Inside the warehouse, parked side by side, were silver and black sedans.
A full sixty cars were presented right in front of Li Yi’an.
The hoods of these cars bore the blue and white propeller, the four rings, and the three-pointed star inside a circle.
These emblems clearly indicated that these were automobiles manufactured in Germany.
“Look, this is a BMW 326,” John pointed at the sedan and said proudly.
“Just as you said, they are all high-end sedans, the very best!” John stated straightforwardly.
“60 Mercedes-Benz, BMWs, and Audis, for 20,000 pounds.
Before the war, you could buy at most ten of them for that price.”
This is the opportunity brought by the war!
Li Yi’an remarked casually.
“Without me, they would just be a pile of scrap metal.
We have a deal.”
As his words fell, a light screen emerged before his eyes.
[Exchanged cigarettes and coffee worth 5,432 dollars for 60 cars, including 15 BMW 326s, each worth 1,700 pounds, Mercedes-Benz…
Reward: 115,500 Experience Points.]
The system reward had arrived!
At the same time, more text appeared on the light screen.
[Congratulations!
The user’s experience points have successfully upgraded to a LV.2 User.
We hope the user will continue the good work.]
Upgraded!
While Li Yi’an was thrilled, he wondered what changes would come after the upgrade.
As for what happened next, Li Yi’an didn’t care much anymore; he just wanted to complete the transaction as soon as possible.
After closing the deal, watching boxes of cigarettes and sacks of coffee being loaded onto the trucks, John asked with some curiosity.
“May I ask through what channels you brought these goods here?”
“Well, I met a big shot from the military.
As long as we keep cooperating, there will be a steady stream of goods shipped here.
So, you just need to prepare the funds…
well, I should say the cars, and that big shot will arrange Navy transport ships to bring the cigarettes over in batches.” Dealing with these Peaky Blinders guys, Li Yi’an had to be careful.
Telling them at this moment that he had the backing of a big shot was to let them know there was someone behind him, someone who could mobilize transport ships to smuggle supplies!
Such a person was absolutely not someone ordinary people could afford to provoke.
Saying this would make the other party hesitate to act rashly, and at the very least, he shouldn’t have to worry about being double-crossed.
…
The truck bed was loaded full of cigarettes.
Tommy, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, looked at them.
Actually, to him, this was just a small business deal.
Even the coffee beans, which were highly sought after on the market, were not worth mentioning.
But he still came over.
Spitting out the coffee bean he was chewing on, Tommy asked, “Were all these traded for cars?” Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“Yes, and he also told us to get ready, because next time he will bring even more goods,” John said directly.
“He said he knows a big shot who can arrange ships, load those cars onto the vessels, and transport them to the United States.”
“Shipping them to the United States…
that’s really not something an ordinary person can do…” Tommy took a drag of his cigarette and said.
“John, so you’re saying there really is a big shot behind him?”
“Most likely.
It’s simply impossible for an ordinary person to supply this many goods at once.”
“Indeed.
If they could be shipped to the United States, those car dealers would have sold their backlogged warehouse inventory to the US a long time ago.
Over there, even used cars are in high demand!”
“I know.”
After thinking for a moment, Tommy said, “Tell him we need 200,000 pounds of coffee beans.
If he can bring them in, we’ll keep cooperating with him!”
Then, as if remembering something, Tommy added, “Withdraw our men from outside the warehouse.”
…
“Chengjie, you’ve served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a long time.
I wonder if you have any acquaintances in Cuba?”
In a high-end restaurant near Grosvenor Square, Li Guoren, who was enjoying his steak, had a strange expression upon hearing this.
He looked at Li Yi’an and said, “To be honest with you, brother, the Plenipotentiary Minister Li Dijun is actually my uncle from the same clan.”
In fact, his ability to work in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and be assigned to the UK was also thanks to the help of that uncle.
“What a coincidence!”
Li Yi’an almost couldn’t believe it.
Actually, after learning that Cuba was the main source of smuggled cigarettes and other supplies for the Mafia, he had set his sights on Cuba.
Or rather, he had set his sights on the United States.
Compared to the UK, the US market was broader, and Americans were wealthier.
As long as he seized the opportunities in the next two years, it would be enough for him to complete his primitive accumulation of capital.
And Cuba was his first step to entering the US market.
“It really is a coincidence.
If Zhiyuan needs any help in Cuba, just speak plainly.
I am quite close to my third uncle.”
“Then thank you very much.”
In a great mood, Li Yi’an ordered another bottle of whiskey.
This restaurant recommended by Li Guoren, which specialized in entertaining foreign diplomats, was a bit pricey, but its advantage was that it didn’t require ration coupons.
Hard-to-find red wine, whiskey, and steaks were all readily available here.
During the meal, Li Yi’an did not hide the fact that he had started a company in the United States.
While surprised, Li Guoren expressed his deep approval.
Look here.”
Pointing at the people in the restaurant, Li Guoren said, “Look at the people in this dining room; almost all of them are Americans.
Some of them hold the power to distribute Lend-Lease supplies, and others are military officers drafting plans to bomb Germany.
Nowadays, there are more and more American troops in the UK.
But, do you know who the truly formidable ones are?”
Li Guoren’s rhetorical question made Li Yi’an curious.
“Who?”
“There…
those guys came over from Washington,” Li Guoren pointed with his chin and said.
“Does Zhiyuan know what they came here to do?”
“That, I don’t know.”
“They came here to dismantle the British Empire.”
“Dismantle the British Empire?”
“Yes.
Does Zhiyuan know that two years ago, the United States and the United Kingdom signed the Atlantic Charter?”
“I have heard a bit about it.”
“Actually, this Atlantic Charter is a trap the Yankees dug for the British.
This charter states that all peoples have the right to choose the form of government under which they will live.
This is a landmine planted by the Americans.
The US explicitly demanded that Britain give up its overseas colonies after defeating Germany.
They even dragged India, which is a British colony, in to be a signatory.
In fact, the US was making it plain to Britain: if you want American aid, you must give up your colonies.”
Looking at Li Guoren talking with such assurance, Li Yi’an couldn’t help but see him in a new light.
After all, even as a guy with poor historical knowledge, he knew how the US used World War II to dismantle Britain’s world hegemony and force it to abandon its colonies, thus paving the way for its own post-war dominance.
Wasn’t there a saying like, ‘Britain won World War II but lost the world’?
“…And the US is doing this mainly so that it can intervene in the affairs of former British colonies after the war, including gaining access to their markets.
There are massive interests involved in this.
After all, right now, Britain’s overseas colonies exceed 30 million square kilometers.”
Looking at this brother from the same clan sitting across from him, Li Guoren said, “It’s not just India involved here.
If Britain can even give up India, let alone other colonies.
If Britain gives up its colonies, then the French and the Dutch definitely won’t be able to keep theirs either.
Zhiyuan, your family has lived in Nanyang for a long time.
For your family, this might just be an opportunity!”
(END CHAPTER)
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