Jia Xu was sent out by Liu Mang. When the two were paying, Jia Xu excused himself and went downstairs. Liu Mang wanted to seize every opportunity to obtain provisions. Moreover, these two were the representatives of Jing Province's merchants. If he could persuade them, then Yangzhou would be able to develop quickly. Although these merchants were mercenary, they would also bring vitality to Yangzhou. Only an active market could truly flourish.
"You're Young Master Kuai Ran's man?" Fatty Liang and Wu De took Jia Xu to an inn near the brothel after learning that Jia Xu had no ill intentions towards them. The inn was very quiet because of the banquet. The two local tyrants found a room to sit down and talk.
Earlier in the brothel, the two had offended Young Master Cai He. Kuai Ran was also a Young Master from an aristocratic family. Only these two people would send someone to talk to them. If Cai He had sent someone, then he wouldn't have been so nice. That left only Kuai Ran. The two were very grateful that Kuai Ran spoke up for them in the brothel. If this person was really Young Master Kuai Ran's man, then it would be an honor for them. The two couldn't wait to build a relationship with Kuai Ran. They couldn't help but smile.
"No." Jia Xu shook his head.
When Jia Xu shook his head, the two men's faces immediately turned gloomy. Seeing their reactions, how could Jia Xu not know that they were disappointed? Businessmen seek profit, this was the essence of doing business. In business, other than the transaction of goods, there was also the transaction of relationships.
"Then you are?!" Although the two of them had lost interest, they still maintained a kind of respect. It was a kind of politeness.
"Haha, do you only know Young Master Kuai Ran?" Jia Xu was a smart person. How could he not see that the two were absent-minded?
"Who are you?" Although Fatty Liang was fat, he was also very scheming. "You are that young master Wang Shu's man?" Kuai Ran wasn't the only one who spoke up for them in the brothel. There was also a young master named Wang Shu. He was the first to speak up for them. Although his words were a bit harsh, it was because he spoke first that Kuai Ran interceded.
"Indeed!" Jia Xu nodded. He took another look at Fatty Liang. No wonder he was able to take 20%, while Wu De was only able to take 15%. Those who thought more would naturally get more.
"May I know why Young Master Wang Shu is looking for us?" Fatty Liang continued to speak. He cupped his fists towards Jia Xu and spoke at the same level as Heng Yu. There was another question in his question. Who was this Young Master Wang Shu? Shouldn't he be Young Master Kuai Ran's follower?
"Haha, Brother Liang, Brother Wu, can I call you that?" Jia Xu addressed them as brothers. Only Jia Xu would be so open. After all, the status of merchants was very low. Scholars didn't want to be associated with merchants.
"You flatter us!" Wu De and Fatty Liang cupped their fists.
"Our young master's status is higher than Young Master Kuai Ran's!" Jia Xu's words stunned the two of them.
"What?" Wu De was the first to lose his cool. Kuai Ran was the son of a high-ranking official in Jingzhou. His father, Kuai Yue, was the second-in-command in Jingzhou. If he was just the son of a high-ranking official, it wouldn't be a big deal. After all, the position of an official was very high. It could be said that even if Liu Biao died or Jingzhou changed its name, the Kuai Family would still exist. This was the reason why nobles were aristocratic families and Kuai Ran was the only heir of the Kuai Family.
Now, someone was saying that Wang Shu's status was higher than Kuai Ran's. Even Liu Biao's two sons wouldn't dare to say that. Could he be the Governor of Jingzhou? What a joke! There were many noble families in Jingzhou, but none of them were higher than the Kuai Family.
"You two don't believe me?" Jia Xu looked at their reactions and said.
Wu De and Fatty Liang didn't say anything, but their expressions showed that they didn't believe him.
"Who is your son?" Fatty Liang thought for a moment. Perhaps Wang Shu wasn't this person's real name! If Wang Shu didn't have any status, Kuai Ran wouldn't have asked Cai He to take them in. Moreover, Kuai Ran mentioned that Wang Shu was an old friend of his uncle, Kuai Liang. Therefore, Wang Shu's status couldn't be too bad. It was possible that Wang Shu's status was higher than Kuai Ran's.
"I can tell you the identity of our Young Master, but you have to think carefully. If you know, you have to keep it a secret. If you dare to leak it, then don't blame me for being ruthless. Our Young Master can save you, but he can also make your families disappear from Jingzhou like Cai He!" Jia Xu smiled. Although he was smiling, Fatty Liang and Wu De saw it as a sneer. They couldn't help but shiver.
That's right, it was a sneer. Jia Xu understood people's hearts. He naturally knew that gentleness wasn't enough. Only strength and benefits could make someone work for him.
"Let's not talk about it!" Wu De shook his head. He saw Jia Xu's expression and immediately retreated.
At the side, Fatty Liang frowned. He wanted to know, but he was afraid that if he knew, he would really be caught in a trap. He couldn't make up his mind.
"Haha, if the two of you don't want to know, then forget it. In any case, the two of you have always been lowly merchants. Although you have money, you don't dare to spend it. How pitiful!" Jia Xu began to provoke the two.
"What do you mean?" Fatty Liang immediately stood up. His eyes were filled with anger. The feeling of being humiliated was still present. If a young master was here, then it would be fine. However, a steward dared to speak like this. "If we are lowly merchants, then what are you?"
"As for me, although I am only a steward under the Young Master, as long as I stay by the Young Master's side, I will be released sooner or later. I don't want to be rich, but the Young Master won't be stingy with the status of a small noble.
"What!" The two of them were stunned by Jia Xu's words. Small noble status! One had to know that such a small noble status had made many people struggle for their entire lives, or even several lifetimes. However, most people stopped at the sight of it. Only a small number of people could become a noble, and they could truly become a person above others. Just like the Mi family in Xuzhou in the past. Such a big merchant family with a family fortune of thousands of gold coins, he curried favor with Liu Bei. Wasn't it for the status of a noble? But now, his family fortune was gone and he gained nothing. Fortunately, the status of a noble had reached the pinnacle of the original track of the nine ranks. At that time, it was true that there was no poverty in the upper ranks and no noble in the lower ranks. How many people had fallen because of a small noble status?
"If the two of you want to continue to be lowly merchants in Jingzhou, then please leave. If the two of you want to become a small noble like me, then you can stay and listen to me!" Jia Xu pointed at the door and said to the two of them.
"We, we should leave!" Wu De was scared. This was beyond his scope of understanding.
Fatty Liang's eyes turned and he thought for a long time. "Wait!" Fatty Liang stared at Jia Xu, as if he wanted to find a clue from Jia Xu's face. However, he was disappointed. The old fox Jia Xu was already very smart. How could he find a clue? Jia Xu was very calm. He even naturally picked up the teacup on the table and poured himself some water to drink.
"Your Young Master really has such ability?!" Fatty Liang stared at Jia Xu and asked.
As soon as he heard Fatty Liang's words, Jia Xu laughed in his heart. The fish had taken the bait.
"Fatty Liang, you're crazy!" On the side, Wu De was anxious. He was really afraid that this Fatty Liang would not come after boarding the pirate ship. Although the two of them were competitors, they still had feelings for each other. Therefore, Wu De tried to comfort him. The whirlpool between the noble clans was not something that merchants like them could participate in. These nobles could just move their fingers and merchants like them would be done for.
"I don't want to be a merchant anymore. A mere merchant!" Fatty Liang began to growl. His eyes were red. This was not because he was provoked by Cai He and Jia Xu today, but because he had been provoked for decades. He originally thought that he could make money. He had money, and he could bring happiness to his family and dignity to himself. However, he was wrong. He was destined to be a merchant. He could only stay in the hall of the brothel. He could not go to the Earth Room! He could! He had enough money, but because he was a merchant, he was not qualified to go! No one would ask him to go either. "I've had enough!"
"Fatty Liang, you!" Wu De suddenly realized that the Fatty Liang in front of him had become unfamiliar. This was no longer the Fatty Liang he had competed with for decades.
The corners of Jia Xu's lips curled up. He drank his tea while looking at the two of them. He knew that neither of them would be able to escape.
"Wu De, Skinny Wu, do you want to sulk for the rest of your life?" Fatty Liang opened his blood-red eyes and looked at Wu De.
"I, I, I!" Wu De did not know why, but when he saw Fatty Liang like this, he also made up his mind. He gritted his teeth and said, "Yes, I don't want to sulk for the rest of my life!"
"Our young master can even make you an aristocratic family, let alone a mere noble family!" When a noble family grew, they would become an aristocratic family. An aristocratic family was a family that could take root in a place.
"Tell me, who is your young master and what does he want us to do?" Fatty Liang calmed down. He knew that there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. How could a person who could make them a noble family would let them get it for free? There must be some conditions.
"Hehe, it's so easy to talk to smart people!" Jia Xu put down the teacup in his hand. These two people were basically in Jia Xu's pocket now.
"Our young master is a person in Jing Province who is much more powerful than your Jing Province Magistrate!" Jia Xu still let them guess because only then would they know who Liu Mang was and how powerful Liu Mang's status was.
"More powerful than the Jing Province Magistrate?!" Fatty Liang and Wu De fell into deep thought.
"Impossible! Who in Jing Province is more powerful than the Jing Province Magistrate?! "Wu De shook his head. He looked at Jia Xu and wondered if he was fooling them.
Fatty Liang paid much more attention to things than Wu De, so he thought for a while and said to Jia Xu, "You mean …"
"That's right, that is our young master!" Jia Xu said with a look of understanding.
"Fatty Liang, who is he talking about?" Wu De asked doubtfully when he saw that both Fatty Liang and the housekeeper understood what he was talking about.
"Hehe, Brother Wu!" Fatty Liang suddenly smiled bitterly. "Who is the one who spoke up for us?"
"It's Young Master Wang Shu!"
"Read this Young Master Wang Shu upside down!" Fatty Liang said to Wu De.
"Upside down?!" Wu De was stunned for a moment and then began to read. What was the mystery behind reading it upside down?
"Young Master Wang Shu, King Of Shu!" Wu De didn't react at first, but then he was stunned. "Wang Shu, King Of Shu! King Of Shu, King Of Shu, His Highness! "Wu De looked at Jia Xu in a daze.
"You, you mean King Of Shu, His Highness?!" Liu Mang's reputation in the whole of Great Han Dynasty was not small because he was the only Marquis, and he also had the title of Holy King. Originally, this had nothing to do with small businessmen like them. After all, he was just a businessman from Jingzhou. How could he know about these Marquis? However, Liu Mang's conscription order made Wu De know about this King Of Shu. Because Liu Mang only paid 30% of the taxes on the land, Wu De had laughed at him. If they collected grain in Yangzhou, they would be able to buy the most grain at the lowest price. This was because the rarer something was, the more it was, the less valuable it would be.
If that Wang Shu was really the King Of Shu, then they could really be given the status of a nobleman. After all, Liu Mang was a Marquis. He already had the ability to establish his own mansion and even set up his own kingdom. A mere nobleman's status was not a problem.
However, Fatty Liang was still smiling bitterly. They had really boarded a pirate ship. The status of a nobleman was easy to get, but if they did not do it well, their family would be ruined. Although Liu Mang was now the King Of Shu, he was in Jingzhou. In Jingzhou, he was basically a hostage. He could not even protect himself. How could he help them? If he did not do it well, he would be accused of colluding with the enemy. Then everyone would be finished.
"Ah ah ah!" Wu De was scared again. He was too careful. "Can we withdraw?"
"Haha, Brother Wu, what do you think?" Jia Xu looked at Wu De with a smile. "Since you all know the identity of the Young Master, then either you are one of us, or I can only ask you to shut up!"
"Shut up?! I will definitely keep my mouth shut! "Wu De nodded and said.
"Only the dead can keep secrets the best!" Fatty Liang was much better than Wu De. He knew that they might have been able to leave before, but now that they knew who this Young Master Wang Shu was, was there any possibility of leaving?
It was impossible. This housekeeper did not come alone. There were two guards beside him. These two guards looked like people who had killed people and seen blood. If they did not do it well, the two of them would really die here. As for what they wanted, it was even more impossible to go out and report. Even if they revealed Liu Mang's identity. Liu Biao could not do anything to Liu Mang because the Lvbu's Army was watching them covetously. How could Liu Biao do anything to Liu Mang? And these two small merchants might be used by Liu Biao to appease Liu Mang. In the end, they would be the ones to die.
"Alright! Sir, since we all know His Highness the King Of Shu, you should also tell us your name! " Fatty Liang is worthy of being called a person who has seen the world. He wants to know who is the person who is negotiating with Liu Mang. He wants to know if that person can speak in front of Liu Mang and how much weight his words have. Only then can he invest.
"Hehe, I am Jia Xu. Jia Wenhe is now the Hefei Prefecture Governor of Yangzhou!" Jia Xu cupped his fist and said to the two people. Liu Mang gave Jia Xu the position of Hefei Prefecture Governor of Yangzhou. This was just a nominal position. Jia Xu was more of a military advisor beside Liu Mang.
"You are Jia Xu?!" Fatty Liang pointed at Jia Xu and said in surprise.
"Why? Does Brother Liang know me?!"
"Military Advisor Jia, you might be forgetful. When you were under the command of Little General Zhang, we had a deal!" Fatty Liang said to Jia Xu.
"Is that so?" The Little General Zhang that Fatty Liang was talking about was Zhang Xiu. Zhang Xiu used to be the Alliance Army of Jingzhou. It could be said that Zhang Xiu was very competent as the watchdog of the southern gate of Jingzhou. At least at that time, Liu Biao could sleep peacefully and did not have to worry about the remnants of the Yellow Turbans or Lao Cao. During that period of time, Jingzhou and Nanyang were in a honeymoon period. Naturally, all of Zhang Xiu's requests were met as much as possible. This Zhang Xiu did not like gold but preferred provisions. It was precisely because of these transactions that he was able to accumulate hundreds of thousands of dans of provisions. However, in the end, it was all burned by Jia Xu.
"Since Brother Liang and I have a relationship, then our cooperation will naturally be more harmonious!" Jia Xu also maintained a kind of goodwill towards Fatty Liang.
"Of course, of course!"
"What does His Highness the King Of Shu need?" Fatty Liang and Wu De asked Jia Xu.
"Still call him His Highness the King Of Shu!" Jia Xu said with a smile.
"Yes, Milord, Milord!" Fatty Liang and Wu De said very obediently and nodded.
"Yangzhou is short of provisions, I believe the two of you also know!" Jia Xu began to instruct the two of them.
When the two heard Jia Xu's words, they nodded. Almost half of the world knew that Yangzhou was short of provisions. Because of Jiangdong's Sun Ce's plan, Yangzhou's originally barren land suddenly had an influx of more than a million people. It could be said that the Marquis with the heaviest burden in the world was Yangzhou's Lvbu's Army. At most, they could raise an army of a hundred thousand people. Even Hebei's Overlord, Yuan Shao, who occupied four provinces, could only raise an army of five hundred thousand people. But Liu Mang suddenly had to raise more than a million people, this burden was naturally incomparably heavy. If it wasn't for the pressure of provisions, Liu Mang wouldn't have come to Jingzhou. He wanted Liu Biao to sell provisions to Yangzhou to alleviate Yangzhou's difficulties.
"Milord, you want us to transport provisions?" Fatty Liang and Wu De were very embarrassed. "I won't hide it from you, Military Advisor Jia. We also want to transport provisions to Yangzhou to sell, but these provisions can't leave Jingzhou!" Fatty Liang said bitterly to Jia Xu.
Yangzhou was short of provisions, these merchants also knew that Yangzhou was short of provisions. Yangzhou was also buying large amounts of provisions, these merchants were also eager to sell provisions. They were merchants, after all, they only cared about profits. Liu Mang took out such a high price to buy provisions, how could they not sell? But even if they wanted to sell, they couldn't transport provisions to Yangzhou. There were only two ways to transport provisions out of Jingzhou. One was to go down the Yangtze River and go through Jiang Xia. This way, the provisions could be sold to any place in the Yangtze River. In the past, Jiang Xia was also a place where Jingzhou's foreign trade was conducted. Countless provisions were sold out. After that, the provisions were changed to steel and salt.
But now, Jiang Xia was in the middle of a war. Most of Jiang Xia had been occupied by the Jiangdong Army. Although the Jiangdong Army was very lenient towards the merchants of Jingzhou, besides not killing the envoys, these merchants could ensure the smooth flow of wealth between Jiangdong and Jingzhou. However, if the Jiangdong Army knew that these provisions were being transported to Yangzhou, then the Jiangdong Army would directly take them down. Obviously, it was impossible for the provisions to be transported to Yangzhou.
The other way was to go up the Yangtze River through Xinye or Nanyang. Nanyang was currently in Liu Bei's hands and Xinye was an important town in Jingzhou. How could it be transported? Once they reached Xinye, they would be sent back home.
"Xinye!?" When Jia Xu heard this name, he couldn't help but laugh.
"If your provisions can be transported to Xinye, then I don't need you to do the rest!"
"Huh? Military Advisor Jia, what are you doing? " Fatty Liang looked at Jia Xu doubtfully. Could it be that Jia Xu had connections in Xinye? Even if he knew some people, it was impossible for him to transport the provisions. The governor of Xinye was the eldest son of the Jingzhou Liu Biao, Liu Qi. How could he allow his father's provisions to be transported out?
"You don't have to worry about this! I naturally have a good plan! " Jia Xu said with a smile. They guessed that Liu Mang's spy in Xinye was really the eldest son of the Jingzhou Governor, Jia Xu.
Previously, Jia Xu was still suspicious of Liu Mang's relationship with Liu Qi. If he became friends with Liu Qi, then he would definitely offend the Cai Family, one of the biggest families in Jingzhou. He might even offend the Cai Family, which was on the same side as the Cai Family. But now, this was an unspeakable benefit. With the highest governor of Xinye, Liu Qi, as a spy, there was nothing to be afraid of.
"If that's the case, then that's naturally the best. We will start moving tomorrow. I can take out about 10,000 shi from the granaries in Jingzhou!" Fatty Liang said to Jia Xu.
"I don't have as much as Fatty Liang, but I still have 8,000 shi!" Wu De also said to Jia Xu.
10,000 shi plus 8,000 shi! That was less than 20,000 shi. Although this was not a small number, it was still far from the colossus in Yangzhou. Jia Xu frowned.
"What? Military Advisor Jia thinks it's too little? I can only do my best. I can still take out 5,000 shi! " Fatty Liang was going to use up his family's wealth. He had originally planned to sell the 10,000 shi this year. He had spent a lot of money on it.
"I can also take out 3,000 shi!" Wu De saw that both sides had taken out another 5,000 shi. He did not want to fall behind and joined in.
Jia Xu shook his head again. Even 8,000 shi would not be enough.
"Military Advisor Jia, our ability is limited. If we raise more, we might not be able to feed our families!" Fatty Liang said to Jia Xu awkwardly. Although they were rich merchants, this was also their limit. If they took out more, they would really go bankrupt.
"I'm not asking you to go bankrupt. I mean, this is just a drop in the bucket. But it's better than nothing!" Jia Xu comforted the two of them. "Brother Liang, Brother Wu, the two of you do everything you can to collect provisions and transport them to Xinye. When you arrive at Xinye, someone will naturally contact you!"
"Yes!" Fatty Liang and Wu De nodded. Although their hearts were pained because they would lose this batch of provisions, they still gritted their teeth and went all out for the sake of their status as landowning households.
How could Jia Xu not know what the two of them were thinking when he saw their expressions? The two of them were worried about the money. Jia Xu smiled and shook his head. It was unavoidable for merchants to conspire for profit. "Of course, you can report all your expenses to me. When you arrive at Xinye, someone will naturally give you the money for the provisions!"
"We wouldn't dare, we wouldn't dare!" Fatty Liang and Wu De hurriedly lowered their heads.
"What's there to be afraid of? I'm not giving you all the money. Some of it is for you to collect more rations and transport them to Xinye! " Jia Xu said to the two of them. The two of them looked like they wanted to but did not dare to ask for it. It was really funny. "If you take out all the provisions, how can you work for the Lord without money?"
"If that's the case, this Liang will definitely search for ten thousand shi of provisions for my lord!" Fatty Liang promised Jia Xu.
"Me too, me too!" Wu De hurriedly said.
"Just do your best. Don't be too ostentatious!" Jia Xu comforted the two of them. The purchase of provisions would attract the attention of people with ulterior motives. Therefore, they had to do their best and not overdo it.
"This is only one of the things!" Jia Xu said. He came to Jingzhou to buy provisions. Although the two of them could take out tens of thousands of provisions, it was only a drop in the bucket. It was not enough for Yangzhou's consumption. The one who could really deal with Yangzhou's crisis was Liu Biao's official provisions. This was the reason why Liu Mang came here. Everything Liu Mang was doing now was to change Liu Biao's mind! Fatty Liang and Wu De were just helping him in an emergency.
What Jia Xu was going to say next was the most important thing.
"Please say it clearly!"
"The second thing is also the most important thing. That is, the Lord needs the two of you to let the merchants of Jingzhou move their businesses to Yangzhou as much as possible! This is also to let the two of you make friends with those merchants. Tell them that Yangzhou welcomes the merchants of Jingzhou. These are the things that Yangzhou needs and the treatment that Yangzhou will give to those merchants! "Jia Xu took out a piece of paper from his bosom. There were many things written in ink on it. These were all written by Liu Mang. Yangzhou was now in need of many things. For example, salt and iron were all necessities. With salt and iron, Liu Mang could build the heavy armored troops, replace the troops, and ensure the consumption of weapons and equipment.
"Huh?" Fatty Liang took the paper first. However, as soon as he got it, it was taken away by Wu De.
"Fatty Liang, can you understand it? What are you pretending for? " Wu De looked at Fatty Liang with disdain. Fatty Liang was illiterate. It was already known that he was illiterate.
"Hehe!" Fatty Liang smiled awkwardly. Jia Xu also looked at Fatty Liang with a smile. In this era, there were many illiterate people. It was not surprising. Even in Liu Mang's army, there were many illiterate people. Liu Mang was now forcing them to learn how to read.
Fatty Liang was illiterate. Fortunately, Wu De knew how to read. Therefore, Wu De took the paper and read it.
The first few items were things that Yangzhou lacked. Even coal was included. This can be considered as a large purchase. Liu Mang's budget was also very large. Both of them were dumbfounded. It was 15,000 gold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This was really a huge business. An astronomical figure.
However, this was not the part that shocked the two of them. What really shocked the two of them was that Liu Mang wrote down the terms and conditions for merchants. The two of them were stunned when they saw the terms and conditions.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
