bitter water

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        One of many things that Jin Guangyao secretly finds himself fond of is the way Nie Huaisang’s voice rings so loud he can be heard coming from several rooms away. Jin Guangyao won’t go to meet him– it wouldn’t do to encourage his nonsense– but he is able to take thirty seconds' notice to prepare. Sect Leader Jin moves his correspondence and abacus to the drawers and lower compartment of his desk, walks around it so he is facing the door with no obstructions between them, and counts the beats. Three. Two.

 

        “San-geeee!” Huaisang comes jogging into the room and throws himself at Jin Guangyao. “San-ge, Jiang-xiong wants rights to increase our tariffs in Lotus Pier if Qinghe wants to expand the terms of our night-hunting alliance!” He’s weeping like a baby, and Jin Guangyao strokes his head twice.

 

        “Well,” he starts, “how badly do you want to night-hunt in Yunmeng? Do you want it badly enough to put up with increased tariffs?”

 

        “I don’t know!” Huaisang wails, “I know you told me last time, but I forgot what a tariff is.” He sounds so… sad. Jin Guangyao can’t bring himself to be angry, even though Huaisang is right– Jiang-zongzhu has been requiring high tariffs in exchange for any night hunting alliance in Yunmeng as long as he’s been sect leader, and he’s been sect leader for several years now. They have had this conversation many times.

 

        “That’s okay,” he says, “it basically means you’ll have to pay him in order to do business and sell goods in Lotus Pier, which means you either won’t make as much profit, if any, or you’ll have to increase the price point, in which case you’ll likely sell less. Is the loss of profit worth the night-hunt?”

 

        Huaisang gazes up at Jin Guangyao with huge wet eyes, and if, for a moment, the gaze looks almost more like a glare, Jin Guangyao dismisses it. He knows it frustrates Huaisang to struggle so much with this, that he wants to do well for his people and hates that it’s so hard. That’s all it is– it would be foolish to mistake a young man who doesn’t know what a tariff is for a threat.

 

        “I don’t know. What would you do, San-ge?”