'What? The magistrate is going to inspect the goods?' Wan Fei's heart skipped a beat hearing that information. 'The former magistrate was a greedy man. I could bribe him all I wanted, and he wouldn't even do anything. But Leng Xiu is different… He is a man of integrity. While he is flexible, he won't take a bribe. He is stationed here to fix the city, and the fact that he's got a weapon now…'
Wan Fei realized that Leng Xiu planned to use the dam and the new roads as a sword to pulverize any opposition and corrupt fellows from other places. If Leng Xiu truly inspected the goods at the gate, it would be impossible to smuggle goods anymore.
'I can't speak carelessly from now on. The young administrator before me is exceptional. He doesn't show any weakness while not pushing me into the corner.'
If he was pushed into the corner, the merchant association could leave some damage to the city.
That was why Hao Yu gave him an opportunity to renew his method and agreement.
Wan Fei didn't know that the inspection was never discussed by Leng Xiu. So, Hao Yu just made that up in order to pressure Wan Fei. It seemed that his trick worked.
Wan Fei thought for a moment. 'He said earlier that he is in charge of most tasks, right?'
There was an idea flowing into his head and tried to pry some information from Hao Yu. "Sir Administrator, could you do us a favor? Since you're in charge of most tasks, do you happen to be in charge of the inspection?"
"Well, I might… or might not, depending on you." Hao Yu shrugged as if it wasn't his problem.
That answer was what Wan Fei was waiting for. If Hao Yu was in charge of the inspection, everything would be resolved as long as he gave Hao Yu enough advantage.
"Since Sir is new to the city, the merchant association has a custom to give a congratulatory gift to the new administrator. After all, the merchant association is happy with the existence of the government and will abide by the law.
"Considering Sir Administrator has set up a new division, I believe one thousand gold can be beneficial for your operation. In addition, because of the conflicts between the merchants and the citizens, I believe that one week is not enough to solve that problem. I will be extending it to two weeks, allowing the citizens to recuperate from the financial loss.
"Of course, the merchant association will assure you that the price will be kept on the normal level until the completion of the dam." Wan Fei finished his offer with a smile, thinking it wasn't a small price to pay.
The money aside, the discounted price would lead to a massive riot among the merchants. However, if they got confirmation regarding the dam, it shouldn't be that much of a problem to calm them down.
However, they had one problem. It was the explosive powder. The dynasty had forbidden the possession of the explosive powder unless they were associations or groups that were directly related to the government.
While the merchant association was under the government, they were still like an independent group. So, Hao Yu could easily take them down with this excuse and confiscate all their possessions. The supply he got from them should be enough to cover most of the expense until the dam was completed.
But when hearing the offer, Hao Yu actually furrowed his eyebrows as if he didn't like it.
Of course, to bribe someone, Wan Fei offered the lowest price. So, when he saw Hao Yu's reaction, he could still raise the condition further.
Wan Fei immediately reacted to Hao Yu's change of expression. "How about two thousand gold? In addition, we will ensure the constant flow of supply to the city. In exchange, please become the inspector and turn a blind eye to our goods."
Hao Yu maintained his calm as if he was satisfied with most of the conditions, but still thought it was still just a bit too low.
Wan Fei gritted his teeth and raised it one more level. "Five thousand gold. We can't offer you more than that or it will be too much of a loss and it's better to just leave the city."
"What will happen to the goods that are going to rot soon? Are you throwing them away?"
"Y-yes." Wan Fei didn't know why Hao Yu asked that question. Since they wouldn't be good anymore, obviously, they had to throw them away.
"Instead of throwing them away, the government will buy them from you. State the price!"
Wan Fei was quite surprised that Hao Yu actually gave another opportunity. Since the goods were going to be thrown away, it would be better to get some money out of it.
However, Wan Fei realized that this might be another test from Hao Yu.
"Half… No, you only need to pay a fifth of the original price. It's going to be thrown away anyway, but since it's not at that level yet, please buy it from us."
Hao Yu nodded his head. "In exchange, I will process the dam as well as the inspection. Since the magistrate trusts me, it shouldn't be much of a problem convincing him. Don't worry, I will send a trusted subordinate there and just do the usual check and let the carriage continue."
"Thank you, Sir." Wan Fei felt relieved. Despite being young, he was quite greedy. He thought, 'The explosive powder is still an expensive commodity, so we can recover most of our loss through the sales. I guess we have to stay low for the time being…'
"Alright then." Hao Yu just ate his portion before asking the staff to pack up the rest. Since the merchant association was paying for the food, he could treat his subordinates with delicious food without paying anything.
In addition, Hao Yu managed to get the money and other conditions just by stating something they didn't know. There was no inspection or whatsoever, but the merchant association had no way of knowing it since Hao Yu was a new division reporting directly to the magistrate. Even other administrators wouldn't know about Hao Yu's works.
However, what Hao Yu really wanted was not all of those, but the inspection. With this, Hao Yu was one step further toward achieving what he wanted in the Dragon City.