Chapter 186: Spy Wars

After officially starting to introduce the project, Zhu Yingning quickly got rid of his joking attitude and became serious.

She spent about an hour analyzing the project in detail, so detailed that she even came up with a risk response plan based on their studio. Every time Xu Sirui asked her a question, she could find the answer from the PPT, as if she had predicted all his questions in advance.

He pointed out that there are various risks in purchasing pork products from them. One is that the shelf life of pork is not long, especially fresh pork, which has harsh storage conditions. Another is that the sales speed or quantity cannot keep up, which will cause them losses.

She immediately opened the corresponding PowerPoint presentation and showed him her plan B. This was a common partnership model used by individual businesses and small-scale merchants, working directly with factories and sourcing goods from the source. This meant shipping pork directly from their farms to players. If one player purchased pork, they would ship one portion of pork. If one hundred players purchased pork, they would ship one hundred portions of pork. Periodically, they would share a share of the profits with him.

This model can minimize the risk of loss for middlemen.

She showed her full sincerity, but she didn't offer to compromise on the apparently unreasonable profit-sharing ratio. When Xu Sirui brought it up, she immediately explained to him how much profit they were making with the ratio, and even presented a bunch of data. When he brought it up a second time, she still dodged the question, trying to convince him to accept it, until he bluntly said it was too little.

"We've already planned the release schedule for this management game, and let me be frank: it's incredibly tight, from the beginning of this year to May of next year, with not a single free workday. Adding a pig farming feature might seem simple from your perspective, but actually implementing it requires the full involvement of our art, development, testing, marketing, copywriting, and numerical planning teams. Everyone will have to work overtime for at least a month to get it done, and subsequent maintenance will also take time. We're taking on this project at the risk of disrupting all our schedules."

He tapped the conference table with his index finger, his gaze fixed on her, sharp as a hawk, and said bluntly, "I want a bigger share."

She did not avoid his gaze, her eyes were calm and her back was straight, even though a thin layer of sweat had already appeared on her back.

It feels very subtle.

To her, Xu Sirui had always been more like a "companion" who always stood in the same camp with her. This was the first time in history that she discovered that he could be so difficult to deal with as her opponent.

He is an independent person with his own thoughts, not a tool that only agrees with her. He and she are equal, sitting on both sides of the negotiation table. They have different paths but the same goal, which is to fight for the interests of the collective they represent and not give an inch.

While she was surprised, she also felt an indescribable excitement of meeting a worthy opponent.

She had deliberately lowered her reported share, knowing it was a bit outrageous, but it was necessary to do so in order to increase her chances of success in subsequent negotiations—a common baiting tactic in negotiation techniques. It wasn't difficult to pull off, requiring only a strong mental state, excellent acting skills, and a clear mind.

She also laid out her own difficulties, explaining that the profitability of their village farm directly determined whether subsequent businesses would continue to locate there and whether the villagers could maintain their confidence in the pig farming project. Therefore, she had to ensure that both the villagers and the businesses benefited. This ratio was the result of a careful balance of interests among all three parties. She even brazenly stated that the ratio she gave him was a secret favor to him because of their long-standing friendship.

"Those companies don't get as good a share as you do."

Chen Fei was sweating profusely. If Wen Wenxu were here, he would definitely howl, "Captain, how could you tell such a huge lie!"

Unfortunately, Xu Sirui couldn't immediately contact the breeding company in their village to verify the information.

Chen Fei witnessed the two men exchanging sharp words in front of her. One had a cold attitude and pressed forward step by step, while the other had a calm face and was smooth-talking - yes, that's right, she was surprised to find that her captain was the one who was smooth-talking.

Before leaving, Zhu Yingning revealed to her her lowest bottom line for the profit sharing ratio. In fact, the profit sharing ratio that Zhu Yingning could accept was higher than the number she reported to Xu Sirui.

"But I don't want to compromise to my bottom line. I still want to try my best to gain more benefits for the village." She said this in a calm tone, without any passionate background music or passionate declarations, but Shen Fei knew that business is business, and all the swords and swords in the mall are hidden in this seemingly peaceful desire.

When the two of them were negotiating, Chen Fei could hardly get a word in and could only watch weakly and pitifully. She was a little afraid that they would fight in front of her, or that their years of friendship would be ruined because of this negotiation.

...It shouldn't be that exaggerated, right?

Just as she was comforting herself, Xu Sirui suddenly laughed, stood up from his chair, and said, "I can't see your sincerity in cooperating with me. Okay, let's leave it at that."

ah?

What does "that's it" mean? Does it mean it's over?

Chen Fei glanced at Zhu Yingning and blinked one eye, indicating that she should just reveal her true bottom line. It was not their purpose to fail in the negotiation.

But Zhu Yingning didn't meet her gaze. There was no surprise on her face, let alone panic. She simply nodded calmly and said, "Since both of us feel we can't reach an agreement, let's leave it at that for now."

Chen Fei wanted to shake their shoulders vigorously and ask, "What on earth is this?" However, before she had the chance, Zhu Yingning had already glanced at her phone and changed the subject, "Is it time for you to get off work?"

"Yeah." Xu Sirui walked to the water dispenser in the corner, took a glass of water and handed it to her to moisten her throat. Then, as if he suddenly realized that there was Chen Fei next to him, he also took a glass of water for her.

"Thank you." Shen Fei took it awkwardly.

At this moment, the door of the conference room was suddenly pushed open, and a tall, thin boy in large shorts walked in. Zhu Yingning recognized him as the one who placed the fishing rod next to her workstation. She thought he came in to see Xu Sirui about something, and was about to greet him politely when she saw him walk straight towards Chen Fei and said excitedly, "Junior sister! You are here! I didn't wear my glasses just now, and I thought I was seeing things. I thought I would come in after get off work to confirm it, but I didn't expect it to be you! Xu Sirui, you are so mean! Why didn't you tell me that my junior sister was here?"

Xu Sirui: “…”

Chen Fei: “…”

Zhu Yingning: “?”

Her eyes were confused at first, then slowly focused. Suddenly realizing something, she said dully, "...So you three know each other?"