protect my lady

When Ye Chen replied to Fu Feiyu, he also told Fu Qiming the result of the calculation.

Seeing that the national teacher ordered the two to be a match made in heaven, Fu Qiming didn't have any reluctance, and immediately waved his hand and wrote the letter of appointment and gift letter himself, and sent the inner guard to send it over.

As soon as the letter of ceremony and letter of appointment were in place, Fu Feiyu brought them to the Mu Mansion non-stop, and the marriage was officially settled.

The speed was so fast that there was no chance for the chief envoy to find a reason to help, so the marriage of the two was fixed and announced widely.

According to the wedding customs of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the man usually came to the door with the dowry gift one to two months before the marriage.In other words, there is still more than a year left for Fu Feiyu to prepare the dowry.

After the marriage contract was made, Master Mu was very satisfied, and the property in his hand was handed over to Mu Qingchen to take care of it bit by bit.

As for the matter of the township examination, Master Mu was silent for a long time after listening to Mu Qingchen's words. As his first child, Mu Kangning also spent a lot of effort in nurturing him. With a touch of luck, he thought that Mu Kangning was also an uninformed person.

Although he didn't want to believe that his eldest son was a vicious person, he still announced that Mu Zixuan would not take the imperial examination this time, and would continue to stay at home to study, preparing to win the next provincial examination.

After Mu Kangning got the news, he was so angry that he tore up the article he had just finished.

"Who told father this news?" Mu Kangning asked with a dark face.

"My lord, if the villain is not mistaken, the master only announced it after the eldest lady went to the study." Mu Kangning's bookboy replied honestly.

"Okay, very good, it's Mu Qingchen who ruined my plan again!" Mu Kangning sneered, originally he didn't bother to be ruthless to a woman, but now it's no wonder he is so ruthless.

However, Mu Qingchen and Fu Feiyu are relatively close now, if there is a martial arts master around, the chances of him sending someone to assassinate him are too small, so we need to find another way.

Apart from himself, who else would not like Mu Qingchen.

Mu Kangning squinted his eyes and thought, and the piercing smile on the corner of his mouth slowly widened.

There is a way. The Liu family's property has been shrinking recently. It must be more uncomfortable than Liu Zizhao.Now that the Mu family has the feeling of being the leader of a businessman in Suzhou Prefecture, Mu Qingchen's identity is completely overwhelmed by Liu Zizhao.

Those shopkeepers in Zhejiang are willing to be suppressed by women, but Liu Zizhao is not willing.

What Mu Kangning is planning, Mu Qingchen has no idea, she is busy with the handover of the shop in the study.

Master Mu is also generous. After the marriage between Mu Qingchen and Fu Feiyu was settled, he directly handed over half of the Mu family's property to her.

"Qingchen, the expense part of this ledger is wrong." Under the influence of what he heard and seen, Fu Feiyu also lit up the skills of checking accounts, which can help Mu Qingchen complete simple problem ledger screening.

"Let me take a look." Mu Qingchen looked up from the pile of ledgers, and took the ledger handed over by Fu Feiyu.

Mu Qingchen browsed briefly, "This is the store in Jiaxing, and the purchase price is [-]% higher than usual."

"It's from Jiaxing Mansion again." Fu Feiyu frowned slightly, and recalled: "Qingchen, the last time we went to Zhejiang to check the accounts, the purchase price of the rice shop in Jiaxing Mansion also increased by [-]%."

"Maybe the local magistrate held some other event." Mu Qingchen closed the ledger and sighed, "This time, the price of salt has increased. The salt tax levied by the imperial court is already high. There is no profit."

"Then we will also increase the price?"

"No, although the government doesn't have any control over salt, it also has a maximum price." Mu Qingchen vetoed this proposal, "Moreover, the government restricts the flow of salt in different regions. Stores in Jiaxing Mansion can only purchase locally in Jiaxing."

"Then Qingchen is going to take a trip?" Fu Feiyu thought for a while and asked, "Go and see what's wrong with Jiaxing Mansion. If there is any evidence, I will send it to the capital directly. It will be done once and for all." Best policy."

This proposal is a bit attractive to Mu Qingchen. The Mu family has a lot of property in Jiaxing, and the ownership is basically in her own hands. She doesn't want the profit-making stores to turn into losses little by little.

"In that case, let's go to Jiaxing."

After deciding on the itinerary, Fu Feiyu immediately went back to the Fu Mansion to pack her things. This time she brought six guards with her as a precautionary measure.

It is already early February, and the weather that should have been warmer seems to have forgotten its own itinerary. The cold wind is still standing in the air, and it has not flinched at all.

Arrived in Jiaxing familiar with the way, compared to the inn where he stayed during the inspection last time, this time the steward in charge of welcoming Jiaxing directly rented a secondary house to receive Mu Qingchen.

"Miss, this is the shopkeeper of the salt shop." The steward said respectfully. Unexpectedly, Mu Qingchen became their immediate boss in just two months.

"What's the matter with the salt price this time, and is it because of the birthday banquet held by the magistrate?" Mu Qingchen and Fu Feiyu sat in the first seat together and asked sullenly.

"Back to Miss, this time it's because of the Salt Gang." The shopkeeper of the salt shop replied nervously, sweating on his brow even in the winter.

"Salt Gang? Come and listen to me." Mu Qingchen raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, our generation generally buys edible salt from the local salt gang, and the price is clearly stated early in the morning. It costs two or five cents per quotation." The shopkeeper wiped his forehead with his sleeve. Sweating coldly, he replied, "Recently, the salt gang in Jiaxing Mansion has been managed by another person. He directly united with all the big and small salt gangs in Jiaxing Mansion to raise the price together, and changed the price to two taels and eight yuan per quotation."

After saying this, the shopkeeper paused for a moment, took a peek at the expression on Mu Qingchen's face, and then continued to add, "And he also claimed that the price will be adjusted every month according to the production of salt."

"Although salt is not under the control of the government, the imperial court also stipulated that the highest price of salt should not exceed three taels of silver, and the price of salt gangs should not exceed two taels of silver. How could they raise the price casually?" Mu Qingchen asked with a frown .

"Miss, this subordinate doesn't know either. They all raise the price uniformly. If we don't purchase, the shop will have nothing to sell." The shopkeeper of the salt shop knelt down with a plop, as if frightened. Not light.

He is different from other shopkeepers. He has been a servant of the shepherd's family since he was a child, and he became the shopkeeper only because of good luck.

"How did other salt shops react?" Mu Qingchen asked with a frown.

"The prices of those shops that are not relatives of the Salt Gang have all gone up, but those that have a good relationship with the Salt Gang still maintain the original price."

Isn't this a disguised form of wanting to monopolize?Mu Qingchen tapped his fingers on the table, thinking about how to deal with this situation.

Salt is something that is needed in every household, and the profit in it is huge.Don't look at how much salt the Salt Gang sells to these shops is more than two taels per quotation, but the actual cost is less than one tael.

The Salt Gang, which is already profiteering, wants to go further. This is not very friendly to businessmen like them who do not have salt production channels.

"Qingchen, why don't we call other merchants to go to the Yamen to sue them first, and see how the government handles it." Fu Feiyu said.

"No, the relationship between the local salt gang and the magistrate is very good. If we sue them, they will raise the price again." Before Fu Feiyu finished speaking, the shopkeeper of the salt shop retorted. .

"Miss, I hope you think twice. The local salt gang is very powerful, and there are thousands of gangs under it. For safety reasons, it's better for you not to confront the salt gang head-on." The steward who stood aside also said Phase advise.

Mu Qingchen's expression became more and more ugly. She has never encountered such aggrieved things since she took care of the family business, "So what if there are thousands of them, don't they dare to attack me in broad daylight?"

"Miss, on the surface the Salt Gang won't take action against you, but it's easy to evade a hidden arrow, and they will do anything for money." The steward said with a long sigh.

The eldest lady is smart, but her experience is still a little less than their old bones, and she is inevitably a little impulsive in doing things.

Fu Feiyu put down the teacup in his hand, and asked, "Steward, how many people are there in their Salt Gang?"

"There are more than [-] core members in the Jiaxing area, and the others who are not in the gang are not counted."

That is to say, there are more than 700 people who can be commanded by the boss of the Salt Gang, and there are even more people who can't command but are on the side of the Salt Gang.

"I don't believe that the government will be indifferent to this kind of thing." Mu Qingchen snorted coldly, the current court is not when the warlords were fighting for more than 200 years ago, could it be that a small salt gang can ignore the court laws?

"Miss..." The steward's face was full of worry, and he wanted to continue to dissuade Mu Qingchen.

"The manager doesn't need to persuade me anymore, I have a bad temper, and I won't give up if I don't try some things." Mu Qingchen interrupted the manager.

If the matter of the Salt Gang is not dealt with, not only the business of Jiaxing Mansion, but also other Salt Gangs will definitely learn something.

If this goes on for a long time, all the salt shops will become members of the Salt Gang, and even if the Mu family wants to sell salt, it will be a problem.

Suing the Salt Gang is no small matter, Mu Qingchen first wrote invitations to invite shopkeepers of other salt shops in Jiaxing Prefecture, and after inviting them, they conveyed their plan and wanted to invite more people to join him.

Mu Qingchen's idea is very good, she wants to unite with many shopkeepers of the salt shop, if there are too many people, the magistrate will definitely be under pressure, and if forced by the situation, she will definitely not perfunctory them easily.

It's a pity that the shopkeepers of the salt shop shook their heads and sighed after hearing Mu Qingchen's plan, expressing that they want to settle down at an old age and don't want to fight with the local salt gang.

"The shopkeeper Mu is not a local. I'm afraid he doesn't know the inside story. The people from the Salt Gang went to say hello to the prefect before the price increase. The prefect will not pay attention to this matter."

"To tell the truth, shopkeeper Mu, one of our shopkeepers tried this method early. The first time, he was blocked by the magistrate, and when he went there for the second time, the magistrate just closed the door and disappeared."

"Before he went to the Yamen for the third time, he had an accident on the way and broke a leg." Another shopkeeper added.

"But if the Salt Gang goes on like this, I'm afraid everyone's shops will not be able to continue." Mu Qingchen didn't expect such a situation, and his face was a little helpless.

"It's better to lose the shop than to lose your life." An old shopkeeper with a white beard said, "And the Salt Gang has started to buy the shop from us. If it really can't continue, sell the shop to make a living."

Mu Qingchen sat on the seat and listened quietly. She learned more from these people than from the shopkeeper of the salt shop. When she sent the shopkeepers away one by one, she probably figured it out Condition.

The Salt Gang's price increase this time seems to have no warning, but in fact it has already persuaded the government.At the beginning of the price increase, it was very tough, and your legs would be broken if you didn't obey.

After stabilizing the price, it left a way out for the apprehensive shopkeeper of the salt shop, and the Salt Gang was willing to buy the salt shop at a price [-]% higher than the market price.

Human nature is to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. If they are all forced to a place where there is no way to retreat, they will definitely prefer to be broken than to be whole. But when there is a way out, those people will not have the courage to dare to fight.

After all, if the shop is gone and there is still money, they can still live comfortably.

"Qingchen, go and have a try." Looking at the decadent Mu Qingchen, Fu Feiyu held her hand silently, "It is true that the Salt Gang has many people, but we are not alone .”

Seeing Mu Qingchen looking up at him, Fu Feiyu felt that he had to stand up and support his future daughter-in-law, "And Qingchen, you still have me, although I am not a very powerful person who can respond to everything, but with me People from the Salt Gang will never hurt you."

"I'll kill them if they dare to come. It doesn't matter if there are ten or a hundred of them, they won't pose any threat to me." Fu Feiyu said seriously.

She is not the one who kills, but if someone really dares to provoke her, she doesn't mind sending those people to see Hades.

"Fei Yu, you don't need to do this." Mu Qingchen suddenly smiled as she said that, so what if she doesn't have the support of other shopkeepers, doesn't she still have Fei Yu?

"If you take someone's life casually, the government will trouble you, just break the leg of the person who comes." Mu Qingchen added with a smile.

Fu Feiyu lowered her head and gently kissed Mu Qingchen's eyes.

"Follow my wife's orders."