Chapter 486: A Transaction of Massive Proportions (2)

After the two sat down, they skipped unnecessary pleasantries; after all, this was not their first meeting today, and in this era, discussing trade was very direct, with no need for so many twists and turns.

Baoxi was clearly more anxious than Baifeng, because this grain was far too important to the Suiren Clan, so he asked Baifeng straight to the point: "Baifeng, have you considered it? Can this trade go through?"

Baifeng did not hide anything: "The trade will certainly happen. You all know that we in Huaxia are short on people, but you might have overestimated us. We do have a lot of grain, but that is based on the fact that we have few people ourselves. We have few people, eat little, and so there is more left over. But in these past few years, the population growth rate of our Huaxia has been a bit too fast, while the grain growth has not increased much. Therefore, your price is a bit too high for us; we cannot produce that much grain."

Upon hearing Baifeng say that Huaxia's population growth rate was too fast, Baoxi suddenly thought of something else, so he changed the subject: "You know very well what happened to our Suiren Clan. About ten thousand people or so should have run over to your side in Huaxia. However, on the way here, I did not see any tribes; they should have already been taken in by your Huaxia, right? How about it, do you intend to take those territories into your Huaxia as well?"

Baifeng did not feel the slightest bit embarrassed: "It was we who conquered them. In any case, they are no longer people of the Suiren Clan, right? You have already split into several independent tribes, so my attacking them is not attacking the Suiren Clan. As for those territories, since I conquered them, they naturally count as the territory of our Huaxia."

Baoxi did not expect Baifeng to be so direct, but he could no longer bring himself to be angry, so he could only say: "You are right. They are no longer people of the Suiren Clan; whether you want to attack them or not has nothing to do with me. That piece of land was mine before, but now, it is yours. I will not go to occupy it again."

Baifeng looked Baoxi up and down with some suspicion. This Baoxi made him feel a bit like a stranger. Shouldn't he have slammed the table aggressively after hearing that, declared territorial sovereignty, and then argued with him? Why was he so easy to talk to now?

Baoxi also noticed Baifeng's gaze and could generally guess what he was thinking, so he smiled and said: "During the time I thought I was about to die, I sat quietly and thought about a lot. Now I have thought it through clearly. Territory is not the bigger the better; one must also see if one can manage it. Soldiers are the same; more is not necessarily a good thing. So, you don't have to be so puzzled."

Baifeng clicked his tongue, and suddenly, for no apparent reason, said to Baoxi: "Extend your arm."

"Hmm?"

Baoxi was somewhat puzzled, and the Soldiers behind him also moved their feet forward slightly; they did not know what Baifeng was going to do.

Baifeng said: "Hey, don't overthink it. I'm just checking your injury to see how your body is doing. Maybe I can even heal your body for you."

Although Baoxi did not understand, he still extended his arm. Baifeng pushed up Baoxi's sleeve and began to take his pulse.

Baoxi just watched as Baifeng pressed his fingers against his wrist, lifting and releasing, pressing hard and then lightly. Not understanding the meaning, he looked back and forth between his hand and Baifeng's expression.

Baifeng's expression kept changing, and he kept raising his eyebrows. A short while later, Baifeng lifted his hand: "Come, switch arms."

Baoxi obediently switched to the other arm. The people of Huaxia all knew what Baifeng was doing and were not surprised at all, but those from the Suiren Clan stretched their necks to look.

After another while, Baifeng said to Baoxi: "Your body is severely depleted, which is why you always feel weak. How about this: after you go back later, I will have someone send you something to drink. They will arrange how you should drink it, and after you drink it for a period of time, you will feel your body get much better. Don't worry, it's a gift."

Baoxi did not understand and only thought it was something like tea, so he did not refuse.

The reason Baifeng suddenly did this was mainly because he wanted Baoxi to live a few more years. Now the strength of the Suiren Clan was greatly reduced, and Baoxi also seemed to have lost that sharp edge. It was estimated that in the future, he would focus on defense and development and would no longer rashly expand on a large scale.

And Huaxia happened to need such a neighbor to act as a counterweight to the equally massive Xuanyuan. A tripod-like balance was the safest. Xuanyuan knew the strength of Huaxia; if they were to attack, they would attack the Suiren Clan first. Now, among the three tribes, in terms of population alone, the Xuanyuan Tribe should be the largest, while the Suiren Clan still had the largest territory; after all, these years of fighting were not for nothing.

Huaxia was just very balanced; it did not have the most people, nor the most territory, but in terms of overall strength, Huaxia should have already surpassed the Suiren Clan. Now, even without defending the city and fighting directly on the ground, they could win against the Suiren Clan. However, regarding the Xuanyuan Tribe, Baifeng did not have that confidence.

After Baifeng finished checking Baoxi's health, he returned to the main topic: "Since you know we conquered those few tribes, you also understand that our Huaxia has an extra ten thousand people. We didn't prepare grain for these people before, and their arrival has already put pressure on our Huaxia. To be honest, we are a bit unsure about your ten thousand Slaves. Unless the price is lowered and we trade for some other supplies, we in Huaxia can only dare to accept them all if we keep some grain for ourselves. If you are not willing, we won't be able to buy them all."

Baoxi had anticipated this result. His asking price was indeed high. Like the prices of those Slaves in the past, they were all pitifully low, which of course was also related to the fact that they didn't have much value anymore—after all, they were about to die.

But the reason for the high asking price was still the lack of grain. However, if Huaxia did not trade for all of them, it wouldn't make much sense for him to ask for a high price, because he would still have to take the remaining mouths to feed back with him. There was a very high probability they would starve to death. Rather than letting them starve to death, it was more cost-effective to trade them for grain at a low price.

"Then how much can your Huaxia give? Grain, and what would the other supplies be?"

Baifeng did not state the price directly, but instead had people bring over the Ironware.

Baifeng pointed to the Iron Pot on the ground and said: "This is an Iron Pot. It is easier to use than a pottery pot, is light to carry, and is faster for boiling water, cooking meat, or making meals, and there is no fear of it breaking."

He then took a shovel made of Iron and introduced it: "It is best for digging soil and shoveling things. Moreover, this time we can also trade some Small Knives with you, brand new ones, the kind without any damage."