Warhammer Fantasy: I Have Total War System

A single workshop certainly couldn't produce that many pills.

Li Lin bought up all the healing and blood-replenishing pills, spending about five hundred taels of gold, and then immediately headed to the next shop.

His goals were clear: elixirs, weapons, military rations, and camels.

He never haggled over prices when buying things, and even if he didn't like something, he would leave ten taels of gold as a reward.

All the gold used was the horseshoe-shaped gold provided by the system.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

The gold he distributed appeared before the heads of various merchant houses.

"Red gold amber, coiled dragon pattern, Dragon Court seal... This is a gold-cast artifact from the Imperial Treasury of the Wei Capital!"

"This kind of cast gold is the finest in an entire province. Legend has it that it was cast by the Dragon Emperor himself. Its value is immeasurable, and only a small number of them have ever entered the market."

"Who exactly is that person? Why have I never heard of them before?"

"Investigate! Send someone to investigate immediately!"

Li Lin then spent another three hundred taels of gold to purchase new equipment for the two Yu Yong troops at a high price.

He rested in his car for an hour, and when he came out again, the entrance was already crowded with managers and stewards from various guilds.

Some asked him to come to the store immediately, while others were more tactful, offering him fine gifts and invitations, inviting him to sit in a private room nearby.

"I want nine hundred sets of heavy armor and matching weapons; we can talk about the rest later."

The group looked at each other, some still unwilling to give up, wanting to sell something else, but were blocked outside by the metal wall raised by Yi Ge.

In the end, only three managers of the trading company indicated that they were capable of taking on the deal.

However, two of them also said that the inventory might not be enough and it might take some time to prepare; at the very least, it was definitely not possible to get it done today.

Only one maid, who looked like a personal servant from a wealthy family, had a gleam in her eyes. She didn't say anything in detail, but only told Li Lin that he must go to "Qingluan Tower" for a visit, and that he would definitely not be disappointed.

Li Lin didn't waste any more words and immediately had the maid lead the way.

At that moment, on the other side of the fortress, Ma Mingyuan, accompanied by his guards, hurriedly rushed into Gu Ying's tent.

"Tianfu! Look!"

He took out a dragon-patterned gold ingot from his sleeve and placed it in front of Gu Ying, while the latter already had a similar red gold and amber-colored gold ingot lying on her table.

"Where did that guy get so many Dragon Emperor Forged Gold?!" Ma Mingyuan exclaimed excitedly.

"Could it be that they stole the dragon prince's treasury?"

Gu Ying didn't say much, but handed him a jade slip containing secrets. Ma Mingyuan held it in his hand, examined it for a long time, and his expression changed drastically.

"You mean, this guy is now a legitimate military commander?"

"Yes, Li Suguang, the military commissioner of Nanli, had made thorough arrangements before his death. After his martyrdom, his eldest son, Li Lin, became the legitimate military commissioner of Nanli."

"Nanli is unlike other cities. It is located in a dangerous place and is constantly attacked by the White Bone Pass and the Dimensional Stone Desert. Therefore, the Dragon Emperor only appointed a powerful military commissioner to this place. This person holds the three major official positions of city lord, merchant alliance leader and general, and his power is immense."

Ma Mingyuan's expression was solemn; he had already understood the meaning behind Gu Ying's words.

He is now a legitimate military governor who possesses the wealth of an entire city; there are few like him in the whole of China. It's not surprising that he can take some of the imperial treasury to cast gold.

Since this money is earned legitimately, there's no reason not to make it.

"Tianfu, my servants have found out that this guy surnamed Li is buying up pills, military supplies, armor, and weapons on a large scale," Ma Mingyuan said eagerly. "We both have these, and we're fellow disciples. Let's go! We can't let him get away with this!"

Gu Ying couldn't resist his enthusiasm, and with a wry smile, she reluctantly followed him out.

He's a businessman too; why wouldn't he want to make that money?

However, Li Lin did not contact the two privately, but instead went directly to other businesses to discuss their actions, which made his meaning very clear.

He wanted to distance himself from the two people who had wronged him.

Of course, he only introduced Ma Mingyuan and did not participate directly, but it is likely that in Li Lin's mind, he and Ma Mingyuan were cut from the same cloth.

Alas, who would have thought that Li Lin, the worst and least talented member of the sect, whose achievements and reputation were also the lowest after leaving the sect, would rise to the ranks of the top elites overnight?

I heard that he has already given away more than 800 taels of gold.

I regret it. If I had truly considered our friendship and treated him better, perhaps this huge sum of money would have ended up in my own pocket.

Qingluan Tower.

This is a three-story pavilion with upturned eaves that occupies an entire stone wall of the fortress.

The entire structure is made of ebony with black iron reinforcement, and strings of copper bells hang from the eaves, producing a clear and crisp sound when the wind blows. It has an antique charm and an atmosphere of aloofness.

The shop had no goods on display, only a plaque with the character "Luan" on it, and four fully armed guards wearing bird-beak masks.

Li Lin's heart tightened, recalling that Wei Jinglongting had two Feathered Guards.

These people in front of me could not possibly be the Imperial Guards, but the fact that they dared to imitate their uniforms shows that the power of the owner of Qingluan Tower is not to be underestimated.

Leaving everyone else waiting outside, Li Lin followed the maid upstairs alone.

Passing through a moon gate with tassels, we entered the private room.

The faint scent of agarwood perfectly masked the stench of sweat and horse manure in the military camp.

Li Lin sat down at a low table, where a woman had been waiting for him for some time.

The woman was in her early twenties, with a slender oval face, high brow bones, and slightly upturned eyes. She had the kind of face that was captivating when she smiled.

She wore a dark blue, narrow-sleeved, fitted outfit with silver thread trim around the cuffs and collar.

Her hair was tied into a neat high bun, adorned only with a bronze peacock feather hairpin, without any extra jewels. She was quite different from the jewel-adorned merchant women in Li Lin's memory, but she did bear some resemblance in temperament to the dragon descendant in his vague memory.

"We have everything that Young Master Li needs." She spoke at a moderate pace, her voice clear and crisp, with the distinctive crispness of the Wei-Jing Mandarin.

Oh? Master Jing, no wonder you're so impressive.

There were no small talk, no compliments, and not even a self-introduction.

The woman placed a scroll of silk open in front of Li Lin.

The silk scroll lists the items in tiny characters: fine iron spearheads, arm guards, greaves, iron helmets, spare crossbow arms and strings—the items are complete, and the quantities are accurate to the single digit. Each item is followed by the material, the foundry, and the batch number for easy counting.

"At market price, not a penny more, not a penny less."

"But all payments will be settled in Dragon Court coins," she said succinctly.

"Can it be delivered today?"

"able."

Seeing this as a rare opportunity, Li Lin didn't waste any words.

He immediately asked the maid next to him to bring him paper and pen, and began to select goods from the silk book.

These are all standard equipment from Wei Jing, of top quality, but they cost 30-40% more, far less cost-effective than the armor from Shang Yang.

Considering that this is a coalition mainly from Shangyang, it would probably be difficult to sell without me as a sucker.

About an hour later, several clerks were summoned to verify the information. Li Lin had purchased enough military equipment to arm a thousand men to the teeth, totaling 3,911 taels of gold.

"I'll have someone bring the money over right now."

"Those of you who stay here with me afterward, bring the equipment to my camp and try to finish the handover before sunset."

The woman took back the silk scroll and simply said "okay".

To be honest, her nonchalant attitude towards this large transaction made her seem very reliable.

That was a good show-off. I'll steal it. I'm in business too; I'll try to pull it off next time.

Back near the Sinan cart, Li Lin took out the Dragon Court Casting Gold from the Dragon Palace, box by box, and ordered his servants to carry it into the Qingluan Tower.

"Brother Li!" A shout rang out, and Gu Ying and Ma Mingyuan rode up on horseback, their faces beaming with smiles and their attitude warm.