ryethenovel Chapter 216 New Toys
Chapter 216 New Toys
Chapter 216 New Toys
Indeed, as countless predecessors have proven, men are naturally inclined to farm.
After spending two days at Whitney Farm celebrating his mother Whitney's birthday, Ernst, under pressure from her to get married, came to Red River Valley Farm.
It can only be said that it was the right decision to entrust the purchase of this farm to John. The original asking price of around 30 million US dollars was managed to be reduced to 26.3 million US dollars by him.
The money saved is enough to buy household items for the Red River Valley Farm.
However, this is just a plan.
What is a plan?
That's what's meant to be broken by reality, like a piece of waste paper.
Fremont is the closest major city to Red River Valley Farm.
There's a strange phenomenon in America: the prosperity of a city is never judged by its population size or area, but by whether it can ride the wave of popularity of a metropolitan area.
Take Phoenix, for example. Despite having the sixth largest population in the United States, it is still considered a small desert city by most Americans.
Fremont, a city with a population of only a few hundred thousand, has managed to be classified as a major city simply by being a member of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont metropolitan area.
Many things that are unavailable in Phoenix can be easily found in Fremont, because Fremont serves the entire metropolitan area.
That morning, four brand-new Ford F350s, like four black behemoths, imposingly parked at the entrance of the Fremont High-End Machinery Market.
The dull thud of the wheels rolling over the ground, coupled with the car's imposing aura, instantly drew the attention of everyone in the market.
Bird got out of the passenger seat and looked at the four pickup trucks that were taller than him, his face full of confusion: "Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?"
He really couldn't understand why his boss, who had clearly agreed to buy agricultural machinery, couldn't stay away once he entered the car dealership.
Even more outrageous is that they bought four F350 pickup trucks in one go. These are big machines that can pull tractors. Their farm doesn't even have a decent farm implement. Are they going to buy so many pickup trucks to haul hay?
"Ernst, I still have to say something." Bird rubbed his throbbing temples, trying to bring his boss back to his senses. "We're here to buy farm machinery, not cars. Aren't these four pickup trucks a bit too much—"
Before he could finish speaking, Ernst patted him on the shoulder.
The new boss, who had just lured him from Whitney Farm, was grinning like a child who had just received candy. "Hey, Bird, relax. We'd have to buy these things sooner or later, so what's the difference? Just imagine how impressive it would be to drive our pickup trucks around the farm."
Bird glanced at the glint in Ernst's eyes and silently rolled his eyes in his mind.
He finally understood: his boss wasn't there to run a farm; he was clearly there to fulfill his own dream of a wealthy, idyllic rural life.
The Red River Valley Farm is now extremely rudimentary; the previous owner sold almost everything that could be sold.
From shovels in the warehouse to tractors in the fields, not even the sofas in the farmhouses were left behind.
It can be said that they have nothing but land.
But Ernst just loved the feeling of creating something from nothing. Just a couple of days ago, he took Bird around the farm for a whole day, drawing maps on the ground, saying things like "we should build a vineyard here" or "we should dig a fishpond there," as excited as a king planning his own kingdom.
Finally, the two spent a day studying the farm construction plan, and the core content could be summarized in one sentence: first, buy all the necessary equipment.
So the two of them drove to Fremont early this morning. Their original plan was to go to a farm machinery store to look at agricultural machinery such as seeders and tractors. However, when they passed a car dealership, Ernst took a liking to a Ford F350 at first sight and went straight in to swipe his card.
Now that he heard there were places in Fremont selling private jets, his eyes lit up. He dragged Bird to the aircraft dealership, completely forgetting about his original farm construction plans.
But as he walked onto the aircraft dealer's tarmac, the excitement on his face instantly turned into disappointment.
He frowned, looked around, and said with obvious disdain, "This is the aircraft market you were talking about? Why is there so little of it?"
Bird followed his gaze and saw that there were indeed not many planes on the tarmac, less than forty in total, mostly fixed-wing aircraft, with only a handful of helicopters.
If you were to count the different models, you probably wouldn't even be able to come up with ten.
"Buying a plane is not the same as buying a car," Bird whispered behind him, rolling his eyes. "Airplanes are so big and so expensive, which dealer would dare to stockpile them like cars? Most of the time, customers place orders first, and then dealers contact manufacturers to produce them. It's already good that we have this much stock."
No sooner had he finished speaking than an enthusiastic voice came from the side, "This gentleman is absolutely right; he's clearly an expert."
Ernst and Bird turned to look and saw a man in a suit with slicked-back hair walking briskly toward them, his face full of smiles.
His name was Shaku, and he was the owner of the aircraft dealership. He recognized Ernst, one of America's richest men, the moment Ernst walked in.
This is a big spender! Let alone potential clients, if he wanted to, he could buy all the planes here.
As Shaku warmly shook hands with Ernst, he explained, "You don't know this, but we usually only have a dozen or so aircraft on display here. The extra ones we have today are because there's an agricultural exhibition going on recently."
Shaku led Ernst and his group to a large yellow airplane. "If you're using it for agricultural planting, I highly recommend this AT-802."
"It uses a HP PT6A-67F turboprop engine with over 1300 horsepower, a maximum cruising speed of 350 kilometers per hour, a range of about 1300 kilometers on a full tank of fuel, and a maximum climb altitude of over 7600 meters."
He paused, then emphasized, "Most importantly, it can land on non-professional runways."
This is crucial. No matter how big the farm is, it will generally not build a professional runway because that thing is too expensive.
"An aerial tractor," Ernst muttered. He wasn't unfamiliar with the aircraft, as there were two at Whitney Farm.
However, agricultural machinery was not his main purpose; he came mainly to see helicopters.
What he truly desired was to fly a helicopter over his vast expanse of fertile land, overlooking the endless pastoral scenery – that was what he truly desired.
If you're lucky, you might encounter an intruder and get a good beating with the weapons on the helicopter. Just thinking about it is awesome.
Shaku clearly understood the psychology of Ernst and other wealthy people. After briefly introducing the AT-802, he immediately changed the subject and enthusiastically led everyone towards the helicopter area.
"Sir, if you're interested in helicopters, you've come to the right place. We have several helicopters here that are especially suitable for farm use, and we guarantee you'll be satisfied."
Soon, a silver helicopter appeared before everyone's eyes.
沙库指着直升机介绍道「这是MD—520N，是麦克唐纳·道格拉斯公司研製的5座轻型通用无尾桨直升机。它搭载了一台艾利逊公司的250—C20R涡轮轴发动机，425马力，最大升限能到4300米。」
He secretly observed Ernst's reaction, and seeing interest in the other's eyes, he immediately added, "Moreover, we can provide modification services; installing an M249 machine gun on it is no problem at all."
"What about the shells?" Ernst's eyes lit up and he immediately asked.
Shaku didn't find it abrupt at all. In the world of the super-rich, isn't it normal for a farm to buy a helicopter and load it with missiles?
He replied with a smile, "We can install rocket pods and missiles; we'll handle all the modifications. However, you'll have to apply for the relevant permits and licenses yourself, as this involves weapons control, and we don't have that authority."
Ernst thought about it and realized that America was already happy enough with no gun bans, with gunfights every day. If these dealers could still sell cannons at will, wouldn't America just take off from where it is?
"By the way, do you have Bell's helicopters?" Ernst suddenly asked.
For someone like him who isn't a military enthusiast, Bell Helicopter is practically the only civilian helicopter brand he's ever heard of, since he often sees them in movies.
The Bell 47, in particular, is as famous as the AK47 among guns, and it is still selling well decades after its birth.
Shaku nodded immediately. "Yes, please follow me, it's inside."
The group continued walking forward, and as they approached the end of the helipad, they finally spotted a Bell helicopter.
Shaku pointed to one of the white helicopters and introduced it, "This is the Bell 407, which Bell just launched last year. Its overall performance is absolutely top-notch among helicopters of the same type. But to be honest, I don't really recommend you buy this one."
"The main problem is the huge price difference; Bell doesn't offer much value for money..." He was about to explain that it wasn't cost-effective, but when he turned and saw Ernst, he immediately swallowed his words.
Talking about cost-effectiveness with this guy is no different from choosing between beer and soft drinks. He doesn't care about the money at all.
"What's the price?" Ernst's eyes were fixed on the Bell 407; he had immediately taken a liking to this big guy.
Shaku took a deep breath. "The top-of-the-line version would cost $310 million."
He didn't even bother to introduce any optional accessories; he just maxed out the configuration.
Sure enough, Ernst didn't even flinch when he heard the price.
Do you have it in stock?
Shaku nodded immediately. "Yes! If you want it, you can take it today."
"Alright, I'll take this Bell 407." Ernst clapped his hands, his tone as relaxed as if he'd just bought a cup of coffee. "Oh, and that AT-802 aerial tractor from earlier, too."
Shaku's smile instantly became even brighter, and he hurriedly nodded and bowed, "Yes, sir, I'll go and process the formalities for you right away, and I guarantee you can pick up the plane today."
Bird, standing to the side, watched this scene, completely numb.
We came here to buy agricultural machinery, but now we've not only bought four pickup trucks, but also two airplanes.
He silently pulled out a list, crossed out tractors and seeders on the farm procurement plan, and wrote down Ford F350×4, Bell 407 helicopter×1, AT-802 agricultural aircraft×1. Finally, he couldn't help but add a note: The farming dream of the rich is indeed different from others.
Ernst was standing next to the Bell 407, imagining himself inspecting the farm in a helicopter.
He turned to Bird. "Come on, Bird, once the paperwork is done, we'll fly the plane back to the farm. By the way, can you fly a helicopter?"
Bird "————"
Seeing Ernst's questioning gaze, he still spoke up, "I'm just a farm manager, not a pilot."
Ernst chuckled twice, but fortunately Muller stepped forward at that moment and said that they could fly such aircraft.