In the mountains, pickaxes fell one after another. The sweating did not stop. Mud trucks came and went, and the rain poured down.
It was just dawn, and the rain was still falling. It seemed to be getting heavier. The people put on the straw raincoats and bamboo hats that were sent to them and hurriedly ate breakfast before throwing themselves back to work.
Zhang Zhong, who had stayed with them all night, also got on the carriage and headed to the county office. Horses could not be ridden anymore. Zhang Zhong gained a lot from this night, and the people approved of him from the bottom of their hearts.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan also got up. The two of them really did read Er Ya yesterday. In fact, it was like reading a dictionary. After reading for four hours, their minds were muddled.
The two of them ate tofu pudding. There were three long brocade boxes on the table, each with a ginseng in it. The long whiskers were as thick as a strand of hair at the bottom, but they were not broken. There was even a red string at the top.
This was the ability of those merchants. Zhang Xiaobao did not know where they found these three hundred-year-old ginseng. Last night, in the middle of the night, in the rain, three ginseng. With three ginseng, Zhang Xiaobao could go out to play.
"Three? They don't want money. It seems that they want Father to do something for them. Alright, keep it. You must keep it. After a few hundred years, it will become a thousand-year-old ginseng. Then, our plan can begin."
Zhang Xiaobao did not know how to read ginseng, so he was not sure if it was a hundred-year-old ginseng. He thought that the merchants did not have the guts to cheat his father. He could not accept the ginseng for free. Otherwise, wouldn't it be bribery? Zhang Xiaobao decided to help the merchants think of a way to make money after they bought the land.
"I have never seen you calculate like this. What thousand-year-old? It's a fossil. Let's go to Yushu Village tomorrow. It's time to dig the coal there. Do you think there will be oil where there is coal?"
Wang Juan closed the three boxes and said to Zhang Xiaobao.
"How would I know? Even if there is oil, I don't know how to refine it. I'll be satisfied if I can burn coal in the winter. In a while, get someone to call my father back. We have to get back the money we invested as soon as possible. Invest more. It's best if we invest the money for the road as well. When that time comes, it'll be too late even if someone wants to object. "
Zhang Xiaobao finished the last mouthful of the bun, clapped his hands, and jumped down to find someone to call for his father.
Because of the rain, Zhang Zhong took the bus back again. He set off from the mountain in the morning and arrived at his destination at noon. The wheels of the bus broke down twice on the way.
Zhang Xiaobao was a little anxious while waiting. Those merchants were even more anxious than Zhang Xiaobao. They were waiting for the county magistrate to come back from a tea stall opposite the yamen. They drank tea from morning until noon. Once they saw the tea, they would feel salty and astringent in their mouths. They ate some snacks, but they didn't know whether they were full or hungry.
The owner of the tea stall poked the middle of the shed with a stick to get rid of the rainwater on top of the shed. He brewed a new batch of tea and added some salt, ginger, and other things. He brought it to the merchants who were waiting here and said, "It's very wet outside. Why don't you come in and have a seat?"
"No, we'll wait here. Can't you not put so much in the tea? I don't know how it tastes in my mouth. Go to the docks and have a look. There are only tea leaves and water. It's much better than this tea. "
A merchant said this for the fourth time. Ever since they drank tea at the docks, they didn't want to drink this tea anymore. Unfortunately, the docks didn't sell tea leaves, only tea water. It was very expensive, and they didn't know where it came from.
He didn't know, but the owner of the tea shop knew. This time, he explained, "Everyone, it's not that I don't want to sell that kind of tea leaves. I've also tasted it. The taste is indeed different from this tea. But that tea was made by Zhangjia Zhuangzi and sold to the docks. I don't know how to make it.
There are many kinds of tea dumplings and tea cakes in my shop. Even if you don't put the salt and directly soak them in water, the taste won't be the same. If you can find the recipe, I'm willing to pay five hundred strings of coins. "
"Don't even think about it. With the recipe, I won't sell it even if it's fifty thousand strings of coins. I'll open my own tea stall." The merchant replied.
At this time, a person beside him stood up and looked towards the east. His face showed a happy expression and said, "Don't worry about the tea. The county magistrate is back."
Everyone turned their heads and looked. Sure enough, the county magistrate's carriage appeared in the rain. Several merchants didn't care about the rain outside and rushed out. The last person threw down the tea money and ran while shouting, "Wait for me, wait for me."
Zhang Zhong stopped at Jinlai Tower before coming over. He knew that someone had sent the ginseng and could proceed to the next step.
"Sir, you're back? How's your son? " A merchant rushed to the side of the carriage and asked with concern. In fact, he was reminding Zhang Zhong that the ginseng had been sent.
Zhang Zhong lifted the curtain and said to this person, "Yes, I just went to see him. He has already woken up. The medicine last night was really good. Did you send the ginseng? Tell me, what do you want? "
"My Lord, I want the recipe for that tea." The merchant suddenly changed the topic they had agreed on before.
"Oh? The recipe of the tea? That can't be done. It doesn't belong to my family. It belongs to the Wang family. How about I send you some tea? 50 kilograms. What do you think? " Of course, Zhang Zhong wouldn't give him the recipe. The tea was not only for money, but also as a gift.
When the merchant heard that he only wanted to send tea, 50 kilograms was indeed a lot, but it would be used up one day. Moreover, there was also some tea at the dock. He shook his head and said, "Sir, then we want to change it. We want to buy a piece of land near the dock. What do you think?"
"Oh, that's easy. Buy a piece of land? Is it a piece of land without an owner?" Zhang Zhong asked deliberately.
At this time, the carriage had already arrived at the entrance of the government office. Someone held an umbrella for them. Zhang Zhong got out of the carriage and motioned for the merchants to go in and discuss with him.
At this time, a fast horse galloped from the side. A person wearing a bamboo hat and a straw raincoat was walking on the road. It seemed that he didn't hear the sound of the horse's hooves. The people around him immediately shouted at this person.
Seeing that the horse was only a few zhang away from the man, the man finally reacted. Shocked, he suddenly jumped to the side and bumped into Zhang Zhong. Only then did the guards of the Prince's Mansion come to their senses and protect Zhang Zhong. When they got off the carriage just now, Zhang Zhong was surrounded by merchants. The guards had been outside the carriage the whole time. In a moment of desperation, the man rushed quickly and didn't have time to block them.
Seeing that Zhang Zhong was fine and that person was not an assassin, they were relieved. They secretly decided to protect him more closely in the future. Otherwise, if the Little Prince found out, it would be troublesome.
"How is it? Are you hurt? "Zhang Zhong asked the person who was almost trampled by the horse.
"No, I'm not hurt. I'm just scared. Sir, you do your thing. Don't worry about me." The person seemed to be frightened and said with a trembling voice.
"Why don't you rest in the government office?" Zhang Zhong saw that the person was fine and invited him.
The person shook his head so hard that the water on his bamboo hat splashed onto Zhang Zhong's face. After saying this, he lowered his head and left in a hurry.
Zhang Zhong didn't care. He took the person into a room in the government office and asked someone to bring tea. He sat there and repeated what he had just said.
The leader of the merchants said honestly, "Sir, there is a field over there. It's owned. But we can buy it. He will agree if we give him more money. But there is a field over there. Sir, do you think we can buy it for other things? Here is what we will do in the future. Erniu has already told us. "
As the merchant spoke, he took out a lot of envelopes and put them on the table. It was the proposal that Zhang Zhong asked them to write.
Zhang Zhong casually took out one of the envelopes and looked at it. He nodded and said, "This is not bad. But there is a field over there. You will have to pay more money. Are you willing to do that?"
"Yes, yes, we are willing." The merchant thought that the penalty would not be too high. A field used to grow rice would only produce once a year. A few strings of coins per mu was not a small amount. It was a few times more than the cost of growing rice.
Zhang Zhong nodded again, "It's good that you are willing. We will see what is suitable for growing in that field. We will pay according to the price. We will pay once a year. But this matter is not decided by me alone. The Registrar General and the Deputy County Magistrate also have to agree."
"Agreed, Sir. Registrar General Zhan and Deputy County Magistrate Xiao have agreed. They told us about it the night before yesterday."
"You said that the two of them agreed. Do you think they will agree just because they agreed? They have not come to me before. How about this, let them come to me and I will ask. If they really agree, you will take over the land. Do you know that there is a difference in the local tax? "
Zhang Zhong said with a look of disbelief.
"We know, we know. The tax will be higher. We will pay. We are willing to pay. County Magistrate, we will go to the Deputy County Magistrate and the Registrar General now. We will let them talk to you then. Is that okay?"
The merchants knew that the tax was high, but they could earn more. Seeing that the matter was settled, they agreed immediately. They were afraid that the County Magistrate would change his mind, so they went to look for Registrar General Zhan and Deputy County Magistrate Xiao.
Both of them were exhausted. Zhang Zhong was not back, so they could only help to solve some cases. Usually, they could solve cases according to their preferences. But today, they could not. There were still bailiffs and the Deputy County Magistrate at the side.
Both of them had no choice but to solve the case seriously. It was not a big matter, but just a small matter. But they had to solve it. Luckily, they had hired many bailiffs. For example, whose house was washed away by water, whose chicken was lost, who took over whose land, etc. It was good to have bailiffs. They could continuously send them out to solve the case.
Just now when the rain was heavy, there were fewer people. They took some time to rest and the merchants came to look for them.
"Registrar General Zhan, Deputy County Magistrate Xiao, the County Magistrate has agreed. I would like to ask for your opinion. I would like to ask for your opinion."
The Esteemed Person found the two of them. As he spoke, he gave them 10,000 strings of coins, 5,000 strings of coins each. With the money, they could exchange it for real money or silk.
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