Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan thought that Bi Shangshu was just trying to fish, but they didn't expect that he really wanted to catch fish.
Hearing the old man's words, the two of them looked at the pond in the restaurant. They looked at each other and nodded. Wang Juan said to the old man, "Grandpa Bi, the waiter in our restaurant probably thought that no one would come to fish, so he fed the fish some food. After the fish finished eating, he went to rest. Those who didn't rest were still digesting the food."
The old man looked up in realization and said, "That's right. After eating, there's nothing to do. The fish have nothing to do, and the people have nothing to do. It's the same for the people when they're full."
"That's right. After eating, they feel sleepy. They need to sleep for a while," Wang Juan said.
The old man Weiwei nodded and said, "But there are still many people who haven't eaten, and many people who haven't worn warm clothes. Shouldn't the people who have eaten their fill and worn warm clothes help the people who haven't eaten their fill do something? Just like this fish, if they don't eat their fill, they'll be caught and die. After all, people aren't fish."
This time, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan understood. The old man was looking for an opportunity to teach them some things. It seemed that he wanted them to go back and tell others to help the people of San Shui County.
Needless to say, the two of them would do the same. Only in prosperous places could there be more consumption. With more demand, the docks would be able to make money.
Zhang Xiaobao felt that he should say something. After thinking for a while, he said, "Grandpa Bi, I heard from my mother that when spring comes, we should fork out money to repair the river between Zhuangzi and Ge family's Zhuangzi. It will connect to Xiao Luoshui. In the future, slightly bigger boats will be able to come here."
"Clear the muddy areas in the middle. Even if there are no big boats, three or four small boats can go side by side. It's also convenient for small boats to stop at any time. When a big boat comes, it will go upstream and need to be pulled. The people around have goods, so they don't need to hire carts or carry them to other places to sell. They can just walk to the river.
Everyone will have food to eat. My mother also said that the market in Zhuangzi will send boats to buy those people's goods. The price will also be set so that merchants from other places won't be cheated. If they are willing, they can put the same goods together. My family will help negotiate the price. at that time, we'll take half of the money. It will be cheaper than the intermediary in Luoshui's. "
Only then did the old man look at Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan with a smile. He patted their heads and said, "I always knew that you two are smart, but I didn't expect that you two would know what I want to say with just one sentence. However, the fish in your restaurant's pond are full, but the fish outside haven't been eaten yet. With only a net blocking them, there won't be much food that can leak out."
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan looked at the Zhuangzi area of the Han family and the Zhuangzi area of the Yuan family at the same time. The two of them knew that the old man was talking about was there. During the New Year, the people were taken away. Presumably, the family business would be ruined. If they looked for the people, they might be able to keep their lives. The bribe money would not be small. The two families were finished.
After Jia Shan's family knew that Jia Shan was taken away, they also left the yamen and followed him to the capital. They wanted to ask someone to do something. The two Zhuangzi here naturally couldn't escape. If the main family was gone, what would happen to the village? Do you want us to take over the Zhuangzi?
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan thought about it, but they didn't dare to agree. It would be strange if there were no problems. Therefore, they pretended not to know and turned their heads back to look at the old man with blank eyes.
"Hahahaha!" The old man laughed, and his laughter became louder and louder. He said to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, "Don't pretend to know nothing in front of me. I'm happy that you two are smart. It's better to teach smart children than stupid ones. I was able to read at the age of six, and I became a Jinshi. I don't know how to teach stupid children.
It's just as you think. Your family has caused a lot of trouble for others. In the future, the two Zhuangzi will have to change owners. It's better to change them to your family. Maybe the people of Huayuan County will be able to live a better life like Sanshui County.
Your family wants to build a restaurant here. You can't always rely on Li Xun to find people to come over. The two places aren't far from each other, and there's a river over there. As long as you get people to dig a channel, it will be connected to your side. My nephew from the Zheng family has learned a lot at Little Luoshui. He's preparing to build a pier on that river.
At that time, there will be a lot of people coming here. It just so happens that it's connected to the river between your family and the Ge family. It'll be more convenient to come and go. Isn't that right? "
"No." Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan shook their heads at the same time.
That river was closer to the capital and the Wei River. It was almost half the distance. The reason why Little Luoshui's business was good was that it wasn't connected to the river. It was difficult to transport by land.
"Grandpa Bi, that nephew of yours is too much of a scammer. If he connects the river here, the business at Little Luoshui's pier will be much worse. He's counting on this place to make money. Don't let him build a pier. We're willing to let him join us."
Wang Juan discussed and wanted to find someone to join them to maintain Zhuangzi's geographical advantage.
Zhang Xiaobao fell into deep thought and didn't say anything else. The old man wasn't in a hurry. He rubbed Wang Juan's head and said, "Cuckoo, if you do this, your family will be fine. But what about the people? Is your family short of money now? Do you lack power? "
"Yes. The money is all used for Xiao Bao's father's imperial examinations. How can we have power? Didn't County Magistrate Wen come just like that? He brought 300 people to arrest us. "
Wang Juan said with certainty. Even though Zhang Xiaobao had opened so many shops with her in the capital, she was still not satisfied.
The old man smiled again. "You can fool others, but you can't fool me. What did Xiao Bao say?"
Hearing the old man's question, Zhang Xiaobao looked up and said, "Okay, let's connect it. But I have a request. My father must enter the top three this time. He can only be the top scorer or the third runner-up. He must be an official in a place near my family. It's best if it's Huayuan County.
As long as my father enters the top three this time and is an official in Huayuan, my family can triple the income of the people in Huayuan and Sanshui. Your nephew will also earn a lot. "
"Oh? You can make the decision? "The old man looked at Zhang Xiaobao and asked.
"Uh! No, I'm just saying. I'll discuss it with my mother when I get back. "Zhang Xiaobao naturally did not dare to say that he could make the decision.
"Okay, then let's eat first. I'll tell you about Capital Wu's Fu later. 'Capital Wu is from Suzhou. At the end of the Han Dynasty, Sun Quan was from Jianye, also known as Wu. '" The old man also did not believe that the two children could make the decision, but he liked them. They were too smart and willing to learn.
The most important thing was that they knew how to be filial to their elders. As long as they ate with their elders, they had to let their elders choose what they liked to eat first. They also had to help their elders pick the food. When they talked about earning money, they used the condition of obtaining an official title for their father in exchange.
He wondered how the Zhang Family and Wang Family had produced such children. Whoever had such a child would be extremely fortunate. Thankfully, he had met them and his body had gotten much better. He wasn't like before, where he would get muddle-headed whenever he stayed around. If he were to properly guide the two children, he would be a great teacher as well.
During the meal, the three of them were not on the first floor. It was close to the water and the humidity was too heavy. As they walked up the stairs, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan let the old man go first while they followed behind.
Wang Juan looked at Zhang Xiaobao and moved her lips. "Why did you agree? Little Luoshui's business will be snatched away. With another river, who would come to our place? "
"I thought so too at the start. Later on, I understood that it would not be snatched away at all. The main river of Wei River has a lot of cargo. Some of the smaller businesses can't squeeze into the big boats. The big boats are more expensive, so they can only hire one boat. The speed of transportation can affect the value of the goods.
When they are waiting for the other Shang Family, it is actually a kind of money overhang. Only by circulating money can they earn money faster or lose money faster. Our river is small, even if we expand it, it will still be small. It is the same in the past. If they only use the smaller boats, their goods can be placed on the small boats. One boat or a few boats, they will leave as soon as they have the goods. This way … "
"I understand. This way, we won't just be a warehouse here. We won't just be a place to consume a small amount of goods. We won't just exist as a middleman.
The number of boats will increase by a few times or even dozens of times. We can form a fleet of small boats to earn money. We can also build auxiliary industries on both sides of the river. The more people there are, the more money we can earn. You acted like you were at a disadvantage just now, bad guy. "
Without waiting for Zhang Xiaobao to finish his explanation, Wang Juan already knew. Whether a place could prosper or not, it didn't depend on the specialties of the place. As long as it could exist as a transportation route, it would be impossible for it not to prosper. As long as a few sections of the road were opened up and the rivers were connected, it would become a new waterway.
Zhang Family and Wang Family's restaurant in Zhuangzi just happened to block a section of the road in the middle of Sanshui County. Now, this place was under the control of the Zhang Family and Wang Family. Countless boats would pass by here. They just had to provide some services and they would be able to earn money.
Zhang Xiaobao also thought of this and even went a level deeper. As expected, Wang Juan who understood Zhang Xiaobao said again when they were about to walk to the entrance of the restaurant, "Xiao Bao, it can't be that simple right? Then it wouldn't be you, Zhang Xiaobao. "
"Let's talk about it in the future. Let's eat first. A hasty person can't eat hot tofu. Yes, let them make a dish of tofu today. The braised food is a little salty. Let's make some big shrimps. Shrimp with tofu."
Zhang Xiaobao was used to keeping secrets. When he talked about tofu, he wanted to eat tofu. Wang Juan didn't continue to ask. When she heard Zhang Xiaobao mention shrimp with tofu, she licked her lips and nodded.
Between the Clouds and the Water had very few people now. Most of the scholars had gone to Beijing. In addition, it was the young master and young lady who came to eat, so the dishes were prepared very quickly. The three of them had just tasted two mouthfuls of the kimchi that was used to set the plates when the waiter served the hot dishes one by one.
In fact, there weren't many dishes. There were only six dishes. There was also a chicken soup specially prepared for the old man. It was boiled with ginseng and several kinds of Chinese medicine. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were also worried that the old man's health wasn't good. They thought of all kinds of ways to nourish him. After eating, they even accompanied him for a walk. In the morning, they also asked someone to take the old man to exercise.
The old man looked at Zhang Xiaobao put a big shrimp on his plate and sighed. "Xiao Bao, when you go back, tell your family. I will think of a way to do as you say."
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.
