Chapter 4643 — A Quiet Moment Alone
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"Don't celebrate too soon, Brother Wei Zhao. Our automatic forging contraption isn't truly finished yet—truth be told, it's still only half-built..." Han Jingyi reluctantly poured cold water on his excitement.
"Huh? Half-built?" Wei Zhao's expression froze at once. Had he been celebrating too early?
"That's right. The overall structure is more or less done, but there are still some technical problems we haven't solved. Right now we're just waiting on the electronic components from the Central Merchant Guild." Han Jingyi nodded.
"Pfft!" Wei Zhao nearly choked on his breath, blurting out in astonishment, "Cough, cough—this thing needs electronic components too?!"
"Of course! Otherwise how could it ever be intelligent? These smart chip components are hard to come by—you can't get them anywhere on Cloudstep Island. Luckily the Central Merchant Guild popped up out of nowhere, right in the nick of time. Hee hee!" Han Jingyi laughed.
"The Central Merchant Guild even sells specialized chip components like these?" Wei Zhao was startled again. It was one thing for the Guild to set off a craze for tech products on Cloudstep Island, but he hadn't expected them to be selling smart chip components too. Were they planning to drag Cloudstep Island through an industrial revolution?
"They do, but those smart chip components are far too conspicuous. We didn't dare place an order outright—we were afraid someone with ill intentions might take notice. This sort of thing is actually quite sensitive; it could easily expose the secret of our automatic forging contraption. We couldn't afford to be careless." Ning Xuefei nodded.
"Then what did you do?" Shangguan Lan'er asked curiously.
"Hee hee, I had Feifei specially place an order with them for some digital devices. They're all high-end goods, but they're the sort of luxury items people buy for enjoyment—no matter how many you purchase, no one will get suspicious. The transistors and various electronic parts inside can all be pulled out for use, and the chip components can be pieced together from them as well. I doubt we'll have much trouble." Han Jingyi smiled with confidence; her self-assurance in this area was truly unmatched.
"It's just a pity the Central Merchant Guild is so slow. We placed our order so long ago, and they still haven't delivered these digital devices. So sluggish—I'll have someone go hurry them along in a bit." Ning Xuefei pouted.
"Oh? Could they be refusing to sell on purpose?" Something stirred in Wei Zhao's heart.
"That's hardly it. If the Central Merchant Guild wants to do business here, they have to watch my mother's mood before they can even gain a foothold. Where would they get the nerve to refuse a sale on purpose..." Ning Xuefei stuck out her tongue.
This place was different from North Island. North Island was nominally under the Threefold Pavilion's control, but its environment was relatively lax—any merchant guild with enough strength could set up shop there. West Island, however, was another matter entirely. Here, female power reigned supreme, and the overall atmosphere was one of tight-knit solidarity and exclusion toward outsiders. To do business here, one had to watch the Ning family's mood. Offend the Ning family, and no matter how formidable a guild might be, it could never gain a foothold.
"Then why?" Wei Zhao asked, puzzled.
"Hee hee, the main reason is that the digital devices Jingjing ordered aren't ordinary goods. Even in the secular world, only a handful of places sell them, so they don't have any in stock. They can only take advance orders and we'll have to see when they can deliver. This is a privilege only Feifei has—anyone else couldn't even place an order." Han Jingyi laughed.