North and South groceries

Leaving aside Yan Liulang's side, Zhao Chen was already on his way at this time.

Since last year's winter, the price of wool has skyrocketed, and there were no people wanting things at all, but now they can be priced at the same price as expensive spices, cloth, etc., which is simply heaven and earth as before.

Once the price of this wool rises, many people will naturally start thinking about the prairie. The prairie is dangerous, but not everyone dares to risk their lives.

So many people put their ideas on the Zhao family in Shuozhou. The Zhao brothers had many contacts with the nomads in the grassland in the early years, and they were quite famous in the Shuozhou area, so during this period of time Many people contacted them, expressing their desire to purchase wool through their channels.

Zhao Qi and his son had an agreement with Luo Yong, so naturally they refused to agree.

After the spring of this year, Zhao Jiaerlang transported wool to the south. Because he was worried that the road would be intercepted, he did not dare to take the dry road from Taiyuan City. After Mengmen Pass, come from Dinghu County, and then walk for four or five days to reach Xipo Village in Lishi County.

Of course, even if they take the water route instead, it doesn't mean that they will be safe all the way. No one will be envious of the large carts of wool.

In the middle of the journey, many people tried to buy the goods by force, but in the Shuozhou area, the Zhao family's backs are relatively hard, and they can still make decisions on their own business.After leaving Shuozhou, he stayed on the boat all the time, and it was difficult for others to harass him if he wanted to.

And this time with the Zhao family, there are more than a dozen men from the grassland. The tribes of these people are not very far from Shuozhou, and the degree of Sinicization is relatively high. Life on the grassland is not easy. The Zhao family has helped them a lot. This time, these people came here to escort Zhao Chen and others at Zhao Qi's request.

The nomads on the prairie, even if they come from a tribe with a high degree of Sinicization, their sturdy aura is not comparable to that of ordinary people from the Central Plains. With people like them walking together, Zhao Chen's journey has been smooth. .

On the other hand, as early as the day when Zhao Chen and the others left the house, Zhao Qi arranged for a family member to go south via Taiyuan Mansion, all the way to Lishi County.

The man found Luo Yong, and said that a batch of wool would arrive at Mengmen Pass in a few days, and asked Luo Yong to be ready to receive the goods, so as not to be intercepted on the way.

Luo Yong was very happy when he heard the news, and immediately organized more than a dozen of his own disciples, as well as more than a dozen brothers under Wang Dang who hadn't left the house, a group of more than 30 people rushed to Mengmen Pass in a mighty manner.

Some villagers in Xipo Village heard about this and offered to go with them, but Luo Yong declined, saying that he was not at home for a few days, and Luo's yard needed them to take care of him. In addition, among his disciples , and some were left behind. No matter how important the wool matter is, the base camp cannot be left unattended.

Most of their group walked, and they only drove a donkey cart, which was loaded with some dry food for everyone to eat on the road.

Along the way, as those Dinghu people said before, they can find a village to rest every night, and they can rent a house from the villagers as long as they give a few copper coins.

Many villagers heard that it was Luo Sanlang who came this time, not only refused to accept their money, but even prepared meals for them.

Luo Yong is not very polite, he eats as he pleases, but he still has to give the money.The so-called cheap grain hurts farmers. Business is very underdeveloped these days. Farmers have no other income except selling grain. However, the grain price has been so low in recent years, and the life of the villagers is naturally difficult.

A few days later, when the group of them arrived at Mengmen Pass, Zhao Chen and the others hadn't arrived yet, so they had to temporarily stay in the city and wait.

This Dinghu County is indeed a bit richer than Lishi County because of its geographical advantage. The bluestone blocks paved on the street and the carved wooden windows on the houses on the street all show this The background of the city.

Many Dinghu people are busy picking mulberry and raising silkworms at this time. Luo Yong saw clusters of small beige flowers blooming on those mulberry trees, but it's a pity that the season is not here yet, and there are no mulberry fruits yet.

Many of Wang Dang's brothers have lived in this city since they were young, and now they come back here, leading Luo Yong and others through the streets and alleys. There is no place inside or outside the city that they don't know.

A group of children, big and small, carrying baskets full of mulberry leaves, laughed and ran past them, across the alley on the bluestone road.

"Don't make any noise, you may startle the silkworms." In the alley, a woman leaned out from her yard and reprimanded the noisy children in a low voice.

After being reprimanded, the children stopped talking and laughing loudly, lowered their voices, and walked across the alley laughing, before running away without a trace.

Most of Luo Yong's disciples had never been to Dinghu County. Seeing such a scene at this time, some people couldn't help expressing emotion: "This place is really rich."

Among other things, the bluestone alleys alone made them very envious. In their Lishi County, there were only yellow mud alleys. When it rained, there were mud pits one after another. One foot in the mud.

"I heard from the old man in the city that the Mengmen Pass in the previous dynasty was much more lively than it is now, but now it is considered dilapidated."

At this time in the early Tang Dynasty, the whole country was waiting to be rejuvenated, and it was naturally incomparable with the most prosperous time in the past.

In the Wude period, there were still constant wars, and in the Zhenguan period, there were still wars between the South and the North. Recently, some merchants brought news from the south, saying that there was another quarrel with Tuyuhun, and a war was about to start.

Luo Yong didn't know much about historical events in the past. When he first came here, he lived a relatively closed life. He only thought that he had come to a peaceful and prosperous age. Although he was a little poor, the world was still stable.

When he really opened the door and news from all over gathered to them, they discovered that there were many wars during the Zhenguan period, and the world has never really been peaceful.

Mengmenguan is an important military area, there are many officers and soldiers stationed there, and the management of entering and leaving the city is much stricter than that of Lishi County, and the interrogation of those ships is also very strict.

Zhao Chen and the others had about a dozen young and strong nomadic nomads on their ship. They were worried that they would encounter some troubles when the ship landed, but they didn't expect that the officers and soldiers on the pier just saw their directions, and then put them on the ship. The goods are inspected and released after confirming that there is no problem.

At this time, the government of the Tang Dynasty also adopted an inclusive and accepting attitude towards ethnic minorities, and did not reject them very much. Even the Turkic people who had just been exterminated two years ago were able to find a place in the army, and even became generals. of.

After the current saint has powerfully wiped out several forces in the northwest militarily, he has adopted a policy of tolerance and appeasement towards them politically, so as to revive the economy, develop people's livelihood, and unblock trade routes.

Looking at the carts of wool that Zhao Chen and others pushed down from the boat, Luo Yong was filled with joy.

Zhao Chen and the others did not use oxen to pull the cart this time, nor did they use donkeys to pack wool, but instead relied on manpower to push the cart. Human power can push the cart on the road, and at critical times, they can put down the cart and fight with people. This is beyond the power of animals. .

Zhao Chen had already brought a lot of people, but at this time he joined more than 30 people brought by Luo Yong. The two groups got together and pushed the wooden carts loaded with wool to Lishi County.

Hearing that someone brought a lot of wool from the north, many people in Dinghu County went to wait and see.

Afraid of accidents, the group did not delay in Dinghu County, and embarked on the journey to Lishi County after getting off the boat. Four days later, at dusk, they finally arrived at Xipo Village. Since then, Luo Yong and Zhao Chen Wait for people to really relax.

Luo Yong placed Zhao Chen and others in Xu's guest house, and asked the Xu brothers to entertain them with hearty food.

Zhao Chen was able to keep his promise this time, and the wool he brought in was even more than last year. Luo Yong was very happy about this. With these wools, not only the order for wool fleece clothes and trousers that he signed with others earlier was no problem, In addition, it can bring him a lot of profits.

This group of people walked on the road for these days, and they didn't eat well. At this time, everyone was starving, and after eating at the table, they were all gobbled up.

The food in this Xu's inn is really delicious. It is a serious and careful family, and the food is also carefully prepared. Recently, I have received a lot of influence from Luo Sanlang, and I have learned a lot of new recipes. There are soy sauce, big sauce, fermented bean curd and so on. The taste is really not comparable to other places.

Those barbarians who helped Zhao Chen deliver the goods were even more red-eyed. The large plate of dumplings stuffed with pork and leeks can be pulled down a whole plate in a few mouthfuls. Making dumplings, but they couldn't keep up with their eating speed.

There were one or two Hu brothers who knew how to look at the faces of their hosts. They also heard that some people from the Central Plains were very particular and looked down on straight and straightforward bosses.

Na Luo Sanlang looked pretty good, not only did he not show contempt, but he kept telling them to eat more, saying that they could eat more after eating, and he would live here for the next few days, and come back after resting Shuozhou.

In the next few days, they still lived in Xu's guest house, and they were indeed treated to delicious meals. After eating for a day or two, some people began to feel a little embarrassed.

If Luo Sanlang didn't come up with the method of knitting sweaters, how could the people on their grassland have such a wool seller for a living? It stands to reason that Luo Sanlang is already their benefactor on the grassland, and it would be okay to give him wool once. What a big deal, and now they are so generous and courteous to them.

The men on the grassland felt embarrassed, so they always wanted to do something for Na Luo Sanlang.

At noon that day, Luo Wulang and Wang Shaolinrong came back from Xiaohe Village on Yan Erfei. Among the three children, Wulang was the thinnest, with small arms and legs, which made people feel very worried.

Seeing a few barbarians sitting idle by the side of the road, they beckoned for Wulang to pass.

"What are you doing?" Goro was so hungry at this moment, he was rushing back to have lunch.

"There is a saying in our grassland that rich but not strong is like a fat sheep. Your elder brother manages the family so well, how can you grow so thin?" A man on the grassland spoke with a strange accent. Said to Goro in Chinese.

Goro: "..."

You can blame me for being skinny, and I don't want to.

The men on the prairie really couldn't bear to see Luo Wulang, a little lamb, ostentatiously passing through the market every day, so they said to him: "It doesn't matter if you are thin or thin, as long as you are skilled in martial arts, you can still fight well."

From then on, these people finally found a way to repay Luo Sanlang, and took Luo Wulang out to practice if they had nothing to do, determined to train this lamb into a wolf cub.

Fist skills are fine, horse-riding bows can be used even if you are brave enough, but after a few days, one of these people, who is quite old and looks reliable, untied a small knife from his waist and wanted to teach Luo Wulang practiced the sword, and Goro was a little dumbfounded immediately.

It happened that Luo Siniang also came out to watch the fun that day. Seeing this scene, the girl smiled and said to others: "My brother is timid and dare not play with knives. Otherwise, you should teach me."

Then in the evening of that day, Luo Yong saw Si Niang squatting in the yard and playing with a knife. At that time, three words flashed in his mind: "Female hooligan."