"One more thing!"
Xi Yan reached out to stop Bai Fengfeng just as he was about to end the call.
"What else?"
Having secured 300 Energy Credits a month, Bai Fengfeng asked quite politely.
"Shouldn't we establish embassies in each other's territory?" Xi Yan suggested with a grin.
"Sure," Bai Fengfeng readily agreed. "Shall we open our borders to each other?"
"Well, let's skip the open borders." Xi Yan scratched his head, looking a little sheepish. "That would be hard to manage. How about we sign a separate treaty allowing only transport ships, science ships, construction ships, and fleets to pass through?"
"Acceptable." Bai Fengfeng nodded, hardly surprised.
The United Nations of Earth's border policy was much the same: large official vessels were allowed through, but private ships were not. Terms like these served its interests.
"Then how about research agreements, commercial agreements, migration treaties, nonaggression pacts, guarantees of independence, mutual defense agreements, and provisions for forming a federation? Interested in considering any of those?" Xi Yan cheerfully suggested.
Bai Fengfeng's face darkened. "Don't push your luck!"
"How about just a migration treaty?" Xi Yan urged him. "Do you have unemployment over there? Well, guess what? I happen to have loads of vacancies. I'll pay, Uncle Bai. You can send all those deadbeats in your empire who spend their days fooling around instead of finding proper jobs over to me. I'll work them hard!"
At that, Bai Fengfeng stroked his beard and began considering how feasible the idea was.
Honestly, it wasn't bad.
The United Nations of Earth already had considerable unemployment. Even with constant military recruitment, its population kept growing, frequently causing all sorts of troublesome public-order problems. Its leadership was at its wits' end.
Now those useless people, that surplus population, could serve as bargaining chips in negotiations