I have tried a different tack.
One of my two characters has bartering
Start by selling an expensive item to the vendor and NOT charge any gold for it. It instantly raises his attitude towards you to a 100.
That helps a lot.
Neither of my wife's two characters have bartering as a learned skill, but she has items that helps.
And we both sell and buy. My better prices is an option. Not a fixed rule of the game. I can imagine my wife if I told her, that she couldn't do buying or selling...
I'm sure she would make it a point to sell at crap prices all the time, until I found a common ground.
(Usually easy enough. I like sex. She likes to be right).
And to OP...
If you are frustrated by the way it is done in your game at the moment.
Change it. Play as you feel right.
Your joy should not be ruined because of a price difference of a few gold pieces.
Seems one of your players have way more power over your gameplay than is nessessary.
That's what it should be, an option. It feels oppressive to dictate what someone can and can't do. I'm fine giving my most expensive things to sell and I don't mind forwarding a share of my gold but it's bothering when my friends get angry that I do keep some to myself. I wish I could just play they way I wanted too but I'm afraid that if I do I'll get retribution for it. They see it as incredibly selfish and stupid and I can easily imagine them hoarding all the loot from me or incapacitating me in and out of combat if I did. I'll probably never hear the end of it either. Whether I find it fun doing it one way or another means absolutely nothing to them. And unfortunately I don't have sex as a bargaining chip.
