Chapter 13: Reaching an Agreement

“Oh, Manager Wei, in that case, I think it’s better I keep these grapes for myself to eat.” Zhou Yu said without hesitation. His confidence in asking for a share of the profits was based entirely on the delicious taste of the grapes.

The grapes nourished by Spiritual Energy far surpassed many other varieties in both flavor and sensation. They could truly be said to have no artificial additives, born naturally by heaven and earth.

If Wei Dehua refused, then he would have no regrets; he would simply keep these grapes for himself.

“Mr. Zhou, I haven’t refused yet. I just want to think it over. How about this? Let’s find a time to meet and talk face-to-face. After all, many things are inconvenient to discuss over the phone.” Wei Dehua quickly replied. These grapes were an opportunity to make a name for his dessert shop in one go; he couldn’t let it slip away.

Although many tourists came to Xing’an Town every day, his shop wasn’t the only dessert place in town. Even if he had to give Zhou Yu a share of the profits, it would be worth it. Moreover, people who came to the shop after hearing about it wouldn’t just buy the desserts made from these grapes.

“Alright. Come to the Guomin Food Stall in Taoyuan Village tonight. We can talk while we eat.” Zhou Yu nodded. He had originally planned to use the Jade Dew plants he grew to earn his first pot of gold. Now that someone came to him wanting to buy grapes, he naturally wouldn’t let this chance pass.

“Okay, okay, we’ll talk when we meet.” Wei Dehua agreed. After hanging up, it dawned on him: the Guomin Food Stall? Was that really a place to discuss business?

After the phone call with Wei Dehua, Zhou Yu still sat within the Spirit Gathering Array. His gaze fell upon the clusters of grapes on the vine. Normally, a grapevine would produce many fruit buds. At that point, the grower would need to prune some, allowing the vine’s nutrients to concentrate on fewer grapes, making the remaining ones sweeter.

When he was young, the grapes at home were very sour, which was related to their family not taking care of the grapevine. But now, with the Spirit Gathering Array, there was no need for that. The dense Spiritual Energy within the array was enough to provide sufficient nutrients for all the grapes on the vine.

As time passed, about one or two hours after applying the Spirit Stabilizing Liquid, Zhou Yu clearly saw one of the leaves on that Pan Deng Jade Dew plant begin to slowly change color, turning from green towards yellow.

Haha, it really was the effect of the Spirit Stabilizing Liquid. An expression of excitement appeared on Zhou Yu’s face. The variegated Jade Dew, which ordinary people could only dream of, could be casually obtained in his hands.

The originally crystal-clear Pan Deng Jade Dew, as its leaves gradually turned yellow, became truly as beautiful as an ice lantern.

Looking at the remaining Jade Dew plants within the Spirit Gathering Array, Zhou Yu felt a surge of heroic spirit inside, as if with the Spirit Stabilizing Liquid in hand, he owned the world.

But he didn’t plan to apply Spirit Stabilizing Liquid to all the remaining Jade Dew plants now. Even in the future, he would need to consider it carefully, because rarity increases value. If a dozen or so variegated Pan Deng or Hei Ji plants appeared on the market, it would definitely affect the price.

Having witnessed the real transformation of the Jade Dew turning variegated, Zhou Yu had satisfied his curiosity. Afterward, he picked up a fishing rod, went out the back door of the yard, found a reef close to the seawater nearby, and started fishing.

He was going to discuss business with that Wei Dehua at his uncle’s food stall tonight, so he naturally needed to prepare some ingredients.

After an hour, Zhou Yu had caught over a dozen fish. It was a pity there was no Tuna this time. That kind of fish really required luck to encounter. The grape seeds were only a bit better than ordinary bait. Relying on grape seeds to fish for money was obviously not a sustainable method.

When it was almost dark, he stood up from the Spirit Gathering Array, patted Huzi’s head, fed him a bunch of grapes, and rode his electric bike straight to his uncle’s shop.

When he arrived, Li Tianbiao was also busy in the shop. Seeing the fish in Zhou Yu’s hand, he couldn’t help but complain, “Well, Brother Universe, you went fishing without calling me.”

Just then, Li Guomin came out and smacked him on the head. “Fishing, all you ever think about is fishing! Do you catch as many as Xiao Yu? Others fish to make money. What do you do besides waste bait?”

“Dad, I was just saying something casual,” Li Tianbiao said, full of grievance.

Zhou Yu couldn’t help but smile at the scene. “Uncle, leave these fish here. Help me grill two or three and stew some later. I have a guest today. For the rest, let’s stick to the old arrangement.”

“You kid, you can make money fishing and still give us half. What are you looking at? Hurry up and take the fish to work!” Li Guomin said, shaking his head with emotion, then gave Biaozi another smack.

Wearing a pained expression, Li Tianbiao took the fishing net from Zhou Yu, roughly glanced at it, and saw it was similar to the last catch: mostly ordinary fish, with two or three slightly more valuable ones. He was truly impressed by his cousin.

Afterward, Zhou Yu also entered the shop, helping to serve dishes and pour water. Of the dozen or so fish caught yesterday, aside from what they ate themselves, the rest were cooked and sold to others. He and his uncle split the money. Zhou Yu originally wanted a fifty-fifty split, but his uncle insisted on giving him more.

By this count, this was already the first pot of gold he had earned since obtaining the magical Radio. The fish caught with grape seeds could also be said to have been earned using grapes.

After a while, a middle-aged man in a white shirt walked over. Li Guomin quickly greeted, “Sir, what would you like to eat? We have barbecue, hot dishes, cold dishes…”

“Excuse me, is Mr. Zhou Yu here?” The man looked around and then tentatively asked. He had never seen Zhou Yu before.

“Oh, you must be the guest Xiao Yu mentioned. Xiao Yu, someone is looking for you!” Hearing this, Li Guomin called out towards the inside of the shop.

Zhou Yu quickly came out. Seeing the middle-aged man, he smiled. “You must be Manager Wei Dehua. Let’s sit over there and talk. Uncle, please bring the dishes over.” Then, he led Wei Dehua to a table at the side.

Wei Dehua sat on the small stool, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. He had eaten barbecue before, of course, but he had never discussed business in a place like this.

Not long after Zhou Yu and Wei Dehua sat down, Li Tianbiao brought plate after plate of fish to the table, the appetizing aroma wafting all the way.

Soon, the table had three grilled fish, three stewed fish, and some side dishes, all looking very tempting.

Looking at the dishes on the table, Wei Dehua recognized some of the fish, and his expression changed slightly. “Mr. Zhou, this is too much food, and too lavish. I’m a bit overwhelmed by such kindness.”

At that moment, a bit of worry arose in his heart. Could this Zhou Yu be a shill for the food stall? These several fish would cost a few hundred yuan. But he immediately dismissed the thought. Someone who could produce such delicious grapes would never do something like that.

“All these fish were caught by my cousin, Zhou Yu. There are a few more in the back,” Li Tianbiao, who was still bringing dishes to the table, couldn’t help but speak up when he heard Wei Dehua’s words.

A look of surprise appeared on Wei Dehua’s face. All caught by this young man in front of him? That was incredible.

“Manager Wei, please, help yourself. Don’t stand on ceremony,” Zhou Yu said with a smile, pointing at the food before picking up his chopsticks and starting to eat. His aunt’s cooking skills were top-notch; that was the secret to the shop’s success.

Wei Dehua nodded and also began to eat slowly. Seeing Zhou Yu focused only on eating without saying anything, he had to take the initiative. “Mr. Zhou, the share you mentioned on the phone is really too high. The rent for my shop, raw material costs, and labor expenses are all significant amounts.”

“Oh, Manager Wei, I imagine your shop won’t sell desserts made only from grapes. In other words, these grapes are just for boosting reputation and attracting customers. They can’t become ordinary consumer goods,” Zhou Yu put down his chopsticks and said with a smile.

Without waiting for Wei Dehua to speak, he continued, “Also, there aren’t many of these grapes, and they aren’t easy to grow. Rather than selling you a few at a low price every day, I’d rather keep them for myself and enjoy them.”

Hearing these two statements from Zhou Yu, Wei Dehua felt somewhat surprised inside. This really wasn’t an ordinary rural youth. “Your proposed share is acceptable. However, we still need to discuss the percentage. I’m not sure if by ‘revenue’ you mean net profit after subtracting all costs, or the selling price of the desserts.”

“Calculating net profit is too troublesome. Naturally, it’s the latter,” Zhou Yu said with a laugh. There were too many ways to play tricks with costs, and he couldn’t check the accounts in detail anyway.

Wei Dehua frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and began negotiating with Zhou Yu. After several rounds, the two finally reached an agreement: for any dessert made using these grapes, 30% of the selling price would go to Zhou Yu as his share.

At the same time, the two also discussed other details. For example, Wei Dehua would provide Zhou Yu with a detailed price list of the grape products and the daily sales numbers. Furthermore, if the revenue failed to satisfy Zhou Yu, he could propose terminating the contract.

Of course, Wei Dehua also required that Zhou Yu not sell the grapes to any other shops in this area.

Zhou Yu naturally agreed. Since there weren’t many grapes to begin with, he wouldn’t sell them to others anyway. He also requested that Wei Dehua keep the source of the grapes confidential.

Wei Dehua would prepare the relevant agreement for this partnership to be signed the next day. Although it was only twenty bunches of grapes per day, only a written, signed contract could create a binding commitment.