The Incense Monopoly Order

Chapter 103 The Imperial Court Will Intervene

"Let Hemu send someone to keep an eye on Mr. Cheng's movements." Shang Mingshu gave the order after handing the letter to He Sui.

Cheng She was a businessman who made money by selling rare goods. He dabbled in every industry and did not focus on any one of them. He was well-informed. Shang Mingshu originally wanted to meet him in person and ask him in person.

For some reason, her mind flashed back to the teasing Shang Zishu had said to her in Jiande. She should have avoided suspicion with Cheng She. She and Cheng She didn't have such an ambiguous relationship. What she was going to do was just like what she was doing now.

Keep a close eye on the Cheng family. As long as the Cheng family moves, the news is most likely true. If the Cheng family does not move, the news is most likely false.

She didn't expect that even though she was avoiding suspicion, Cheng She would take the initiative to find her.

Bringing Shang Zishu with her, Shang Mingshu happily went to the appointment.

"Tea plantations in Guangdong and Guangxi have indeed been plagued by tea loopers," Cheng She said straight to the point. "They've been around since early spring, but nobody took them seriously. The servants at the tea plantations dealt with them privately. But by autumn, several tea plantations were overrun by them, causing a sharp drop in tea production across Guangdong and Guangxi."

The tea looper is a pest that feeds on tea trees and is hated by all tea merchants and tea growers.

"Thank you, Brother Cheng, for telling me." Shang Mingshu expressed her gratitude sincerely.

"You're too polite, Miss San." Cheng She continued, "This shouldn't have happened in Fujian. It's probably just a rumor. Someone is trying to take advantage of this to drive up the price of tea."

Shang Mingshu listened and nodded, then asked, "Second Brother Cheng came to see me specifically for this matter?"

It's obvious that I could just send a letter and make it clear.

It was obvious that Cheng She had other plans: "The Cheng family will stockpile tea, and I hope Xiang Ming Zhai will not get involved."

"Why?" Shang Zishu was puzzled. With such a golden opportunity to make money, they had to watch others make a fortune?

"Second Brother Cheng wants to control the price of tea." Shang Mingshu guessed immediately.

A smile appeared on Cheng She's lips: "Life is not easy for the common people, they should not be exploited."

"Second Brother Cheng is a man of integrity," Shang Mingshu admired. "I see the rumors are spreading like wildfire, and countless tea merchants are involved. They have strong financial resources. If Second Brother Cheng were to fight with them, it would surely be a bloody battle."

When the storm arose yesterday, countless tea merchants were affected, and even people from other industries with money in hand stepped in. Today, countless people are diving in again.

Just now they passed by the tea market, which was so crowded that all they could see were crowds of people, all of whom were vendors holding money to buy tea. Ox-drawn carts could no longer pass through the market, so they had to hire porters to carry the goods.

I'm afraid tomorrow will be even crazier.

Cheng She did not have a good reputation in Huizhou Prefecture because he was well-informed and could always seize the opportunity to stockpile scarce items and then sell them at high prices. However, he was very cautious in his actions, and those who envied his money-making could not find out where his information came from and wanted to follow him. He often threw smoke bombs, causing those who followed him to lose a lot of money.

Shang Mingshu felt that what Cheng She did was different from what they had imagined.

He is not monopolizing the market, he is being a price-taker. If he had not taken action several times, many merchants would have made huge profits, and the people would have suffered the most.

Take, for example, the drought in Jiangnan that caused skyrocketing grain prices. Unscrupulous merchants mixed grain with stones and wheat bran, driving the price of a dou of rice from 40 or 50 wen to 40 or 50 wen, yet some still emptied their savings to survive. The imperial government's relief grain was a drop in the bucket, and Cheng She sold it for a mere 80 wen per dou. Because he had purchased enough grain in advance from other sources, seeing the steady flow of rice, others who controlled the grain were forced to follow suit and lower their prices.

When Shang Mingshu and Xiao Yu mentioned this, they both admired Cheng's kindness.

As for why he didn't sell it at the normal price of forty or fifty cents, Shang Mingshu knew that sometimes when you are in a situation, you will be restrained. If he sells it at double the price, the merchants who had stockpiled a large amount earlier will follow suit and lower the price because it will be profitable.

But if he suppressed the profit too thin, lower than the purchase price of grain merchants who realized the situation late and stockpiled grain, they would not make any profit and would never give in, and his goal of helping the people would not be achieved.

"Thank you for the reminder, Madam San. I have my own plan in mind." Cheng She's brows suddenly relaxed, and he looked visibly happy.

Shang Zishu and Shang Mingshu didn't know why Cheng She was suddenly in such a good mood, but they could both feel it.

"I think Second Brother Cheng has already made arrangements. Don't worry, Second Brother Cheng, I can make the decision and will not participate in this tea hoarding." Shang Mingshu promised, "We also have some tea at home. If Second Brother Cheng needs anything, please don't hesitate."

"Tea is not something like rice or grain that is essential for every household." Cheng She agreed, "If it's really not enough, I will shamelessly come to your door to ask for more."

Shang Mingshu was also thinking about Cheng She's repeated help. Although she could not do what Cheng She did, she knew that it was a great benefit to the people, and being able to lend a hand would be considered as accumulating blessings and doing good deeds.

Cheng She was busy at the time, and the two had no private interactions. After talking things over, they left. Shang Mingshu hurried home to persuade Shang Jinliang.

"You want me not to stock up on tea?" Shang Jinliang couldn't believe his ears. When he confirmed that the tea trees in Guangdong and Guangxi were suffering from insect pests, the first thing he did was to call Shang Wenshu and several accountants to start calculating and verifying how much money they could raise.

"Dad, the Cheng family will lower the price." Shang Mingshu said to Shang Jinliang.

"He will suppress the price of tea. If we buy in now, it will be profitable." Shang Jinliang did not want to miss such an opportunity. He entered the market now and exited early, selling the tea to Guangdong and Guangxi. The profit would be more than two or three times.
"Dad, the Cheng family won't harm us." Shang Mingshu continued to persuade, "We can just stand by and watch, and keep the tea in our hands."

"Speaking of the Cheng family, didn't Cheng Sanlang pass the imperial examination? Why haven't his Cheng family come to propose marriage yet?" After Shang Jinliang came back, he waited for Cheng Qin to come and propose marriage for his brother, but he waited and waited but no one came.

At this moment, he also had some complaints about the Cheng family, and even whispered to Xiao Yu in private, wondering if Cheng Mian had taken a fancy to another woman in the capital.

"Cheng Sanlang is not here, he has to come in person." This was said by Cheng Mian himself.

He had been expecting Shang Mingshu to return from Hangzhou and come with her brother and sister-in-law to express their respect, but unexpectedly she was recommended to the capital and now entered the Imperial College.

"Hmph, don't believe a man's sweet words and deception." Shang Jinliang felt uneasy. "The capital is prosperous, and there are countless noble ladies. I'm afraid he will try to climb up the social ladder while trying to appease you. If he succeeds, he'll kick you away, and if he fails, he'll come back for you!"

"Father, if Cheng Sanlang is such a man, it would be a blessing for me not to discuss marriage with him." Shang Mingshu trusted Cheng Mian very much. "I'm talking about the tea hoarding."

Shang Jinliang sat aside for a long time without saying a word.

"Dad..." Shang Mingshu shook his arm gently, "Just trust me this time."

"I believe you, but how do you want me to convince the tribe?" With such a big piece of fat meat right in front of him, he didn't even open his mouth. The tribe must be in an uproar.

Shang Mingshu's eyelashes drooped slightly. "Just tell them that the imperial court will intervene."