Lin Dongqing’s Rage
“The cost of buying isn’t that high to be honest. The issue is that they’re fragile and at high risk of breaking during transportation. That is why it costs so much. In addition, we do not thoughtlessly sell products. What we do is stock up a large volume of porcelains and stabilise their prices to a certain degree.”
Normally, businesses wouldn’t just let anyone into their warehouse. After all this time, the only warehouse I’d actually been in was the dwarves’ warehouse, not to mention the fact that they deliberately let us see it.
Albert’s family wasn’t considered an illustrious business family that, presumably, had the monopoly on porcelain goods in the South for no reason. There were incredibly exquisite porcelains neatly arranged in the warehouse, every box fitted with thick layers of straw to prevent the products from breaking.
From my side and with his arms folded, Albert informed, “The people there are not too eager to do business with us. They have a random egotistical aura about them similarly to the elves. But I can’t argue that you’d realise they had the capital to be confident once you visited their lands. I’ve never seen such a prosperous empire; not even Queen Sisi can hold a candle to them.
“Had I not coincidentally helped one of their officials at one point, I would not have had the right to bring this stuff back. They control the import and export of porcelains in their lands; you cannot buy them just because you want to. The reason I bought so much and stored them here is to allow their price to settle. I don’t need to hide this from you, but I do hope you won’t reveal it to anyone else.”
I nodded. I had seen the same strategy many times before. A monopoly allowed a business to hike the prices of their offering. I scanned the warehouse and suggested, “We are going to have to sell for a low price this time. We must steady the price to a certain degree so that lots of ordinary folks can afford them. I suggest slashing the prices by half. Sell some that aren’t worth much. So that would include those with minimal patterns on them. Also, I think that some nobles will visit. Since you’re the only business with porcelains, it’d be the best opportunity for them to purchase them at low prices. However, that’s exactly what we need. I don’t know the details of what the porcelains business are, so I won’t mindlessly give you suggestions. Do what you believe will be able to keep your losses to the absolute minimum.”
“The main thing is that I don’t know how much we’ll make from this, either. We’re doing this to obtain money from the ordinary folks, but would they really be willing to purchase this stuff? If nobody purchases them, our plan will completely fail, right?”
“You’re correct in theory; however, it won’t necessarily be the ordinary folks’ money. Even if only the nobles purchase from us, we still won’t be losing money. You’re in the porcelains industry. I don’t think we can control who buys from me. Do you still not know whether or not porcelains are a necessary luxury for everyone? You nobles fight for this stuff. Now, given that the ordinary folk try to live as nobles do, they’re bound to purchase them, too. Any household with some spare money will flock here to buy some porcelains. Moreover, you bring other things into the mix. The same principle applies. The only buying requirement is that they have enough money.”
“Mm… Indeed, this would allow me to have enough money. The challenge is whether or not we can get more shares. In addition, there is also the question of if they would be willing to sell shares to us.”
“That’s simple to deal with. At present, the only people willing to buy shares are you and the other businessman. Alas, owing to the steep price, neither of you continued to buy them. Lots of people have the goal of making money by buying low and selling high. The catch is that, without anyone willing to buy, things will remain the same; the shares won’t be worth much. Even if they’re more expensive than they previously were, it’s acceptable – relative to you. It’s the same as when you began to purchase the shares. The price can be acceptable. The price is now unreasonably expensive. All you have to do is show that you aren’t passionate about the shares. Then, they’ll quickly realise there’s not much hope. As a consequence, the price will drop on its own.”
“It seems that you have almost thought everything out. In that case, why do you not purchase the shares yourself? You are Her Majesty’s minister of business, so it would be simple to give some commands, no? I do not believe there is anyone who would dare to oppose Queen Sisi’s orders. Why did you choose to help me?”
I looked back at Albert with a bewildered look: “True, I am Her Majesty’s minister of business. That is precisely why I can’t ask her for power. I believe you understand her concerns over those with power. If I was that sort of person, you know what she’d do to me, don’t you? To add, I don’t have the capital required to do what you’re doing. If we rewind to a month ago, I might join in, but I can’t join your game when the price is up in the sky, can I? Therefore, my only option is to find an investor I can work with to work on it together.”
Albert nodded. Despite how much talking I had done, he was still worried about me getting revenge on him when I had yet to show any hostility. At least, I don’t think I did.
Sighing, I expressed, “If Achilles was still alive, I’d do this with Achilles. Unfortunately, he’s passed away, so I chose you, instead.”
“Yeah….? You and Achilles… were friends?”
“Not exactly. I’d say we just happened to occasionally work together for business. I quite liked him. It’s a pity that he passed away so soon.” I sighed again then calmly observed Albert. The way he gazed at me revealed a tinge of tension. I, however, calmly locked eyes with him so that he couldn’t read me. Indeed, he couldn’t tell what my true intentions were.
“Yeah…? Me, too. Achilles was also my friend, which is why I feel it’s a pity.” Though he said that, I noticed that Albert didn’t dare to look at me. Even though I was cognizant of the fact that businessmen were sometimes shameless, I never imagined anyone could be as shameless as him.
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