14: Chapter 14: Blocking my cement and gravel? I'll just throw money at them and bring in a super team of heavy truck drivers from out of town!

Early the next morning, just as the lines were being laid out on the wasteland, Zhao Tiezhu came jogging over from the other side of the construction site.

His hard hat was tilted to the back of his head, and half of his face was covered in dust.

"Boss Lu! Something has happened!"

He bent over to catch his breath for a moment before handing over his phone.

"The Wang Family Sand Pit in the south of the city, the three hundred cubic meters of sand and stone we agreed upon yesterday, they won't sell it anymore.

Same with the cement; Xinlei has blocked me directly.

Li's Steel in the east of the city is even more direct—they won't even answer the phone."

Old Zhou rushed out of the office building, his shirt tails flapping behind him.

"Boss Lu! I just asked around; all six building material suppliers in the city have refused us!

The reason is exactly the same... insufficient production capacity, giving priority to old customers."

He leaned close to Lu Chen's ear, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear.

"Last night, Wang Teng invited several presidents of the Building Materials Industry Association to dinner.

He made a statement at the dinner table... whoever dares to sell to Chenguang Electronics, he won't give them a single nail worth of orders for all of Tengfei Electronics' ongoing projects."

Lu Chen stood up and brushed the dust off his knees.

"How many ongoing projects does Tengfei Electronics have?"

"Three factory expansions, two dormitory buildings, plus the new industrial park at the end of the year; the building material procurement alone is at least forty to fifty million."

"No wonder."

Zhao Tiezhu was pacing around anxiously nearby.

"Boss Lu, without sand, stone, and cement, we can't lay the foundation. What are the hundred-plus brothers supposed to do today?"

News traveled faster than the wind.

On the construction site, the workers who had finished laying the lines squatted in groups of three or five beside the brick stacks.

The thin, dark-skinned young man forgot to even light the cigarette in his hand.

"Another supply cut? They won't even give us cement?"

"This Wang Teng is really trying to block our path completely."

"We've only been getting a base salary of ten thousand for a few days..."

A line of red text popped up before Lu Chen's eyes.

[Warning: Some newly hired employees (construction workers) are experiencing emotional fluctuations, average loyalty has decreased by 3%.]

Only 3%. Still within the controllable range.

But it can't drop any further.

Lu Chen rolled up the blueprints and tucked them under his arm.

"Master Zhao, do you have anyone under you who has hauled building materials from out of town?"

Zhao Tiezhu was stunned for a moment.

"Out of town?"

"The neighboring Qingshan City, or even further. Do you know any sand and stone pits there?"

Zhao Tiezhu thought for a moment, then took out his phone and flipped through his contact list.

"There is a Liu Laosan in Qingshan City; we worked together before. He has a small sand pit. The volume isn't huge, but he knows a lot of people.

However, hauling it from there is over two hundred kilometers one way, and the shipping costs alone..."

"Don't worry about the shipping costs. Give me the number."

Zhao Tiezhu recited the number.

Lu Chen dialed it. It rang four times before being answered.

"Who is this?" The voice on the other end was rough and had a dialect accent.

"Boss Liu, I'm Lu Chen from Chenguang Electronics Factory. Zhao Tiezhu introduced me.

I want to buy sand, stone, cement, and steel. The volume is large. I need you to help me contact suppliers in Qingshan City and haul the goods over here with your trucks."

Liu Laosan was silent for two seconds.

"Boss Lu, have you been blocked by that local Tengfei Electronics?"

"You're well-informed."

"In the building materials business, if you aren't well-informed, you won't last a few days." Liu Laosan chuckled, then immediately straightened his tone.

"It's not that I don't want to help. It's two hundred and thirty kilometers from Qingshan City to your side. A round trip for a heavy truck costs nearly two thousand in fuel and tolls.

The key is that Boss Wang of Tengfei Electronics has connections in the province. If I take this job, one phone call from him later, and I won't be able to work in Qingshan anymore."

Lu Chen leaned against the door of the car.

"Boss Liu, how many trucks are in your fleet?"

"Seventeen Steyr trucks."

"What about the drivers?"

"Including myself, twenty-three."

"I'll triple the shipping cost per trip."

The other end of the phone was quiet for a second.

"In addition, all the drivers in your fleet will sign temporary labor contracts with Chenguang Electronics.

The base salary is ten thousand per person per day. I will cover all fuel costs, tolls, and wear and tear."

The other side of the phone went completely silent.

Old Zhou's mouth hung open in an O-shape.

Da Biao turned his head from the driver's seat, his eyes wide like copper bells.

Five seconds.

Ten seconds.

"Boss Liu?"

A loud crash came from the other side of the phone—it sounded like a stool had been knocked over.

"Lu... Boss Lu." Liu Laosan's voice had changed pitch. "Did you just say ten thousand per person per day?"

"Did you hear wrong?"

"No! I didn't hear wrong!"

Liu Laosan took a deep breath, his voice rising to the highest volume.

"Boss Lu, listen well! Within half an hour, I will get all the brothers together, and we will depart within an hour!

It's four hours from Qingshan to your side; before two in the afternoon, the first batch of goods will be at your factory gate!"

He became more and more urgent as he spoke.

"Not just my seventeen trucks! My brother-in-law has a fleet in the neighboring county, over thirty trucks! I'm calling him right now!"

"Alright. We'll sign the contracts when everyone arrives."

"Got it! Boss Lu, just wait at home!"

The call ended.

Zhao Tiezhu had listened to the whole conversation from the side, unable to close his mouth for a long time.

"Boss Lu... twenty-three drivers, two hundred and thirty thousand a day. Plus triple the shipping costs... just the transportation alone will burn through tens of millions a month."

"You think it's expensive?"

"It's not that I think it's expensive."

Zhao Tiezhu rubbed his hands together.

"I've been building houses for twenty years, and the clients usually want to sell sand by the grain. You're throwing money away by the ton."

Lu Chen didn't answer.

The system panel in front of him quietly refreshed a line.

[Estimated new temporary labor contract employees: 23. Estimated daily new income: 230,000 yuan.]

The system covered most of the shipping costs he spent every day.

This account, only he could calculate it clearly.

One forty in the afternoon.

On the road outside the factory gate, the ground began to shake.

It wasn't an earthquake.

It was the low-frequency resonance of diesel engines coming from the end of the road, wave after wave, getting denser and denser.

Da Biao was the first to rush to the gate.

"They're here!"

Dust kicked up tens of meters high at the end of the road.

The first Steyr heavy truck rushed out of the dust, the sand and stone in its cargo bed piled up like a small mountain, its red body covered in dust, and its headlights shining blindingly bright.

The second.

The third.

The tenth.

The twentieth.

Zhao Tiezhu counted until he stopped counting.

The back of the convoy was still turning the corner; the heavy trucks on the road stretched as far as the eye could see.

Liu Laosan had also brought his brother-in-law's fleet.

The two fleets merged together, over fifty heavy Steyr trucks, carrying sand, stone, cement, steel, and red bricks, forming a mighty steel dragon, rumbling as they rolled over the asphalt road toward the factory area.

The vendors selling watermelons on both sides of the road all stood up, forgetting to watch their melons.

"Which construction site is starting work? Did they pull in half of the military region's trucks?"

The workers on the construction site put down their work and all swarmed to the main gate.

The thin, dark-skinned young man craned his neck to count, and when he reached the thirtieth truck, he was stunned in place.

"I've worked on construction sites for six years, and even the biggest real estate project in the county didn't have this kind of formation."

Zhao Tiezhu stood at the gate, his Adam's apple bobbing twice, and turned to look at Lu Chen.

Lu Chen stood on the steps, hands in his pockets, watching the torrent of steel pour into the factory area.

"Master Zhao, are the materials enough?"

Zhao Tiezhu let out a heavy breath.

"Enough!"

"Then start work."

Lu Chen turned and walked toward the office building.

The system panel popped up.

[New temporary labor contract employees: 51 (including drivers and accompanying personnel). Total current registered number: 391. Estimated income for tomorrow: 3,910,000 yuan.]

It's almost four million a day.

— —

Meanwhile.

Fifty kilometers away, at the headquarters of Tengfei Electronics.

Liu Zhiyuan rushed into Wang Teng's office with a tablet, his face turning green.

"Boss Wang, the Chenguang Electronics construction site hasn't stopped."

Wang Teng's hand, holding the teacup, paused.

"What?"

"He mobilized a fleet from out of town. Over fifty heavy trucks, coming from Qingshan City, with all the sand, stone, cement, and steel gathered."

Liu Zhiyuan swallowed hard.

"They are already pouring the foundation now."

The teacup was placed on the table, tea splashing out and soaking half of a document.

Wang Teng stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window.

On the forty-seventh floor, the view was excellent. Five kilometers to the east, in the direction of Chenguang Electronics Factory, dust was churning, and the headlights of the heavy trucks flashed in the afternoon sun.

Liu Zhiyuan added in a low voice behind him.

"It is said that the shipping cost was set at three times the market price. The drivers have a base salary of ten thousand per person per day."

Wang Teng slowly clenched his right hand on the curtain fabric.

"Where does he get so much cash flow?"

Liu Zhiyuan didn't dare to answer.

Wang Teng stared out the window for a full half-minute, motionless.

Then he took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, is this the Municipal Planning Bureau?"

His voice was very flat.

"I want to report that Chenguang Electronics Factory is illegally building residential buildings on industrial land, suspected of illegal construction."

He paused for a moment.

"Yes, I have evidence. Construction is currently underway on-site. Please send someone to seal it off as soon as possible."

He hung up the phone and stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, his knuckles gripping the phone turning white.

Five kilometers outside the window, the first shovel of concrete had already been poured into the foundation trench.