Chapter 5: Imported Goods

Tang Wen carried two sacks of things and walked for over an hour before reaching home, stumbling in the pitch dark and nearly falling into a ditch.

He had originally wanted to try using the shipyard to build himself a bicycle or a motorcycle, but the system directly notified him that it could not manufacture items for anything other than ships.

As for the diesel engines, it was probably because they could also be installed for use on ships.

With the pitch dark, he estimated no one would come, so before sleeping, Tang Wen spent 16 silver coins to have the idle shipyard build two 25-horsepower diesel engines first, planning to check them after waking up.

【Under Construction: 2 Low-Speed 25-Horsepower Diesel Engines (6 Hours)】

【Resource Usage: 100%】

"Bang bang"

"Little Tang? Little Tang, are you there?"

"Bang bang"

Hearing the iron gate of the courtyard being knocked bang bang, Tang Wen sat up and stretched, discovering it was already past ten o'clock.

Was it Zheng Hai and the others?

But he quickly recognized from the voice that it was a villager, though he couldn't quite recall which one for a moment.

Climbing up and putting on his shoes, a few minutes later Tang Wen pulled open the iron gate and saw... the Village Head?

Chen Yonggui was still driving his clattering clunker, and seeing Tang Wen's just-woken-up appearance, he said dissatisfied:

"What did you do with those bad friends last night again? I've been knocking on the door here for ages with no response, and the sun is almost right over your head!"

The Village Head purely viewed Tang Wen as an unpromising youth needing admonition, which reminded Tang Wen of the fear of being dominated by his mother's nagging when he was a child, instantly putting on a mask of pain:

"Spare me, Uncle, what are you looking for me so early for? I can't fix that tractor anyway."

"Who asked you to fix it? By the time you learned, I would have already changed to a new tractor."

Chen Yonggui wore a look of disdain, then proudly pointed to the back of the cargo bed:

"My son took a look last night; the engine head is fine, it's the clutch down below that burned out. He happens to have a good set, so I just need to swap it in.

You happen to have tools here; no harm in lending them to me. Come eat at my house at noon, we're stewing ribs!"

The Village Head was said to have been a model tractor driver back in the day, so he still knew how to fix tractors; Tang Wen wasn't worried and pushed open the iron gate.

Just in time to mooch a meal at noon; pork in this era was truly pure, natural, and additive-free...

Just as he was thinking about the scent of the ribs, he suddenly heard Chen Yonggui's puzzled voice:

"What is this?"

Tang Wen instinctively turned his head to look; the Village Head was staring blankly at the two neatly arranged diesel engines under the tin shed.

The two diesel engines were almost brand new; the deep blue anti-corrosion coating showed no wear, the red paint on the fuel tanks was of uniform quality, the surface seemed waxed, and it emitted a soft glow under the sunlight.

"Oh no!"

Having returned too late last night, Tang Wen had completely forgotten about the matter of manufacturing the diesel engines.

Chen Yonggui had already jumped down from the clunker and squatted on the ground, looking at the 25-horsepower diesel engines like a great treasure, carefully brushing over their surfaces.

Just by touching the smooth and neat iron fuel tank, he knew this was absolutely expensive quality goods; only imported Japanese Kubota models had such craftsmanship.

But as soon as he lowered his head to look at the side nameplate, he was completely dumbfounded.

Written clearly on it were:

"Product Name: Gai Jin Brand 25-Horsepower Single-Cylinder Low-Speed Diesel Engine"

"Manufacturer: Gai Jin Shipyard, Dawan Village"

"Production Address: No. 8, Group 6, Dawan Village, Dawan Town"

"Production Date: July 16, 1996"

Chen Yonggui blinked his eyes; how could he remember that today was the 16th?

And at this moment, Tang Wen also squatted down, and seeing the text on the nameplate, he was also dumbfounded.

He then suddenly remembered that the hull of "Tax-Exempt No. 1" also had this thing, but he hadn't taken it seriously at the time.

However, now Chen Yonggui was completely confused by the nameplate; Group 6, No. 8 was naturally the address of the Tang family's small workshop, but could these diesel engines be produced by them? Moreover, these two machines, which looked so beautiful, probably cost over ten thousand combined.

"Little Tang, why does this diesel engine have this written on it?"

Tang Wen also found it eye-rolling, so he simply read and replied chaotically:

"I wrote it myself, carved it just for fun."

"Then where did you get this? This stuff isn't cheap; aren't you afraid someone will steal it just leaving it here?"

"Ah, this..."

Tang Wen's mind raced rapidly, and he gradually formed an idea:

"This? It was just brought over last night, I haven't had time to put it away yet.

This diesel engine is... imported!"

"Imported?"

Chen Yonggui didn't doubt the quality of these two diesel engines at all; the workmanship alone was superior to domestic ones, it was just...

Being the Village Head of a village, when it came to imports, he immediately thought of those young men around who had suddenly gotten rich.

Some things weren't secrets; everyone knew you could get good things from outside that couldn't be bought, and flipping them once could earn a lot of money.

But he never expected that Tang Wen, who usually had no proper form, had also started doing this; thinking back to a few days ago when he sold off his family's valuable items, could it have been to gather money for this?

The Village Head suddenly realized; no wonder he changed the nameplate, this was being cautious.

Good kid, being so meticulous at such a young age.

One cannot judge a person by their appearance; truly hiding one's talents!

Seeing the Village Head's complex gaze mixed with surprise, admiration, and understanding, wearing an expression of "I know everything," Tang Wen, although he didn't understand, nodded along; let him think whatever he wanted.

After resolving the confusion, Chen Yonggui turned his attention back to the diesel engines, carefully examining every detail:

"Looks like it hasn't grown much, yet it already has 25 horsepower?"

"The top cover is aluminum; that's far more expensive than iron."

"Oh, the footpads on this cover are so solid; it seems it could be mounted on a boat."

"No crank handle included? No matter, I brought one."

The village head liked it more and more with every look; he simply took the oil can and crank handle from the truck bed himself, then waved at Tang Wen:

"Come, help me hold this down; don't touch the flywheel with your hands."

Chen Yonggui first inserted the crank handle, rotated it gently without adding diesel, while pinching the valve on the side.

Tang Wen was utterly confused by what he saw and couldn't help asking:

"Uncle, you haven't even added fuel yet."

"What do you know? A new diesel engine must have all air purged from the fuel lines, otherwise even a new one will be ruined."

While silently cursing Tang Wen for wasting good resources, Chen Yonggui had already completed the pre-start steps, then poured in two liters of diesel.

"Move aside."

He held the diesel engine with one hand, gripped the handle with the other, and threw his whole body up and down with force; his withered arms possessed surprising strength, and with the high-pitched whir of the flywheel, it started successfully on the first try.

The sound of the brand-new 25-horsepower diesel engine was completely different from the 10-horsepower one; the noise was deeper and more powerful, and even standing nearby, one could feel the strong power.

Tang Wen still couldn't tell much, but Chen Yonggui was even more delighted:

"Excellent, this machine is much smoother, and the sound is clear. Little Tang, how much are you selling this thing for?"

Tang Wen had never even considered this question, but a normal price was impossible; he couldn't attach any nameplate, and the business itself was something that had to remain in the shadows.

"Uncle, I must clarify first: once imported, I provide no warranty; once sold, I take no responsibility."

He laid down a disclaimer first, but Chen Yonggui merely chuckled:

"No mistake, the quality of this machine is excellent. Besides, isn't any machine something we can repair ourselves? Just tell me the price; Uncle won't take advantage of you, but if it's too expensive, I can't afford it."

Tang Wen thought for a moment, then held up three fingers:

"Three thousand... seven hundred yuan."

Eight silver coins equaled 369 yuan; a 900% profit. Tang Wen already felt his heart was black enough and struggled to hold back a laugh.

"How much?"

"Three thousand seven! No after-sales service, no support; once sold, I take no responsibility."

As soon as Tang Wen finished speaking, he saw Chen Yonggui grab his hand firmly and say, looking both conflicted and happy:

"This must be your cost price, right? Uncle cannot take advantage of you; even eight thousand yuan for a 25-horsepower engine head is too little, so I cannot accept this price from you.

Five thousand then. Your business isn't easy; if anything comes up in the future, Uncle will keep an eye on it for you."

Tang Wen was about to refuse, but seeing Chen Yonggui's serious expression, he swallowed his words.

In fact, a regular 12-horsepower tractor now costs over ten thousand; even just the engine, a 25-horsepower diesel engine is very expensive.

Five thousand yuan was already a huge bargain; Chen Yonggui also feared Tang Wen might change his mind, so he used the excuse of taking the latter home for a meal to hand over the money.

Under Chen Yonggui's strong insistence, the two first hid the diesel engine in a corner, covering it with straw and trash, before driving the tractor to the village head's house.

After enjoying a fragrant stew of winter melon and pork ribs, the two returned to the shipyard in the afternoon, immediately dismantled the original diesel engine from the "Four-Like-Nothing," and replaced it with the 25-horsepower one.

Since it was a derivative model, the installation process went very smoothly; Chen Yonggui drove the transformed tractor with a grin that wouldn't close, thinking he could even add a trailer.

The "Four-Like-Nothing" was currently the main transport power in the countryside; hauling goods and carrying people all depended on it; the fish caught every dawn had to be transported to the town by tractor to be sold.

A 25-horsepower diesel tractor could easily pull four or five tons, instantly doubling the transport capacity.

Although five thousand yuan was a lot, the convenience improved greatly.