Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 143 Fighting for Profit
Inside the Sima Yamen Office.

Yuan He stared at Liu Daogui expressionlessly, and Liu Daogui also looked at him calmly.

A breeze blew, the curtains swayed, the figure outside the window moved, and the familiar sound of nails rubbing against each other was heard.

"I heard someone is rebuilding the Yandu Salt Field."

Yuan He held the carved white jade teacup in his hand, stroking it repeatedly, without mentioning a word about dividing the money.

This sentence contains a lot of information.

Since he mentioned salt, it means that he knows the source of his money. He has spies everywhere in the military office, so he can't hide such things from him.

Liu Daogui even felt that he had guessed who had robbed the salt field a long time ago, but he had never been able to find evidence, and he was facing tremendous pressure from all sides at the time, so he kept it secret.

Secondly, this sentence also reminds Liu Daogui that someone is coming to steal his business.

"Is this true?" Liu Daogui glanced at the looming figure outside the window and felt amused in his heart that they actually dared to play the Hongmen Banquet with the people from Old Liu's family.

"What? You still don't believe my source of information?" Yuan He smiled.

"How dare I?"

Anyone who dares to rebuild the Yandu salt field at this time must be no ordinary person.

"I heard Dao Ze's business is booming. We should never forget our roots."

Having said that, the fox's tail is finally revealed.

This guy clearly wants to get involved. The profits from smuggling salt are so huge that it is impossible for him not to be tempted.

But this is also a good thing. I don't have to worry about others being greedy, but I have to worry about encountering people who are stubborn. If I pull Yuan He in, I can sail my boat freely in Guangling in the future.

Even those actions in the army, Yuan He would turn a blind eye.

"One percent, your subordinates will receive a ten percent dividend every year!" Liu Daogui stretched out a finger.

One percent is not a small amount. He doesn't have to do anything every year and can enjoy an income of 10,000 or 20,000 strings of cash.

But Yuan He stretched out a hand, slowly spread it out, with a smile on his face.

If Liu Daogui agreed to this price, all his efforts would be in vain. He felt murderous intent boiling in his heart. "I don't want to forget my roots, but Sima won't give me a chance to live."

Xun Xinzhi and Huan Daozhen died in unclear circumstances, and so could Yuan He.

Even Emperor Sima Yao died of a nightmare for unknown reasons.

"Then why do you need to share your money with those lowly soldiers? Isn't that throwing money into the water? If you want to climb up, you have to spend your money on the higher-ups. 50% a year, and I'll guarantee you the position of Chief of the Conquering Army."

All the nobles looked upwards, hoping to climb into the imperial court. The soldiers below were nothing to them, just tools and cattle...

"How to spend the money is the business of my subordinates. Sima, don't worry about it. One percent!" Liu Daogui would rather distribute the money to the soldiers than feed them.

The worst that can happen is that the table will be overturned, and no one will benefit.

Last time he was called Zhenglu Sima, but this time he became Changshi, which shows that he has no sincerity at all.

You can hear a pin drop in the government office.

Liu Daogui sat leisurely on the couch.

The money spent was not wasted, it all turned into confidence.

"Does Dao Ze think that Prince Xiang is about to lose power, so he is so disrespectful to His Majesty?" Yuan He narrowed his eyes, his gleaming eyes flashed, and raised the white jade teacup in his hand again.

Liu Daogui was stunned. Could it be that Sima Daozi still had a chance to turn the tables?
Killing Wang Guobao and Wang Xu had already lost the support of the gentry, and seizing the four counties of Yuzhou from the Yu family had blocked his own retreat.

Already in a situation of isolation and helplessness.

Is it...

A thought flashed through Liu Daogui's mind. On the chessboard, someone had unknowingly become the most important chess piece, capable of instantly influencing the power structure in Jiangzuo.

But none of this mattered today. Liu Daogui's position within the Zhenglu Army was already solid. Even if things took a turn, there was still Lanling as a fallback.

At this moment, you must not be weak in your attitude, otherwise he will take advantage of you in the future. Human nature is like this. The weaker you are, the easier it is to be bullied, and the more people will bully you. "If a subordinate has no respect for his superiors, he will not even give you one cent for profit."

In a word, do you want the 10% interest? If you don’t, I will turn the table over!

With a "clang", the sound of a sword being drawn was heard outside.

Liu Daogui touched the iron armor he was wearing inside and put his hand on the hilt of the sword. This distance ensured that he could chop off his head with one blow before the ambushers outside broke in, and then rush out of Sima Yamen and meet up with Liu Zun, Gao Xun and Zhao Lunzhi outside.

Yuan He used to follow Huan Hong around, drinking a lot of wine and taking a lot of Wushisan, and his body had long been hollowed out...

Such calmness made Yuan He feel suspicious and uncertain. He frowned and even broke out in a few beads of sweat on his forehead. He dared not move the white jade teacup in his hand.

Liu Daogui stared motionlessly at the teacup in his hand. As soon as it fell, his head would fall to the ground with it!

In the end, he took a step back and gently put down the teacup. "Thirty percent, I'll take care of the people over at Yandu."

Liu Daogui's expression remained unchanged, "One hundred percent!"

Doing business is similar to fighting a war. If he takes the first step back, he can take the second step back.

A 10% profit is already a lot, which is about 10,000 to 20,000 strings of cash every year.

This percentage was given in consideration of past "favors" and his future usefulness.

"You..." Yuan He's face darkened.

Liu Daogui became more and more calm. He was just a Sima of the Conquering Army and did not have many cards in his hand. Sima Daozi did not even care about Wang Guobao and Wang Xu, let alone him.

If we kill him, Huan Hong and Wang Gong won't pursue the matter...

"I am loyal to Sima, but Sima is taking advantage of me. It's really chilling." Liu Daogui sighed, and he had basically figured out his bottom line.

The scene today was just a show to scare people, and they didn't dare to really take action.

If we wanted to take action, we would have done it a long time ago.

Liu Daogui is no longer the same person as before.

He was a smart man. If the army was in chaos at this time, no one would suffer any good consequences, so even a small profit would be a lot.

Yuan He laughed out loud as if his face changed into a magic trick, and found a way out for himself, "One success is one success, the Tao is indeed not something that can be easily forgotten, and one is extremely courageous."

Liu Daogui also flattered him, "Sima, you are too kind. I am just a lowly official and cannot do without your praise. I wonder who has the guts to rebuild the salt works in Yandu."

"Who else could it be? Someone with the same last name as you."

"Liu Yi!" Liu Daogui immediately thought of who it was.

This guy is the local tyrant of Guangling. He is surrounded by people like Meng Chang, Liu Fan, as well as ruthless people like Zhuge Changmin, Lu Zongzhi and Kuai En.

Moreover, recently, his elder brother Liu Mai became a military officer under the command of Yin Zhongkan, the governor of Jingzhou.

"It's only 10% profit. I can't help you. The Tao will solve it on its own." Yuan He was very realistic. If he didn't have enough money, he wouldn't want to put in any effort.

"Sima doesn't need to take action. I also want to see how capable he is."

It’s a good thing that Liu Yi came out at this time.

The private salt business is not that simple. With him standing in front, it can attract the attention of the bigwigs in the court.

After Wang Gong and Sima Daozi decide the winner, they will come to him sooner or later.

No one would give up such a huge benefit.

Liu Daogui actually hoped that Liu Yi could hold on for a while longer so that he could hide behind others and make a fortune in silence...

(End of this chapter)