Negotiation

"So, what does Mr. Rajiv have to do with me?" Sanjay asked, getting straight to the point.

Rajiv smiled and said, "Where did you get such luxurious items?"

"Sorry, sir, I can't tell you. But I can reassure you—only I can supply these items. You won't find anything similar anywhere else," Sanjay replied firmly.

Rajiv understood this. A few months ago, when they first received the items, they were utterly shocked. The salt, sugar, and soap—they had no idea how these were produced, but they could easily be deemed luxurious, even for the elite.

Rajiv had investigated Sanjay's background much more intensely than the manager's, but he found nothing. The town of Dhavalpur wasn't near any port; it was surrounded by land on all sides. How were these goods transported without leaving a trace?

As a member of the prestigious Kalyan family, Rajiv had access to a vast network spanning the entire world, yet they couldn't uncover the source. Everything pointed back to this one town. Even the luxury clothes that recently became famous were ultimately traced to a single person.

"I understand," Rajiv said. "That's why I want to propose an exclusive contract with you."

Sanjay's eyebrows furrowed. "An exclusive contract?"

Rajiv nodded. "Yes. I want to sell your products only through my shops, and I will buy in bulk."

Sanjay was surprised. "Buy in bulk? How much are we talking about?"

"About 100 kilograms of salt, 100 kilograms of sugar, and 100 pieces of soap every week," Rajiv replied.

Sanjay was astonished at the amount—it was huge, equivalent to two months' worth of goods in just one week.

"Rajiv, I can sell to you, but we'll need to revise the prices from before. Also, I'll only sell the items we just discussed. For any new goods in the future, I can give you priority, but I won't exclusively sell them to you. And the contract will only be for three years. Those are my terms," Sanjay stated firmly. He wasn't going to leave the table without securing the best deal possible.

Rajiv frowned. He had hoped to maintain the current prices of 12 gold coins per item in the future. The idea of not having exclusivity on future goods and a contract term of only three years gave him a headache. After three years, Sanjay could easily shift to a competitor offering better terms.

"No, that won't work. I can agree to a five-year contract at best," Rajiv countered.

"Alright," Sanjay said after a moment's thought, "but for the first three years, the prices will be 15 gold coins for salt, 15 for sugar, and 10 for soap. For the remaining two years, they'll increase to 17, 17, and 12 respectively."

Rajiv pondered for a moment before agreeing. "Deal."

They shook hands to seal the agreement. Sanjay asked for some time to begin deliveries from the following month, and Rajiv agreed.

Since Rajiv was already present, Sanjay convinced him to wait a week for some new goods he might like. Intrigued by the possibility of fresh luxury items, Rajiv agreed.

After bidding them goodbye, Sanjay returned to his villa, utterly exhausted. He was in urgent need of more money to meet the growing demand.

Still having time before the day ended, Sanjay quickly returned to the modern world. Without letting his mother notice, he grabbed his bicycle and hurried to another jewelry shop. After tough negotiations, he managed to sell 5 kilograms of gold biscuits, earning 600,000 rupees.

With this money, he placed a massive order for 1,000 kilograms of salt and sugar, along with hundreds of soaps. The wholesaler, thrilled by such a large order, added a few bonuses. Sanjay then arranged for everything to be delivered to an abandoned house.

When the delivery arrived, he transported everything back to the medieval world using his skill. The entire process took three hours, leaving him certain his mother would be furious.

Sure enough, when he returned, his mother was waiting. After scolding him thoroughly, she locked him in his room to prevent him from sneaking out again.

Collapsing onto his bed in exhaustion, Sanjay sighed. He hadn't exerted himself this much even in his previous life. At least for now, he had secured a two-month stockpile of goods. With one day in the modern world equating to seven days on the other side, the week would pass before he even realized it.

That's why Sanjay had hurried to gather the goods. Now he could sell them gradually—buying a few more items on his way to and from school each day. However, since he couldn't sell too much gold at once, he had only managed to secure 600,000 rupees.

Sanjay had put all his trust in Ramesh, the dealer who had helped him get the goods. He had no idea how he got Ramesh's number, but for now, he didn't have any other option but to rely on him.

Running away wasn't feasible either, with Rajiv's men keeping a close watch on him.

Without overthinking, Sanjay decided to focus on studying before finally going to bed.

The next day was Sunday, still a holiday. Sanjay planned to meet Rajiv to deliver the goods.

He instructed Rajiv's men to take the goods from the backyard of his villa. Once again, they were astonished—they hadn't seen how the goods had appeared there.

They even followed the servants, suspecting them of moving the items secretly, but all the servants did was buy day-to-day necessities. There were no unnecessary conversations, movements, or anything suspicious.

Left baffled, the men called for a cart and loaded the mountain of goods onto it before heading to Rajiv's store.

Rajiv was already waiting, his face lighting up with excitement.

"Sanjay, you really did it," Rajiv praised. Bringing in such a large quantity of goods was no small feat—it was a significant accomplishment.

This proved that Sanjay could fulfill his part of the deal.

"Rajiv, let me show you a few more things," Sanjay said with a confident smile.

He took out a bottle of cola, a packet of chips, and a women's makeup kit. First, he poured the cola into a cup and opened the packet of chips.

Rajiv stared at the black liquid suspiciously. Was Sanjay trying to poison him? But when he saw Sanjay drinking the liquid and eating the chips without hesitation, his curiosity grew.

Cautiously, Rajiv took a small sip of the cola.

"Good lord... What is this?" he exclaimed. The taste was incredible—it felt like tiny balloons were being created and popped constantly in his mouth.

Sanjay smiled. "This is cola, a special product from my hometown. Although it looks like black water, its unique taste comes from a special recipe."

"Cola," Rajiv repeated, making a mental note of the product's name. He sipped it like tea, enjoying the refreshing coldness.

Sanjay then offered him some chips. Rajiv tried them and found the taste equally delightful.

Finally, Sanjay presented the makeup kit. Rajiv was astonished at the variety and quality of the items. He called one of the girls working in the shop to try it out.

With Sanjay's help, the girl began applying the makeup. Although Sanjay had no prior experience, he followed the basic instructions on the packaging.

After a few minutes, the transformation was complete. Rajiv was stunned. The shop girl looked more beautiful than his mistress.

"What magic is this?" Rajiv asked in awe. "It completely changed her appearance!"

The makeup had made the girl look ten times more elegant, and Rajiv immediately recognized the potential. This could become a hot item among noble ladies.

Sanjay explained the pricing: the cola would sell for 20 gold coins, the chips for 15, and the makeup items would have separate costs based on the individual products.

Rajiv didn't commit to a specific bulk order yet, wanting to test the market first. He decided to take 50 of each product for now and promised to increase the order in the future if sales performed well.

Sanjay understood Rajiv's cautious approach; he himself wasn't entirely sure how the market would react to these new items. However, deep down, he was confident that products like cola and chips would become a hit if given time to grow. After all, he still had stocks of cola and chips left from his last trip to the modern world.

There was no luxury shop like Rajiv's anywhere in the town.

After calculating the sales of the previous goods and the new items, Rajiv handed over 10,000 gold coins to Sanjay.

It was an enormous amount. The last time, it had taken him three months of sales to earn this much. Now, he had earned it in one go. Sanjay couldn't help but feel a wave of happiness—he was rich.

But with great wealth came great responsibility, and Sanjay knew he needed to ensure his safety. Without wasting time, he hired a few retired soldiers from the army to secure his villa, offering them a hefty salary.

The retired soldiers were more than happy to accept the job. Many of them had struggled to find work after leaving the army—some were employed by the mayor's household, while others became mercenaries.

What Sanjay offered them was nearly as good as what the mayor provided.

The next day, as Sanjay lounged in his villa's garden, basking in the warm sunlight, he had an English literature book in one hand, flipping through its pages leisurely.

Suddenly, the sound of hooves shattered the calm. A rider on a horse approached the villa at full speed.

The guards immediately moved to stop the stranger, forming a line of defense. The rider dismounted and began speaking urgently to the guards.

Hearing the commotion from below, Sanjay set his book aside and stood up. Curious and slightly concerned, he made his way downstairs to see what was going on.

P.S: Please comment if you like my story.