Chapter 60

After learning that the trade goods were iron ore, Baier-ta and Wolwen were busy for the first time.

They sent people to the market to purchase supplies, rent carriages, hire guards... looking at them, they intended to set off overnight.

This was also easy to understand; the further they ran, the closer they were to the front line, the easier it would be to sell this batch of iron ore at a high price.

In contrast, Mali on the other side didn't seem to be in a hurry, mainly because it was useless to be in a hurry; he indeed didn't know the city-to-city trade of this continent well and was still in the exploration stage.

Although the map and manual Helun lent him told him where he could go and what he could trade, they didn't write how to sell honey wine at a high price.

Therefore, Mali planned to ask a professional for advice first, and he happened to know one.

Bani didn't lie. It was easy to find his residence by asking around for Bani the Scavenger in Pig Tail Alley.

It was a two-story building by the street, with much of the lime layer on the outside peeled off, and there was a faint smell of urine in the corner.

When Mali saw Bani again, he was being grabbed by the hair and beaten. The person beating him was a woman, who looked somewhat similar to him.

The woman cried while beating him, "I only have this one son. I entrusted Wego to you. What did you promise me before you left! Everyone says you are timid, so why didn't you hire a few more guards?!"

Bani didn't dare to fight back, just protecting his vital parts with one hand, while pushing the money bag in his other hand toward the other party, and this action of his completely enraged the woman, who snatched the money bag and threw it on the ground.

"I don't want your compensation, give me back my Wego!" Although she said so, she clearly also knew that her son couldn't come back, and couldn't help but wail loudly again.

In the end, it was other relatives who came over and persuaded her to go home after much talking.

Bani had discovered Mali and Lievre early on, but didn't dare to speak, fearing that he would implicate them, and it wasn't until his sister left that he said awkwardly, "Let the two Masters see a joke."

"We feel deeply sorry for your loss," Lievre said.

Bani sighed, "To tell you the truth, I have become a bit numb myself. Casualties are always unavoidable in our line of work. I have seen too many people leave over the years, and maybe it will be my turn next time.

"My waist has not been very good, and now my knees ache unbearably when it rains. If it weren't for these fellow townsmen and relatives who still rely on me to make a living, I would have stopped doing this long ago."

He rambled on about his bitterness, and suddenly remembered something, "You came to find me so quickly, you must have encountered some trouble, right? Let's go inside and talk."

After he finished speaking, he didn't rush to move his steps, but squatted on the ground to pick up the Silver Shields that had rolled out. Mali also helped pick up some and returned them to him.

Bani counted again, confirmed that not a single one was missing, and then tucked the money bag back into his pocket, "Wait until she cools down, and then I will send the compensation over."

After a pause, he muttered to himself as if talking to himself, "One Gold Eagle plus nineteen silver coins, this is the price of a human life."

Because the first floor had been transformed into a warehouse by Bani, the three of them went directly to the second floor, and Bani's wife and daughter came up to prepare to apply herbal medicine to his swollen cheeks.

Mali turned out the Yunnan Baiyao spray from his hiking bag and said, "Use this."

After Bani dealt with his injuries, he explained his purpose.

Bani was shocked upon hearing this, "You are participating in the Wealth Trial, and your opponent is a Rose Merchant?"

"That's just a fool who sells magic potions in the city," Lievre said disdainfully.

"It's not that simple," Bani paced back and forth in the room anxiously, "You shouldn't underestimate Rose Merchants, no matter how stupid they look on the outside!"

"Can he suddenly become smart? Hmm, with the Knowledge Crown, maybe it's really possible."

"No, Rose Merchants don't just represent themselves, but a huge network of relationships," Bani tried to explain to the two, "Each of them stands behind a political force in the Wangdu, and they are more like money-making tools pushed to the front by those big forces.

"And this means that if necessary, they can mobilize power far beyond their own."

"But I remember that the competition rules don't allow dishonest trade, where the buyer and seller collude to sell goods at a price significantly higher than the market price," Mali said.

"That's right, but there is a loophole in this rule," Bani said, "Someone has used this loophole to win the competition before. In fact, in competitions with big merchants, almost no small merchant can win."

"What loophole?" Lievre asked.

Mali, however, already had a thoughtful look, "Are you trying to say that the Wealth Trial only stipulates that one's own side cannot conduct dishonest trade, but doesn't say that one cannot destroy the other party's trade, right?"

"That's right," Bani looked anxious, while the old alchemist still didn't quite understand, blowing his beard and staring, "Why, does that guy dare to find someone to rob us?"

"That wouldn't go that far. Generally, in the Wealth Trial, everyone still uses commercial means, but the other party will definitely find ways to influence your trade."

"I don't believe he has such great ability to manipulate the markets of all cities?"

"He doesn't need to manipulate all markets," Bani said, "Because your commodity is honey wine."

"What's wrong with honey wine? Isn't it quite popular on the whole continent? Everyone loves honey wine."

"That's the problem. Honey wine is so popular that many city taverns have stock, so the price fluctuation is not large," Bani said, "Only in one situation can honey wine be sold at a high price."

This time Lievre finally reacted, "Banquet? No, those nobles have more stock and it's not so easy to consume. It's a celebration! Preferably a big celebration where the whole city participates. Is there one recently?"

Bani spread out an old map and pointed to a city on it, "Sheng Xia Ting. They celebrate their ancestors repelling the invading Orcs in the third week of the second month of winter every year, which is... five days later.

"If you can arrive in time, you can sell honey wine at a high price. But..." his tone changed, "That Rose Merchant will definitely think of this. If I were him, I would find a way to mobilize resources to let merchants in nearby cities rush to send more honey wine there before you.

"Once the ruler of Sheng Xia Ting feels that there is enough honey wine, they will lower the acquisition price, and it is even possible to make honey wine fall below the market average price. You had better set off quickly and arrive at Sheng Xia Ting before them," Bani urged.

Mali didn't rush, "Are there any better choices?"

Bani cast his gaze back to the map and shook his head, "There are none in the Jiadelan Gongguo. Wait, are you planning to go to other countries?"

Mali also looked at the map. The entire Jiadelan Gongguo occupied about the location of a Henan and most of a Shanxi.

"I think we can set our sights further."