Chapter 449: One Stone, Several Birds

"Huh?" Faced with Gao De's "sudden strike," Harland was momentarily stunned, completely frozen.

He kept saying he'd encountered a group of crooked merchants who wouldn't even look at his goods.

But those words were just like a merchant's usual complaint: "Business is tough."

Most merchants blurted that out constantly; whether it was truly tough or just lip service was up for interpretation.

So the prices those potential buyers offered weren't necessarily what Harland claimed them to be.

"Including this remaining two-masted sailboat and all the shipyard's facilities—sell them all to me as a package. What's your bottom price? Also, if I take over the shipyard, I'm willing to keep on any of the original workers who want to stay."

"This—" Harland hesitated, then quickly fell into deep thought.

He mentally ran the numbers and swiftly gave a price: "The Harland Shipyard covers nearly two acres and sits at Lagos Port—you know, land here is expensive. At current land value, this plot is worth about 2,000 Jin Quehua coins."

"For the buildings, excluding the dry docks, the workshops, warehouses, and offices are valued at 2,000 Jin Quehua coins."

"So the total valuation for land and facilities is roughly 4,000 Jin Quehua coins."

"Then there's the fixed assets: first, the dry docks used for shipbuilding and repair. We have two—one large, one small. The large one is valued at 1,500 Jin Quehua coins; the small one is worth about 1,000."

"Also, the shipyard still has some secondhand equipment—woodworking machines, ship frames, and a large number of woodworking tools. Though I've sold off much already, what remains is still worth about 2,000 Jin Quehua coins."

"That brings the total to 4,500 Jin Quehua coins."

"Plus, the warehouse still holds some unprocessed raw materials—oak logs, sailcloth, hemp ropes—worth roughly 1,000 Jin Quehua coins."

"We still have one fully built two-masted sailboat. I offered the previous young lady 1,250 Jin Quehua coins; I'll give you 1,200."

"Finally, the Harland Shipyard is a century-old operation. Though modest in scale, it's one of Lagos's established shipyards, with some reputation and recognition in local fishing and shipping. Even though it's bankrupt, the name still holds value—estimated at 500 Jin Quehua coins."

"Total: 11,200 Jin Quehua coins, my lord. Do you think this price is acceptable?" Harland asked cautiously.

Even with Phoenix's resources backing him, 11,200 Jin Quehua coins was an astronomical sum for Gao De.

It wasn't that Phoenix couldn't afford it—it was that his starrealm teleportation was essentially smuggling, with strict limits on what he could carry.

Also, his strength was limited; moving such a massive amount of goods would be troublesome, requiring multiple small shipments across different locations.

Gao De's eyes flickered, then he spoke slowly: "Since the Harland Shipyard is a century-old operation with strong local reputation, how did it end up in this state?"

This was both curiosity and a bargaining tactic.

Hearing Gao De's question, Harland's face stiffened slightly, a flicker of hesitation crossing his expression.

But he knew secrets couldn't stay hidden—news of the shipyard's decline wasn't hard to find in Lagos—so he finally chose to speak plainly: "Half of this business was destroyed by my own hands."

He sighed, shame evident on his face: "During the Spirit Essence boom, the insane profits from mining drew in massive wealth and labor—even fishermen sold their boats to invest in Spirit Essence mines, and workers abandoned shipyards to join mining operations."

Harland paused, as if seeing the madness again: "You've never seen it—you can't imagine how wild it was. Exaggerated? Even the old woman selling grilled fish sticks on the docks held copper stones, desperate to get in."

"Naturally, many shipyards sold off assets to jump into the Spirit Essence industry."

"I didn't go that far, but I was blinded by greed at the time. I poured every last coin I had into Spirit Essence mining—this move drained the Harland Shipyard of all its working capital and laid the foundation for its current bankruptcy."

"As Spirit Essence mining boomed, at its peak, nearly half of Lagos's population worked in Spirit Essence-related industries. Fishing collapsed, and shipyards shrank along with it—but since Spirit Essence was still paying, I didn't care much."

"In the first year of investment, my dividends nearly doubled my initial capital. Meanwhile, the profit from building a single ship the hard way barely reached twenty percent of its cost."

A bitter laugh rolled from Harland's throat: "So I didn't realize things were wrong. I didn't reinvest profits to secure the shipyard—I poured even more wealth into Spirit Essence."

Looking back, this decision seems foolish—but in that context, wasn't it wise?

Traditional industries collapsed; new ones surged. Switching course decisively was clearly the smart move.

"Then you know what happened next—Spirit Essence was exhausted, and Lagos's economy crashed."

"But before the Spirit Essence ran out, the major players hoarding the resource kept the truth secret. To maintain the illusion of prosperity, they filled crates with stones to pass off as ore, luring more merchants and investors in."

"Meanwhile, they quietly moved their assets and exited the market."

I get it. That's just the house cleaning out the retail investors like Jiucai.

Gao De muttered inwardly.

"Once the big players had fully exited, they stopped hiding the fact that Spirit Essence was gone. Lagos's prosperity burst like a bubble."

"The once-thriving Spirit Essence industry collapsed in waves. The huge sums we'd invested vanished without a trace—not even a ripple."

Though this had happened long ago and Harland had long accepted it, bringing it up still carried a trace of pain in his voice.

"And the collapse of the Spirit Essence industry triggered a chain reaction."

"First, during the Spirit Essence boom, Lagos's traditional fishing industry collapsed. Fishermen were our key customers—once fishing declined, shipbuilding naturally suffered."

"Also, during the Spirit Essence boom, demand for fishing boats plummeted, while demand for merchant and passenger ships surged."

"To adapt, we shifted production to focus on merchant and passenger ships. But once the Spirit Essence bubble burst, these two ship types became completely unsellable."

"Whether fully built but undelivered, or half-finished hulls—buyers would rather pay breach penalties than pay for them."

"The material and labor costs for a merchant or passenger ship were extremely high. Add to that the collapsed shipbuilding supply chain from the Spirit Essence boom—raw material prices had skyrocketed. The accumulated costs became terrifying."

"Plus, I'd sunk all our working capital into Spirit Essence—" Harland spread his hands, "—so my shipyard collapsed outright."

"Before the Spirit Essence boom, Lagos had nearly fifty shipyards, large and small. Now, only about twenty remain."

"Our Harland Shipyard has lasted this long only because of our technical foundation and reputation." Harland lifted his chin slightly, showing pride in his shipyard.

"But the current reality can't be changed—shipbuilding is in decline, a sunset industry. You can't reasonably ask for the full valuation as a sale price," Gao De said calmly.

"This is a mess. I'm interested in this mess—but don't treat me like a fool."

"If we can just survive this period, Lagos's shipbuilding industry will revive—it's not a mess."

Harland hurried to say: "The authorities realize fishing's importance. They're actively helping its revival—offering subsidies to individuals and merchants who order fishing boats, reducing taxes on fish harvests, issuing industry protection orders…"

"Subsidies?" Gao De scoffed. "Do fishermen really need that little?"

The main customers for fishing boats are fishermen. Subsidies are like "save 10,000 on 200,000"—looks big, but the problem is they don't even have 200,000!

"Reducing taxes on fish harvests is a long-term strategy. If sustained, it helps fishing recover—but it's not a quick fix. It's useless for today's depressed fishing and shipbuilding industries."

"As for industry protection orders—you mean the one in Lagos requiring local restaurants and shops to buy fish primarily from local fishermen?" Gao De asked. He'd seen it written on a hand-copied parchment at the Palm Tree Inn's front desk.

Harland froze slightly, a flicker of embarrassment crossing his face, but he pressed on: "Yes, that's the one. It greatly helps local fishing revival."

"If fishermen have a market for their catch, they'll have more money to buy new boats—our shipbuilding industry will revive along with them."

Gao De sneered: "Forget whether this rule will face countless obstacles in enforcement—whether it'll even be implemented."

"Even if fishermen do get a market for their catch, they won't necessarily spend all that money on new boats. After the Spirit Essence crash, they're all scarred."

He continued: "Look at your shipyard—during the Spirit Essence boom, you pulled all your funds to invest in mining, causing your technology to stagnate. Even if shipbuilding revives, how will the Harland Shipyard stand out in fierce competition?"

Harland's shoulders slumped. Gao De spoke truth—but he still couldn't accept it: "The Harland two-masted sailboat is still one of Lagos's best."

Gao De shook his head dismissively: "That doesn't matter much. After the Spirit Essence crash, every shipyard still standing has some skill."

"Your strength might've been an advantage compared to those that collapsed—but in today's Lagos shipbuilding scene, it's negligible."

Harland's face darkened. He opened his mouth to speak, but Gao De cut him off.

"I know you're unwilling. After all, this is your family's century-old shipyard. But reality is cruel—you must accept it."

Harland fell silent for a long time, then finally spoke with difficulty: "Then… how much will you offer?"

"8,000 Jin Quehua coins—seventy percent of your total asset valuation." Gao De held up his hand, forming the number "eight."

"Eight thousand?!" Harland nearly jumped. His face flushed red, eyes wide with outrage: "Impossible! Impossible! This price is too low—you're even worse than those crooked merchants!"

"Even worse?" Gao De repeated the word, smiling. "That means my price is still higher than others'."

Realizing his slip, Harland wanted to slap himself—but haggling came first. He ignored his pride: "Ten thousand. That's my lowest price."

"Too expensive. Not worth it." Gao De shrugged, expression cold.

"Nine thousand five hundred—still includes a brand-new two-masted sailboat!" Harland's tone now carried pleading.

Gao De didn't reply immediately. He feigned deep thought.

After a long pause, he slowly raised his head and looked at Harland: "Nine thousand two hundred. That's my most sincere offer. If you still refuse, I can't help it."

"But I believe no one else will offer you a better price—and the longer you wait, the lower your shipyard's value will drop."

Harland struggled internally. On one hand, he couldn't bear to sell his ancestors' shipyard for so little. On the other, he knew Gao De was right.

"Mr. Harland, after selling the shipyard, what do you plan to do next?" Gao De suddenly asked.

Harland blinked, then answered honestly: "I plan to move to Encheng, buy a couple of small shops, and retire."

Gao De smiled slightly: "I don't understand shipbuilding—I'm an outsider. So if I acquire the Harland Shipyard, I'm willing to offer you ten percent of its shares at current valuation, and invite you to serve as its advisor and mentor."

"That way, you can enjoy retirement in Encheng while still continuing your family's century-old legacy—you won't have completely sold off your ancestors' legacy."

Harland's eyes widened slightly, a flicker of emotion crossing his face.

Clearly, Gao De's offer struck right at his heart.

Business is about knowing what the other person wants.

Gao De had precisely identified Harland's desire—and offered him a deal he couldn't refuse.

"Fine. Nine thousand two hundred. Deal." After another long hesitation, Harland nodded, finally agreeing.

"This isn't a small sum—I'll need at least half a month to raise the funds."

"Naturally." Harland had no objection.

Who could just pull out 9,200 Jin Quehua coins?

"But I don't want you looking for other buyers while I'm raising the money."

"We can sign a preliminary agreement to confirm our intent. I'll pay you fifty Jin Quehua coins as a deposit. In return, you must immediately withdraw all previous announcements about selling the shipyard or the boat."

"No problem. From now on, I'll reject all other offers and wait for you to raise the funds and complete the deal."

"Good. But we must be honest. If that young lady you promised the boat to comes back asking for it, tell her to go to the Palm Tree Inn and find a lady named Anna." Gao De added.

(End of Chapter)