Chapter 549: Asking a Question You Already Know the Answer To

Bai Zhilan did not take long, "Type C is 800.

"Type M is 1,400.

"Type O is 300.

"Type F is 400."

Zheng Chunhua tried to read her expression and asked, "Do you have any recommendations for these four types?"

Bai Zhilan pointed at herself with a slightly bewildered look and said, "Uncle, you're asking me?

"I don't really have any recommendations. Are there differences between these medications beyond the price? I'm just a Sales player. I don't understand any of this.

"Maybe just buy the cheapest one? Either way they're all Special Medications, the patients have a lighter burden to bear, and we can earn a little more.

"Though that's just off the top of my head. You should decide for yourself, uncle."

Zheng Chunhua did a quick mental calculation, adding up the four prices Bai Zhilan had quoted.

Then he compared them in his head against Chen Guangming's earlier bundle price.

"Bai Zhilan's total comes to 2,900, and Chen Guangming bundled everything for 3,000. The two figures are very close.

"So each individual price Bai Zhilan quoted should fall within the recommended retail range for those medications. After all, she couldn't know in advance which type or types I would end up buying.

"And the four Sales players have no way to meet with each other. In the early stages of the game they would have no means of communicating, so collusion on prices isn't possible.

"Both quotes have some profit margin built in.

"Type M, being the safest medication of the group, is also the most expensive. Qin Cheng's assessment was correct."

With that thought, Zheng Chunhua asked, "How many bottles of each did you bring?"

Bai Zhilan looked a little surprised and said, "Ah, just one of each. I was worried that if I bought too many and couldn't move them, it would be a problem.

"If you can confirm you want more, uncle, I'll bring extra next time."

Zheng Chunhua nodded and said, "Alright. I'll take all four bottles this time.

"Next time, you can bring more of the Type M and Type O."

Bai Zhilan nodded and said, "Understood, uncle. So all four bottles come to 2,900.

"Why specifically Type M and Type O? Is there something particular about those two?"

She looked at Zheng Chunhua with a curious expression, a hint of genuine curiosity flickering in her eyes, though she did not let it show too plainly.

Zheng Chunhua shook his head and said, "I'm not entirely clear on what distinguishes these medications from one another yet. But since these two are respectively the cheapest and most expensive of the group, having more of them on hand seems like the right call.

"The expensive Type M must cost more for a reason, and for the cheaper Type O, it's worth seeing whether selling in volume at a low margin is viable.

"That's my thinking, at any rate.

"Of course, if you come across any new information or have any thoughts of your own, feel free to share them."

Bai Zhilan studied Zheng Chunhua for another moment, then gave a nod and said, "Alright, uncle. Next time I'll try to bring more bottles of Type M and Type O."

Both of them swiped their Medical Cards and completed the transaction.

Watching Bai Zhilan leave the room, Zheng Chunhua let out a quiet breath.

Good. Things were moving along reasonably well for the time being.

According to Qin Cheng's assessment, what Zheng Chunhua actually needed to purchase was only the Type M.

Of the four Special Medications, Type C codeine and Type M morphine were the ones that could be considered marginally safe, with a relatively lower risk of addiction.

Type C codeine, however, was not strictly necessary. It was most likely incapable of fully curing Special Pain, which meant it could not serve as a life-saving medication.

It could only be considered a superior alternative for managing Standard Pain.

The medication that truly mattered was Type M morphine alone.

But Qin Cheng had specifically advised Zheng Chunhua not to come in asking only for Type M from the start.

Because going by the current mechanics, any player who had secured the 'Sales' identity must have committed a substantial amount of visa time to do so, which made it very unlikely any of them were inexperienced players. They would also be under considerable sales pressure throughout the game.

They would be looking for every opportunity to maximise profit on the medication they were carrying.

If Zheng Chunhua came in immediately asking only for Type M, it would tip off these Sales players and give them time to prepare a counter.

For instance, both Sales players might simply refuse to sell Type M at all, and both sides would be left at a standstill.

In that scenario, Zheng Chunhua and Qin Cheng would find themselves in a very difficult position. Sales players could treat themselves with Special Medication at any time, while patients without access to it would face an escalating risk of death.

Even so, from what Zheng Chunhua had seen so far, Qin Cheng's concerns seemed perhaps slightly overcautious.

Bai Zhilan and Chen Guangming appeared to be quite different types of players.

If Bai Zhilan could be relied upon to cooperate and supply Type M consistently at 1,400 Medical Points, that would be a result that worked well for everyone.

Bai Zhilan, as Sales, would still earn a reasonable profit, while every patient in Zone D would have access to life-saving medication, at the cost only of some of the Medical Points they had deposited before entering the game.

In the fourth round, Zheng Chunhua waited for a while. No request came from Qin Cheng's direction, which suggested Zone D was safe for the time being.

At their last meeting, Zheng Chunhua had already given Qin Cheng one bottle of Type M Painkiller, and each zone produced at most one Infected player per hour.

That Infected player had a full hour to cure themselves, and would not necessarily reveal themselves quickly.

So as long as Qin Cheng had enough medication on hand, he would not actively seek out Zheng Chunhua for the time being.

For Zheng Chunhua right now, the more pressing concern was establishing a reliable supply channel, to ensure there would be enough Type M in reserve for every patient once the number of Infected players grew.

Having confirmed that no request had come from Qin Cheng, Zheng Chunhua chose to meet with Chen Guangming.

The request was accepted shortly after.

Chen Guangming came into the Review Room looking poised and scholarly, with his gold-rimmed glasses, and took a seat across from Zheng Chunhua.

His manners were polished and he appeared perfectly courteous, yet for some reason Zheng Chunhua could not shake a sense of unease, as though he were looking at an oil painting of a natural landscape that seemed ordinary at first glance, but on closer inspection gave the impression that somewhere among its colours and brushstrokes, a snake lay coiled in hiding.

So Zheng Chunhua had been wary of Chen Guangming from the start, even more so after Qin Cheng's reminder.

The reason he was still meeting with him was that he could not afford to put all his eggs in one basket and treat Bai Zhilan as his sole supply channel.

The optimal play as Reviewer was still to source medication from both Bai Zhilan and Chen Guangming, and to use them to drive each other's prices down, obtaining Type M morphine at the lowest possible cost.

"Hello. Have you had a chance to think things over?

"I've brought quite a lot of medication this time. If you buy in larger quantities, I can consider offering you a discount."

The manner Chen Guangming projected was that of a professional Sales person, and Zheng Chunhua suspected he had likely worked in something similar in real life. Some habits ran deep enough to be difficult to set aside.

Zheng Chunhua considered for a moment and asked, "Are you still selling as a bundle this time?"

He could, of course, simply say outright that he only wanted Type M. But doing so might reveal unnecessary information and let Chen Guangming know that Type M was something special.

So Zheng Chunhua decided to hold off a little longer.

Chen Guangming nodded and said, "This time I've brought one bottle of Type C, five bottles of Type O, and five bottles of Type F.

"Eleven bottles in total, bundled at 6,000 Medical Points."

Zheng Chunhua's brow furrowed slightly. This only further confirmed what he had already suspected. Chen Guangming was not acting in good faith.

Bai Zhilan had already quoted prices for all four types, and while those prices carried some profit margin, they could be taken as falling within the recommended retail range.

Since there were only four numbers to remember, Zheng Chunhua had spent the time after the last round drilling the figures 8, 14, 3, and 4 into his memory.

Using those figures to estimate, one bottle of Type C, five of Type O, and five of Type F should come to around 4,300, and that was already a price with profit built in.

Chen Guangming's bundle was more than a thousand higher. That was obviously a grossly inflated opening.

This was clearly a provocative probe. If Zheng Chunhua could not tell how much was being padded onto the price, then the next time they met, Chen Guangming would likely have a new approach ready.

Zheng Chunhua leaned back slightly and let his expression cool, "If that's the price you're offering, I don't think we'll be able to work together.

"You're not my only source for medication.

"The profit you've built into that price is at least 2,000 Medical Points. That's excessive, don't you think?"

Chen Guangming appeared entirely unbothered. He gave a small smile and said, "That's just how business works. You have to leave some room for negotiation.

"I open high, you come back low. You know full well the profit margin is nowhere near 2,000.

"How about this. I'll take a slight loss. Final offer, 5,000. What do you say?"

Zheng Chunhua held his gaze for a moment, then said, "Why is there no Type M this time?"

Chen Guangming spread his hands casually and said, "Because the purchase price is too high and the profit margin is too thin. So I didn't bother stocking it."

Zheng Chunhua pressed him, "Even a thin margin is still a margin, isn't it?

"That reason isn't particularly convincing to me."

Chen Guangming shook his head and said, "As a Sales player, my capital for stocking isn't unlimited. I have to think about the risk of sitting on unsold inventory.

"Type M has a high purchase price and a low profit margin, so if it doesn't sell, the losses would be worse. That's why I didn't stock it.

"You probably haven't run a business before, have you? If you had, you'd know this is perfectly normal thinking."

Zheng Chunhua considered for a moment and said, "So the profit margin on that medication is very thin? Then I want it even more.

"Here's what I'm thinking. I'm happy to take on more Type M. Precisely because the margin is low and the price is high, it may actually be the more valuable medication for Doctors and patients.

"You can still have your profit margin. As long as the goods keep moving, a high purchase price is manageable, isn't it?"

Chen Guangming studied Zheng Chunhua for a moment, then suddenly smiled, a smile that carried something unspoken behind it.

"Alright. Let's stop pretending with each other.

"You already know that Type M has something special about it, don't you?"