I will not be king in the Spring and Autumn Period

Chapter 354 A Good Deal
Fan Li and Ye Xu led the 20 people to hurry, but after entering the state of Chu, they asked everyone to slow down, so as not to stir up dust and attract the attention of the surrounding Chu people.

After all, Ye Xu was born in the army, and he knew their current situation, so he was quite uneasy about the safety of this trip, so he couldn't help asking:

"This trip goes deep into Chu territory, and there is no official document in hand. If there are Chu people patrolling, how can only 20 people be enough?"

But Fan Li didn't care about it, and just replied indifferently:
"Hehe, with just these 20 people, how can we be completely protected? The reason why Li wanted to take them with him was so that he could take some copper and stone with him on the way home!"

"Chu is in chaos now, and there is no time to look north. Everyone in Chu is in danger, so where do the patrols come from to swagger around? So we just need to be careful, and there will be no blame."

When Ye Xu heard this, he saw that Fan Li was about the same age as him, but was so bold and careful, so he couldn't help but admire him very much.

They hurried on their way without haste, and after six days, they sure enough entered the territory of Sui country safely.At this time, Fan Li immediately sent someone to report to Suiguodu.

And these attendants, when they learned that Li Ran, the world-famous Zheng Guo, sent people to Sui Guo for help, they dared not neglect them, and placed them and their party directly at the pass to live.

Since there has been no war between Sui State and Chu State for a hundred years, the construction of this pass is also quite simple.

Fan Li and Ye Xu stayed here for three days before they were finally summoned.

It is Zeng Houyu who is now in charge of the monarchy in Suiguo, and his prince Yue is the one who came to receive them.

I saw that Prince Yue was leading a four or five year old child, the child's eyes were rolling, and he was very flexible, he looked like a quick-witted child.

Prince Yue introduced:

"It's a great honor to have two distinguished guests come from afar. This is Dog B. I have not seen any guests since I have been with the country for many years, so I brought him out today to see the scene. I hope you are not surprised!"

Fan Li hurriedly said:

"Don't dare, the prince is too polite. Gongsun is so handsome, I think he will be famous all over the world in the future."

Prince Yue smiled and said:
"Hehe, a small country is humble, so I don't dare to be famous in the world, I just hope that it can be safe and sound."

Afterwards, Crown Prince Yue took Fan Li and Ye Xu to meet Zeng Houyu together.

As soon as he entered the main hall, he saw that the main hall was resplendent and resplendent, and there were actually ten sets of chime bells directly placed on it!With so many chimes, it would be unprecedented in scale to be placed anywhere.

This aspect is enough to prove the abundance of copper and stone in Suiguo.On the other hand, it can be seen that Suiguo is indeed far from the rules and regulations of Zhouli in the Central Plains.

After all, if it is placed in other vassal states, due to the restrictions of "Zhou Li", if you want to build another set of chime bells with a wider range, you will probably be criticized by others for a long time.

Seeing someone coming to the hall, Zeng Hou immediately ordered someone to ring the chime bell to welcome the guests.All of a sudden, the hall was filled with beautiful and graceful sounds of gold and stone.

Fan Li and Ye Xu came forward to meet Zeng Houyu, Zeng Houyu smiled heartily and said:
"Both of you please, although I live in a humble place, I have heard of Li Ziming's name. It's a pity that I can't see him today."

Although Suiguo has been very quiet these years, there is almost no communication among the princes, and various alliances basically exclude him, but Suiguo, who is a neighboring country, is naturally aware of Li Ran's behavior in Chu.

Fan Li presented the bamboo slips written by Li Ran, and bowed and said:
"Your Majesty, Mr. Ziming sent the two of us to come to your country this time, and I left a volume of letters, please read it! It's just that Mr. Yinming has a lot of things to do every day, so he can't come to visit in person, so please don't blame the Marquis!"

Zeng Houyu's personality is also open-minded, and he replied directly with a smile:
"No problem, no problem, if there is a chance in the future, I will see you again."

Gong Zheng stepped forward and took the bamboo slips from Fan Li's hands, and handed them to Zeng Houyu.

Zeng Houyu unfolded it and looked at it. Li Ran briefly explained the current situation of Zheng State in the letter, and now they have taken in refugees from Zheng State. Make weapons, so I hope Marquis Zeng can assist one or two.

In addition, Li Ran also knew that Suiguo was also a country with the surname of Ji, so he directly raised the idea of ​​this matter to the height of "reviving Ji Zhou".And hope to win the approval of Marquis Zeng.

Of course, in the end, Li Ran clarified that he had nothing to do with Chu State, so Suiguo didn't need to worry that Chu State would take the opportunity to make trouble, and Xu Yi would definitely be rewarded after the event was completed...

Knowing the purpose of their trip, Zeng Houyu couldn't help but put down the brief book slowly with a frown, and was silent for a long time before speaking:

"It is reasonable to say that this matter should be obligatory, but after all, Chu State is next to Bi State, so many copper stones... If you don't report to them in advance, I am afraid it will be difficult to transport them to Yeyi. The state of Chu has nothing to do with it, but it's hard to say what the current king of Chu would think! What if..."

"At that time, not only will the copper and stone not be able to be transported to Yeyi, I am afraid that our Suiguo will be in danger. I have not been involved in the affairs of the world for a long time...but if I anger Chu because of this, the loss outweighs the gain. !"

After hearing this, Fan Li continued to bow and bow in reply:
"My lord, now the king of Chu is weak. Although Xiong Bi succeeded to the throne, everyone in the world knows that it is Prince Qiji who holds the power of soldiers and horses. Prince Qiji is known as a virtuous man, so he must not dare Blame Suiguo for this matter. Therefore, as long as we don't brush against him, we will be safe and sound!"

"Besides, according to my husband's name, since he promises to thank you in the future, he will not lie. What's more, Zheng Guo is in the same line as Sui Guo, and they are both states with the surname Ji. Now that Zheng Guo is in trouble, if Sui Guo can help , this move is also a matter of gaining the protection of the ancestors!"

After hearing this, Marquis Zeng was a little hesitant.At this time, Ji Yi, the master Yin doctor at the side, spoke again:

"Since the first king signed the covenant with the state of Chu, we have never had such close contacts with any country. This time of helping the state of Zheng, I am afraid that it will arouse the suspicion of the Chu state to some extent! The country is humble and small, and we have to act. If you are extremely cautious, how can you incur a fatal disaster with huge profits?!"

This Ji Yi is actually a descendant of Ji Liang who signed the covenant with Chu State.

When Fan Li heard the words, he thought about it for a long time, and then said:

"If Jun Hou still has doubts, how about this? It's just that Li is here to represent my husband and Jun Hou to make a deal. It was Fan Li who bought the copper and stone in the name of doing business. This is a personal matter. It has nothing to do with Zheng, and it has nothing to do with Chu."

"Li is now just a businessman who sells copper and stones. When he takes copper and stones from Suiguo and passes by Yeyi, even if Mr. Ziming wants to buy them, he has to exchange them with something of equivalent value!"

In fact, Fan Li's idea is quite risky.

Because if it becomes a private business, then there is no way to guarantee the safety along the way, and it is even more impossible for Suiguo to send troops from the side to protect it.

But if you think about it more carefully, if it is in the name of the country, Suiguo can certainly send more soldiers and horses to coordinate transportation, but if Chu State is willing to ask questions, then they will indeed be unable to eat and walk around!
Therefore, it might not be a bad thing to simply give up this layer of protection.

When Ji Yi heard this, she couldn't help squinting her eyes:
"It's just... do you have anything to guarantee now? You can't take away so many copper stones from us for nothing, right?"

When Fan Li heard the words, he knew there was something going on, so he immediately raised his head and said:
"Li Su heard that the Sui state was in short supply of salt in Ba, because after Chu conquered the Yong state, the salt from Ba could only pass through Chu and enter Sui. Therefore, the salt that Sui Ren ate was far more valuable than the people of Chu."

"The salt market in Zheng State is mostly bought and sold by the people of Qi, who are near the sea. Although the quality of the sea salt refined is not as good as that of Ba salt, the price is extremely low."

"If you believe in Li, you will be rewarded with the same amount of salt when Li returns this time! You will never let your country make this trip empty. I don't know what you think?"

When Zeng Houyu heard this, his eyes lit up.

That's right, since Qin, Chu, and Ba joined forces to destroy the Yong state, the salt market here is equivalent to being monopolized by the Chu people.

And because of their relationship with the state of Chu, they never dared to open a salt road to the north.So they no longer had enough cheap salt to eat.

And they follow the country up and down, and they have already suffered terribly for this.

And Fan Li's few words can be said to hit the nail on the head.

If he can "throw the pot" to him alone, and can open up another way to solve his current domestic problem, why not?
So, Marquis Zeng said:

"Since that's the case... this matter will not be discussed until the widow and everyone discuss it. The two of you have worked hard on this journey, and treat the widow with a feast to cleanse the dust for the two of you!"

Zeng Houyu immediately ordered people to hold a banquet on the top of the hall, and everyone sat on the ground, and a copper stove was set up next to it for barbecue.

I saw that the copper stove has two layers, with charcoal fire on the bottom, and barbecue on the upper layer, which is served by a special person. In this way, it can be eaten hot, which is very convenient.

(A copper furnace was unearthed from the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng in later generations. When it was unearthed, there was charcoal in the furnace, crucian carp fish bones in the plate, and traces of soot on the bottom of the plate. It is the earliest bronze cooking utensil for frying and roasting food found in later generations.)
Fan Li saw that the copper stove was well made, and he was full of praise for it. The bronze wares of Suiguo really lived up to their reputation!
(End of this chapter)