Chapter 244: Transaction (3)
"Without my cooperation, who can you sell it to? Do you want me to expose you?" Liu Hong spoke bluntly, "Be happy with 40,000 merit points. That's a lot of money. And I need to take a higher risk than you too. After the sale, I still need to think of a way to avoid taking the blame. I might even ruin my future from this."
At this point, he was already certain that this was a scam. But that was even better. After all, things would be too troublesome if the data was real. Also, with the Xia Family around, it would be too hard for him to actually outbid them.
"Don't be too greedy. There are only two of you. Why do you kids need that much money? I will try to drag this out as long as possible. I'll let the people from my faction spend a long time researching the formula. If they fail, they will only suspect that their understanding is not deep enough. I will convince them that they need more time and research. That will give you more time before the scam is exposed. This is the benefit of working with me.
"Otherwise, even if you manage to fool Zhou Pingsheng, I will report to Elder Zheng or even Elder Zhou. The moment they start suspecting the formula, they won't need too much time to discover that this is a scam. Sure, they can't make a direct move against you. But do you think the single character faction won't be able to suppress you?"
"..."
Zheng Yunhui cursed inwardly. This fellow was such a scumbag. Previously, he had only asked for 20,000 merit points. But this fellow was telling him to ask for 80,000 merit points instead. That was crazy.
Liu Hong continued, "If you agree, we can work together. If not, you might as well give up now. Don't even dream of making a killing without my help."
"You..."
Zheng Yunhui's face turned ugly. Damn it! Wasn't Liu Hong their target? Why did he feel like he had turned into Liu Hong's lackey instead? This felt terrible. His victory earlier had given him a bad feeling. And now, he was feeling even worse.
Even if Liu Hong was offering him 40,000 merit points, which was more than what he could have earned previously, he was still unhappy that his plan had failed.
Liu Hong continued convincing his prey, "Yunhui, think about it. If we work together, we will be fellow conspirators. With this relationship, I will be able to secretly give you some benefits or help in the academy. Of course, this is only available for you, not Su Yu. You can tell him that you only sold the data for 20,000 or even 10,000. How is he going to find out about the truth? A poor kid like him will probably be happy with a few hundred merit points from you..."
Zheng Yunhui rolled his eyes. Did Liu Hong think that Su Yu was a fool?
Liu Hong smiled. Inwardly, he was relieved. This was a very favorable development for him.
He suddenly spoke out loud, "I need to leave and ask someone else about this. I can't make this decision."
A short while later, Liu Hong arrived on the third floor.
Zhou Pingsheng frowned and asked, "What did you talk about? What did Zheng Yunhui say?"
Liu Hong showed an upset expression as he said, "That bastard raised the price when he saw the Xia Family. He's asking for 80,000 merit points now. And he's being really stubborn about it. Senior Brother, I think we should give up. We don't even know if the data is real. I'm quite worried about it. Everything feels too easy."
"When I asked him why he wouldn't let us and the Xia Family bid for it, the little bastard claimed that he's acting on his grandpa's order. Senior Brother, what is the meaning of that?"
"His grandpa..."
Zhou Pingsheng blanked out before sinking into thought. After a while, he snorted, "It's obvious. They want us to get into an even bigger conflict with the multiple character faction. Over the years, our academy has snatched a lot of resources from their war academy. He has never gotten along well with Principal Wan. Now, he finally has a chance to intensify our internal conflict."
Liu Hong nodded with admiration. Well done. Zhou Pingsheng had come up with that story all by himself. It had nothing to do with him.
"No wonder he refuses to allow you to bid for it with Xia Xinyi." Zhou Pingsheng coldly said, "What a big appetite. 80,000 merit points...what a surprise. Those brutes from the Zheng Family have finally learned to use their brain. With this move, they can get money and also worsen the internal conflict in our academy. But they are overestimating the multiple character faction. The only person we fear is Hong Tan.
"But Hong Tan alone is not enough. The multiple character faction only exists in name now. And now, even their most important research subject has been leaked to us. There goes their final chance to rise up again."
Liu Hong hurriedly asked, "Senior Brother, are you saying that we should agree? But from Su Yu's demonstration, it looks too simple."
"That's normal." Zhou Pingsheng wasn't worried, "Accidents play a great role in research as well. Oftentimes, an accident might be the spark required for a successful research. Take the birth of cultural researchers as an example. The first cultural researcher has also appeared accidentally. Back then, that first cultural researcher had comprehended their first Divine Character accidentally while reading a normal book. But if someone tells you today that they have formed a Divine Character through a regular book, would you even believe it?"
Liu Hong nodded. But he still seemed uneasy, "But that's too expensive. If there is a problem with the data, we won't be able to take the responsibility for losing 80,000 merit points. Senior Brother, maybe we should ask Elder Zheng and the faculty head first."
"Teacher is in seclusion. Senior Brother Zheng said that as long as the data is genuine, we must get it at all costs. 80,000 merit points...this price is still within our limit. Go. Tell Zhou Pingsheng that we agree. Complete the transaction immediately. If we wait longer, more troubles might arise. With me here, he won't have the chance to exchange the data for a set of fake data."
He was worried that Zheng Yunhui would replace the data with fake data after leaving this place. At that point, determining the authenticity of the data would be even harder. They should complete the deal before Zheng Yunhui could change the data.
"Senior Brother..."
"Enough!" Zhou Pingsheng impatiently said, "I know what you're worried about. But everything has happened in front of our eyes. Liu Hong, stop wasting time. It would be very troublesome if the academy finds out about this. You don't have to pay for it anyway. Are you saying all this to prove that you're smarter than me?"
"I wouldn't dare!" Liu Hong hurriedly said, "I don't mean that. I only feel that this is too expensive. Maybe I should try to lower the price?"
"There's no need. The Xia Family is still here." Zhou Pingsheng angrily said, "This is not the time to be worried about a minor matter like this. You have this weakness of thinking too much while you lack vision. You view the world with that narrow vision of yours. You should learn to prioritize the more important goal."
Liu Hong had a pensive look, as though he had just learned something profound. He said, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother. Maybe this is really my problem. I will reflect on myself. Then...I'll complete the transaction?"
"Go." Zhou Pingsheng tossed a card over and said, "Use this. Transfer the money into your card before transferring to him."
"Alright."
Liu Hong left with the attitude of an obedient underling.
He already tried advising against the transaction! Zhou Pingsheng was the one insisting on buying. Zhou Pingsheng even said that he had a narrow vision. What could he do? As for the fact that this was a scam...well, that had nothing to do with him! He wasn't the person in charge!
At worst, he would only receive a tiny punishment such as a reduction in his allocation of resources. That was nothing. He was going to earn 40,000 merit points from this. He would normally need several years to earn that much money.
Second floor.
Xia Xinyi looked at Zheng Yunhui with a frown, "Yunhui, are you not going to think about this?"
Zheng Yunhui smiled, "Uncle, I still need to stay in the academy. Furthermore, I am technically part of the single character faction right now. The Xia Family is strong, but you guys aren't the ones running the academy."
"You..."
Xia Xinyi was feeling helpless. He looked at Liu Hong furiously and said, "Liu Hong, it's a waste for you guys to get the data."
Liu Hong innocently said, "I'm just a Skysoar. I don't have the authority to change or decide anything."
Yes, this had nothing to do with him. With a snort, Xia Xinyi left.
Xia Huyou looked at Zheng Yunhui and Liu Hong. He scratched his head and thought about what Su Yu told him previously. He really wasn't sure if the data was fake or real.
Liu Hong did not waste any time and tossed a bottle to Zheng Yunhui, "This is 6,000 drops of source qi liquid. Including the down payment, consider 20,000 merit points paid."
He then transferred another 20,000 merit points over. His expression unchanged, he said, "This is the remaining 60,000 merit points."
"..."
Zheng Yunhui cursed inwardly.
He wanted to roar in anger. Damn it! He knew that someone must be observing them. But they couldn't see the number of the merit points being transferred.
Liu Hong said, "The number is too large. I'll need to split the transfer six times..."
Another merit card appeared in his hand. He transferred 40,000 merit points into that card.
He said, "I'll give you two cards so that you can store your funds separately. Otherwise, if your card has too much money, you might catch the academy's attention..."
He took out another card.
Zheng Yunhui asked, "Can I even use this card?"
"Of course. These are unregistered cards. It used to be the standard card used by the academy many years ago. Nowadays, production has stopped and only some seniors have them. These cards are very valuable."
He then moved his hand around for a bit before tossing the second card to Zheng Yunhui. The card was completely empty.
Liu Hong had not transferred any money into the card! He was only doing this to prevent his higher ups from checking his account and discovering that he had not transferred 60,000 merit points out of his account.
Zheng Yunhui's face was unsightly as he held the empty card. Damn it! This Liu Hong was doing all that right in front of his face. What a bastard!
Liu Hong ignored Zheng Yunhui's expression. After receiving the jade pendant, he said, "You may leave."
He had to hand the jade pendant over to his senior brother right after receiving it from Zheng Yunhui. He wouldn't give his senior brother the opportunity to accuse him of having changed the jade pendant.
Zheng Yunhui clenched his teeth. He did not have the joy of someone who had just earned 40,000 merit points. He was feeling furious, wronged, and bleak.
Liu Hong was a scumbag!
Su Yu was a scumbag as well!
Sure enough, only villains loved smiling!
For some reason, this money-making session felt incredibly terrible for him.