Chapter Thirteen: The Proxy

For Withered Dragon, transfer transactions were naturally nothing new. Trading bulk commodities in cash was a highly inconvenient choice; generally speaking, only deals under a thousand gold leaf grass favored cash transactions. But even that was merely a relative advantage.

Glancing at the crystal card Su Ziye placed on the table, Withered Dragon couldn’t help but smile. “Since Mr. Su’s card is newly issued, why didn’t you come to our Flashgold Bank? With my recommendation, perhaps you could have received the highest privilege—an exclusive black gold card.”

Liu Ru was curious as to how Withered Dragon could so quickly discern that Su Ziye’s card was new. True, Su Ziye hadn’t produced this crystal card yesterday but did so today, which was a clue, yet Liu Ru felt it wasn’t so simple.

“I have no need for that at the moment,” Su Ziye responded with a polite smile, declining Withered Dragon’s offer. He continued, “Aren’t you curious about what I intend to do with these goods?”

“For a businessman, maintaining curiosity is essential,” Withered Dragon replied with a chuckle. “But more important than curiosity is knowing when not to ask too many questions.”

Su Ziye nodded, then produced a bottle of Academy Joywater from his coat and set it on the table. “Would you care to try it, Mr. Dragon?”

Withered Dragon’s gaze fell upon the bottle. After a moment’s thought, he reached out and took it, feeling the chill of the glass. “So, Mr. Su, you intend to use these materials to make this?”

With that, he opened the bottle and took a sip. The moment the Joywater touched his lips, Withered Dragon’s eyes lit up.

He looked at Su Ziye. “Would you be willing to sell this to me?”

Just moments before, Withered Dragon had held back from prying, but that single sip awakened his sharp business instincts to the value of this drink.

“Sorry, I can’t,” Su Ziye replied, unmoved.

“You can name any price, or we could collaborate to market this product. Believe me, with the Flashgold Chamber of Commerce’s network, this drink could be introduced to the world at unprecedented speed. The rewards and growth you could gain are beyond measure,” Withered Dragon said, nearly feverish with excitement.

He never expected that yesterday’s whim would bring him such a remarkable opportunity today.

Su Ziye smiled. “Perhaps you should ask the name of this beverage first.”

“The name?” Withered Dragon was taken aback. “That’s not important. If you let me manage it, I’ll devise a better name for its promotion.”

As long as it retained that flavor and used the ingredients Su Ziye had previously mentioned.

The business potential made Withered Dragon’s heart race at the mere thought.

“It’s very important. You should ask, Mr. Dragon,” Su Ziye said calmly.

“Very well, Mr. Su, please enlighten me,” Withered Dragon replied, conceding the point.

Su Ziye smiled and uttered five words: “Academy Joywater.”

Withered Dragon’s expression changed instantly. He had truly thought the drink’s name was irrelevant, but now he realized he’d been gravely mistaken.

“As far as I know, the Academy has never produced anything like this,” Withered Dragon said seriously.

“They do now,” Su Ziye offered no further explanation.

“Then is there any point in letting me try it?” Withered Dragon asked, staring at Su Ziye.

The Academy was the dominant power in Leafnight City; if this drink bore the Academy’s name, no one could rival it. The idea of Su Ziye selling the beverage for the Flashgold Chamber to develop was now pure fantasy.

“Of course there’s a point,” Su Ziye replied with a gentle smile. “As you said, the Flashgold Chamber has the best supply and sales network on the continent. If you were to handle this drink, you could easily introduce it across the globe.”

“But what if I want the Flashgold Chamber to act as its agent?”

“Agent?” Withered Dragon was startled.

He had never expected Su Ziye to consider making the Flashgold Chamber his junior partner. Of course, agency sales sometimes meant that a larger organization provided a platform for a smaller one, and being an agent didn’t necessarily make one subordinate.

Yet if the drink was truly named Academy Joywater, it would be an awkward position. There were few organizations in the world that could compare to the Academy.

“That’s right, agency,” Su Ziye said calmly. “I can supply the Flashgold Chamber with regular shipments of Academy Joywater for you to sell. What do you think?”

Withered Dragon was no stranger to agency business, and as the head of the entire Lanye Empire’s operations, he could certainly make such decisions—and he knew this would be a lucrative venture.

The only question was, which arrangement would yield the greatest profit?

“What would you like me to do, Mr. Su?” Withered Dragon asked earnestly.

Now, he was treating Su Ziye as a peer in these negotiations. If yesterday he had assumed Liu Ru was the more important figure behind Su Ziye, today her silence made him reconsider. Even if Liu Ru remained the mastermind, Su Ziye was clearly someone to be taken seriously.

“I’ll supply you with finished Academy Joywater. Your responsibility will be to distribute and sell it throughout Leafnight City and the Lanye Empire. As for pricing, I’ll provide each bottle at one copper syk. You can set the final price as needed, but it must not exceed one and a half copper syks,” Su Ziye said, looking at Withered Dragon. “What do you think, Mr. Dragon?”

Withered Dragon made swift calculations in his mind, then asked, “How much is one portion of Academy Joywater?”

“Five hundred milliliters,” Su Ziye replied precisely.

“Deal.” Withered Dragon agreed without hesitation. “When can you deliver the first batch, and how many units will there be?”

Su Ziye smiled. “The first shipment will be ready in three days.”

“As for quantity,” the young man grinned, “how about a hundred thousand units to start?”

…

On the way back, Liu Ru was still dazed.

In truth, she had been present for almost all of Su Ziye’s actions this time, and the young man seemed intent on involving her, allowing her to gain familiarity with various matters.

Yet Liu Ru herself struggled to identify what role she had truly played. Perhaps only the labor she performed through the previous night could be considered genuine effort; otherwise, she was little more than a decorative presence.

“Why did you choose to do it this way?” Liu Ru finally asked as they walked.

By now, the sun was low, and their shadows stretched long before them.