Trust between men can sometimes be that simple. If you find the right person, even if it means risking a financial loss, you’re willing to take a gamble.

"How much can you put up?" Cheng Ye put away his jokes and spoke seriously.

"Twenty thousand points, is that enough?" Matthew Lee said casually. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"That much?" Cheng Ye was taken aback. Matthew Lee turned out to be a hidden wealthy man.

He guessed that even for Liu Bi in the Fourth-Phase, it might not be easy to come up with that many points at once.

"I am not someone who craves material things," Matthew Lee explained with a smile. "Over the years, I’ve accumulated points from tasks and inspections, and aside from daily expenses, I’ve mostly saved them up. Plus, I’ve always been lucky with investments, like today. I was prepared for the store to lose money for a year or two, but then I met you, and now there’s a new opportunity. It seems I’m just not destined to lose money."

Cheng Ye quickly calculated in his mind. Having ten thousand has its own way of spending, and twenty thousand calls for another plan.

Though twenty thousand may sound like a lot, it’s not really sufficient if you seriously want to establish a caravan.

"If we want to run to the Satellite City, we must have at least four square brick trucks, plus about 15 team members (drivers, loaders, security, sales). I can handle the personnel expenses, but as for the vehicles... I previously asked at the resource purchasing and sales office. A square brick truck with a 75-degree battery costs 15,000 points, and twenty thousand points would, at most, buy two basic models with a 35-degree battery, and you still need permission."

As he said this, Cheng Ye mentioned the initial reason for the call, "By the way, I called you because of the car. I want to get a vehicle myself. If we can truly secure the package points in the future, whether it’s for inspection or transporting equipment, it’ll be more convenient to have our own vehicle. I wanted to ask if there’s a more cost-effective way aside from buying or renting a vehicle with contribution points?"

Buy a car?

"Hmm..."

Matthew Lee pondered for a moment, and then spoke more practically, "When it comes to vehicles, very few inspectors buy them. Firstly, for any tasks requiring field missions, the inspection station provides the necessary task vehicles, so there’s no need to purchase or rent one yourself. Secondly, if you temporarily need a vehicle outside, you can rent one with points, so there’s no need to spend a lot of money buying a vehicle and tying up all your contribution points in it."

"Moreover, renting a vehicle with points isn’t as easy as you think. The rules for renting a vehicle at the inspection station are strict, and you must have a reasonable task reason, such as executing a procurement task or exploring infection sources in the Wilderness. A reason like establishing a caravan to transport goods simply won’t get approved."

Cheng Ye felt a sinking feeling. Indeed, things were not as simple as he had thought.

The inspection station’s benefits are only available for official purposes. It’s virtually impossible to use the convenience of renting vehicles for the caravan.

"My suggestion is... rent batteries!" Matthew Lee shifted the conversation and offered a perspective Cheng Ye had never considered.

"Rent batteries? How does that work?"

"It all starts with our Happiness City battery industrial system. From the first generation to now, we’ve developed three generations of batteries. The first generation is the ’flat type’, which is laid out under the chassis and was quickly phased out because of rough roads. It’s the cheapest kind. The second generation switched to a ’leaning tower type’, with batteries stacked on one side of the car’s rear compartment, avoiding issues with chassis collisions. However, both generations use lithium iron phosphate batteries with moderate discharge power, which tend to drain quickly over long distances or when carrying heavy loads."

"The widely used battery now is the third-generation solid-state drawer-type battery..."

Seeing Cheng Ye look a bit confused as he spoke, Matthew Lee laughed and gestured, "This is too abstract. Come on, I’ll show you a car, then you’ll understand."

The two of them left the property sales office and headed straight to the security post in front of the Gate of Happiness.

Matthew Lee greeted the guards warmly and borrowed a patrol pickup.

He opened the hood of the pickup, revealing some cushioning materials at the front and encasing a deep green box with a surface full of parameter nameplates and the Happiness City emblem on the corners.

This was Cheng Ye’s first time seeing a Happiness City-produced power battery up close. Based on the size alone, he couldn’t relate it to the "big, bulky" power batteries he had in mind.

It was no more than seventy centimeters long, about forty centimeters wide, and just over twenty centimeters thick, resembling a large suitcase.

He leaned in closer, scanning the parameter nameplate with his eyes.

Rated capacity 75kWh, energy density 520Wh/kg, can withstand 500G instantaneous impact.

"Follow the sequence on these buttons, and you can pull it out in a few seconds."

Matthew Lee pointed to the four green buttons on the side, with numbers laser-etched on them, feeling slightly raised to the touch.

Cheng Ye pressed the buttons in sequence, feeling a slight feedback under his fingertips.

As he pressed the last button, he heard a light "click", like the sound of a latch releasing. Then, the battery slightly pushed forward, not much, but noticeably unlocked.

He attempted to grip the groove on the battery’s side and lift it gently, but it wouldn’t budge.

Alright.

He looked down to see the marking on the side, weighing 145kg.

But this battery installation method seemed to be a modern battery swap system.

Hmm, it’s somewhat like NIO’s battery swapping structure, just that battery replacement is more convenient and foolproof.

Cheng Ye walked to the side of the car to check the back of the battery, seeing dozens of gold-plated contacts arranged closely, with two symmetrical sliding rail slots below them. The whole structure was wire-free on the outside, both exquisite and safe.

The so-called drawer type likely refers to the ability to pull the battery out of the car like a drawer, enabling a change without dismantling the car.