Although Katanga is a sparsely populated place, it doesn't take long for some news to get out. For example, when Shepard's Shadow Company raised its Spade Castle flag in the mercenary camp with great fanfare, the entire The mining companies in Katanga Province all know that this is a disaster.
"The French are too lazy!"
The British who were hiding in the city and watching hated the fact that iron could not become steel. They also hoped that both sides would be severely disabled so that BHP could change the previous overlord contract with Shadow Company. However, they did not expect that the French were defeated so completely that the camp was completely destroyed. People occupy it!
However, several members of BHP were also very discerning. As soon as the Shadow Company won the battle, they organized several trucks to send condolences of canned fruits, vegetables and drinks to the mercenaries. Then they returned with no I forgot to bring a cart of arms and ammunition to arm my own company guards. As for the arms and ammunition, they must have been given free of charge by my French friends.
There is no way. A considerable number of French people are using weapons like mas49 and mat49. Although there are also a lot of fals, legal weapons are not compatible with Shadow Company's logistics at all. Shepard is naturally welcome to send them to him, and those fals he Some of them that were in good condition were kept as backup weapons for their own people, while those that were in bad condition were all thrown away to black mercenaries.
In addition, Shepard has to thank Francois for his free assistance. The French mercenaries are equipped with almost a dozen heavy machine guns. In addition to four heavyweight water-cooled M1921s, there are also two M2 Laoganma. In fact, the former It can be considered Laoganma, but it is an early version of the water-cooled Laoganma, and the other two are air-cooled M2 models. The air-cooled model was directly taken and reinstalled on the machine gun tower of the M20 armored vehicle. The water-cooled ones were thrown into the warehouse by Shepard to be sent back to the country for auction by collectors.
In addition, there are several trucks, jeeps, two military radios, about a hundred military sleeping bags, dozens of sets of bombs, and a number of medical supplies including bandages and styptic powder. It can be said that the things Shadow Company has obtained are urgently needed at the moment. Greatly alleviated the demand gap of Shadow Company.
As for the funds that were knocked out, they were not that important to Shepard. After all, money could not be converted into materials immediately.
In addition, Shepard unceremoniously looted Francois's private storage. The red wine, jewelry, and even a dozen books collected by him became his belongings.
But these are actually not important, because everything after that is the most important!
After leaving most of the personnel in the river valley to continue to detain the prisoners, Shepard took his core team back to the camp, because all Francois's previous clients were waiting for Shepard in the camp.
As a major mining province, Katanga produces countless amounts of various minerals to all parts of the world every year. Such rich fat will naturally be surrounded by wolves, and everyone wants to take a bite.
After several years of competition and gambling, there are still dozens of companies of various sizes that can stay here. Their mining areas are spread all over the province. The terrain is complex and the transportation is inconvenient. In addition, the local law enforcement is weak. , the inaction of the government army has led to the rampant car-robbery banditry. These people have been entrenched here for many years and have turned road-blocking and robbery into their official job. Whether it is a humanitarian aid convoy from the United Nations or a private convoy, as long as it is If given the chance, these guys will rush in and take a bite.
Mining companies are naturally the big fat sheep in their eyes. After all, they are all mine owners, so how can they be short of money? But the mine boss also has a temper. If you kidnap me once or twice, I will treat you as supporting the construction of Africa. But if you kidnap me every day, then I will find someone to fuck you!
Where there is demand, there will naturally be a market. François's mercenaries have been operating here for many years and once monopolized the security and protection work of all mining companies. Their annual income can even reach several million. However, now, these lucrative positions have been compared with It doesn't matter to him anymore.
The heads of these mining companies came to Shepard, naturally, for matters such as convoy escort and property protection. Although the mercenaries are gone, their business must continue, especially due to the demand for minerals in East Asia in recent years. With the rapid growth year after year, production cannot be stopped for a moment, and transportation must be carried out as soon as it is full, so there can be no delay at all.
Shepard had previously given these guys a much more reasonable offer than Francois, but due to various reasons, these companies still chose Francois, but now Francois is obviously no longer able to rely on it. If they want their fleet to survive hundreds or even thousands of kilometers of poor transportation lines, they can only count on Shadow Company.
Facing many responsible persons with eager eyes, Shepard immediately smiled and said that there was a slight problem with the previous quotation!
"What's the problem? We think it's great. The price is fair and affordable!"
"Yes, the problem is that the price is fair and affordable!"
Shepard nodded and admitted directly.
So many people in charge suddenly felt nervous.
"Well, Mr. Shepard, that's not what you said when you quoted the price before!"
"Times have changed. Everyone, look at this place in Africa. It is dirty, shabby and backward. Every day warlords fight tribal vendettas. There is also competition among peers. Prices are rising three times a day. Life is very difficult for our brothers!"
When Shepard said this, the oh6 helicopter loaded with two huge ice cream buckets flew over everyone's heads, and the camp suddenly burst into cheers.
"Then, just tell me, how much will the increase be?"
"Well, based on the price, local per capita income, and international oil price trends, I want a 20% increase!"
"But what you said has nothing to do with the quotation!"
"Yes, and didn't you say before that you wanted to break Francois's monopoly on the industry and reduce everyone's burden?"
The people in charge suddenly cried out. Although the 20% increase was still affordable compared to the French prices, they still had to pay more, which was more uncomfortable than killing them.
"Yes, I didn't break the monopoly before, but now it's broken. It's my turn to monopolize. Shouldn't I have the final say on the price?"
Shepard calmly crossed his legs and sat in his chair.
Let alone Katanga, there are currently few rivals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that can compare with Shadow Company. Now that it has achieved a de facto monopoly, it would be unreasonable for Shepard not to kill the fat sheep with a knife. !
"If you don't have a monopoly, can you call it a business? It's charity!"
