Civil servants of the Tang Dynasty

The chirping of night insects echoed the rustling sound of Tang Cheng stepping on the grass. The two of them didn't speak, and walked step by step towards the clearer moonlight. It's all a clear smile.

Ling Yi was still a little unnatural at the beginning, but slowly her arms became more and more relaxed, and her mood became more and more relaxed. Occasionally, she recalled everything she had experienced during this period, which made her feel like she was suddenly dreaming. like this?When she wanted to find the reason and reason, she couldn't find any of them. Maybe it was because of his libretto in the afternoon, maybe it was because of his demeanor singing along the river, or because of this quiet night, and this river, this moon……

Ling Yi's hand was slender and warm in the palm, and the scene in front of her was really more and more like a story of Liaozhai!Tang Cheng didn't know why the relationship between the two became like this, maybe it was because being far away from home made him completely relieved of the burden in his heart, maybe it was such a night, such a bright moon and river water that made him completely free from all shackles, In short, when it was time to do that, he did it so naturally, even his hands reacted faster than his brain, naturally, yes, naturally!

I don't know how long it has passed, and the sound of shifting on the fishing boat in the distance came faintly with the night wind, which was urging a few people to go back. Hearing the sound of shifting, Tang Cheng looked up at the full moon, inexplicably At this moment, Ling Yi's sigh was superimposed with his.The superimposition of the two makes the originally extremely weak sense of regret and reluctance in the sigh become more and more clear.

Looking at each other and smiling again, the two stopped at the same time, turned around, and walked in the same direction. This tacit understanding was as if they had trained together countless times.

After returning to the clipper where Ling Yi was on the board, Tang Cheng let go of Ling Yi's hand, just as naturally as when he first reached out to hold it, and then the two seemed to have a tacit understanding without asking anything until Tang Cheng and Wu Yujun returned to his boat.

In Ling Yi's cabin, the little servant girl in apricot clothes knelt down and helped her master untie her bun and comb her hair, and couldn't help it anymore, "My lord, tonight...he...".

"I don't know, and I don't know, maybe... this is divine friendship!" Ling Yi said vaguely, and she was already lying down. Waving his hands, "There is true meaning in this, if you want to distinguish it, you forget the words! This is not a poem you just learned! Not everything in this world can be explained clearly. Well, I am tired, so go to sleep too." When he said the last sentence, Ling Yi seemed to have returned to his usual appearance.

Seeing the master like this, Qing Xing didn't dare to ask any more, but when she turned to exit the cabin, she said softly: "Sir, do you want me to ask where the boat is going?".

"Ask me if I don't? Who told you to be troublesome?" Up to this point, Qing Xing didn't dare to say a word, and bowed back out of the cabin.

After Tang Cheng went back, it was necessary to be disturbed for a while, but it is impossible to explain clearly what happened today. A special thing happened to a specific person in a specific environment. It's like falling in love at first sight in a movie, not only is it confusing for others, but even the person concerned can't tell what's going on when he wants to say it.

After disturbing for a while, Wu Yujun went to sleep, maybe he was talking about going to Yangzhou soon, but he didn't bother much in the evening after being exhausted in the afternoon, which indirectly helped Tang Chengneng to have a good night's sleep.

Waking up the next morning, Tang Cheng found out that the fast boat Ling Yi was sitting on had already left at some point after getting out of the cabin. Looking at the red sunrise in the distance, and thinking about the things that happened last night, he felt more and more excited. It's like a fictional story of Liaozhai.

In the next few days, the ship sailed eastward. After the initial novelty, Tang Cheng spent the rest of the time reading books except for occasional visits to Jinger. The last experience with Mr. Yan was of great importance to him. Deep stimulation.

Let the ship go eastward all the way, and after a few days, the itinerary finally came to an end, and Yangzhou arrived.

Yangzhou is located in the lower reaches of the Huaihe River. It is not far from the east to the sea. It is connected to the sea on one side and the Grand Canal connecting the north and the south. Xiongfu is famous all over the world.

The prosperity of Yangzhou is coming, and the prosperity of Yangzhou is real. This can be seen from the hustle and bustle on the wharf. When he got on the wharf and walked all the way to the city, Tang Cheng's feeling is the same as that of the later generations when they first visited Shanghai. Almost, there are a lot of people and cars. Compared with the city in front of me, Jinzhou, which I thought was quite big, looks like a countryside.But after all, Tang Cheng traveled through later generations, and he had seen many big cities, so he was not as surprised as Wu Yujun thought.

"This is Persihu, the one with the most in Yangzhou. That... look, that black and brown guy is from South Kunlun overseas. Ah Cheng, if you are interested, you can buy two Kunlun slaves. These guys have no other skills, and they are really good at water. Very; look at the one with half of the shoulders bare is a Brahman." Walking all the way to the city, Wu Yujun pointed to Tang Cheng and introduced the foreigners passing by on both sides, "This is from the Lion Kingdom, Dashi Kingdom, this The two are interesting, one looks like a white man, and the other looks like a red man, why did they come to the same place, this... Gu Tang, his mother must have come from Gu Tang."

When Tang Cheng later generations studied Du Fu's poems, they also recited Du Fu's poem "Shang Hu left Yangzhou, recalled the old posthouse in Xiling", and read some other materials. Hu people settled here. For example, Guangzhou, which was not as powerful as Yangzhou in the Tang Dynasty, had no less than [-] Hu people settled here in the late Tang Dynasty, so that a special district was established for their residence management.

Tang Cheng grew up in the provincial capital in his later generations, and even worked in a foreign-funded subsidiary after graduation. Foreigners have seen it a lot, so Wu Yujun's pointing points made him lament that there was such a city in the Tang Dynasty. Too many surprises.

The listener reacted like this, and Wu Yujun, who was the explainer, gradually lost his energy, and finally gave up pointing and pointing at the barbarians. It wasn't until he saw Tang Cheng sniffling his nose that he became more excited. He laughed and said: "Don't smell it, it's the smell of spices, and the dryness is the smell of burning porcelain. There are nearly ten thousand shops in Yangzhou city, of which [-]% are spice shops and [-]% are porcelain shops. , As for the other [-]%, I don’t say Ah Cheng, you should know, right?”

"Silk and satin!" As the most prestigious commercial port city, spices are the largest import product, but since there are porcelain in the export, how can there be no silk and satin?Sure enough, after Tang Cheng answered, Wu Yujun smiled and nodded.

Yangzhou City is divided into Zicheng and Luocheng. The Quchi-shaped Zicheng with Shenhao on the upper ring of Shugang is the seat of military and political organs, while Luocheng under Shugang is the residence of common people and merchants.

After passing the inspection at Donghua Gate, he entered the city. Tang Cheng officially entered this well-ordered city separated by three canals and land roads.

The ten-mile long street is connected to the market, and the moon bridge looks at the gods.Tang Cheng and his party strolled to the most prosperous place in Yangzhou City, and finally settled in an inn not far from Yueming Bridge according to Wu Yujun's instructions.

"This area is the most prosperous area in Yangzhou. This inn is also the largest inn in Yangzhou. You have seen the face of the inn just now. There is only a big one inside. There are more than 100 rooms in the upper room alone. There is also a restaurant attached to it, and there are restaurants and bars behind it. As long as you have money, you don’t have to go out for whatever you want after staying in this inn. It’s very convenient to inquire about the news.” At this point, Wu Yujun smacked his tongue and said: "Damn it's really strange. There are many big shops in Yangzhou that make money, but the owners behind them are almost all Persihu."

After going through the formalities at the cabinet, Tang Cheng followed the leader Xiaoer into the inn while listening to Wu Yujun's nagging. This inn is really big. There are many houses in the four-sided buildings built around the patio, and there are really many guests. .

"See, go back from the gatehouse in the south to go to Goulan. After you have visited there, Ah Cheng, you will know Jinzhou..." Wu Yujun was talking excitedly when he heard someone not far away. One person greeted with a smile: "Isn't this Brother Wu! Why did you come to Yangzhou?".

"Oh, it's Brother Lin, you've arrived in Yangzhou too, nice to meet, nice to meet!" Tang Cheng followed Wu Yujun who greeted loudly and walked over, and saw that the "Brother Lin" in his mouth was a slightly fat man in his 40s. He is middle-aged and well-dressed, especially the two mustaches on his face are smoothed with sesame oil, which is shiny and meticulous.

"It's not for the tung oil business, isn't it the hard work that makes a living in the economy?" Brother Lin picked Hu Shaoer with the long nails on his little finger, "Brother Wu also came here for this?"

"The main purpose of coming to Yangzhou is to buy some tea goods." As soon as Wu Yujun said this, Tang Cheng couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Who would believe that Futian bought tea goods in July?Sure enough, Brother Lin raised his eyebrows, but he didn't say anything, he just smiled and said, "Brother Yu just ordered a table at the front restaurant, and the guests were all tung oil merchants from the east of Shannan who came to catch up with me. It's better to catch up, brother Wu and this..."

"Oh, this is my cousin Tang Cheng, who ate yamen food, and happened to come here to deliver official documents together this time."

"Okay, brother Wu and this brother Tang came here to take advantage of the excitement. After all, everyone came from the east road in Shannan, ah, haha!" Brother Lin clasped his fists to Tang Cheng, "That's all It's settled, Brother Wu, you guys go wash up first, and see you later at the Qiantang Yage, the front restaurant."

"Who is this person? It looks quite impressive."

"The fifth master Lin Minglin, the largest tung oil merchant in Shannan Dongdao, can still be small!" Wu Yujun walked into the guest room and explained to Tang Cheng in a low voice: "His uncle is the one in our road."

Tang Cheng looked at Wu Yujun's raised thumb, "Master Lin Baiyu, the observer of the Dao?".

"Who else in Shannan Dongdao can count on this besides him?" Wu Yujun's face no longer had the joy when he hooked his fingers on the fence just now.

Tang Cheng had great hopes for this business, and he was inevitably a little depressed when he heard about Lin Ming's background, but he has always been tough, so he didn't show it on his face, "Go and have a look after washing. , Shannan Dongdao said whether it is big or small, maybe he can eat it all?".

After entering the room and settling down, Tang Cheng washed up and went to the front restaurant with Wu Yujun.

Qiantang Pavilion is a big Accord, in addition to the place where the seats are placed, there is also a large area, which is probably prepared for Kabuki performers to add to the fun, because it is big, so although there are seven or eight seats in the Accord People are not too crowded.

Tang Cheng and Tang Cheng were the last to arrive, and this was bound to be another round of greetings and greetings. According to Lin Ming's introduction, the people sitting in the Accord were indeed big tung oil merchants from the eastern states of Shannan. The fat man who disapproved of the two should be the owner of Jinzhou Wanfulai Tung Oil Shop. Tang Cheng heard from Wu Yujun when he came here just now that this person was originally the chief steward of the general's mansion in Jinzhou Zhongzhen. There is such a relationship. Tang Cheng's indifference to him is no surprise.

After exchanging greetings and sitting down, everyone first chatted about the romance as usual, and after exchanging their experiences in fighting Fusangji and Xinluoji, it happened that they had drunk three rounds. At this point, everyone knew that it was time to get down to business, so Putting down the cups and chopsticks in his hand, he waited quietly for Lin Ming to speak.

Chapter 1 Where to find the fulcrum?

Seeing the scene in front of him, Tang Cheng thought to himself, it seems that Lin Ming has contacted these people a long time ago, and in his capacity, he is indeed the best leader of the tung oil merchants in the east of Shannan.Uniting the tung oil merchants together to ask the fat and oily sea merchants for a price is a common but extremely effective business method in later generations.

Thinking of this, when Tang Cheng turned his head to look at Wu Yujun, he saw him come over with a wry smile, yes!If his place is monolithic, the more successful this business is, the harder it will be to get in.

As Lin Ming coughed twice and began to speak, the vague information Tang Chengyuan saw in the Chaobao gradually became clearer. The first thing that can be confirmed is that the losses of the maritime merchants are far greater than the vague information recorded in the Chaobao. The spring of this year, no, in fact, since the end of last year, the pirate gang headed by the Shen family in Chunzhou, Lingnan became extremely active. In the past, they robbed ships one by one, but now they robbed them in batches. The pirates from the surrounding Fan countries suddenly made the original golden waterway the Maritime Silk Road a dreadful route, and the Hu Fan maritime merchants represented by the Persian Hu suffered heavy losses.

What made these fanhu sea merchants resentful was that these pirates changed their old rules and morals of robbing goods and not robbing ships. After robbing the goods, they even set fire to those giant ocean-going ships. After all, these wealthy maritime merchants have accumulated a solid foundation for many years, and they can withstand it for a while, but if the ship burns, it will kill them. After all, these ocean-going giant ships that are often six or seven feet deep are not those A short-distance transport ship can be built if it is said to be built.

Fan Hu merchants are like this, and Tang merchants are not having a good time. Although the Feng family has established strict family rules and never robs Tang ships, and the pirates in the surrounding small fan countries are afraid of the might of the Chinese Empire and dare not attack Tang ships rashly. Storms and chaotic ocean currents hit, so that Tang merchants also suffered a lot.

The combination of these two makes the original Yangzhou harbor lined with masts and sea ships a little bit more bleak, and this is how the scene of tung oil merchants gathering in Yangzhou is now. Listening to Lin Ming’s introduction, not only Tung oil merchants, or even the famous large timber merchants in the Quartet and the experienced shipbuilders in the southeast half of the wall all gathered in Yangzhou like a market. Today, the sound of clanging in the large and small shipyards on Hudouzhou at the mouth of the Huaihe River is heard day and night.

When Lin Ming said this, all the tung oil merchants present were full of enthusiasm, but what puzzled Tang Cheng was that Lin Ming, who was the largest tung oil merchant in Shannan Dongdao, didn't have much joy on his face.

Tang Cheng touched Wu Yujun with his arm, and then gestured to Lin Ming with the corner of his eye. After a while, Wu Yujun returned a puzzled look, obviously he didn't understand what was going on.

If it is said that Lin Ming's performance is already abnormal, then the regulations he put forward afterwards made Tang Cheng even more inexplicable. Therefore, the intention of this tung oil merchant leader was to gather together the tung oil merchants in the east of Shannan, and then write a letter Yangzhou Shipping Division took over the tung oil trade with maritime merchants.

When he said this, everyone was shocked. Why did these tung oil merchants come to Yangzhou? Didn’t they come to inquire about the news like Tang Cheng and the others? In addition to inquiring about the market, the most important thing to inquire about is the attitude of the Shibo Secretary. .

Yangzhou Bosi is a special yamen, which is special in that it is not under the control of any yamen in the temples of the imperial city, but directly under the palace city. In short, it is the same as the Jiangning Weaving Yamen of Cao Xueqin's family in later generations. Originally, it was specialized in supplying overseas rare treasures for the royal family. Later, it developed to register the goods carried by ocean-going merchant ships, collect customs duties, and banned goods that were not allowed to be exported in the Tang Dynasty. Enter the Miyagi Imperial Inner Treasury.

The Shibo Division does not have the right to interfere with local affairs other than the management of maritime merchants, but the special nature of this yamen determines that its influence is very large, which is why tung oil merchants are so scrupulous about Shibosi's attitude , as long as it intervenes, it goes without saying that it will protect the maritime merchants, and no one will be able to bargain with the maritime merchants at that time.Of course, this is also the reason why the Maritime Merchants jointly wrote a letter asking the Shibo Division to take charge of the tung oil transaction as mentioned in the Chaobao.

To say that the wealthiest group of people in the Tang Dynasty were undoubtedly these ocean-going merchants. What they sent out and brought back was not goods, but money, Huang Chengcheng's money!The riches and wealth of maritime merchants are not only written into poems, but also there are many folk jokes. A few years ago, Kaiyuan Temple in Yangzhou built Ruixiang Pavilion, and maritime merchants donated incense sticks at least a thousand times. One of them Haishang didn't understand the situation and donated [-] guan, but he couldn't lift his head when he was laughed at.What's even more outrageous is that some Persian maritime merchants traded jewelry, and the tax payment alone was as high as [-] yuan at a time. This shows the wealth of the maritime merchants.

It is a rare opportunity to ruthlessly slaughter those wealthy sea merchants. The tung oil merchants who have received news from various places are gearing up for fear that this good opportunity will be ruined by the intervention of the Shipping Department. Fortunately, from the current Judging from the situation, the Shibo Department does not seem to have this intention. Of course, this is also related to the recent replacement of the Yangzhou City Ship Envoy.But what surprised the businessmen here was that Lin Ming proposed such a regulation when the Shibo Company hadn't moved.

If you don't make money, what are you doing?After Lin Ming's charter was put out, needles could be heard all over the room. The merchants were both puzzled and apprehensive. Lin Ming's identity was unusual after all!

No one spoke. After Lin Ming proposed such a regulation, the room that was so lively when he was talking about Fengyue just now fell silent until the whole banquet was over.

Walking out of the wine shop together with other tung oil merchants in silence, Wu Yujun followed Tang Cheng into his room, and immediately slammed the door behind him, "A snake sprang out of the bastard's nest, Lin Ming just shed his shell and turned into a monster." , the business of this shop can’t be done.” After a pause, he said again: “Ah Cheng, you have a good brain, think about what kind of moth Lin Ming has come up with? Could it be that he is afraid that he will bite his hand if he has too much money? No way?".

"Those tung oil merchants in various states are not angry, what are you in a hurry for?" Tang Cheng poured two cups of tea and sat down. What kind of moths have started, the more chaotic the situation is now, the better for us, as for whether the business of this shop can still be done, let's see and talk, don't worry."

"It makes sense," Wu Yujun tasted Tang Cheng's words carefully, "Hey, no wonder my sister repeatedly told me to talk to you when I was leaving, and not to talk about anything else, just because of your calmness stronger than me."

"I'm in a hurry, to tell you the truth, I also pointed out that this shop business can make a lot of money, so that I can buy a good house for the two elders in the family." Tang Cheng smiled when he heard this, "But in the big business of this shop, we and Compared with other people, we are barefoot, and barefoot are afraid of wearing shoes?".

"It sounds fresh, but it makes sense," Wu Yujun smiled and got up from the crooked couch, "I don't want to, let's go, my brother will take you to the hook behind to open your eyes."

"Thank you for your kindness. I'm tired of taking the boat all the way. I want to sleep to refresh my spirit. If it's still early when I wake up, I'd like to take the boat to Huduzhou to see those docks. It’s better to be honest,” Tang Cheng said while pushing Wu Yujun out, “You can make trouble on your own, and remember to cherish your bones.”

"Acheng, you are good at everything, but this is boring, it's too boring, that's okay, I'll go to the back to explore the way first, and I will give you two good preparations first", still dawdling in the room, But when Wu Yujun stepped out of the room, his feet suddenly became slippery, and before he finished speaking, he was already anxiously walking to the south.

Tang Cheng had already been mentally prepared for this, and Wu Yujun was not counted on these inquiries.

After taking a nap, Tang Cheng looked at the sky, went out of the inn and hired a fast boat to go straight out of the city through the canal waterway in the city. After entering the Huaihe River, he headed east to Hudouzhou.

Hudouzhou is a peninsula surrounded by water on three sides, with the Huai River on the left and the East China Sea on the right, it is really an ideal place for a dock, with piles of wood, busy craftsmen, and the sound of hammering. As well as the smell of bougainvillea floating in the air, it shows the busyness on Hudouzhou.

Looking at these piles of wood, Tang Cheng thought of tung oil instead of boats!How much tung oil is needed to build so many ocean-going giant ships at one time?How much is this again!

After seeing is believing, Tang Cheng didn't stay here any longer. Even so, his speed was slow when sailing against the current. When he rushed back to the inn in Yangzhou City, it was already dark. It was already so late, and Wu Yujun hadn't come back yet. Judging by his posture, he might not be able to come back tonight.

Tang Cheng's guess was right, and Wu Yujun hadn't come back until he got up the next morning.

Seeing this, Tang Cheng didn't wait for him, and went out after breakfast, looking for tung oil shops in the city to inquire about the current market, while visiting the scenery of this famous city, which can be regarded as killing two birds with one stone.

After coming back at noon, Tang Cheng simply didn't go to Wu Yu's army room again, but during the lunch break, he came to knock on the door.

Tang Cheng, who was interrupted from his lunch break, opened the door angrily, and saw a thin man with a figure like a bamboo pole coming in with Wu Yujun. At first glance, this man really looked like Ma Sanli, a master of cross talk in later generations.

"This is my cousin Tang Cheng who came with me, Ah Cheng, this is my old friend Ma Yi who I made in Xiangzhou that day."

"Nice meeting, nice meeting!" Ma Yi didn't say much. After nodding to Tang Cheng, he said something to remind Wu Yujun not to forget the evening appointment, and then got up and left.

"I heard from Xiao Er that you came back last night, Ah Cheng, and you went out early this morning. You have worked hard." Despite the whole night of tossing, Wu Yujun's spirit is very good. Now I will lead you to Songfan Songfan, a group of chicks have just arrived in the back of the Goulan, from Fusang, from Silla, and from Wutianzhu."

Tang Cheng didn't pick up his words at all. According to his experience, as soon as he answered the conversation now, Wu Yujun couldn't stop talking, "Why did Ma Yi ask you?".

"What else can he do? Help people to build bridges! It is said that there is a businessman from the north who wants to introduce him." Wu Yujun, who was about to go out, sat down with Tang Cheng. Even if it doesn’t work, there is one good thing, a good memory and a familiar person, and after the economic business in Xiangzhou collapsed that day, he only made a living on it. I haven’t seen him for a few years, and I didn’t expect him to go to the north.”

"North? North there?".

"The imperial capital of Chang'an," Wu Yujun said with a chuckle, "What a precious time at night! I wasn't willing to go at first, but since you are interested, Ah Cheng, let's go and see if it's that big businessman who spreads all over the sky." The post invites people to a banquet."

"Scattering posts all over the sky?" Tang Cheng, who originally asked casually just to change the subject, really fell in love this time.

"Well, I just chatted with him a few words, and the tung oil merchants from the east of Shannan basically accepted the post. It seems that this person who treats guests tonight is also interested in the tung oil business."

Hearing this, Tang Cheng followed up and asked: "Ma Yike also sent Lin Ming a post?".

"The time to talk was short, I didn't ask about it," Wu Yujun hesitated, "Should I give it away? No one can miss him."

Wu Yujun guessed wrong!

The rich merchant from the north who hosted the banquet at night was a fat man named Zhou Lirong. Compared with Wu Yujun, this man was fatter and better maintained. Of course, his gestures were much more imposing than Wu Yujun. He didn’t choose a place for the banquet. It's in the restaurant in the front hall, but in the hook bar at the back.

This is the largest flower hall in the Goulan. There were already three burners of incense burning in the room, plus the smell of incense powder from a group of prostitutes. There are six large ice basins in the room, otherwise it will be too hot to stay.

After Zhou Lirong came, he didn’t say anything, but ordered the girls to serve flowers and wine. In Tang Dynasty, Goulan was an important place for interpersonal communication, and the merchants who were invited had long been used to it. You pick one and I pick one. With a companion, Tang Chengyuan didn't think so, but since he came to such a place, he couldn't be too rigid.

The prostitute sitting next to him at this moment has a similar age difference to him, and the prostitute's appearance is naturally good to be arranged by the bustard to come to such a high-class place, but it's a pity that her body is more graceful than plump, In this way, it was not in line with the aesthetics of the people of the time, because it was inevitable that she would be left out in the cold. Seeing that the sisters who came with her were picked away one after another while she was left alone, the prostitute's face was inevitably a little embarrassing.

Tang Cheng saw her embarrassment. Since she had to choose, who should she choose?What's more, this prostitute is uniquely graceful among the group of plump people, which is also in line with the aesthetics he cultivated in later generations, so he stepped forward and chose this prostitute immediately, which relieved her embarrassment.

"Thank you son!", the prostitute avoided Tang Cheng's hand and held the wine cup to his mouth, and his whole body snuggled into Tang Cheng's arms as he held the wine. This young man still relieved her embarrassment, and the prostitute's watery eyes showed a rare bit of true affection.

Seeing that Tang Cheng was about to reach out to pick up the wine cup again, the prostitute was immediately coquettish and reluctant, and she clinged to Tang Cheng's body more and more inseparable.

"Is this the way to drink flower wine in the Tang Dynasty?" Seeing that the left and right sides were like this, Tang Cheng didn't hold on any more, and just drank the wine in a cup with the prostitute's hand, "What's your name?"

"Guan Guan!" After Tang Cheng finished drinking, Guan Guan's hand holding the cup wrapped around the man's neck. ".

"Guan Guan? Good name", Tang Cheng wrapped his arms around Guan Guan's slender waist, controlling her to prevent her from making any further intimate moves, "It really is a fair lady."

"The concubine is slender, but I don't know if the son is a good gentleman?" Because Tang Cheng's arm was holding her waist, Guan Guan's body could not be pressed too tightly, and he glanced at Tang Cheng in a foolish and angry way. After one glance, Guan Guan stretched out the tip of his tongue to gently lick the man's helix, and said vaguely: "A good night is rare, how about Guan Guan to accompany you tonight?".

"I'm exhausted from traveling for days..." Tang Chenggang said this, but Guan Guan misunderstood his meaning, and said softly: "I just look thin!" After a short pause, Guan Guan saw Tang Cheng didn't answer, but lowered his voice a little bit and said: "If the young master is interested... even the flowers in the backyard can make it happen."

Hearing this, Tang Cheng was astonished!

Fortunately, at this moment, Zhou Lirong coughed and started talking, and the whole room became quiet. Tang Cheng also turned his attention to listening to Zhou Lirong.

What Zhou Lirong said was completely different from what Lin Ming said. This fat man had a big appetite, and what he said was to buy the tung oil in the hands of the merchants present. This year's new tung oil should be purchased together.

Not only Shannan East Road, but also some tung oil merchants from Shannan West Road are present in this flower hall. How much tung oil do they control?This tone...was too much. When Tang Cheng and Wu Yujun exchanged glances, Zhou Lirong laughed and said: "A certain man has been in business for decades, and he has always followed his word. If you are still worried If so, I can pay a [-]% deposit in advance, and as for the price of tung oil in the future! Regardless of whether the company intervenes in this matter, I can guarantee that the oil price will be at least [-]% higher than this year."

As soon as he said this, the whole flower hall suddenly seemed to be bombed, and it was difficult to keep quiet. According to this year's market price of tung oil, adding [-]% ​​is indeed not much. If the secretary does not intervene, what are the tung oil merchants from these places who have come from afar, what are they most afraid of?Zhou Lirong's words can be said to directly relieve their worries. Although the [-]% price increase is not high in this year's market, it is not risky after all, is it?

For a while, the tung oil merchants from Shannan West Road in the flower hall looked lively, and they called the merchants who belonged to the same group on the left and right to start discussing, but the tung oil merchants from Shannan East Road, who accounted for the majority in the flower hall, looked embarrassed. It would be a lie if they were not tempted, but the question is what should Lin Ming do?After all, standing behind him is Lin Baiyu, the observer of the Dao. If he offends this person, even if he can make a profit in front of him, do he still want to do business in the future?

Wu Yujun is the most relaxed person in the room. Anyway, he is mainly here to explore the city, and he doesn't feel much pressure. Seeing the happy or depressed expressions of the people in the hall, Wu Yujun smiled softly and said Tang Chengdao: "Another moth has appeared? Hearing this, Zhou Lirong is not afraid that the Shibo Secretary will intervene."

Although the attitude of the Shibo Secretary is unclear now, once they decide to take over the matter, they will undoubtedly stand on the side of the sea merchants, and the price set by the public can be imagined at that time. In this case, Zhou Lirong It is very likely that the current actions will not only make no money and end up in vain, but in serious cases, there may even be a risk of losing money.

Under such a background, what is Zhou Lirong planning for such a big trouble?Tang Cheng's thoughts turned rapidly, or maybe Zhou Lirong knew that Shibosi would not take over this matter, so he wanted to hoard the goods and make a lot of money?

After thinking about it, Tang Cheng found that these are the most likely reasons at present.Judging from this, Zhou Lirong's background is really scary if he can get such confidential inside information. After all, he came from Chang'an Imperial Capital.

The more he thought about it, the more he opened his mind. From the matter in front of him, Tang Cheng thought of Lin Ming's anomaly at noon yesterday, and then naturally thought of the shadows behind Lin Ming and Zhou Lirong. The more he thought about it, the darker his face became.

After all, it was too simplistic before. It seems that the business of this shop can't be done. In the face of such a profound background, judging from the resources Tang Cheng currently has, he really doesn't even have the qualifications to speak. There is a strong tung oil merchant competitor in Zhouzhou itself. Knowing that he can't use this business to obtain high profits, is Sun Shijun still willing to fight against General Zhongzhen for a [-]% profit?If even Sun Shijun has withdrawn, then what's the matter with Tang Cheng's trip to Yangzhou, what kind of money can he earn, and what kind of house can he buy?

With such thoughts, Tang Cheng naturally had no interest in perfunctory customs anymore. After he came out of the flower hall, he and Wu Yujun looked at each other with wry smiles. It seemed that this trip to Yangzhou was for nothing.

When the tung oil business involved a battle among the first-level officials of the Observation Envoy, there was no room for them to intervene in a situation like theirs. Although Tang Cheng was unwilling, he could only accept the reality.Now if he wants to get a share of the business in this shop, unless he can find a fulcrum to participate in, but this is just a matter of thinking.

As a small knife and pen official in Yunxi County, how easy is it to obtain such a fulcrum?

Chapter 1 24 Bridge Moonlit Night

Now that he had seen the situation clearly, Tang Cheng had no intention of staying here any longer. After all, his schoolwork and family affairs were not old or young, so he proposed to Wu Yujun to deliver a letter in a hurry tomorrow morning. Go back to Jinzhou and explain the situation here to Mrs. Sun. As for the two of them, they will leave here after resting for a day.

"Oh, Ah Cheng, why are you in such a hurry! After all, the Secretary of Shibo hasn't expressed his opinion yet, has he? It's not easy to come here because of the high mountains and rivers, so it's not too late to leave when you get the letter."

Hearing this, Tang Cheng stopped and looked at Wu Yujun quietly.