Enzo was surprised when Douglas, upon hearing the price, didn't negotiate further but immediately agreed, fearing Enzo might reconsider. Hastily, he declared, "Deal!"
In that instant, Enzo realized something—he had undervalued the goods!
"Douglas really is a cunning merchant!"
Douglas, meanwhile, was inwardly ecstatic, thinking, "With pottery like this, if sold to the Gold Oak Tribe, it could easily fetch at least a thousand gold leaves. I'm going to make a fortune!"
Outwardly, however, Douglas maintained a facade of sadness.
Enzo quietly observed Douglas's performance, thinking to himself, "According to Brian's report, once we convert the old tribe camp into a dedicated pottery workshop, we could produce seventy to eighty pieces like these every day... That's a tremendous wealth potential."
Both men were satisfied in their own way.
Though they appeared to be at a loss.
Enzo gently reminded Douglas, "Mr. Douglas, these pottery pieces are priced at seven hundred gold leaves, but the goods you've brought are valued at only two hundred seventy."
Douglas nodded and retrieved the gold leaves from his pouch.
However, Enzo shook his head and asked, "Mr. Douglas, are these yaks for sale?"
Douglas was taken aback, "Yaks?"
He looked at the yaks and suddenly brightened up.
With all the goods sold, he wouldn't need the yaks to transport them anymore. The journey back to the Gold Oak Tribe was long, taking several months round trip. If anything happened to the yaks on the way, like falling ill or dying, it would be a huge loss.
Quickly, Douglas said, "They're for sale!"
He quoted a price, "These yaks are very gentle in nature and incredibly strong. Each one has cost me a hundred gold leaves. If Priest Enzo is interested, I can sell them at cost price."
Of course, whether it was cost price or not, only Douglas knew.
Enzo was convinced that Douglas was a cunning merchant and didn't entirely trust his words. However, instead of bargaining, he waved his hand and said, "I'll take all eight yaks."
Douglas was overjoyed but realized something was amiss. He quickly said, "I'll take all of them, but this..."
Before he could mention that Enzo's offer wasn't enough, another similarly sized pottery jar was placed in front of him, equally vibrant in color.
Douglas was dumbfounded.
He realized a problem: these colorful pottery jars were not unique.
This made Douglas feel deceived, and he loudly protested, "Priest Enzo, why is there another one? If they're not unique, the value of these colorful pottery jars would plummet!"
Enzo countered, "Did I ever say there was only one?"
Douglas could only manage a wry smile, unable to argue back.
From the beginning, Douglas had believed that the colorful pottery was a unique find known only to him.
Enzo chuckled and said, "For the two pottery pieces, it totals fourteen hundred gold leaves. The total value of your goods is eleven hundred pieces. According to your proposal of a ten percent discount, that comes to nine hundred and ninety pieces. So, you still owe me four hundred and ten gold leaves."
Douglas took the pottery jars and smiled back.
He praised, "Priest Enzo, you are the shrewdest person I've ever met."
After saying this, he handed over the required amount of gold leaves and asked, "Priest Enzo, can you tell me how many more pieces of this pottery the Crimson Star Tribe has?"
After a moment's thought, Enzo asked, "How many pieces are you looking for?"
Douglas wasn't foolish. Upon hearing this question, he understood Enzo's implication—however many he wanted, the Crimson Star Tribe had the capability to produce.
Understanding this, Douglas felt a bitter taste in his heart.
Once these goods appeared in large quantities, their rarity would diminish, naturally lowering their value.
However...
In this remote jungle area, where few other traveling merchants ventured, these colorful pottery pieces were known only to Douglas among the traveling merchants of the Gold Oak Tribe.
Douglas was immensely excited inwardly.
After carefully calculating his current wealth and reserves, Douglas said, "Priest Enzo, I am very keen on trading with the Crimson Star Tribe again. Next time I come, I will bring enough goods. I hope your tribe can provide twenty pieces of this pottery."
Twenty pieces amounted to over ten thousand gold leaves.
If exchanged for yaks, that would be more than a hundred!
Yet, what he offered was merely the output of the pottery district for three days, and only a portion at that. The colorful pottery represented a tiny fraction of the total production.
Trade was indeed a pleasing affair.
Enzo smiled and replied, "No problem, Mr. Douglas. It's been a pleasure doing business with you."
Douglas echoed, "Likewise."
Douglas then took out a few bamboo slips and picked up a charred twig, using the black charcoal tip as a pen to record the transaction. He also asked, "Priest Enzo, what goods do you need?"
Over ten thousand gold leaves was a substantial amount.
Douglas didn't have enough gold leaves to pay, but he had plenty of other goods: various plant seeds, yaks, iron tools, and some exile slaves.
When Enzo heard about the slaves for sale, he frowned initially but then considered it reasonable.
It could serve as a source of labor for the tribe.
With crops like potatoes and sweet potatoes reaching high yields and filling up a warehouse, enough to sustain the tribe for about five months. Furthermore, with improved soil fertility, they could harvest another crop cycle to yield more potatoes and sweet potatoes.
The food crisis of the Crimson Star Tribe was temporarily alleviated.
However, a new problem arose.
Labor shortage.
The Crimson Star Tribe urgently needed manpower for constructing the camp, exploring the jungle and beyond, hunting sufficient wildlife for fur to make clothing, and protecting against the cold.
Enzo stated, "I need a large quantity of exile slaves, as well as yaks and animal hides."
Hearing Enzo's request, Douglas thought for a moment and advised, "Priest Enzo, in the Gold Oak Tribe, the price for exile slaves is only ten gold leaves each. However, Gold Oak Tribe is over three thousand kilometers away, which is an extremely long distance. Along the way, there could be various risks and challenges.
The cost of transporting those exile slaves here would be considerable, similar to the price of these yaks."
Douglas wasn't exaggerating in this matter.
Yaks could graze on wild grass along the way, but slaves required provisions like food, water, and even some animal hide clothing to prevent starvation or illness on the journey.
The losses involved in transporting slaves could easily multiply several times over the purchase price.
Enzo, however, remained confident, thinking of the pottery pieces they had produced. He said, "Mr. Douglas, for our next trade, if you can provide one hundred yaks and one hundred live exile slaves, I will not only compensate you for these but also gift you ten additional pieces of colorful pottery! Furthermore, I guarantee there will be other surprises in store for you."
Enzo then took out the remaining three pieces of colorful pottery, stating, "Consider these three pieces as a down payment."
Douglas felt his heart racing.
Considering the enormous profit potential, he gritted his teeth and promptly replied, "No problem, Priest Enzo. I promise to satisfy you completely in our next trade!"
Enzo smiled and said, "Good!"
They shook hands, sealing the deal for the new trade.
After the deal was finalized, Douglas didn't rush to leave.
After traveling such a distance, he and his caravan members needed some rest. Enzo called Lupus to guide Douglas and his party around the camp.
Though areas like the industrial and training zones were strictly off-limits.
Under Lupus's guidance, Douglas and his companions were greatly impressed, especially witnessing the cultivation of crops in the fields and the construction of enclosures for young animals. These activities broadened Douglas's perspective, making him realize that besides hunting, tribes could have more stable food sources.
This was something the Gold Oak Tribe had never achieved.
Douglas and his group stayed at the new Crimson Star Tribe camp for four days.
During this time, another heavy rainstorm occurred.
Inadvertently, Douglas revealed, "On our way here, many tribe camps were destroyed by the rainstorms, and many people became exiles. They seem to be heading this way."
Enzo expressed gratitude, saying, "Thank you for the warning."
Under the threat of hunger and death, exiles could easily turn into plunderers.
However, the Crimson Star Tribe showed no fear.
After mentioning the situation, Douglas briefly touched on the Gold Oak Tribe.
He remarked, "The Gold Oak Tribe is a large tribe, rumored to have over a hundred thousand, maybe even a million people. But aside from the priest of the Gold Oak Tribe, others aren't clear... The most interesting thing about the Gold Oak Tribe is their market. They've built a huge market, almost the size of three lakes put together.
Every day, many people trade at the market, some coming from distant places."
Upon hearing Douglas's description, many members of the Crimson Star Tribe felt a sense of longing.
Finally, in the Crimson Star Tribe, Douglas received the admiration he sought.
Was this what he desired?
Douglas was pleased and continued to recount traveling merchant stories.
However, Enzo didn't seem particularly impressed.
Having witnessed the prosperity of modern societies, he naturally lacked interest in primitive-era markets. Yet, an idea sprouted in Enzo's mind... What if they could establish a market in the Crimson Star Tribe, introduce currency, and strengthen connections with other tribes?
Over time, they might integrate other tribes in a different manner.
This had potential!