Speed Clan's Bai He

The Speed Clan's compound wasn't large, but it was kept clean. The courtyard walls were old, the stone steps worn smooth, and most of the paint had peeled from the gate. The door rings, though, gleamed from polishing.

Guga followed Lin Yuan into the courtyard and looked up at a wall with half its top missing.

"What a shabby place, Guga!"

Lin Yuan tapped her on the head.

Bai He came out of the main hall to greet them. Small and thin, he wore spotless white clothes. His cuffs were folded twice, and his collar had been pressed without a single crease. He held his back ramrod straight, and his eyes darted about. One look told Lin Yuan he was a man who counted every coin.

"Old Yang." Bai He nodded to Yang Wudi first, then turned to Lin Yuan. "And who might this be?"

"Lin Yuan." Yang Wudi sat down. "He's from the Heaven Dou Empire. He wants to talk business with you."

Bai He raised an eyebrow. He invited them to sit and poured three cups of plain water.

Yang Wudi glanced at his cup, then at Bai He.

"You won't even spare a few tea leaves?"

"Tea leaves cost money," Bai He replied without a flicker of embarrassment.

Lin Yuan picked up his cup, the corner of his mouth twitching.

Dark Gold Guga crouched in a corner, staring blankly at the dried rations laid out in the courtyard. Starry Guga sat quietly by Lin Yuan's feet, her vine curling around a fallen leaf, rolling it up, then letting it go.

Lin Yuan got straight to the point.

"Clan Chief Bai, I have a drink called Milk Tea. I opened several shops in a small city in the Heaven Dou Empire, and they bring in over a hundred Gold Soul Coins a day. I want to build the business in the Star Luo Empire too, so I came to propose a partnership."

Bai He's hand paused around his cup. Over a hundred Gold Soul Coins a day. His entire clan couldn't earn that much in a year.

But he quickly calmed himself.

"If that's true, why come to us? The Speed Clan has no fighting strength, and we can't put up any money."

"I want to try a new way of doing business," Lin Yuan said. "Home delivery."

"Delivery?"

"Customers won't have to leave home. The Milk Tea will come to their door." Lin Yuan looked at Bai He. "The Speed Clan is among the fastest on the Douluo Continent. I'd like your clan to handle deliveries."

Bai He set down his cup. His eyes darted back and forth.

"How would that work?"

"We'll hand out special door signs marked 'Guga Milk Tea.' Anyone who wants a drink writes the type and quantity on a slip of paper and attaches it behind the sign. Hanging the sign outside means they have an order." Lin Yuan continued, "Your clansmen can patrol the city, with one person assigned to each street. When they see a sign out, they collect the slip, return to headquarters for the order, then deliver it to the customer's door."

Bai He thought for a moment. "How will we know who wants delivery?"

"We hand out the signs. We make a batch and keep them in the shops for customers to take. The shops will advertise the delivery service too."

"That could work."

Then he frowned again.

"But while our clan is fast, we aren't much good in a fight. What if someone tries to steal the Milk Tea, or refuses to pay..."

As he spoke, Bai He looked at Yang Wudi.

Yang Wudi set down his cup. "The Breaking Clan will stand guard. If someone tries to steal, we'll beat them back. If someone won't pay, we'll go collect."

"And how do we split the profits?"

"I provide the recipe and know-how and take fifty percent. The Breaking Clan provides protection and takes thirty. The Speed Clan handles deliveries and promotion and takes twenty. Delivery fees are calculated separately, outside the profit split." Lin Yuan paused. "Those fees depend on the number of trips. Ten Copper Soul Coins per delivery, so ten deliveries earn one Silver Soul Coin. At your clan's speed, one person could make a hundred deliveries in a day. That's far more than you'd earn carrying letters."

Bai He fell silent.

Twenty percent didn't sound like much. But Lin Yuan had made over a hundred Gold Soul Coins a day in a small city. If the business took off across the Star Luo Empire and captured its market, who knew how much it could earn? Even at a mere hundred Gold Soul Coins a day, twenty percent meant twenty coins.

"Deal," Bai He said.

Yang Wudi took a sip of water. He had no objections.

"Wait." Lin Yuan spoke up suddenly. "There's one more thing."

Bai He and Yang Wudi both turned to him.

"Clan Chief Yang." Lin Yuan looked at Yang Wudi. "The Breaking Clan excels at making medicines. Your understanding of herbs is second to none on the continent. The Milk Tea recipe can be adjusted with different herbs to create different flavors. I'd like the Breaking Clan to develop new ones."

Yang Wudi's eyes lit up.

"You want me to use herbs to make Milk Tea?"

"Yes. Every new flavor gives people another reason to buy." Lin Yuan said, "For each flavor you develop, the Breaking Clan gets thirty percent of that flavor's sales. The remaining seventy percent is split according to our original shares."

Yang Wudi was silent for a long time.

Then he stood and walked over to Lin Yuan.

"The Breaking Clan accepts the partnership."

Bai He stood as well. He said nothing, only nodded to Lin Yuan.

"One more thing," Lin Yuan said. "The recipe is the lifeblood of this business. I trust you both, but business is business. We should swear a Martial Soul Oath not to reveal the recipe or stab our partners in the back."

Yang Wudi glanced at Bai He. Bai He nodded.

The three raised their right hands together. Soul Power gathered in their palms, and the phantoms of their Martial Souls flickered behind them before vanishing.

"I, Yang Wudi."

"I, Bai He."

"Swear upon our Martial Souls not to reveal the Guga Milk Tea recipe or stab our partners in the back. If we break this oath, may our Martial Souls shatter and all our Soul Power be lost."

Three streams of Soul Power collided in the air and scattered into points of light that settled on them.

Guga tipped her head back to watch the lights fall and stretched out her little hands to catch them.

"It's raining, Guga!"

Dark Gold Guga stayed still, staring at the lights. Her claws slid halfway out without her noticing, then drew back in.

The Martial Soul Oath was sealed.

A day later, the three parties drew up a contract.

It was written on parchment and set out the profit shares and detailed terms of their partnership.

Yang Wudi signed and passed the pen to Bai He. Bai He signed and passed it to Lin Yuan. Lin Yuan wrote his name on the parchment, then pressed his thumbprint beside it.

The three Gugas leaned over the edge of the table, looking at the three crooked names on the parchment.

"What's that, Guga?"

"A contract," Lin Yuan said.

"Can you eat it, Guga?"

Lin Yuan gave her a helpless look. "No."

Starry Guga tilted her head. "A contract is a promise, Guga. Once you make it, you can't go back on it, Guga."

Lin Yuan stroked her head. "That's right."

Yang Wudi looked down at the three Gugas, then at Lin Yuan.

"These little fellows are quite something."

Three days later.

Bai He pulled a sheet of paper from his sleeve. It was covered in a densely written route plan for handing out door signs. Its edges had curled, and the ink had smudged in several places where Bai He's elbow had rested as he drew. He had revised it more than once. Dragonhide City was divided into twelve districts, with two clansmen assigned to each.

"Our people have been handing out advertisements for three days. Every household in Dragonhide City should know about Guga Milk Tea by now."

Lin Yuan took the route plan and studied it closely.

Meticulous. Every street and alley was clearly marked.

"Old Yang, how are things on your end?"

Yang Wudi pointed to the herbs and tea leaves piled in the courtyard. "All the ingredients for the Milk Tea are ready."

Lin Yuan nodded.

He stood in the courtyard, watching the members of both clans bustle about. The Breaking Clan carried herbs, while the Speed Clan darted through the streets distributing advertisements. The three Gugas scampered around the courtyard. Guga chased Dark Gold Guga, while Starry Guga sat atop a pile of herbs. With each curl and release of her vine, another bundle was sorted. Soon they were stacked neatly against the wall. When she finished, she tilted her head to inspect them, then reached out with her vine and nudged the top bundle a little to the left.

They opened tomorrow. It should be fine.