? There were many mountainous areas and rivers in Hunan.
There were many mountains and rivers in Hunan. The name Xiangyin Crossing Town came from the fact that there was a government-run ferry here. It was surrounded by mountains and rivers, and the scenery was even better. Zhou Jincai did not feel much about the scenery. It was inconvenient to move around in the mountainous areas. If those beautiful mountains could be flattened, Zhou Jincai would feel that it was better. Zhou Jincai did not have much interest in the scenery. It was inconvenient to move around in the mountains. If those beautiful mountains could be flattened, Zhou Jincai would feel that it would be better.
This was a government-run ferry, so the trade was naturally quite active and the population was relatively large. This was a government-run ferry, so trade was naturally quite active, and the population was also relatively large. It was also convenient to do business here.
From afar, they could see the barracks erected in front of the town. The wood quality was rather new, and it seemed to have been completed recently. After seven or eight years of war, there were more and more military installations in various places for the purpose of war. Zhou Jincai had also heard that the last time Military Governor Vaize passed through Chenzhou to Yongxing, there was not even a Qing Army on the way, let alone a checkpoint and barracks. Five to six thousand Qing Army soldiers were already a very large army. Now it was common for five to six thousand soldiers to appear everywhere. The Liberation Army, Taiping army, Xiang Army, Qing Army, and all the other powers were expanding their armies. Even a ferry like this had its own defense system.
There were four cannons in the barracks. This kind of wooden defense system did not have much effect, and was blown away after a few cannons. Zhou Jinguo ordered the soldiers from Chenzhou to negotiate with the town. The two of them went forward without weapons and talked for a while in the local language. Unexpectedly, two people came out from the other side. It seemed that they were also messengers.
After being brought to Zhou Jincai, the messengers smiled and said, "Sir, we have not offended you in the past, and we do not wish to offend you now. The town will send you some money and food. Please return to your troops."
Zhou Jincai said with a smile, "Of course not. Our mission this time is not to collect money and food from the town, but to do some business in the town. If you do not agree, then needless to say, we will have no choice but to take action. "
The two people who came out looked at each other in dismay. These words were frightening. As the saying goes, soldiers and bandits are a family. If this group of soldiers dressed in strange clothes entered the town to do business, the town would be finished.
"Master, do you think we gave you too little money?" The person's voice was trembling.
"Bring it over," Zhou Jincai ordered. Soon, two carriages filled with goods were pulled to the front. He opened the rope on the top pocket and took out a paper bag of salt, a white iron sickle, an iron plow, needles and thread.
Zhou Jincai took out a paper bag, tore it open, took out a small paper stick from the middle, and held it in his mouth. He took out a small box and pulled out a small wooden stick from it. He rubbed the edge of the box hard. With a "chi" sound, the head of the small wooden stick first emitted a puff of smoke, and then it actually started burning. Zhou Jincai brought the lit wooden stick to the tip of the paper stick in his mouth. After taking two puffs, the tip of the paper stick started burning. Soon, the two people who came out of the town smelled the aroma of burning tobacco.
After puffing out a mouthful of smoke, Zhou Jincai gave each of them a cigarette and helped them light it. The two people in the town had been shocked by the goods on the carriages. After seeing Zhou Jincai's behavior, their eyes, which were originally full of shock, were now filled with envy.
Paper cigarettes were completely different from dry tobacco. After taking a few puffs, both of them felt that the taste was lighter than dry tobacco, but a lot more mellow. Moreover, they didn't need to use as much effort when smoking dry tobacco. They felt that smoking was very enjoyable.
Zhou Jincai said with a smile, "You two, we are here to do business, not to rob. You don't have to be afraid. It's just that we have orders from above that this business must be done. If you don't let us do business, then needless to say, we can only take advantage of the big customers and do business by force. "
The two of them had been smoking cigarettes and were feeling elated. After hearing these words, their hands trembled and they almost dropped their cigarettes. One of them said, "Master, we …"
The other, who looked much smarter, asked, "Master, how much are you asking for in total?"
After puffing out a mouthful of smoke, Zhou Jincai frowned slightly and said, "We are not forcing people to buy or sell. That's banditry! We just want to send people to do business with you. I'll tell you the price. Salt is 15 copper coins per catty, and a sickle … "
Hearing that salt was 15 copper coins per catty, the faces of the two people immediately changed. Before the war, a catty of salt here was 15 to 20 copper coins, but now it was 65 copper coins. Unlike what they had imagined, the Liberation Army would ask for a sky-high price. The price of salt was really too cheap. It was so cheap that it was unbelievable. The other goods were also cheap, and could even be said to be ridiculously cheap. The two of them became even more afraid. If they were to send benefits to their door, their purpose must be even more sinister.
In the end, the two of them said in a trembling voice that they would go back and tell the people in the town. Zhou Jincai said, "Before you go back, tell the people on the watchtower at the front of the town to come down, and don't let anyone else go. Because after you go back, you definitely won't dare to come out again. We'll only wait for two hours. If you still refuse to do business with us at that time, we'll blow up the watchtower with cannons. We'll let the people in the town know if we can fight our way in by force. Don't refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Come, I'll lend you my pocket watch and let you know how long I mean by two hours. "
He gave the pocket watch to the two people and used a piece of paper to draw the time and the position of the watch hand. He wanted to know what time the watch hand would be in two hours. Zhou Jincai asked the political commissar to take out another pocket watch and let the two of them see the same time. Then he said, "Don't think that we can be fooled by you after you move the watch hand. Go. "
The final development of the matter was similar to what Zhou Jincai had expected. Two hours later, the Liberation Army dragged the cannons up and blew up the empty watchtower with two shots. The people in the town came out to negotiate again. In the end, they reached a deal. The Liberation Army was not allowed to enter. In order to reassure them, Zhou Jincai even sent the female soldiers to sell the goods.
Eight female soldiers pulled the two carriages to the town. Zhou Jincai couldn't help but praise, "These new wheels are really good. In the past, I would never have thought that two female comrades could pull a carriage with a few hundred catties of things on it."
The political commissar also laughed. "Commander-in-chief, you said that productivity drives social progress. This is really not a joke. In the past, I wouldn't have believed that these good things could be so cheap after using machines to produce them and doing cost calculations. Even if our things are sold so cheaply, we can still make money. "
Zhou Jincai also praised, "Political commissar, that's called 'economic warfare,' right? That means that the people of Hunan are buying our things. If the Xiang Army wants to make money like before, they can only directly rob the people. "
Ever since the establishment of the party committee system, many things had become exceptionally simple when the party committee held a meeting. The people had benefited from trading with the Liberation Army, and the Liberation Army did not lose money by selling things. Not only did everyone not feel guilty, but they also felt that they were on the side of justice. As for the Xiang Army, it would be better if they died. The Liberation Army did not sympathize with the Xiang Army.
It was not only Zhou Jincai and the other comrades who could directly participate in the party committee who thought so. After the political commissar explained the political significance of the work, the comrades who actually carried out the work also thought so. Second Lieutenant Zheng Yufeng from the logistics department brought seven other female soldiers to transport the goods. She and the other soldiers also thought so.
Seeing that it was really a few women who were pulling the goods over, the people in town also became a lot more courageous. After a middleman in a long gown came over, he carefully looked at the salt and confirmed the price. He asked for 100 kilograms right away.
"Oh! Does your family own a salt shop? "Zheng Yufeng said with a smile.
"That's not it," the man in the long gown replied.
Zheng Yufeng's voice was clear, and she said in a teasing tone, "We're here to sell things. Naturally, we want everyone in town to know that the Liberation Army is not a group of bandits, much less robbers. Of course we know that salt is cheap. If you buy a few hundred kilograms here, you can double the price when you sell it outside. Do you really think we don't know that salt here sells for 60 copper coins per kilogram? So let me make it clear first. Each family can buy at most five kilograms. We won't sell more than that. "
At this time, some other people had gathered around to watch the show. Hearing Zheng Yufeng's words, the people immediately became interested. The coarse salt produced by the Liberation Army's saltworks was transported to Foshan. It was filtered and crystallized using the waste heat of the steel plant. There were no impurities in the white salt grains, and it was delightful to look at.
The people of Xiangyin Ferry had never seen such good salt. Some people did not believe it and asked to "have a taste." After Zheng Yufeng agreed, the man threw a handful of salt into his mouth according to the character of a farmer. A moment later, his whole face wrinkled. He could not say anything. He went directly to the water tank next to him, buried his head in it, and gulped down the salt. Seeing that it was a woman who came to sell goods, the fear of the people naturally decreased a lot. Seeing this scene again, the people roared with laughter.
Zheng Yufeng also laughed, and the female soldiers also could not help but laugh. In the blink of an eye, the tense situation from a few hours ago had been greatly eased.
These daily necessities sold well. Not only did this group of people buy good salt that they had never seen before. They also bought steel needles that they had never seen before. These days, the needles were basically iron needles. The awl used to make shoe soles had very thick needles. If it was not thick enough, it would bend with a little force. Not to mention the people, even the Liberation Army's own clothing factory was troubled by this problem. After the steel was produced, the topic of large-scale production of steel needles was brought up. Now, most areas in Guangdong had already eliminated iron needles. The quality of the steel needles that were sold now was even better than before. The needles were of different sizes, and they were all inserted into cardboard separately. The tails were all threaded with beautiful and strong silk cotton thread. It was a pleasing sight.
After the business started, the goods sold very quickly. Some of the people did not leave immediately after buying things. Some women could not help but muster up the courage to stay and chat with these female soldiers in strange uniforms. The question they asked the most was, "Why are your goods so cheap?"
"Why is the price of goods in Hunan so high these years? Because the Xiang Army has been collecting taxes everywhere. The people who do business are first collected by the Xiang Army. When they sell the goods to you, of course they have to add this money to the price. Otherwise, they will have to pay a loss. But the Xiang Army has never dared to collect taxes from our Liberation Army. If they dare to collect taxes from us, we will kill them. So naturally, our goods are cheap. "Zheng Yufeng's voice was clear, and her words were full of pride. Her voice sounded even more pleasant.
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.
