Big Data Cultivation

The proprietress is indeed somewhat vigilant towards the Chen Clan Association, particularly given Ninth Brother’s notorious reputation; he’s not an easy person to deal with.

But to say she’s afraid of him is impossible, it’s just that during this war period, she doesn’t want to stir unnecessary trouble.

Upon hearing the name of the raw materials mentioned by the other party, she feels somewhat unfamiliar, and casually conducts a search, "Immunity-boosting medicine? Is Ninth Brother suspecting... that the Insect Race plans to release a virus?"

The Insect Race indeed did such things before, although that was a long time ago. They are not adept at researching viruses, yet they possess the ability to deploy them and sometimes even seize medications developed by the Human Race for their own treatment.

The proprietress casually asks this, but Ninth Brother responds indifferently, "Since you have no intention of cooperating, don’t ask too much. I just want to know, do you have such goods or not?"

"I never said I won’t cooperate with you," the proprietress answers seriously, "It’s just that before, you and I have never worked together, so I asked... Mainly because it’s a bit odd, why aren’t you working with your Chen Family?"

"Because we’re too closely related," Ninth Brother states expressionlessly, "Some business can’t be discussed with family, you should understand this."

"That’s indeed the case," the proprietress nods, feeling deeply resonant, "Then I’m quite honored, I wonder what kind of business Ninth Brother wants to talk about; someone from the Chen Family is renting a counter in my mall... Should I keep it secret from them?"

What she says about confidentiality is actually not without a hint of threat—what you discuss with me, the Chen family members don’t know, right?

Ninth Brother doesn’t consider this a threat; he perceives it as her means of self-defense—as he never intended to deceive, "If you want to tell them, it’s up to you... just like the goods San San brought to you the day before yesterday."

"Oh?" The proprietress immediately perks up, "Those things... I sort of understand why you’re cooperating with me; you’re not simply selling them to me, right?"

Ninth Brother shakes his head, expressing with a hint of helplessness, "If I wanted to sell them, would I worry about sales? I was hoping to discuss a cooperation with you."

The proprietress hesitates for a moment, then nods, "Alright, but such matters... should be discussed face-to-face, right?"

"Yes, I’ve been insisting on a face-to-face meeting," Ninth Brother nods, "If Sister Qin is convenient, could you come to my scrap yard sometime?"

"I can’t leave," the proprietress shakes her head, "Let’s wait until nightfall, when the Insect Race stops attacking; it would trouble Ninth Brother to come to the mall."

"Can’t leave? That’s quite a pity," Ninth Brother chuckles dryly and says slowly, "I originally planned to show Sister Qin some good stuff, I’ve already sent the invitation, so don’t blame me if you can’t come."

"That’s fine, I won’t blame you," the proprietress replies steadily, having seen this coax-and-prod routine many times, but after a moment of thought, she asks again, "Must I come over to discuss?"

"I would prefer to discuss here, but it’s not appropriate," Ninth Brother states in a deep voice, "It appears you’re not very interested in cooperation, so I’ll find someone else to chat with."

"Who says I’m not interested?" the proprietress retorts, then states, "Once it’s dark, come and pick me up... that shouldn’t be a problem, right?"

"Whatever," Ninth Brother spreads his hands, smiling as he replies, "As you know, good stuff sells fast."

The proprietress turns off the communicator, instructs someone to check the mall’s inventory, and discovers that the goods Chen Jiu wants are in short supply at her place, so she calls in the security captain to ask, "Is it risky to travel now?"

No one on Frontier Star is afraid to die; even women dare to fight with guns. The proprietress worries about being ambushed while traveling, but is staying inside the building really safe?

After repeated persuasion from the security captain, she decides against going to the scrap yard but sends her young uncle instead—he may be her uncle as the boss, not adept at business, but absolutely trustworthy.

This man braves the risk of Insect Race attacks and arrives at the scrap metal recycling station, before calling the proprietress not much later.

He’s brimming with excitement, "Sis-in-law, absolutely worth cooperation. Come quickly after dark... definitely avoid bringing unreliable people."

Afterward, the proprietress feels every day passing like a year, pondering what kind of matters led her young uncle to give such an evaluation.

Clearly, this information cannot be discussed openly, so she can only endure patiently until nightfall, not waiting for the alarm to sound the ceasefire, she hops into the hover armored vehicle and heads straight for the target.

Arriving at the metal recycling station, she doesn’t even enter the warehouse, directly meeting Ninth Brother in an underground office... as well as the goods.

The proprietress’s eyes immediately light up, "Energy... is this what you want to discuss?"

"Let’s take off the wrist communicator," Ninth Brother states steadily, "I don’t like trouble, and I suppose Sister Qin doesn’t either."

It is necessary to remove the communication equipment at this time; the proprietress is very aware of this and instructs someone to take it away before speaking, "Clearly, these are newly manufactured energy blocks... How do you want to cooperate?"

"I need money," Ninth Brother candidly states, "You put up the money, and I’ll count you in, the reason I’m not looking for other Chen Family members is because in this business, I’m merely the minor partner."

According to Federation practices, Party B is the purchasing side, which means that Ninth Brother is not the supplier of these Energy Blocks.

The lady boss instantly understood the cause and effect. Involving clan members in such dealings could easily cause trouble. She nodded slightly, asking thoughtfully, "It seems... Party A is pretty strong?"

"Party A... how should I put it?" Ninth Brother rubbed his chin, pondered for a long time, and chose a careful approach, "They’re not acting strong, but I am sure our two families cannot afford to offend them."

"Understood," the lady boss nodded. At this time, those who could provide energy stones were certainly not ordinary people. She even wondered if it could be the military engaging in illegal sales.

She pondered for a while and then asked in a deep voice, "I would like to ask Ninth Brother... why choose my family to cooperate with?"

The two families are really not familiar. This is a huge opportunity, and she doesn’t want it to turn into a huge threat.

"I don’t want to either," Ninth Brother sighed lightly, with a somewhat peculiar expression on his face, "But the problem is, they delivered your family pharmaceuticals... so I think there’s a basic foundation for cooperation."

"Pharmaceuticals... Severe Injury Recovery Pod?" The lady boss raised her eyebrows, "Isn’t that from your Chen Family?"

Ninth Brother rolled his eyes, "If it were from my Chen Family, would I kindly give it to you? There are so many connections waiting to be taken care of... Also, my Chen Family doesn’t intend to buy Main Battleships."

"Is that so," the lady boss squinted her eyes and spoke in a deep voice, "Currently, my resources are not very flexible... don’t worry, if I can buy Energy Blocks and pharmaceuticals with Federal currency, I can consider joining."

"That’s how it is now..." Ninth Brother quietly detailed the circumstances, of course, only what could be told.

"This business can be done," the lady boss decisively agreed, "However, I first want to take away thirty thousand tons of Energy Blocks."

"First bring out the Federal currency," Ninth Brother gestured with his fingers, "Triple the pre-war price, I’m not overcharging you, that’s how I settle accounts with them."

"No problem," the lady boss nodded, "But beforehand, I want to see the Energy Stones you received. That’s not an unreasonable request, is it?"

"It’s not unreasonable," Ninth Brother looked at her with a half-smile, "But consider carefully, after seeing them, it won’t be easy to back out."

The lady boss shook her head indifferently, "As long as there’s enough persuasion... why would I back out?"

Thus, in the next moment, she saw a massive amount of Energy Stones in the underground warehouse, alongside the Energy Blocks being produced.

"About a hundred thousand tons of Energy Blocks," the lady boss made an accurate assessment, walking towards the underground office and saying, "I need at least five hundred thousand tons of Energy Blocks, along with an appropriate amount of medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and food."

Ninth Brother nodded, "As long as the cooperation is smooth, I can strive for all of these, but I must emphasize... if not for financial constraints, I wouldn’t cooperate with anyone."

"You just want a bigger share, I get it," the lady boss nodded indifferently, "But you need to understand that bringing my family into the cooperation significantly enhances your ability to mitigate risks."

Ninth Brother glanced at her, asking calmly, "Risks from which side?"

"From every side," the lady boss answered casually, giving him another look, "Some things don’t need to be spelled out."

Ninth Brother was silent for a moment, then nodded, "So, we agree, the risks must be shared?"

"It’s not a big risk, really," the lady boss replied indifferent, "My family has connections, your family has clan members... are we supposed to just wait for death, and not buy something at a high price? That’s not how the world works."

Ninth Brother laughed, "See, having more clan members has its benefits?"

"Then why do you need me to join?" The lady boss gave him a side glance, dismissively stated, "Everyone has their strengths, which I’ve acknowledged, willing to pay more, so don’t pretend to be generous."

"Hehe," Ninth Brother chuckled softly, "I’m just saying, if they’re setting a trap, I hope Sister Qin won’t blame me."

"A trap?" The lady boss glared at him, "Someone who can produce a hundred thousand tons of Energy Stones, even if it’s a trap... would they even consider targeting the likes of us?"

"Exactly," Ninth Brother nodded thoughtfully, "Even if it’s a trap, they would aim at major powerhouses like Pioneer Bank."

The lady boss walked briskly, as if she hadn’t heard this conversation.

Next, the two sides took about half an hour to agree on the cooperation method, mainly where the business side would invest in purchasing pharmaceutical production lines outside the star system. Ninth Brother wouldn’t intervene, but with his Chen family background, he could provide some credit.

Returning to the hover armored vehicle, her brother-in-law spoke up, "Sister-in-law, this route seems quite strange. I heard Pioneer Bank recently had a fierce dispute with the military..."