Dawn of the Empire

Chapter 20: Bargaining

“Mistress… in total… 35 pieces of top-grade deer hide… 16 pieces of lower-grade deer hide, and… 80 pieces of sheepskin…” The barbarian reported the inspection results with a trembling voice. Clearly, the twenty lashes had been extremely severe; he looked as if he were about to faint, yet, remembering his mistress’s threat, he forced himself to stay on his feet and tried his best to speak steadily. Only after he had finished speaking did Qin Qing wave him away. She then took a small abacus from the little cat by her side and, as she counted the beads, said to Ou Yang, “Top-grade deerskin fetches three yuan per piece at SF Express; lower-grade deerskin, two yuan; and sheepskin, 850 wen. I’ll pay you a total of 205 yuan. As for the stone-weight bows you requested, I charge five yuan per bow; fifty fen per heavy arrow; and thirty wen per sharp-tipped light arrow. For fifty bows—each equipped with twelve heavy arrows and twelve sharp-tipped light arrows—I’ll charge you a total of two hundred ninety-eight yuan. I’ll give you a three-yuan discount, so Magistrate Ou, you’ll only need to pay ninety yuan.” She rattled off the figures, then smiled as she pushed the little abacus toward Ou Yang: “What do you think, Magistrate Ou?” “You’re asking me what I think?” Ou Yang nearly spit out his tea. “Right now, all I want to do is round up all the soldiers and raid your place.” But while he might think that, he certainly couldn’t act on it. Ou Yang took a deep breath, trying his best to calm his anger. According to his prior calculations, these furs should be worth close to 400 yuan, and the bows and arrows should cost around 150 yuan. Considering the long journey from Lingxi, the difficulties in transportation, and the trading house’s profit margin, charging 300 yuan and paying 200 yuan should have been a price acceptable to both parties. As it turned out, the price of his goods had been driven down by half, while the weapons he intended to buy were nearly twice as expensive as expected. Even accounting for the typical practice of asking for an exorbitant price and then haggling it down, this was simply outrageous—it had gone from him having a surplus to having to cover the difference out of his own pocket. Was he supposed to haggle from the very bottom, just like when he bought clothes at street stalls in his previous life? He’d always been terrible at that sort of thing back then, too. Ou Yang couldn’t help but exclaim, “If you’re sincere, Shopkeeper Qin, please don’t joke around. A top-quality deerskin from the interior has never dropped below five yuan. And the price of these bows and arrows is outrageously high as well.” Qin Qing smiled at Ou Yang and said softly, “Please understand, Magistrate Ou. Deer hides are produced in abundance throughout the Western Regions and Liaodong. Not to mention Lingxi Road—even in Lingdong, Yinzhou, or even beyond the pass (Yumen Pass), no one buys them for five yuan. You’d have to go at least as far as Yan Zhou to get a high price.” “As for bows and arrows…” the senior clerk of SF Express continued, “The imperial army has now completely phased out the use of bows and arrows, and there are hardly any craftsmen left in the entire empire who know how to make them. Officers who excel at archery all commission master craftsmen to make custom bows for themselves. To purchase them in bulk, one must turn to the Goryeo people for imports. And the Goryeo people, in turn, rely on our dynasty for the ox horns needed to make these bows. With all this back-and-forth, plus the transport all the way to Lingxi—ten thousand li away—doesn’t the price become exorbitant? Rarity drives up the price, and as a result, even the price of arrows has skyrocketed.” Seeing that her opponent was at a loss for words, Qin Qing smiled even more brightly: “Your Excellency, SF Express has maintained a long-standing relationship with the imperial army for decades. Ever since I entered this line of work, I’ve been repeatedly reminded to conduct myself with integrity and do my duty diligently. You may ask around—the price I’m offering is already the most reasonable one.” Looking at the expression on Qin Qing’s face—which couldn’t have been more sincere—Ou Yang knew full well that this was just a habitual facade put on by a businessperson, and shouldn’t be taken at face value. But he couldn’t find a reason to argue with her. Besides, even if he were certain this little minx was maliciously driving down or driving up prices, what could he possibly do against a monopoly like SF Express? “I absolutely cannot accept this price,” Ou Yang declared, folding his arms and playing hardball. “The most I can offer is an equal exchange of furs for bows and arrows. I can’t afford ninety yuan—not a single coin more.” Qin Qing’s smile was practically spilling over: “If you really don’t have the money but absolutely must have those arrows, why not sell some live stock, sir?” She brought up her earlier offer again: “Men or women—even children will do. The price is negotiable.” “No way.” Ou Yang closed his eyes, refusing to look at Qin Qing’s infuriatingly beautiful face any longer, and flatly refused: “War is likely coming, and I need able-bodied men as auxiliary troops.” “What about the Di women and children?” “That won’t do either. Most of the village’s slaves are bachelors. I need a reward to boost their morale—I’ve already decided to betroth the Di women to meritorious soldiers after the war.” “Oh my~~~” Seeing that Ou Yang was completely unyielding, Qin Qing actually began to coo reproachfully, dragging out the last syllable: “Why are you acting like a child, Your Excellency?” Ou Yang opened one eye and shot her a glance. Was this the same regional manager of a monopoly corporation who’d just moments ago been threatening to beat and kill slaves at the drop of a hat? Or, as a beautiful woman, did she have absolutely no qualms about acting coy at any moment? “My unit is already understaffed; we’ve barely managed to replenish our ranks. With war looming, how could I possibly sell them off?” Perhaps the beautiful woman’s coquettish scolding had worked; Ou Yang finally offered an explanation: “Without these laborers, the next time we launch an attack, I’ll still have to rely on my existing Di Yi slaves to haul provisions and supplies and serve as auxiliary troops. That way, I won’t even be able to muster fifty combatants—what good would buying all those bows and arrows do? If it comes down to it, I’d rather buy fewer weapons.” Qin Qing tapped her lower lip lightly with her index finger and said uncertainly, “Magistrate Ou, don’t you know that come next spring, the imperial court will definitely replenish the population of the newly established Pai Jia Village?” In the room, Qin Qing, Xiao Miao, and even Hu Lanshan all looked at Ou Yang with astonishment. Ou Yang stared blankly for a long moment before asking dazedly, “The imperial court… is still going to replenish the population?” He truly hadn’t known about this; Ou Yang’s knowledge of border garrisons came entirely from a training session before he took office and casual conversations with fellow officers. During the training, the instructor had only covered the duties of the village chief, the evaluation methods, and where to register their official status (household registration); he hadn’t touched on how to replenish the population of subordinate villages. In the instructor’s view, such matters didn’t seem to be an issue. When chatting casually with Liu Chenyong and others, they were more concerned with the number of private slaves and how to use government-owned slaves to line their own pockets. This created a false impression for Ou Yang, who came from another world—that without sufficient military merit, the state would not rashly increase its investment in Pai Jia Village. To secure a sufficient population, one had to rely on one’s own efforts—which was one of the reasons Ou Yang was so eager to go hunting as soon as he took office. “No one mentioned this to me—why didn’t I think it through more carefully? These are villages reclaimed by the state, garrisoned by the state’s army; how could the state possibly fail to provide reinforcements?” Qin Qing broke the awkward silence in the room with a burst of silvery laughter: “Magistrate Ou, why don’t you just sell these captives to me? Maintaining nearly a hundred private slaves for a war that may or may not happen—surely that’s a financial burden you can’t bear? Besides, you’re planning to fight Xidi, yet you have so many local Di slaves in your possession—they’ll be hard to manage during battle. Although the imperial court’s population supplements grant only the right to use them, they’re at least from out of town. Being unfamiliar with the area, they won’t be able to run away, which will save you a great deal of effort in supervising them.” Ou Yang walked out of SF Express in a daze. He could find no further reasons to refuse, so in the end, he agreed to sell the slaves. At the price Qin Qing offered—ten yuan for each able-bodied man, roughly equivalent to a mule; six yuan for female slaves; and three yuan for children no taller than a wagon wheel, regardless of gender. As previously agreed, Ou Yang would keep the newly arrived Yi people and sell all twenty captured Di and Qiang able-bodied men and ten Di and Qiang children. He himself would retain only twenty-five of the newly arrived able-bodied Yi men, thirty-eight female slaves, and five Yi children. In addition to bows and arrows, Ou Yang also ordered some cotton garments and fur hats, which would be very advantageous for future combat in frigid regions. Then there were some throwing axes. Ou Yang vividly remembered the axe that Heheli had thrown at a critical moment during the last battle; such valuable experience should be put to good use. He also ordered sleds; should another large-scale battle occur, more sleds would be needed to evacuate the wounded. Among the reinforcements arriving next spring, there should be some who know how to drive them; if not, Hu Lanshan could always take on a few apprentices. Finally, there’s a large supply of grain and salt—these are essentials. During wartime, you can never have too much stored grain. As a result, Ou Yang had spent every last coin of the money he’d earned from selling people. “I’ve been out there fighting tooth and nail for nearly ten days, risking my life against lions, only to have this woman pocket all the profits.” Ou Yang turned to look and just caught sight of Liu Chenyong walking through the gates of SF Express, led by a Yiren private slave. It seemed he was there to sell some spoils of war as well. Ou Yang thought dejectedly, “Greedy merchant—truly insatiable.”