270: Black Great Wall (2)

Jiang Xin pointed to the back of the mech: "It integrates a compressed gas jetpack, capable of short-range flight and mid-air attitude adjustment, and possesses a certain degree of adaptability to gravitational environments."

He then pointed to the weapons mounted on the mech's arms: "The standard configuration includes an electromagnetic kinetic assault rifle and a high-power chainsaw sword.

In theory, a well-trained pilot operating a 'black great wall' will have no trouble dealing with a peak Tier 1 Diamond Zombie or mutant beasts of the same level.

Furthermore, it has relatively friendly physical requirements for the pilot; elite soldiers who have undergone some training can operate it."

Everyone gathered around to take a closer look.

Compared to the heroic mechs they had seen at the military parade—the destroyer, blaze, and thunderbolt, which stood 3.5, 5, and 6.5 meters tall respectively and were filled with a sense of oppression—this "black great wall" mech indeed appeared much more "plain" and "miniature."

The jetpack of the black great wall uses chemical propulsion rather than particle propulsion; the chainsaw sword is a physical weapon that is prone to wear and tear, rather than an energy weapon.

But everyone knew clearly in their hearts—the Red Alert Legion would never sell those true "super weapons."

Although this "black great wall" is relatively "low-end," it has the advantage of being cheap, produced in large quantities, and capable of quickly forming combat effectiveness!

For the various military regions that urgently need to enhance their grassroots assault and urban street fighting capabilities, this is truly a timely help!

"Little Jiang! This thing is good! Practical!" Qin Guoqiang was the first to make a decision, speaking very generously, "Name your price, as long as it's reasonable! Our Central Military Region will order one thousand units first!"

His statement was like dropping water into boiling oil, causing an instant uproar.

"Our Western Military Region also wants one thousand units!" Qin Ziyu immediately followed up, not forgetting to glance at her grandfather, her meaning clear—don't even think about hogging them all.

"My Southern Military Region wants eight hundred units!"

"Our Eastern Military Region wants eight hundred units!"

"Anxi Base (Tibet) also wants..." Other representatives expressed their urgency one after another, fearing that if they acted too late, there would be no share left for them.

"Everyone! Everyone! Please calm down!" Jiang Xin's face again displayed that lovable yet hateful, "profiteer-like" gentle smile, as he pressed his hands down in the air, "For this 'black great wall' mech, our current daily production is about 50 units, and... our existing inventory is only one thousand units.

You all are asking for thousands or hundreds, our small production capacity and inventory really cannot keep up with the demand!"

"Then prioritize supplying our Central Military Region with eight hundred units! The defense line of the capital is under the greatest pressure, and we urgently need to enhance our individual soldiers' ability to deal with mutant zombies!" Qin Guoqiang immediately used the "big picture" as an excuse, attempting to seize the largest share.

"Damn it! Old Qin! That's going too far!" Yang Zhen became anxious as soon as he heard this, disregarding any hierarchy or formal occasion. As the Vice Commander of the Southern Military Region, a veteran general, and the helmsman of the deeply-rooted Yang family, he directly retorted,

"There are only one thousand units in stock, and you want eight hundred with one sentence? So it's only the Central Military Region that is under pressure, and our Southern coast facing a hundreds-of-millions-level Zombie Tide is just child's play, right?" His tone was agitated, and his face had reddened slightly.

"Exactly! Commander Qin, your business tactics are too 'overbearing'! If you take eight hundred units, what will be left for the rest of us? We won't even have a spoon to drink the soup!" The Commander of the Anxi Base, Ma Yuankong, was a straightforward person who immediately sided with Yang Zhen and joined the ranks of those "denouncing" Qin Guoqiang.

"Yes, yes, yes, Commander Yang and Commander Ma are right! Everyone who sees it should get a share; everyone needs to get some, you can't just give it all to one family!" The political commissar of the Tibet Military Region Zhang Huating, Governor of Jingchu Province Wan Chunlin, Political Commissar of the Western Hunan Military Region Li Changfeng, and City Mayor Chen Shutong, these veterans also spoke up. They were well-versed in the art of bargaining, and for a moment, the scene became as lively as a vegetable market.

In comparison, Bingyuan Canglong and Nangong Yu, as rising stars, were also envious, but due to their seniority and personalities, they were too embarrassed to immediately join this "quarrel."

"I support Yang Zhen and the other Commanders' statements." A cold yet slightly playful voice rang out; it was actually Qin Ziyu. She smiled indifferently and looked at her grandfather, "Old man, this is a fair trade. Don't try to use your hat as Commander-in-Chief to pressure people; I don't buy that. I represent the interests of the Western Military Region."

"Huh?!" Qin Guoqiang, having his "stage dismantled" by his own granddaughter in front of everyone, immediately puffed out his beard and glared, feigning displeasure.

"What? Old man, this is a procurement meeting. I represent the Western Military Region; I distinguish between public and private matters." Qin Ziyu did not show weakness and winked playfully.

Seeing that several military bigwigs were about to "fight" over the mech shares, Jiang Xin, the "instigator," quickly came out to mediate, his face still wearing that unfathomable smile:

"Alright, alright, Generals, Commanders, please calm down, calm down!" He raised his voice slightly, "How about this: what Old General Qin said is true—the Central Military Region is facing tremendous pressure from the capital's core circle. As a concession, I can prioritize allocating four hundred units of the stock to the Central Military Region. What do you all think?" He directly halved Qin Guoqiang's asking price.

"No, no!" Yang Zhen immediately shook his head like a rattle-drum, "General Jiang, this calculation is wrong. There are nine units here (the five major military regions, the two border armies, Jingchu, and Western Hunan). If you give the Central region four hundred units, the remaining eight units have to split six hundred, which is less than one hundred units each! This amount, scattered across the vast battle lines, won't even make a splash! The troops below won't thank me; they'll be blocking my door every day demanding equipment! No, it's too little!"

Jiang Xin rubbed his chin, seemingly "following good advice": "Yang Zhen also makes sense. Then how about this? The five major military regions have heavy defense tasks, so they get a larger allocation; the two border armies of Tibet and Anxi have relatively less pressure, so each gets fifty units; as for the Jingchu region and Western Hunan, since they are about to be merged into my Xiang-Gan-E Joint Military Region, I will make separate arrangements for their equipment as direct subordinates, and they will not occupy the share for this external sale. Thus, excluding the four hundred units for the Central Military Region, the four major military regions can evenly split the remaining 500 units, with each getting one hundred and twenty-five units. How about that?"

Hearing Jiang Xin voluntarily state that he would be responsible for the equipment of the Jingchu region and Western Hunan, Governor of Jingchu Province Wan Chunlin and Political Commissar of the Western Hunan Military Region Li Changfeng immediately understood and very sensibly stopped participating in the scramble, retreating to the side with satisfied smiles on their faces.

But Yang Zhen was still dissatisfied; he felt that one hundred and twenty-five units were still not enough, and his gaze turned to Qin Guoqiang's share: "It's still a bit too little... General Jiang, how about... uniform a bit more out from the Central Military Region's share? No matter how much pressure they are under, they can't digest four hundred units all at once..."

"Hey! Old Yang!" Qin Guoqiang was truly a bit "anxious" this time, eyes widening, "Don't you push your luck, kid! Do you think I'm old and can't lift a blade anymore, and want to spar with these old bones of mine?" He deliberately struck a "threatening" pose.

"I support Yang Zhen! Old man, don't always try to pressure people with your status! Let's do it based on need and fairness!" Qin Ziyu didn't hesitate to stand on Yang Zhen's side again; the grandfather and granddaughter had practically become "opponents" on this battlefield of "bargaining."

"Exactly, Commander Qin, you have to be reasonable!"

"Allocate based on actual needs!"

The other military region representatives also chimed in one after another. The scene was once very "intense," as several usually dignified generals and high-ranking officials were now red in the face arguing over the share of a few dozen mechs, showing a rare, grounded authenticity in this doomsday world.

Finally, after a round of verbal sparring and bargaining that almost turned into a small military conference debate, the shares were finally settled under Jiang Xin's "mediation" and the compromise of all parties:

The allocation of the one thousand units of existing stock is as follows:

Central Military Region: 300 units.

Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern four major military regions: 150 units each.

Tibet and Anxi two border armies: 50 units each.

Subsequent production capacity will be allocated equally according to demand.

(The Jingchu region and Western Hunan will be separately equipped by the Red Alert Legion and are not counted in this list.)

Although this result could not satisfy any party completely, it generally maintained a balance and also took care of the priority needs of the core areas.