Chapter 69 part 5

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Expansion of The House; A Deal Was Made (5)

“HO HO HO, that’s everyone’s opinion. To each their own!”

Judging that it was the right time to end that topic, Zhu Bo delved into the purpose of his visit, “Master Cheng, Miss Cheng, I trust that you have a pretty good idea why I am here today, so I will be honest. I want to propose a long time deal with the Cheng’s. I am very interested in your mystical spring water and mystical animals. If there’s anything that you need, we can also put that on the table. What do you say?”

“There’s no need to be so formal, young lord,” smiled Cheng Biyuan, “Just as the young lord has said, we have the intention of doing business with the young lord as well. However, we would like to clarify a couple items with the young lord beforehand!”

“Oh? Do tell, master Cheng!”

“First of all, we can provide as much mystical spring water as the young lord would like. But as for the mystical crops and mystical animals, we could only provide half. Other than supplies for ourselves, we also have others to feed. We hope you’d understand!”

“Not a problem!”

Zhu Bo had agreed to the condition without so much as thinking about it. Naturally, he’s very wealthy and could afford everything that the Cheng’s could produce, but being a business man, he was also well aware of the fact that if one gets too greedy, it very well might backfire. Not only would one not get what they want, but it may have unforeseeable negative impacts. As it stands, he would have control of majority of the Cheng’s products, why wouldn’t he be pleased?

“HO HO HO….” Zhu Bo’s agreeable attitude also put Cheng Biyuan in a good mood, “Young lord, I trust that you are aware of our current situation here. Temporarily it is a hassle for us to leave town, yet we have needs for certain items. We wonder if we can solicit the young lord’s help to gather these items and send them here for us?”

“Oh, that will not be difficult at all. Certainly, master Cheng, just give us a list of what you need and I will have someone gather all of them for you. Not a problem at all!”

No matter what their asks were, Zhu Bo want them to ask him for help. The more help he provides for them, the tighter the bond between them. And that would further solidify their business relationship.

“We have the list already. We will hand it over and trouble your guys then!”

“No problem. Master Cheng, it will be our pleasure!”

“Dad, you and the young lord keep chatting. I want to ask Innkeeper Zhu for a favor!”

Cheng Xiao Xiao interrupted their conversation. But her words piqued Zhu Bo’s curiosity, he couldn’t help but to ask, “Miss Cheng, I am curious what kind of a favor you need ask of Innkeeper Zhu?”

“This may sound silly, young lord. We have recently accepted a few kids from the village into our house to help out with household chores. I was thinking about asking Innkeeper Zhu to give them some pointers!”

“Oh….” Zhu Bo paused for a second and immediately caught on to her meaning. During the last couple of hours, he had noticed that the Cheng’s helpers didn’t observe a lot of rules and etiquettes. He was well aware that the Cheng’s has just started taking off, and couldn’t quite measure up to the well-established families just yet.

 Naturally, to manage a large family, rules are necessary. One couldn’t just let the servants behave freely. He knew full well about these as a young lord.

He thought about it for a minute and understood the situation that the Cheng’s were in. On a certain level it was, indeed, better for the Cheng’s to take in these villagers. But he could see how it got tricky when it came to establishing the level of authority. He couldn’t help but to say, “Miss Cheng, naturally Innkeeper Zhu can help you out some. But, I can send you a specific person to assist you in managing these matters. Of course, when you have no more need of him, you can send him back whenever!”

“Well….” Cheng Xiao Xiao hesitated a bit and nodded. She looked at the three standing behind Zhu Bo. Frankly, the one she had in mind was Innkeeper Zhu. After all, he was the first person that she had worked with and he didn’t strike her as someone deceitful.

Zhu Bo followed her look and couldn’t help but burst out laughing, “Looks like Miss Cheng has her mind set on Innkeeper Zhu. Well, if that’s the case, let’s just have Innkeeper Zhu stay behind. Deacon Bai can take over the matters of Lai Yue Inn for the time being. You two can transition when Innkeeper Zhu return!”

“Yes, young lord!”

The two mentioned replied immediately. Innkeeper Zhu looked very happy. One could see that he was excited about this new assignment.

Deacon Bai’s look didn’t change too much but a hint of disappointment flashed past his eyes. He tried to cover up as best he could but Cheng Xiao Xiao still caught sight of it.

Cheng Xiao Xiao didn’t have too much against Deacon Bai. He was a well spoken and measured individual; however, when comparing to Innkeeper Zhu, he lacked some of the compassion and a little more utility-focused. That was why she preferred Innkeeper Zhu.

After that was settled, Cheng Xiao Xiao thought of something else. She looked back at the wealthy man and became hopeful.

Zhu Bo felt very uncomfortable under her gaze. He felt as though he had became a prey. It seemed ludicrous but he, indeed, felt that way. Given his status, very few dare to stare at him that way.

Naturally, he didn’t sense any malice from her but he was curious. With a bitter smile he said, “Miss Cheng, if there is anything else, do share. If it’s anything that I could do, I will try my best to help. How’s that?”

“Okay, you said it!” She didn’t expect him to be so generous. This was an equivalent to handing over her a blank check and letting her fill in any amount she desired!

“Would I misspeak in front of the Miss Cheng?”

Of course there were reasons why Zhu Bo dared to be so agreeable. No matter what it was in this world, he would most likely have some inventory in his possession. Afterall, he was called the invisible tycoon for a reason.

Cheng Xiao Xiao was very pleased with the amount of certainty in his reply. She nodded happily and said, “Wonderful, in that case, I am not going to beat around the bush. I need some precious herbs, fruit trees, or enchanted stones, vicious beasts. I would like to collect these items, the more variety in species the better. As for the quantity, I don’t need a lot of them, three or so of each will be sufficient. I wonder if the young lord might be able to help us in collecting these items?”

“Well… Miss Cheng needs these items?” Zhu Bo never would have expected that she would ask him this.

With a nonchalant look, Cheng Xiao Xiao nodded slightly at him, “Yes, these are what I need. I wonder if the young lord might be able to help?”

“Sure, not a problem. I will arrange for people to send them over. Naturally, some of the items we will need to get our hands on them first, they might arrive separately. Will that be okay with you, Miss Cheng?”

“That I understand, young lord. For herbs and fruit trees, ideally I’d prefer live specimens. Surely, seeds will be fine as well. Rest be assured, regardless of how much you are able to send us, we will be willing to offer you a discount in our deal.

“Okay, I trust you, Miss Cheng!”

Zhu Bo agreed to that happily. As far as he was concerned, all he needed to do was to give the order for those working for him to keep an eye out on the items that Cheng Xiao Xiao asked for. He had nothing to lose at all. He would love to have as many of these kinds of deals as possible!”

“Master Cheng, since we plan on establishing a long-term deal. What do you say about we set a price up front? It seemed that we have underpaid the Cheng’s in the last couple trades, we apologize for that!”

Even though he said he was apologetic, he didn’t seem to feel that way at all from his look. Cheng Xiao Xiao couldn’t help but to shake her head. All merchants are sly; the more they gain the better. Who’d ever feel apologetic about a deal?




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