The prince is more stable

Chapter 331 Favors
In order to earn this little bit of money, Zhao Xiaoqian really doesn't care about his dignity anymore and can say all kinds of nonsense.

The Cai family father and son are now very emotional. They are shocked by Zhao Xiaoqian's imagination and admire his shamelessness.

It feels weird to bring up the white-bearded immortal, but the amazing thing is that it is so reasonable and there is no sense of incongruity at all.

Cai Jing really couldn't bear to listen any longer. At his age, it was no longer time for him to listen to myths. When Zhao Xiaoqian brought the topic to "tea" in a roundabout way, Cai Jing vaguely understood the purpose of his visit today.

To put it bluntly, Zhao Xiaoqian was planning to make a deal with the entire court.

The Song Dynasty had a developed business, but if we talk about what business was the most profitable, it was of course business between private individuals and the state. There were many tricks involved, and ordinary merchants were not qualified to touch the official threshold.

Doing business for the state in the name of private individuals, the Ministry of Revenue, on behalf of various government offices of the imperial court, purchased tea in large quantities from private individuals and distributed it to government offices in Bianliang as welfare or as salary.

This is not uncommon; the imperial court often did this in the past.

Officials received their salaries every year. What later generations thought of as salaries were the copper coins and silver that officials would withdraw at the end of the month or the end of the year, put in their pockets, and happily buy pork to take home and make dumplings.

In fact, the court provided everything as salary, including rice, wheat, millet, cloth, charcoal, etc. The items were converted into silver according to the market price at that time, which was considered as salary.

As for whether the officials take these things to sell at the market or take them home for their own use, that is their own business.

Zhao Xiaoqian is now thinking of the same idea. He hopes to include tea in the items purchased by the court, whether it is given away for free as a welfare benefit or as a discount on officials' salaries. In short, if the court needs it, the Chu Palace can provide the supply.

This is also the reason why he visited Cai Jing today. After all, he is the Minister of Revenue, and the Ministry of Revenue has the Ministry of Finance under it. Cai Jing's words carry weight, and the purchase of a few thousand kilograms of tea is just an order from Cai Jing.

After hearing Cai Jing's question, Cai You suddenly realized that Brother Zi'an's visit today was for this reason...

Can't you just say it directly? She had to talk about some old lady with a white beard, somersaults, and somersaults, and he was so mesmerized by it that he even wanted to listen to the sequel...

"If Uncle Cai doesn't mind..." Zhao Xiaoqian glanced at him cautiously and whispered, "Four or five thousand kilograms of tea, the major government offices in Bianjing should be able to digest it, right?"

Cai Jing's cheek twitched. "Four or five thousand jin isn't much. In Bianjing, including the officials on salary, there are over 20,000 officials, big and small, not to mention the clerks, runners, and the imperial guards."

"However... I am the Minister of Revenue, so I cannot ask about the Ministry of Finance. I am afraid that my dear nephew has come to the wrong person today. You should have come to the Minister of Finance."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "Even the Ministry of Revenue would bow and salute Uncle Cai. Although his authority doesn't allow him to influence the affairs of the imperial court, given Uncle Cai's status, who wouldn't give him some respect?"

In fact, Zhao Xiaoqian had originally planned to go directly to the Duzhisi Envoy, but he was not familiar with him. The Envoy was in charge of the court's financial revenue and expenditure and was very rich, so he might not give Zhao Xiaoqian face. So he took a roundabout route and went to find Cai Jing.

Cai Jing smacked his lips and said with a helpless smile: "My dear nephew has caused me some trouble. It's not a big deal, but I really can't say anything..."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "I understand Uncle Cai's difficulties. How about this: after the matter is completed, I will give Uncle Cai a 20% share of the profits as a token of my gratitude for your hard work. We can make this a regular practice in the future. What do you think, Uncle?"

Cai You, who was standing beside him, chimed in, "Father, Brother Zi'an is not an outsider. If it doesn't make things difficult for you, why not help Brother Zi'an?"

Cai Jing sighed helplessly, looked at Cai You deeply, and then slowly said: "Forget it, I will sacrifice my reputation. My dear nephew, there is no need to mention the matter of the two profits. I am not doing this favor for the money."

"I only hope that when my nephew becomes successful in the future, he will help my son. I will be very grateful."

Zhao Xiaoqian bowed deeply and said, "Thank you, Uncle Cai."

Cai Jing was a smart man. He didn't care about the 20% profit from tea. He thought it would be better to exchange the profit for a favor and buy a career insurance for his son. This deal was a good deal.

"Tell me the rules. How much do you plan to sell the tea from the Prince of Chu's Palace for per jin?" Cai Jing asked. Zhao Xiaoqian replied confidently, "It's a gift from heaven, fifty taels per jin!"

Cai Jing was so frightened that he almost spit in his face.

How dare you open your mouth!
"Nephew, are you crazy? Do you have a single word of truth in your mouth? You are blackmailing me in front of me. Do you really want to sell this tea?"

"For Uncle Cai's sake, the price is thirty taels per catty. It can't be any lower. If it's any lower, I'll lose all my money." Zhao Xiaoqian changed his words without changing his expression.

"You..." Cai Jingdu was speechless.

It’s confirmed. This kid really treats my Cai family father and son as fools and fools them.

At the age of nineteen, where did he learn such cunning and slippery bad habits? It's unbelievable.

"I know that your Chu Palace has opened a Mingyu Tea House in Zhouqiao. The tea there costs about ten taels of silver per catty. If you buy a lot, it may be cheaper..." Cai Jing said slowly, stroking his beard and casting a contemptuous look at Zhao Xiaoqian.

"It's different. This batch of tea from my family is high quality." Zhao Xiaoqian's forehead was a little sweaty. It's not easy to fool the old guy.

Cai Jing's cheeks twitched, and he sighed, "Forget it, let's agree on twenty taels per catty. If it's more or less, I have no choice but to make the decision. If my nephew is not happy, I'm sorry I can't do anything about it."

Zhao Xiaoqian immediately smiled brightly. "Okay, it's settled. Twenty taels per catty! Thank you, Uncle Cai."

Cai Jing: “…………”

It's broken, the asking price is too high!
This kid is so happy, I don’t know how much advantage he has taken.

The words had been spoken, and Cai Jing could not go back on his word. Besides, it was the court's money that was being spent, so he didn't feel bad about it.

After finishing the business, Zhao Xiaoqian stayed in Cai's house for a family dinner. In the end, both the host and the guests were very happy, and Zhao Xiaoqian said goodbye and left.

The Cai family father and son escorted him out the door. As they watched the carriage sway away, Cai Youcai couldn't help but ask, "Father, Brother Zi'an offered to give our family 20% of the profits. Why did you refuse?"

Cai Jing watched the carriage depart, stroking his beard as he spoke slowly, "If this deal had been negotiated by someone else, I would have taken at least 40% of the profit. But since this man is Zhao Xiaoqian, I can't take a single cent."

"Why?"

"Son, next year will be the Spring Imperial Examination. Can you guarantee that you will pass the imperial examination? Even if you do pass, can you confidently say that the court will assign you a satisfactory official position?"

Cai You was speechless.

Cai Jing glanced at him and said, "In today's deal, Zhao Xiaoqian took the money, and my Cai family took the favor he owed me. This favor is much more valuable than the 20% interest."

"If next spring's exam doesn't go your way, this favor will ensure your future remains smooth. Either you stay with Zhao Xiaoqian, or he'll arrange a satisfactory official position for you. It won't be any worse."

"But if I accept this 20% profit today, then today will be a purely business transaction. Once the transaction is completed, we will owe nothing to each other. If I need help from him in the future, he will have no obligation to help. Do you understand?"

"His teahouse only sells tea for ten taels of silver. I gave him twenty taels just to make sure he owes me a big favor. He would be embarrassed to ask for a small favor."

(End of this chapter)