Chapter 664: A Pleasant Surprise
Finding Black Winterwood by chance was an unexpected discovery as well as a surprise to Tang Xiu. After the idea of buying a massive bulk of Black Winterwood temporarily formed inside his mind, he proposed a cooperation plan taking advantage of Jie Walie’s liking of Gods Nectar. “Yup, it’s this eight-men square table. To be exact, I want to buy this type of wood.”
A timber, logging business?
Jie Walie stared at Tang Xiu with a stunned expression and immediately replied with a smile, “We have a lot of Yellow-bark Trees here, but its wood is very ordinary. Apart from being heavy, there’s no other good trait that I can think of. How come you want to buy this kind of wood, Brother Tang?”
“I want to manufacture furniture with enough weight. So, may I know the price you offer for this type of wood?” Asked Tang Xiu.
“To be honest, it’s very cheap, the price of Yellow-Bark wood is about 1,600 yuan a ton. Brother Tang, you can tell me how many tons of this wood you need and I’ll give it to you directly for a fee. Delivering them is also not an issue, you can load them on the truck first and then ship them by the usual logistic transportation to Star City. Adding all that to the price will only cost you 2,000 yuan a ton.”
Never did Tang Xiu expect that such a precious lumber in the eyes of numerous cultivators in the Immortal World would be so appallingly cheap on Earth! Just 2,000 yuan for a ton of this wood? Then 100 tons meant that he only needed to pay 200 thousand yuan.
“Alright, 500 tons, then. In addition to the ten boxes of Gods Nectar I was originally going to gift to you, Brother Jie, I’ll also add ten more boxes as extra. But I want the wood to be sent to the port of Guangyang Province.”
Jie Walie calculated in his mind. The sale price for a bottle of Gods Nectar produced by the Magnificent Tang Corporation’s winery was 18,888 yuan. One box contained six bottles, that would be 113,000 yuan, so 20 boxes would be worth 2.26 million yuan, whereas 500 tons of Yellow-bark wood along, with its shipping fee, was probably about 1 million yuan.
One point that must be noted was that there was no market to sell these Gods Nectar. For people who lived in such a remote area, it was very difficult to buy this wine. Furthermore, if he got 20 boxes of Gods Nectar, he still had a big use for them as gifts; he definitely would be able to please those government officials as well as gift them to his business partners. The amount of money he could earn by then would be far more than 1 million, wouldn’t it? With those, wouldn’t he be able to use it to please many groups of people?
“Brother Tang, if you can sell me 20 boxes of Gods Nectar in exchange for 500 tons of Yellow-bark wood every year, I’ll personally handle it for you and escort it to the Guangyang Province Port myself. How about it?” Asked him with a nervous expression.
“Alright, deal!” Tang Xiu smiled.
Lunchtime.
Jie Walie served a lavish meal in the horse ranch, and after the lunch, he intended to bring Tang Xiu riding. After discovering that Tang Xiu was not interested in it, he invited Tang Xiu to a hunting ground belonging to his friend. The area was vast and sparsely populated, and some parts of the forested mountain that belonged to some rich people was stockaded. Through various channels of communication, his friend was finally able to obtain the contract, so he started the hunting business in the back. Every year, many rich people came to hunt in this hunting ground, and the owner of the hunting ground made quite a lot of money from it.
Originally, Tang Xiu did not have much interest in hunting, but he immediately changed his mind after learning that they were going to hunt with firearms. He rarely had the opportunity to use a gun, and though he had many guns stored inside his interspatial ring, they were seized from enemies and seldom had he the chance to use them.
“Alright, then I’ll have to trouble you, Brother Jie.”
Tang Xiu took out a cigarette, offered one to Jie Walie and ignited it for both of them. He then boarded Jie Walie’s car while Mo Awu and the rest drove the four Wrangler SUVs; three other SUVs were driven by Jie Walie’s six bodyguards. A convoy of seven cars then left the horse ranch.
Kanas was one of the few places in the world that could be called “Pure Land On Earth”. A photographer was never able to fully to capture her however excellent his skills and equipment were. And yet, even the photos casually taken would raise admiration and appreciation from those who had seen it. Not only was this place rich in natural resources and biodiversity, it also had a unique tourism environment and human resources.
Inside the SUV, Tang Xiu enjoyed the beautiful scenery along the road. He found that the place not only had the magnificent beauty of the Northern Region scenery, but also the charming warm beauty of the Southern Region of the Yangtze River.
“Brother Tang, there’s Kanas Lake over there. It’s rumored that the lake has some kind of ‘lake monster’ or something. Many people said that they have seen water monsters there, but then again, we can’t find out how many of their confessions are true.” Jie Walie pointed to the sparkling big lake outside the window after the Wrangler SUV drove for more than an hour.
A lake monster?
Tang Xiu’s expression slightly moved. In his mind, he guessed that it was be a fierce beast that had gained spiritual wisdom. However, many famous mountains and rivers were said to have fierce beast inhabiting them, and it was unknown how many of them stayed hidden beneath the vast ocean, so he did not rush to find out.
Finding that Tang Xiu seemed indifferent to the topic nor he did not show the slightest surprise, Jie Walie suddenly made some riddling remarks, “The surface of the lake may look tranquil and calm, but there’s some kind of horrifying danger concealed at the bottom of the lake hidden behind a natural phenomenon that is hard to fathom. Or is it caused by some kind of aquatic monster that is baring its fangs and brandishing its claws? No one has been able to explain this matter, though. And to be honest, I once had the idea to explore it, but I’ve been kinda lazy all these years. And when the laziness does not get the best of me, then it’s a business affair that keeps me occupied.”
“Brother Jie, if you believe me, it’s best not to investigate this suspicious aquatic monster. A man only has one life, and the number of strange things in the world is countless. Should there be an aquatic monster living there, the chances of you coming back alive is close to nil,” said Tang Xiu lightly.
Jie Walie was dumbfounded, and he couldn’t help but burst into laughter, “Hahaha, that was so insightful, Brother Tang. Anyhow, I indeed have been living my life in a reckless and blind manner regardless of danger. What was that popular adage again? Umm, curiosity kills the cat, right? Hahaha, that’s right. It’s those words.”
Tang Xiu only smiled faintly in response and did not say more.
After the seven Wrangler SUV had trekked the road for two and half an hours, they finally arrived at a certain part of the forested mountain. At the end of the muddy road was actually the entrance to a magnificent-looking manor built behind, with four security guards on guard in front of the entrance. Each and every one of them had beards with stocky and sturdy builts, looking fierce and aggressive. Though they were holding electric batons in their hands, something was bulging in their waist; they were apparently carrying knives or firearms.
“Hahaha… Welcome, my friends. Welcome. Brother Walie, it’s been long time ago since the last time you visited my grounds, right?” A loud and clear voice like the sound of bells was heard after the SUV drove inside. A middle-aged man with a braided beard and donning a fur coat greeted them, followed by two grim and fierce-looking bodyguards.
Jie Walie walked towards him and gave the man a big hug. After separating, he smiled and said, “Brother Gesangjor, I often wanted to come here to amuse myself, but business got me occupied and troubled all the time, so I have always been busy. In fact, a guest came from a faraway place to visit me, so I brought him here for recreation. Anyways, let me introduce you to this little brother of mine. He’s Tang Xiu. My former platoon leader introduced him to me.”
“Yuan Zhengxuan?” Gesangjor’s brows pricked up. He observed Tang Xiu for a moment before immediately walking forward, reaching out his hand and saying, “Brother Tang, welcome and have some fun. I’m Gesangjor, the owner of this hunting ground.”
“Nice to meet you, Brother Gesangjor,” said Tang Xiu with a smile.
Gesangjor nodded in response and glanced at Mo Awu and the rest on the Wrangler SUV behind. He could instantly tell that Tang Xiu’s identity in the mainland was probably not simple, else it would be impossible for him to have so many bodyguards around him.
“Alright, let’s board the car! I’ll entertain you with good wine and meat as the host.”
The cars then continued driving for a few kilometers and then stopped at the parking space in front of several two-storied buildings. After getting off the car, they walked straight to the two-story building in the center and then entered the luxuriously decorated living room. Only Mo Awu followed Tang Xiu, whereas the other ten men stayed outside.
As the wine and meat were brought in, Jie Walie smiled and asked, “Brother Gesangjor, the guests who visit your place should be few in number this season, no? After all, we are just at the beginning of the year.”
“There have been a few visitors at this time of the year in the past, but speaking about that, this year is kind of strange.” Gesangjor smilingly replied. “A dozen guests arrived in these three days, thus nearly half of the rooms in my hunting ground manor are occupied. Speaking about it, the number of people with money from the mainland is getting more and more. They spend money like pouring water here, asking for the best service available and the most exciting hunting experience as well.”
“Eh?” Jie Walie was surprised and commented, “So, your business is very good now?”
“Alright, let’s not talk about that, shall we?” Gesangjor waved his hand and said with a smile, “Anyways, where do you come from, Brother Tang? And what business do you engage in?”
“Well, I’m from Shuangqing Province’s Star City, and I do some liquor, cosmetic, and healthcare business,” said Tang Xiu with a smile.
Gesangjor nodded and did not ask anymore. Nowadays, there were all sorts of businesses, along with too many rich people to count. As the owner of this place, he only needed to warmly greet the guests who came here. Those two questions he asked Tang Xiu was because he was the friend of Jie Walie brought here.
“Alright, let’s drink and have some meat. After we are full, I’ll personally take you to the armory to pick some weapons for yourself. Many wild animals are in hibernation in this cold season, but many of them still come out to hunt for food. If you’re lucky, you may encounter some bears in the back of the mountain, though.”
Tang Xiu and Jie Walie had drunk a lot of wine previously, but they still welcome it by drinking a lot of wine and wolfing down the meat under Gesangjor’s great hospitality, showing their appreciation for his character, all of which met the Gesangjor’s praise.
“MAKE WAY! I WANT TO SEE GESANGJOR!”
A rude voice came from the outside, and the sound of a ruckus could be heard even as everyone enjoyed their drinks.
Gesangjor’s black brows furrowed and yelled at the door, “Hey, let the guest come inside! If they want to drink together with me, I still have enough here.”
Immediately, the door was pushed from the outside as two young men came in with their four bodyguards. One of them, whose hair was bleached white and wore a gold chain around his neck, did not look at Tang Xiu and Jie Walie as he straightly looked at Gesangjor and shouted, “Gesangjor, I want the crossbow and its bolts in your warehouse to be rented to me. I’ll pay ten times the price.”
The other young man, however, glanced around the room. His pupils suddenly contracted and his body slightly trembled when he saw Tang Xiu. He subconsciously touched his face and instantly grabbed the arm of the bleached white-haired youth.