"Hello, you must be Boss Su, right?"
"I'm Su Bai. And you are?" Su Bai looked up at the newcomer but couldn't discern much from their attire.
"My name is Jingda. I'm the person in charge of the dock laborers' group. You placed a freight order, Boss Su, so I'm here to confirm it."
As Jingda spoke, he handed the form to Su Bai.
"I see." Su Bai took the form and looked it over. It was the job application he had submitted to the Ministry of Civil Affairs yesterday. "A total of 50,000 kilograms of bulk grain, to be transported to the Ministry of Civil Affairs dock warehouse. The total freight cost is 200,000 Mora. It's already been paid to the Ministry. You can go ahead and move it. Just get it done by tomorrow evening. Any problems?"
"No problem. I'll be on my way then." Jingda nodded, confirmed Su Bai's signature, and left with the form and the warehouse key.
And like that, Zate's order was basically settled.
No sooner had Su Bai sat down than the wind chime at the door jingled softly again.
"Boss Su, I'm back." Linlang walked in with a smile, greeting Su Bai.
"Miss Linlang, welcome." Su Bai was always happy to receive this little 'money god'.
"Mhm." Linlang nodded gently and walked over to browse the shelves. Yesterday, she had been too focused on her task and that Amethyst to notice anything else.
"Boss Su, what's this? Potions?!" Her gaze swept past the supplies section and was drawn to a row of glass bottles. The assortment of colorful vials looked very similar to the potions made by alchemists.
"You could call them potions, unique to this shop. The one next to your hand is a Regeneration Potion, duration 135 minutes," Su Bai glanced up and casually explained.
The potion duration wasn't something he actively extended; it just turned out to be many times longer than the original upon creation. Conversely, the recovery rate slowed down many times over – probably a consideration for the human body's absorption rate?
In Su Bai's estimation, an MC day is also 24 hours, but consists of 24,000 ticks. So 1 tick equals 0.36 seconds. The original Regeneration Potion lasts 900 ticks, which converts to exactly 135 minutes. Of course, the recovery effect also changed to 5% total status over seven and a half minutes.
So, Su Bai didn't use this stuff himself. The potions he usually carried on him were Healing Potions, which instantly restored 40% status.
"Regeneration Potion?" Linlang carefully read the annotation on the potion bottle and immediately understood. This was a great item for adventuring and combat. Pity her own shop had no use for it.
"The Adventurers' Guild probably needs this, but it's no use to me," Linlang said with a light laugh. "Does Boss Su have any new gems?"
Seeing Linlang put down the potion and walk towards him, Su Bai knew she wasn't interested in the other items in the shop. That made sense, after all, he ran a general store, which didn't have much overlap with antiques and jewelry.
"If others asked, I'd say no. But since Miss Linlang is asking, then even if I didn't, I must have some." Su Bai chuckled amiably, his hand accessing the backpack space under the counter and pulling out three emeralds. He casually wrapped them in a cloth and placed them beside him as he stood up.
"Oh my? Boss Su, you certainly know how to charm a girl." Linlang had naturally seen Su Bai's movements. She glided over with light steps, entering from the counter side to sit gracefully beside Su Bai. Following Su Bai's gesture, she looked at the cloth bundle.
"If I can please Miss Linlang, then I am satisfied." Su Bai said with a smile, lifting his hand to reveal a corner of the cloth, exposing the vibrant green color inside.
"This!!" Linlang shot to her feet, her face full of shock as she looked at Su Bai. Was this really a general store? How could a general store have jadeite of this quality?!
Although she couldn't immediately determine exactly what was inside the bundle, just that glimpse told her it was absolutely 'ice-grade'! If placed in Antique Haven – no, even in the Mingxing Jewelry, it would be a treasure worthy of being a 'shop's flagship piece'!
And now it was being produced by the owner of a general store?!
"...To be honest, I'm becoming curious about your identity, Boss Su." Linlang smiled, suppressing her shocked expression, and sat down gracefully. She took a deep breath and solemnly accepted the cloth bundle with both hands, which trembled slightly despite her efforts.
After all, an unknown piece of jade of this size held immense value. Even if she couldn't buy it today, she had to at least feast her eyes on it!
"Hahaha, I've heard that when a girl becomes curious about someone, it means she's already starting to like him. Miss Linlang, hmm?" Su Bai teased.
"I won't deny it." Linlang responded with a light laugh, not showing any aversion to Su Bai's words. Perhaps it was because of Su Bai's pleasant appearance, or maybe his witty and humorous language.
But right now, her attention was entirely focused on what lay beneath the cloth.
Come. Seeing this, Su Bai couldn't help but click his tongue mentally. She must have gotten a bargain yesterday, otherwise why would the owner of Antique Haven specifically come again?
But the deal was done, money and goods settled, so Su Bai didn't feel too bad – it was his own fault for quoting the price. Couldn't blame others.
However, today, he absolutely would not quote randomly again. Even if emeralds weren't rare in his possession, letting money slip away was a sin even the Geo Archon would despise.
Watching Linlang's cautious and careful demeanor, Su Bai immediately had a good idea. He silently doubled his expected price in his mind.
Linlang, owner of Antique Haven, second only to Mingxing Jewelry in the antique and jewelry industry of Liyue Harbor's Feiyun Slope. Although it primarily deals with artifacts, having grown up surrounded by items ranging from ancient black pottery downwards, ordinary things wouldn't make her act so carefully.
Even yesterday's Amethyst hadn't made her treat it with such reverence. Su Bai naturally noted this.
After a long while, Linlang put down the emerald and let out a long sigh.
She had finally finished her examination. This was the 'King of Jade', jadeite! Something that only appears deep within the Chasm.
But its specific value... she was a bit hesitant to determine. After all, the amount was just too...
"How about it?" Seeing this, Su Bai felt assured. He extended two fingers. "This price for one. What does Miss Linlang think?"
This was the figure he had settled on after consideration: two million Mora per emerald.
It might seem small, but this was already in the luxury goods category, the price of a mid-to-high-end piece. Converting it to food, it was equivalent to twenty thousand.
Originally, Su Bai thought of three million per emerald, but considering this was his first time dealing in such luxury goods, he silently lowered the price a bit. As long as the deal went through, he could find a reason to raise it later.
Seeing Su Bai's quote, Linlang's eyes narrowed slightly, and she felt somewhat tempted.
If it's twenty million Mora per piece, it's not an impossible transaction. After all, with a bit of crafting, selling one to Lady Ningguang would guarantee at least thirty million. This price is already very reasonable.
But... Antique Haven's available funds are limited right now. Gritting my teeth, I can manage two pieces!
"Boss Su is very generous. However, my humble shop has limited funds. This number, for two pieces, I wonder if that's acceptable?" Linlang extended three and a half fingers, then quickly retracted them.
"Hiss... Miss Linlang drives a hard bargain. Truly worthy of being the owner of Antique Haven." Su Bai said this, but inwardly he was overjoyed. Three hundred and fifty thousand Mora for two emeralds? Money couldn't blow in this fast even in a hurricane!
But he couldn't agree immediately. Otherwise, she might feel she got the better deal, and Su Bai didn't want this to be just a one-time transaction.
"Raise it just this much more, and I'll part with them." As he spoke, he extended two fingers. Here, it meant an additional two hundred thousand Mora.
"Emmm... Boss Su, must you haggle over such a small amount?" Linlang pouted, but inwardly she was even more delighted. She hadn't expected the bargaining to knock off three million so quickly. It seemed there might be room for another round.
"Hahahaha, business is all about negotiation." Su Bai waved his hand dismissively. The fact that Linlang said this meant there was still potential to raise the price.
"At most, this number." Linlang extended a single, slender, fair finger, her tone gentle and coquettish, as if.
Su Bai, of course, wasn't buying this act. He deliberately pondered for a moment, then let out a sigh with a troubled expression.
"Fine, fine. If we argue further, I'm afraid you'll avoid me in the future. Then it's settled!"
Deal done!
Linlang was filled with excitement. Smiling, she took paper and brush and promptly drafted a contract. For such a large transaction, a written agreement was naturally necessary. Su Bai, meanwhile, cheerfully poured tea for Linlang.
Both felt they had gotten an incredible deal!
--
100 powerstones = 1 chapter
200 powerstones = 3 chapters
300 powerstones = 5 chapters