When approaching Tongzhou City, Wu Shigong did see a large number of refugees. However, these refugees saw that Wu Shigong and his party were all soldiers, and no one dared to approach.
The miserable appearance of those refugees is similar to the appearance of African refugees on modern TV. Wu Shigong has traveled to the Ming Dynasty for a while. To be honest, it is not strange to see people with this kind of appearance. But for Wu Shigong
What was somewhat surprising was that there were simply too many refugees, and the shacks were almost endless as far as the eye could see.
Wu Shigong asked Butler Deng: "How come there are so many refugees? The last time I went to Tongzhou, I never saw anything like this."
Butler Deng replied: "That's all to blame on the damn Tatars. After the Tatar army arrived in Tongzhou City, they simply walked around Tongzhou City. Those days scared the little ones out of their courage. But
Although the Tatars did not attack the city, they crushed almost all nearby villages and towns to the ground, and the refugees all fled from nearby."
Wu Shigong nodded. He thought of the people he saw in the four cities of Yongping, lying dead on the roadside and killed by the Tatars. He felt that the refugees in front of him were quite lucky.
The soldiers guarding the Tongzhou City Gate saw Wu Shigong and his entourage about to enter the city, and shouted to Wu Shigong and the others to stop. Steward Deng quickly stepped forward, stuffed something into the hand of the little flag guarding the city gate, and whispered in his ear
After saying something, the little flag waved his hand and let Wu Shigong and the others in.
Butler Deng explained to Wu Shigong: "Now near Tongzhou City, there are large armies waiting for the ships to return south. The Yamen has stipulated that no soldiers are allowed to enter except for scattered soldiers who go to the city to buy things. Your bodyguard is also
It's a bit too much, but fortunately our master still has some respect in Tongzhou City, so we let him in. But sir, you must be careful to prevent your brothers from causing trouble in Tongzhou City."
Wu Shigong knew the important position of Tongzhou City in the Ming Dynasty. It was also an important barracks in the capital. There were also many officials traveling from north to south. As a young military attache, he really couldn't be too arrogant. So Wu Shigong
Immediately ask Shumo to tell all the guards not to cause trouble in Tongzhou City.
Butler Deng took Wu Shigong to the restaurant opened by Zhang Chunyu himself in Tongzhou City. Butler Deng introduced Wu Shigong with some boastfulness: This restaurant is also one of the largest restaurants in Tongzhou City.
Wu Shigong took a look at this restaurant. It was indeed magnificent in appearance. Wu Shigong asked the guards around him to leave only about twenty people, and the others followed Butler Deng to the inn to settle down. Otherwise, these two hundred people would be standing at the door of the restaurant.
As a guard armed with knives and guns, Zhang Chunyu should not do the restaurant business.
After Zhang Chunyu knew that Wu Shigong had arrived, he also went to the door of the restaurant to greet him and welcomed Wu Shigong into the private room on the second floor of the restaurant. At this time, following Zhang Chunyu was a man with thick, dark skin and a strong physique. Although he was also wearing
He wears a long gown, but at a glance you can tell he is a man who has been running around in the wild for many years.
After entering the private seats, Zhang Chunyu introduced to Wu Shigong: "Master Wu, this is my good brother, Mr. Tang Liu, the leader of the Caogang. This time Mr. Wu returns home, brother, I asked Mr. Tang Liu to help me."
of."
Tang Liu quickly bowed his hands to Wu Shigong and said, "I can't bear the word 'Master' in front of you, so you can just call me Tang Liu or Xiao Liu."
Wu Shigong also quickly smiled and cupped his hands and said: "Brother Tang, you are so polite. There is no such thing as an adult or an adult here. We are all friends."
Zhang Chunyu then introduced to Tang Liu: "Master Tang Liu, don't think Brother Wu is young, but he is good at both civil and martial arts. He is also a scholar, and his martial arts is also very strong. This time, Brother Wu also killed many Tatars.
His head, that reputation has reached the ears of the emperor. Moreover, Brother Wu’s status is very noble, he is a young prince. Later, Mr. Tang Liu will give Brother Wu a few more glasses of wine!"
Wu Shigong knew that Zhang Chunyu said this, on the one hand, to flatter himself, and on the other hand, to rely on his own status to increase Zhang Chunyu's status in Tang Liu's mind. So Wu Shigong smiled and remained silent.
Sure enough, Tang Liu pretended to be impressed and saluted Wu Shigong again: "Brother, I admire the hero who can fight the Tartars the most. Brother Wu is worthy of being a noble man, and he will definitely become a marquis in the future.
Ah. Bah, bah, bah. Look at my mouth. Brother Wu is a marquis who cannot escape, so he should be a general and a duke."
Today we all met old Jianghu, and they were all acting veterans. However, complimenting each other like this really made people feel happy, so the three of them smiled and showed humility to each other, and sat down each.
Zhang Chunyu's arrangements are indeed thoughtful. There is a dazzling array of dishes on the table. Separated by a gauze curtain next to the private room, a group of silk and bamboo troupes are playing music.
After drinking a glass of wine, Wu Shigong said to Zhang Chunyu: "Brother Zhang and I haven't seen each other for several years, and we miss him very much. At that time, I also asked the Yangzhou salt merchant Lu Jianchen about Brother Zhang. He
It is said that Brother Zhang has made a lot of money in Tongzhou City, and his business is getting bigger and bigger."
Zhang Chunyu quickly smiled and waved his hand and said: "Rumors, rumors. It's just a casual meal. Lu Jianchen came to Tongzhou once last year, but I haven't seen him since the beginning of spring. Brother Wu also knows it, and we
People in Beizhili eat salt from Changlu, not Yangzhou salt. The Lu family only went to Tongzhou to do some business selling goods from the north and the south. However, I heard a saying that the Lu family is in some trouble now.
.”
"What's the trouble?" Wu Shigong asked curiously.
"I don't know the details. It seems to be related to the salt business."
After Wu Shigong heard this, his heart skipped a beat. But seeing that Zhang Chunyu also looked like he didn't know the details, Wu Shigong had no choice but to put the matter aside.
Zhang Chunyu then said to Wu Shigong: "This time Mr. Tang Liu happened to be escorting a batch of grain to Tongzhou. But now those troops who are returning south are going crazy trying to grab ships. Fortunately, Mr. Tang Liu gave me face and knew that Brother Wu needed ships.
, just prepare your boat and wait for Brother Wu to arrive."
Tang Liu waved his hands with a smile and said: "Transporting those armies is a big hassle. Needless to say whether they can get the shipping money or not, these soldiers will go crazy and may even beat and scold our brothers in the Caogang. I know Brother Wu
We have an old relationship with Boss Zhang, so we Caobang brothers are just looking for stability."
Wu Shigong said quickly: "There is absolutely no problem with the shipping fee. Brother, I just want to go home early. It has been almost a year since King Qin left home. However, I have one more thing to ask you. There are still eight brothers in the capital."
I would like to ask you two to transport more than a thousand stones of grain and some supplies to Henan for my brothers when you are free in the future."
"There is absolutely no problem with this." Tang Liu quickly agreed.
But Zhang Chunyu asked strangely: "Brother Wu, the price of grain is high in the capital. Why do you want to transport it to Henan, where the price of grain is low? Why don't you sell it here first and then buy grain in Henan?"
"
Wu Shigong waved his hand and explained: "Brother, there is a shortage of food here, and the price of food is not much lower. And I have many people. Besides, brother not only wants this food, but also wants to buy more food.
.”
Zhang Chunyu and Tang Liu looked at each other, and immediately made a suggestion to Wu Shigong: "Brother Wu, do you think this will work? I will sell the food and materials you have in the capital, and the money I get will be given to Tang Liu."
I will go to Huguang to buy grain and then transport it to Henan. In this way, Brother Wu will have less trouble and we can also make some money."
After Wu Shigong heard this, he felt that this idea was indeed a good one. So he immediately discussed the details with Zhang Chunyu and Tang Liu. In the end, the three of them agreed that Zhang Chunyu would help Wu Shigong sell the food and materials stored in the capital, and Tang Liu would sell them.
An equal amount of grain was shipped to Henan.
As for the money from selling those materials, Tang Liu will also collect 10% of the difference, go to Huguang to buy grain for Wu Shigong, and then transport it to Henan. As for how to buy grain in the future, let's wait until the business is completed.
And Tang Liu also decided that he would no longer charge shipping fees for transporting Wu Shigong's troops back to Henan this time. As for how Zhang Chunyu and Tang Liu would distribute the profits, let them discuss it themselves.
The three of them also negotiated and established a business partnership in future business. Wu Shigong will prepare local specialties in Henan, Zhang Chunyu will also prepare northern specialties in Tongzhou, and Tang Liu will be responsible for transportation, and the three of them will make money together.
After discussing all this, Zhang Chunyu called a singer to sing a ditty with the accompaniment of the Sizhu troupe. The three of them also returned happily.
After the banquet, Zhang Chunyu invited the two of them to a brothel to relax. Wu Shigong was tired from the journey and wanted to rest early, so he declined with a smile.
And Tang Liu also had to arrange for people to go to his fleet to report the news and ask them to rush to Tongzhou as soon as possible. Because Tang Liu was afraid that the fleet would be forcibly requisitioned, he kept his ships waiting a day's journey away.
.Therefore, Tang Liu also declined Zhang Chunyu's invitation.
