Mercenary’s War
Chapter 1196 - 1196 One Thousand One Hundred Seventy-Nine Different Meanings

1196: Chapter One Thousand One Hundred Seventy-Nine: Different Meanings 1196: Chapter One Thousand One Hundred Seventy-Nine: Different Meanings The Los Angeles Gun Show is held at the Los Angeles Convention Center, which is a huge venue teeming with people.

Upon arriving at the gun show, Gao Yang felt as if he had entered a bustling vegetable market.

Since it’s a gun show, naturally it mainly features gun sales.

The vast convention center is divided into several areas, including one for personal dealers who set up shop with a few tables to sell guns, as well as large corporate booths set up by weapon companies, showcasing the latest products from major global arms manufacturers.

Additionally, there are booths belonging to domestic American distributors, such as gun stores and studios, located within this area.

At the gun show, aside from new guns, there is also a large number of used guns on sale.

For Gao Yang and Morgan, the most interesting part is the rare second-hand guns that are hard to come by on a regular basis but might appear at the gun show.

The Los Angeles Gun Show does not have a dedicated antique gun section, so all the antique guns are also categorized under the used gun booths.

If Gao Yang wanted to buy new guns, he would simply purchase them from Jack since Arilan Moson Studio can source all new guns in America, and they also offer the best modifications nationwide.

Therefore, Gao Yang isn’t particularly interested in buying new guns at the show; he is there for the old guns.

The full name of the Los Angeles Gun Show should be the Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade Show, so besides guns, there are plenty of other things available for purchase as well.

The moment Gao Yang stepped into the convention center’s doors, his eyes were immediately dazzled by the sight of guns and people examining them everywhere.

Just a glance left Gao Yang feeling dizzy and disoriented.

Gao Yang loves guns; he likes every gun he sees, and he wants to buy every gun he sets his eyes on.

Especially upon first entering the exhibition, he is greeted by the booths of large companies, with various new guns he has never seen before displayed all over, which immediately stunned Gao Yang.

“Where should we go?”

Gao Yang asked bewilderedly, to which Cui Bo declared with stars in his eyes, “Who cares where it is?

Let’s just browse around.

Darn it, Brother Yang, look, that’s a .50 caliber, but why is it so short?

This one is convenient to carry, I’ve got to take a look!”

Jack grabbed Cui Bo and then chuckled, “Listen, don’t rush, take your time.

Let me know if you like a gun, and I’ll buy it for you.

I can get it much cheaper.”

No sooner had Jack’s words fallen than someone at a vendor’s booth not far from them suddenly shouted, “Hey Jack!

You’re here too?

Come take a look at our company’s new guns, you’ll definitely be interested.”

A middle-aged man approached Jack and greeted him enthusiastically.

After that, Jack smiled and said, “I’ll take a look later; I’m here to accompany my friends to see guns today.

We’ll come by later.”

Allian Mossen Studio also participated in the Los Angeles Gun Show.

Allian Mossen Studio itself is one of the main sellers of high-end firearms, selling mass-produced guns professionally customized by themselves.

Although they are not a large manufacturer, they still hold a prominent position in the market.

Even if it’s not a custom job by a gunsmith like Jack, just mass-produced guns from Allian Mossen Studio, or guns from other brands that have been improved before resale, are priced significantly higher than the original models.

Despite that, Allian Mossen Studio’s guns are very popular.

At every major gun show, Allian Mossen Studio participates to gather a large number of orders.

However, as Allian Mossen Studio’s chief gunsmith, Jack no longer attends every gun show because his orders for handmade or modified firearms are backed up for five years, making it impossible for him to accept new orders.

If you want to have Jack make a custom gun, it is understood that the price will be high, and after paying in full upfront, you’ll still have to wait in line for several years.

This time Jack came to the Los Angeles Gun Show purely to accompany Gao Yang and the others for fun.

There is also the added benefit that with Jack’s presence, those large manufacturers or well-known distributors would certainly give him a discount out of respect.

As one of America’s leading gunsmiths, Jack’s words carry a lot of weight.

It’s no exaggeration to say that Jack can single-handedly influence the sales volume of a new gun model.

Nowadays, in the era of self-media, as an influential figure, if Jack strongly recommends something, many people will follow suit and make purchases.

Conversely, if Jack deems a gun to be garbage and not worth buying, the sales of that gun will inevitably suffer.

Of course, Jack doesn’t speak lightly, but when he does, the effect is naturally different from that of an ordinary person.

Moreover, since Allian Mossen Studio is a major customer to all manufacturers, it’s natural that they receive special attention.

As Gao Yang and the group continued walking and looking around, occasionally people would greet Jack.

After a while, Gao Yang couldn’t help but say to Jack, “Buddy, let’s go take a look at those used guns, I’m not very interested in the ones here.”

Of course, the manufacturers’ booths wouldn’t have old guns.

Although Gao Yang patiently observed a few booths and did find some new guns that piqued his interest, what he really wanted were the old guns from World War II.

Therefore, realizing that wandering around aimlessly was too time-consuming, he immediately insisted on heading straight for the old guns.

Morgan’s interest was also in the old guns, and Gao Yang’s suggestion immediately won Morgan’s agreement.

Only Cui Bo seemed torn and said, “Let’s just keep looking around slowly.

Alright, I’ll go with you guys first.

Brother Yang, don’t forget, after you’re done, you have to come pick some out with me.”

Cui Bo reluctantly accompanied Gao Yang as they left the dealers’ area, and Jack chuckled: “Now we’re heading to the mixed zone.

The mixed zone often has some rare treasures to be found, but you’ve got to have a sharp eye.

You need to pick carefully, especially if you want to buy vintage firearms.

Make sure you inspect them closely to avoid buying assembled pieces.”

Gao Yang casually replied: “Got it.

Just gotta sift through slowly.

No worries, I’m not in a hurry.

We’ll take our time looking.”

Enthusiastically, Cui Bo said: “I want to buy a few vintage guns too.

Not too many, I want to get a Mauser KAR98k and also a Garand with a better condition.”

As they talked, the group excitedly reached the mixed zone.

The mixed zone was filled with small booths, and though the booths were small, they had a variety of guns, both new and old, which suited Gao Yang’s taste perfectly.

After just a few steps, Cui Bo picked up a Mauser kar98k from a booth and, after inspecting it, called out to Gao Yang loudly, “Found one so quickly!

Brother Yang, how’s this one look?”

Gao Yang took the gun and examined it carefully, then shook his head: “The condition is not bad, but this gun is assembled from parts.

It’s not worth collecting since the serial numbers and other markings don’t match.

If you just want it for shooting, it’s fine, but forget about collecting it.

Though, it is cheap.”

An assembled gun is made by selecting parts from different guns that can still function or are in good condition and piecing together a single weapon.

Some are just fitting new parts to old guns.

These kinds of guns are known as assembled guns.

Assembled guns don’t necessarily affect usage, but their collectible value is greatly diminished.

For Gao Yang, he surely wouldn’t want one.

However, if Cui Bo was only buying it for shooting purposes, it wouldn’t really matter.

After hesitating for a moment, Cui Bo put the gun down and said, “Forget it.

I should still buy an original vintage gun.”

Jack smiled and reassured, “Don’t worry, there are plenty of 98Ks around.

Take your time, and you’ll definitely find a good one.”

There were indeed many World War II vintage firearms at the gun show, but most of them had some sort of issue.

Either their condition was too poor, or they were assembled.

To find a satisfying vintage gun that met one’s standards, one had to patiently search.

Gao Yang saw many guns along the way, but none caught his eye.

Just as they arrived at a booth specializing in World War II firearms, he overheard Li Jinfang saying solemnly, “Oh, a Type 38 with a large cover.”

As Huaxia People, they could not be unaware of what a Type 38 with a large cover was, but Gao Yang had no fondness for Japanese guns and naturally no interest in collecting them.

Gao Yang glanced over and noticed Li Jinfang had picked up a Type 38 with a large cover.

The booth owner then said with a smile: “All the parts of this gun are original, and it even comes with the original bayonet.

It was captured from the Japanese forces in the Pacific battlefield, and it’s in good condition.

The asking price is two thousand two hundred dollars.”

After looking at the gun for a moment, Li Jinfang ultimately shook his head, placed the gun back down and said solemnly, “I’ll pass.”

Just then, Gao Yang, with his sharp eyes, spotted the stock of a Type 38 with a large cover peeking out from a cardboard box under the booth.

Moreover, on it was a familiar red stamp.

Immediately, he pointed to the box and asked the vendor, “Is that a Type 38 rifle in there?

Can you bring it out for me to take a look?”

The vendor dragged out a very worn-looking rifle from the cardboard box and placed it in front of Gao Yang with a smile: “The condition of this one is much worse, but the parts are still original.

You can take a look.”

Gao Yang took the rifle and flipped the stock over.

He discovered a crudely carved ‘Li’ character with the cuts not too deep.

Gao Yang scrutinized it closely and noticed that there were four faint marks after the ‘Li’.

There was also a red stamp at the end of the stock.

He could make out the characters in the stamp after a glance, clearly discerning words like ‘militia’ and ‘armed’.

There appeared to be another character that looked very much like ‘depot’.

But the problem was, under the red stamp were handwritten Chinese characters stating ‘August 7, 1956, entered into the depot’.

Gao Yang’s excitement surged—this was a gun captured from the Japanese.

It was a trophy of war, and moreover, it likely belonged to a Huaxia person with the surname ‘Li’ who might have killed eleven Japanese with it.

Without taking a closer look, Gao Yang immediately looked up to the vendor and asked, “How much?”

The vendor, noticing Gao Yang’s expression, hesitated and then held up one hand, saying solemnly, “Five hundred dollars.”

The gun was indeed in very poor condition, very dented and nicked, hence the vendor wasn’t quoting a high price.

But Gao Yang didn’t hesitate and said straightaway, “I’ll take it!” (To be continued.

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