As the saying goes, knowing yourself and the enemy, you can fight a hundred battles without danger. In the past two days, Pei Che sent people to investigate the details of this caravan. According to the spy's report, in addition to organizing merchants from the south to come and sell goods and purchase mountain products once a year, the manager of this caravan also opened a store to purchase mountain products and another grain store in Cangzhou.
The two shops were located next to each other. People would often sell mountain products for money, and then use the money to buy food and take it home. This was like exchanging food for mountain products.
This deal may sound reasonable at first glance, but in fact the price difference between the two is too huge. Almost a sack of mountain products can be exchanged for less than five kilograms of rice and flour, which has the most impurities.
The people were angry but dared not speak out. The food they grew was not enough for them to eat, and they were the only grain store in the city that could buy grain. What should they do if they didn't buy it? Who had ruined the business of the local grain store in Cangzhou City
They had their reasons. When the local grain store was still open, this foreign grain store attracted them to buy at low prices, which resulted in no one patronizing the local grain store. The large amount of grain bought from outside had to be piled up in the granary.
Later, for some unknown reason, the large warehouses of several grain stores were damaged. When a heavy rain came, all the grain in the warehouses was soaked, causing the grain to sprout or mold, and less than one-tenth or one-twelfth of the grain was edible.
Everyone knew who the mastermind was. Several grain store owners were so angry that they jointly sued the grain store from another place. Unfortunately, the prefect at that time rejected the case on the grounds that there was no evidence, and later he simply did not accept the case.
These grain shops suffered heavy losses and never recovered. They even closed down and changed their business. After this incident, the foreign grain shop became the only place selling grain in Cangzhou.
At first, the people didn't realize the problem. But gradually, the grain store began to raise prices. In just one month, it raised prices three times, and soon exceeded the average price of the grain stores before, and it continued to rise.
Seeing that the crowd was excited, the owner of the grain shop stepped forward to mediate, claiming that as long as they sold the mountain products to the newly opened shop next door, they could not only exchange them for money, but also reduce a certain amount of grain prices. Isn't that the best of both worlds
The common people thought so too, since they could exchange the mountain products for money and get tax relief, and they could sell them anywhere. So, tragedy happened again, and other shops in Cangzhou that bought mountain products also lost their livelihood and closed down one after another.
When all the opponents were defeated, the grain store also showed its fangs. Grain prices kept rising, but the purchase price of mountain products was repeatedly suppressed. After several years of development, the exchange rate between mountain products and grain has become five to one, that is, five kilograms of dry mountain products can be exchanged for one kilogram of grain.
During this period, some people tried to reopen grain and mountain goods shops, but they usually didn't last long and would end up ruined for various reasons. Over time, no one dared to get involved in these two businesses.
During the annual arrival of the caravan, grain prices would drop slightly and the purchase price of mountain products would increase. Over time, the people became more and more looking forward to the arrival of the caravan.
After hearing these things, Jiang Miao couldn't help but sigh. The manager of the caravan was obviously very good at vicious commercial competition and controlling people's hearts. Of course, the inaction of the government was obviously one of the main reasons. As far as he knew, anyone who had something to do with the word "official" could buy food at a normal price at the grain store. When they first arrived, they were led by the local yamen runners. Now, it was clear that they were hinting at their identities.
"Sir, that person has been waiting outside for an hour. Look, this—" The yamen runner who came in to report was frightened by Pei Che's cold eyes and immediately swallowed the words of persuasion he wanted to say.
"If he can't wait, he can go. I'm busy with official duties, how can I spare the time for the moment?" Pei Che lowered his head and continued to handle official duties.
"Yes, I'll send him away right away." The yamen runner hurriedly retreated and turned to the reception hall outside. There sat a middle-aged man with a goatee - the chief steward of the caravan. He looked a little anxious, no longer as calm and proud as he was when he was standing on the high platform before.
"Sir, has the prefect said when he will see me?" Upon seeing the yamen runner coming to report, the steward immediately stood up and greeted him, his face full of anticipation.
The yamen runner glared at him and snorted in annoyance. He said, "Our lord is busy with official duties, so how can we meet anyone casually? If you can wait, then wait. If you can't, then leave. Don't make me suffer again."
The words of the yamen runner made the steward feel depressed. When he handed over the silver before, the yamen runner was smiling and said that the prefect was always kind and would not intentionally make things difficult for him. But now that something went wrong, his attitude changed immediately, and he even said that he was being dragged down by the melon. It seemed that the newly appointed prefect was not as kind as they said.
The chief steward was very humble and apologized to the runner again and again, saying that he would wait patiently. Only then did the runner's anger disappear.
"I advise you to think carefully about how you have offended our prefect, and then come and apologize." The yamen runner advised him for the sake of two taels of silver.
The chief steward agreed with a smile, and when the yamen runner left, his face immediately relaxed, and the smile on the corner of his mouth disappeared without a trace. He initially thought that he had not arranged everything well, so he brought the banknotes today to show his sincerity. But he didn't expect that he couldn't even get in the door.
How did he offend the prefect? After sitting on the bench for a day, the chief steward was still thinking about this question.
After thinking for a long time, his eyes lit up and he immediately called a few stewards to question them. The stewards were also confused and didn't understand what went wrong.
After a long while, one of them asked tentatively, "Is it because the wife of the prefect came to buy something, and you forgot to give the lowest price?"
The wife of the prefect? They had already taken care of the families of the previous officials, but they had forgotten to ask what the new one was thinking. It was too late to make up for it now.
For two consecutive days, the chief steward went to the yamen to wait for Pei Che to summon him, but he didn't even see Pei Che.
"We can't go on like this. The prefect refuses to see me. Once we start doing business, people will come to disrupt us. We must think of a solution today!" The steward was annoyed. He secretly blamed himself for not thinking carefully when he came here this year and just started doing business directly, which led to the dilemma now. He really lost the big picture for the small.
If this happened in other states, it would be easy to solve. The prefect has someone above him. As long as he takes care of his superior, what can he do even if he is unhappy? But Cangzhou is located in a remote area, with only a narrow mountain road leading out. It is said that the prefect has ordered people to set up some kind of entry and exit registration 100 meters away from the entrance of the mountain road. His people will be discovered as soon as they go out, let alone go to ask for help and file a complaint.
Neither this way nor that way worked, so someone suggested starting with the prefect's wife. As long as they could make his wife happy and persuade her, the prefect would not be able to continue to put on airs.
"The wife of the prefect is a man!" The most shocking news was shared first, and after everyone was shocked, they quickly accepted it. So what if he's a man? The pillow talk is still going on, right
"It is said that this lady was also a vendor and loves money the most."
"He also loves to eat fresh and delicious food. It is said that he went up the mountain alone several times to pick mountain products just to eat the best ones."
Everyone exchanged their own intelligence, trying to piece together a complete picture of the man so as to find the right remedy. Soon, they came to the conclusion that the wife of the prefect was a man who loved money, was greedy, petty, and jealous.
Everyone looked at each other, doubting this conclusion, but also thinking that it might be true. After discussion, everyone selected a few items from the goods, packed them up, and sent them to the inner court that afternoon.
Jiang Miao smiled when he received the post. It seemed that Pei Che was right. When those people found that they couldn't do it in the front, they would turn to the back. He asked someone to invite the person at the door into the living room, then changed into clothes that could suppress the situation and walked over with his head held high.
"I am Xu Youdao, the humble man, meeting the Madam. I offer you a small gift as a token of my respect. Please accept it." Xu Youdao respectfully presented the gift list. He looked up at the Madam, then immediately looked away. For some reason, he felt that the person in front of him looked somewhat familiar.
Jiang Miao took the gift list and looked at it. It was quite heavy. There was everything in it, including food, clothing, and daily necessities. In particular, there was a large glass mirror, which was priced quite high.
"Thank you, Manager Xu, for your expense. Haha, please sit down." Jiang Miao curled the corners of his lips, sat down at the top, and then invited Xu Youdao to sit down.
"Madam, you are too polite. I have been in Cangzhou for three or five days. I feel uneasy when I think about not having visited the prefect yet. No matter what, I have to come and visit today." Xu Youdao said with a sigh, looking annoyed, as if he really took this matter very seriously.
"Haha, Manager Xu, you are too polite. The prefect is busy with official duties, so why would he bother with you over such a small matter? Besides, there are so many people coming to Cangzhou, and if he wants to meet them one by one, he won't be able to meet them all." Jiang Miao said with a fake smile.
Xu Youdao immediately said, "That's right, that's right. I came here uninvited and disturbed your peace. But I have something to say, so I had to come and bother you. I hope you and your wife won't mind."
Seeing that he was getting to the point, Jiang Miao pretended to be ignorant and said, "Manager Xu, why don't you tell me what's going on?"
"Yes," Xu Youdao said, "I organized a caravan in the south to come to Cangzhou to do business, but for some reason, the officials have been concentrating on handling cases in those two streets in recent days, and the people are so scared that they dare not come again. Naturally, this business can no longer be done. I have no choice but to visit the prefect to see if he needs our assistance in handling the case, so that this matter can be resolved as soon as possible."
He spoke lightly, but anyone could hear the dissatisfaction in his words. Jiang Miao smiled in his heart, but on the surface he looked puzzled: "Since it is a government case, it will naturally not be solved in a short time. Why don't you wait patiently for two more days, and when the government has solved the case, the people will naturally come back to patronize your business, what do you think?"
Manager Xu smiled awkwardly: "Madam is right. It's not a big deal if other businesses are delayed. But if the rice and flour shipped from the south are not sold to the people of Cangzhou in time, I'm afraid that the people will go hungry. Isn't this our fault?"
Seeing that he was pulling the matter towards the direction of justice, Jiang Miao smiled slightly coldly and said, "This is easy to do. You have to sell it anyway. Why not just sell the purchased grain to the local grain store? This way, the people can buy grain and you don't have to worry about delaying your business. Isn't that the best of both worlds?"
Xu Youdao didn't expect him to say that, and didn't know how to answer for a moment. After a while, he said, "Madam, you are joking. We have brought a lot of grain. I'm afraid the local grain shops can't eat so much. It's better to sell it to the people in small quantities, which can save two transactions. I don't know if the governor is free tonight. I have set up a banquet at Zuimingxiang. I hope Madam can say a few good words on my behalf and invite you to the banquet. It will be in time to discuss it then."
He deliberately changed the subject, obviously not wanting to continue discussing the issue of food with Jiang Miao. Jiang Miao also stopped talking and said with a smile: "I will help you convey this matter."
"Thank you, ma'am. It's getting late, so I won't disturb you any more. I'll take my leave." Manager Xu bowed, and after Jiang Miao nodded, he stood up and left.
Jiang Miao opened the gift list again and looked at it, then said to Chan Yi and Wen Jing who were standing behind him, "Put this gift list together with the things he sent."
"yes."
That night, Pei Che and Jiang Miao traveled in simple attire and came to Zuimingxiang together. Manager Xu had sent someone to greet them early in the morning, and as soon as he saw them, he politely led them to the private room that had been booked in advance.
"It is a great honor to see you, Lord Prefect. It is such an honor to have such distinguished guests here!" Steward Xu stepped forward and pulled out a stool for Pei Che and the others to sit down, his words full of flattery.
Pei Che had a cold face and looked reluctant. Facing his attentive flattery, he just snorted coldly. Jiang Miao touched his arm, and Pei Che put away his stepmother face, looked up at Manager Xu, and asked, "What do you want from me?"
Manager Xu said, "Sir, I didn't think it through. I was delayed for a few days on this business trip, and in my anxiety, I forgot to visit the government first. I hope you can forgive me for my rudeness. Please don't hold grudges against me and forgive us this time." As he said this, he punished himself by drinking three cups of wine to apologize to Pei Che.
Pei Che picked up the wine glass and chuckled: "What Manager Xu said is interesting. Just do your business. What does it have to do with the government?"
After saying this, he drank the wine in one gulp and said, "If Manager Xu has nothing else to do, I will not accompany you any longer."
Manager Xu was dumbfounded. He didn't understand why Pei Che left after just saying a few words. Could it be that he hadn't taken care of this matter in advance, which made the prefect so concerned
(End of this chapter)