What the hell is a private enterprise?

Chapter 424 He still has to thank her.
Although they knew that making money was not the main goal, the country was not willing to suffer a loss in the face of such a major arms sale.

In business, we can't back down even when the US comes!
The attempt to probe at the shipyard ended with Zhao Hande's firm rejection, but Rams was not annoyed.

This is a very important transaction, and the University of Tokyo is probably just starting to build large ships, so being willing to sell is already a huge concession.

However, the empire urgently needs human shields to provide cover, and dragging things out for too long would not be a good thing.

Back at their hotel, Rams and Kazimirz immediately began discussing the issue and quickly reached a consensus:
Time is of the essence.

Since the Musashi has already been topped out, it means that at least the power system is intact and can sail autonomously. What should be done now is to modify it as soon as possible.

As for the cost...

"Our original plan was to purchase the bare ships for no more than one billion US dollars. If it's more than that, then we'll raise the price when selling them to Japan."

Kazimirz said this quite naturally, but Rams raised a question:

"But they are allies after all, doing this..."

"That's Dongda University raising prices, what does it have to do with us?"

Kazimirz then mentioned that Japan had briefly fallen out with China, and that Japan had been tricked in the South China Sea, so there was a high probability of success.

Seeing that Rams was still somewhat hesitant, Kazimirz continued to offer advice:
"The Japanese people also really want to get this warship. In that case, we can put more pressure on public opinion. For example, we can report on Tomohiro Uchimura's progress in purchasing the ship and start a fundraising campaign to raise funds for the purchase..."

"Then let's also belittle the weapons of the University of Tokyo. Of course, they really don't have anything good. Their silkworms and C802 are no match for our harpoons."

The two reached an agreement almost immediately. After all, the Empire wasn't paying for this money, so as long as Tokyo University cooperated, it wouldn't be a problem.

……

"This deal will bypass the Japanese."

Tang Wen winked at Zhao Hande:

"And we can definitely bypass them. It would be outrageous for Japan to buy ships directly from us. We won't spend the US money, and we can even raise the price by selling unfinished hulls."

The latter approached him because they wanted to sell the Musashi. The fact that the US was only willing to buy the bare ship disappointed the domestic military industry, which had originally planned to make a fortune from the ship's weapons, ammunition, and maintenance.

Even if it doesn't make money, it would be a shame not to take advantage of such a rare and opportunistic opportunity.

Old Zhang is here too, but he doesn't have any good solutions for the time being.

Tang Wen first made the same analysis as Kazimilz, and then began to offer advice:
"The US definitely wants to control the weapons system, and the C802 you want to sell is not much different from the Harpoon. It won't be easy to force a sale. The HHQ-7 also conflicts with the Sea Sparrow. You can't have several duplicate weapons on one type of warship, can you?"

"So that means they can't sell missiles?"

Tang Wen shook his head:

"Wrong, even if we don't sell, we still have to pay for the missiles, and we have to pay even more!"

We must say that there are only two Type 001 ships planned for construction, and a large number of dedicated missiles and radar equipment have already been produced and are waiting to be installed... If the equipment system is worth $3 million, then we will have to pay for equipment storage depreciation, labor costs, compensation for delays in shipbuilding plans, and late payment fees for each unit's inventory.

Moreover, these weapons require maintenance and upkeep before they can be adapted to other warships, which also costs money, a flat price of $5 million!
Old Zhang and Zhao Hande both gasped in unison. This guy was treating the customers like a notebook!

"So the price for the bare ship should be $17 billion instead of $15 billion?"

Zhao Hande asked in a daze, but Tang Wen still shook his head:
"Think about it, this battleship was originally meant for us, but it was sold to Japan. What kind of psychological damage did that cause to the people? If a lot of people block the shipyard and refuse to leave, wouldn't we need to pay an extra sum of compensation to the people for their mental distress? So it should be $20 billion."

The two were completely convinced of Tang Wen's ruthlessness, but Old Zhang noticed a problem:
"With your price increase so outrageously, what if they want to install missiles and radar?"

Tang Wen shrugged:

"Sure, but do we have that much in stock?"

Old Zhang shook his head. Originally, China also planned to install a weapon system worth $5 million, which included 96 C802 missiles and 128 HHQ7 missiles, almost all of which needed to be newly produced.

"Including installation time, it will take at least three months."

Tang Wen: "Don't worry, they won't wait three months, otherwise the Panama Canal will be in chaos. And if Japan can't make a decision soon, won't that delay the original plan for this battleship to enter service? So for every day of delay, we'll have to pay dock occupancy fees and compensation for the delay to the navy."

"We're willing to accept the money; he should thank us!"

"..."

……

Puget Sound Shipyard plans to purchase ship hulls from Yangcheng Shipyard.

This is news from Bloomberg, the official mouthpiece of the Empire.

The previous report claiming that Japan would buy the Type 001 was just an entertainment newspaper article and has no authority.

This is also a clever detour:

The Empire's plan was to buy the hull from the Yangcheng Shipyard and then transport it directly to the Puget Sound Shipyard on the west coast for modification. Japanese sailors would then be sent to familiarize themselves with the ship before it was sailed directly to the Panama Canal.

While it's true that the Empire bought warships from the East, they had previously purchased J-7 fighter jets as well! So it's not exactly unorthodox.

Moreover, the Yamato that was purchased was a bare ship, not a fully-fledged warship. It would only become a true warship after the Empire modified and expanded it. Selling it to Japan at that point would be perfectly reasonable.

It may seem like an unnecessary step, but it cleverly avoids a series of difficult problems and achieves complete procedural justice.

The media, always eager to use their imagination, can easily uncover the specific operational procedures with just a little research into unintentionally leaked "sources" or "former officials who wish to remain anonymous." Therefore, the current international headlines remain:
"The Japanese will regain Yamato."

The next one is:
How many battleships does the University of Tokyo actually have?

Now the whole world has discovered that Tokyo University is like Doraemon, never knowing how many warships it can pull out of the Pearl River Bay.

Even in Guangzhou, there are many more people climbing the walls, and the places where enthusiastic people take evening strolls have become shipyard walls, with people especially hoping to see a few more battleships.

Even the warehouses on shore have been suspected of hiding warships. There are conspiracy theories on BBS that China already has a nuclear aircraft carrier, but it is not convenient to show it off because the time is not right.

As for the widely discussed rumors that China would sell battleships to Japan, the general public does not believe it.
Firstly, given how powerful the neighboring Eighth Fleet is, and the fact that the Yamato was originally built by them, is it necessary for them to buy it from their own side?

Secondly, it's only human nature: the country has just acquired a few large ships, it's only just begun, and they want to sell off their best warships right away?
In contrast, this is the case in Japan.

Although the news about "the upgraded Daiwa being delivered to the doujinshi after being purchased by the Imperial Group" comes from unofficial sources, it is already exciting enough.

The purchase of the Yamato by the University of Tokyo and the unveiling of the Taizan had been the subject of much discussion, and now it has been a hot topic nationwide, fueled by the will of the people, who have come to believe that the speculation is about to become a reality.

Before Tomohiro Uchimura could even begin to guide the process, NGOs had already stepped forward to raise funds to buy back the Yamato!
(End of this chapter)