The welcoming banquet was arranged in a restaurant on the space station. The restaurant even had a VIP room, similar to the restaurant on Anvil's Songqing spaceship. Although the place wasn't big, the decorations were exquisite. It was like a splendid hall in an exhibition hall. The crystal glass on the walls constantly changed into images of clear water and green mountains. For people who often traveled through space, it had a serene beauty to it.
The exquisite square table was also filled with delicacies. Most of them were local specialties of Qiming No.1. The typical dish was the Spinefly Cod Fillet. This special fish produced in the Zhifan Star System was nutritious and melted in the mouth. It was one of the most popular delicacies for the rich people of the Holy Grail Federation.
Of course, the Zhifan Star System transported the ingredients to the Federation. The price of the ingredients itself probably wasn't enough to cover the cost of the transportation, so one could only imagine how high the price of this thing could fetch in the Holy Grail Federation. In any case, according to Dai Yi's casual answer, a plate of Spinefly Cod Fillet was worth four digits of star credits. It was so expensive that Ding Meng found it hard to imagine.
Facing the table full of dishes, Dai Yi had no interest in using her knife and fork. According to their previous arrangement, the person sitting at the table to discuss matters with her shouldn't be Butcher. Butcher didn't have the right to be on equal footing with her. The one who truly had the right to be on equal footing with her was the main character — the deputy commander of the Celestial Wolf Corps, Huang Long.
Butcher's explanation was rather far-fetched. "Brother Long received an urgent mission from the chief commander and flew to another star system. He'll probably only be back in a week. Before he left, he specifically instructed me to take good care of Miss Dai."
This meant that Butcher had full authority to negotiate with Dai Yi.
This caused the slight smile on Dai Yi's face to vanish. However, her good upbringing prevented her from showing her dissatisfaction. She only stretched out a slender finger and lightly tapped the cup in front of her. Her tone was thoughtful.
"Captain Butcher, I heard that Nightmare sold the reagent to Commander Huang for 920,000 star credits."
Butcher smiled and said, "Young Miss Dai, actually, Brother Long only found out after he bought it. It turns out that the item was stolen by Nightmare from the Green Arrow Corps. Furthermore, we spent far more than that. To be precise, we spent 982,100 star coins. However, that small change is negligible. The Green Arrow Corps doesn't lack money."
His answer could be said to be very strong, because he knew that Dao Dai was here to plead for Green Arrow, but he directly said that Green Arrow did not lack money, which made it clear that Green Arrow wanted to buy back at a high price, which would not work.
Dai Yi frowned: "Captain Ren, actually my visit this time has nothing to do with the Green Arrow Army. Our Dai Family only hopes that your army can sell this reagent to us. As for the price, we can discuss it. I can pay you within 2 million."
Not related to the Green Arrow Army?
As if I'd believe you!
Ren Tu thought so in his heart, but he did not dare to say it out loud. His face was still filled with a respectful smile: "Miss Dai, you must be joking. For you to personally come to Planet Qiming is already our Sky Wolf Army's honor. How can we have the qualifications to ask the Dai Family for a price?
That doesn't make sense. "
Dai Yi suddenly raised her head and stared at him with a pair of willowy eyes: "Captain Ren, I've come with sincerity."
Ren Tu felt his hair stand on end from her stare. The Dai Family was not considered a top-notch giant in the Holy Grail Federation, but they were not an organization that the forces in outer space dared to provoke. It was like the difference between a citizen of the Federation and an interstellar refugee. The difference in status was like the difference between heaven and earth. If they really wanted to take care of you, it would be very easy.
"I absolutely believe you!" Ren Tu puffed out his chest.
Dai Yi was a little impatient: "Let's put it this way. What do you need me to do for you to be willing to sell the reagent to me?"
"Miss Dai, you're joking again. We definitely can't cause you any trouble."
Ren Tu was still full of smiles, but his tone had changed. He muttered to himself: "Actually, our army has a small problem."
Dai Yi said: "What problem?
Tell me. "
Ren Tu pointed at a plate on the table and said: "Miss Dai, you've seen it for yourself. For example, this Spinefin Sturgeon fillet is very popular within the Federation, and it's only produced in the Zhifan Star System. Our Sirius Star System's ability to transport it is very limited. Every time we transport it to the space station at the border, the Federation taxes us too much. I wonder if Miss Dai can be magnanimous and lower the taxes a little?"
When he made this request, Ding Meng basically understood the truth of the matter. It turned out that the Sirius Star System had been eyeing the relationship between the Green Arrow and the Dai Family for a long time, and the Dai Family had a lot of say in the tax system of the Federation. The Sirius Star System was using the reagent as a threat in an attempt to lower the taxes and cut costs to increase the Star System's financial strength.
However, even an outsider like Ding Meng knew that Dai Yi would never agree to this request. This was not a matter of being magnanimous, but a matter of huge benefits.
Dai Yi suddenly smiled. Her smile was very unique. Her lips did not open, and only the corners of her mouth curved into an arc. It gave people the impression that this woman was both shrewd and proud, gentle and strange. In any case, no one could guess what she was thinking.
"Captain Ren, does your Star System think that this small bottle of reagent is worth that price?" Dai Yi asked with a smile.
Ren Tu put away his smile and said seriously, "I heard that this reagent is a newly developed sample. It can help one break through from beginner War Supremacy to intermediate War Supremacy. It can save at least a few years of time. Miss Dai, do you think it's worth that price?"
This time, Dai Yi and Ding Meng were both stunned. This was something they had never expected. After all, Bai Yue was not clear about the specifics of the reagent. When the Green Arrow Corps accepted the mission, they only knew to send the reagent from Blue Pole Star City to Dream Star City. The mission was that simple, but it turned out that there was such a big deal involved.
Everyone was an Origin Ability User, so they naturally knew how much of a price one had to pay to break through from one level to another. Even if a War Supremacy did not obtain such a reagent, once the formula was put into production, its value would be immeasurable.
However, Dai Yi was still smiling. "I don't know how much it's worth, but I do know one thing. This reagent should not be a reason for your Star System to make a request of me."
Ren Tu could not refute this point. You bought this thing from Nightmare Lord, which was not a legitimate reason. Now you want to make an unreasonable request? Do you think it's too valuable?
Or do you think the Dai Family is easy to bully?
"Miss Dai, I'm very sorry about this."
Ren Tu helplessly spread out his hands. His tone was very complicated. "You're a person of status, unlike us coarse old men. Our brothers don't have citizenship, and we spend our days in outer space, licking the blood from our blades. After today's meal, we might not be able to have another meal. The reagent is indeed very important to our Celestial Wolf Corps. It's fine if Miss Dai is not willing to be magnanimous. After all, not only is the Green Arrow Corps interested in buying this item, the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps is also interested in buying it. To tell you the truth, Brother Long went out this time to make contact with the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps …"
When he mentioned the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps, Ding Meng's right eye could not help but twitch. No wonder he kept feeling that something was wrong. It turned out that he had bumped into an 'old acquaintance'. His experience at Black Gold Base had left him with no good impression of the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps. He did not expect that he would have to deal with the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps again because of this' reagent 'incident.
Ren Tu's answer had obviously disrupted Dai Yi's rhythm. Now she knew at least one reason. The Green Arrow Corps' offer of 1.4 million Star Credits was not because the Celestial Wolf Corps did not want to give them face, but because the Celestial Wolf Corps did not care for such a small amount of money. What they wanted was bigger, so they refused.
However, the purchase price could not exceed 2 million Star Credits. This was not a matter of money, but a matter of 'degree'. Everything had to have a degree. If they went overboard, there would be no meaning.
Dai Yi clearly did not believe that the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps would offer a higher price. "If I may be so bold, how much does the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps intend to offer?"
Ren Tu smiled again. "To be honest, Miss Dai, the Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps intends to cooperate with us. Although their overall strength is not much, their transportation ability is very strong. To a large extent, they can make up for our lack of transportation."
The Celestial Wolf Corps had always been rich and self-sufficient. The Surprise Assault Mercenary Corps had a strong transportation ability and was densely packed with starships. The Green Arrow Corps had many hunters and was very famous. The Dragonslayer Corps had a large number of soldiers and were well-trained. The Extreme Thief Corps had a notorious reputation for committing all sorts of crimes … These five Corps could be said to be the five most mainstream Corps in the outer space star fields of the Holy Grail Federation. However, none of them were willing to submit to the other, and they rarely interacted with each other. For any two of them to 'cooperate' was a rather rare occurrence.
So that was how it was. Dai Yi gradually felt that this matter was becoming more and more troublesome, but she could not just stand by and do nothing. As such, she calmly said, "If that's the case, then the three of us can sit down and slowly discuss the terms. Captain Ren, what do you think?"
"This …" Ren Tu did not expect her to suddenly make such a move. According to Huang Long's plan, Dai Yi should have retreated in the face of difficulties, and then Ren Tu would have sent her back. This way, they could get rid of Green Arrow's request without offending the Dai family. It could be said to be the best of both worlds.
But now that Dai Yi had proposed a three-way meeting, not only did Ren Tu not have the guts to refuse, even the entire Celestial Wolf Corps could not refuse because this was a legitimate request. She was not using the Dai family's name to pressure them.
Seeing Ren Tu's hesitant face, Dai Yi's eyes stared at him. "Captain Ren, does your noble Corps have any difficulties with this?"
"No, no!"
Ren Tu quickly smiled. "If Miss Dai is sincere in coming to negotiate, we will definitely welcome her. However, Brother Long might not be back for another five or six days. I'm worried that Miss Dai won't be able to wait that long."
Dai Yi smiled. "I lack everything, but I don't lack time."
Ren Tu was at his wit's end. "If that's the case, then I'll arrange for a ship to send Miss Dai and Brother Ding to Meteor City."
Dai Yi said, "I was thinking the same thing. I've long heard that Meteor City is the masterpiece of your noble Corps. This is a good opportunity to visit it."