Raising the Price on the Spot (2)

You're soft-hearted? I think you're more like ruthless. My grandmaster Yin Baikang was famous in the Cultivation World for his business acumen, but he never did anything like this... Guan Zhongkai held back his words and pointed at the hourglass again, clearly displeased, saying, "Looks like I wasn't wrong, you're charging by the hour."

"Look at what you're saying, that's too much!" Yue Qianchou said with a smile, "The timing is correct, but you've already paid 200,000 for the conversation, so there won't be any more charges for this period of time."

Upon hearing this, Guan Zhongkai straightened up, his slightly forward-leaning posture softening, and he breathed a sigh of relief. However, he still cursed inwardly, "What a load of rubbish! Two hundred thousand high-grade Spirit Stones in a moment of inattention—what's the difference between that and robbery? No, it's easier than robbery..."

Yue Qianchou glanced at him, seeing his sullen face, and knew he was probably cursing at her. This was expected; if she didn't hear it, she'd pretend she didn't know—what could he do to her? She coughed and said seriously, "That Guan... what's your name again?"

Guan Zhongkai had just perked up and was about to get down to business when he heard this, and his face darkened again. He had just introduced himself, and the other person had already forgotten about him, clearly not taking him seriously.

Normally, relying on his position as Yin Baikang's chief grand-disciple, he was always arrogant in the Cultivation World. When had he ever been ignored like this? In fact, he didn't take Niu Youde seriously at all. Although he knew that Niu Youde might be a Spirit Transformation stage expert, it was clear from his address, actions, and demeanor that he didn't care about him at all.

To his surprise, the other party's behavior was even more blatant disregard. Having no other choice but to ask for his help, he held his breath and said in a deep voice, "Guan Zhongkai."

"Oh! Guan Zhongkai, I've heard of him, I've heard of him." Yue Qianchou nodded as if he had just realized something. "I heard that you were stationed in Zhujin City and offered a large reward of Spirit Stone for Yue Qianchou's capture. Is that true?"

"Just following orders." Guan Zhongkai hadn't come here to discuss this, so he casually replied, "Are you also concerned about this matter, sir?"

"I'm paying attention, of course I'm paying attention. I heard there's a reward of 100 million high-grade Spirit Stones! Uh..." Yue Qianchou paused, then explained somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm not doing this for the Spirit Stone, I just know Yue Qianchou."

"It would be strange if it weren't for Spirit Stone. Would you be so shameless as to do this if it weren't for Spirit Stone?" Guan Zhongkai casually said "Oh," glanced at the smooth sand in the hourglass, and changed the subject, saying, "I came to see you this time because I have something important to discuss with you."

He changed the subject, Yue Qianchou continued talking. His fingers, resting on the coffee table, tapped merrily. He asked in a questioning tone, "It's said that whoever provides useful information leading to Yue Qianchou's capture will receive a reward of one hundred million. If I can catch Yue Qianchou, how much will you offer?"

"Hmm?" Guan Zhongkai's eyes lit up as he suddenly remembered something. Apparently, he had received news that Niu Youde had mentioned that Xin Lao San had once led Yue Qianchou to visit him. In that case, Niu Youde might actually be able to contact Yue Qianchou.

Thinking of Yue Qianchou, Guan Zhongkai gritted his teeth. The time he publicly admitted defeat was too humiliating. If he weren't the chief disciple of his master, and his master wasn't a figure second only to the head of the World Commerce Association, deeply trusted by his grandmaster Yin Baikang, his fate would have been much worse.

Even so, when he returned, his master Sikong Jue angry he almost killed him. After a furious scolding, he was severely punished, making him almost unable to hold his head up in the World Commerce Association. This time, however, his master did give him a chance to redeem himself through meritorious service.

This hatred will last forever! After a moment of silence, Guan Zhongkai's eyes flickered as he said, "Judging from your tone, sir, it seems you have a way to capture Yue Qianchou?"

Yue Qianchou glanced casually at the hourglass, which was already half-empty, and coughed, saying, "Yue Qianchou is nothing... Hehe! Getting back to the point, seriously, if I could catch Yue Qianchou, how much money would you offer?"

"Yue Qianchou is hiding in the Misty Forest. Do you really have a way to catch him?" Guan Zhongkai asked, somewhat incredulously. Even Fu Chun, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but glance at Yue Qianchou a few times. The Misty Forest wasn't a place that just anyone could enter, but with his boss's unfathomable abilities, it was truly hard to say.

"That's not your concern," Yue Qianchou said slowly, taking a sip of his tea. "The key is whether the price can sway me."

Guan Zhongkai stood up abruptly, pondering, "This..." He paced slowly in the hall, lost in thought. Although the World Commerce Association was extremely wealthy, and his position within the World Commerce Association was not insignificant, the maximum amount of Spirit Stone he could draw upon was only one hundred million, and that was only for urgent official business...

Yue Qianchou wasn't in a hurry, letting him think it over slowly, while he held his teacup and occasionally glanced at the hourglass... It seemed that Fu Chun's gaze was also sweeping across the hourglass.

After waiting a while, Guan Zhongkai's face returned to calm. He sat back in his chair, adopting the demeanor of a negotiating businessman, and asked, "How much do you want? Name your price! We can discuss it."

On the surface, he remained calm, but inside he was secretly excited. Judging from Niu Youde's expression, he might actually have a way to capture Yue Qianchou. If that were true, then this trip would have been worthwhile. He would have solved two major problems for the World Commerce Association at once, a feat more than enough to redeem himself. Most importantly, he could capture Yue Qianchou and vent his anger.

"That face! Tsk tsk! No wonder he's from the World Commerce Association!" Yue Qianchou inwardly, placing the teacup back on the table. He flicked his sleeves, thrusting out both palms, revealing his ten bare fingers, and declared, "Ten billion high-grade Spirit Stones!"

"One billion?" Guan Zhongkai was stunned for a moment, then sneered, "Mr. Niu, you must be joking! Can that piece of trash Yue Qianchou be worth that much? That's too high, it's impossible."

Your grandma is the real scum, my worth... damn, priceless! Yue Qianchou's expression twitched. He was just thinking about how he could talk to others about the price of catching himself and was secretly happy, but he didn't expect to suffer a loss in the blink of an eye.

"Since it's impossible, there's nothing more to say." Yue Qianchou added somewhat angrily, "Everyone knows the value of the Myriad Sword Demon Lord's treasure. Yue Qianchou is priceless. A flat price of one billion, not a single Spirit Stone less. If you want a lower price, let your World Commerce Association find someone capable of capturing Yue Qianchou."

I thought to myself, "How dare you call me trash to my face? You bastard! Just you wait, one day I'll chop you into a pile of trash and feed you to the dogs!"

"Uh..." Guan Zhongkai was taken aback, unaware that he had angered Yue Qianchou. He thought to himself, "This man has such a business-like demeanor, yet he has no patience at all when it comes to negotiating prices. No wonder he can only make money through shameless means." He put on a smile and said, "Sir, why are you in such a hurry? The price can be discussed slowly!"

"There's no time to lose! I'm doing this for your sake." Yue Qianchou tapped the table expressionlessly. Then, pointing to the hourglass, Fu Chun and said, "Show him out!"

"I... you..." Guan Zhongkai nearly choked, staring at the hourglass and stammering for a moment, unsure of what to say. He wasn't stupid; he understood perfectly well what the hourglass ending meant.

Fu Chun, standing to the side, was completely bewildered by the two men's constant mention of ten billion high-grade high-grade Spirit Stones. Even though he had broadened his horizons somewhat in the past few days, such a massive number still left him somewhat unable to accept it. What kind of concept was ten billion high-grade Spirit Stones?

Startled by his boss's words, he took a deep breath, walked to Guan Zhongkai's side, and gestured towards the outside of the hall, saying, "Please!"

"Wait!" Guan Zhongkai was furious. How could they just leave like that? They'd talked for ages without getting anything concrete, yet they'd spent 300,000 yuan. How were they going to explain this when they got back? Even the chief disciple of the World Commerce Association couldn't be so wasteful! Did they even want to stay in the business world after this?

"Mr. Guan, everyone follows the rules. You can't be the only exception, can you? If word gets out, it will be really difficult for Senior Niu. Please leave!" Fu Chun gestured for him to leave again.

"A ghost like that, daring to openly harass Black people, that's not something a normal person would do!" Guan Zhongkai really wanted to curse, but he still cupped his hands towards Fu Chun and said, "Young brother, please wait a moment, allow me to say a few more words." When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head!

"Please!" Fu Chun's tone stiffened, showing absolutely no respect. Anyway, with his boss backing him up, he wasn't afraid at all. So what if he was just a late Tribulation Transcendence stage? There were plenty of others waiting outside to see him.

"Stop pulling and tugging." Guan Zhongkai waved Fu Chun's hand away, feeling extremely frustrated, and anxiously called out to Yue Qianchou, "Mr. Niu, please let me say a few more words."

"Hmph!" Yue Qianchou snorted and glanced at him coldly, ignoring him as he served tea... Damn it! How dare he call me trash.

"Senior Niu, Senior Niu, I truly have important matters to discuss with you." Guan Zhongkai finally dropped his airs and changed his form of address, which was a sign of yielding. He had no choice but to yield! Not only was it not certain that he could defeat them by force, but more importantly, he wouldn't be able to explain himself when he got back!

"Mr. Guan, you're not the only one who wants to see Senior Niu about something important; everyone says the same thing. But rules are rules, so please!" Fu Chun the guest off for the third time.

"I'm different from them...wait! Something's not right!" Guan Zhongkai paused, his face full of suspicion. "I've been here for less than half an hour, while they've all been here for more than half an hour. Is Senior Niu showing favoritism? Could it be that he doesn't like the people from my World Commerce Association?"

It's true, I'm envious of the wealth of you people from the World Commerce Association! Yue Qianchou continued drinking his tea without saying a word, Fu Chun lifted the lid of his teacup to signal Chun to explain. He really is a man of few words!

Fu Chun sighed inwardly. Why were they all eager to be fleeced? He'd already explained the same thing to different people more than a dozen times.

"Mr. Guan, you've really misunderstood Senior Niu," Fu Chun sighed. "Actually, it's for your own good, mainly to save you money. So you don't end up spending money and getting unhappy."

"Saving me money?" Guan Zhongkai asked with a look of utter disbelief, "What do you mean by that? I want to hear how you're doing this for my own good!"

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