Chapter 157 The Car Has Arrived

Update released! Book lovers, go read Cola Novels!

After searching for more than ten minutes, Chen Mo finally found the office building of Li Jinrong's logistics department.

Although it's called an office building, it's actually just a row of bungalows on the far side of the headquarters, with gray walls and gray tiles, and a few empty wooden crates piled up at the entrance.

The door was open, and a smell mixed with ink and paper wafted out, along with the sound of snoring.

Chen Mo went inside.

The room wasn't big, with four or five tables set up, and several people were busy with their own things.

Behind the table in the corner, a round figure was fast asleep, head buried in his arms, snoring loudly and rhythmically.

The others glanced up at Chen Mo, then lowered their heads and went about their own business.

Chen Mo walked up to the fat man's desk and tapped on the surface.

Boom, boom, boom.

He didn't react, and continued snoring.

Chen Mo knocked twice more.

The fat man rolled over, his face emerging from his arms, his eyes still closed, and he mumbled something.

"Uncle Li, get up."

Chen Mo tapped the door again, speechless.

This time, the fat man moved. His brows furrowed, and he slammed his arm on the table. "What are you banging for! Can't you see me...?"

He opened his eyes, his face full of anger, about to explode, but his gaze fell on Chen Mo's face and he paused for a second.

His anger seemed to be abruptly cut off, and his expression instantly changed, his round face squishing into a smile.

"Chen Mo?!" The fat man sat up abruptly, almost tipping over his chair. "What are you doing here?"

The people standing nearby, who had been waiting to see a good show, now had different expressions.

Some were surprised, some were disappointed, and one skinny man even had his teacup hanging in mid-air, having forgotten to drink it.

Chen Mo nodded to them, said nothing more, and pointed to a brown paper bag on the fat man's table, "Give me a bag."

Without saying a word, the fat man pulled a clean cloth bag out of the drawer.

Chen Mo put the box in his hand into a cloth bag and tied it tightly.

"What is this? Is it so precious?" The fat man looked at it curiously for a few more seconds.

Chen Mo didn't answer, but patted him on the shoulder, "Come out and talk, something's come up."

The fat man rolled his eyes, stood up, and followed him outside.

As he reached the door, he turned back and shouted to the group inside, "What are you looking at? Never seen anyone before?"

The men quickly lowered their heads, and the skinny man put down his teacup, pretending to rummage through something.

Once outside, the fat man pulled Chen Mo to a shady corner, with his back to the sun. "What's up? Why so secretive? Going to the brothel tonight?"

"Serious business."

Chen Mo looked at him, not beating around the bush, but simply lowered his voice, "Do you have any connections to get your hands on gunpowder?"

Li Jinrong's smile froze.

His eyes slowly widened, and he stared at Chen Mo for several seconds. "You... what did you say?"

"Gunpowder," Chen Mo said. "The more the better."

The fat man swallowed hard, took a half step back, and looked him up and down.

"Oh dear."

"Tell me honestly, are you planning to rob a foreign firm?"

The fat man rubbed his hands together and spun around in place for a bit. "Don't scare me! Foreign firms aren't so easy to rob! Those foreign devils aren't pushovers!"

"I'm not short of money, why would I rob a foreign firm!"

Chen Mo's lips twitched a few times before he spoke, "Just tell me if you have it or not."

The fat man stopped and stared at him suspiciously. "Then what do you need gunpowder for? To fry fish?"

"Fry a big fish, and you'll see later whether there are any connections or channels that can't be detected."

The fat man frowned, his face contorted into a mass of flesh.

"The connections..." he muttered, rubbing his fingers on his chin. "The United Government controls gunpowder very tightly. Every single ounce has to be registered. There's no way the civilians can get their hands on it."

He stopped and looked at Chen Mo, his eyes filled with a thoughtful expression.

"However..."

Chen Mo didn't urge him, waiting for him to continue.

The fat man looked around and, seeing that no one was around, approached. "My family owns a fireworks factory in the south of the city. We specialize in making fireworks for various businesses during festivals."

"You know that stuff, you can't make fireworks without gunpowder, and the factory always keeps some on hand."

"Although it's a legal transaction, it can't withstand scrutiny, so the figures on the books and the actual stockpiled amount are somewhat different."

He held up two fingers and waved them in front of Chen Mo's eyes.

"If we try to squeeze it out, we can only manage to get this many."

"Two thousand catties?" Chen Mo asked.

"Am I still asleep, or are you still asleep?"

The fat man rolled his eyes. "Two hundred pounds, that's the most I can go. Any more and we'll have to alert the manager, who's my second uncle. He's not as easy to talk to as I am."

Chen Mo considered it in his mind.

Two hundred catties is enough to deal with the Hou family's house.

"When can I pick it up?"

The fat man rubbed his hands together. "We'll have to wait a few days. Although the factory has some stock, we can't take it all away at once. We have to do it in batches and avoid people."

"Give me three days, and I'll get it out for you in three days."

"What will you use to exchange it?" Chen Mo asked, "Merit points or silver dollars?"

The fat man waved his hand: "We're like brothers, talking about money will hurt our feelings."

Chen Mo looked at him without saying anything.

The fat man felt uncomfortable under his gaze and chuckled dryly, "Well... if you really feel bad about it, just do me a favor later."

"What is it?"

"My dad's got some business to attend to lately, so he wants me to transport a batch of goods to Beiping myself in a few days." The fat man chuckled. "I'll be a bit bored by myself, so you'll have to come with me."

"Don't worry, the road should be safe."

Chen Mo nodded: "Okay."

"Two hundred pounds of gunpowder, that's going to be quite a commotion. The higher-ups are quick to listen, so you'd better be careful."

"Will the Japanese concession affect you?"

Chen Mo hesitated for a moment, then decided it was better to be clear, as hiding things would hurt feelings. "A comprador, a mortal enemy."

"You should have said so earlier! I thought you were up to someone else."

The fat man seemed to have unloaded a burden, and his tone became much lighter.

"I've seen plenty of those people. They're all dressed in suits and ties, carrying shoes for foreigners and thinking they're superior."

"Last time, some idiot came to our factory to order fireworks. He acted all high and mighty, like his family's ancestral graves were emitting auspicious smoke. But when it came time to settle the bill, he just wouldn't pay and insisted on waiting for the foreigner to approve the payment."

"Okay, I'll come find you in three days, at the same time."

"it is good."

The fat man nodded and added, "When the time comes, just drive over and pick it up. As soon as the goods come out of the factory, load them onto your truck and drive away. Don't linger around the headquarters area."

"No problem, thanks."

Chen Mo responded and turned to walk out.

The fat man stood there watching his back, then suddenly called out again, "Hey, your car's arrived in Jinshi, it's parked at my house, want to go check it out?"

"Why didn't you say so sooner?"

------

The car was parked in the fat man's garage; it was a black Ford.

The car's paint was gleaming, shimmering softly in the sunlight.

The iconic oval logo on the front of the car, like a calm eye, is facing him.

There were even more expensive models, but Chen Mo felt it wasn't necessary.

He reached out and touched the hood.

The metal feels cool and smooth to the touch, with a lingering smell of engine oil.

"A 1910 model." The fat man followed behind, his tone tinged with pride. "Four cylinders, twenty horsepower. I had someone get it from Shanghai. It was directly picked up from the foreign firm there. Brand new, it hasn't even been driven a hundred miles since it hit the road."

Chen Mo didn't say anything, opened the car door and got in.

The steering wheel, wrapped in leather, was slightly cool to the touch.

The seats are made of black genuine leather and are very comfortable to sit in. The glass cover is clean and spotless, without a speck of dust.

He gripped the steering wheel and looked out through the windshield.

The fat man's round face was pressed against the car window, his face contorted with laughter.

"How was it? Not bad, right?"

Chen Mo's lips twitched, which could be considered a smile.

He got out of the car and went around to the back of the car to take a look.

The trunk lid was opened, revealing it to be empty, enough to fit whatever he wanted.

Two hundred catties of gunpowder should be no problem.

"When can we drive it away?" he asked.

The fat man scratched his head. "We need to get a license plate first. My second uncle knows someone in the Public Works Department, so it should be done in the next couple of days. I'll have someone deliver it to you then, or will you come pick it up yourself?"

Chen Mo thought for a moment and said, "Deliver it to my house."