23. Professional work should be left to professionals
"Oh~ I really want to hear what the housekeeper has to say about this."
Li Shushi's impression of Guan Cheng and the Donglai housekeeper are just some thieves from the river and sea. Although they also run some fishery and transportation businesses, they always feel that the credit of these people is not very high. Although many powerful families are actually
There is definitely no shortage of private gray business, but it seems to be much better than the former.
"I heard that the Grand Administrator wants to block the Yellow River waterway with Xiongguan. I wonder if this is true?"
Guan Cheng was not in a hurry to explain his thoughts to Li Shushi, but instead asked Li Shushi with great interest.
"It is indeed true, but the housekeeper is thousands of miles away. I must have heard this information from Ziyang. Ziyang is a general in the army that I trust, but now you are here to seek confirmation.
Don’t you think this move is a bit artificial?”
"My news was indeed revealed by Brother Ziyang in his letter home, and I have been preparing for it for a long time. However, as the prefect said just now, Qingzhou and Xihe are thousands of miles apart, and the time when I got this news has been countless.
Yue. The governor is also a general who has experienced hundreds of battles. On the battlefield of nature, war opportunities are fleeting, and a few months is enough to change a situation.
Exactly, just like at the end of last year, who would have known that Xianbei's Chanyu would die at the foot of Lishi City? So what I just asked is to confirm whether the governor's decree has changed. If so, what will happen next?
Naturally, there is no room for rhetoric. But the prefect is suspicious of my intentions, and I will never admit this."
"When I was in Qingzhou, I heard about the extraordinary bravery of the butler Saburo. I never thought that today I would see his eloquence attracting attention."
"Your Excellency, you are so complimentary. I have been preparing for this trip for a long time. Naturally, I have to consider various situations. The more I prepare, the less panic I will have when answering. Just like being prepared for the odds on the battlefield, you must always be prepared.
good."
Guan Cheng may have really prepared quite a bit for this trip. He was calm and unhurried when asking and answering questions. At first glance, his demeanor really makes it hard to tell that his main job is to be a pirate. Sure enough, heroes have always been reckless since ancient times. Today,
Li Shushi saw another one.
"I really want to operate Mengmenguan and Linxiang as a base for blocking the Yellow River waterway. The West River has been exhausted for a long time and cannot be changed overnight, so I want to develop the land east of Hedong first, and then the land west of Hexi will be easy to control
There are many. But I don’t want the Huns, who have become increasingly restless recently, to disrupt my plan. Well, now you can talk about your business."
"Thank you, Lord Prefect, for being willing to tell me everything. In that case, I'd like to give you my humble opinion."
Seeing Li Shushi nodding, Guan Cheng took out a scroll from his arms. Just when Li Shushi's thoughts flew to a certain "Jing Ke" who successfully assassinated the First Emperor, Guan Cheng had already completely opened the scroll. There was no dagger and no
Other concealed weapons.
"Master Taishou, please take a look. This is the distribution map of the large and small rivers in Xihe County that I and my brothers drew a while ago."
I have to admit that he is a steward who is worthy of being a pirate expert. A hydrographic map of the Xihe River not only depicts the distribution of large and small rivers in the Xihe River, but even some simple mountains, rivers, geography and towns are also marked. But obviously the main purpose of this map is
It still reflects the hydrological conditions of the Xihe River, because the distribution of the rivers above is uneven.
But it is very detailed and has many strange arrows and symbols marked on many rivers. Although Li Shushi, a layman, does not understand the meaning at all, based on the carefulness and meticulousness with which he drew this hydrological map of the Xihe River, Li Shushi is
I think the workers who drew this map are really awesome.
"It looks very detailed. Those symbols are not labels for the hydrological conditions of the river."
"The prefect is indeed very discerning, but this is the case. These symbols are marked by my men based on the hydrological conditions of each river, especially whether it is possible to sail boats and large armies to cross the river. Although the land of Xihe is not as densely covered with water networks as in the south,
, but there are many places that can be exploited. Don’t be afraid to boast, with this map, all rivers in the Xihe River can be controlled by the Grand Administrator."
"I'm afraid the housekeeper is not just trying to sell this map to me. My troops in Xihe are basically all northerners. Although there are many people who are good at swimming, they are not used to water warfare after all. If it's just a picture like this
As for the map, it doesn’t seem to be of much use except to make it easier for my governor to build the Tuntian settlement next year.”
Li Shushi knocked on the table unconsciously and talked about the value of the map in front of him, intentionally or unintentionally. After all, in business, it is the duty of a businessman to pay the high price and pay the money on the spot. In fact, this map obviously does not have the value of Li Shushi.
What the book says is so unbearable, at least with this map, Li Shushi knows
Where can inland river shipping be carried out, and where can it be used as a place for large armies to cross the river during marches and wars to achieve unexpected results. However, if you show your strong desire for this map, then the price you have to pay will obviously be
Make yourself feel sore afterwards.
"Of course, this hydrographic map is just a meeting gift given to the prefect. Even if the sale cannot be completed this time, it will allow the prefect to see the strength of our steward. Brother Ziyang will be under the prefect's command. From now on
If the prefect
When your lord is in need, the prefect just needs to remember the skills of our housekeeper. Moreover, in the past, the housekeeper competed with Le'an Hao and did some things that shocked the prefect. This is what our Donglai housekeeper expressed to the prefect.
apology."
After thinking for a while, Li Shushi decided to accept Guan Cheng's kindness. Although courtesy requires people to ask for something, Li Shushi didn't think there was any need to enmity with the housekeeper who was thousands of miles away from him. What's more, he had also been with the housekeeper in the past.
No loss at all
, not only took the opportunity to recruit Tai Shici, a powerful subordinate, but also used the pirates who were on the road to train himself and his subordinates. It was precisely because of that battle that the power of his spells was gained for the first time.
A real practical test.
"The meeting gift is so generous, so I guess the main course should be even more sumptuous. I'm a little worried about whether I can afford the price of what the housekeeper is selling?"
Li Shushi was in a good mood after receiving the hydrographic map of the Xihe River. The slightly dissatisfied look he originally looked at Guan Cheng softened a lot. He had some expectations for Guan Cheng's next words and even made a small joke.
The originally serious atmosphere in the room suddenly relaxed a lot. This shows that Guan Cheng's marketing this time has been a huge success so far.
"The prefect is joking. The remuneration I want is something that the prefect can definitely afford."
Guan Cheng just answered Li Shushi's joke in a joking manner, and then quietly waited for Guan Hai to help Li Shushi put the scroll away. When the room returned to calm and Li Shushi acted like he was all ears, he opened it again.
Chatterbox.
"Our housekeeper has two main serious businesses. One is fishing at sea, and the other is doing water transportation business on big rivers such as Raoshui, Glue, and Dagu River. Later, it gradually expanded to the Jishui Basin. But in
They suffered a big setback when they entered the Yellow River. Although the family hoped to recover after a few years,
Shengxi once again fought back to the Yellow River water transport, but unfortunately God failed and a great chaos swept the entire Qingzhou. Although the family escaped the catastrophe with the advice of Brother Ziyang, even this family's business was greatly affected. Therefore, the family's business was greatly affected.
Well, I hope to bring some of the family members to Xihe to beg for a meal."
Guan Cheng's words immediately confused Li Shushi. It was said that the shipping industry was affected by the war and was in depression. Li Shushi did not doubt it, but if you say that you are the head of a family, the Taishui pirates who are said to have thousands of ships in charge are actually trying to come to him.
It is hard for Li Shushi to make a living here. Even if they move, there is no such thing as a family that has moved thousands of miles.
"Master Steward, are you the head of the housekeeper?"
"Don't worry, Grand Administrator, I am in charge of the housekeeping now."
"Then did your housekeeper commit any major crime or offend any great person?"
"Well, although my clan brother Ziyang brought many brothers with the same surname to join the Yellow Turban Army, they have either died in battle or followed my clan brother to the prefect. As for the other sons of my housekeeper, it seems that they have not
I’ve heard of such things.”
"Then why do you housekeepers move all the way to my place? Although Xihe is only one step away from the capital, but because of the exhausted border defense, it is only half a step away from the alien races raging in the north. The families here can move away.
All of them have left here, and the remaining ones each have their own reasons. Are you really sure that you and your family want to abandon your familiar hometown and come to Xihe, a place that is extremely strange to you and is full of dangers?"
"I think the governor has misunderstood something, but I didn't explain this clearly."
Seeing that Li Shushi seemed to have misunderstood something, Guan Cheng smiled slightly uncomfortably.
"As I said just now, the territory of Qingzhou is not peaceful now. The Yellow Turban chaos has not yet subsided, and many mountain bandits have emerged in various places. Although in the eyes of the prefect, our housekeepers seem to be no different from these people, but for us
In other words, most of the time
Mainly focusing on serious business. However, you should understand that those doing shipping business these days must have a certain ability to protect themselves. Otherwise, they will not want to become big. For the sake of their own safety and development, they will naturally have to do some dirty tricks sometimes.
However, the appropriateness depends on the preference of each family owner.
Just like my second brother, he is more accustomed to using force to solve problems. I went a bit far, please forgive me, Lord Prefect (Li Shushi shook his head and said he didn't mind). Now business is hard to do, and some businesses may even be stopped altogether. But
There are still so many people, and natural survival becomes a problem
In order to give the villagers who are attached to my housekeeper a way out, after hearing about your deeds as the prefect from Brother Ziyang, Cheng Cheng had this idea. If I can gain fame with you, the prefect, then I will
Chengye is worthy of the steward’s ancestors.”
Separating families for protection is a powerful weapon for dealing with war. The most famous ones are naturally the dragon and tiger dogs that live in each family and the Xun family who stand on both sides of Cao and Yuan. Therefore, Li Shushi basically disliked the housekeeper's approach.
It's clear as soon as you hear it.
"So, although I am indeed the head of the Guan family, I am still the head of the Guan family who came to Xihe."
Guan Cheng made the last footnote for his promotion.
