Regarding compensation for defeat and surrender, the negotiations between the two sides went extremely smoothly. Zhu Tiaozi made three demands: First, compensation for the mental damage suffered by the captives during their detention, which was a small amount. Second, Qianjiazhai publicly apologized to the Perak Army and advertised it widely in nearby states and counties. The third is to compensate the Perak Army for the cost of sending troops-50,000 kilograms of grain. The reason why he demanded so much food compensation is because the profiteer Zhu Tiaozi not only included the food consumption of more than 200 soldiers during the deployment, but also included the cost of fired shells, the wear and tear of the gun barrel, and even the cost of depreciation. Punitive damages for the last time Boss Qian tried to rob the Pili Army caravan were also included.
Boss Qian had no objection to war compensation, but cautiously made a request for goods in exchange for food. In his opinion, the Perak Army was pressing down on the country, and he was at fault first. For Qian Jiazhai, who has strong financial resources, this compensation is nothing. Although there were about 100,000 kilograms of grain in the village, there were nearly a thousand people and their families in the village, as well as more than 200 donkeys, mules and horses. If half of the compensation was paid out at once, there would be a famine, so he proposed to Can salt, cloth and other materials be used instead? Zhu Tiaozi also agreed. Salt and cloth were also urgently needed by the Pili army. Compared with grain, salt and cloth are also hard currencies, harder and more effective than silver and iron money. The two parties quickly agreed to use 5,000 kilograms of salt and some cloth as compensation.
The next step is to talk about business transactions. It's not easy for Zhu Tiaozi to come to Qiongzhou, and this time he has the two strongest companies of armed guards. He doesn't want to return empty-handed, and plans to buy some more goods to take back to Hengyuan Town. But after walking around the huge cargo warehouse in Qianjiazhai, there weren't many goods that caught his eye. The largest cargo in the warehouse is tea, followed by porcelain, cloth and salt, as well as iron farm tools, silk, medicinal materials, needles and thread. The Pili Army has no shortage of tea and medicinal materials, and Jiguan Mountain and Wugen Mountain are also production areas; mulberries and silkworms can also be planted in the controlled area, but the current silk production is very small; there is no need for exquisite porcelain, and the salt has just been obtained for five thousand Jin; as for the iron farm tools, the quality is much worse than that of the Pili Army. After asking the boss Qian who accompanied him around, he found that there was no urgently needed fire salt and three minerals: copper, lead, and mercury. This made Zhu Tiaozi extremely distressed. Not to mention the importance of copper, lead is particularly suitable for musket bullets because of its soft texture and does not damage the gun bore. Mercury is the material used to make mercury fulminate, which is a necessary component for triggering the fuse. If we don't have the supplies we want, do we still have to exchange salt and cloth? Before leaving, Brother Xuan gave him great authorization, telling him that if necessary, he could use the firearms equipped by the soldiers of the Perak Army in exchange for urgently needed supplies.
A burst of noise mixed with the neighing of donkeys and the braying of horses interrupted Zhu Tiaozi's thinking. When he walked out of the warehouse, he saw that villagers were slaughtering livestock whose stomachs had been broken by gunfire. This made Zhu Tiaozi's eyes light up. He hurried to the stable not far away and saw a circle full of sleek donkeys, mules and ponies. He was so happy that he immediately offered to buy these big livestock. Zhu Tiaozi's words made Boss Qian, who was following him, look extremely ugly. After a long while, he suppressed his words: "I really don't dare to deceive the officials. These livestock are necessary for long-distance business and are not for sale. Can you see if you can If you choose to buy other goods, the villain will definitely sell half of them and half of them will be given away." Boss Qian's words are not unfounded. The journey to do business in the Yibo region is difficult and long. It often takes three to two months or even half a year. Business people are often exhausted. Without mules and horses, it is impossible to do business. It is not surprising that Boss Qian treats it as such. Like a treasure.
There is already a shortage of large livestock in the western Sichuan area, and due to the war, there is an acute shortage of mules and horses. Of course, the Pili Army is also in urgent need of mules and horses. In order to make Boss Qian bear the pain of cutting his flesh, Zhu Tiaozi did not hide anything and directly offered the firearms in exchange for mules and horses. Of course he wanted the firearms he dreamed of, but mules and horses were also the basis of doing business. This made Boss Qian extremely entangled in his heart. He thought for a long time before reluctantly agreeing. Next, the two parties negotiated the price. Zhu Tiaozi proposed to use a battery of artillery, twenty flint muskets, and a hundred grenades in exchange for a hundred mules and horses. This proposal made Boss Qian jump up. If it hadn't been for the thunderbolt now. As the soldiers approached the city, he almost cursed the word "profiteer". His bottom line is that he can only sell fifty horses. If he sells more, it will seriously affect Qianjiazhai's business. In fact, Zhu Tiaozi was very sincere in proposing the exchange price. You must know that the first company is equipped with two light rapid-fire mother and child cannons, eight light squatting tiger cannons, plus muskets and grenades. It should be said that this price is worth thousands of dollars. The firearms of the Pili Army are not for sale. Even if the official army bids more than this amount, the Pili Army will not sell the firearms. However, Qianjiazhai regarded precious mules and horses as their lifeblood, and there were only two hundred of them in total. Zhu Tiaozi asked for half of them when he opened his mouth. No wonder Boss Qian jumped at the chance.
Boss Qian's attitude made Zhu Tiaozi quite unhappy. As the profiteer leader of the Pili Army, there was no reason to suffer. However, before leaving, Ouyang Xuan told him that long-term interests should be considered when doing business. Strengthening the strength of Qianjiazhai is to help the Pili Army obtain a channel for urgently needed strategic supplies. In the next trade list of the trade team that Ouyang Xuan personally finalized, arms trading was the focus. Of course, arms are special commodities and can only be traded with friendly forces of the Perak Army. Moreover, the manufacturing technology will not be transferred, and the latest weapons will not be sold. What is sold are weakened versions, commonly known as "monkey versions." There is a big gap with the Pili Army's own use. For example, the grenade sold to Qianjiazhai this time is a traditional grenade. It is not the latest trigger grenade, but it is much more advanced than the sky-shattering grenade used by the government army.
Regarding the problem of possible technology leakage, Ouyang Xuan also made it clear at the high-level meeting of the Perak Army - "In the long run, technology cannot be blocked. Don't underestimate the enemy's wisdom, but as long as we persist in education and science, we can form a complete industrial and By studying the system, we can stay far ahead. Without the support of the system, the enemy may make progress, but in the end he only knows superficial knowledge, and his industrial base cannot produce qualified weapons, and he will be crushed by our endless new weapons." The reason for this decision. The strategy of selling firearms to friendly forces is not only because the anti-Mongolian cause requires funds, and the arms trade is the most profitable industry in the world; but also because of diplomatic needs, the Perak Army needs to use firearms to strengthen the strength of friendly forces and consume Mongolia. people.
Just when Zhu Tiaozi was hesitating, Cao Ergou pulled him aside and secretly confessed: Now there is not much time left in the service life of a battery of artillery. The rifling of some artillery has also been polished, and the accuracy has dropped a lot. Some of the barrels Metal fatigue has occurred, and after this battle, the field battalions will be replaced with new field guns. If these artillery pieces that are about to be eliminated are used in Qianjiazhai, the amount of charge must be reduced, otherwise the barrels will explode under continuous firing. Based on Ouyang Xuan's ideas and Cao Ergou's words, although Zhu Tiaozi felt that his talent as a profiteer had not been fully utilized, he pinched his nose and agreed to Boss Qian's conditions. That is, a battery of ten artillery pieces and a hundred old-fashioned grenades were exchanged for fifty mules and horses, which the Perak Army could choose, in addition to five thousand kilograms of salt and some cloth and silk. Zhu Tiaozi heard that silk could strengthen armor and protect it from arrow damage, so he reluctantly accepted it. As for muskets, compared with artillery and grenades, their cost performance is too low. Qian Jiazhai feels that they are not as cost-effective as artillery and grenades. To be honest, the front-loaded muskets equipped by a company have a slow rate of fire and poor accuracy. Although they are powerful, their actual combat effects are really not as good as those of well-trained crossbowmen. The new breech-fired muskets equipped by the reconnaissance company and the anti-trafficking company of the Internal Guard Battalion have advanced performance, but they are extremely expensive and the production capacity is so low that the Perak Army itself does not have enough. Moreover, this kind of weapon is kept strictly confidential within the Perak Army and will never be sold at present.
