Chapter 71: Trade

After Sinuoli decided to hitch a ride on the armed caravan organized by the High King—where he would serve as the captain of the security detail—to trade and make money, he began to scour his mind for relevant knowledge.

Unfortunately, the original owner of this body was a bit lacking in practical experience; while he hadn't reached the point of thinking food simply appeared in the kitchen, he had no clear understanding of where money actually came from.

Sinuoli sighed as he sat in his chair, deciding that rather than thinking it through himself, he might as well go ask a professional; as it happened, his own aunt, Sonia the Eloquent, was the person in charge of the clan's external trade.

Thinking of this, Sinuoli stood up. He first went to tell Qiangsen-Jian Dun that the job had been settled, then left his room with two guards. He walked toward the outside of the clan, recalling that because his aunt had married, she lived at her husband's home.

Passing through the clan plaza, he saw a group of Dwarfs wearing Meteorite Armor training. Seeing Sinuoli, they cheered, "The honorable Chosen of the Goddess!"

Sinuoli was stunned for a moment before realizing these men were his Anvil Guard. After waving to them in greeting, he continued on his way out.

Aunt Sonia had not married far away; when she married, Thorgrim Grudgebearer was not yet High King. She had married into a local clan as the daughter of a Dekkaz-Klad Clan Miner captain. Her husband was a rather enterprising merchant who was often out and about.

Sinuoli arrived at his aunt's shop located in the central plaza. "Oh, Master Sinuoli, the Chosen of the Goddess! What wind has blown you to my place!" Sonia laughed very cheerfully.

After giving Sinuoli a chair and a cup of coffee, the two chatted briefly about Sinuoli's experiences in Jiliuguan.

"Is there anything I can help you with by coming here? My man was just saying he wanted to pay you a visit these past two days. He also has to run a route for the end-of-month caravan, so he'll need you to look after things a bit!" Aunt Sonia got straight to the point.

"Well, it's like this, Aunt. I plan to organize an expedition as soon as I return from this trip," Sinuoli replied.

"And then? You only have one cousin, and he's not exactly a fighter, so don't you go setting your sights on him, hahaha." Aunt Sonia was quick-witted and outspoken.

"I feel I lack sufficient funds. Since I'm escorting the caravan on this trip, I want to take the opportunity to do some business, but I don't know what to sell. Isn't that why I've come to ask my shrewd and capable, resourceful aunt?" Sinuoli offered a flattering compliment.

"Hmm, that is true. Although our clan doesn't have fewer gold and silver treasures than the Greenskins in the valleys, there are also a great many clansmen! Even if your brother is the High King, he cannot force the elders to give you too much support." Aunt Sonia took a sip of coffee and nodded.

"Where do you intend to go? Heading north?"

"No, the Ancestor Goddess guides me to head south!"

Hearing the Goddess's name, Aunt Sonia couldn't help but straighten her posture.

"Then you must go. That means you'll have to take the sea route, though that is actually good news for you." Aunt Sonia didn't continue, turning back to the main topic.

"Well, rather than deciding what to sell first, you should think about who you want to do business with."

"What do you mean? Isn't the caravan just passing through the Dwarf holds along the way?" Sinuoli asked, puzzled.

"I mean, do you want to sell things to our fellow Dwarfs or to our Human friends? You should know that the areas around the Black Mountains and the Grey Mountains have closer contact with the Humans below the mountains than even the Everpeak does." Aunt Sonia knew Sinuoli lacked experience, so she explained patiently.

"If you want to do business with our fellow Dwarfs, I can point you in the right direction. The first stop of the caravan is Kalake-Duomaer—oh no, that was in the past; now it should be your big brother's Karak-Varn." Aunt Sonia slapped her forehead.

"Kalake-Duomaer... Bergman's brewery is near there. If you buy a few carts' worth as you pass by, you won't have to worry about selling them along the way, though you won't earn much; it'll only be enough for pocket money."

"Why is that? Isn't Bergman's brew famous throughout the Old World?" Sinuoli was confused again.

"Are you stupid, child? Joseph-Bergman himself is selling it too! All you can earn is the price difference from the High King's caravan toll exemption."

"Ugh, wouldn't that be a wasted effort?" Sinuoli lost interest in that.

"Aren't our traditional Dwarf goods weapons and equipment? Should I go get some stock from Master Fire-Coal?"

Aunt Sonia frowned at this, speechless at Sinuoli's naivety. "Who are you going to sell to? Which Shanbao doesn't have its own Master Blacksmith? Selling to our Human friends would just be stealing business from our local kin! Besides, your weapons don't have a price advantage."

"If you ask me, you'd be better off registering at the Rune Smith Guild to take orders! Don't you get three or five Oath Gold for engraving a single Rune? If you're short on clients, I can introduce some to you." Aunt Sonia was getting a bit heated; she had a quick temper.

Sinuoli thought to himself that with his "tyrant" production style of using Dragon Blood, if he made a mistake, he might end up losing money instead of earning it.

Engraving Runes and forging weapons were essentially the same; both were trades where practice makes perfect, and only through proficiency could one increase production efficiency and reduce the defect rate.

"The Ancestor Goddess is in a hurry, so I might not have the time to do that." Sinuoli didn't tell the truth; although the real reason he was in a hurry was his knowledge of the End Times, invoking the Mother Goddess was undoubtedly more appropriate at this moment.

"Sigh!" Aunt Sonia sighed, leaned back, and continued to analyze the situation for Sinuoli.

"If you're talking about things other holds don't have, it's nothing more than fine weapons and precious jewelry. But for one, these things are mostly custom-made—just like what you saw at the Blacksmith Guild the other day. The previous year's caravan brings back requests and deposits upon its return, and the second year they deliver the goods and collect the balance."

Sinuoli nodded; this was the same as what he had understood. "It's not impossible to sell finished products directly, but they are hard to move, and I don't know if you have enough capital."

Hearing the word "capital," Sinuoli shook his head. With his current savings, by the standards of Dwarf nobility, he could be considered destitute.

"Let's talk about the Humans then. What kind of trade can I do with them?"

"Crafts?" Aunt Sonia asked back with an uncertain tone. In her view, these things, like beer, would at most only yield the price difference from taxes.

"Well, tell me, what if I sell arms?" Sinuoli suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He remembered that the holds along the way were not very large and might not have their own arms factories.

Thanks to Touching Ink and Faint Cool, the book friends, the bookworm who loves Dragons for the monthly tickets, and other book friends for their recommendation votes. An extra update tonight.