Chapter 33: Collateral

A small investment?

The proud smile on Duoli's face suddenly vanished.

"You're saying you want me to give you an investment?"

Her voice was full of curiosity.

What is investment?

This wasn't unfamiliar to Duoli.

Simply put.

Put money into someone's project, then after the project profits, share the gains; if the project loses money, you can only blame your bad luck.

If you calculate it carefully.

There are many intricacies involved.

Duoli was running multiple investment projects.

Most of them were Academy projects.

This was also the protection money she paid to the Academy.

Otherwise, why would the Academy always turn a blind eye to her illegal activities?

Really can't find any leverage?

Simply because she paid enough protection money, right?

The Academy now has many research projects that rely on Duoli, and she used this opportunity to expand her business scope.

Everyone understood tacitly, mutually benefiting each other.

This is Duoli's true reliance.

So when Luo De brought up investment, Duoli's interest was immediately sparked.

Previously, her business with the desert people was only small-scale.

Aside from the Tanite Tribe, a large clan, and A Ru Cun, a big trading village, those small tribes lacked the capital to discuss investment business with her.

What right does this little desert person have to come to me to talk about investment?

Could it be that this unfamiliar face has some special good stuff or a special identity in his hands?

"Are you the son of the village chief of A Ru Cun?"

"No."

"Are you the new guardian of A Ru Cun?"

"No."

"Do you have connections at the Academy?"

"No."

"."

With no connections at all, that means you're coming to me in a personal capacity to discuss investment?

Duoli, unwilling to give up, continued asking: "What business are you in?"

"I'm not in business; I'm just an ordinary guard of A Ru Cun."

Luo De answered sincerely.

This also drove Duoli completely crazy.

Duoli is not a snob.

For her, as long as it's a doable business, as long as it can make money, even if it's just trading a screw, she will devote all her energy to it.

But Luo De's words really gave her a headache.

Through those questions just now.

She was completely certain.

Luo De was just a penniless nobody with no status.

Invest in him?

Invest a ghost!

Duoli really does any kind of business.

But she never does a losing business!!!

"Sanggemahabayi sir, don't rush yet."

"Hear me out, then decide."

Being open and honest is good, but Luo De and Duoli's discussion material is really poor, so poor that Duoli has already written the four words 'don't want to cooperate' on her face.

So Luo De needed to show his capital.

A proposal.

This is Luo De's capital for daring to ask Duoli for investment.

A proposal assisted in planning by the renowned Life Theory School scholar Tighnari.

"."

Duoli took the proposal, flipped it left and right, looked over it several times, then asked doubtfully: "What is this? Ancient text from ruins? If you had this kind of ancient text information in your hand, it could barely count as something worth investing in, but you're just a desert person with no qualifications to excavate or study ruins; if that's all you have, you might as well just name a price and sell it to me."

"Er"

Luo De then realized.

He mistakenly handed over his Chinese-written proposal to Duoli.

"Wait, I made a mistake."

Although one could swindle money out of her using this text she's never seen before.

But this behavior is undoubtedly commercial fraud.

Cheating others might be forgivable, but cheating Duoli, such a shrewd and powerful merchant, is practically suicide.

Luo De hasn't had enough of life yet.

Thus, under Duoli's gaze, he clumsily rewrote the proposal in Teyvat's script, stroke by stroke.

Huh?

Upon receiving this brand-new proposal, Duoli's brows furrowed again.

Luo De's handwriting isn't terribly ugly, but there are many typos, making it a bit hard to read.

Fortunately, the desert people's cultural level is basically at the prenatal education level.

Luo De's handwriting being like this didn't surprise Duoli much.

After she finished reading the contents, she gave Luo De a strange look and said, "Is this your capital?"

Indeed.

Luo De nodded and asked, "Is it enough?"

In theory, it's enough.

Actually, there's no precedent, the desert weather is complex and changeable, plus rampant bandits and monsters; your plans could easily lose everything, not worthwhile.

Duoli spoke matter-of-factly.

Luo De's proposal precisely concerns his series of operations using grass slime and the like to regulate soil erosion, supplemented by animal husbandry to improve the economy.

This plan is long-term.

The steps involved and the amount of Mora required are also considerable.

If it can be completed smoothly.

Then A Ru Cun could be transformed into a village with a diverse economy capable of self-sufficiency.

The benefits obtainable here are visible to the naked eye.

But the premise.

is what was just said: if the plan can be completed smoothly.

Duoli could see the value of this proposal at a glance.

However, after comprehensively considering the desert's complex and changeable climate as well as the tangled distribution of forces,

Duoli still isn't optimistic about the plan's prospects.

In her words:

"Your plan merely looks good in theory, using grass slime instead of the Fertility Blessing to enhance soil fertility, planting economic crops suited to the desert environment and crops edible for livestock, using livestock manure as fertilizer to achieve a small ecological cycle."

Duoli tossed the proposal in her hand, shook her head, and said: "But guest, I still need to remind you: theory is theory, reality is reality. I've seen many Academy scholars do just that—they propose an excellent theory, then apply for large funds or even borrow money to research, spending much time and money, only to be defeated by reality and lose everything."

She didn't continue with the rest of her words.

But the meaning was already clear.

That is, she is not optimistic about this plan.

That's to be expected.

Luo De didn't show disappointment; instead, he continued with another idea: "Then, Old Master Sangge Mahabayi, could you provide some loans for my plan?"

"Loans?"

Duoli stared for a moment.

She quickly realized that Luo De's true purpose in seeking her was probably not to seek investment at all, but purely for this loan.

She was also no stranger to loans.

Among Duoli's business ventures, there happens to be one that is lending.

However,

"Loans require collateral; do you have any?"

Duoli said incredulously.

Luo De is an utterly penniless poor kid, and Duoli knows that well.

What could he produce here to offer as collateral for a loan?

However, when Luo De produced his collateral, Duoli's eyes almost popped out.

It was that ice-blue glass bead hanging from his waist.

A piece absolutely sufficient as collateral for a high-value loan!

Vision!

This destitute desert person, whose pockets jingle, actually dared to offer his own Vision as collateral to borrow money from me!!!

(End of chapter)