Chapter 173 Ceres
got rid of the pirates and successfully arrived at the Ceres CERES-ORBITPLANT-VIII space station group. Li Pan looked out from the bridge. The first thing that caught his eye was not the cold Ceres, but the huge hourglass.
There are rows and rows of silver hourglasses covered with liquid solar cells. These hourglasses surround Ceres, charged by solar energy, and have strings of shining pearls surrounding the waist of the hourglasses.
Of course that is not an hourglass, but a residential PLANT plantation. Those are not pearls, but light strips. They are ice-harvesting ships, ore ships, and cargo ships that are constantly shuttling. Under the coordination of automatic navigation, they are entering and exiting the port at a constant speed, transporting huge amounts of production materials and daily necessities into the port, feeding hundreds of people. Thousands, or even millions, of miners.
The temporary license and entry and exit passes were automatically processed online through customs intelligent assistance. Li Pan also put on SBS. Since the use of military-grade weapon damage equipment is prohibited in the space station, he changed to a smart submachine gun and non-lethal bullets to prepare for disembarkation.
HAYABUSA's registered home port is Earth, and Li Pan's pre-purchased ship slot rights have not yet been obtained by him, and it will have to stay in the outer port area for the time being. Although PONY contacted the seller and paid a three-month deposit, it still had to wait for Li Pan to meet him in person and see the conditions of the warehouse and dock. It was not some Chaomeng scam video before the transaction could be completed.
So he took a group of veterans as bodyguards and entered the port on a shuttle. The process is quite smooth, there are no annoying bureaucratic procedures, and no one is stopping you from asking for tips. This is not because most of the processes are completed online, nor is it because the space port is highly automated, unmanned and intelligent. Not to mention how fair and honest the customs is.
In fact, the customs is even more corrupt than the NCPA. After all, these people are just dogs collecting taxes for the committee. The title of the customs administration can basically only be passed down through the blood of mother and child, and has long been monopolized by pure sky people. They still need a small amount of money for you to enter Hong Kong? If you don't pay your dues every month, if you just go through the inspection process for every shipment in the warehouse, and if you are held back for ten days and a half, many business orders will be discarded.
After passing the airtight lock and biochemical quarantine checkpoint, leaving the port and entering the residential area, Li Pan could clearly feel the difference between this place and the earth.
After all, LEOPORT, the Earth's home port, is just a facade. Everything is neat, clean, spacious and beautiful. Huge stargazing corridor, fully automatic conveyor belt, magnificent check-in hall, sparkling smart attendants, even the bathroom is fragrant, and the orbital elevator seats are so soft and exaggerated.
But Ceres?
Damn it, it’s like a canned meat that has become irritated and smelly after being stuffed for a long time. Literally a stadium packed with tens of thousands of people, canned meat without air conditioning or ventilation.
As soon as the airtight door opened, there was a loud crash, and a sour heat wave mixed with the smell of rotten meat, smelly feet and squid hit his nostrils. Li Pan was so excited that his eyes flashed like a revolving door. After the acid rain, he was soaked in the wastewater. A rotting garbage dump.
After coming back to his senses and taking two steps, Li Pan realized that this was not the earth. This outdated garbage residential space station did not have any modern gravity simulation system. It basically relied on the rotation of the facilities inside the shell. The gravity was not high, even with the SBS parameters. Even though the automatic matching was adjusted, Li Pan still felt light all over, his feet felt empty, and he felt like he was stepping on shit in the void.
The residents of the space station also have very distinctive looks. Even without looking at the facial features, you can still feel the obvious difference from the people on earth.
Basically living in a low-gravity environment for a long time, eating synthetic nutritional porridge, and lacking ultraviolet rays, vitamins and minerals, the bodies of interstellar miners are taller, slimmer, and weaker than those bound by gravity. Therefore, they also rely more on implants and prostheses. The SBS with its own metal skeleton almost never leaves the body, so it looks like a big man at first glance, but when the clothes are taken off, it is about the same as a hemp pole.
Li Pan is now more than two meters tall after his Nine Yin Fourth Transformation, which makes him stand out among the rest of the world. He is now wearing a full set of SBS, and he looks like a warrior in armor. But many of these miners were similar in size to him, but they were not so eye-catching.
In addition, miners are basically Asian.
Well, there is the factor of Takamagahara, and another reason is that the first generation of astronauts, even such low-level mining engineers, need a certain degree of academic ability and experience. The cost of building space stations and spaceships is high, and companies will also choose those with technical levels. People who meet the standards. As for this kind of competitive learning and training work, of course other people can't beat Asians.
This led to the fact that although Li Pan was from Earth, his appearance at this time was not like those corporate dogs with classic space skins, but more like a local. Therefore, there were no gangsters or anti-Earth hooligans happening all the way through the downtown area. The elements came to fight with a few strong men armed with live ammunition.
What? What does the classic cosmic skin of the corporate dog look like?
It's a transparent raincoat-like film, just like wearing a protective film all over your body.
Occasionally, due to magnetic fields and static electricity, the protective film may expand irregularly, causing the user's body to seem to be wrapped in a bubble. Sometimes the film on the head may bulge like an incandescent light bulb. , and due to the refraction of light, the facial features will be out of shape, making the head appear extra large, making the image even more comical.
In addition, the people who use this thing are all corporate dogs. Anyway, the people call this thing CONXXX, ahem, safety clothing.
Well, flaws and all, this thing itself is still good. Its scientific name is millimeter-scale synthesis polymer membrane, MSPM millimeter-scale synthetic polymer membrane, a very high-tech gadget, and the prototype of AVNDS.
As early as the Legion's space development era, scientists were developing super materials that could replace space suits. Space suits were the solution at that time. They could provide constant temperature, heat insulation, radiation resistance, bacteria prevention, pollution prevention, and virus prevention. With the assistance of some other equipment systems, they could achieve short-term space walks.
Now the MSPM space suit can provide emergency protection in different space environments and is basically a must-have for wealthy people.
Of course, this thing is valuable. The most critical formula of synthesis polymer is the patent of each company. Nanoscale systems like AVNDS are simply invincible shells that are invisible to the naked eye.
The MSPM space suit is millimeter-sized, and the materials are one million times different in magnitude. Naturally, it does not have the immunity to bulletproof function. It is easily damaged in normal times, but it can be bundled in a belt, bracelet, or ring-sized device. Save it and release it in an emergency when necessary. It is basically equivalent to a super lightweight space suit.
However, despite this, the MSPM space suit is also a luxury product with a price of up to seven figures. In comparison, although the ordinary SBS combat suit is stuffy, hot and tight, it can still function as a spacewalk with a battery pack. , not to mention that it can directly link various exoskeletons and mechanical modules, which is much more cost-effective.
So to put it bluntly, the one with a lot of armor parts and a space suit is a miner, and the one with a bare butt and a condom is a company dog.
Li Pan didn't want to wear a condom anyway, he would rather be warmer...
Following the navigation, he took the elevator to the scheduled warehouse in the port area, and the transaction partner was waiting for them.
This was a bald man wearing a big leather coat and leather pants. He didn't know whether he had an accident or was shot. Half of his face and most of his chest had been replaced with metal parts. I guess since most of my body is prosthetic, I don't need to use SBS or condoms.
"Which one is the broom head?" He didn't bring any bodyguards, so he spread his hands and said, "I've got a warehouse, you guys can look at it yourself."
Li Pan nodded, and the veterans around him dispersed in silence to check the warehouse and ship facilities. . He went up to say hello,
"Cyborg, right? What kind of business does brother do? It's so hard to rent a warehouse recently and the market is so hot. Why do you think of changing hands?"
Cyborg crossed his arms and said,
"You care, the world is so big, I want to see it, okay? "
Li Pan smiled and said,
"Brother, don't be so aggressive, let's just communicate. I'm afraid you might make some enemies. In the end, if you run away and people come to trouble me, everyone will be unhappy." Cyborg touched
. Touching his chin, he glanced at the few bodyguards who were clearly agile enough to jump around the warehouse, checking circuits and equipment models. Looking at these people, they were covered in millions of military SBS and loaded with live ammunition. They were probably not easy to mess with, either. He said in a gentle tone.
"No one who does business has many enemies, but don't worry, I can't find the one on your head. I'm just short of cash for a while, so I'll rent this place to you for a year. You will know if you ask around, the current storage location
is There is a shortage, but there is no shortage of ship spaces. Last month, those companies got crazy and destroyed so many ships, and the ship rental spaces were all vacant. As you can see,
my warehouse is integrated, so you want to rent my warehouse. Even if the boat space is packaged and rented together, my price is reasonable anyway." What
he said was similar to Li Pan's estimate, and Shi Shiba had also checked his background, and there was indeed no big accusation, just some tax evasion, violation of regulations, and group fights It's just a normal fine for damaging public property.
The veterans checked and confirmed that there was no problem, so Li Pan was able to pay the transaction with Cyborg.
"Twenty million is not a small amount of money. It seems that I have a big business. I wish your business is prosperous and we may have the opportunity to make a fortune together in the future." Probably
because Li Pan was so straightforward, he pocketed 20 million . In order to calm down, Cyborg's friendliness increased significantly and his attitude softened a lot. He also exchanged greetings and said, "
What kind of business are my friends here for? I know CERES well."
"Commodity trading, logistics and freight, construction contracting , I have channels on Earth, and recently I am mainly collecting ships and guns, and there is a batch of goods coming in. I have a reliable way to contact me." Li Pan also casually sent
Panlong Construction's business card to him.
"Do you want to take over the ship?"
Unexpectedly, Cyborg actually had a way out.
"Do you want a license and tax package?"
Li Pan also became interested. "Do you really have a boat? What does it mean to have a license plate and tax?"
Cyborg sent a video,
"It is a boat that has registered the license plate in the transportation system and paid the purchase tax, inspection fee, and registration fee to the tax bureau. It is equivalent to a boat. It has been sold. You only need to go through the transfer procedures and you can drive away. It can be regarded as a second-hand ship, but it is
actually new from the factory. It has not been modified at all, the jump engine has not been skipped, and the membrane of the ecological cabin has not been torn off. . And compared to a new ship, it’s 12% cheaper.
If my friend is interested, let’s go and have a look? It’s parked in the outer port. I’m not bluffing you.”
Li Pan also became interested and asked The others arranged for HAYABUSA to enter the port first, and followed Cyborg on his shuttle to the port area outside the space station to see the ship.
Hey, it really does exist. From a distance, it looks like densely packed small dots, arranged in a matrix and suspended outside the space station.
Of course, these ships are either high-end products like TSC, or models developed by Gao Tianyuan locally, and the blueprints were licensed to local private shipbuilding factories during the war.
There are all kinds of escort and destroyer cruisers, three-level, four-level, retired and active ships, all empty ships, and they are all relatively popular models. For example, various assault ships with certain combat capabilities and relatively high comprehensive armor, large broadband drone cruisers, professional logistics supply ships, electronic support ships, and large cargo hold civilian ships.
Although it is outdated in terms of WARP speed and armor shield capacitance, it can still be used. Fleets, mercenary groups, security companies and individual captains will all purchase consumables for replenishment.
"But why are there so many? And we can't buy new ships?"
Ganggu also took Li Pan to look at the ships and explained to him,
"In fact, new ships need to be built very quickly, but now there is a shortage of raw materials. Arrange production.
Some of these goods with brand names and taxes are the surplus from large-scale mass production of factories, some are safety stocks required by Starfleet for production and placement, some are sample ships from 4S stores, modified stocks, and some are for If you reach the sales quota, you will get the license. Of course, the most used ones are tax deductions from large companies.
Because 0791 has policies to support the development of local industries, those large companies can use the cost price to buy ships with tax deductions and tax refunds. For example, a ship worth 10 million yuan , he can get back up to 4 million, so his cost is only 6 million. Then use the price of the package with tax included at a 10% discount, and sell it to you for 9 million. You save 1 million, and he earns 3 million. . Even if second-tier dealers and middlemen are allowed to intervene, there is still room for profit for everyone, so why not do it.
Of course, there are some people who are a little more dirty and use mortgage fraud, which is to borrow money to buy a ship, and then bankrupt the company. The ships were all mortgaged, and they took out the money and ran away. When the tax bureau checks the settlement next month, the person who takes over the ship may lose all the money for the ship. But don’t worry,
that kind of situation is still relatively rare, and we are all here These are old-style boats, worth millions and tens of millions each. You can’t risk being chased by the tax bureau for such a small amount of money. Most of the time they are still laundering money. However, it is true that the environment has been bad in recent years, business has been sluggish, and many boats
have If it can't be sold, there will be no more space in the inventory.
So the boat is not a problem. Whichever boat you want, just pick it. If you like it, just drive away. We also have many leasing companies that lend loans to these boats. Use the boat first, Post-payment is not non-negotiable."
Oh, there is also this kind of second-hand ship market. No wonder the local pirates can form a full crew... Wait, then the original asking price of 100 billion for Starfleet is also Taita - so high!
Forget it, it’s none of his business. He’s not taking over the business now anyway…
Considering that HAYABUSA is indeed not clean, and he doesn’t know when he will fall out with the Security Bureau, the ship may be detained. But now, because of renting warehouses and shipping spaces, in Ceres also has licenses for three ships.
So Li Pan and Cyborg added friends, started a group, and linked Shiba and Nana into the group conversation. They asked them to give advice, carefully selected, and finally chose a KAWAU-class cruiser.
This is an old-fashioned cruiser class, but it has not been retired yet. It is a widely used basic logistics cruiser. Its maximum super-light speed is WARP6. Well, it is only a little faster than Li Pan's shuttle, and it is not a dedicated battleship. However, this ship can be equipped with various logistic supplies, recharging, and shield repair modules as needed to provide logistic support services for small formations.
If you are willing to spend money later, you can use KAWAU's hull structure as the basis for systematic upgrades directly at the shipyard, and upgrade it to the latest OSUPUREI-class military fleet logistics ship.
The OSUPUREI class and HAYABUSA are on the same level. Takamagahara's latest logistics ship has been greatly improved in all aspects. The jump speed alone has been increased to WARP12, which can keep up with fleet maneuvers.
However, the bare ship of the OSUPUREI class starts at at least 240 million. In terms of functionality alone, the logistics ship only needs to provide ship support and repairs when necessary. The KAWAU class cruiser is enough.
The market guide price of the KAWAU class is 12 million. In fact, because it is an old model, the output and market retention are huge. If you have connections with 4S stores and have discounts, you can negotiate a discount rebate worth millions, and the steel frame package The tax-included license is even cheaper, only 9.5 million.
What else is there to say? It’s not even 10 million! purchase!
In this way, the cargo holds of the two cruisers HAYABUSA and KAWAU are enough to empty the chainsaw class.
It cost 30 million a day to arrange all the maintenance work of KAWAU to his subordinates. He also pulled a list from Cyborg and roughly registered the current number of ships with CERES and other brands that include tax. Li Pan returned to HAYABUSA and asked PONY.18 to establish a QVN encrypted link with company.18 to connect to the company intranet for meeting reports.
After all, I have to report to the company, saying that the general manager took one day off work and flew to Ceres to go on a business trip and find a ship and equipment for the company, not to steal, steal the company's goods, and intercept the company's nonsense.
Of course, now is the time of the bidding war, so everything can be simplified. Li Pan gave himself permission for the business trip, and no one in the company would have any objections. However, 0113012, who manages the company's fleet, heard that he had arrived in the Ceres space domain and sent an encrypted message. come over.
"General Manager, the fleet needs some additional supplies. Please check the Ceres black market to see if there are any local suppliers." "
Oh, looking at 036's report, a batch of spice battery soup, fuel and ammunition should have been replenished. ? What is missing... black oil? What is black oil? Petroleum?"
0113012 sent complex molecular formula data, a special identification program for the parameters and a short video. The video shows a metal tank, and inside the tank is a fluid that does look similar to petroleum.
0113012 explained, "Protomolecule oil is an industrial raw material, or more accurately a solvent. It can combine and carry energy from different worlds in a short time to synthesize various special seven-level ammunition. For example,
making The Psionic Cartridge psychic bomb in our world, or the more commonly used Quantumnerv Annihilate Cartridge quantum annihilation bomb. It causes fatal damage to the company's battleships and individuals of the same level. It is difficult to
synthesize protomolecule oils, and the technical threshold is very high. Only Calisto's The production capacity may not be enough. Most of the local production capacity in 0791 is controlled by the Ye Group, but Gao Tianyuan should not hand over all the equipment. Their battleships have customized special bomb bays, and there must be more Some secret laboratories hidden in the asteroid belt can synthesize it.
However, the shelf life of black oil is very short, and it cannot be stored on a large scale. But in this case, of course, the more the better, no matter the cost."
0113007 interjected, "I want it too."
Oh, okay, okay, you order the food and I will cook.
But what Kuang Teng is about, I seem to have heard of it somewhere... Ah!
Li Pan slapped his head and remembered, "Hey! Wangshan!"
Wangshan said, "Why are you calling me again!"
Li Pan said, "Black oil, can you do it? I'll give you a little."
Wangshan, " Oh, how much do you want?"
Li Pan said, "Then just get two tons first."
Wang Shan said, "Okay, ask your hacker to open a door to the Deep Web, and I'll go ask."
Well, that's done. . I don’t know why, but every time I do something for the company, it always goes very smoothly...
(End of this chapter)