26: 1 copper, 1 jin of iron

Black Tiger spoke with a hint of pride, “Elder Qiushui, shall we discuss how to exchange resources now? I certainly wouldn’t let your village suffer a loss—let’s trade at the current market rates, fair and equal.”

Qiushui smiled, “Agreed. Equal exchange it is. Our Xiaobai Village treats all trading partners with absolute fairness; we never manipulate prices.”

Outside the courtyard, lively voices could be heard.

Soon, Zhan Xiaobai, Sword Tyrant, and others entered the hall. Zhan Xiaobai instantly recognized the guests seated inside—they were the players who had embarrassed Sword Tyrant by the riverside.

He smiled inwardly; it seemed there would be a spectacle.

Sword Tyrant’s expression changed minutely, but quickly returned to normal. Such trivial matters were beneath him; no need to hold a grudge. If they were seated here, they were surely business guests of Xiaobai Village.

Qiushui, unaware they had met before, hurried to greet them. “Big Brother Bai, you’re back. These gentlemen are visitors from a neighboring village, here to discuss an iron ore deal with you.”

Only then did the people from Tiger Leopard Village realize the newcomer was the village chief, Xiaobai. Black Tiger rose, clasped his hands, and praised, “A pleasure to meet you! Chief Xiaobai, you possess a heroic bearing and remarkable talent—clearly a leader among men. I am Black Tiger of Tiger Leopard Village; greetings.”

His companions, Shen Biao and others, followed suit with proud expressions, saying “pleased to meet you,” yet acting as though they had never seen Zhan Xiaobai or Sword Tyrant before.

Zhan Xiaobai was secretly surprised. That they didn’t recognize him was understandable—he’d stood apart at the riverbank. But how could they fail to recognize Sword Tyrant? Perhaps they’d simply dismissed him and his group as insignificant, paying little attention at the time.

This was just as well—less awkwardness.

Zhan Xiaobai took the central seat in the hall and invited everyone to sit and talk. Sword Tyrant sat at the left, beside Ah Fei.

Only then did the two sides begin their formal negotiations.

Qiushui said, “Big Brother Bai, Village Chief Black Tiger wishes to trade iron ore for our blood medicine. I’ve agreed, but the specifics remain undecided. Your return is timely.”

Zhan Xiaobai nodded.

He rarely involved himself in these trades, leaving them to his team. He smiled, “Since Qiushui has agreed, arrange it as you see fit.”

Ah Fei immediately interjected, grumbling, “Big Brother, I don’t see much profit in this deal. Why do we need their rocks? Can’t eat them, can’t drink them.”

Sword Tyrant picked up a piece of iron ore and laughed, “Ah Fei, you don’t understand. These are perfect for building stone houses—sturdy and warm, much better than our straw huts.”

Ah Fei grinned, “True enough. The village could use a decent latrine, so buying some stone to build one isn’t a bad idea.”

Zhan Xiaobai chuckled inwardly. How could the Tiger Leopard villagers so quickly offend both Ah Fei and Sword Tyrant? They were in for a rough time.

He turned to Qiushui, “Qiushui, what price did you and Black Tiger agree on?”

Before Qiushui could answer, Black Tiger quickly spoke, “It’s all settled—market rates, fair exchange.”

“Since it’s settled, Qiushui, please continue discussing with Brother Black Tiger. We’ll observe.”

Zhan Xiaobai said.

Qiushui nodded.

“Our medicine’s retail price is five copper coins per blood pill. However, due to supply shortages, the actual market price has risen to around six copper coins, and it’s even higher elsewhere. But for bulk purchases by players from other villages, our unified price is four copper coins per pill. As for iron ore, the current market price is one copper coin per pound.” (One copper for one pound of iron ore? The value is hardly equivalent, but in a period of currency shortage, it’s theoretically feasible.)

Shen Biao immediately jumped up, quite agitated, and shouted at Qiushui, “That’s nonsense! Iron ore isn’t that cheap. At Tiger Leopard Village, even inferior iron ore costs ten copper coins per pound. The price is ten times higher!”

Qiushui smiled, “Ten copper coins per pound? Does anyone buy it? Check the market—even at one copper per pound, there are no buyers, because it’s of little use. That’s why trade volume for iron ore remains extremely low. If I offered one copper per pound, I could quickly gather a whole basketful.”

Shen Biao protested, “Why wouldn’t anyone buy at ten copper per pound? Iron ore is the most important strategic resource—only fools wouldn’t buy. Sure, it’s not very useful now, but once iron tools appear, the price will skyrocket. Don’t say I didn’t warn you—when you want to buy iron ore later, there’ll be none to be found!”

Others from Tiger Leopard Village joined in, loudly refuting her argument.

Black Tiger, as their leader, remained calm and let his followers speak for him.

Zhan Xiaobai and his group secretly found it amusing. Qiushui’s opening offer—one copper per pound—was ruthless, making Tiger Leopard Village unlikely to accept. They would surely suffer a heavy loss.

Qiushui smiled, “To determine the worth of iron ore, let me ask you two questions. What do you need blood medicine for?”

Shen Biao replied, “For leveling up, of course—otherwise we wouldn’t have gone to such lengths to trade.”

Qiushui continued, “And what do we need your iron ore for?”

Shen Biao answered without hesitation, “That’s easy—blacksmithing! Or do you intend to use copper blades forever?”

Qiushui looked puzzled, “But here’s the problem—we have no blacksmiths. How can we forge iron? Without blacksmiths, what use is iron ore to us? Why would we buy large quantities then?”

Shen Biao thought: she’s right—Xiaobai Village has no blacksmiths, so why buy iron ore? Surely not just to build latrines. He pondered, then objected, “It can be used for strategic reserves! Surely you want to stock up on iron ore while prices are low.”

Qiushui nodded, “True, we’re indeed stockpiling iron ore. But it’s just reserves, not immediate need. Such stockpiling ties up our resources and reduces efficiency. So we can only accumulate iron ore if it’s extremely cheap. If it isn’t, we could just buy it from the market when needed. But your situation is different—blood medicine is urgently needed. If you buy from the market, it’s at least five copper coins per pill. How many copper coins does your village have? Five hundred coins buys only a hundred pills. Can your village afford it? Our village is also short on copper coins—why spend so much on iron ore we can’t use? Do you think we have money to burn?... In fact, even at one copper coin per pound, we’re still getting the worse end of the deal, and you’re getting the advantage.”

Shen Biao opened his mouth but couldn’t reply. He glanced at Black Tiger for guidance, but seeing his leader’s impassive face, he could only withdraw awkwardly.

Black Tiger cursed inwardly: Useless! Watching my face won’t help you. You’ve argued yourself into a dead end—why not bang your head against the wall? Looks like I’ll have to step in; otherwise, this deal won’t go through.

Ah Fei, delighted to see them flustered, winked at Qiushui.

Zhan Xiaobai and Sword Tyrant secretly gave a thumbs-up. Who would have thought that, besides Sword Tyrant the shrewd merchant, Qiushui was so skilled in bargaining? With prices pushed this far, there was no mercy—she was cutting them to the bone.