"A profit of ten thousand from one?"
Old Master Lin picked up a cup of tea that had been prepared long ago and took a slow sip. "Miss Song, aren't you speaking too absolutely?"
"Before Master Lin has even heard my proposal, how can you deny it?" Song Qingchao couldn't help but retort.
Old Master Lin smiled. "Miss, the market is not good right now. To be honest, my heart is only with Wanwan."
As he mentioned Lin Tingwan, a trace of heartache flashed across his face.
Song Qingchao lowered her gaze and thought for a moment. "Wanwan's illness is not without a cure."
"What!" Old Master Lin suddenly stood up agitatedly.
He quickly realized his loss of composure and placed his hands in front of him before sitting down again. "May I know, Miss?"
Song Qingchao gave him face and directly continued, "To be frank, you know I am from out of town. My companion is Bai You'an, Mr. Bai, and he is currently at Guangji Temple discussing a prescription with Young Master Xiang. They have already made a breakthrough."
As she said this, she looked up at Old Master Lin, drawing out the end of her sentence as if deliberately slowing down.
"Moreover... we have found the medical ghost."
"What!" Old Master Lin stood up again, losing his composure. A man who had navigated the business world for many years was now so distraught over his daughter.
Song Qingchao couldn't help but feel surprised.
This Lin Tingwan truly had something about her.
She turned her head, her gaze sweeping over the teacups on the table, and then her fingers toyed with the lid of a teacup. "I can guarantee here that if there is progress outside, your daughter Wanwan will be the first to receive the medicine."
"What are the conditions?"
Song Qingchao watched him sit back down steadily. As expected, he was a shrewd businessman who knew there was no such thing as a free lunch.
"Don't rush, Master Lin. Why don't you consider my proposal first? I will need your assistance with my business."
Song Qingchao's eyes were full of determination. She took out a ruby and, with a "clack," placed it on top of the token on the table, then pushed them forward with two fingers.
Only then did Old Master Lin's gaze fall upon the tabletop.
He had only been thinking about how to send the people away and hadn't considered that the visitors would have such great influence.
"Xiyun Pavilion?" he asked with a frown, his voice full of confusion. "Or is it Black Oriole!" The latter part of his sentence was rising, tinged with a trace of shock.
He pointed at the token. "Miss, are you perhaps the boss behind this?"
Song Qingchao used her fan to press his finger down. "Master Lin, can we talk properly now?"
"Yes," Old Master Lin said solemnly.
Song Qingchao instantly felt a sense of relief, but she did not relax at all.
The person opposite her was a smiling fox. Cooperating with such a person, if she didn't maintain peak vigilance, she would easily be devoured.
"You've seen this gem. You should know its price in Da Yuan, but in Xiyu, it's as cheap as a stone due to its rarity." She let her final words fall heavily, making no attempt to hide her ambition. "What I want to do is this barter business."
Old Master Lin nodded understandingly. This was a business he had wanted to do for a long time but had never had the means.
As for the caravan matters, he had also been planning them, but there were always issues with lacking procedures, language barriers, or not having a guide.
Therefore, he had to seize the olive branch extended by Xiyun Pavilion!
But...
Song Qingchao could see his thoughts.
She took the ruby into her hand, the sunlight making it even more dazzling.
"There are three conditions for our transaction: first, I want Lin Tingwan to go with me; second, I want you to open your shops and maintain normal social supply, and the grain prices must not rise; thirdly..."
Song Qingchao deliberately drew out the end of her sentence and then, holding her fan, pointed to the beam on the ceiling and the hidden door behind her. "I want these eight people."
Old Master Lin was stunned for a moment, then stroked his beard and laughed. "I had thought Miss was highly skilled in martial arts, but I didn't expect you to be able to discern people as well."
He clapped his hands and called out for the people.
Immediately, eight people emerged from various corners of the room, kneeling neatly on the ground with their heads bowed.
They were broad-shouldered and long-legged, clearly elite hidden guards trained for years.
Song Qingchao tapped the hand resting in front of her.
With such skills, they were certainly not trained by a mere wealthy merchant.
"Firstly, I can give these eight to you, but it depends on whether you have the ability to subdue them. They do not serve me, they are merely temporarily residing in the manor."
Old Master Lin couldn't help but frown. "Regarding the second point, my family's assets and inventory must be supplied to Guangji Temple. If social supply is opened, Guangji Temple will not be able to provide. Lastly, I will not let Wanwan go with you. I cannot be at ease."
Song Qingchao simply laughed.
As she listened to Old Master Lin speak from the back, she knew that it would be difficult to make Lin Tingwan go with her.
"You don't need to worry so much. With three doctors present, what is there to fear?" Song Qingchao straightened her posture. "Not to mention your household resources, just concerning the epidemic, no one knows if there will be any sequelae or complications. It is truly safe for Wanwan to go with me."
She also spoke conversely, addressing Old Master Lin's priorities first.
"Secondly, the epidemic will end in at most a month. Afterward, supplies will be restored, and traffic will resume, and the operation will be carried out. I heard the abbot say that the inventory is sufficient for the winter, so Master Lin only needs to provide half of the goods to resolve the urgent need."
Song Qingchao finally stood up, holding her handkerchief, and walked to the front of the eight people. "As for them, Master Lin need not worry. I am taking them with me for Miss Wanwan's safety."
Twisting and turning, she kept circling back to Lin Tingwan. She refused to believe that after saying all this, Old Master Lin would still be so stubborn.
She did not rush to get an answer from Old Master Lin.
Instead, she carefully examined the eight people kneeling, feeling more and more that she was getting a good deal.
Meanwhile, Old Master Lin, standing behind her, also fell into deep thought while staring at her back.
Xiyun Pavilion had existed since he took over the Lin family.
It did not have many shops, but it was undoubtedly a divine existence within the merchant circles.
Its value was not in how much money it could make, but in its extensive reach.
No matter what commodity or what channel, as long as Xiyun Pavilion was willing, it could achieve it.
Most importantly, it could even anticipate trends.
What commodities were popular and what were niche, it knew it all.
Xiyun Pavilion's existence was like the manipulator behind the market. Which merchant would not want to cooperate with Xiyun Pavilion?
And Xiyun Pavilion's supplier selection mechanism was extremely strict, with only one being chosen each year.
Since taking over the Lin family, he had participated in Xiyun Pavilion's selection every year, but each time he had narrowly missed out.
Old Master Lin immediately corrected his attitude.
He felt that he should not give up this opportunity.
But...
Although he very much wanted to do business with Xiyun Pavilion, he would not agree if it came at the cost of sacrificing his daughter.
Wealth was an external possession; he was not that insane.
"Master Lin need not think about having the three doctors stay in your manor. They will not abandon a city for the sake of one person's life. You should understand this."
The worry in Old Master Lin's heart instantly subsided.
Song Qingchao seemed to have grasped his thoughts and continued, "No one knows what will happen in this month, nor is it certain when the prescription will be finalized, let alone whether your daughter Wanwan will be able to hold on until that time."
She suddenly turned around. "So, do you still hesitate?"