"Why does everything seem so strange today?"
Watching Liliya turn around and leave, with an impish smile still on her face, Rocky was utterly confused. What was going on today? It was one thing that Aileen was acting out of sorts, but why did Liliya also seem off?
"Women, truly baffling..."
Shaking his head, Rocky put this intricate issue, one even the saints might not understand, to the back of his mind and continued with the Magic Energy Pen.
The situation Aileen found herself in, to be honest, had relieved him of concern.
Because it meant he didn't need to hold onto any hope for the negotiations; he just had to focus wholeheartedly on thinking of other methods. As for the matter of the rising yarn prices, and that shameless Jia Xi who wanted to use it to blackmail either him or Aileen, he naturally had ways to cope.
But the precondition was, he must successfully turn his Void Magic Armor into rune equipment, so as to further enhance its power!
So Rocky quickly cast all concerns aside and started to focus on drawing runes on the Armor.
A day passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the next morning.
The following morning, not waiting for Overseer Jia Xi to come to him, Rocky took the lead and called both him and Aileen to the City Lord's Hall.
"City Lord, have you made up your mind regarding this trade?"
Upon seeing Rocky, Jia Xi still wore the same polite smile as the previous two days, his demeanor courteous, radiating confidence.
"Overseer Jia Xi, the terms you've proposed..."
Just as Jia Xi was awaiting Rocky's reply, Aileen, who was standing next to Rocky, spoke first.
After a thorough conversation with Liliya, Aileen had evidently readjusted herself and was ready for a rematch with Jia Xi!
But just as she was about to speak, Rocky, from his position as the City Lord, gestured with his hand, interrupting her, and looked towards Jia Xi, "Overseer Jia Xi, about the price of yarn..."
"We accept."
Rocky said expressionlessly as he looked at Jia Xi.
"My Lord!"
Not only did Aileen, who was ready to challenge Jia Xi, freeze in shock upon hearing this, but Jia Xi himself also abruptly raised his head, looking incredulously at Rocky!
"My Lord..."
At this moment, Aileen couldn't worry about formalities and leaned close to Rocky's ear to say, "My Lord, I've thought of a way to deal with Jia Xi, please give me another chance…"
Aileen wasn't just making empty talk or being boastful this time, because after Liliya sent her home the day before, she adjusted her state and thought of a method to handle Jia Xi!
Jia Xi's unwillingness to budge in the negotiations, and his brazen confidence, were rooted in his belief that Thunderhawk City could only import yarn from the Azure Commerce Guild. However, if the Guild insisted on raising the yarn prices so much, Thunderhawk City could simply purchase the yarn at the same high prices from other Chambers of Commerce!
This approach might not benefit Thunderhawk City, as they would still need to spend more money to acquire yarn, but for the Azure Commerce Guild, it meant losing a client in Thunderhawk City!
And for Jia Xi, who had come for these negotiations, it would signify his failure. If he caused the loss of Thunderhawk City as a long-term and stable client, wouldn't that count as a failure?
This was exactly the bargaining chip Thunderhawk City needed!
And once she had this chip in hand, Aileen believed she could definitely drive the yarn prices down. Not to overpromise, but reducing the increased rate to within twenty percent was absolutely feasible!
Only, she never expected Rocky to suddenly agree to the other party's proposal, not planning to let her negotiate further. This was totally beyond her expectations, which was why she couldn't help but whisper to Rocky.
But in response to her whisper, Rocky simply smiled with an air of confidence, subtly shaking his head at Aileen before turning his gaze back to Jia Xi.
"Overseer Jia Xi, we'll go with the yarn price you've mentioned. Please, have your merchant ships offload the goods as soon as possible."
"Yes."
Looking up at Rocky, Jia Xi hastily affirmed.
However, his expression at that moment contained no joy whatsoever.
Logically, this outcome was precisely what he wanted. Although he didn't manage to get Aileen, he was, after all, a merchant. Having successfully concluded the deal, he should feel delighted regardless of the circumstances.
But Jia Xi could not bring himself to feel happy, as when his gaze fell upon Rocky, he experienced an unexplained pang in his heart!
In his sight, Rocky sat firmly in the City Lord's position, looking down on him with an expressionless face. This made Jia Xi extremely uncomfortable.
He had been in big situations before and had even personally dealt with City Lords of some medium-sized Sky Cities—individuals who were tycoons in these skies. The feeling Rocky gave him now was exactly the same as those giants!
That was why Jia Xi couldn't feel happy. He even thought... thought that maybe in this matter, he had gone a bit... too far?
Even though the negotiation concluded in his favor, had he possibly upset the City Lord before him?
"Just a lord of a broken little city, what do I have to fear!"
As soon as these thoughts emerged, Jia Xi quickly consoled himself. Rocky was nothing but the lord of a minor Sky City, struggling to protect himself. What was there to fear? Even if the City Lord remembered this with resentment, what could he do?
So, after a moment of self-reassurance, Jia Xi bowed to Rocky and left the City Lord's Hall to arrange for the cargo ships to be unloaded.
Once he had departed, Aileen, who couldn't understand at all why Rocky would behave this way, couldn't hold back any longer and finally blurted out:
"My Lord, why did you agree to his demands? I... I could have continued to negotiate with him…"
Aileen was originally very angry about Rocky's decision, which she found not only rash but also quite thoughtless. However, when she recalled her own performance the past couple of days, her confidence waned.
She even suspected that Rocky's impatience might be due to a lost hope in her...
However, Rocky's following words left Aileen stunned.
Rocky then smiled and said, "Aileen, I know of course you could have found a way, but for someone like Jia Xi, there's no need for my finance officer to go through such trouble. Just let him be."
After expressing his indifference, he switched topics and asked, "How are the arrangements for the Magic Stones coming along?"
"The merchants have already been contacted, and they will arrive within the next few days."
"Pay close attention to the sale of textiles as well."
"Understood."
"Another thing..."
After giving Aileen a few instructions, Rocky suddenly changed the subject,"I plan to send Thunderhawk City to the Eternal City, so prepare yourself—you're the one I'll be counting on when the time comes."
"The... Eternal City?"
The mention of Eternal City by Rocky made Aileen freeze, not understanding his intentions.
The Eternal City Rocky referred to was also a Sky City, but no ordinary Sky City. It was one of the biggest cities in the skies, known for being a God City!
The hierarchy of Sky Cities had been widely recognized many years ago.
Cities like Thunderhawk City, with populations under ten thousand, are all classified as small Sky Cities. Only when the population exceeds ten thousand do they qualify as medium-sized Sky Cities.
The population ceiling for medium-sized Sky Cities is one hundred thousand. Once the population exceeds one hundred thousand, it becomes a large Sky City. Canglang City, where the headquarters of Azure Commerce Guild is located, just barely exceeds the threshold with a population over one hundred thousand, making it a large Sky City.
But above the large Sky Cities is another level: the Divine Cities!
The so-called Divine Cities are the super-large cities with populations above one million.
In the whole sky, there are only ten Divine Cities, known as the Top Ten Divine Cities. These ten God Cities are the true behemoths of the skies, and the forces they represent are the most elite tycoons in the skies, dividing and ruling the sky among themselves.
Even among the Top Ten Divine Cities, the Eternal City mentioned by Rocky was the most special, as it is a neutral city open to all, belonging to no particular power, and also the largest trade center in the entire sky.
What puzzled Aileen was exactly this: Eternal City is a neutral city, to which Thunderhawk City could certainly go, but what for?
As the biggest trade city in the entire sky, those who go to the Eternal City either go for business or for leisure and enjoyment. But neither has anything to do with Rocky or Thunderhawk City!
Try as she might, Aileen couldn't fathom why Rocky wanted to go to the Eternal City, so she asked:
"My Lord, you want to go to the Eternal City… for what purpose?"
"Of course, to make money," he said.
Rocky looked at Aileen with a chuckle, "You'll know when the time comes."