Top-notch Little Horseman

Ye Chen didn't care about his attitude. He now had a huge sum of 350 taels of silver on him, so he was a big shot who could spend money.

Soon they will be like dogs, lying in front of you with their tongues hanging out, begging you to spend money.

"Brother, what are you saying? Doesn't the foundry have money and can sell anything?" Ye Chen said to Xiao Li with his hands in his pockets.

"You can buy it if you have money, but do you have money?" the clerk said with a contemptuous smile.

It's no wonder that the petty officials looked down on people. Those who could afford to spend money at the foundry were either wealthy second-generation officials or elite soldiers who could go out to work and earn rewards.

How many copper coins could a horse breeder possibly have? He thinks he can act like a big shot here? Of course, he looks down on him.

"Get out of here, you dog guarding the gate! I'm here to spend money, so of course I brought money with me!" The smoker got angry and took out a few taels of silver from his pocket, three of which were the advance payment Ye Chen had given him.

Only real money can win people's hearts; these three taels of silver can be considered the loyalty of the tobacco seller.

When the clerk saw the silver in the tobacco man's hand, he was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly got up and pushed open the door behind him for the two gentlemen.

The foundry, though clearly an appendage of the government, was set up like a marketplace, with counters and shelves displaying all kinds of weapons, and even dedicated staff to handle customer service.

Ye Chen's goal in coming here was very clear: to buy guns!

When he stated his requirements, everyone in the foundry, from the workers to the customers, was stunned.

Firearms were among the most expensive items in the foundry; even the cheapest single-barreled gun started at one tael of silver.

If you want to buy a matchlock musket, that would be even more expensive; don't even think about it if you don't have at least 10 taels of silver.

You should know that the entire household's military equipment didn't even have a hundred muskets. The musket soldiers were all incredibly tough.

These arquebusiers were the prized possessions of the generals of each battalion, and their monthly pay was as high as one tael of silver.

The border soldiers in the household registration office tried every means to improve their treatment, just so they could buy a musket and apply to join the musket battalion.

As long as your marksmanship is decent and you can afford a matchlock musket, you can basically advance to the next level and become a member of the matchlock musket battalion.

Even the cheapest musket costs 10 taels of silver, which is simply unaffordable for ordinary border soldiers.

Getting into the arquebus battalion is very difficult, and even if you do get in, it's extremely difficult to break even.

After all, the arquebus battalion was going to the front lines of combat, and whether they could even survive long enough to break even was a question, so Ye Chen naturally had no intention of joining the arquebus battalion.

Ye Chen entered the store with only one reason for buying a shotgun: he liked shooting.

Regardless of the reason, you need to verify your funds if you want to buy a musket. Ye Chen's 300 taels of silver was the most solid stepping stone.

Having revealed his capital, he was immediately ushered to a side room on the second floor, where he would be personally received by the manager of the foundry.

"Ptooey, ptooey, what kind of rubbish is this?" The smoker took a sip of hot tea and immediately spat it out.

Ye Chen chuckled softly, scraped away a large amount of tea leaves with the lid, took a sip, and said, "You, you've only had one good cup of tea, and your palate has already become so discerning?"

"How many places in the Northern Territory can compare to the tea served at the Qian residence? To be offered a cup of tea here is already a great honor."

However, despite saying that, the tea was truly awful.

"I apologize for keeping you waiting. I am Wu Liangde, the chief manager of the foundry!" Just then, the door to the hall was pushed open, and a middle-aged man with a square face and a big smile walked in.

Those eyes, gleaming with cunning, clearly belonged to a shrewd businessman.

"I am Ye Chen, the squad leader of the horse herding team in the horse camp. I greet you, Steward." Ye Chen stood up and bowed to the Smoker.

In this household, everyone who is in charge has a higher official rank than him.

He had to perform this courtesy, and he had to give them face.

"You're too kind, sir. Please have a seat." Wu Liangde said with his signature smile.

"I heard Brother Ye wants to buy a musket? A musket is good! My foundry has recently produced a hundred top-quality ones. Brother Ye, you've come at the right time. I'll pick out the best one for you to use first."

"The price will be 10 taels of silver, and I'll also give you 10 lead bullets and one tael of gunpowder. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

After Wu Liangde sat down, he immediately began discussing business.

He didn't care what Ye Chen did or where Ye Chen's money came from; as long as he could get money, he would sell.

"Well..." Ye Chen didn't make a decision right away, but instead kept everyone in suspense.

"What... Brother Ye, do you think the price is too high? 10 taels of silver is the price, and that can't be changed. I can make an offer to give you an extra set of lead bullets."

"It's not that it's expensive, it's just that I don't like muskets. Is there anything better?" Ye Chen chuckled and shook his head, saying, "Money is not a problem. It just depends on whether Steward Wu can make that kind of money."

"Even better?" Wu Liangde was taken aback by the question: "How much better do you want?"

"Do you have any 'Lightning Guns' in stock?" Ye Chen asked, raising his eyes slightly.

Smoker was a little confused when he heard this. He had never heard of this name before. Who forged all of this stuff?

"Brother! You have good taste!" Wu Liangde narrowed his eyes and personally served Ye Chen tea.

"Brother, we just click! Did you get the news? I just received two Kyoto-developed lightning guns a few days ago. There are only a handful of these in the entire Qin Dynasty, you've really struck gold!"

"However, brother, let me warn you beforehand, this kind of rare item isn't cheap; one will cost at least 50 taels of silver!"

This price is absolutely astronomical. It's not that the lightning gun isn't worth it, but in this chaotic world, 50 taels of silver would be enough to save a whole family.

"Hmm. This price is very fair. May I take a look at the goods?" Ye Chen took out 50 taels of silver and placed it in front of Wu Liangde.

Upon seeing the silver ingots in front of him, Wu Liangde's eyes lit up immediately, and he hurriedly stood up and called out.

"Someone come here! Bring up the finest goods from Kyoto! Quickly, serve the two gentlemen the best tea, and brew a pot of my own good tea!"

Ye Chen looked on with anticipation. If the lightning gun was good, he could equip all his brothers with one, and then he would have an armed force of his own.

However, this can't be rushed. Just equipping each person with a single electric musket would cost at least 500 taels.

Ye Chen was still quite dissatisfied with the electric cannon, since its theoretical rate of fire was one shot every 10 seconds, which was still too slow.

The foundry serves people according to their social standing. Once you have money, even if you're just a horse breeder, you can sit in a private room at the foundry and drink the manager's privately collected fine tea.

Manager Wu's asking price was quite high. Firstly, he was genuinely greedy, and secondly, the electric musket was truly worth the price.

Moreover, if you can't come up with that much money, you naturally can't afford to maintain the gun, so it's just a fire poker in your hands.

After all, gunpowder and lead bullets were more expensive than food, and the consumption of such materials was something that ordinary people could not afford.

Soon, a boy who was less than 1.6 meters tall entered the room carrying two electric muskets.

Ye Chen's pupils contracted sharply when he saw the boy!