Chapter 1058 – Mo Lan’s Travel Diary 11

Just then, Zhizhi slapped her pen down with a “snap” and declared proudly, “I’ve figured out the best way to stock inventory for maximum profit!”

Sylvia looked at her in surprise. “That fast?”

Zhizhi’s little tail stuck straight up. One paw on her hip, the other tapping the parchment spread across the counter:

“Of course! The key here is understanding what kinds of cards the Tatari, other races, and we can buy — and at what prices.”

She drew a simple table on the paper with the tip of her pen:

“The Tatari get a ten percent discount on card purchases. Every non-Witch race pays double the Witch price at the Card Shop.”

The pen tip underlined “double” with two heavy strokes.

“So —” Zhizhi looked up, eyes sparkling. “The Tatari’s discounted price is actually 1.8 times the Witch version of the shop price.”

Sylvia tried to follow the logic, her little head nodding along. “So that’s where the 1.8 times comes from! What we buy from the Witch shop is cheaper than what the Tatari pay, and what the Tatari pay is cheaper than what other races without discounts pay. So if we price above 1.8 times, the Tatari won’t buy from us — is that right?”

“Smart!” Zhizhi swished her tail approvingly and continued writing a string of calculations on the paper. “Now let’s look at our capital: we have 1000 Gem Coins. If we only stock cards of level 4 and below…”

She laid out the math on paper:

Stocking cost: 1000 Gem Coins

Maximum selling price ≤ 1.8x = 1800 Gem Coins

Maximum profit ≤ 800 Gem Coins

“And that’s the ideal scenario,” Zhizhi’s little face turned serious. “In reality, we probably can’t sell for 1800 at all, because the Tatari can buy these same cards from their own shop.

To compete with their ‘official channel,’ we’d have to push our prices even lower — maybe only 1.5 or 1.6 times — which makes the margins even thinner.

And there’s the risk of unsold stock sitting on our hands.”

Sylvia’s little brows furrowed. “Then what do we do? We can’t sell at a loss…”

“Hold on,” Zhizhi tapped her pen tip lightly on the paper, then turned toward the cards filtered on the light screen. “The key is — level 5 cards.”

“Level 5 cards — the Tatari don’t have purchasing access in their own shop. If they want to buy them, they can only get them from other contractors who have access — passing merchants, adventurers, or Witches like you.”

Zhizhi’s paw drew a circle in the air, her tone growing excited:

“This means we have pricing freedom! No more being limited by the 1.8 times ceiling! As long as the price is reasonable, they’ll buy!”

Sylvia’s eyes gradually lit up. “So… should we buy all level 5 cards?”

“In theory, yes, but level 5 cards are all expensive. Our options are limited, and if we want to sell quickly to recoup our capital and restock, we need to pick the most suitable ones!”

Zhizhi deftly filtered out all the level 5 cards. “Look — {Level 5 Wood Spirit Leather Armor}, {Level 5 Windproof Cloak}… These are all very practical, but the problem is they’re too durable!

The Tatari tribespeople might have already bought them from some merchant or passing Witch ages ago, and they’re still using them now.

They won’t easily buy a second one.

So demand for these cards is unstable — price them too high and they’ll just sit there unsold.”

Sylvia nodded, half understanding. “Then… what kind of card would they always need?”

Zhizhi’s paw slapped down on a card with a “snap.” “This one!”

Sylvia: “{Level 5 Healing Potion}?”

Zhizhi nodded with certainty. “For a nomadic, hunting people like the Tatari, injuries are an everyday occurrence.

Herbal remedies work slowly, and low-level healing cards have limited effect. A level 5 Healing Potion that can quickly mend serious wounds is a lifesaver — and the crucial thing is, it’s a consumable. You can never have too many stockpiled.

As long as the price isn’t outrageously high, they’ll most likely buy it when they see one.

And during hunting season or migration season, demand will be even higher.”

Sylvia held her breath, staring at the card.

Zhizhi had already written the final stocking plan on the paper:

“All in on {Level 5 Healing Potion}

Stock: 1 bottle (unit price 1000 Gem Coins)

Suggested selling price: 2000–2500 Gem Coins

Expected profit: 1000–1500 Gem Coins

Advantages: Stable demand, fast turnover, no need for inventory buildup

Risk: Single-product dependency — if it doesn’t sell, all capital is locked up”

Zhizhi looked at Sylvia earnestly:

“This is the plan I’ve calculated for the highest possible profit with 1000 Gem Coins. But the risk is obvious — all our money is riding on this one bottle of potion.

If it doesn’t sell, we won’t have capital to stock anything else. But this risk is relatively small.

Even if we do run into that situation, if 2000 to 2500 doesn’t move, we drop it to 1800 to 2000. At that price point, a level 5 Healing Potion is practically a steal.

Any Tatari with even a little to spare would be tempted.

And in the absolute worst case, even if we can’t sell it at 1800… we can still peddle it to passing adventurers, trade caravans, or even people from other tribes.

Healing Potions always have a market — it just might take a bit longer to turn over.”

After saying all this, Zhizhi suddenly dropped the serious expression. Her little tail swished playfully again as she held up five fingers:

“So how about it, little shopkeeper? With my abilities — market analysis, strategy development, and risk assessment all included — 5 Gem Coins to hire me for a day isn’t a bad deal, right?”

“Definitely not a bad deal!” For the first time, Sylvia realized just how much business savvy was packed inside Zhizhi’s little head.

“Thank you, Zhizhi. You’ve passed my test. But… I don’t have any Gem Coins to hire you at the moment. Don’t worry though, Zhizhi — once I’ve earned some Gem Coins at the Tatari tribe, I’ll definitely set aside a day to hire you and have you help me plan the next round of stocking!”

Zhizhi: “???”

She pretended to have just learned this, and looked at Sylvia. “We’re going to the Tatari tribe next?”

Sylvia giggled and nodded. “Thanks for the advice. I’ll follow your plan and stock one {Level 5 Healing Potion} to sell!”

She went ahead and made the purchase.

The Gem Coins in her account dropped to zero, and a single card landed in her hand.

She carefully affixed it to the product catalog, marked the price at 2500 Gem Coins, then slid it onto the shelf behind her — right in the center, the most prominent slot.

“All these shelves, and just one lonely little card… A customer walking in would think we’re about to go out of business.”

Sylvia rested her chin on her hands and gazed at the empty shop before her, the word “shabby” written all over her little face.

Then she noticed the “Accounting Assistant” signs in Sentai’s and Clack’s hands beside her, and a sudden flash of inspiration struck — she’d thought of a great idea.