Chapter 583: Chapter 583: Consultation
The female official apparently thought of this too, she said: “Please wait a moment, I need to consult with the general about this.”
Li Yao nodded, indicating understanding, and then began to wait.
About a quarter of an hour later, the female official came back and said directly: “The queen is discussing with the great chieftain the end of the war with the centaurs, and it is estimated that it will end within one to three months.”
Li Yao frowned and said: “It seems that the Light Faction is once again dragging things out. They are quite calculating.”
The female official just made a casual comment and did not expect Li Yao to see through everything so clearly. She reevaluated Li Yao and said: “I didn’t expect that you could see through the essence of it and understand my intentions. You are not simple, little brother.”
Li Yao smiled without saying a word, as there was nothing difficult to understand. Although the two camps are temporarily cooperating, after the end of the war with the centaurs, the tension between the camps would escalate, even if it did not result in war.
The Light Faction couldn’t instigate a war, so this was the only way they could contain the Dark Camp.
You see, the Dark Camp had mobilized a large number of troops, and for each day these troops weren’t withdrawn, the resources they consumed would cause the Dark Camp to suffer. This also delayed the Tauren’s recovery of their land.
And what the Dark Camp lacked most were resources, it couldn’t afford to deplete them, but as long as the Light Faction didn’t withdraw, the Dark Camp wouldn’t dare to withdraw either.
If they withdrew their forces, the camp of Light would seize the opportunity to attack the Dark Camp’s heartland and then the Dark Camp would be doomed.
On the other hand, the mine is currently what the Dark Camp needs the most, implying that Li Yao’s proposal has a great chance of success.
But Li Yao still asked, “And what about this matter?”
The female official smiled and said: “Between you and me, I’ll tell you the truth. Your proposal is feasible, but we can’t agree to the price you’re asking. Of course, if you want to purchase some ships, that’s no problem, but if you also want the rights to open a sea route, that will be a bit difficult.”
Of course, Li Yao knew his price wouldn’t be accepted, and he also understood that this mine was not a particularly big one.
“So what do you suggest, sister?” Li Yao asked with a bitter smile.
“Naturally, I won’t take advantage of you. Let’s say, if it’s a medium-sized mine, then you take 20%, we take 40%, the Great Chieftain takes 40%. If it’s a large mine, you take 30%. We will be responsible for workers and such,” the female official whispered. “This is a very preferential price, granted by the queen herself, so don’t feel it’s too little.”
“I understand.” Li Yao truly did understand. Being able to take 30% was already quite substantial.
You have to realize that at the present stage, players do not have the capacity to develop such mines. Mining would also yield many monsters. The weakest monsters in the tin mine are level 30, too much for Starfire to handle.
Furthermore, Starfire does not have the energy to spare right now. And even once they do, Li Yao won’t waste it on mining tin: he is aware of many unexploited veins of rare minerals.
The female official looked at Li Yao with approval and said: “There’s one more thing. I heard you’ve established some contact with the Frogmen. We also need you to act as a mediator to complete some marine resource transactions. If you agree, your request will be essentially granted.”
Li Yao was overjoyed. He was originally worried about how to make the Dark Camp give up their prejudice against the Frogmen. He did not expect that the Dark Camp actually wanted to reach out themselves.
But on the surface, he displayed a troubled expression: “You guys are too domineering; you want a piece of everything.”
“Little brother, don’t be too greedy, especially when you are weak. There are things that you can’t monopolize, even if without you others won’t get a single copper coin. Develop well first. Once you’re strong, then you can be tough,” the female official patted Li Yao’s shoulder.
Li Yao shrugged, saying, “I didn’t complain. These are the rules, and naturally I have to pay a price if I want to break them. But I want to know now, after I paid so much, what can I ultimately get?”
The female official laughed and said: “One large transport ship, four medium transport ships, two medium escort ships, and ten small ships. Plus, you can open sea routes.”
The so-called sea route rights actually refer to the area patrolled by the fleet of the Dark Camp. Without fleet patrols, if a private sea route is created, it will certainly attract many pirates.
Of course, the sea routes that are open can’t avoid pirates and monsters, but if the pirates rob you, the fleet will get involved in the situation. If they can’t recover the lost property, they will compensate you a certain amount.
Li Yao’s face turned bitter and he said: “You guys are being rather stingy.”
“You know the cost of shipbuilding. You are not at a loss. Mine profits are more of a steady stream, and you would need at least a year to start seeing returns from it. Without your contacts with the Frogmen and the general’s support, you wouldn’t even get a single large transport ship,” the female official stated the facts.
“Fine, but I want to choose the model of the ship myself,” Li Yao said.
“Of course.” The female official, of course, understood Li Yao’s plan and didn’t challenge: “Which one do you choose?”
You have to understand, each race’s ships have different styles.
The Trolls simply do not have large warships, let alone the Tauren, but the Orc’s ships are too primitive and require a lot of manpower.
The Goblins’ lean toward machinery, the speed is quite fast, but the Goblin technology is unstable and pollutes a lot.
The high Elves’ ships are more beautiful than practical, and they are basically magic-driven, which is more costly, but also very stable.
“I’ll choose the Goblin Escort Ship, everything else of our own race.” Li Yao pondered for a moment.
“You certainly know how to choose, but you’d better transport something valuable or else you wouldn’t even be able to afford the magic fuel.” The female official noted it down.
“Of course, sister, just watch, I didn’t randomly choose my base.” Li Yao gave a mysterious smile. There are too many useful resources on the sandbars. The current airship technology can’t transport them out, but he firmly believes that once the port is operational, the Dark Camp will definitely start utilizing it.
Although the Goblin’s capabilities are limited overall, their cannons are very potent. In comparison to the gnome’s steam machinery, they are slightly better, at least in military terms.
As for the High Elven Escort Ship, the magic crystals needed for the magic cannon are produced by Warcraft, which Li Yao currently can’t afford.
“Then I’ll be waiting. You can turn your guild’s base into a warehouse and a marine resource store, and I can have the procurement department favor you a bit, as long as your goods are first of all something we need, and of good quality and grade,” the female official finally gave Li Yao a tip.
“With your word, sister, I can rest assured. Then I’m going to build the port quickly and wait for the fleet to arrive.” Li Yao was very happy.
Just as Li Yao was about to leave, the female official suddenly said: “Remember the task the queen gave you.”
Li Yao started, understanding she was referring to the task of exploring the Titan’s Relics. He didn’t say anything, just nodded to show that he hadn’t forgotten.
Then Li Yao returned to the main city guild base, told Sister Li about half of the things, and then had someone take him back to the sandbar. After taking over the ship, he was ready to set off to find the touch of darkness…