ammunition produced by the equipment as the delivery condition, and there will definitely be no problem."
Wang Jingwen thought for a while and responded cautiously.
The initiative in this matter is actually in their hands, and there is no room for the border area to play tricks.
"That's right, we will use the completion of the production line as the delivery condition, and we don't think they can play any tricks." After hearing Wang Jingwen's words, Qi Luban also began to feel confident and restored his worried mood to normal.
The next morning.
"What is the result of the ore analysis?" Staff Officer Ye asked nervously.
"The grade of the iron ore here is average, about 26%. The quality is not good, but it can be used reluctantly." After a day of tossing in the main world, Ren Zhong figured out the composition of these iron ores. It is indeed iron ore, but it is a very poor lean ore. It is basically impossible to use this kind of lean ore for smelting in the main world.
After all, the cost performance is too low.
But in this era, it's good to be able to refine iron, what else do you want?
Now, in addition to Hu Rentao's cooperation, Ren Zhong has also found a geological laboratory in Jin Cheng Institute of Technology to cooperate in testing ore components. After all, Jiangcheng is a bit far from where he lives in the main world, and it takes time to travel back and forth.
However, the main technical cooperation for steel smelting is still being handled by Hu Rentao, so after the Jincheng Geological Laboratory came up with the component analysis, Ren Zhong directly sent the results to Hu Rentao to do simulated smelting component ratio analysis, and at the same time, he also quickly sent a few pieces of iron ore to do on-site experiments to verify.
This part of the work may take a week, but for Ren Zhong, these are nothing, after all, building a blast furnace here will not take less than a month.
"It's good if it can be used. Now our bargaining chip is very strong." Staff Officer Ye said happily. "I will try my best to strive for negotiations and finalize this matter as soon as possible. Since there is no problem with the iron ore, Minister Jiang can communicate with their Councilor Wang about building a blast furnace. Brother Ren, try not to reveal your identity and just maintain your current identity as a mineral exploration expert. Next, determine the exact address of the copper mine, and we will also negotiate the exchange of copper and explosives this time."
Seeing that there was significant progress in the matter, Staff Officer Ye was obviously truly relieved.
"No problem. I will leave tomorrow. The copper mine is west of Wuyuan, and there is no danger." Ren Zhong nodded to express his understanding.
"We can't take it lightly either. In addition to our guards, take all of them with you. I will also ask Qi Luban for a platoon of cavalry to follow, saying that prospecting requires crossing mountains and ridges, and it is inevitable to encounter bandits. I think Qi Luban will not refuse this small matter."
Sure enough, Staff Officer Ye quickly settled the matter of the Suiyuan cavalry, and Ren Zhong set off immediately. This time, his main task on the delegation's trip north was to come up with ideas behind the scenes and explore minerals. He didn't need to come forward for the negotiations.
Qi Luban didn't think about other things because he saw that Ren Zhong was young. He is now also anxious to get the bullet processing equipment and smelting equipment from the border area, so he put aside all the things at hand and began to formally negotiate with Staff Officer Ye.
After the two sides entered formal negotiations, they were no longer as friendly as they were at the dinner table. After all, every subtle detail may be a trap set by the other party. In this chaotic world, no one who can sit at the negotiating table is a fool.
After a fierce bargaining, the two sides basically reached an agreement.
The border area will assist Suiyuan in building a steel plant with a daily output of 30 tons of wrought iron. The location will be determined by Suiyuan, and the experts in the border area will confirm whether it meets the construction conditions. Then, a weapons factory will be built, which can mainly produce 7.92 bullets and 6.5 bullets with a daily output of 10,000 rounds.
For this, Suiyuan will pay 8,000 tons of grain and immediately deliver 2,000 tons through the border between Wuhai and Yanchi.
In addition, if the Suiyuan copper mine is confirmed, the smelted copper will be divided equally between the two sides. At the same time, for every 3 tons of copper taken away by the border area, 1 ton of bullet propellant (propellant and explosives) must be provided.
Second update