After everyone had sat down at the banquet, and after three rounds of drinks and greetings, Zheng Anshun took the initiative and asked, "I wonder if your highness and the general have called me here. What advice do you have?"
Li Ke smiled and pointed at Qin Mubai: "Ask him, Xiao Wang doesn't know anything."
Qin Mubai smiled and said, "Brother Zheng, to be honest, I do have something to ask of you."
"How can it be so embarrassing for General Meng to call him 'Brother Zheng' in his endearment?" Zheng Anshun said with a smile, "General, if you have an order, you might as well tell him directly. But if Zheng can do it, he will definitely obey."
"Haha, after all, you should be old friends." Li Ke helped Qin Mubai in a subtle way and said with a smile, "Mubai invented his own brewing method of Qin Xianjiu, which should have helped your Zheng family make a lot of money. Bar?"
"That's natural." Zheng Anshun nodded with a humble smile, "That's why my father always warns me to always remember that General Qin is a close friend and honored guest of my Zheng family. Whatever General Qin asks for, we must satisfy it to the greatest extent."
"Okay, then I'm not polite." Qin Mubai smiled and said, "Actually, it's difficult to say this, and it's easy to say. I just want you, Brother Zheng, to help me put on a good show. ”
"What is acting?" Zheng Anshun asked with interest.
Qin Mubai smiled mysteriously: "Before I tell the truth, I would like to ask Brother Zheng how long it has been since he came to Xiangzhou, and has he ever shown his face publicly?"
Zheng Anshun frowned suspiciously: "I'm going to Xiangzhou today. Because I was entrusted by someone to be loyal, I went to the Governor's Mansion first to submit the letter entrusted by Wu Dong's family. I am only passing through Xiangzhou on my way to Jiangnan. I have purchased a batch of silk products from the Zheng family’s branch in Xiangzhou, and I will stay here for the time being and have not yet made an appearance.”
"Excellent." Qin Mubai smiled more and more mysteriously and said, "I would like to ask Brother Zheng again, how much do you know about the food market in Xiangzhou?"
"You know something about it." Zheng Anshun answered cautiously and asked cautiously, "Why did the general suddenly mention this matter?"
"The help I want from you is related to food." Qin Mubai said, "Let me tell you the truth! I want you to show up openly in Xiangzhou, and people will naturally come looking for you. Don't look for you. For other things, it’s just about the Zheng family’s intention to purchase 500,000 stones of grain and grass.”
"Five hundred thousand shi?" Li Ke was surprised, "Are you kidding me? Generally, the imperial court's Taicang only has 200,000 to 300,000 shi to store grain. Why would the Zheng family purchase so much grain?"
Zheng Anshun was obviously a little surprised: "Yes, Brother Qin, how come even I know this kind of news, and how did you get it? Five hundred thousand shi of grain... That's a huge number!"
"Haha!" Qin Mubai laughed, "Of course it was me who spread the news!"
Li Ke and Zheng Anshun looked at each other and shook their heads in confusion. But Chen Yan smiled and said, "If my guess is correct, you have been disguising yourself as a businessman these past two days, right? You just went out to mess with the grain store in Xiangzhou? Do you suspect that there is something wrong with the grain store?"
"So that's it!" Li Ke suddenly realized, frowning and said, "This is a good move to lure the snake out of the hole and follow the clues. But what if... what if there is no problem with the Zhengchang grain account?"
"Then we have to do it for real and charge him 500,000 shi of grain!" Qin Mubai said with a smile, "However, how can a grain account with no problems get 500,000 shi of grain? Even if he can get it, I dare not sell such a large amount of food to the Zheng family privately! What do you think?"
"I understand what the general means." Zheng Anshun nodded, "Are you investigating the case in Xiangzhou?"
"Not bad." Qin Mubai admitted truthfully.
Zheng Anshun frowned slightly: "If I help you, I will break the rules of the mall... The general is probably an insider, so I don't need to speak. Most of the companies that deal in grain and salt are secretly There are private transactions, and some even raise a group of grain lords or salt lords themselves, just to purchase cheaper grain and salt. If I helped you defraud the Zhengchang Grain Account, wouldn't I be ridiculed by my colleagues? ?”
Li Ke curled his lips and said: "There are rules in the industry, and Zheng Anshun's concerns are justified. Mu Bai, your bad idea may not be a very good one."
"You are overthinking." Qin Mubai smiled and said, "Brother Zheng, let me tell you clearly! My target is not the Zhengchang Lianghao, but the water ghosts in Xihe Cao! I suspect that Xiangzhou has been unable to suppress it for many years. The absolute water ghosts have a secret collusion with the government-sponsored Liang Hao and the Salt Industry. Even if you help me lure the snake out of the hole, you will only hit the water ghosts. If the Zhengchang Liang Hao is clean, then they will. They will not suffer any harm. On the contrary, if they collude with the water ghost thieves to kill people and enrich themselves, they will be decapitated thieves. Brother Zheng, you, the Zheng family, are the scum of the business world. , aren’t you interested in helping me eliminate it?”
Zheng Anshun's eyes widened in astonishment, then he frowned and thought for a moment, then nodded decisively: "Okay, Zheng helped me with this!"
"Mu Bai, Zheng Anshun is a businessman, and businessmen never do anything without benefit." Li Ke smiled and said, "Should you promise me something?"
"Then it depends on whether His Highness is generous." Qin Mubai said with a smile, "If the water ghosts are successfully eradicated after this is accomplished, the grain and salt market in Xiangzhou will definitely need to be rectified. At that time, the Zheng family can take over The official grain account and salt store here!”
"No! No need!" Zheng Anshun waved his hand with a smile but firmly, "It's just a little effort, I don't dare to expect anything in return. My father often teaches me to do more for the imperial court and the country, which is a rare good deed. A young bird knows how to feed back, let alone a human being. If the Tang Dynasty had not given full support to my Zheng family, how would the Zheng family be able to survive today? Please give me some instructions from General Qin!"
Qin Mubai nodded and smiled: "The Zheng family's knowledge and mind are indeed extraordinary. No wonder they can be the leaders of the business world and manage such a large family business. Brother Zheng, you and I should put the ugly words first. If Zhengchang Lianghao It goes without saying that he is in cahoots with the water ghost. If I misjudge... then I may have to fake it, causing you to harvest a large amount of food. "
Li Ke laughed heartily: "Mubai, you are quite cunning! Do you know how much half a million Shihuyang white rice is worth?"
Zheng Anshun smiled relaxedly and said: "Let me make a rough calculation based on the purchase price of grain in Xiangzhou. It is worth about 40 million yuan!"
Qin Mubai laughed dryly: "Forty million... With my Qin's salary, I would have to pay for it for tens or hundreds of years. So, I had no choice but to embezzle!"
"How dare you! I will be the first to expose and impeach you!" Li Ke shouted with a straight face.
Zheng Anshun chuckled: "Brother Qin is so good at joking. For only 40 million yuan, Zheng Anshun can still be a family and he can handle it. What's more, with 500,000 shi of grain, he might make a lot of money! If not General Qin secretly helped and opened the door for convenience. How dare Zheng be so bold as to openly sell such a large amount of private grain in Xiangzhou? In this case, it will be too late for Zheng to thank you! "
"Uh!... You are truly a businessman!" Qin Mubai and Li Ke were speechless together!
"Haha, I'm just joking." Zheng Anshun smiled and handed over to Qin Mubai, "I've heard for a long time that General Qin has both wisdom and bravery and far-reaching strategies. It is also a blessing for Zheng to cooperate with General Qin to fight against the bandits. In this way, Please let Zheng listen to General Qin’s detailed strategic arrangements?”
Li Ke waved his hand: "For such a confidential matter, please go and discuss it privately. I will lend you my study for the time being. The four treasures of the study are fully prepared. There are some things that should be written down in advance as evidence, so it is better to write them down."
"Your Highness is still thoughtful." Qin Mubai and Zheng Anshun said in unison, then stood up and went to Li Ke's study.
After the two left, Li Ke picked up the wine glass and said to Chen Yan: "Nvxia Chen, you and I are the only ones left at the table now. Please invite the heroine to show your respect and have a few drinks with Xiao Wang."
"No, thank you for your kindness, Your Highness." Chen Yan smiled, but she refused very simply. At the end, she added, "Your Highness, please forgive me. Chen Yan has never drank in her life, and she has only made one exception."
"Which time? Who did you drink with?"
"Qin Mubai!"
Li Ke grinned awkwardly, was speechless for a long time, and laughed dryly: "Why can I drink with him, but not with Xiao Wang?"
"Because when a woman is drunk, she will always have a lot of troubles." Chen Yan raised the corner of her mouth gently, half joking, half serious, and said with a hint of teasing and contempt, "But when I am with Mu Bai, I But I can rest assured that there will be no such trouble.”
Li Ke's hand holding the wine glass was stiff for a long time, and he was speechless. In the end, he could only shake his head and smile bitterly: "That's all, let's serve tea!!"
…
In the study, Qin Mubai and Zheng Anshun discussed for a long time and discussed all the arrangements and details very clearly.
"General Qin is really thoughtful about Zhou Xiang and has a profound resourcefulness. I really admire Zheng!" After the discussion, Zheng Anshun cupped his hands to Qin Mubai and said, "He is truly worthy of his reputation. General Qin is indeed an extraordinary person!"
"Haha, thanks for the award, I can also talk on paper. How to do it specifically and whether it will be successful depends on Brother Zheng's skill." Qin Mubai said with a smile, "With your Zheng family's golden signboard, I guess Zhengchang Lianghao will be convinced first. But people like them are always very cunning and treacherous, so you have to be careful. They may be a little bit dangerous. I will send a few hundred knights to disguise themselves as your followers, right? Firstly, it is beneficial to your safety, and secondly, it also facilitates our contact at all times.”
"How dare you do that?" Zheng Anshun said with a smile, "Bai Qi is the royal commander. How can An Neng send me, a businessman, as a follower?"
"It doesn't matter!" Qin Mubai laughed and said, "There is only one Zheng family in the world, and there is only one young master of the Zheng family, so it is natural for you to be escorted by Baiqi! Besides, aren't you helping me? How can I have the nerve to put you in danger? Let’s just leave it at that, no need to be polite.”
"In this case, I would rather be respectful than obey your orders!" Zheng Anshun cupped his hands and said, "Tomorrow, I will go to Xiangyang Port City for a walk, and by the way, let some news to my colleagues that I want to acquire a group of private companies. Liang. In this case, the people from Zhengchang Liang will take the initiative to find me."
"Definitely." Qin Mubai said with certainty, "I'm afraid they have been looking for me in the city these days. Now that I have met you, the real owner, how can I not take the initiative to get together? Then you only need to pay attention to me. Just keep your tone and don't get involved. Everything else can take its own course. You are better at negotiating prices, so I don't need to say more."
"Hmm... This is an interesting thing." Zheng Anshun said with a smile, "I have been in danger when I was doing business in the north and south, but never as exciting and exciting as this time. So we have decided, I’ll go out for some activities tomorrow. If there’s any news, I’ll let you know immediately.”
"Okay, it's a deal!"