I am Li Shen and Li Shimin, the free kings of the Tang Dynasty

Dongshi is one of the centers of handicraft production and commercial trade in Chang'an City. Shops here are adjacent to each other, merchants gather here, and industry and commerce are very prosperous.

This is a comprehensive market integrating production, retail and wholesale.

This includes writing shops, wine shops, iron shops, meat shops, engraving and printing shops, people who rent donkeys, people who buy huqin, miscellaneous opera, famous pipa players, people who sell beautiful things and make money... a total of 220 lines.

Liu Zheng is a ceramics merchant. His main sales channel is in the northern grasslands. The Hu people are very fond of Tang Dynasty ceramics.

They were willing to exchange cattle and sheep. Cattle and sheep were more valuable to Datang, so he made a small fortune by earning the difference between the two locations.

As for why porcelain with higher value is not sold, the reason is simple: it is too expensive and they cannot afford it.

Not long ago, he also joined the First Chamber of Commerce of Tang Dynasty.

According to past practice, he came to the East Market today to look for some slightly higher-end ceramics, and then planned to sell them in Tubo, where the profit could reach more than ten times.

Although ceramics and porcelain are similar things, the grades are different. Porcelain is generally a higher level than ceramics. Fine porcelain is worth a lot of money.

Even the best things in Tubo cannot be sold at high prices, and they are easily missed. These better ceramics can be sold to local tribal nobles or merchants.

There is a row or a street in the East Market that sells ceramics and porcelain. He shopped around for a long time, but couldn't choose any one.

At this moment, a businessman in his forties walked over to him.

"Mr. Sir, I see you have gone back and forth twice. Do you need ceramics?" the businessman asked.

Liu Zheng looked this man up and down. He was of medium build, in his 40s, kind-faced and well-proportioned. Dressed in silk and satin, he looked like a wealthy man with millions of dollars.

"I don't know what's going on?"

Liu Zheng looked very wary when he saw someone coming up to talk to him.

"Don't get me wrong, Mr. Lang. My surname is Xu, and I am the shopkeeper of Xu's Ceramics Workshop. I just saw that Mr. Lang walked this street twice and didn't make a good purchase, so I came here to ask.

I don’t know what kind of ceramics Lang Jun wants to buy, or high-quality porcelain. "Shopkeeper Xu first stated that he had no ill intentions.

When Liu Zheng heard that he was soliciting customers, he somewhat let down his guard and said to Shopkeeper Xu: "To be honest, Shopkeeper Xu, I am doing business in the north and would like to find some ceramics with slightly better quality."

"Oh? What a coincidence. Lang Jun, you might as well come with me to our workshop to have a look. We have recently received a new batch of high-quality ceramics, and the price is very cheap." Shopkeeper Xu enthusiastically invited

Liu Zheng thought that he might as well go and have a look if he had nothing to do, so he nodded in agreement.

Shopkeeper Xu led Liu Zheng to a large shop. Liu Zheng looked up and saw the plaque: Xu's Ceramics

The shop was large, but it looked like it was newly opened. Following Shopkeeper Xu, I walked in and saw the room full of ceramics and porcelain.

These are all samples. Shopkeeper Xu walked to the counter, took down a porcelain cup from the shelf, and said to Shopkeeper Liu:

"Mr. Sir, please see, this is what I just said, the fine ceramics we just collected from Henan Road.

The price is cheap because the local area suffered a disaster, so their shopkeeper urgently needs to take action. "The ceramic cup that shopkeeper Xu took out is indeed top quality, bright in color and as smooth as paper.

Liu Zheng stepped forward and looked at it for a while, then asked: "I wonder, Shopkeeper Xu, if there are other items like this."

If it were just a cup, it wouldn't be interesting.

"Don't worry, Mr. Lang. There are many more here besides cups. Please take a look, Mr. Xu." Shopkeeper Xu took out a plate, a large bowl, etc.

"Look, Sir, I only have these kinds of things here, but there are other things in the warehouse, like wine glasses and wine bottles, which are more suitable for sale in the northern grasslands."

"Then I wonder if I can go take a look at the goods?" Liu Zheng was very tempted by the goods.

"Of course, sir, please come with me." Shopkeeper Xu led Liu Zheng to the warehouse of the back house. There were wooden boxes everywhere.

Shopkeeper Xu came to a wooden box and opened the cover. There were seven or eight wine bottles lying inside, with wheat straw as a bedding in between.

This is because they are afraid of being broken by collision. If it is fine white porcelain or Tang Sancai, it will be wrapped in animal skin.

"Mr. Sir, please take a look. This box is full of these wine bottles, thirty in total." As he said this, shopkeeper Xu took out the wine bottles on the top layer and pushed aside the wheat straw. There was another layer below.

Liu Zheng picked up one and looked at it. He found that they were of the same quality and were all top quality. Shopkeeper Xu opened another box which contained plates, followed by large bowls, wine glasses, large pots, and clean bottles.

"Shopkeeper Xu doesn't know what price you want for this batch of goods?" Liu Zheng was tempted.

"To be honest with Mr. Lang, I only have a small batch of goods here. I just prepare them in stock for those small businessmen. I don't know how much Mr. Lang wants."

"Shopkeeper Xu, if they are of this quality, of course the more the better." Liu Zheng is not a small businessman. We won’t just take dozens of them at once. That's not enough money for him to hire guards.

"Mr. Sir, let's talk in the front hall." Shopkeeper Xu took Liu Zhengdao to the single room in the front hall, and the servants served tea. Only then did we have an atmosphere of talking about business.

"What's your surname, Mr. Lang?"

"A certain surname is Liu."

"Shopkeeper Liu, I'm sorry. This time we shipped hundreds of boxes of porcelain from Henan Province. With such quality, I think Shopkeeper Liu should know the price.

If the quantity is small, we will calculate the price per piece. A wine flask will cost [-] cents, a wine glass will cost [-] cents, and a plate or bowl will cost [-] cents per piece. What do you think of the price? "

Liu Zheng took a breath after hearing this, not because it was expensive, but because the price was too cheap. A high-quality wine bottle like this usually costs between [-] and [-] yuan. Plates and large bowls usually cost between [-] and [-] yuan. They are all between five hundred and six hundred.

The price that shopkeeper Xu gave him was nearly half the difference. "Shopkeeper Xu, I wonder why the price is so cheap?"

"To be honest, this family is a distant relative of mine. They suffered a disaster and were anxious to rebuild the family business, so they planned to sell this batch of goods at a low price.

Shopkeeper Liu, don’t worry, I just sold it for others and didn’t make a penny from it. "Shopkeeper Xu told the whole story.

"Shopkeeper Xu, if these goods are all of the same quality, I'll take them all. Please give me a price, so we don't have to deal with them one by one." Liu Zheng is also a person who does big things, so of course he will seize the opportunity. .

"Okay, Shopkeeper Liu, please speak up. Xu now has 970 boxes of ceramics in his hands, each with a similar quantity.

In this way, I will decide for him the nine thousand strings and sell them all to you. Let's make a contract. Tomorrow I will take you to your dock warehouse to pick up the goods. How about we pay with one hand and deliver the goods with one hand. "

"Good" Liu Zheng saved at least [-] guan from the [-] guan. This is a bargain.

(Note, ceramics are burned with ordinary clay, and porcelain is made of kaolin clay.)