Zheng Yi understood the idea of visiting the arsenal very well, and also knew that Hongmen Tangkou and wealthy merchants all over Nanyang had been secretly buying weapons to protect their lives and property. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

Due to the strict supervision of the British, Dutch and other colonial governments, it has always been difficult for Hongmen Tangkou and wealthy merchants in Nanyang to buy enough weapons and equipment, let alone easily obtain technologically advanced and powerful automatic weapons.

Prior to this, Chen Jiongming had proposed to Zheng Yi that he wanted to buy M1929 submachine guns and military pistols for several old friends in Nanyang, and now Huang Zhimian proposed to visit the arsenal, which is naturally to implement the matter.

Zheng Yi naturally welcomes this.

With the continuous expansion of the scale and production capacity of the arsenal, the more weapons and equipment produced are of course sold as much as possible, whether it is for the recovery of huge investments, or for the Zheng family to expand the prestige of the Zheng family, Zheng Yi is eager to let the entire Nanyang region and even the whole of China know about the Zheng family's Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company.

However, in the face of Zhigongtang's request to invest in a precision machinery manufacturing company, Zheng Yi felt sudden and surprised at the same time, and he really couldn't give a clear answer.

First of all, the precision machinery manufacturing company that manufactures weapons and equipment is only a branch of the Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company, which is essentially an arsenal with a relatively independent status and implements a management system of independent accounting and independent operation, but it is still a part of the Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company and needs to be responsible to the company's board of directors and all shareholders, including British capital, Zheng Yi is not qualified to accept foreign investment privately.

Secondly, the request of Huang Zhimian, the representative of the Zhi Gong Court, was too direct and sudden, and Zheng Yi could not judge the true purpose of the Zhi Gong Court for a while.

After repeated consideration, Zheng Yi truthfully told Huang Zhimian and Chen Jiongming about his difficulties, and introduced them to the other two British shareholders of Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company, and finally told everyone euphemistically:

"I am willing to accept the investment of Zhigongtang, but I am only a shareholder of the Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company, if you really want to buy shares, when you meet with my father in two days, you can make a request, if my father agrees, I don't think it is a big problem."

"After all, our old Zheng family occupies seventy percent of the shares, even if the other two British shareholders have different views, with the current status of the father, it can still be smoothly communicated and resolved, the big deal is to divide some from the shares of our Zheng family, I think the other two British shareholders also hope that the Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company will develop faster and better."

Huang Zhimian, Chen Jiongming and others were very happy and grateful for Zheng Yi's frank acceptance, and immediately said that even if they could not take a stake in Far East Machinery Manufacturing Company, they would strengthen cooperation with each other and invest more money and manpower in food, oilseeds, rubber and medicine.

Tang Jinchang, who is in charge of West Coast trade affairs in the United States, told Zheng Yi: "At the end of last year, after we received a letter from my brother, we unanimously agreed with the move of our brother to take a stake in the Hong Kong Ocean Transport Company. ”

"The only pity is that the nephew has already bought back five decommissioned transport ships of more than 5,000 tons from the British Royal Navy, and if we had received the news two months earlier, we would have been able to buy ten or eight ocean-going carriers with larger tonnage and more favorable prices in San Francisco and various ports on the West Coast."

"Now it seems that we can only talk about it when we have the opportunity to talk about it in the future."

Zheng Yi explained with a smile: "The younger generation also knows that due to the economic development problems of European and American countries, the ocean shipping industry has suffered a huge blow. ”

"It is estimated that in the United States, like the United Kingdom, France and other European countries, a large number of ocean-going shipping companies have gone bankrupt and closed, many ocean-going freighters less than ten years old have docked in major ports in Europe and the United States, and many 10,000-ton freighters have been dismantled and sold at the price of scrap steel, not to mention freighters that are more than ten years old."

"We also know that second-hand freighters on the West Coast of the United States are cheap and very affordable, and there is a more important reason why we bought five ocean-going carriers from the Royal Navy, in addition to the fact that they are in good condition and very practical...... Our marine transport company is registered in the United Kingdom and can be protected by the British government and the British Royal Navy, and even if our ships sail directly into the Yangtze River and into the two lakes area, no force will dare to invade it. ”

"For this reason alone, I think you should get your understanding."

Tang Jinchang nodded frequently, and several others also showed knowing smiles, all of them were heroes who had been through the storm for a long time, and they could all understand the true meaning of Zheng Yi's words very well.

Zheng Yi saw that the time was almost up, so he politely agreed to go to Zheng's mansion for a cup of tea on the afternoon of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year.

Chen Jiongming and others were deeply satisfied, and said that they would visit on time, and seeing that Zheng Yi was unwilling to continue to stay to attend the dinner, they had to reluctantly send Zheng Yi out of the door, and immediately after returning to the main hall, there was a heated discussion.

"Second brother, do you really want to take a stake in the Zheng family's arsenal, or do you want to take the opportunity to test the Zheng family's attitude towards my court?"

Tang Jinchang finally asked the doubts in his heart, and everyone hurriedly looked at Huang Zhimian, who had been in a good time, before that, no one thought that Huang Zhimian would ask this rather unexpected question.

Huang Zhimian put nearly half of the burning match into the ashtray, smoked two richly flavored Luzon cigars, and exhaled the smoke comfortably, and then slowly said:

"I did have a temporary idea, and I did hope to test the Zheng family's attitude towards our court through this method, but I did have some intentions."

"You might as well think about it, why did the Nanjing government and Lao Chiang's people come in a hurry to visit and inspect the Zheng family's arsenal? According to the previous report of the Zheng family, the Zheng family's arsenal has sold its own new submachine guns and military pistols to the mainland on more than one occasion, and even the brothers who stayed in eastern Guangdong have praised the submachine guns and pistols made by the Zheng family's arsenal. ”

"And the Zheng family has a lofty mind, and until now, the arsenal is still constantly purchasing advanced machine tools and equipment, constantly expanding the scale of production, and constantly obtaining a number of invention patents for weapons and equipment approved by the British government."

"It can be seen that the arsenal under the Zheng family has great development potential and is very worthy of investment, not to mention that we urgently need to have our own source of weapons!"

"Don't look at our good development in North America, but the Americans have never stopped suppressing us, and if you want to buy a pistol for self-defense, you have to be repeatedly scrutinized by the Americans, not to mention the Hongmen brothers in all parts of the South Seas."

"If we can take a stake in the Zheng family's arsenal, we can not only solve the dilemma we have been facing for a long time, but also get a good return on investment, so why not do it?"

Everyone suddenly realized and nodded their heads in praise, all of them thought that Huang Zhimian's proposal was worth doing.

When everyone quieted down, Xie Jiahua from Mindanao said loudly: "I don't know if you have noticed that Zheng Yi seems to know the situation in the United States very well, and his conversation and demeanor are far better than we imagined before. ”

"I even have the feeling that the Zheng family's arsenal is likely to be in the hands of Zheng Yi, not his father, Sir Zheng Lanting."

Everyone was taken aback and fell into deep thought.

Chen Jiongming seemed to have suddenly discovered something, and after thinking hard, his hands couldn't help clenching, and he nodded slightly to Huang Zhimian and Tang Jinchang, who were looking at him for inquiry.