"Clear as water, strong as fire, worthy of the name given by the saint!"
Li Shan, who was sitting at the top, looked at the people who were full of praises calmly, and glanced at the old man sitting third from the left with the corner of his eye. This was the head of the Zhang family. It is said that even if Liu Wuzhou ravaged Hedong in the past few years,
The Zhang family could also go out to do business, and had people and even shops in Shuozhou and Yunzhou.
"I have long heard that the name of Yuhuchun has spread to Beijing and Zhao Guanzhong. I am lucky today." He Lou Shanzhu said with a smile: "The Ming Dynasty gave me wine today..."
"It's passed, it's been passed." Li Shan interrupted gently, "He Lou Gong and all of you are seniors. If you don't win the title next year, how dare you give me a gift."
Some people smiled apologetically. After all, although the man in front of him was just a county magistrate, he was given the title of county prince. Some people nodded slightly. It is appropriate to respect an elder no matter where he is placed... This man actually knows etiquette.
A slightly younger old man raised his voice and said: "I heard that a winery was set up in a village outside the city..."
"Cough, cough, cough!"
A violent cough interrupted his words. He Loushanzhu turned his head and glanced, cursing in his mind, what a bunch of idiots!
The smile on Li Shan's face was still gentle, and he asked with concern: "Is Mr. He Lou feeling unwell?"
"Thank you very much, Mingfu, for your concern." He Loushanzhu said seriously, "I have summoned you today, and I would like to ask Mingfu to give me your instructions."
"Haha, since Mr. He Lou said so, I'll get straight to the point." Li Shan seemed a little shy and said intermittently: "I was born in Lingnan, and I was in trouble in my early years, so it was inevitable..."
He Lou Shanzhu thought for a moment and asked tentatively: "Mingfu intends to sell wine?"
Li Shan glanced at him, some people frowned, but more people's eyes shone with golden light, "Old servant occasionally got a secret skill... Of course, since I am an official, I naturally don't do business, but I have a lot of personal guards, which costs a lot of money...
…”
There are two old men who are relatively well-informed and can't help but feel contempt in their hearts... The reputation of Yuhuchun Winery in Chang'an has spread to Dai County. You, Li Huairen, love Ah Duwu. What's so bad about this? Why are you using this excuse to stop it?
"What Mingfu said is true." He Lou Shanzhu nodded and said: "This is just a trivial matter, but... I am quite confused. Please ask Mingfu to clear up my confusion."
"First, half a year ago, the saint issued an edict prohibiting alcohol."
"Although the saint issued an edict prohibiting alcohol, it was limited to Jingzhao and Guanzhong." Li Shan said with a smile: "On my way to my appointment, I saw that there are many wine shops in various prefectures in the east of the river."
"Second, why in Daizhou and among all the prefectures in Hedong, Daizhou is the most withered." He Lou Shanzhu said with a bitter smile: "I'm afraid I will disappoint the Ming government."
Just because Li Shan is acting county magistrate, he does not necessarily have to do business in Daizhou... This is very obvious.
It would be nice to have a traitor to help... Li Shan thought and said with a smile: "But Dai County is the most convenient way to get out of the fortress."
"Going out of the fortress to do business?" He Lou Shanzhu whispered, turned around and saw a happy face on the face of the head of the Zhang family.
There was a burst of discussion below, and everyone started whispering to each other. Li Shan lowered his eyes and sat there in silence.
After a while, a middle-aged man stood up and said: "Ming Mansion, last year the sage issued an edict to ban mutual trade between Turks."
Li Shan didn't raise his eyebrows, "There is no mutual trade between Turks... But when you leave Yanmen, you will find Shuozhou and Yunzhou, both of which are your homeland."
There was another discussion below. This reason is a bit far-fetched... Although Yunzhou is mostly Han people and is even nominally Yuan Junzhang's territory, the actual owners are Turks.
After a while, people started to raise objections one after another. Li Shan stopped talking and glanced at He Lou Shanzhu from the corner of his eye... Are you just looking at him like this?
He Lou Shanzhu sighed secretly, stood up and said: "This is not a trivial matter, but since the Ming Palace is interested, we are willing to serve the Ming Palace, but..."
"Mr. He Lou, can you speak frankly."
"First, Yuhuchun is a famous wine in the world. I heard that the price in Beijing is extremely high." He Lou Shanzhu said with a bitter smile: "There are few people in Dai County and little land, and there is little production..."
The few old people below all nodded secretly... They are all locals, and they know very well that selling Yu Huchun in the fortress will be very profitable, and everyone has to go to the fortress to do business every year, but they have not gone recently... Liu Shirang is a ruthless man
In his early years, when he was the governor of Bingzhou, he used his skills to arrest smuggling.
The key is, how to divide the spoils?
Don’t even think about it. Things like smuggling will definitely not have anything to do with the Guantao County magistrate, so the risk will be borne by us... If the county magistrate eats meat, we can only share some soup.
If so, it's really not necessary.
"I promise to redeem the wine and make up for it on the way back after selling it." Li Shan said simply and neatly.
The sound of coaxing started to sound below, and everyone asked various questions, and Li Shan answered them one by one.
You can redeem the wine first and then give money after selling it... In a sense, it is almost a business without capital. It only requires the disciples to take a trip. However, this road goes from Dai County to Shuozhou and then north to Yunzhou.
You are familiar with it. After all, just over ten years ago, Yunzhou was still in China.
When it gradually calmed down, Li Shancai added: "As you all know, there are few copper coins in Shuo and Yun, so let's calculate the price in terms of oxen and horses."
He Lou Shanzhu nodded and said: "What the Ming government said is that the caravan must also carry goods when it returns. It is most convenient to calculate the price of cattle and horses."
The head of the Zhang family asked cautiously: "Dare I ask the Ming government about the price of cattle and horses, in Daizhou..."
Although the difference between the price of a cow and a horse in Daizhou and Yunzhou is not too great, it is still quite different.
He Lou Shanzhu shouted: "The Ming Dynasty has promised to redeem wine, how can we get to Longwang Shu?!"
"Greetings, Mr. Lou, of course, business matters must be made clear in advance." Li Shan advised, thought for a while, and said with a smile, "How about adding 10% to the selling price in Daizhou?"
"The cattle and horses will make up for the price of the wine, but other goods will not matter."
"If there are other goods such as spices, we can organize a caravan to send them to Jingzhao. The Li family has stores in the east and west cities of Chang'an."
"Some spices can be priced in gold."
"If the cattle and horses are sent to the vicinity of Jingzhao, the price will be higher. This move is also to make up for the shortage of cattle and horses in the court and is beneficial to the country."
Li Shan made it clear, but unfortunately no one believed it except the traitor He Lou Shanzhu... Well, in fact, He Lou Shanzhu was also half-convinced, mainly because Li Shan's description was too much...
They formed a caravan to go out of customs, exchanged for cattle and horses, and then sent them to be sold near Jingzhao... After one trip, the profit was too high.
Li Shan also specifically asked... He Lou Shanzhu didn't say anything, but just thought about it in his mind, fearing that he would have to do it seven or eight times.
"In the Ming Dynasty, if you bring wine out of customs and return with cattle and horses, you must pass through Yanmen." He Lou Shanzhu hesitated and said: "Now Yanmen..."
As soon as the words were spoken, Fan Shiyi, who was standing behind Li Shan, quietly stepped back. A moment later, General Zuowuwei Jiangxia County Duke Li Gaoqian appeared at the door with a smile.
Li Shan stood up with a smile and held his hands in his hands: "Everything is ready and all we need is the east wind. The Duke's arrival is just like the east wind."
Next, Li Shan talked with Li Gaoqian and He Lou Shanzhu, and others talked below. Zhou Erlang, He Lou Xingshu and others also joined in. Soon, a smuggling plan with huge profits and clear division of interests was launched.
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Li Shan looked back and saw that it had been more than a month since he took office. He had finally established a firm foothold. He and Li Gaoqian, the most powerful person in Dai County, the most powerful rural family in Dai County, used their interests to create a large network.