American Comic Dimensional Trading Device

As for the potatoes planted in August, they won't be ready for harvest until at least November.

In other places, it's not so bad because farmers can store grain, but it's not the case in big cities like Paris.

There would need to be enough food to feed at least two million people for two months to sustain the city—and that was under the rationing system in Paris.

“I definitely can’t provide 120,000 tons of grain,” Josie said after a moment’s thought.

You can take it out, but you can't take it away.

Normally, it would be fine for him to transport several tons or tens of tons of grain into Paris every day. After all, even though there is a war, there are still all kinds of daring people who transport supplies to the war zone through various means such as air and land transport, so this amount would not seem too strange.

The military won't interfere.

But even the US military logistics department couldn't possibly produce 120,000 tons at once. If Josie really dared to do that, there would be no way to cover it up.

Moreover, selling supplies isn't just a business Josh does; many American businessmen are doing it too, though their goods aren't as good or as plentiful as Josh's.

Even the US military itself is doing it.

Josie can eat meat, but she can't deny these people even the soup, and she certainly can't smash the pot.

Otherwise, it could really lead to someone's death.

“However, 10,000 tons per month is still achievable,” Josie said after some thought, offering a figure that wasn’t too exaggerated.

Ten thousand tons, which is the carrying capacity of two Liberty ships, is just right for one trip a month, considering the distance from the United States to Paris and the speed of the Liberty ships.

"But mainly canned meat, wheat, and potatoes. I don't have much, so I won't be supplying them," Josie added.

“That’s enough! What about the price?” De Gaulle wasn’t stupid; he knew perfectly well that Josie couldn’t possibly produce 120,000 tons of food at once.

However, the production of 10,000 tons of canned meat per month was far beyond his expectations.

I just don't know about the price.

“Ten thousand dollars per ton, I think that’s a very reasonable price!” Josie didn’t think twice and immediately quoted a number.

Upon hearing the price, De Gaulle's lips trembled slightly.

$10,000 per ton.

That means it costs $10 per kilogram.

Without a doubt, this is an extremely high price in terms of the purchasing power of the US dollar.

But for Paris right now, this price isn't actually that expensive.

The current official exchange rate between the Swiss franc and the US dollar is 5 francs to 1 US dollar.

But what's the price situation in Paris now? A chicken that weighs about one kilogram costs 100 francs, and even an egg costs 3 francs.

Converted to US dollars, a kilogram of chicken costs $20, which is twice as expensive as the canned meat that Josie offered.

Moreover, that's the price of a live chicken; after it's made into meat, at least 20% of the internal organs and bones will be lost.

De Gaulle had also tried the canned meat sold by Josie; it was truly packed with meat, extremely rich in fat, and almost entirely free of starch.

Compared to this, the $10,000 per ton that Josie offered is a very, very reasonable price.

Before approaching Josie, de Gaulle had also approached many other big Parisian businessmen, but they either refused to sell or asked for exorbitant prices.

No one is easier to talk to than Josie.

But de Gaulle was still heartbroken.

Two months and 20,000 tons, that's two hundred million US dollars!

That's enough for him to form ten more armored divisions.

以自由法国第二装甲师为例，其主力是85辆斯图亚特轻型坦克，164辆谢尔曼中型坦克，36辆M10“狼獾”坦克歼击车，64辆装甲车、664辆半履带车和巡逻车、27辆M8“斯科特”75毫米自行榴弹炮、54辆M7“牧师”105毫米自行榴弹炮。

And what about the price of these weapons? A Stryker costs less than $40,000, while a Sherman costs $50,000 to $60,000.

The M10 "Wolverine" tank destroyer is the most expensive, costing nearly 100,000.

All the other miscellaneous items add up to just over 20 million.

Two hundred million dollars is enough for ten armored divisions.

"This price—is very reasonable!" De Gaulle shakily pulled a cigarette from his pocket, lit it with trembling hands, took a puff, exhaled a few smoke rings, and said in a deep voice, "So when will the goods arrive?"

“Your Excellency de Gaulle, please don’t be in such a hurry. Although you have a great deal of autonomy over the post-war partition, you can’t just make empty promises, can you? So a contract is definitely going to be signed. In addition, I will ask our ambassador and General Eisenhower to be witnesses… Is that alright?” Josie said calmly.

"Phew... Of course it's possible!" De Gaulle breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.

“Then I wish us a pleasant cooperation!” Josie smiled broadly and extended her hand to de Gaulle.

De Gaulle felt both relieved and very heavy-hearted. He didn't say anything, but simply reached out and touched hands with Josie.

"I've arranged a banquet. Would you do me the honor of joining me for a casual meal?" Josie didn't mind at all and instead generously invited him to dinner.

In business terms, even without discussing business, Josie wouldn't mind making friends with this person.

He was, after all, the last man in France, making him a truly endangered species.

De Gaulle did not refuse Josie's invitation. He had carried so much for the country and the city, so couldn't he at least have a good meal?

The following day, at Josie's special invitation, and witnessed by the US ambassador to France, who had been in Paris for less than two weeks, and General Eisenhower, Josie and de Gaulle signed the contract in the conference hall of the George V Hotel.

In reality, under normal circumstances, Eisenhower, as the Supreme Allied Commander, held a high position and wielded great power, making him difficult to invite, and his relationship with Josie was not that close.

However, this agreement is beneficial to the United States... because the United States is actually quite skeptical that after the war, de Gaulle or the French government will be able to repay, or rather, will be willing to repay, the debts of the two armored divisions.

However, now that Josie and de Gaulle have signed this contract, if France dares to default, the US military can legitimately withhold France's post-war reparations!

So Eisenhower was happy to do a favor.

The day after the contract was signed, two Liberty ships loaded with canned meat appeared on the Seine.

These two Liberty ships were second-hand goods that Josie bought from a shipping company at half price when he was in England.

It is specifically designed for transporting large quantities of goods.

With the 10,000 tons of canned meat provided by Josie, coupled with the rationing system that had been in place since the fall of France, the food shortage in Paris was barely manageable.

Moreover, even if so many canned meats were sold to the provisional government at a "low price," it wouldn't actually affect Josie and other businessmen's ability to continue making money.

The food shortage still exists, but people are no longer starving to death.

The wealthy citizens of Paris are still willing to spend a little more money to eat their fill.

Even without money, beautiful French women could still earn money from American soldiers.

Besides, even if Josie stops selling food, she can still sell other things.

Since they weren't starving, the romantic French people couldn't resist having a smoke, a drink or coffee, or a sweet treat, right?

The provisional government will not distribute these things to the people.

And so, while continuing to fleece the French people, Josie quietly awaited the unfolding of the "Return to the Eagle's Nest" plan.

....................................

“I thought you wouldn’t come back before the plan started!” A few days later, in the study of the presidential suite, Josie said to the woman sitting opposite her while gently wiping a bronze dragon head in her hand.

"I just miss you so much! I can't eat or sleep when I can't see you!" the woman said with a smile, fiddling with the collar around her neck.

Needless to say, this woman was none other than Ophelia.

"Really? I had no idea I was so charming!" Josie raised an eyebrow, carefully placing the dragon head back into the box in front of her. Miss him? More like wishing him dead!

“Tsk tsk tsk, Prince Kahn is far too modest. Every young lady in Paris dreams of spending a night with you. It’s just a pity that our Prince Kahn seems to have some issues with his orientation,” Ophelia said with a mocking expression.

"...Heh, are you provoking me?" Josie's face turned cold.

In fact, Vito and his colleagues had recently informed him about this rumor circulating in Paris.

The reason for this rumor is quite simple: during the time Josie spent in Paris, although he frequently visited nightclubs such as the Moulin Rouge and the Lido, there was never any real scandal involving him and that woman.

This is actually quite an incredible thing in this day and age, especially in France, which is known for its romance.

In addition, Josie herself is extremely good-looking.

This is seen as highly unusual by outsiders.

So somehow, rumors started to circulate that he had sexual orientation issues.

However, Josie has always been dismissive of such rumors from the outside world.

Whether I am a man or not is not for you to decide. In the end, it's just that he's picky. France is said to be the city of romance, but to be honest, most women don't really catch his eye.

Moreover, this is just a rumor, and under normal circumstances, no one would dare to say it to his face.

People in positions of power wouldn't be so foolish as to offend him, but if an ordinary person dared to say such a thing, they could just wait to be fed to the fish in the Seine.

But now that Ophelia has brought this up, it's pure provocation.

It's no wonder Ophelia provoked her; she had tried many methods back in Austria but had been unable to remove the collar.

The resentment towards Josie ran deep.

It's a pity that she seems to have forgotten the fundamental purpose of this ring.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that, but... ahhhhhh!" Ophelia wanted to say a few more sarcastic things to Josie, but Josie pressed a button on the anti-mind control necklace and collapsed onto the sofa, sobbing.

"Tch, is that all you've got?" Josie shook her head, opened another box on the table, and took out the bronze snake head inside.

Indeed, these two bronze heads are the zodiac animal heads from the Old Summer Palace.