Chapter 114: Good luck when you are lucky (two chapters in one)
In the first year of Photosynthesis, which was AD 178, which was about 12 years ahead of the current year of the potters, in that year, the Han Ling Emperor Liu Hong issued a decree that shocked the government and the public and was despised by later generations.
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty opened a residence in Xiyuan to sell things. The products were very strange, and they were Liu Hong's exclusive luxury goods. He sold them as an official.
Guan is a good thing. It is something that everyone dreams of, and it is imitated and cannot produce A-quality products. There is no competition among similar products in the market. Liu Hong can sell it however he wants.
The specific price is determined one by one according to the size of the official position. The price of the official position is based on the official's annual salary. The price is roughly the valuation of the official's annual income in the market at that time, multiplied by a coefficient. This coefficient also fluctuates according to the market. Two of them
The official salary of a thousand shi is 20 million, and the official salary of 400 shi is 4 million. He also ordered the left and right to sell the title of public minister. The floating price of the title of public minister is relatively large, usually ranging from 10 million yuan to 5 million yuan.
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty set up another treasury in the West Garden and stored the money he received in the treasury of the West Garden, thinking that he already had it.
Although this matter was shameful and abhorrent, this order had been officially promulgated to the world at that time and was an edict of the emperor. Therefore, even if the pottery merchant came out to speak out, as long as his words were not disrespectful to Liu Hong, it would not be regarded as unreasonable.
At that time, all the famous and wealthy families in the world heard that if they had money, they could buy an official position, and every happy one would explode.
If you have such a smooth road, you should be honest and honest.
The wealthy members of the gentry rushed to the West Garden of Luoyang in ox-carts and horse-drawn carriages, carrying large amounts of cash. They did their best to buy various official positions without hesitation. They were so generous.
For a time, the supply of official positions in the Han Dynasty exceeded the demand, and Liu Hong and his mother, the Empress Dowager Dong, were able to make a lot of money!
In order to refine and differentiate the business of selling official posts, expand domestic demand in the market, and increase profits, Liu Hong even ordered people who bought official posts to pay in installments, with no mortgage and zero interest rates.
At that time, Cui Lie, a famous scholar, paid five million dollars to buy the position of Situ. During the ceremony, Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty saw Cui Lie's proud look and regretted that the "offer" was too low. He couldn't help but mutter to the people around him:
"This official sold at a loss. Why didn't you think of asking him for 10 million at that time?"
According to Han Ling Emperor's urine, if the price is right, he may even consider selling the emperor's position.
Although what Liu Hong did was considered extremely absurd in history, in the mind of the pottery merchant, every time he discussed this matter, he gave a thumbs up to this money-making tycoon.
The emperor who dared to sell his official position, the pottery merchants dare not say that there will be no successor, but it is definitely unprecedented! Moreover, when Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty implemented this policy, he must have made a detailed analysis of the assets owned by the great families in the world.
customer research.
You can't ask too high a price to scare them away, and you can't ask too low a price to give these grandsons an advantage!
Emperor Ling's asking price was around tens of millions, which was exactly the balance point acceptable to the world's aristocratic families... Emperor Ling must have formulated such a reliable market pricing plan after a long period of market research.
The pottery merchant felt that Liu Hong was really a genius in business, but it was a pity that he was born into the wrong child and became the emperor, and did not follow the right path of doing business... Otherwise, he would probably be rated as photosynthetic Lu Buwei and Shen Wansan of the Eastern Han Dynasty by later generations.
The ancestors planted trees, and the descendants enjoyed the shade, so today the pottery merchants are asking for money based on the market conditions observed by the emperors before them!
Pingzheng glared fiercely at the potter who was opening his mouth to his lion, wishing he could bite off his flesh piece by piece...and then spit it out and stomp on it on the ground.
"Okay! Ten million is ten million. We and other prominent families in Hanoi recognize this price. May I ask Mr. Tao when he will send troops?"
The pottery merchant smiled and said: "Don't be too busy, Mr. Ping, there is a second rule..."
"What else?" Pingzheng's eyes suddenly widened, he turned his head and pointed at the pottery merchant, and exclaimed to Wang Kuang and Bao Xin: "Your Excellency, General Bao, you don't care?"
Wang Kuang and Bao Xin, who rarely unanimously chose to raise their heads, seemed to suddenly have a strong interest in the beams in the hall of Li's house.
Just right for the back of the ear.
It's no wonder that the pottery merchant just opened his mouth and got 10 million yuan... This 10 million yuan didn't just belong to the Xuzhou army. Wang Kuang and Bao Xin were also princes who sent troops, so they would naturally get a share.
Only a fool would go out to take care of him at this time... Haven't you seen that Mr. Tao is as powerful as a dragon or a tiger now?
We support you silently.
Seeing Bao Xin and Wang Kuang pretending to be stupid at the same time, the prominent families could not help but feel a trace of despair in their hearts.
"What's the second one?" Pingzheng tried his best to restrain himself, resisting the urge to smash the boy's gentle smiling face with a punch.
The pottery merchant said slowly: "In a war, people come first, rations come second, and money comes third... Now that the above three things have been solved, let's talk about horses and ordnance."
Pingzheng took a deep breath and said: "Master Tao, do you want me to wait and provide you with war horses and weapons?"
The potter nodded and said with a smile: "There is no need to be busy with ordnance. After all, the amount of iron smelted by the government is limited every year. It would be a bit difficult for you to gather so many weapons in a short time. However, these horses are the most important thing on the battlefield.
I have heard for a long time that there are many horse farms in Hanoi and the animal husbandry industry is extremely developed..."
Pingzheng raised his eyebrows and sneered: "Master Tao, do you want a horse?"
The pottery merchant raised his hand to block Pingzheng's words, and said with a righteous expression: "It's not asking! It's borrowing! The pottery merchant just wants to borrow thousands of good horses from the princes to organize cavalry to fight against the Baibo army.
After defeating the Baibo Army, return it immediately."
Ping Zhengxin said, are you treating me like a fool?
Borrowing horses to organize cavalry? Borrowing is easy, but after borrowing, when will it be returned?
Behind Pingzheng, Li Shao, the head of the Li family in Yewang County, said: "Master Tao, each of your demands is really too much! We and other noble families are not pigs and sheep raised by your army to be slaughtered, how can we be insulted by this?"
The pottery merchant smacked his lips twice, and secretly thought that the old man Li Shao was really confused. He was both a pig and a sheep, and how could he compare himself to such a person? This talk was really incompetent.
Turning his head, the potter looked at the people watching and said with a gentle smile: "Everyone here, do you think the request Tao made just now is very excessive?"
Wang Yun, Huangfu Song, Da Si Nong Zhou Zhong and Wei Wei Zhang Xi didn't say anything, while Diao Chan tried her best to cover her lips with her long sleeves and smiled softly.
As for Bao Xin and Wang Kuang, they were basically on the pottery side, and they shook their heads vigorously when they heard this.
Don’t go too far, we will still support you silently.
Pingzheng took a deep breath. At this moment, he already hated Tao Shang in his heart... To be honest, he even hated Bai Bojun more than he hated him.
"What Mr. Tao just said was the second condition, so there must be a third, fourth or even fifth condition, right?" His tone was flat, but he didn't know whether he was angry or tired.
"I don't dare." The pottery merchant smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "I only have one last condition!"
Pingzheng sighed and said: "There is no shortage of this last one. Mr. Tao, please tell me."
The pottery merchant sorted out his vocabulary and continued: "If we conquer the Baibo Army and capture the Baibo Valley, all the heavy supplies in the city of Bo will be handled by our officers and soldiers, and no one else can interfere or ask for it..."
When the family heard this, they immediately became angry!
What do you mean? I’m sorry that the cattle, sheep and grains that were hijacked some time ago are not going to be returned to us even after the Baibo thieves were wiped out?
Ping Zheng grinned and suddenly burst into laughter.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
The potter raised his eyebrows: "Mr. Ping smiled so softly, could he have agreed?"
Ping Zheng looked so crazy that even the other family heads couldn't help but be stunned. They had never seen Ping Gong like this before... Could it be that he had lost his mind and gone crazy?
"Bah! Dreaming!" Pingzheng suddenly lowered his head. He no longer looked like a resolute and upright elder. He was like an angry and mad leopard. He howled hoarsely: "Boy, what do you think I am? What do you think I am?
What is the Ping family in Pingyi? Who do you think we and other Hanoi noble families are? Are they the pigs, sheep and livestock that you slaughtered?"
The potter sighed to himself...another person who compared himself to an animal...how people nowadays like this.
"What you say, Mr. Ping, is really unpleasant. This junior is just a small suggestion... Mr. Ping, can you consider it carefully before making a decision?"
Pingzheng looked at the pottery merchant with his whole body trembling, his eyes seemed to be bursting with fire: "I just don't agree, what will you do?"
The pottery merchant turned to look at the other three heads of noble families.
"Three of you, do you mean the same thing as Mr. Ping?"
Li Shao was also in a state of indignation at this moment: "We, a distinguished family, have been based in Hanoi for hundreds of years, how can we be subject to such coercion? Mr. Tao, please forgive me for saying this, we cannot accept it!"
The little heart of Zheng Yan, the head of the Zheng family in Ji County, also calmed down. He stood up tremblingly and gasped: "We swear not to become pigs and sheep to be slaughtered!"
Only Sima Lang, the head of the Sima family in Wen County, was silent and did not speak.
Shang Tao sighed and said helplessly: "Since Mr. Tao doesn't agree to Tao's conditions, I think there is no need to drink the wine today!"
Pingzheng snorted coldly, and for the first time at this banquet, he agreed with the pottery merchant's opinion, saying: "What Mr. Tao said is right. Since it is not speculation, then we don't need to talk anymore!"
He turned around and looked at Wang Kuang, who was quite hesitant, and Bao Xin, who still had a righteous expression on his face. He sighed and said to himself, "What a pity."
It was a good plan, but it was unexpectedly messed up by the potter.
Shuzi is serious...it's extremely hateful!
The two sides were already at war with each other at this moment, and the pottery merchant did not try to persuade him to stay. He bowed his hands to the four heads of distinguished families and said, "I won't give it away!"
Pingzheng bowed to Wang Yun, Huangfu Song and other ministers and said goodbye. He turned and walked out of the hall. When he passed by the pottery merchant, Pingzheng shook his sleeves fiercely and said loudly: "Humph!"
Zheng Yan from Jixian County followed Ping Zheng out step by step. When he passed by the pottery merchant, he also let out a "hum".
Sima Lang of Wen County was very thoughtful. He bowed to everyone and said goodbye. When he passed by the pottery merchant, he whispered: "Master Tao, Lang takes leave."
Immediately afterwards, Li Shao from Yewang County also followed the same example. When he walked to the pottery merchant, he shook his sleeves heavily, let out a loud "Humph!", and then strode out of the hall.
The pottery merchant was stunned for a moment, then waved his hand at Li Shao's back and said, "Go slowly, I won't send you off."
After a while, Li Shao was seen running back angrily, pointing at the hall with an angry face, glaring at the pottery merchant and shouting: "What are you not giving me? This is my home! It's my birthday! You should go slowly.
It should be you!"
………………
………………
After arguing for a long time, the negotiation ended unhappy.
Although Li Shao and others deeply hated the pottery merchants at the moment, Wang Kuang was the local governor after all, and Wang Yun and others were also court ministers and ministers. Their interests were interests, but these people could not be offended easily. The old man still respectfully handled the situation personally.
These people were sent out of the mansion.
But facing the pottery merchant, Li Shao didn't have such a good expression. He waved his sleeves fiercely at the pottery merchant, let out a heavy "hum" in his nose, and walked towards the mansion with an arrogant look on his face.
go back.
As soon as Li Shao's figure disappeared in front of the door, he saw Bao Xin pulling the potter over, his nose not his nose, his face not his face and scolding: "You kid, you really don't know the current affairs! I just asked for that thousand
With a military salary of tens of thousands of dollars, you should know that everything should be done in moderation! Why do you still keep making noises and asking for things without any end? This is good, it's all over."
The pottery merchant looked at Bao Xinzhengyi's face in surprise. He really couldn't imagine how this bastard could say such shameless words.
"General Bao, when I was bargaining with him at Li Shao's residence just now, you seemed to be very happy. You didn't stand up to stop me. Why are you talking about Tao now?"
Bao Xin's face turned red, and he secretly felt ashamed.
Who said that Bao Xin was not subconsciously obsessed with money and secretly hoped that the pottery merchant could really negotiate this deal with a prominent family in Hanoi?
Wang Kuang stepped forward, sighed, shook his head and said: "General Bao, Mr. Tao, regardless of who is right or wrong, now we have angered all the prominent families in Hanoi. I am afraid that the food, fodder and winter clothes for the Baibo Army will be lost again...
...In this case, the time to crusade against the bandits may be far away..."
Bao Xin sniffed and said, "Fortunately, before we left, Benchu allocated enough food for our two armies for three months. It's not like we can't fight..."
Wang Kuang frowned and asked Bao Xin: "The terrain of Baibo Valley is dangerous, and Zibo City was built based on the danger. If the battle cannot be conquered in three months and it is delayed until winter, the subsequent grain, grass, winter supplies and other supplies will not be able to be supplied.
It’s going to be big trouble.”
When Bao Xin heard this, he also remained silent.
After a long while, I heard Wang Kuang slowly say: "Last night's letter from Ben Chu also urged me to accompany you into the army... If something goes wrong, Wang is probably to blame... It seems that these provisions and winter clothes will eventually
It has to come from the ordinary people in Hanoi."
But when he thought about the years of war and the common people in Hanoi suffering from cholera, Wang Kuang couldn't help but feel a little unbearable.
The pottery merchant saw Wang Kuang sighing and shook his head: "That's not necessarily the case."
Everyone turned to look at him.
But the pottery merchant smiled slightly and said: "It is normal for the leaders of Hanoi's prominent families not to think about it for a moment, but the matter of conquering the Baibo Army is, after all, related to the stability of the Three Rivers. All the prominent families in Hanoi understand the righteousness and are quite aware of it.
Matters…”
When he heard the words "deeply understand the righteousness", Bao Xin couldn't help but let out a laugh.
Tao Shang rubbed his nose and continued: "In short, Tao believes that the prominent families in Hanoi are not unreasonable people. I believe that soon they will come to apologize, agree to all our requests, and sincerely plead with us.
Go and exterminate the bandits for the people of Hanoi, and restore a peaceful world to the land of Three Rivers..."
The further he went on, the softer the pottery merchant's voice became, because he felt that the way these people looked at him had obviously changed.
That look...how to describe it? It's like looking at a whimsical retarded person...full of compassion and compassion...
Wang Kuang sighed, walked to Tao Shang, reached out and patted his shoulder, and said: "Master Tao... I just suffered a temporary setback today, but you don't need to take it to heart. Young people don't understand the ways of the world, so they will be hit hard."
It’s inevitable, but don’t let yourself fall!”
The potter's eyes twitched a little.
This Wang Kuang...it seems that he thinks he has lost his mind and gone crazy.
The pottery merchant is not the kind of person who is willing to argue with strong words. He likes to see things as they are.
With a long sigh, the pottery merchant bowed his hands to everyone present, said goodbye one by one, and then led Xu Chu away on horseback.
Since these people don't believe it, let the facts verify it.
Others did not believe in the pottery merchant, but Xu Chu believed it. After riding for about two miles, Xu Chu saw that he was far away, so he quietly asked the pottery merchant: "My lord, you said that in the near future, those old and immortal people from aristocratic families will die.
I would take the initiative to come to my door and apologize, is this true?"
The pottery merchant turned to look at Xu Chu: "When did I lie to you?"
The potter's words almost made Xu Chu amused.
"Young Master, it seems that you have been deceiving someone since the first day I met you."
The pottery merchant was stunned when he heard this, then lowered his head and carefully recalled the details of his acquaintance with Xu Chu...
After thinking for a while, the potter couldn't help but raise his sleeves and wipe his sweat... It seemed that he had been fooling him.
It was a real failure, and I was despised by my subordinates again.
"You have nothing to say?" Xu Chu looked at the pottery man triumphantly, obviously very proud that he could choke the pottery man into speechless.
Tao Shang wondered: As a person who has been deceived by him for almost a year... what do you have to be proud of?
"But this time, what I said is true." Tao Shang vowed: "If there is no accident, within three days, the four major families in Hanoi will come to apologize and ask us to send troops again!"
Xu Chu didn't understand why, and said curiously: "What you said made a certain family very confused... It was obvious that they just made a fuss today and came to apologize three days later. Why do these prominent families in Hanoi behave like this?"
Looking up at the sunset reflected in the distance, a smile appeared on the corner of the pottery merchant's mouth. The sun hung over the tall trees, and the dusk entered the green peaks. What a beautiful picture of the wonders of the world.
"Zhongkang..." The pottery merchant's expression seemed to be blurred by the setting sun.
Xu Chu sniffed and said, "What are you doing?"
"Do we still have the flags and armor of the disarmed White Wave Army?"
Xu Chu nodded and said, "I still have it! What do you want to do?"
"Tonight, let Bai Bojun visit the industrial park of the four major families in Hanoi again... If conditions permit, it is not impossible to visit for three consecutive nights."
Only then did Xu Chu suddenly realize, and suddenly understood the true meaning of what the pottery merchant had just said, that in three days, the noble families in Hanoi would come to apologize.
"I see. If you had said this earlier, I would have understood!"
The potter continues to look far away...
It's so wonderful to send birds flying with their eyes wide open and complain about the setting sun slanting westward across the river.