Out of Pocket
The divide was as vast as the great canyon within the Five Elements Academy's territory. Neither side could possibly compromise. To do so would mean losing a million gold coins.
It wasn't that the two academies couldn't afford the sum. Given their financial resources, a million gold coins was no small amount, but they were more than capable of paying it.
It was just that neither side could accept losing such an enormous fortune for no reason.
The Titan Academy believed that since they had already paid, the rough stones should be shipped according to the agreement. They thought the Five Elements Academy was being greedy after already getting a good deal. Seeing that the Titan Academy was easygoing and straightforward in business, it wanted to extort them again—selling the same shipment twice.
From the Five Elements Academy's perspective, they hadn't received the money, so why should they ship the goods? If they shipped them, who would pay for the loss? Who would be held responsible?
Neither side could convince the other. Even Jade Cauldron Grand Scholar's personal intervention—and his willingness to let relations sour—made no difference.
According to Shen Guang Grand Scholar's reasoning, they hadn't received the money, so they couldn't ship the goods. It was as simple as that, no matter who said otherwise.
On the Five Elements Academy's own turf, did Jade Cauldron Grand Scholar really think he could extort them?
Faced with Jade Cauldron Grand Scholar's questioning, Shen Guang Grand Scholar stopped being polite. "Friend Jade Cauldron, there's no need to put it so harshly. The Five Elements Academy has always conducted business fairly. We'll gladly earn what we're entitled to, but we won't make money without a conscience. You keep talking about the storage bracelet and the million gold coins, but the