Kays Translations

Chapter 61: Another Thief

It goes without saying that everything happening with Li Xian naturally aroused a lot of greed; and this time, the matter of recruiting agents gave those with ulterior motives an opportunity!  

A wolf lurking in the south of the Great Xia Kingdom set its sights here! This was the governor of Nanyang County, Kong Donglai. The Kong family of the Great Xia Kingdom was a very powerful family, and Kong Donglai’s uncle was Kong Xiang, the Grand Tutor Kong Xiang, a high-ranking official of the First Rank, who stood side by side with the Grand Marshal Yuan Yong and the Prime Minister Ouyang Wubing in the court.  

Nanyang County was the second-largest county in the Great Xia Kingdom, still prosperous and powerful; and because it was located in the southernmost region, far beyond the central reach of the Great Xia Kingdom, the result was predictable.  

And the textiles, engines, bearings, stainless steel, and other things that Li Xian developed made Kong Donglai see great potential—not just commercial potential, but also as war machines! As a governor who had carved out his own sphere of influence, Kong Donglai was indeed very capable.  

Just in time, Li Xian’s recruitment of agents gave Kong Donglai the opportunity!  

On the surface, Kong Donglai sent his son, Kong Yingzhi, to come forward; but in secret, he had his younger brother, Kong Donghua, disguised. Kong Donghua was a master in the Golden Core stage, one of the trump cards of the Kong family. Becoming a Golden Core stage master before the age of eighty, Kong Donghua was undoubtedly a genius!  

After arriving at the Qingyun Valley, the Kong family’s team did not immediately take action but instead continuously gathered information. They also made contact with some family representatives, local strongmen representatives, and others, achieving some political purposes in passing.  

After waiting for two days and gathering enough intelligence, Kong Donghua decided to make a move.  

Kong Yingzhi respectfully said to the “guard” beside him: “Uncle, it’s confirmed that Qingyun Valley has no traces of Golden Core stage experts. The strongest defensive force here is only a few disabled soldiers.  

There are no Golden Core stage experts on the surface in all of Anyang.”  

The “guard” pondered for a moment, “Zhier, Li Yulong was able to extend the Great Xia Kingdom’s declining fate for another ten years or more, so he’s no careless fool. There must be a Golden Core stage expert hiding here. Over the past few days, have any strange people arrived at the Anyang border or Anyang city?”  

“No. According to my judgment, there should be friction between Li Xian and his elder brother Li Liang. Li Xian was originally a captain, but now he doesn’t care at all about An Yang’s military affairs. Instead, Li Liang gave the disabled soldiers to Li Xian.  

I think there must be deep conflict between the two, and they are wary of each other.”  

“That’s good. Make arrangements. I’ll go to Qingyun Valley at dawn tomorrow to have a look.”  

Li Xian never expected that his casual actions would have such an effect.

————

In the afternoon, Li Xian, Xu Ren, Fang Shijing, Beichen Yuqing, and others formally discussed the bidding process, along with a group of quick-thinking individuals personally selected by Fang Shijing and Beichen Yuqing. Everyone contributed their ideas, and through their collective wisdom, the details of this bidding process were clearly explained.

Nearby, various high-level personnel were also listening in to learn. Li Xian was already consciously cultivating his own core team. Even Xia Qingqing brought along two “tagalongs”—the little ones Zhao Fei and Xie An.

First, Li Xian confirmed his approach. At present, the Great Xia Kingdom was fragmented, with warlords holding sway and government decrees not getting through. Bandits were rampant—many of them were even self-staged by local strongmen posing as bandit groups.

Given this situation, the newly established Brilliant Star Group would find it difficult to develop under normal circumstances. Since that was the case, Li Xian thought it better to focus on developing “general agents.” As long as the Brilliant Star Group managed An Yang and the three counties around Anyang well, that would suffice. Furthermore, developing general agents would quickly boost sales, revitalize the company, and capture the market.

Secondly, Li Xian revealed his “fangs.” In this bidding process, he explicitly introduced a new concept—after-sales service! The Brilliant Star Group would not handle sales but would focus on the most money-consuming part—after-sales service. They even planned to set up around ten after-sales service points in each county.

But after-sales service wasn’t as simple as it seemed; it was a large web.

“Let the agents help open up the market, while we, through the after-sales service, can take over that market and build our reputation. When the time is right, those after-sales service points can transform into marketing centers!”

Plop… As Li Xian finished speaking, a drop of cold sweat slid down Fang Shijing’s face. This ruthless and brutal business tactic of undercutting competitors made Fang Shijing’s heart race. The agents would open up the market in front, while Li Xian, with a simple “after-sales” strategy, would effortlessly poach the market, and everyone would even welcome it!

However, Beichen Yuqing’s eyes gleamed with excitement. “We can add a few more points. We can treat the after-sales service points as our representative institutions in the region. Here, we can release information, including details on products, agents, prices, and more.

In addition, we can turn the after-sales service points into information gathering centers, talent acquisition hubs, and make them our extensions.

The after-sales service points can also become centers for interaction, allowing us to connect with local nobles and dignitaries.

Moreover, the defective or recalled items can be repaired and then given away for free to the public through raffles, boosting our reputation.”

“Let’s do it this way! Mr. Beichen, I’ll leave the after-sales services in your capable hands,” Li Xian said decisively.

“Absolutely!” Beichen Yuqing was overjoyed. He finally had a chance to show his skills, and not just any chance—if the after-sales market was managed well, it could pry open the entire market.

Then, Li Xian shared his second plan. The domestic market would be left to the agents to develop, while Brilliant Star Group’s main commercial focus would shift toward surrounding countries. The immediate target would be the neighboring northern state of Cai.

“We need to enhance our research and production of ships. It’s okay to hire private craftsmen at high prices if needed. We should also begin trading with more distant countries along the southern coastline. Our vision can’t be limited to the domestic market; that would be far too narrow.

Additionally, reinforce the night defenses. Any intruder who dares to trespass should be eliminated without hesitation.”

Everything was quickly arranged, and Brilliant Star Group continued its busy production through the night.

At dawn, Liu Leigang was leading a patrol of guards. Although he had lost his left hand and was a disabled veteran, Liu Leigang was full of spirit and determination. In addition to sturdy cold weapons, Liu Leigang also had a new weapon—guns! These had been hastily produced by the arms factory over the last few days. The quantity was small, and the appearance was rough, but the power was immense, enough to make Liu Leigang tremble. They could penetrate steel plates two centimeters thick from 300 meters away! Even though the current guns were single-shot, a skilled person could still fire around 20 shots per minute—thanks to their cultivation-enhanced abilities.

Even with just one hand, Liu Leigang could manage 12 shots per minute on average.

The gun Liu Leigang was equipped with was specially made and bore a mighty name—sniper rifle!

The bullets for the sniper rifle were enormous, with the bullet head as thick as an adult’s thumb and as long as an index finger, packing five times the power of regular guns.

Liu Leigang commanded over a thousand men, with more than 300 being battle-hardened disabled soldiers and over 700 newly trained recruits. All the guards were divided into three shifts, rotating for rest.

“Keep your eyes wide open! The most thieves strike during the early dawn. Mr. Xu Ren specifically warned me that there might be some formidable thieves appearing before daylight today.

Whoever spots signs of a thief gets a reward of one tael of gold. Killing a thief earns you ten taels of gold. Capturing a thief alive earns you fifty taels. If the intruder is an expert, say someone in the Golden Core stage, the rewards will be multiplied tenfold!”

“Really?!” The soldiers’ eyes widened in excitement.

“Hmph!” Liu Leigang snorted coldly. “I don’t need to repeat how generous the Young Master’s rewards are.”

Li Xian’s policy of rewarding merit was clearly paying off, as the guards’ eyes gleamed with anticipation, searching everywhere for thieves. These disabled soldiers weren’t to be underestimated. After rigorous selection, these 300-plus men were all elite troops. Being elite didn’t just mean their combat prowess—it also meant experience!

Suddenly, one of the guards discreetly tugged at Liu Leigang’s sleeve and, without changing his gaze, whispered, “General, look toward one o’clock, by the corner of the warehouse at the smelting plant. There’s a slight curve in the shadow.”

Liu Leigang squinted his eyes, a cold smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He raised his half-arm and gave a simple signal. The soldier who had spotted the movement quietly passed the information along.

Fifteen newly forged rifles and two sniper rifles had their safeties disengaged.

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