Chapter 205: Oil for a Big Baby

“Oil?” Hugh rubbed his moist nose. “Indeed, this is an excellent source of carbon elements. Only those former Garden Planets were rich in this resource, and all Garden Planets were affected by the apocalypse, their surfaces filled with radiation, mutated monsters, and bloodthirsty AIs. Let alone settling down to mine, even landing for reconnaissance is extremely dangerous.”

An excellent businessman doesn't mind providing information for free.

Anyway, these things can be inquired about elsewhere, so why not say them himself and gain some goodwill for free?

“How much can you provide? At what price?”

“Currently, we have 8.2 million tons of crude oil in stock, with a daily output of 120,000 tons. We will increase the number of oil wells later to quickly expand production to at least 1 million tons per day. As for the price, it’s 400 Star Alliance Credits per ton,” Lu Yuan said.

“Hmm——”

Hugh was secretly delighted but still forced out a pained, constipated expression of deep thought.

“I’m very sorry, the product is good, there’s no doubt about that; but with the scale of my merchant fleet, this price, I’m afraid, isn’t very attractive.”

Lu Yuan smiled calmly.

You little rascal, playing these games with me, huh?

“No, no, no, there is, Executive.”

“Your merchant ship is clearly a Warp ship. From its volume, its mass when fully loaded is about 15 million tons, including nuclear fuel. When empty, it won’t exceed 1.5 million tons.”

“To make such a large ship achieve Warp flight, you must first activate the Mass Effect Zero Element Furnace to control the ship’s total mass, and then activate the Warp Engine to create a Warp bubble large enough to accommodate the ship.”

“In short, during full-load navigation, for every hour of flight, approximately 1 kilogram of Warp Zero Element and an additional 70 kilograms of Mass Effect Zero Element are consumed; empty-load consumption will be significantly reduced, at least by two-thirds.”

“The market price of Warp Zero Element is 1,154,000 Credits per kilogram, and Mass Effect Zero Element is 52,000 Credits per kilogram. Running a trade route between Li Star and New Hope, calculated at 0.6 times the speed of light, takes approximately 270 hours.”

“That is to say, your zero element cost is approximately 1.8 billion Credits per round trip.”

“This accounts for the bulk of the expenses. Other costs, including nuclear fuel, ship maintenance, escort, as well as cargo customs clearance and port fees, and a series of other expenses, should bring the total cost to around 2 billion Credits. I admit, this is a very large sum of money.”

“But your cargo, calculated at a full load of 8 million tons of high-quality crude oil, can generate at least 3 billion in revenue on New Hope’s side.”

“Spending a month on a trade run for a net profit of 1 billion Credits, and an annual income of 12 billion, Executive actually finds this too little. Your appetite is really a bit big. Are you planning to build a navy?”

“Ha! Hahahaha—Executive is truly humorous.” Faced with Lu Yuan’s logically rigorous and substantial information, Hugh could only laugh awkwardly.

The other party’s data was too precise!

He must have established a highly efficient intelligence network within the Star Alliance!

This kind of intelligence gathering capability, this ghostly speed and stealth, is almost comparable to Anya’s. “Our capital chain has been having some issues recently, and loan operations will generate additional costs. In addition, the merchant fleet occasionally encounters robbery and extortion from pirates and other forces, so—”

“Executive, from my understanding of the Star Alliance, if what you said is true, even if you don’t do my oil business and switch to other goods, your merchant fleet is probably on the verge of bankruptcy.”

“Hahahaha—indeed—”

Hugh was speechless.

This person is too formidable. Although he sits in this barbaric land, he knows everything about the Star Alliance—

No, I must change my negotiation approach.

Absolutely no more talking nonsense. “It’s okay, I understand your ambition, it’s fine.”

Lu Yuan poured Hugh a cup of tea, easing the conversation and no longer cornering him.

“Who doesn’t want to earn more money? So I have another proposal to increase trade profits, besides selling oil, I also have a need to purchase goods from the Star Alliance, and I am willing to double your profit for a round trip.”

“Double?”

These two words were enough to make all merchants lose their minds.

“What do you want to buy? Can you really promise a 1 billion cargo premium?”

Lu Yuan nodded.

“The premise is that you can transport the goods here. What I need are Star Alliance spaceships and weapons. Executive should also be an arms dealer, right?”

“How did you know that?”

The more Hugh talked with Lu Yuan, the more he felt as if his thoughts were completely seen through.

“It’s simple. Your zero element merchant ship has huge operating costs. It’s certainly not every trade that you get to fill it with strategic resources. You must occasionally sell something with a higher profit margin, such as firearms.”

Hugh nodded heavily.

“It seems nothing escapes your eyes. Yes, I also sell firearms. In fact, I have some in stock in my cargo ship. I originally planned to sell them to other factions’ territories, but if you’re interested—”

“Do you have space fighters and nuclear bombs?”

“Yes! We have various models.”

“Very good. It’s getting late. Let’s discuss in detail at the dining table. You can also take off your spacesuits and change into our local loose clothing to relax. Don’t worry, Executive, I’ve already had an employee custom-make them to your size.”

Originally, Hugh had no expectations for this dinner.

Especially when he heard the Executive Officer say that dinner “might not be particularly lavish, but it’s a work meal popular with the staff.”

However, at this moment, as the restaurant door opened, Hugh felt like he had walked into the “heaven” of Fenrir’s traditional culture. Lu Yuan had his employees prepare hotpot, simple and straightforward, with plenty of meat for immediate cooking.

The Fenrir race naturally loves meat, and this meal was the most satisfying Hugh had ever eaten in his life.

Besides various meats, the economic crops planted earlier had long reached harvest time. Cangyuan could now continuously supply freshly squeezed fruit juice, and even brew wine.

Hugh, benefiting from his racial physique, rarely got drunk; alcohol only made him more talkative and energetic.

“Executive Officer, thank you for your generous hospitality!”

Hugh wiped his greasy, shiny mouth, his tail, now comfortable without the spacesuit, extended from beneath his desert robe, swaying uncontrollably from side to side.

“You have created a culinary treasure in the entire universe! Any act of destroying it is an unforgivable crime! Please just tell me what else you need. I will scour the entire Star Alliance to get it for you!”

This earnestness made Lu Yuan laugh.

“Alright, then I’ll be direct. My weapons master is carefully studying the product catalog you provided. Afterwards, he will need to personally inspect the goods to confirm the models and quantities for purchase.”

“But besides that, you should be aware that I am currently facing an absolute disadvantage in terms of warship numbers, so high-quality space warships are the most urgently needed.”

“Hmm—” Hugh put down his wine glass and pondered, “At the shipyards on New Hope, there are indeed a few second-hand frigates for sale year-round, priced between 200 million and 600 million. But they are all Star Alliance second or third-tier ships, no match for Apollo or Galan Warp warships, which are first-tier ships produced on Paradise Island.”

Lu Yuan gave Hugh a meaningful look.

“Of course I’m not talking about those outdated warships, but your merchant fleet’s escort ships.”

“Ah?”

Hugh hadn’t expected that the Executive Officer was actually targeting his own assets!

Indeed, to protect the big baby that is the Wealth Key, he had spared no effort in upgrading his escort force, investing more than half of his past income into it.

A successful businessman never neglects security. Lu Yuan saw through this point and thus made the request to purchase the second-hand goods in the other party’s possession.

Even if they were second-hand, their quality was absolutely guaranteed.

Currently, providing escort for the Wealth Key are two 120-meter-class frigates and two 180-meter-class destroyers.

Their firepower and defensive capabilities can rival first-tier warships of the same category on the arms market. Some parameters, such as radar detection range and Warp speed, are even superior due to the use of black market products leaked from first-tier military research institutions.

“Sorry! I can’t sell these!”

Hugh did not lose his mind because of one banquet.

“The Punitive Fleet will probably arrive soon, and I might run into them when I leave!”

“You might not know how greedy and disgusting those Galan bastards are, and how much they bully the weak and fear the strong.”

“If I have an escort, they might pretend to be polite, greet me, and then go their separate ways; but if I don’t have an escort, they will definitely attack without a word.”

“In Galan’s culture, reputation is a ‘currency’ earned through boasting, intimidation, and victory declarations, used to pay for misdeeds, silence other weaker forces, and gain public support as ‘extra expenses’.”

“As long as there’s profit to be made, they will not hesitate to abandon their accumulated credit and reputation, and commit the most despicable and contemptible acts. You must understand this in advance when dealing with them!”

Heh!

Lu Yuan saw it. No matter how much Hugh could drink, he still couldn’t avoid “truth-telling after drinking.”

It seemed the Free Merchant Alliance was utterly disgusted with Galan, probably having been bullied by them quite a bit.

This point might be exploitable in the future.

“Don’t worry, you won’t lose your escort, after all, the ship will be loaded with my goods then.”

Lu Yuan leaned close to Hugh’s ear, lowering his voice.

“My plan is this—”

After listening, Hugh’s eyes lit up.

“This—is a very bold plan, but it is indeed feasible!”

“Then it’s a deal?” Lu Yuan raised his glass.

Hugh deliberated for a long time, and finally decided to take a gamble on this thriving emerging power.

“Mm, deal! Cheers!”