After being divorced, my identity as a poet was exposed

Businessmen are profit-seeking.

He is also the most timid.

They may be extremely wealthy and their lives may seem very glorious, but they know better than anyone that all this is like flowers in the mirror and the moon in the water.

At the bottom of society.

The wealth accumulated through painstaking efforts or even generations can all be wiped out by a single official document.

Corrupt officials in prosperous times, bandits in troubled times.

Anyone can control them and anyone can take their lives.

Even if they are aristocratic families, they are still like this in the face of imperial power.

During the twenty years that Ji Tai was in power, they walked on thin ice, shrinking their business to the smallest scope, living a low-key life, and sending expensive gifts to local officials.

In front of those officials, they were servile and fawning.

All I want is to survive.

Not to mention expanding operations and improving equipment, let alone expanding business overseas.

They dared not have any thoughts.

being targeted!

They understand this principle better than anyone else.

The only prayer is that the government will not cause trouble for them on a trumped-up charge.

but now……

Ever since the emperor became regent three years ago and rebuilt the court and proposed measures to boost industry and commerce, many of them have remained on the sidelines for a long time.

It was not until a full year or two later, at the call of local authorities, that some bold businessmen began to go out.

This led to the fact that last year Chen Dingmao sent members of the Chen family to Youdu County to open a workshop.

But even so, the Guo family, who lived in a remote corner of Lingdong Province, still did not move south to the south of the Yangtze River.

Although this means losing the initiative, in Guo Shanyi's view, stability is more important than expansion!
Who knows when the government will change its tactics again?

If you expand your business too much and the wind changes, the business will no longer be yours!
That's not bad.

If things go wrong, the whole family might lose their lives.

It was not until this moment, after listening to what Li Chenan and Wen Zhuyu said, that Guo Shanyi truly realized that the best era was coming!

I saw the Emperor with my own eyes!
From the emperor's words, he not only understood how much the emperor valued business, but also understood what kind of person the emperor was -

pragmatic!

Some are too ambitious.

The ideas are extremely avant-garde.

This is contradictory, but it is enough to show his urgency and sincerity!
He knew that from now on, he could really let go and do something great!

These businessmen are all shrewd people, and the others also understood these principles, and it was like taking a reassurance pill.

So, drinking tea and chatting became relaxed and casual.

Under Li Chenan's deliberate guidance, they talked about the customs and habits of their respective places, and of course the unique specialties of each place.

Each has its own geographical advantages and disadvantages, as well as the good and bad conditions of local business, education, farming, etc.

Li Chenan became the best listener.

In the eyes of Guo Shanyi and others, his image became even more majestic.

Communication was smooth and time passed quickly.

Half an hour later, Li Chenxi came in with a few waiters carrying food boxes.

Li Chenan stood up:
"After listening to what you said, I seem to have traveled through this beautiful country in my mind."

"You must be hungry, come on, take a seat, and let's have lunch together!"

……

……

What an honor it is to be able to sit at the same table with the Emperor? !
Dishes...

These dishes are nothing in the eyes of the richest businessmen in Ningguo.

But is this dish still important now?

important!

Know the subtleties!

The emperor did not ask the imperial chef to prepare a table full of delicacies from land and sea.

The emperor actually sent someone to buy it from an outside restaurant!

They were not disappointed, but extremely relieved.

This once again shows that the emperor is a pragmatic person.

He is also a frugal person.

I once heard that the bowls the emperor used for eating were all made of gold, and that the emperor had one hundred and eight dishes in one meal.

The emperor would only eat a bite of what he liked, and would throw away the rest without even touching it. But now this emperor...

Li Chenan raised his chopsticks and said enthusiastically:

"I should have bought you a drink, but we have important business to discuss later."

"Drinking makes things worse!"

"Don't be polite, eat your fill so we can have the energy to discuss the business!"

He started eating, and then Wen Zhuyu and others also started eating. Su Mingtang took a look and then looked at Chen Dingmao.

I thought that although this meal was not rare, it was still much better than the breakfast I had at Yuelai Inn in the morning.

But Chen Dingmao advised himself to eat more.

This man's digestion wasn't that good as he was getting older, but he still picked up the chopsticks and started working.

The other merchants looked at...

With the emperor's kindness before them, they also carefully extended their chopsticks.

Perhaps everyone was really hungry, coupled with Li Chenan's casual attitude, so that these merchants forgot his majestic status as an emperor, and everyone really started to eat with relish.

After all, you only know what a big deal it is after you finish eating it.

After a stick of incense, almost all the dishes on the table were eaten up.

The taste of the food lingers in my mouth.

But more of it is the bitter taste.

As usual, one should brew a pot of tea to get rid of the bitter taste, but unexpectedly, Eunuch An walked in with a tray.

There are a dozen small cups on the tray.

He placed these small cups in front of everyone, then bowed and stood behind Li Chenan.

Li Chenan glanced at it and smiled slightly:

"There is no imperial chef in Changle Palace, so... these dishes are sent from restaurants outside."

"To express my sincerity in inviting you all, I personally prepared a pot of soup."

"Of course, the ingredients for this soup are also simple, just two old hens."

“Cooking is not difficult.”

"This is my gift...Everyone, enjoy this bowl of soup."

soup!
Soup is a common item in the meals of these wealthy merchant families.

No matter what soup you make, you must put salt in it, otherwise it will taste bitter.

In order to drink the soup, other seasonings must be added to suppress the bitter taste.

The most commonly used ones are angelica, codonopsis, etc.

These things are medicinal herbs. Although they have some tonic effect, they also have the bitter taste of medicinal herbs.

But this bitterness is easier to accept than the astringent taste.

This last dish is soup.

Or is it a soup prepared by the emperor himself...

You have to drink it anyway.

Chen Dingmao never liked drinking soup.

He hated the bitter taste of the herb.

Looking at the small cup, he opened the lid with a sad heart.

Smoke drifted in.

At first, he was still thinking that he had to drink the soup even if he had to pinch his nose. After a moment, his eyes suddenly widened -

He didn't smell the strong smell of medicine!
He was shocked. There was no smell of medicine, which meant only salt was added.

But the bitter taste of soup with only salt is even more unpalatable!

What could he do?

Taking a small spoonful, he stirred the soup in the small bowl, then scooped up a spoonful and took a look.

The soup is golden in color and smells sweet.

He took a small bite...

what!
His eyes lit up and he drank the soup in the spoon in one gulp.

After a moment, he showed a suspicious look, and took another spoonful and drank it...

He raised his head and looked at Li Chenan in shock.

"emperor……"

Li Chenan waved his hand, "Don't ask anything."

"Everyone, enjoy this bowl of soup!" (End of this chapter)