France? Didn’t the French try to bribe their way to get the bid? How can they still win this bid now?

Nicholas was a little confused, but he knew that he had no right to object.

"Yes." Nicholas nodded, and then wanted to leave.

"Nicholas, I know what you are thinking." The boss suddenly stopped him: "You are very familiar with Eastern people, and you should know the proverb that eggs cannot be put in one basket. We are the same, we

We cannot rely entirely on the modernization of our national defense on the Easterners. Although they have a good relationship with us, we cannot completely rely on them, do you understand?"

Nicholas nodded: "I understand your worries, but you should also know that the collapse of the Red Empire was the result of Westerners instigating it. Now, we don't know how many people miss that powerful country and miss the beginning.

A powerful army, but it’s a pity that we can’t go back. Moreover, from the collapse of the Red Empire to now, the West has not given us any benefits. The only one we can rely on is the East. The West never wants us to be strong, they just want to take away our power.

teeth."

The boss was stunned for a moment, and then murmured to himself: "Yes, everyone will miss the once powerful country, but just missing it is enough. Anyone who tries to go back to the country in the past is a bit of a fool's dream. France

It is still different from the West. If we want to expand diversified weapons channels, we can only rely on France, and other countries cannot count on it."

"Yes." Nicholas nodded and wanted to walk out again, but the boss continued to speak.

"To say that the technology is advanced, it must be weapons from the East. However, their total price is too high and we cannot afford it. French products are the most suitable choice for us. However, we also have to raise our own requirements, such as power.

The system must be sufficient and have enough redundant power. In this way, when we need to improve in the future, there will be enough room to avoid modification again. By the way, these modification items cannot increase the quotation. If they increase the price,

Then we will choose the Eastern Project.”

The boss thought for a moment and continued: "I don't know much about the details. It's up to your navy to set the standards."

"Yes." Nicholas nodded excitedly.

In the guest house, everyone was waiting. Seeing that it was getting dark and the Da Mao Navy had not responded yet, it seemed that it would be impossible to announce the results tonight.

While they were waiting anxiously, an officer hurried in: "Please ask the French bidding team to go to the conference room."

French?

Rodriguez's eyes showed a complicated look. Could it be that the French were going to win this bidding? It was obvious that his own plan was the best! He was very unwilling to do so.

However, when he turned around and saw the Oriental people, he suddenly felt relieved. The Oriental people were most likely to win this project. Since the Oriental people had no hope, what else could he be unbalanced about?

Duquesne, Lucas and others stumbled towards the conference room.

Sure enough, we succeeded! Our plan was not the best, but our bidding methods were the most brilliant. They went to various countries to bid and bribed local officials. This method has achieved results many times.

This time, they did not bribe Nikola, because they knew that Nikola was leaning towards the Mingzhou Group, but Nikola had no say, and the representative sent by the big boss was the one who could make the decision.

In the pack of cigars given by Lucas, each of the ten cigars contained a check for one hundred thousand dollars, which added up to one million dollars. In the remaining cigar, there was also a note. As long as the project was successful,

If it falls into your own hands, you will be given a rebate in proportion to it. This is the big deal.

The reason why they didn't replace everything with one check is of course that they knew that Boris also had to take care of other people, so it would be more convenient for Boris to use separate checks.

However, when they entered the conference room, they did not find Boris, only military personnel were present.

"Your Excellency Nicholas, when you called us here, did you intend to hand over the project to us? Please rest assured that we will definitely complete it with quality and quantity," Duquesne said.

"Let's discuss some details first." Nikolai said: "When you introduced it, this northwest wind class is modular in design. The largest one has a displacement of more than 24,000 tons?"

"Yes, its length increased to 214.5 meters and its displacement reached 24,542 tons. We called this the BPC-250 project."

The Mistral class was named Mistral after the first ship was built. At the beginning, the project was called BIP, and later BPC, and a series of model planning was carried out.

Among them, BPC-250 is the largest version, and BPC-140 is the smallest version, with a full load displacement of only 13,500 tons.

Now, Da Mao wants this largest version, which is of course better, so he can quote a higher price.

Duquesne and Lucas were excited.

"Okay, we want this one." Nikolai said: "You are responsible for manufacturing the hull and power system, and we will install the electronic equipment and close-in defense weapons."

Although their own outfitting is progressing slowly on the 22350 frigate project, amphibious assault ships are different from frigates. They only need to install some close-range anti-aircraft guns, not even close-range air defense missiles, plus some electronic equipment for communication.

, these old fools can do it themselves.

"Okay, in this case, the price..." Duquesne was thinking about how to quote, and Nicholas interrupted him: "We will talk about the price later. We haven't talked about the power system yet. Your power is too weak. It's only 20

It’s impossible to drive this giant ship with just one megawatt, so we require the power of this warship to be increased to at least 60 megawatts.”

Sixty megawatts, then you have to get a gas turbine! Duquesne and Lucas looked at each other, and it seemed that the $10 million deposit paid to Dongfang before the bid could still work.

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "In addition to our existing power, it will be enough to add a 40-megawatt gas turbine." Duquesne said: "In this case, the price

…”

"The price is the last thing to talk about. Please don't always get entangled in the price." Nikolai said: "We still need to reserve what should be reserved. For example, on the port side, we need to reserve the position of the electromagnetic catapult. Although

We are not installing it now, but we may install it in the future, so the cables must be laid here and the relevant accessories must be reserved."

Da Mao still wants electromagnetic ejection? We don’t have it! However, this reservation can be used to cooperate with Dongfang, which can be regarded as a bait for the Mingzhou Group. Although the project is ours, your Mingzhou Group can also make a lot of money. We will follow your instructions

The electromagnetic catapult of the State Group is reserved.

"no problem."

"As for the lift, your plan is for a thirteen-ton lift. We hope to increase it to a twenty-ton lift. Moreover, the lift must meet the size requirements of Dongfang's J-31A."

"no problem."

The more upgrades the better, we can add money.

"Although we need to install weapons and electronic equipment, other outfitting, such as living cabins, canteens, etc., are all your work. Only space for weapons and electronic equipment is left for us."

"no problem."

"In terms of construction period, we hope to complete the construction within two years."

"This won't work. We can only guarantee that it will be launched within two years at most."

"As for the design drawings, I hope you can hand over the complete design drawings to us for evaluation."

"That requires you to pay at least 50% of the payment."

The various conditions became more and more detailed as they were discussed. Duquesne and Lucas were very happy. It seemed that the project was completed. How much would it cost?

With so many projects added, it would have to be at least 200 million, right? Just a little cheaper than Dongfang's quote would be fine.

An hour later, all the details were discussed.

"Okay, let's finally talk about the price." Nikola said: "Our requirement is that the price remains unchanged."

What?

Lucas stood up immediately: "This is impossible. With so many items added, how can the price remain the same? Then not only will we not make money, we may also lose money!"

"No, we guarantee that you will make a profit." Nicholas said, "As long as you take back the rebates, you will make a profit."

"Kickback? Mr. Nicholas, what are you talking about?" Duquesne pretended to be calm.

"You know what I say." Nikolay said: "You know what disgraceful things you did in this bidding. Boris has been sent to prison. Our boss is very jealous of some people."

We resolutely maintain zero tolerance for corruption in weapons procurement. You don’t have to think about those crooked ways, you just need to do things in a down-to-earth manner.”

The expressions of Duquesne and Lucas changed several times. Duquesne gritted his teeth and said: "Even if we don't have to pay any public relations fees, it's not enough. If you ask for so much, the price will rise by at least 100 million euros. We

This request is not too much.”

"Even if you increase the price by one euro, we will hand over the contract to the Minzhou Group." Nikola said: "The Minzhou Group will build it according to the indicators we just set, and the price will not exceed 500 million."

The French were dumbfounded.

I just heard Nikolai asking for this and that. I thought I could make more money. Unexpectedly, they refused to increase the price. Do you want to accept this project?

"Your Excellency Nicholas, we need to conduct a cost accounting. We also need to consider the inflation factor in the past two years. If it is not cost-effective, then we cannot accept this contract." Duquesne was careful.

Don't be hot-headed or impulsive at this time.

It is irrational to stand up and leave immediately, or to agree immediately.

If it can be followed, of course they must accept this contract. After all, this is of great significance to them, and it means that legal equipment has finally opened the door to Da Mao!

Think about the past, their legal weapons could only survive in the cracks between the Soviet Union and the United States. Where the Soviet Union did not sell them and neither the United States nor the United States could sell them, the French could only sell them. For this, they might receive a lot of criticism, and it was not easy for them.

What now?

Now they can actually sell weapons to Da Mao. This fact alone is exciting enough.

However, they must do cost accounting. At the very least, if they don't make money, they can still maintain the operation of the shipyard, and they can also brag to the outside world that everyone is buying our weapons. We have surpassed the Mingzhou Group and we are the best.

of!

"Okay, I'll give you one day to think about it. If you don't reply by this time tomorrow, we will sign a contract with Mingzhou Group."

Duquesne, Lucas and others happily entered the conference room. When they came out, they all looked depressed. They didn't know what was going on. Everyone looked at it curiously, but the French were very cautious and would not treat outsiders.

No one can find out what happened even if I say half a word.

"What happened to the French?" Zhao Ling was also curious.

"What else can I do? It's just a case of cheating Zhou." Qin Tao said: "I won't make money if I accept the contract, and I won't be reconciled if I don't accept the contract."

Zhao Ling cast a suspicious look: "Did Nicholas send you a message?"

Qin Tao smiled. The message would definitely not be sent. At this time, Nicholas would definitely not contact him alone to avoid being suspected by the boss. If the French give benefits, should he also give benefits?
To be continued...