30: Chapter 30: A $100,000 Shot Leaves a Genius Gunsmith Stunned!
At this moment, John Browning had not yet reached the age where he would lose his hair and go bald.
In his early twenties, although he lived a tight-budgeted life, his mind was filled with all sorts of ingenious ideas.
He exuded an unyielding drive, his head filled with wild thoughts on how to improve firearms.
Yet, comparing himself to the Chinese youth before him, he instantly felt that he was simply not on the same level.
Although he had hammered out his first firearm at thirteen and obtained his first patent for a firearm design at twenty-four, making him a rare genius among his peers.
But the Smokeless Powder from the youth before him was of immeasurable value.
Just the fact that he could draw the blueprints for the lin-style 1882 rifle at ten years old had already given him countless brand-new ideas.
Thinking of this, Browning's breathing became rapid.
After the excitement, Browning took a deep breath, calmed his pounding heart, and asked curiously: "Mr. Bruce, may I ask why you specifically brought someone here today?"
Lin Tian nodded and asked directly: "Do you remember selling a pistol to the Governor of California?"
Upon hearing the word 'Governor', Browning's face became bitter, and he shook his head repeatedly with a sigh:
"How could I forget! When I went to sell the pistol, my brother and I were nearly shot in the head by the Governor's bodyguards. God bless, that twenty dollars was the most dangerous money I have ever earned in my life!"
Recalling the scene where a group of burly men pointed guns at his head, Browning still felt a lingering fear.
Lin Tian smiled and continued: "A few days ago, the Governor specifically recommended you two brothers to me."
"He personally admitted that the firearms purchased from you were his most prized possessions. Therefore, he suggested I come over and acquire your gun workshop in its entirety!"
"Acquire our workshop?"
Browning was stunned, unable to believe his ears.
A big boss was actually willing to spend money to buy this broken wooden shack in such a backwater?
"To be more precise, I want you two brothers to work specifically for me from now on!" Lin Tian did not hold back and cleanly laid his cards on the table.
Suddenly hearing such a solicitation, Browning couldn't make up his mind for a moment.
He tentatively asked: "How much do you intend to pay to buy this shop?"
"As long as you brothers are willing to work for me, this workshop is valued at one hundred thousand dollars! If you don't do it, this broken house isn't worth a single cent!"
Lin Tian's tone was very calm.
One hundred thousand dollars!
Browning's heart gave a violent jolt, and his eyes instantly turned red.
He knew best in his heart that the two brothers were definitely not worth one hundred thousand dollars right now.
Calculating at five dollars profit per gun in the shop, they would have to sell a full twenty thousand guns to earn this huge sum!
The reality was that if the shop could sell two or three guns in a day, they would already have to thank God.
Many times, there wasn't even a single customer asking for prices all day long.
Weber County was not a large territory, and the common people in the town were not wealthy.
Every household had long since prepared old firearms for self-defense.
If they didn't expand their business to big places like Salt Lake City or Provo, the shop would sooner or later have to close down.
"Do you mean you are willing to spend one hundred thousand dollars to hire us two brothers to work?"
Browning's voice trembled slightly.
"That's exactly right."
Lin Tian nodded and continued to drop the bombshell: "In addition to the one hundred thousand dollar acquisition fee, I will pay you a salary of two hundred dollars every week!"
"Furthermore, all new guns you design in the future will be named after your surname. For every one sold, I will give you a five percent net profit share!"
Hearing such an offer, Browning felt dizzy, and the blood rushed through his whole body.
The conditions were simply too tempting!
Looking across the whole country, one definitely couldn't find a second arms company that could offer such generous terms.
Just the naming rights and the profit sharing alone were enough to make any firearm designer go crazy.
Not to mention the huge one hundred thousand dollar signing bonus, the profit sharing alone was enough to live on for a lifetime.
Browning wished he could nod and agree immediately.
He was currently dirt poor.
The decent suit he was wearing was entirely for show.
As soon as he returned to the backyard, he would have to take it off immediately and put on tattered clothes covered in grease to continue forging.
Engaging in firearm design was simply a money pit.
It required buying steel, buying gunpowder, and conducting experiments.
The little savings his father left behind had long been squandered by him.
Although his younger brother had always supported him without complaint, if they couldn't find a source of income soon, the two brothers would have to go begging on the streets.
"Mr. Lin Tian, this is a huge matter. I would like to discuss it with my brother first, if that's alright?" Browning asked cautiously.
"No problem. If you are not satisfied with the terms, we can continue to negotiate!"
Lin Tian was determined to recruit this talent this time, and the price he offered was absolutely sincere, with no fear of being refused.
Just as Browning was being dazed by Lin Tian's sugar-coated bullets, the glass door of the gun shop was suddenly kicked open.
A burly man with a Mediterranean hairstyle and a body full of fat, chewing a cigar, swaggered in.
Behind him followed a group of white thugs wearing old top hats and looking ferocious.
Upon seeing the fat man leading them, Browning's face instantly turned pale.
The fat man was named Buck, the leader of the local thugs in town.
He kept dozens of thugs under his command who dared to kill, specializing in collecting protection money on the street.
Buck scanned the people in the room.
Seeing the two Chinese faces, Lin Tian and Jiang Meier, a trace of confusion flashed across his face.
It was as strange as two foreigners suddenly popping up in a rural village.
Buck walked straight up to Browning, completely ignoring Lin Tian beside him, and roared in a rough voice:
"Kid, it's time to pay up! Hurry up and cough up forty dollars!"
Hearing this number, Browning broke out in a cold sweat: "Boss Buck, I really can't scrape together that much cash on hand. Can you give me a few more days?"
This sentence instantly enraged Buck.
He spat out his cigar and cursed: "Bullshit! Your dead-beat father really should see that just days after he went to meet God, his own son has become a pauper!"
After cursing, he spat fiercely on the ground and then threatened: "Cut the crap! Forty dollars a week is the iron rule our gang set on this street. Whoever dares not to pay, I will smash the shop!"
"But I haven't sold a single thing today!" Browning argued anxiously, trying to reason with him.
"That suit on you is worth at least one hundred dollars, right? Kid, don't play tricks on me!" Buck looked ferocious and reached out to grab Browning by the collar.
At this, Browning had nothing left to say.
In fact, he really wanted to borrow some money from Lin Tian nearby for an emergency.
But on second thought, he hadn't officially agreed to work for him yet, so asking for money rashly would be undignified.
Furthermore, handing over hard-earned cash to this gang of thugs made his heart bleed.
"You're called Buck, right? I'll settle his bill!"
Just as Browning was in a dilemma, Lin Tian suddenly spoke up.
He unhurriedly took out a roll of green banknotes from the inside pocket of his suit.
He pulled out a fifty-dollar bill and handed it directly to Buck.
The fat man Buck subconsciously reached out and took the banknote.
When his gaze fell on the remaining banknotes in Lin Tian's hand, he froze instantly.
They were all one-hundred-dollar bills, a thick stack, visually estimated to be at least over three thousand dollars!
Seeing so much money, Buck's eyes instantly turned red!