put one's heads together
共同出谋划策；集思广益
Everyone at the meeting put our heads together and finally came up with a solution.
会议上大家集思广益，终于想出了一个解决办法。

up front
预付地
You have to pay up front.
You have to pay in advance.
你要预先付款。

balance
余款
The balance of $1000 must be paid within 30 days.
1000美元余款必须在30内付清。

raise the ante
增加赌注/筹码
The government has decided to raise the ante in the war on smoking.
政府已经决定加大筹码进行控烟战。

stand firm/fast
坚定不移
I'm standing firm on this matter.
在这件事上我立场坚定。

A: I'd like to discuss the terms of pavements for our account before we sign the contract and place our first order.
在签合同和下第一个订单之前，我想讨论一下我方的付款方式。
B: Like all of our customers, we require payment in full no later than 90 days from the date on each invoice.
我们所有客户都一样，需要在发票开立日期后90天内支付全款。
A: I'd like to run a suggestion by you. And maybe we could put our heads together and come to a mutually beneficial agreement.
我想给你提个建议，也许我们可以一起想想办法，达成一个互利共赢的协议。
B: What do you have in mind, Larry?
你有什么主意，拉里？
A: What would you say if we agree to pay 50% up front and the balance within 30 days from the invoice.
如果我们同意提前支付50%，并与发票开立日期后30天内付清余款，你觉得如何？
B: That would certainly help our cash flow, but what do you want in return?
这当然会对我们的现金流有帮助，但是你想要什么回报呢？
A: We would like you to cover the freight costs.
我们想要你方支付运费。
B: Sorry, Larry. That would put us out of pocket thousands of dollars.
抱歉，拉里。这样我们会损失几千美元。
A: What if we paid up front?
那我们提前付款怎么样？
B: Your offer has raised the ante, but I'm standing firm.
你的提议增加了筹码，但我坚持立场。
A: So, that's a no?
所以就是不行了？
B: Sorry.
抱歉。