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At the Royal Hotel, the Shopkeeper was just kicked out after being reprimanded by his uncle, Zhu Xiao. He moved a chair to sit at the entrance, intending to wait for Liu Guanfeng's arrival, but he didn't expect to wait for two hours.
At this moment, he was already cursing Liu Guanfeng in his heart, wondering what kind of person he was and why his uncle treated him this way. In the past, his uncle had never treated an outsider like this, especially not in front of others. Usually, this uncle doted on his nephew more than his own children; he couldn't understand what was wrong with him today.
While he was complaining, a figure on a Mount suddenly appeared before him. He stood up angrily, ready to shout, but when he saw who it was, he swallowed his words.
The figure on the Mount was none other than Liu Xin, the President of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, whom he had been waiting for. Seeing Liu Xin, the Shopkeeper's expression changed completely: "Oh, President Liu, you're back."
Liu Guanfeng jumped down from Little Black and nodded in acknowledgment: "I'm back. Is Old Marshal and Cai Daren still here?"
"They are. Both of them have been waiting for you on the fourth floor. Please follow me."
Liu Guanfeng stepped behind the Shopkeeper, while Little Black and XP shrank down to the size of small dogs and followed closely behind. The Shopkeeper turned back and cautiously said to Little Black and XP: "President Liu, we have a rule here that Mounts are not allowed inside."
"Then what does Manager Zhu plan to do with them?"
"Well..."
"How about this, Manager Zhu? I won’t make it difficult for you. They are my best companions; I can't just leave them outside while I eat. To avoid other diners seeing them, please take them to a private room on the third floor and serve them the best meal. All expenses will be according to normal regulations. If there are any additional costs, just include them; I will settle the bill for them later."
To prevent Liu Guanfeng from leaving, Manager Zhu had no choice but to agree. He called a waiter to take Little Black and XP to a private room on the third floor and ordered a full table of food for them.
Meanwhile, Liu Guanfeng was led by Manager Zhu to the private room where Zhu Xiao was located. The Shopkeeper knocked on the door and said: "Uncle, President Liu from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce has arrived."
At that moment, the door opened, revealing Zhu Xiao, who grabbed Liu Guanfeng's wrist and laughed heartily: "President Liu, we finally got you here! We were so anxious!"
Liu Guanfeng followed Zhu Xiao into the room while saying repeatedly: "I got delayed by some matters earlier; I truly apologize to Grand Marshal."
"Just being able to come is good, just being able to come is good."
Liu Guanfeng was pulled by Zhu Xiao to sit beside the table. Liu Guanfeng greeted Cai Sidong again, and at that moment, dishes began to be served from outside, each one exquisitely prepared. Since Liu Guanfeng, Zhu Xiao, and Cai Sidong had not eaten lunch, now that the food was on the table, Zhu Xiao gestured for Liu Guanfeng to start eating while he himself began to devour the food.
After a while, once the three had finished their meal, they shifted the topic to more formal matters. Cai Sidong raised his wine glass and said, "President Liu, this matter has been entrusted to someone unworthy by me, causing you distress. I apologize on behalf of myself."
"Cai Daren, there's no need for such words. This incident was not instigated by you; what fault is there in you as a dignitary?"
"I wonder if President Liu would still be willing to cooperate with our Military Supply Office?"
"Cai Daren, as I mentioned earlier, this whole affair was solely Zhao Jun's doing; neither you nor the Military Supply Office are involved. If you wish for the Military Supply Office to collaborate with our Chinese Chamber of Commerce, our Merchant Guild would certainly be very willing."
At this moment, Zhu Xiao interjected, "Cai Daren, what do you think? I told you I was right; from the first meeting, I knew President Liu is definitely not that kind of petty person. Today happens to have both of you here—one is the President of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and the other is in charge of the Military Supply Office. Let’s discuss any matters here today to avoid wasting more time." Zhu Xiao was eager to finalize this matter as soon as possible so he could put his mind at ease.
Liu Guanfeng maintained a smile throughout, while Cai Sidong's expression became much more serious when discussing business; after all, this was his first solo negotiation.
Cai Sidong organized his thoughts and then said, "President Liu, may I ask how many sets of armor your Merchant Guild produces each year?"
"Approximately around fifty thousand sets."
"Is it the kind of armor we need?" Cai Sidong did not expect the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to have such strong production capacity. If it were purely about production capacity, perhaps only the New Home Chamber of Commerce could compete with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce; however, in terms of quality, they were worlds apart.
"So if we sign an agreement, can your Chinese Chamber of Commerce complete twenty-five thousand sets by the next opening of the Gates of Hell?"
Liu Guanfeng shook his head. Cai Sidong quickly said, "Then surely you can produce twenty thousand sets."
Seeing Cai Sidong's nervousness made Liu Guanfeng smile: "Cai Daren, you are too unconfident in our Chinese Chamber of Commerce's capabilities. To assure you, by the next opening of the Gates of Hell, our Chinese Chamber of Commerce can provide at least forty thousand sets of weaponry for the Military Supply Office."
"Forty thousand sets?" Cai Sidong was quite confused. Why did Liu Guanfeng say they could only produce fifty thousand sets a day when there was just over half a year left until the next opening of the Gates of Hell? How could they manage to produce forty thousand sets?
Sitting aside, Zhu Xiao couldn't help but poke his hand when he heard this. If he really had forty thousand soldiers in such armor, he would be confident in passing through the Gates of Hell and breaking through the first line of defense on Said Island. To confirm, Zhu Xiao quietly asked, "Liu President, can you really provide forty thousand sets of equipment?"
Liu Guanfeng was also amused by the sometimes hot-tempered and sometimes very lovable Old Marshal. Liu Guanfeng nodded firmly, "Perhaps you both think time might not be enough, right?"
Cai Sidong and Zhu Xiao both unconsciously nodded.
"Here's the thing: when Zhao Jun came to our Merchant Guild last time, I realized the Military Supply Office's determination to purchase armor from us. However, the price that Zhao Jun offered was so low that it was difficult even to buy armor crafted by our apprentices, let alone the equipment made by our experienced Blacksmiths."
Upon mentioning Zhao Jun, Zhu Xiao waved his hand at Liu Guanfeng, "Liu President, let's not talk about that fool today since we are in a good mood."
Liu Guanfeng smiled in response, "So I rejected his request at that time. But I was afraid that one day the Military Supply Office would indeed finalize an agreement with me and I wouldn't have any equipment ready. Therefore, I instructed all my blacksmiths to stop other orders and focus solely on crafting armor for the Military Supply Office. In this short time, I believe our Merchant Guild should be able to produce over ten thousand sets of equipment."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiao first laughed and then slammed his hand on the table, "Liu Brother, you are too bold! If the Military Supply Office doesn't place an order with you, won't you be at a loss?"
Hearing Zhu Xiao say this made Liu Guanfeng laugh as well. "Zhu Yuan Shuai, you underestimate our Chinese Chamber of Commerce. If I knew that the Military Supply Office would no longer do business with us in the future, I can guarantee that within a month I could sell all those ten thousand sets of equipment. Do you believe it?"
Seeing that Liu Guanfeng was not joking, Zhu Xiao slapped his forehead, "It seems I underestimated your Chinese Chamber of Commerce's equipment. I didn't expect your Merchant Guild's products to be so popular."
"Zhu Yuan Shuai, it's not that our equipment is popular; it's just that we always consider the buyers when making them. Who doesn't want their armor to be more sturdy and durable? Who doesn't want reliable protection in battle? All our Merchant Guild's products are made with this in mind, and every product goes through strict quality control. Substandard products are never allowed on display. That's why the items crafted by our apprentices are so expensive; their skill level is lacking, so typically only one out of every four or five items they make can be sold. However, once certified by our Merchant Guild's blacksmiths, everyone can buy them with confidence."
Zhu Xiao nodded, "I didn't expect there to be so much thought put into your Merchant Guild's products and how user-friendly they are."
"We have no choice; after all, we are in business. Making money is easy, but how to make others willingly put their money into your pocket is what needs consideration."
After hearing Liu Guanfeng's words, Cai Sidong also nodded repeatedly. "Liu President, since your Chinese Chamber of Commerce can prepare forty thousand sets of weapons and equipment for us at the next opening of the Gates of Hell, then we will take all forty thousand sets. Moreover, if you can produce more, we will buy them all as well. So what price do you think is appropriate, Liu President?"
Liu Guanfeng looked at Cai Sidong and said, "Cai Daren, you can decide on the price. I just want to say that all products made for the Military Supply Office will be crafted by Blacksmiths from our Merchant Guild. The price for armor made by these Blacksmiths is eighty gold coins per set; weapon prices vary between forty to sixty gold coins depending on the type."
Cai Sidong thought to himself that this meant the lowest price for a set from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce would require at least one hundred twenty gold coins. He felt a bit troubled since he had originally set a budget of one hundred gold coins; now having to come up with an additional twenty gold coins was quite challenging.
Cai Sidong looked troubled and said to Liu Guanfeng, "Liu President, our Military Supply Office can only provide you with one hundred gold coins per set for now, and it needs to include different weapons. I wonder if Liu President can accept this?"
Liu Guanfeng thought for a moment and replied, "Cai Daren, this is our first cooperation with the Military Supply Office, and there are many days ahead. Since you have mentioned it, I shouldn't be too stingy. How about this: each set will cost one hundred gold coins, including twenty thousand sets of Steel Blades, ten thousand sets of Iron Rods, five thousand sets of Greatswords, and five thousand sets of Great Axes. Is that acceptable?"
Hearing that Liu Guanfeng agreed so quickly, Cai Sidong nodded repeatedly, "Alright, alright, Liu President. As long as you agree, it's fine."
"Cai Daren, shall we finalize this?"
"Yes, yes," Cai Sidong hurriedly agreed, fearing that Liu Guanfeng might change his mind.
Seeing that the two had reached an agreement, Zhu Xiao shouted downstairs, "Come here! Prepare the Four Treasures of the Study for me."
"Yes," a person at the door responded and turned to go down the stairs. After a short while, footsteps could be heard coming from below, accompanied by a commotion.
When the attendant opened the door to the private room, the noise became even clearer. Zhu Xiao asked upon hearing the sounds, "What happened downstairs?"
"Reporting to Grand Marshal, it's General Song's son arguing with Manager Zhu downstairs."
"Which General Song?"
"It's General Song Cheng's son, Song De. He came to the third floor to eat and wanted to go to his usual private room. However, that room is currently occupied by Liu President's two mounts. No matter how Manager Zhu explains it to him, he refuses to back down. He is still arguing and insists on driving Liu President's mounts out. He even said that if they are not removed, he will kill them and roast them inside." The attendant's voice grew quieter as he spoke because he noticed Liu Guanfeng's face was dark with anger.
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