Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 29: Xie Clan of Chen County, Huan Clan of Qiao State

“The spices go well with the minced meat.”

"Seasoned with fat, salt, and sugar."

After finishing a box of luncheon meat, Shi Min wiped his mouth.

First, I exclaimed, "It's really delicious."

Then he raised his eyelids and pointed out the key point.

"It's just that it consumes so much meat and spices that are more valuable than gold."

"This kind of delicacy is only eaten occasionally by nobles to try out new things. It is not very useful."

Of course it's good stuff.

But it contains minced meat, spices, salt and sugar.

Each of them is something that only wealthy families can enjoy.

After all, it's just a delicacy.

Lin Dao said calmly, "You are a general who leads troops into battle."

"Tell me, how about using this as military rations during a battle?"

Shi Min's lips curled up in a sarcastic smile. "The box is filled with a lot of oil, spices, and salt. I'm sure it can be stored for a long time."

"If it is used as military rations, it must be of the best quality."

"but."

"But the cost is too high." Lin Dao interrupted, "You simply can't afford it, right?"

Shi Min spread his hands and said nothing. It was obvious what he meant.

There is no need to say much about the meat.

Due to natural disasters and man-made disasters, all edible things were eaten up except for the large livestock in the army.

Some even began to look for two-legged sheep.

The spices sent across the Silk Road were worth as much as gold.

Especially when the Later Zhao and Former Liang became enemies, trade routes were cut off due to a series of wars, and spices were even more unsalable.

Salt is easy to deal with, but oil and sugar are also very expensive commodities.

The food made from all these expensive ingredients would never be enjoyed by the military households.

Lin Dao reached out, knocked on the can, and opened his mouth with a royal bomb.

"One box is five hundred coins. I'll sell it to you in whatever amount you want."

Everyone was shocked!

Shi Min looked at Lin Dao as if he was looking at a sand sculpture.

The price of grain in Yecheng has now soared to the point where one gold cake can only buy two dou of millet.

Even so, there is still no food to buy, and the only option is to buy food on the black market at a price several times higher.

Five hundred coins for a box of top-quality meat?
This is not some strange person, it's clearly a sand sculpture~~~
"Don't joke, Marshal."

Li Nong, who looked unhappy, took over the conversation and said, "Why do you want to play tricks on us like this?"

Lin Dao suddenly laughed. "I was just quoting a price, how can this be considered a joke?"

"Do you know how much a Mantou costs in Yecheng?!"

Li Nong angrily slammed the table and said, "Five hundred thousand coins!"

"That's so much money, even a big car can't hold it!"

"Five hundred coins?"

“I can’t even buy this tin box!”

Lin Dao was surprised. He didn't expect Li Nong to be so excited.

The food of the Later Zhao Dynasty was mainly supplied to the Jie, Hu, Xiongnu and other Hu peoples.

As for Han'er, he had to figure out a way on his own.

Even in the capital city of Ye, it was common for people to give each other their wives and children as food.

On the way back and forth, I saw countless people dying of cold and hunger along the roadside, with their bones exposed in the wild.

As a Han official, Li Nong felt deeply saddened by the loss of his friend.

If all the Han people died, what good end would these Han officials who surrendered to the barbarians have?

"It's just a business deal." Lin Dao took a breath. "Why is it so?"

"Someone lost his composure."

Li Nong collected his thoughts and subconsciously glanced at Shi Min.

"Li Sikong, there's no need to worry."

Shi Min understood what he meant.

Shi Hu could not tolerate complaints. Anyone who dared to disturb the people's livelihood in front of him would usually be beheaded.

Li Nong asked Shi Min not to tell tales.

Shi Min's eyes swept over the women in military green coats who were queuing up to receive meals not far away.

"Here in the Qihuo Army, we have enough food, warm clothes and good housing."

"The people of our great Zhao are starving, and this is bound to cause imbalance."

The beggars were refugees, who were so poor that they couldn't even get enough food to eat and plundered everywhere like locusts.

But these poor guys are now living an incredibly good life.

When we think about places like Yecheng and Luoyang, we can’t help but sigh at the misery that was like hell on earth.

Lin Dao waved his hand, and Jinlian, who was waiting on the side, came forward and placed the canned yellow peaches in her hand on the table.

"This is~"

Looking at the can of yellow peaches in front of him, Shi Min was surprised. "Glass bottle?"

“This one’s a bit more expensive.”

Lin Dao took the initiative and unscrewed the lid. "One thousand coins."

Everyone looked at Lin Dao as if he was a fool.

Jinlian, who was eager to protect her master, could not help but say, "My dear, this bottle is worth more than a thousand coins."

"There's no reason for a woman to speak here!" Feng Dun said immediately, "I want as much as you have!"

Apart from anything else, selling the glass bottles is enough to make a fortune.

Lin Dao ignored him.

He reached out and opened two cans of yellow peaches and pushed them in front of Shi Min and Li Nong.

"Taste it."

The two of them were not afraid of being poisoned, so there was no need to go through so much trouble.

If you really want to kill them, there are more than 100,000 or even 200,000 beggar soldiers here in Shangbai, Guangzong County.

A spit from each of them could drown them.

After looking at each other, they picked up the yellow peaches with chopsticks and put them into their mouths.

Crisp and refreshing, with a sweet fragrance.

Li Nong nodded repeatedly, "I never thought that these golden peaches (yellow peaches) would be so delicious."

The origin of yellow peaches is China, and they are widely distributed throughout the north.

The taste of the yellow peaches from Yonghe time and space cannot be compared with the varieties carefully cultivated in later generations.

Shi Min simply reached out and picked up the bottle, glanced at it, and poured a mouthful of juice into his mouth.

Then she lost her voice, "Honey water?"

He was a soldier and had led troops in battles. He knew that when one was tired during battle, a few sips of honey water could quickly restore one's energy.

However, honey water is extremely expensive and it is impossible to distribute it on a large scale to the military households.

Thinking of this, Shi Min couldn't help feeling dazed.

He looked at Lin Dao, not knowing what to say for a moment.

He really wanted to ask, "Are you stupid?"

Just like what the woman said, this bottle is worth more than a thousand coins!
How can you do business like this? It's clearly giving it away for free~~~
"May I ask the Marshal?"

Nong Li no longer hesitated. "How much is the luncheon meat and the canned yellow peaches?"

"Dozens~" Lin Dao wanted to say that there were dozens of tons piled up in the warehouse.

On second thought, Shi Min and the others didn't understand the unit of measurement, ton.

He took out his cell phone and opened the calculator on the spot.

First do a division, then a multiplication.

Putting away the phone, he responded, "About 150,000."

"Hiss~~~"

There were gasps all around, as if everyone was having a collective toothache.

Li Nong immediately made the decision, "I'll take the final say. I'll take them all!"

"can."

As everyone stared in amazement, Lin Dao immediately agreed, "I only accept gold, according to the official price."

The official price was one tael of gold for ten thousand coins.

One gold cake is sixteen taels, which is one hundred and sixty thousand coins.

A can of luncheon meat costs five hundred coins, and a can of yellow peaches costs one thousand coins.

The quantity on both sides is similar, and the compromise price is 750 coins each.

One gold cake can buy a little over 213.

All in all, that’s just over seven hundred gold bars!
Lin Dao has a kind look and speaks gently.

"As for what Shi Hu said about wanting to recruit me."

"Let's do a few business trips first and get to know each other better before we talk."

There is not much business to do.

This is a one-time deal, and you can only do this one deal.

Jiangzuo, Kuaiji County, Dongshan.

"Uncle, I'm here~~~"

The girl with bright eyes and white teeth walked into the cave with her skirt in hand and a happy smile on her face.

It is called a cave, but it was actually dug and repaired by humans.

The candles inside are as bright as pillars and as bright as daylight.

All kinds of furniture are available.

Against the stone wall, there are several rows of bookshelves filled with books and bamboo slips.

"It's Ling Jiang."

Putting down the book in his hand, Xie An nodded and smiled, "How come you have time to come to see me today?"

The girl's big, black eyes were bright and lively.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, and her dimples appeared when she smiled. "Even if I don't have time, I still have to come and see my uncle."

"Hahaha~~~"

Xie An stroked his beard and laughed, "Alright, if you want any book, just go get it."

"Every time they come to steal my books, they first drink a big bowl of magic potion."

"If you drink any more of this magic potion, you'll be really drunk."

The girl laughed happily, and her clear laughter was like the first song of a yellow oriole.

Xie An picked up the book and continued reading.

The girl came to the bookshelf and searched carefully.

Books in this era are wealth and a monopoly on knowledge.

Every book is worth a lot of money.

Xie An has quite a few rare copies, and only the young girl could take them away from him.

"Master~"

A servant came to report, "Commander Huan is here to visit."

"Oh?"

Xie An nodded and stood up. "Please come in."

Not long after, General Anxi, Captain of the Guards against the Southern Barbarians, and Grand Commander of Jingzhou, Huan Wen, walked into the cave with a big laugh.

"Anshi, please don't be offended by my intrusive visit."

Xie An stepped forward and saluted, "Greetings, Grand Commander."

The girl beside her also bowed and said, "Greetings, Grand Commander."

"Oh, Ling Jiang is here too. Is your Excellency doing well in Jinling?"

The girl responded, "Aye keeps talking about it, and wants to drink with the Grand Commander."

Huan Wen shook his head and said with a smile, "No, I always get drunk when I drink with you. Next time we meet, let's make tea."

The girl's father, Xie Yi, once served as Sima in the Anxi General's Mansion under Huan Wen.

He forced Huan Wen to drink all day long, which made Huan Wen scared. He hid in his wife Sima Xingnan's room and refused to come out.

After chatting for a while, the girl, who was very discerning, took the initiative to say goodbye and leave.

After they sat down, Huan Wen spoke frankly.

"Anshi, I came to you this time because of the expedition to Shu."

Xie An nodded and said, "Li is a wicked man, and the people do not support him."

"Over-reliance on natural defenses leads to neglect of weapons and armor."

"The Grand Commander will defeat the enemy in one fell swoop."

Huan Wen nodded in satisfaction, "Everyone said that conquering Shu was not feasible, but Anshi was the only one who supported me."

Xie An smiled but said nothing.

Although he is in the opposition and not in the government, he knows the general trend of the world.

This is called retreating to advance and cultivating hope in the wild.

The relationship between the Xie and Huan families was close.

Xie An had already known that Huan Wen wanted to conquer Shu.

After careful consideration for a long time, I came to this conclusion.

"Li the thief (Cheng Han) is incompetent and foolish, relying only on natural defenses. I have never taken him seriously."

Huan Wen glanced at Xie An and said, "What I'm worried about is the Stone Bandits (Later Zhao)."

"The Stone Bandits and the Li Bandits have an alliance. If we want to send troops, we must wait for the right time."

Xie An had already considered this matter seriously before, and he was confident in his response. "It is rumored that Zhang Liangzhou (Zhang Jun) is seriously ill, and I am afraid that something unbearable will happen."

"The Stone Bandits have been eyeing Liangzhou for a long time. If Zhang Liangzhou leaves, they will seize the opportunity to launch a large-scale attack."

"When that time comes, it will be a good opportunity to conquer Shu."

(End of this chapter)