Male Lead's Canon Fodder Wife-Chapter 1387: Secret Meeting ( 2 )

Li Chenmo looked at Houzi and said, "Brother Houzi, we can provide the grains and lower the price by 5%. But we want the government to turn a blind eye regarding the grain business in the capital."

Hearing his words, Houzi was taken aback. Never in history had any middleman dared to voice such a request, let alone blatantly ask for permission to do business under the government's nose.

Even though he was an undercover agent, his actions and decisions were still limited by his current identity as a black market middleman and he had to play his part as a cover.

If he managed to pull this off, he would be able to make another deal with Li Chenmo and leave some of his goods in his store for sale. That way, even if he didn't open his shop in town for a few months, he would still have a steady income from the capital.

After weighing the pros and cons, he nodded and said, "Brother Li, I will try my best to negotiate this matter. But I can't promise it will work."

Li Chenmo smiled and said, "Brother Houzi, you don't need to worry. They don't have any other choice but to agree to my terms."

"For them, 100 tons of grain is far from enough to solve the food shortage crisis in the capital. But to buy more, they don't have enough funds."

"At most, they will only be able to distribute the grain to important people and workers to stabilize the political situation. As for the commoners, they will need a much larger quantity to calm things down."

"Even if the government is willing, they would only be able to recoup a portion of the cost by selling the grain to the commoners, which would affect other areas of government spending. After all, the commoners don't have the same purchasing power as wealthy families, officials, or workers."

"So if someone is willing to sell grain at a lower price and help them solve this urgent matter, do you think they would refuse?" he added with a meaningful smile.

When he finished his explanation, Houzi was stunned. He hadn't considered it from that angle, having focused only on the government side of the situation.

Indeed, as Li Chenmo said, the root cause of the capital's instability wasn't the higher-ups, the wealthy, or the workers. It was the commoners and the farmers.

People who had nothing to lose and were desperate to survive would dare to do anything. And such people were the hardest to control or predict.

Upon realizing this, Houzi smiled and said, "Brother Li, you truly have a brilliant mind."

Noticing his gaze, Li Chenmo replied, "Brother Houzi is overpraising me. We are both profit-seekers businessmen. If you can help secure this deal, I will promise you one thing."

Hearing this, Houzi chuckled and said, "Since Brother Li has said so, I won't hide my intentions. I want to leave some of my goods in your store in the capital. You will get 5% of the sales for helping me sell the items."

Li Chenmo smiled and said, "Brother Houzi certainly knows how to maximize profit."

After a moment, he nodded and added, "As long as you can get the written agreement, you can send your goods directly to the capital."

"Good," Houzi said, feeling delighted.

Once they reached an agreement, he added, "As for the delivery fee—"

Li Chenmo raised his eyebrows and said, "Brother Houzi, you are not going to ask me to cover that, are you?"

"Of course not," Houzi said with an awkward laugh.

"Eldest Brother-in-law, since they are the ones who need our help, you can increase the fee by 5 to 10%. Don't worry about whether they will agree or not. At most, we just won't do the deal if they refuse," Li Chenmo added casually.

Upon hearing this, Lu Han realized his brother-in-law was helping him earn more profit and said, "That's a matter of course."

Sitting beside them, Houzi let out a long sigh. He was talking to Lu Han, but those words were pointed at him and served as a warning.

It seemed the so-called 5% discount from Li Chenmo would end up being used to cover the delivery fee.

Thinking of his maternal cousin, he sighed inwardly and thought, 'Cousin, I'm sorry. I tried my best to negotiate a lower price, but this man is just too cunning. You have to pay the regular price to cover the delivery fee.'

When they finished discussing the details, Lu Han stood up and said, "Brother-in-law, Jueyu, it's late. We will take our leave now."

"Okay."

After Li Chenmo saw them off, he and his wife returned to their bedroom and entered Lu Jueyu's space.

The next day, Houzi sent a message to his maternal cousin and waited for them in the black market. At noon, they finally came.

As soon as they took their seats, Pan Chiyan asked, "Cousin, how is it?"

Houzi poured a cup of cold tea for them as he replied, "There's no problem with the amount of grain, and the price can be lowered by 5%, but you will need to pay for the delivery fee."

"We have to pay the delivery fee? Can't we just use our own people?" Pan Chiyan asked.

Houzi shook his head and said, "The supplier insists on using their own people. Otherwise, the deal is off."

When they heard this, they understood that the supplier was likely worried it was a trap. So, it was natural for them to be cautious.

After thinking for a moment, Pan Chiyan nodded and said, "Okay, we can use their people."

"Cousin, besides that, the supplier also asked the government not to interfere with the grain business in the capital," Houzi added.

This time, Xie Xuanzi frowned and refused, "That's impossible. The black market in the capital is a tumor, and the leaders are planning to eliminate it."

Hearing this, Houzi smiled but said nothing.