The Village Chief was quite satisfied with the "Imported" Diesel Engine and enthusiastically invited Tang Wen to go crabbing at dawn the next day, an invitation Tang Wen firmly refused with a shake of his head.
The former Tang Wen was an expert at going out to sea to catch shrimp, but the current Tang Wen was a complete landlubber.
Although the memories remained, he certainly didn't want to end up like the old man, splashing around a few times and being done for.
After seeing the Village Chief off, Tang Wen immediately burst out laughing while looking at the five thousand yuan in his hand.
The Profit from selling one Diesel Engine was equivalent to 100 Silver Coin; selling just 10 units would be enough to save up the funds for an Upgrade.
However, the whole village basically used the Village Chief's Tractor; selling more would require going to the Town or even the city.
Realizing that relying on the Duty-Free Commissioner's Order would take quite some time, Tang Wen started Construction on a new Diesel Engine as soon as night fell.
The current Level Zero Shipyard could only produce two units at a time, so four units would require two batches, taking 12 hours to complete.
Early the next morning, Chen Yonggui saw Tang Wen standing by his door, pointing at the "Four-Wheel Drive" that had just been fitted with a new Engine and saying:
"Uncle, can I borrow the vehicle? I need to go to town to sell something."
"Sell what?"
"A few more Diesel Engines, brand new."
Chen Yonggui, who had been fishing all night and only finished deliveries at dawn, was still a bit sleepy, but he immediately got energized upon hearing about the Diesel Engines:
"There are more? Did you put all your money into this?"
"Just a few units in the first batch."
Seeing that Tang Wen was being evasive and unwilling to say more, Chen Yonggui didn't press further, simply pointing to the Crank Handle in the corner of the wall:
"Don't drive it into a ditch!"
...
The Shipyard already had a lifting hoist, so Tang Wen first hoisted two units into the truck bed, then cut off most of the Nameplate.
This time, he planned to test the waters in the Town first to gauge the potential Market size.
The Dirt road leading into town was bumpy; fortunately, Tang Wen had nailed down a wooden frame beforehand, otherwise, it would have been quite a few jolts.
As he neared the Town, Tang Wen could already see a lively crowd.
It was the second day of the lunar month, and Big Bay Town only gathered many vendors on lunar dates that were a 'two'; it wasn't even 9 AM yet, and many adults were out strolling with their children, squeezing the already narrow streets tightly.
Seeing that he couldn't drive in, Tang Wen found an Open Space at the town entrance, turned the "Four-Wheel Drive" around so the truck bed faced outward, revealing the two Diesel Engines fixed in wooden frames inside.
He took out a board he had prepared with writing on it, leaned it against the truck bed, and then sat down calmly beside it.
There was no need to call out specifically; this wasn't something people bought just for the fun of watching the Fun, so people would naturally come up to ask.
The process of backing up had already attracted many people's attention; passersby couldn't help but look into the truck bed, catching a glimpse of the two Brand new Diesel Engines at a glance, causing some to stop and cast curious looks.
Not long after, a middle-aged man carrying a little girl on his shoulders stopped in front of the "Four-Wheel Drive," grabbing the girl's leg to look inside.
The exquisite Appearance manufactured by the System was very eye-catching; the middle-aged man stretched his neck, looked at the simple writing on the board, and let out an "Eh?"
It clearly read: "Amphibious 25 Horsepower Diesel Engine"
"This machine really has 25 Horsepower?"
Tang Wen glanced at the middle-aged Old Fisherman, pointed to the front of the Four-Wheel Drive:
"This Tractor also uses this one; you'll know once you try it."
The middle-aged man was not polite; he put down the little girl on his shoulders, started the Tractor, and then forcefully squeezed the Throttle cable.
The "dada" exhaust sound of the Diesel Engine immediately became denser, simultaneously spewing out a puff of strong black smoke, and the rotational speed visibly increased to the Naked eye.
Hearing this sound, the middle-aged man felt confident, then squeezed the Throttle a few more times, carefully listening to the sound of Operation and the vibration.
He inwardly praised it as a "good machine," but his facial expression showed no Fluctuation as he turned to ask:
"Is this Domestic or Imported?"
"It's Domestic, look at the Nameplate yourself."
The Old Fisherman looked at the Nameplate, where only the line "Gaijin Brand 25 Horsepower Single Cylinder Low-Speed Diesel Engine" remained, with all other information erased.
Gaijin Brand? He had never heard of it.
However, judging by the surface, the workmanship was not an issue; at least it wasn't worse than "Changchai" or "Yuchai."
"Where is the Gaijin Brand produced?"
The Old Fisherman's casual question stunned Tang Wen, who hadn't considered that issue before.
"This... a specialty of Anton."
"Dandong? From the Northeast China."
Tang Wen didn't correct his mistake and nodded vaguely.
The surrounding crowd watching the Fun also cast surprised glances upon hearing "Dandong"; it wasn't easy to buy a Product from the Northeast China, especially one with an unfamiliar brand.
"The Horsepower is high, but the quality of Domestic products isn't good."
The Fisherman seemed somewhat regretful, yet also somewhat dismissive, acting as if he were about to leave.
He placed the little girl back on his shoulders and casually asked:
"How much is one of these?"
The onlookers immediately perked up their ears; although most of them wouldn't buy one, they at least knew the going rate and were curious how the price of the Northeast China Gaijin Diesel Engine differed.
Tang Wen held up five fingers:
"This is the price for a serious buyer; no haggling, no after-sales service, all sales are final, no returns, no exchanges."
A chorus of boos immediately rose from the crowd. The Old Fisherman, who heard the latter half, shook his head like a rattle drum, his dark face full of refusal, and questioned dissatisfiedly:
"Then what happens if this machine breaks? Won't the money be wasted?"
Many voices of agreement immediately joined in; although mandatory three guarantees weren't enforced yet in those days, directly stating no after-sales service was uncommon.
"Our machines are all tested; feel free to try them before buying, but once used, they cannot be returned or exchanged."
Even under the gaze of more than ten pairs of eyes, Tang Wen stubbornly persisted; this wasn't because he was Black-hearted, as the Profit from selling Diesel Engines was enough to cover exchanges but not repairs, and he wouldn't lose money either way.
But he had to consider the extremely harsh Environment of potential Clients, as they would be installed in either Tractors or Fishing Boats.
Wind and rain exposure, mud splashing, Seawater corrosion, or even being completely submerged by a wave—it could only be worse, never the worst.
Maintenance for this thing purely depended on the User's self-discipline; improper use could easily cause it to break.
As for repairs... if it broke, it could only be recycled as Scrap Steel, which was useless to him anyway.
It was better to state clearly that there was no after-sales service; besides, he had already asked the Village Chief, and 25 Horsepower units were rare on the Market, usually only available in the city at very high prices—even ten thousand wouldn't be considered expensive.
A brand new Diesel Engine for five thousand yuan—if it breaks, it's because the user didn't know how to use it!
Hearing Tang Wen's unreasonable after-sales policy, the Old Fisherman was about to leave, but after taking two steps, he suddenly turned back, opened his palm, and asked with a frown:
"Wait, how much did you just say it was? This amount?"
"Yes, five thousand."
"Five thousand?!"
The dark and thin Old Fisherman's eyes nearly popped out, and everyone else also pricked up their ears.
Many people hadn't seen the hand gesture earlier and only now realized the Diesel Engine was being sold for five thousand yuan.
"So expensive for just one machine; a walking tractor only costs two thousand eight."
"You know nothing! This is 25 Horsepower; the two thousand eight one is only 5 Horsepower!"
"25 Horsepower??"
"..."
Those who understood a little immediately realized the Appeal of this price and rushed forward eagerly.
The Old Fisherman carrying his little girl stepped forward, staring intently at the beautiful Diesel Engine, and asked without blinking:
"Really five thousand yuan? Is it new?"
"Guaranteed new, guaranteed good, guaranteed delivery... delivery is only within Big Bay Town; for farther distances, you'll have to figure it out yourself."
"I'll take it! I want both of these!"