""Diego Casals."
"Siegfried Otto Lilin."
The friendly exchange of names made the friendly atmosphere seem more genuine and natural. Though the parties involved didn't take this atmosphere to heart, it was still a necessary lubrication for the whole transaction to proceed smoothly to the end.
"To get a recommendation from that astute Wali at this age is rare indeed."
Casals emphasized 'age' and 'rare', giving the young man a slight compliment. However, the other party's response was only a business-like smile which deepened for a nearly missed instant and then continued with a gracious demeanour, without any joy, small pride, or envy on his face like his peers behind him.
"It is my honour to collaborate with an outstanding business veteran like Mr. Casals."
A flustered person in front of a big shot is not enough to amount to anything. It's rude and ridiculous to intentionally show off and elevate oneself.
Appropriate flattery and calm response are the basics of doing business negotiations.
Teacher Li Lin has already completed the transition to businessman Li Lin. The adjustment process ended in a very short time. The audience could not perceive the traces of the transition at all, it was smooth and natural, without any discordance.
The AI simulating emotions exuded genuine enthusiasm, with a sincere voice tempting Casals' interest and fundamental…desire.
"Let me introduce you to the star of this transaction, a cutting-edge artistic creation, porcelain, made with our unique technology and excellent craftsmanship."
The white porcelain vase, which had been freed from the bondage of the ropes, wooden box, and shock-absorbing straw, had its last veil removed. The soft reflection, the graceful curves, the enchanting blue patterns stretched out, the unheard-of, unique foreign beauty, coupled with the seller's in no way exaggerated words, attracted the attention of Casals and his subordinates. Tracing the smooth curves so slippery that even small insects would find it hard to perch on, the man with the name of Castile let out a trembling, heavy breath, just like the obscene panting of a man deflowering a virgin.
"Oh…what a beautiful, smooth…uh…porcelain?"
"Porcelain, a high-class art piece carved with great care, a new thing capable of starting a trend."
"A new way to make money". Without Li Lin explicitly saying it, Casals gets it himself while listening to the pleasant sound in his ear of the clinking and stacking of gold and silver coins.
"Indeed, it's a good thing."
Casals suppressed his hot breath, but the obsession of appraising and playing did not extinguish with it. Greed still lingered in his green eyes, tangled with the exquisite porcelain vase and those several wooden boxes, secretly calculating their value, planning routes of resale, and—preparing for bargaining.
"100 Florentinus."
The old fox of the commercial world raised one finger, smirking with a face oozing confidence and a bit of pain. Those who have no experience in bargaining would definitely be deceived by their excellent acting.
Young elves were playing out the plot of being tricked—gasping, swallowing, whispering—all kinds of inappropriate reactions showed their reaction to seeing 100 gold coins as expected from poor country boys.
"Growth is a process of constantlystumbling and paying tuition."
Having tested his own cognition from the elves, Li Lin, who did not want to waste time and money, decided to waive a high tuition fee for these future subordinates to enter the market.
"The price is indeed attractive and suitable, but…"
The little fox put on a helpless expression, shrugged his shoulders, opened his hands and spoke in a bitter smile:
"We hope that this transaction can be carried out in the form of barter. You, a business veteran, should know how conspicuous a group of young people walking on the road with 100 Florentinus in their pockets would be and how much trouble it could bring. If the gold coins could be directly exchanged for the things we need, it would really be doing us a great favor, we would be very grateful."
To accept 100 gold coins from a guy who is in competition with the government for making money? What's the difference between that and receiving a box full of waste paper that couldn't be used, except the top one was genuine banknote? The credit limit of those involved in the counterfeit currency business was never worth mentioning, and perhaps only slightly higher than politicians.
Perhaps there are also bankers and lawyers…
Casals' thick eyebrows twitched; this proposal full of caution and doubt was not part of his plan. Suppressing his discomfort, the old fox continued to put on an approachable elder persona, answering mildly:
"Oh, my young friend. You must know, my business scope is limited. For me to buy things from unfamiliar circles for transactions is a time-consuming and laborious task, with a lot of unnecessary expenses in between—of course, that's your money, you have the final say. As for the safety issue you mentioned, to a magician with unknown secrets, can thieves and bandits actually be a problem?"
The smile on the old fox's face had turned into one of smugness by the end of his words, as if flaunting "you're still too young, your small tricks can't deceive me."
Information circulated quite well in the black market, and what Li Lin had gotten up to was no small matter. Although Casals' intelligence network was primitive, it was a small matter for the informants distributed in and around the marketplace to collect the story of this event with so many witnesses and report it to their boss. Therefore, Casals could now flaunt in front of the young magician without worrying that his anger would burn him, after all, in this market he was the only one left for Li Lin to conduct business with.