Three Prices

The Central Group Leader was an adult woman dressed in a neatly tailored wool coat over a gray ladies' suit. She wasn't wearing a team leader's uniform, so it was probably just Luo Shan's personal preference.

She wasn't tall, standing around five foot three.

Her features were delicate, and she looked gentle and fragile, yet she carried herself with brisk authority. Leading a large group through the portal, she glanced around once, spotted Luo Shan, and strode straight toward him.

"Leader Tong, thanks for all your effort. I never expected a little piece of intelligence about a hundred-floor tower to bring you here in person." As a fellow team leader, Luo Shan held out his hand from a distance and even stepped forward to meet her.

The Central Group Leader shook his hand lightly. Without a word, she nodded, then turned to look at Wang Wen.

Everyone present belonged to the consortium, so the only outsider was easy to identify.

She introduced herself to Wang Wen. "Tong Xiaolei, Central Group Leader of the First Consortium's Intelligence Department. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Before Wang Wen could speak, Luo Shan smiled ingratiatingly at Tong Xiaolei and said, "Leader Tong, he's the one who provided the intelligence. His name is... uh..."

He turned to ask his two subordinates, "What's his name?"

The taller of the two answered honestly, "The gentleman said he sells intelligence."

Luo Shan picked up the thread. "Right, right. Leader Tong, his name is 'Sell... grass'?"

The Central Group members around them chuckled.

The Lower Group members looked a little awkward.

Tong Xiaolei smiled and graciously gave Luo Shan an out. "It's all right. To the First Consortium, a name doesn't matter. What matters is whether the consortium wants to know."

At that, Wang Wen raised his left eyebrow slightly.

With a single simple remark, she had eased her colleague's embarrassment while casually showing off the First Consortium's influence.

She had a way of holding her own without being either servile or arrogant.

This woman was no simple character!

Wang Wen considered it, then refused to follow her lead and got straight to the point. "Hello, Leader Tong. Since the Central Group Leader came in person, I assume you already have an answer. Can you tell me how much this intelligence is worth?"

Tong Xiaolei studied him closely and smiled. "How much do you want to sell it for?"

After all that, she was still being evasive, haggling and bullying a rookie. Wang Wen was getting annoyed.

It seemed the First Consortium hadn't yet established itself in this period. They really were being a little petty about handling certain matters.

Sigh. If only I weren't short on money...

Wang Wen shook his head and let out a long sigh. Then he laid his cards on the table. "I have three prices."

He pointed at Luo Shan. "If it's him, I want a hundred thousand."

Before Luo Shan could twist his mouth and start arguing, Wang Wen drew his hand back and pointed toward Tong Xiaolei. "If it's you, I want a million."

Luo Shan's nostrils flared in shock, but Tong Xiaolei's eyes merely brightened. She asked with a faint, knowing smile, "And the third price?"

Wang Wen smiled, withdrew his hand, and made a parting gesture to everyone. "If the Department Head of the First Consortium's Intelligence Department comes in person, it's free."

The moment the words fell,

the area fell completely silent. You could have heard a pin drop.

Luo Shan's hair stood on end. It felt as though an electric current had shot up from his tailbone to the top of his head, making his scalp tingle.

No one had ever done business like this.

At least, he'd never seen anything like it in all his time working the local scene.

No matter how precious a piece of intelligence was, it had its price.

How could it jump from a hundred thousand to a million, then from a million to free?

Was this a business negotiation?

It was more like playing house!

Luo Shan felt as though he'd been hit by a massive mental attack. He was getting dizzy.

"Clap, clap, clap." Tong Xiaolei applauded.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be on my way." Wang Wen lowered his parting hand and turned to leave.

He hadn't expected it to take so long. It was almost dark, and he had to hurry back to The Academy for dinner.

Looks like I'll have to mooch a few more meals off that guy. No other complaints, but he was so stingy that his meals had no substance—he wouldn't even buy meat.

Wang Wen shook his head and muttered to himself as he walked toward the portal leading to the World Tower.

Tong Xiaolei hurried after him and raised her voice. "The Department Head is getting on in years. We shouldn't disturb him. I accept your asking price."

Wang Wen stopped and turned around, pretending not to know. "Which price?"

A crowd surged around them again. Tong Xiaolei approached in high heels that clicked sharply against the ground, smiling with graceful poise. "Of course, my price. One million."

She emphasized the word "my," giving it a deeper meaning.

Wang Wen copied her earlier gesture and applauded in admiration. "As expected of the First Consortium. What guts."

Tong Xiaolei asked curiously, "Could you tell me why you named those three different prices?"

Wang Wen shook his head. "The Central Group specializes in analysis. I'm sure the first two prices won't stump you. I'll only explain the third. I'm offering it for free partly because I have a good impression of the First Consortium. I think it's worth trading a piece of intelligence that isn't all that expensive for a little goodwill. And partly because I'm just an obscure nobody. If the Department Head of the First Consortium's Intelligence Department is willing to lower themselves to come negotiate with me in person, then I can waive the fee. If someone thinks highly of me, I ought to show them some respect too, right?"

"I understand." Tong Xiaolei suddenly seemed a little sheepish. She pressed her lips together and said no more.

She raised both hands and lightly touched the two unusually designed, high-tech bracelets on her wrists together. A beam of white light appeared between their centers.

When she separated her hands, the beam extended into a laptop-shaped hologram. The screen showed a startup sequence.

Wang Wen's eyes lit up. So they already had Light-Brain Bracelets in this period? Every man's dream. I've got to find a way to get one!

Tong Xiaolei didn't notice his expression.

Keeping her wrists steady as a keyboard, she deftly tapped a few keys. The hologram flickered, and a transfer screen appeared.

She looked up at Wang Wen. "All right, give me your personal code. We'll pay a deposit of five hundred thousand first. Afterward, colleagues from our Upper Group will come coordinate with you. They'll arrange at least three experts above the 150th floor to accompany you into the tower. Once the intelligence has been verified, we'll transfer the remaining five hundred thousand immediately."

Wang Wen furrowed his brow and fell silent.

Tong Xiaolei asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

Wang Wen tried to explain. "I'm not going into the tower. You can test it yourselves, then transfer the balance to me afterward."

"You're not going in?" Tong Xiaolei had never heard anyone say that before. She frowned, looking troubled. "If that's the case, we can't make the deposit that large. Can you tell me why?"

"I simply don't want to go in." Wang Wen asked, "How much can the deposit be?"

Tong Xiaolei glanced at the people beside her, especially Luo Shan, who looked completely out of sorts.

She thought it over.

Then she named a figure. "A hundred thousand—and only if, after hearing your full intelligence, there are no obvious problems on the surface."

"No problem." Wang Wen took out a sheet of paper and handed it to her. "The exact route and my personal code are written on it. Take a look."

Tong Xiaolei unfolded the crumpled sheet. She seemed to have trouble accepting that such valuable intelligence had been written so carelessly on such a cheap piece of paper.

Judging from the ragged edge, it had been torn from some sort of notebook.

As she read, her expression gradually stiffened. "I don't quite understand. This doesn't look like a specific solution so much as some kind of preparation. I can understand the first few points, but this last one..."

Tong Xiaolei looked up at Wang Wen suspiciously. "May I ask why you need to wear iron pants?"