Chapter 589: Betel Nut Diplomacy

After finishing breakfast in a slightly silent atmosphere, the people from the Phylum of the Secretariat came to pick up the Xuanyuan Tribe delegation for negotiations. More than half of the Xuanyuan Tribe Soldiers remained by the riverbank, choosing to guard their Boats. Only a portion set up camp in the open space outside the courtyard. Fortunately, it was almost Summer, so there was no need to light fires, and food had been arranged for them; otherwise, these people would have been difficult to settle.

Xuanyuan and the others followed along to the tall and spacious conference hall. Because the two tribes held equal status, they chose a round-table style meeting this time, rather than the way they had done before. Otherwise, if Xuanyuan had to look up at Baifeng, he would have felt it was an insult to their Xuanyuan Tribe, and this negotiation would have fallen through immediately.

Baifeng first asked how they had eaten and slept. Xuanyuan naturally said it was very good, but the actual situation was different. The food was indeed very good, but upon seeing Huaxia in such a state, Xuanyuan naturally found it difficult to sleep, his thoughts somewhat chaotic.

After everyone finished their greetings, the meeting officially began. As the visiting party this time, the Xuanyuan Tribe naturally put forward their purpose first.

Qibo, as the central figure of the event, spoke first: "We came this time because one of the people sent by your Huaxia, a person called Wu, told us about a medicine that can kill the worms in the stomach, but he did not know the detailed situation, so I have come to verify it first. Tribal Chief Baifeng, is this true?"

Baifeng did not mind how the Xuanyuan Tribe people addressed him; calling him Tribal Chief was not wrong.

"There is indeed such a medicine, but it grows in a very southern place. To reach there, one must cross mountain forests filled with miasma, snakes and insects everywhere, wild beasts gathering, and it is humid and sweltering. Therefore, I think this matter is unlikely to be realized."

Qibo looked around the table again and asked curiously: "Why is Wu not here? He should be an important figure in Huaxia, right?"

Baifeng explained: "Wu is very important to our Huaxia, but he is too old, and after taking a long trip, he suffered from acclimatization issues. He is currently sick and still recuperating."

"Acclimatization issues..." Qibo muttered these words, trying to understand them, but he did not press the matter, only saying: "Why are you certain that our Xuanyuan Tribe does not have it? Do you have that medicinal material, or a drawing for me to look at? I believe that as long as I have seen it, I will definitely be able to recognize it."

Baifeng did not shirk; he knew the Xuanyuan Tribe definitely did not have it. This was a judgment based on his own experience. However, he still began to draw on paper. He could not specifically remember exactly what it looked like, but they were all plants of the palm family, and they grew more or less the same. If the Xuanyuan Tribe had plants of the palm family, that would be even better. Palms were also good things, and the Betel Nut was that medicinal ingredient. The special patterns inside the Betel Nut could be said to be unique; this was the best way to distinguish the Betel Nut.

Baifeng began to draw carefully on the paper, mainly drawing the trunk, the leaves, and the appearance of the Betel Nut, as well as what it looked like when cut open. After finishing the drawing, he handed it to Qibo to view.

While Qibo was looking at it, Baifeng explained: "This medicinal material is called Betel Nut. The tree is very tall, but the trunk is relatively smooth and has traces of fallen leaves that look like scales. The leaves are very large, branched, and slender. The Wax Seed is like this, round, the size of a fingertip. When cut open, it has the patterns I drew. This kind of tree generally grows in relatively hot places. It must not be cold in Winter; in fact, it needs to be as hot as Summer all year round."

Qibo frowned repeatedly while looking at the drawing on the paper, then handed the drawing to others to see, while saying: "Tribal Chief Baifeng, we seem to have this kind of tree."

Baifeng was greatly shocked, lifted his body in disbelief, opened his eyes wide, and asked: "Really? Are you sure?"

Qibo thought about it again, and his tone was no longer very certain: "In my memory, it is very similar, especially the leaves, which are almost exactly the same as what you drew. It is relatively tall, but the trunk is not smooth; instead, it has a lot of protrusions, just like, just like a Changmaoniu. I have also not seen it bear Wax Seeds. Tribal Chief Baifeng, when does this plant bloom, what do the flowers look like, and when does it bear fruit?"

The enthusiasm Baifeng had ignited was instantly extinguished by a basin of cold water. According to Qibo's description, Baifeng could only say that what he had seen was likely just a very common palm. There were also palms in the north, some cold-resistant varieties, but they were very different from the Betel Nut.

"I have not seen it bloom, and I do not know when it bears fruit. Anyway, its fruit is very lush, in big clusters. However, listening to your description, it is probably not it, because besides the Betel Nut, there are many, many other trees that grow leaves like this. They are like brothers, but not the same species."

The excitement in Qibo's eyes was also calmed down a lot. However, after the group from the Xuanyuan Tribe had seen it, they all said very firmly that the Xuanyuan Tribe had this kind of plant, and the leaves were exactly the same. They had already determined that they had this thing, completely ignoring what Baifeng said, and instead felt proud of their tribe's vastness and species diversity.

Baifeng said very calmly: "I judge that the kind you saw is not the same thing as what we are talking about, but it should have other uses. How about this: I will send people to go with you to your Xuanyuan Tribe to look for that kind of tree. After we find it, I will identify whether it is the one or not. How about that?"

Qibo replied: "Of course, no problem. We came here to seek cooperation."

Xuanyuan knew Baifeng still had more to say: "Do you have any other conditions? Just say them all at once."

Baifeng knew it was time to get to the point, but it was different from before. In the past, it was almost a one-off deal, and he had to maximize his own interests, so the conditions were harsh. But now it was different; Baifeng had to make a good start for this cooperation.

"The condition is: we search together and use it together. After we find it, if it is truly a Betel Nut, I will teach you how to process it to remove excess toxicity and how to use it. However, we also need Betel Nut, because the use of this thing and that drawing were provided by me. Therefore, we will split the found Betel Nut equally. How about that? If we need to send people to harvest it, we can also provide labor."

Xuanyuan thought for a moment and felt it was acceptable. Although it seemed like Huaxia was getting it for free, they did indeed need Huaxia's help.

However, Xuanyuan also had his own considerations: "But if you know it is a Betel Nut, but tell us it is not, and take it back to use secretly without telling us, what should we do then?"

Baifeng answered straightforwardly: "It is very simple. You just need to take samples—leaves, trunks, and Wax Seeds. A few seeds are enough. Even if our people don't go, it's fine, as long as you bring the seeds back. You will know how many you give me; a few seeds aren't even enough to treat one person."