Huang Tianfu and the other two finally looked through the heretics’ proposal more than half an hour later. They also came up with a preliminary conclusion.
Sun Zhuo noticed that Lin Huang did not participate in the discussion throughout the process. Instead, he delegated the task to the three Grand Dukes in relief.
He looked at Huang Tianfu and the other three and then at the three people he brought. He was getting more and more depressed upon recalling the bastards at the heretics’ headquarters.
‘We’re both bosses. Why are we being treated so differently?’
After the three Grand Dukes were done with the discussion, Huang Tianfu went through the main points of the heretics’ proposal with Lin Huang and informed him about the conclusion that they came to through voice transmission.
Lin Huang nodded after listening and said to Sun Zhuo, “Presiding Judge, we’ve already come to a preliminary conclusion. Tianfu, please go on.” Then, he passed the stage to Huang Tianfu who nodded and projected the heretics’ proposal from his Emperor’s Heart Ring.
“The proposal that the heretics have provided is very thorough. It covers almost all aspects of the possible collaboration between Dynasty and the heretics that might occur in the future. They even gave very solid suggestions in some aspects which inspires us.
“In reality, this proposal is fantastic in the long run. However, we feel that this multi-faceted collaboration might be a little too rushed.”
At the moment, Sun Zhuo could not help but speak up, “Maybe we weren’t clear about this. This proposal itself is an idealized version of the final collaboration for both sides. Therefore, we included all possible collaborations as much as we could. The reason why we didn’t include the details was mainly that we aren’t sure what kind of collaboration Dynasty is looking at.”
“I was going to ask about the details because we didn’t see it in the proposal,” Huang Tianfu responded, “But we can discuss them now.
“I think financial collaboration can be the first step. Dynasty can give our collaborators access to our internal trading system at all times. We’re ready for that. We can give the access tomorrow morning if we reach an agreement today.
“In reality, we synced our trading system a day after we signed the agreement with the Union Government five days ago. The trading rate throughout the past few days experienced a 50% boost and it’s still growing every day.”
The four heretics looked interested as they listened keenly.
Sun Zhuo could not help but ask, “If we sync our system with yours, can we get access to the Union Government trading system too?”
“We’ve thought about this in the beginning and discussed with the Union Government. They give our collaborators access but it’s limited. Approximately 12% of products are banned sales. Even though the trading access is only 88%, it’s much higher than the 61% the Union Government gives to the public. Moreover, since the collaborators will be given online access to the trading system, there’ll be a 17% premium to the sales. It’s considered as commission for Dynasty.”
“A 17% premium! That’s a little high. Auctions usually only charge a 5% handling fee.” Zhou Tong gasped.
“17% isn’t actually high because you’re given insider prices. Even with the 17% premium, the price that you pay is similar to the price you find in the market. No matter whether they are auctions or black markets, there’ll definitely be a higher premium compared to the price you find in the market. In reality, it’s not us who set the 17% premium. We were asking for 10% from the Union Government in the beginning, but they’re afraid of affecting the market price which might cause the butterfly effect and influence the entire market.
“Of course, the ratio isn’t fixed whereby it will be adjusted following the market price. Moreover, we’ll reduce the commission accordingly for organizations that we’re closer with in the future, given the condition that the items won’t be resold. There will be a more detailed condition by then.” Huang Tianfu provided a comprehensive explanation.
“How about the items from Dynasty? Can we enjoy insider prices too? What’s the ratio of banned sales like?”
“It depends on the price the heretics are giving us. At the moment, we give the Union Government an insider price just like what the Dynasty members pay. There’re no banned sales. We’re not the Union Government. We have no military businesses. All of the resources are obtained from hunting and exploring ruins and sites. Therefore, there’s nothing that we can’t sell. The only difference between the Union Government and Dynasty members is that the latter has the priority to buy an item that they are keen to purchase at the same time.”
“I get it. Priority purchase. Right. We understand that.” Sun Zhuo nodded lightly when he heard the clarification. “I’ll discuss the price and banned sales with the headquarters later.”
“May I ask what’s the banned sales ratio like working with the Union Government?” Zhou Tong asked all of a sudden. “Of course, you don’t have to tell me if it’s too much to ask.”
Huang Tianfu looked at Lin Huang to get his approval. Lin Huang nodded at him since it was not actually a secret.
“The banned sales we’re given is 3%.”
“Wow, this ratio is similar to the Hunter Association, isn’t it?!” Xia Yu exclaimed.
“Not exactly. The Hunter Association has an even lower figure. No organization can compete with how close they are to the Union Government.” Huang Tianfu did not reveal more.
“Let’s end the discussion of trading access here. We’ll discuss the detailed conditions when the heretics have set the price. We’ll give access within 24 hours as soon as the agreement is done.”
“Sure, let’s end it here. We’ll talk about the detailed conditions tomorrow morning when we’re done on our side.” Sun Zhou never thought that they would set the first project so soon. In reality, the agreement was basically in place now that they were in discussion. He did not expect Dynasty to be so open before coming here. Not only were they sincere in the collaboration, but they were not perfunctory at all.
“Let’s talk about the next project then. About the data access…” Huang Tianfu moved onto the second project directly.
Sun Zhuo stayed three days in Emperor City with the other three heretics. They spent most of the time in Dynasty’s meeting room.
In reality, the meeting was mainly run by Huang Tianfu and the other two Grand Dukes. They went into detail about the few projects that could be accomplished in the first round of collaboration. They also raised many questions, even giving Sun Zhuo and the rest some solutions for their reference.
The people from the heretics witnessed the three Grand Dukes’ professionalism, especially Huang Tianfu who was totally an all-rounder butler.
Sun Zhuo even had the thought of poaching Huang Tianfu back to the heretics quite a few times.
However, he decided to be wise and give up on the idea. Poaching Huang Tianfu would mean an end to the collaboration with Dynasty. On the other hand, he realized apart from his combat strength, he could not compare with Lin Huang in many aspects. At least, his charm was ahead of Lin Huang’s.
Throughout the meeting, although Lin Huang only gave his opinion a few times, he would always strike with core questions every time he spoke. The three Grand Dukes would almost accept whatever he said and they genuinely respected him.
Even Zhou Tong and the other two clearly became quieter after spending three days in the meeting room.
On the last day of the meeting, Zhou Tong became more enthusiastic. He was more engaged in the collaboration than Sun Zhuo was.
As the three-day meeting ended, the first collaboration among Dynasty and the heretics was finally sealed. With the enthusiasm from both sides, the discussion was smooth, and they came up with many projects together.
After they had a celebratory dinner at Dynasty, Sun Zhuo dragged the three of them for steamboat in the middle of the night.
Sitting at the steamboat table, Sun Zhuo finally could not hold it any longer and asked, “Why exactly were you guys so quiet throughout the three days?”
The three of them had their lips sealed.
Cao Yao was the first to speak after a while, “Boss, do you think that we’re useless? We can’t do anything and we’re always causing trouble.”
“Err… Not really.” Sun Zhuo was stunned and waved his hand later on. “Why do you ask such a question?”
“Did you see how amazing the three Grand Dukes are? They’re so competent. They can solve anything. They’ve taken care of everything even before the Emperor speaks,” Cao Ya said, “If there are people like that in the heretics, we would definitely be so much better off than this.”
“We can’t be envious of some things.” Sun Zhuo shook his head while grinning. “Each organization has their own style. The heretics are the heretics because of you guys. If all of you are as serious as Huang Tianfu and the rest, I might pull out of the organization after staying for a month.”
“Really?” Cao Ya widened her eyes.
“Of course! That’s who you are. You don’t have to pretend when you’re in the heretics. Nobody will judge you. Didn’t you join the heretics because of this back then? This is also the founding motto of the heretics. No matter how the outside world is, no matter how the past is, and no matter how the future will be, as long as you’re in the heretics, we’re always the realest and most liberated.”
Zhou Tong and the other two had their eyes lit up when they heard that proclamation.
“How about you, little girl? Why have you been so quiet?” Sun Zhuo looked at Xia Yu.
“I think Lin Huang has changed so much. He was only a little guy on bronze-level three years ago. Within three years, he’s totally transformed like he’s a different person. Not only is there a change in his combat strength, but he’s also different from who he was before. Moreover, he looks more like a boss than you do, Boss,” Xia Yu spoke her mind, “I wonder if it’s because I’m not working hard enough. Is that why he’s so much farther ahead than me?”
“Don’t belittle yourself, Xiao Yu. You’ve improved a lot throughout the three years. You got to immortal-level when you were 20, and your cultivation speed is considered fast. Fewer than 30 people in this entire world can do that. You’re just comparing yourself to the wrong person. Comparing yourself with Lin Huang is simply creating trouble for yourself.
“The things that Lin Huang has gone through these three years might be more than what a person has ever done in his or her whole life. His terrifying talent and potential isn’t the only factor of his growth. He’s definitely killed many to achieve what he has today. The path that he’s taken is so tough that most people can’t imagine it. He’s the only one who would know how many battles and kills he has experienced, how many times he was involved in life-and-death battles, and how many times he escaped death.”
What Zhou Tong said did not only make Xia Yu and Cao Ya fall into deep thoughts, but even Sun Zhou was looking at him in puzzlement.
“Hey, Old Zhou, what’s wrong with you?” Sun Zhou could not help but prod. “Let’s not talk about you involving yourself in the collaboration today. You’re even promoting Lin Huang now. Are you planning to join Dynasty?”
“B*tch, please, I joined the heretics before you did! You’ve got to be dreaming if you want to get me to pull out of the heretics,” Zhou Tong condemned mercilessly.
“Then, why…?”
“I’m just speaking what I think about Lin Huang. In reality, I’ve been observing him these few days. However, the more I observe him, the more I can’t see through him, but now I understand why Huang Tianfu and the rest respect him like that, and I also roughly figured out how Dynasty developed so quickly.
“The terrifying thing isn’t his combat strength and ability, or his talent and potential. It’s that he has a different way of looking at issues compared to ordinary people. His perspective doesn’t seemed to be restricted by this world.”
“Now that I think about it, you’re right. The few questions that he asked in the meeting were a little strange, but they were pointing at the crux of the matters. And the solutions that he proposed were never heard of.” Sun Zhuo thought about it carefully and nodded.
“The reason I was enthusiastic about our collaboration with Dynasty is Lin Huang’s performance. I think he might be the pioneer of a new era. Dynasty will go a long way with his leadership. Then, I thought about the heretics’ current situation, so I have an interesting idea. Since we can’t be a pioneer, why don’t we butter up a pioneer and excel with him?”
Xia Yu and Cao Ya roared in laughter at what Zhou Tong said.
However, Sun Zhuo fell into a long silence while frowning. He only lifted his head to look at Zhou Tong after a while. “What if the path Dynasty goes on turns out to be a dead-end?”
Zhou Tong was stunned to hear that. He understood what Sun Zhuo meant. Nobody had done this before, so nobody knew if such a model Dynasty was adopting could last long. It seemed great now, but nobody could foresee what would happen in the future. Meanwhile, the heretics would be at a great loss as soon as something happened the closer they were with Dynasty.
“It’s been over 200 years since the heretics have had any changes. I’ve no idea when we’ll have a transformation if we miss this chance. Of course, you make the last call. I’m just giving my perspective and opinion. We’ll support you no matter what your decision is in the end.”
Sun Zhuo fell into silence for a moment after hearing that. He chuckled out loud all of a sudden. “I’ve no idea why I was concerned. We’ve already signed the agreement, but the fear of making the wrong decision came out of nowhere. However, now that I think about it, there’s nothing to regret since the decision has been made. Let’s just take the bet. Let’s see where this sugar daddy Dynasty will bring us!”
