Lord of the Sky City

Even though Rocky had known about this, when he heard about the thirty percent increase, he still involuntarily gasped, because this increase not only far exceeded his expectation, but also directly surpassed Thunderhawk City’s limit of affordability!

Such a significant price hike disrupted his original plan.

According to his initial idea, he hoped to sell all the Medium Magic Stones that had been found in the research institute, then use that income to offset the yarn price increase, maintaining the quarterly balance of income and expenditure.

Based on Rocky’s rough estimate, if he sold all the Magic Stones he had, he could earn at least two thousand Gold Coins.

Thunderhawk City’s expenditure on yarn each quarter was around twenty thousand Gold Coins, which means that even if the price of yarn increased by a full ten percent, he could still balance it out with the income from selling the Magic Stones, thereby relieving some of the financial pressure on Thunderhawk City.

However, he never expected that the Azure Commerce Guild would actually raise the price of yarn by as much as thirty percent in one go! This meant that instead of spending twenty thousand Gold Coins on yarn, Thunderhawk City would now need to spend twenty-six thousand Gold Coins!

An extra six thousand Gold Coins!

Such a large sum of money, let alone selling a few Magic Stones, even if Rocky himself was sold, it wouldn’t be enough to cover the cost!

So after Overseer Jia Xi finished speaking, Rocky couldn’t help but frown, and his expression became increasingly grim.

"Overseer Jia Xi, why has the price of yarn increased by so much?"

As Rocky’s brows were tightly knitted, Aileen, who had brought Jia Xi and was standing beside him, opened her mouth to speak. Aileen’s role was that of the finance officer of Thunderhawk City, and it was indeed her responsibility to handle negotiations with the Chamber of Commerce.

"City Lord, in this matter, our Chamber of Commerce is also compelled," replied Jia Xi, glancing at Aileen and wearing an innocent expression before turning to Rocky: "City Lord, you may have heard that Canglang City is at war, and all resources in the city are being controlled."

"Frankly, to ensure the timely delivery of yarn, our Chamber of Commerce had to exert great effort within Canglang City, so City Lord, this price really isn’t within our control."

In the face of Rocky, Jia Xi presented an innocent facade. However, upon closer examination, his words seemed to hold some merit yet were ultimately nonsensical.

It was true that Canglang City was at war, but even if war necessitated the control of resources, it was unlikely to extend to yarn, which was not a strategic material. Moreover, the Azure Commerce Guild was not merely ordinary citizens—it was a Chamber of Commerce. Could it be that they would stop doing business simply because the war was occurring in the city where their headquarters were located?

That, undoubtedly, was even less plausible.

So while the war might indeed have caused an increase in the price of yarn, the increase could surely not be so substantial. In essence, the Azure Commerce Guild was using the war as an excuse to intentionally hike the prices!

This fact was something Aileen understood all too well, thus she spoke again: "Overseer Jia Xi, we’re aware of the war in Canglang City, but this price is too high for us to accept."

"Miss Aileen, this is not something our Chamber of Commerce can decide, we truly have no choice..."

Following that, a verbal duel ensued between Aileen and Jia Xi as they debated non-stop about the extent of the price increase.

In the meantime, Rocky remained silent, quietly seated in the City Lord’s position, clearly becoming an observer.

As the City Lord of Thunderhawk City, haggling was not his job. He only needed to wait for Aileen to reach a conclusion with Jia Xi and then give a nod or a shake of his head.

Throughout the process of observation, Rocky gained a deeper impression of Aileen; the seemingly seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl made him have to secretly give her a thumbs up.

Despite Aileen’s young age, she was not at all timid during negotiations, demonstrating considerable skill. She wisely avoided wasting time on whether the price should increase at all, instead bargaining over the amount of the increase.

Based on Jia Xi’s demeanor, it was apparent that the Azure Commerce Guild was set on raising the yarn prices; therefore, Aileen focused on negotiating the extent of the increase, with the goal of reducing it as much as possible.

Clearly, she had a concise and clear objective for the negotiation.

However, Aileen’s adversary was no easy opponent. Jia Xi was an extremely cunning merchant with impeccable negotiation skills, and he held fast to one crucial point—the Azure Commerce Guild, between itself and Thunderhawk City, was the stronger party, and Thunderhawk City had to purchase yarn and food from them!

It was precisely because he held onto this key point that, no matter how hard Aileen tried, Jia Xi wouldn’t budge an inch.

"Overseer Jia Xi, a five percent increase in the price of yarn is the absolute limit we can accept," said Aileen, her brows furrowed as she looked at Jia Xi, stating Thunderhawk City’s bottom line.

Although that’s what she claimed, she wasn’t telling the whole truth, for as much as she knew, Rocky’s acceptable bottom line was ten percent. This meant that she was still leaving room for further negotiation with Jia Xi.

This is the art of negotiation—it’s not about arguing, but about giving. You give me a step, I give you one, and only then is there something to talk about. Aileen clearly understood this principle.

Unfortunately, after she finished speaking, Jia Xi simply shook his head: "City Lord, Miss Aileen, raising the price of yarn by thirty percent is already the bottom line for our Chamber of Commerce, I truly have no leeway."

"Overseer Jia Xi!"

Jia Xi’s attitude had finally pushed Aileen to her limit; she couldn’t believe the other party was so stubbornly refusing to budge, clearly showing no desire to negotiate!

"Alright..."

Just as Aileen was about to speak again, Rocky, who had remained silent, suddenly spoke up. He glanced at Aileen, signaling her to stop, and then turned his gaze to Jia Xi.

"Overseer Jia Xi, you must be weary from your journey. Let’s end today’s discussions here."

After saying this, Rocky spoke to Aileen, "Aileen, escort Overseer Jia Xi to rest, and do not neglect your duties."

"Yes..."

With a response, Aileen left the City Lord’s Hall with Jia Xi.

Watching the two leave, Rocky waited until the doors of the City Lord’s Hall were closed before he sighed,

He had purposefully halted the negotiation because he had realized that facing the unyielding Jia Xi, Aileen was at a loss, so he let Jia Xi rest, thus giving Aileen time to regroup and think about how to handle her opponent.

However, Rocky was well aware that even if Aileen thought of a strategy, she might not come up with anything effective. The reasoning was simple: Thunderhawk City simply didn’t have enough bargaining chips.

Even a clever cook can’t prepare a meal without rice. No matter how skilled Aileen was at negotiating, without sufficient leverage, she would never get Jia Xi to give in. And Jia Xi knew this, which was exactly why he was so uncompromising.

This was the dilemma Thunderhawk City now faced.

In such a situation, Rocky felt that he should start making other plans...

...…

...…

"Overseer Jia Xi, is there really no room for discussion on this matter?"

On the way to see Jia Xi out of the City Lord’s Mansion, Aileen was still trying, but this time, she was less aggressive and seemed more like she was just chatting with Jia Xi.

"Overseer Jia Xi, as you know, Thunderhawk City isn’t large, and with the price of silk skyrocketing so much, I’m afraid the City Lord won’t accept it. So please, would you speak kindly of us to the Chamber of Commerce? If you could really come to an agreement, the City Lord would surely not treat you unfairly."

Now that they were in private, Aileen spoke of matters that could only be discussed behind closed doors, such as personal benefits.

However, hearing her words, Jia Xi just shook his head and smiled, "Miss Aileen, just have the carriage take me back to the port. I’m accustomed to staying on the merchant ships."

He looked at Aileen without any intention of acknowledging her suggestions.

"This... well then..."

Jia Xi’s reaction made Aileen frown. Could it be that Jia Xi really had no personal desires?

Or was it that he had other plans, or simply wanted more from playing hard to get?

Uncertain of Jia Xi’s intentions, Aileen chose not to say more and proceeded to escort him out of the City Lord’s Mansion.

It was only upon leaving the City Lord, just as Jia Xi was about to board the carriage, that he suddenly turned to Aileen and said,

"Miss Aileen, if you..."

He caught Aileen’s hand mid-sentence, gently stroking the back of her hand while he continued,

"If you really want to talk, you can come to the merchant ship for a detailed discussion..."

"Overseer Jia Xi! Please conduct yourself with dignity!"

Jia Xi’s move caught Aileen off guard, and she immediately pulled her hand back from his grasp like a startled rabbit, glaring furiously at Jia Xi.

"Overseer Jia Xi! What are you intending to do!"

Staring fiercely at Jia Xi, Aileen was so angry she was on the verge of tears; she had never encountered such a situation before.

But facing her angry stare, Jia Xi appeared completely indifferent, saying as he got into the carriage, "Miss Aileen, the price of silk is negotiable. Whenever you are ready, you can come and find me."

With those words, he closed the carriage door and rode away...