Chapter 429: Interest Negotiation

Various lively performances continued in Jinyu City, and after enjoying the festivities with the commoners for a while, the King and the nobles returned to the magnificently decorated Jinyu Palace.

Led by King Bruno, the nobles paid their respects at the shrine of Aoerlante the Great, and then at the shrine of the first King of Auduin, His Majesty.

Luoning was a bit surprised at first as to why the shrine of Aoerlante the Great was being worshipped.

He understood after giving it a little thought.

When the empire split, Auduin and Teresia emerged, and although they eventually established their own respective kingdoms, they both claimed to be of the bloodline of the Aoerlante Empire and possessed legitimate rights of succession, so worshipping Aoerlante the Great was naturally a matter of course.

According to Lulansi's private introduction, there were no remains or anything of the sort inside the Great Emperor's shrine; the first King had only collected some clothing and similar items belonging to the Aoerlante Family to place inside, so calling it a cenotaph would be more accurate.

In Luoning's view, whether or not they were truly descendants of the Great Emperor was not important; what mattered was that in the environment of that time, they both possessed legitimacy.

It seems that no matter which world one is in, if one wants to declare oneself king, it is best to fly a suitable banner.

After completing these tedious procedures, the royal family and the nobles officially began their own celebratory banquet.

Although the content of the activities was somewhat similar to those outside, there was no doubt that this was more Advanced; everything from the food and drink to the sights and entertainment was of the highest tier.

After bathing and changing clothes following a busy half-day, Bruno summoned Lulansi and Luoning privately.

Although it was a private audience, besides the three of them, those present in the grand hall included Crown Prince Jialete, Deputy Commander of the Griffin Knights Buluoer, and several other ministers of finance, administration, and more.

Lulansi, for his part, had brought along Administrator Albert and Financial Officer Kuli.

The subject of the discussion was none other than the marriage alliance between the royal family and the Wushan Family.

Such an occasion was not as high-class as one might imagine; it felt more like a matchmaking negotiation.

For example, Wushan Territory would cede partial mining rights to a large iron mine, strengthen Wushan Territory's support for the royal family's military operations, enhance mutual visits and residency of merchant groups from both sides, and provide more convenient, efficient, and preferential port trade, among other things.

The negotiation lasted from the afternoon until the sun began to slant, covering almost every aspect including politics, economy, military, culture, and family interests.

"Besides these, I have heard that the Light Attribute Magician under Luoning can produce two types of special Magic Potions: one is an Awakening Potion, and the other is a Strength Enhancement Potion. I hope Luoning can allow the royal family to participate in the production of these Magic Potions so as to obtain a certain share."

On the throne, Bruno spoke up to propose the final expectation for cooperation.

Since the start of the negotiation, the parties involved had basically been the royal family and Wushan Castle; Luoning, who had been feeling sleepy, perked up when he realized Bruno had suddenly shifted the topic to Wubei Territory.

Of these two potions, he only intended to bring the Awakening Potion out for mass sale, while most of the Auxiliary Enhancement Potion would be kept for internal consumption, with at most a tiny bit flowing out.

He had not expected the royal family to set their sights on the Magic Potions, and for the Kingdom to propose it personally—this clearly left him no room for a polite refusal.

Luoning thought for a moment before saying: "Your Majesty, whether it is the Enhancement Potion or the Awakening Potion, the costs are extremely high."

Bruno laughed: "Rest assured, I will not take them for nothing. As long as you agree to transfer a fifty percent share to the royal family, I can gift Wubei Territory fifteen adult Griffins and five young Griffins, and provide you with professional breeding and training personnel free of charge."

Luoning's eyes lit up.

Bruno had promised Luoning Griffins before, but the number certainly would not have been this high.

Each Griffin was of extremely high value; giving so many at once meant the total price would likely reach seven or eight hundred thousand gold coins.

Yet, using these seven or eight hundred thousand gold coins to buy a fifty percent share of the future was still not enough.

If nothing else, Luoning intended to set the retail price of the Awakening Potion at one thousand gold coins; seven or eight hundred thousand would only buy seven or eight hundred bottles.

"Your Majesty, you may not be aware, but the materials for producing the Awakening Potion are extremely expensive; the spring water from the Magic Spirit Spring alone costs one hundred gold coins per milliliter, Star Radiance Grass is two hundred gold coins per stalk, and with other auxiliary magic herbs, the cost approaches four hundred gold coins."

"The Fury Flame Grass required for the Enhancement Potion is equally expensive, costing four hundred gold coins per stalk..."

Luoning was not afraid of these materials being stolen by revealing them.

Taking the Awakening Potion as an example, producing it required a Light Attribute Magician; even if others knew the method, it would be useless.

As for the Auxiliary Enhancement Potion, it also involved Dream Dew Flower, Magic Crystal Dust, and Pure Water Essence; if the materials were incomplete, it would only lead to production failure.

It is worth mentioning that after searching for several months on Jiliu Island, Kalada had found Dream Dew Flower in a valley, and Aierlong was preparing to establish a nursery for Dream Dew Flower there.

Jialete, the Minister of Finance, and others recorded this information without changing their expressions.

Bruno smiled slightly; he could tell that Luoning was saying the value of the twenty Griffins was not enough.

"Then tell me, what would you want in order to be willing to sell a fifty percent share?"

Jialete added from the side: "Luoning, these two types of Magic Potions are strategic resources. War will break out soon, and I hope our Knights can be stronger. This concerns not only interests but also the strength of the Kingdom."

Luoning laughed: "As a vassal, I will naturally do my part for the strength of the Kingdom."

He pondered for Along while, "How about this: I can cede a fifty percent share, but Your Majesty must provide me with the types of magic herbs I just mentioned for free."

"In addition, if possible, I hope Your Majesty can arrange for commoners of the Kingdom to immigrate to my territory; you know, I am very short on people there."

Bruno frowned slightly; immigration was easy to handle, but having the royal family cover these costs...

The Minister of Finance, Lude Kaokesi, who was nearby, said with a smile: "Baron, these material costs are very high. If we provide all the materials, wouldn't you be making a net profit of half?"

"That is not correct."

Luoning shook his head with a smile: "First, Wubei Territory provides the indispensable manpower; without my Light Attribute Magician, these potions could not be produced!"

"Secondly, Minister Lude, you don't think these two potions only require these few magic herbs, do you? The cost of the remaining magic herbs is about the same as the ones just mentioned. That is to say, His Majesty provides half the materials, and I am responsible for the other half."

Lulansi stroked his cane from the side: "Your Majesty, this is your future son-in-law; you can't have him providing the people, the effort, and still taking a loss, can you?"

Bruno laughed out loud: "Of course not!"

He believed what Luoning said; after all, no one would be foolish enough to reveal all the materials needed for Magic Potions. What was missing was likely something even more critical, and its price would certainly not be low.

"In that case, let us tentatively settle on this for now. If we find it unsuitable later, we can come back and negotiate revisions."

Bruno made the final decision: "As for the immigration Luoning mentioned, that is simple. Many cities are overburdened with population, and famine is inevitable. Asenuo, you go to the various cities to conscript a batch and send them to Luoning according to the standards of a large city."

A bright smile appeared on Luoning's face.

The standard for a large city was one hundred thousand people; Bruno was going to send him one hundred thousand people!

After obtaining Zilei Territory a while ago, the registered population in Luoning's territory was approaching the thirty-thousand mark.

It is estimated that by the time he returns this time, the last batch of people from Lulansi will have almost been transported to Wubei Territory.

At that time, the 【Population Prosperity】 achievement could be completed.

If one added this batch from Bruno, although it was unclear if it would reach the next stage of the achievement, it would at least allow Wubei Territory to possess a large city with a population of one hundred thousand.

With a large city, the 【Gongchengluedi】 achievement could be completed.

"Many thanks for His Majesty's gift!" Luoning stood up to express his gratitude.

In the beginning, he had already been satisfied with his personal strength, as he was already standing at the peak of the Aoerlante Continent.

But ever since Suofeiya arrived, he knew that not only were Silver Moon and Archmage insufficient, but even Radiant Sun and Grand Archmage would not do.

He had a more urgent need to become Legendary, and because of this, Attribute Point and Energy Essence appeared even more important. (End of chapter)