Chapter 506 - 495: Handling Expiry, Clearance Sale_1

"Two are too few. We need five people."

The members of the Aerospace Development Committee lowered their heads and discussed quietly, mainly to calculate the costs in their minds.

The UK’s intentions had been completely revealed, which also conveyed some good news: they were willing to get their hands dirty with the hydrogen bombs, and the price they were asking for was exactly what the Aerospace Development Committee could easily offer.

Insiders knew their own affairs best. The current "Full Moon" landers were planned to reproduce three more units before being discontinued, and the next-generation lander was the unnamed XH-40, which had an extremely high round-trip capacity. If willing, it could carry two or three hundred people to land without a problem.

However, other supportive parts were still very expensive—the spacesuits, consumables for cleaning, living supplies, habitation space, and so forth, each one quite valuable, as every liter of air on the Moon was precious.

At least five astronauts meant five sets of spacesuits. The current plan for the "Pioneer I" was to mass-produce 100 units, with an average cost of 3 million each, amounting to a cost of 15 million. Adding up the other expenses, the total cost was roughly around 50 million, with a maximum of within 100 million.

Now that there was a clear price tag, Wu Yi finally had a firm baseline for negotiation.

"We can agree to five astronauts, including the one for the test explosion, but we will need five hydrogen bombs."

Conna’s spirits lifted, not because of the hydrogen bombs, but because United Mining had agreed so readily to the conditions for five astronauts to go to the Moon!

The aerospace expert Hopkins next to him was even more excited, as the slots for going to the Moon were much more valuable than the hydrogen bombs.

He grabbed Conna and said something, then Stevenson joined in the discussion, and eventually, Conna made a counter-offer:

"We must pay for the hydrogen bombs, but we can offer... uh, considering your company is not in great financial shape, the Royal Air Force has 5 nearly-expired hydrogen bombs that we can sell cheap, 1 million US dollars each. To achieve the desired yield, we need to disassemble and modify them; 10 million US dollars, all-inclusive of the modification costs, until your requirements are met!"

"..."

Wu Yi leaned slightly towards Lin Ju, asking in confusion:

"There’s such a thing as almost expired hydrogen bombs?"

Lin Ju, still in shock from Conna’s outrageous statement, nevertheless nodded and responded:

"Both atomic and hydrogen bombs have a shelf life, which refers to the content of fissile material and the half-life of the gas booster core... so yes, there is, usually 25 to 30 years."

"Would it be a problem if they sell us these nearly expired ones?"

"They’re also considered nearly expired even with 20 years left before expiration."

Wu Yi instantly understood. The price of 5 million for five bombs was a world apart from what had been previously quoted, but still confident, he couldn’t help but haggle once more:

"Still, the price for nearly expired hydrogen bombs is too high; 1 million US dollars each including modification costs, a total deal of 5 million US dollars."

"Deal!"

Conna agreed seamlessly and stood up, looking at all the astonished Chinese personnel and then said expectantly:

"Then let’s draft the contract quickly, and we can disperse after signing."

Wu Yi: "..."

Academician Yu: "..."

Lin Ju carefully looked at the Big Shot presiding:

"Sign?"

"Sign!"

The latter nodded slowly. No matter how one looked at it, this was an exceptionally favorable offer. Although there was still suspicion of a marked-up price, being able to strike a deal so quickly was a rare opportunity. If another party were to join in, the entire plan would almost be set in stone.

The China Nuclear Negotiation Team, led by Academician Yu, watched as the other two groups eagerly drafted the contract right there and then. Luo Luo even called in the legal team that had been waiting outside to help, and they managed to draft a ten-page contract in record time.

Even Conna insisted on increasing the penalty for breach of contract to one billion US dollars to prevent it, and after more than two hours, the various basic terms of the contract were agreed upon, and Conna immediately requested to sign.

United Mining’s legal team also checked and found no issues; just as they were ready to sign, the Big Shot suddenly received a phone call, interrupting the lively atmosphere on the scene for several minutes.

Wu Yi also temporarily stopped the act of signing, and after the Big Shot finished the call, the people from United Mining gathered together, giving Conna a bad premonition.

He quickly found a gap and interjected anxiously,

"What happened? Let’s sign quickly, Mr. Wu."

Seeing his anxious look, Academician She smiled and said with a sunny demeanor,

"Nothing much, just that companies from Russia and France are also preparing to bid, I think..."

"No, you must honor the spirit of the contract!"

Conna somewhat impolitely interrupted Academician She, and then, stamping his foot, raised a finger,

"We’ll throw in an extra low-yield hydrogen bomb for trial detonation, six, six hydrogen bombs for only five million US dollars, this is the most cost-effective deal in the world. What are you waiting for, gentlemen, there’s absolutely no better price than ours."

Under Conna’s tense gaze, the several individuals from United Mining gathered again to discuss; these few minutes felt longer to him than a century. Finally, he saw Lin Ju nod first, followed by a consensus from the others.

At that moment, Wu Yi was all smiles, speaking calmly,

"As the first foreign partner to come forward for the bidding, we highly cherish this friendship, which fully demonstrates the long-standing..."

Wu Yi started with a lot of nonsense, leaving Conna so anxious he couldn’t stand still, until Wu Yi finally stopped abruptly and extended his right hand,

"Then let’s hope for a pleasant collaboration."

Conna finally breathed a sigh of relief, hastily shaking hands before swiftly signing his name on both contracts, followed by other members of the delegation.

When he saw signatures being written down at United Mining’s end and the final stamp being affixed, he finally relaxed, feeling the weight lifted off his shoulders.

He was quite certain that the contract he signed was the best one could get. The Chinese had already reacted, and any newcomers would not be able to secure better terms.

"Thank you, Luo Luo will go all out, and we ask you to keep your promises as well."

"Of course, we would also request your side to quickly select personnel. The physical requirements for working in space are not small, and training is needed."

...

Luo Luo’s delegation left with the contract, joyous and elated; from their perspective, they had certainly made a hefty profit. Although the contract represented international pressure and influence, it could not be denied that the UK had indeed obtained what they wanted.

United Mining didn’t feel like they were at a loss either; a hydrogen bomb for less than ten million RMB was cheaper than their own cost, and they even got one for free, so the real expense was negligible.

Only the China Nuclear Negotiation Team led by Academician Yu could only watch desperately as the two sides played their parts; they were just there to make up the numbers, completely without direction on what to do.

At the close of the meeting, Academician Yu pulled Lin Ju aside, which made the latter somewhat apprehensive.

"Academician Yu, if you have orders, just command me."

Academician Yu: "I don’t care how you deal with the foreigners, but you must include our people. This data and experience are incredibly precious. We have some second-generation hydrogen bomb warheads domestically that should have been retired. Maybe they can also be dealt with at a discount, with yields close to what you require, ready for direct use."

"..."

Lin Ju was somewhat amused, it seemed Academician Yu was worried United Mining was solely profit-driven, a concern that was entirely unnecessary.

"Don’t worry, we will definitely consult the Nuclear Science Institute for the final plan, we won’t listen only to outsiders."

Academician Yu then nodded, relieved, getting ready to leave and apply for a supercomputer to run simulations.