Huaya Nini wore a look of perfect candor.
The corners of Lilith's mouth turned up slightly, and she said with a smile, "Since the boss puts it that way, then we won't keep anything hidden either. To tell you the truth, we've come to talk about cooperation. We want to build a partnership with your Bailan Interstellar Trade Group."
"A partnership? Our Bailan Interstellar Trade Group is naturally wary. We're in business; we're wary of every partner. But before anything else, shouldn't we first know who the other side is? Right now you know our Bailan Interstellar Trade Group very well, while I don't even know where you come from. That's hardly the attitude of a partner, is it?" Huaya Nini asked outright.
Lilith answered with a smile, "Because the partnership we want to build with you isn't an ordinary partnership. It's the kind that can raise your Bailan Interstellar Trade Group to the place of the strongest interstellar trade group in the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes."
Huaya Nini's heart gave a jolt.
The strongest interstellar trade group in the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes.
That was the dream in the heart of nearly every Flower-Fairy interstellar trader.
Everyone knew very well that the size of a single interstellar trade group on its own had its ceiling.
And the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes behind them, holding shares in every Flower-Fairy interstellar trade group, could not favor any one of them either.
But if one could become the strongest interstellar trade group in the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes, one might be able to move the whole of the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes; with so great a platform in hand, how terrifying the power it could unleash would be
was something every Flower-Fairy interstellar trader knew very well.
But to reach that standard, didn't the share of the universe's interstellar trade market in your hands first have to pass 51% at the very least!
It looked like only half.
But for the ten strongest Flower-Fairy interstellar trade groups at present, it was a very hard thing.
The strongest Flower-Fairy interstellar trade group at present held a market share that had only just touched 30%.
There was still a great gap between that and 51%!
In her shock, Huaya Nini also wore a faintly scornful smile. "Your Excellency certainly talks big. I wonder what Your Excellency has to back such words?"
"We come from the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire." Lilith spoke, and told her where they came from.
Huaya Nini's expression froze for a moment; then disbelief, shock, mixed feelings and curiosity came into her eyes.
It seemed this interstellar trader did have her channels for gathering intelligence, and knew of the interstellar empire now riding so high of late.
"The Owl Dragon Empire. I've long heard the name. I never thought we would meet in circumstances like these." Huaya Nini's manner now was a good deal more respectful than before.
After all, she knew that what she faced was a T6 technology civilization that had just gained the upper hand in battle against the Devourer Civilization!
Among the interstellar civilizations her Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes had dealt with, it was a mighty presence that ranked in the top three on military strength alone!
"Then this… must be…" Huaya Nini's gaze settled on the masked man sitting in the captain's chair.
Knowing the intelligence on other interstellar civilizations and powers was an interstellar merchant's most basic skill.
And about this Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire there was one thing:
it was said that inside the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire, above all inside its armed forces, there was only one supreme male commander, and all the others were women.
And now the man sitting in the captain's chair; who he was……
Zhao Chen took off his mask and said calmly, "It's me."
Huaya Nini was greatly startled; she could not imagine what matter it could be
that would bring the Emperor of the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire to appear here in disguise.
Could it be… just as he had said before, to raise the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group to the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes' first throne in one stroke?
If earlier Huaya Nini had thought the idea a flight of fancy,
now… she felt it might not be altogether without a chance.
"The aim of our journey is just as we said before. We mean to build the deepest alliance with the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group. We'll give you everything you want," Zhao Chen said.
"Then you… what do you want to get from us?" Huaya Nini fixed her eyes on this Owl Dragon Emperor.
As an interstellar trader, she knew very well that pies did not fall from the sky in this world.
Behind anything at all, the price was written out plainly.
Zhao Chen said nothing.
Lilith, beside him, spoke instead; she set out her ideas for Huaya Nini, and painted the fine future of the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire and the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group working together.
It had to be said that Lilith, being a succubus, was truly very strong in this respect.
Even Zhao Chen, hearing the future Lilith described, could not help being tempted.
A long while passed.
Lilith's words came to an end.
Huaya Nini still wore a dazed look; she had sunk wholly into what this woman had just said.
Only after a long time did she come back to herself.
She looked somewhat warily at the woman before her, who had been smiling all along; she felt deeply how frightening this woman was.
In her sister's words, people with silver tongues like this were the most frightening; who knew when they would sell you, and you would be helping them count the money before you even noticed.
Huaya Nini swallowed, then said seriously, "What Your Excellency has said is a matter of great weight; it isn't mine to decide. But I can take you to see my sister. She is the head of the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group."
Zhao Chen looked at Lilith standing before him; this was just what Lilith had in mind.
They could, it seemed, have gone straight to see that Huaya Lanlan in the first place.
But that would not have worked as well; now, with this showing behind them, and this Huaya Nini on hand as a witness,
when they did see that Huaya Lanlan later on, they could reach their aim more smoothly and perfectly.
"No problem." Lilith agreed.
"Then next, all of you will come back with us to the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes' universe, and I'll arrange for you to see my sister," Huaya Nini said.
Lilith nodded, then said, "Then I'll trouble Your Excellency to be a little quick about it. His Majesty is very busy, and has other places to go."
Something changed slightly in Huaya Nini's eyes.
A great many thoughts came to her.
The Emperor of the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire had appeared here this time to look for a partner.
If her Bailan turned them down, the other side surely had other choices.
At that, Huaya Nini grew anxious at once.
"Please rest assured, both of you; I'll arrange it right away. If need be, I can go back with you to the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes' universe first, and hand matters here to my subordinates. We can set out in five hours at most. Within seventy-two hours I can arrange a meeting between the two of you and my sister," Huaya Nini promised solemnly.
The order had been delivered.
What remained was to wait for the unloading and the payment, and go back to the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes.
As for the payment, it could be hard currency of every kind, or other things of equal value.
Or else funds held in the Flower-Fairy Federal Interstellar Bank.
You read that right.
The Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes had a bank of their own, and it was the largest interstellar bank in cross-universe trade today.
Anyone could do business there, and the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes had set up offices in person in nearly every low-risk and medium-risk zone.
Someone might ask:
would everyone really feel safe keeping money there?
Very simple: because the Flower-Fairy name stood behind it!
And the reason Huaya Nini felt safe handing matters here to her subordinates
was that the high-risk part was basically over.
When the Flower-Fairies' interstellar transports here set out for home, they would raise a flag reserved for the Flower-Fairies, meaning a Flower-Fairy interstellar trade order had been completed.
What they carried was the Flower-Fairy interstellar trade group's payment.
If anyone attacked them at that point,
it would be taken as a declaration of war on the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes.
Some might think: what was there to fear from an interstellar power with no armed forces of its own?
At that point the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes would show you how terrifying money could be in this universe.
Even interstellar pirates, unless they were at the end of their rope, dared not offend this band of mad Flower-Fairy women.
It had happened once that a Flower-Fairy interstellar transport on its way home was plundered.
In the end the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes put up a bounty five times the size of that payment, without a second thought, to hunt the attackers down.
What became of them in the end can be imagined.
So it was that these Flower-Fairies had earned the title of "madwomen."
Lilith nodded with satisfaction. "Then we'll wait on Your Excellency's arrangements."
The video communication ended there.
On her side, Huaya Nini went off at once without a moment's rest to see to these things; and just as she had said, she at once handed everything still to be done on this order to subordinates she trusted.
On the other side, with the conversation over,
Zhao Chen looked at Lilith. "How sure are you that you can win over that Huaya Lanlan?"
"Completely."
Zhao Chen had not expected Lilith to be so confident.
He asked in some surprise, "Are you really so certain that Huaya Lanlan will agree to what you ask?"
"It isn't that I'm certain Huaya Lanlan will agree to what I ask. It's that I trust her character as an interstellar trader. Daring, greed, madness, coolness: those are the qualities of an interstellar trader. Of all the interstellar traders in the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes I've looked at, this Huaya Lanlan is the best of them. So she's bound to choose to work with us. Bound to!"
Hearing Lilith's words, cut and dried as they were,
Zhao Chen smiled faintly and said, "Then I'll wait for the performance you put on next, my lady Secretary-Officer."