ctnovel Chapter 19 Escort Services
Chapter 19 Escort Services
Jiang Yong took a sip of tea, very satisfied with Professor Xu's aptitude.
However, having just used a combination of kindness and threats to barely win him over, he had no intention of making exorbitant demands right now—if he really wanted to rip someone off, the opportunity earlier would have been better than this.
He thought for a moment, then picked up a pen and paper from the table and quickly wrote down a list of materials before handing it to him.
"I hope to get these things by tomorrow; it shouldn't be difficult for you."
Professor Xu took the list, glanced at it, and nodded: "Most of them are common materials. I also have access to a few rare items, and I can prepare them tonight along with the money."
He paused, then asked somewhat curiously, "But the materials on this are so mixed up. There are materials for making fusion balls, for making fire adaptation modules, for concocting recovery potions, and even these things that don't seem to have anything to do with elf training... What are you trying to make?"
He had heard Xiao Fan's report on the morning's events and knew that Jiang Yong was a highly skilled craftsman. Combined with the function of the Cortia, it wasn't hard to guess what Jiang Yong was planning to create for himself.
"You don't need to worry about that, it's good stuff anyway."
Jiang Yong glanced at Professor Xu speechlessly—he was going to build an important device with specifications that exceeded the level of Carlo Star, so how could he easily tell others?
Besides, aren't we in the middle of a tense and exciting negotiation in the black market? How can you directly pry into the other party's background like this? Can't you be a little more serious? The atmosphere I was finally getting into is completely gone.
As for where the confrontations are or where the tension and excitement are, don't worry about that. This is the black market, and that's the atmosphere we're after.
"Besides these, I would also like to borrow the internal information on spirits from Nancheng University," he continued, mentioning things that Professor Xu could easily do.
This is one of the reasons why he chose to seek out Professor Xu instead of others. Professor Xu is not of a high level and is easy to manipulate. Moreover, he can easily obtain a large number of things that Jiang Yong currently needs. He is the most cost-effective collaborator he can find for the time being.
"That's easy. You can come with me to the school's library later."
Professor Xu looked relaxed and readily agreed without hesitation.
"Good, good, there's one last thing."
Jiang Yong nodded in approval, then his expression turned serious, and he leaned forward slightly, saying, "If I'm not mistaken, after we finish talking, you'll probably go back and stockpile supplies and reinforce the exit routes out of the city?"
"...That's right."
Professor Xu's heart skipped a beat: "But don't worry, although others might see that I got the information in advance, I won't reveal the source of the intelligence. We're collaborators now, after all, and I still have that much credibility."
"That doesn't matter."
Jiang Yong shrugged – he hadn’t deliberately concealed his whereabouts. With the intelligence efficiency of the Yunqi Black Market, especially the management system where Professor Xu was located, as long as he investigated carefully, he could find out who Professor Xu had met with before he showed signs of abnormality without spending too much effort.
However, he never intended to hide it from the black market from the beginning. On the contrary, he wanted them to come to him, bringing him more opportunities and missions. Moreover, based on his understanding of the Yunqi black market, there was a 99% chance that the first wave of people who found him would turn around and help him erase his traces, so that he could monopolize a mysterious source of information and save himself a lot of trouble later.
After sorting out his thoughts, Jiang Yong continued, "The reason you did all this is simply because once the news of the war is confirmed on a small scale, a large number of wealthy people will leave Yunqi City in advance through your channels, allowing you to make a fortune. And if something really goes wrong, it will be easier for you to escape, right?"
Professor Xu nodded without replying, secretly wondering about Jiang Yong's purpose in saying those words.
"If that's the case—"
Jiang Yong flashed a bright smile: "Interested in making another fortune?"
"Oh?"
Professor Xu was somewhat surprised. He had just thought Jiang Yong wanted a share of the profits and was calculating how to minimize his losses: "How exactly?"
"Although Yunqi City has some strength, it is still adjacent to the two major cities of Tiandu and Cuifeng, especially Tiandu City, which personally apprehended the smugglers this time. In the face of a large city-state that does not have to worry about the rules, Yunqi City will be at a great disadvantage."
Jiang Yong slowly explained, "Once the situation becomes tense, these major cities will definitely control the borders of Yunqi City, and not just the parts bordering them, but all four sides of the border will be monitored to increase pressure on the black market. If you want to travel to other city-states under such circumstances, you either have to take a long detour through the southern mountains, or you have to break through the blockade of the major city-states. Both routes are very risky."
Professor Xu nodded. He was planning to contact his partners in several neighboring city-states after he returned to discuss reinforcing the smuggling routes, specifically to prevent this from happening again.
"Of course I know that... wait a minute,"
His eyes suddenly lit up, and he probably guessed Jiang Yong's idea: "You want to hire bodyguards?"
"That's right."
Jiang Yong laughed and said, "For an expert-level player like me, the reward for a single escort job is at least fifteen high-quality gold coins, right? And it's hard to say how much it could increase during extraordinary times."
"I'd like you to act as an intermediary, introducing me to your clients. I'll decide the commission. And after everything is agreed upon, I'll give you 10% as a referral fee. What do you think?"
"Okay, okay!"
Upon hearing this, Professor Xu's old face immediately broke into a wide smile; while the shopkeeper, who had already retreated to a distance, looked on with envy and jealousy—someone with his skill level could only earn four or five gold coins per order.
Professor Xu isn't the only channel for business outside Yunqi City; his main clients come from his own circle of acquaintances, and he occasionally has to compete with other professionals for business. But having a top-tier expert as a brand name significantly increases his appeal!
Moreover, while Jiang Yong's promised 10% referral fee may seem small, given the impending turmoil, this 10% could very well amount to two or three high-quality gold coins. Since he's in the middle of the smuggling chain, he typically earns around ten gold coins from each client. Jiang Yong's referral fee effectively allows him to earn an extra 20-30% out of thin air!
In reality, Jiang Yong had no connections in Yunqi City. Theoretically, he could have negotiated further and eventually raised the referral fee to around 20%. However, given Jiang Yong's previous display of fighting prowess, Professor Xu had absolutely no intention of bargaining at this moment—that's the benefit of a carrot and stick approach.
However, in this way, he was essentially using his own reputation to vouch for Jiang Yong; it was also possible that Jiang Yong was actually a spy from the Great City-State, and that he was doing this kind of business on the black market to fish for fish—but what did that have to do with him?
In any case, with the situation so turbulent, everyone is only after quick profits; no one is willing to risk their reputation and life for the sake of it. He would never let anyone else know about the escape route he had prepared. He was sitting back and collecting his money; what was there to be afraid of?
Professor Xu no longer cared about carrots and sticks—sticks are fine, the important thing is that these carrots smell absolutely delicious!