A leisurely life in the world of cultivation

Chapter 37 Daydreaming (Please add to your favorites and vote with monthly tickets!)

There have been so many happy events lately that Li Weizhou's lips often curl into a smile on his face in Daqian.

Except when I occasionally think of Qi Erniang...

When a woman at this stage is kind to someone, she is truly kind...

In the courtyard, Ximei, dressed in a bright red new fox fur coat, looked at her brother with a grin and told him some great news: "Brother, do you know that when Father and Mother were alive, they arranged a marriage for you when you were little?!"

Upon hearing this, Li Weizhou blinked and stared at his sister, asking, "Who?"

Xi Mei shook her head and laughed, "I don't know either. I overheard my second sister-in-law talking to her family when we were playing hide-and-seek with Li Huan and the others. But it seems she's not from Qingzhou Prefecture, and she lives quite far away..."

Li Weizhou thought for a moment and said, "It's probably from Mingzhou Prefecture... But my parents have been gone for so many years, and there hasn't even been a letter from them. It was probably just a joke back then, so we don't need to take it seriously."

Xi Mei agreed, and giggled, "In that case, Second Sister-in-law will have to marry her cousin to Brother!"

Li Weizhou shook his head and said, "I don't want to get married so early. I feel uncomfortable at all... Do you want to have another sister-in-law to take care of you now?"

Xi Mei's eyes lit up, and she chuckled, "No!"

Li Weizhou laughed heartily and said, "Truly honest!"

Xi Mei was embarrassed and said, "When my sister-in-law comes into the family, she will definitely ask me to do needlework, which I don't like... But it's not impossible. It would be good if my brother got married sooner so that he could have a nephew."

Li Weizhou patted her head and said, "No rush, let's talk about it in a few years. Li Huan and Li Rui are a bit naughty, but they're alright. You can practice on them first."

After Xi Mei ran off laughing, Li Weizhou got up and went out to the mansion that Qi Erniang had left for him.

It wasn't far from Shiqiao Street. The county town wasn't very big to begin with, and most of the wealthy families were concentrated in the eastern part of the town, about four or five hundred steps apart, in a sloping street.

When I opened the door, the ground was a bit dirty because of the melting snow and strong winds yesterday.

Knowing that Qi Erniang was a clean person, Li Weizhou sent a few people over to be responsible for cleaning.

Upon entering the first courtyard, the door to the north room was locked, and Li Weizhou didn't want to open it.

He had already seen the main house of the three courtyards. Qi Erniang had indeed left him a sum of money, as well as several martial arts manuals.

Unfortunately, Li Weizhou has not opened enough acupoints yet, so he can't achieve anything significant in his training for the time being.

Going to the left wing, which was already empty, Li Weizhou stopped arguing, closed his eyes and focused his consciousness. Soon, a large amount of wheat was piled up inside the room.

Li Weizhou was genuinely grateful for the convenience of Earth; two hundred tons of grain, according to the local calculations, was nearly three thousand five hundred shi (a unit of dry measure).

Within a day, you can rent a large warehouse, make a phone call, and buy grain from the wholesale market, which will then deliver it directly to your door.

Just give me the money.

In the Great Qian Dynasty, this was something they wouldn't even dare to dream of.

Of course, transferring these two hundred tons of wheat using his consciousness still put Li Weizhou under considerable pressure.

After filling the four side rooms, Li Weizhou wiped the sweat from his forehead and went to the second courtyard. He did the same thing, unloading three hundred sets of coarse cotton clothes and shoes in the side rooms.

Fortunately, Li Weizhou had made preparations in advance. Based on the fabric and style from Daqian, he entrusted small manufacturers in Yiwu to produce 3,000 sets in a month, which were then stored in advance.

Originally, I wanted to open a clothing store. Naturally, a treasure trove should have a variety of treasures. For ordinary people, cotton-padded clothes are already a very good treasure.

I didn't expect to need it here first.

There are also two tons of salt.

According to the World Health Organization, a normal adult should consume no more than five grams of salt per day, which amounts to about 3.65 kilograms per year.

Of course, apart from those who eat a light diet, the actual intake of ordinary people is still higher than this number. If we assume that one person consumes five catties of salt a year, then three hundred people would consume 1,500 catties a year, and three thousand catties in two years, or 1.5 tons.

With food, salt, and clothing, the three hundred people were settled.

A knock came suddenly at the front door. Li Weizhou dusted himself off and went to greet the knocker.

Upon opening the door, Li Chang'an stood beneath the gatehouse, looking as if he had just eaten a bellyful of sour dates. He exclaimed, "This house is even more spacious than our old one! So, you can have that female demon now?" Li Weizhou ignored this and asked, "Second Brother, have those three hundred people been settled?"

Li Chang'an laughed angrily, "I really owe you... Don't worry, we have a manor outside the city. It's a bit crowded to house three hundred people, but there are stables and cattle pens, and the straw can keep out the wind. It's all those bastards from Fu Family Manor's fault for being so lazy. They took the money but didn't do their job properly. The snow has already started falling, and they still haven't cleared the valley. Otherwise, it would be more spacious there, and the valley would keep out the wind."

Li Weizhou was reassured and said, "There's no rush. We have exactly three hundred people here. Even after deducting the twenty or so children, there are still more than two hundred people. We can buy a few more large carts and have them pulled to work in the South Valley every day."

Li Chang'an chuckled mischievously, "That works too. Tsk, I used to worry that the Fu family would pull some tricks, but now that the news of Si Lang's marriage to a powerful family has spread, the Fu family will definitely behave themselves."

Li Weizhou also smiled and said, "As long as we don't infringe on their interests, there shouldn't be any problems in the short term."

Li Chang'an was no longer concerned about the Fu family, and asked with concern, "Where's the grain?"

Even if Li Changning is incredibly capable, he can't bring grain home right now.

Without food, not only would the three hundred refugees starve to death, but the Li family would also become a laughingstock.

That's how the world works. Once a family, gang, or power loses its prestige, it basically falls apart, and other forces quickly pounce on it, tearing it apart and dividing it up.

Perhaps the Li family is not in such a state, but it is by no means a trivial matter.

Li Weizhou then took him to see what true arrogance was, which made Li Chang'an even more envious: "You're not much better looking than me, how come you have such a good life?"

If Li Weizhou had married Qi Erniang to acquire these possessions, or even ten times more, he would still be a laughingstock.

No matter how much Qi Erniang talked, she couldn't escape her awkward identity.

But if someone's lover leaves behind such a large fortune, then 99% of men in the world would be envious and jealous.

Especially since Qi Erniang was so beautiful...

Li Weizhou chuckled, leaning comfortably against the railing, glancing sideways at the clouds in the sky, and said softly, "Second Brother, one should always have self-awareness."

"Duh!"

After Li Chang'an returned, laughing and cursing as he hurriedly went out to find men and carriages, Li Weizhou took him to see the cotton-padded clothes and salt reserves, where he was again choked and made a fuss by his cousin.

After the commotion subsided, Li Weizhou said to Li Chang'an, "Select those with talent and prestige from among the three hundred people to serve as general managers, stewards, and employees, with different ranks and corresponding benefits. With different ranks and different benefits, they will compete among themselves, and those in positions will do their best to maintain order, otherwise they will be the ones who suffer losses."

Everyone needs to memorize and internalize the family rules. There's still some time before the heavy snow, so let them work hard and go to Dongshan Village to cut timber and build their house. Sister Qi left me a farm there; I'll get you the land deed…”

Li Chang'an sighed deeply and advised through gritted teeth, "Sanlang, a man can only be a hero if he relies on himself!"

Seeing Li Weizhou laughing so happily, Li Chang'an couldn't help but smile as well, and said in a slightly gentler voice, "That's right, smile more. Don't always keep things bottled up. You've been gloomy for quite some time since Qi Erniang left. Alright, I'll do whatever you want, since I'm your second brother."

Li Weizhou thanked him, which displeased Li Chang'an, who then asked, "Sanlang, do you really want to open a treasure shop and become a merchant?"

Li Weizhou nodded and said, "I'm neither good at literature nor martial arts, but I only hope to make money throughout the world."

Wealth flows throughout the world...

Li Chang'an gave a wry smile and explained some common sense to his cousin: "Every region has its great merchants, such as the Yong Merchant Guild in the north, the Longyou Merchant Guild in the south, and the Jiangyou Merchant Guild further south... These are all among the most prominent merchants in the world. Besides them, there are countless smaller merchant guilds scattered throughout the region. However, there has never been a merchant guild that spans the entire Great Qian Dynasty. Furthermore, even if some merchant guilds stand out for a time, the extremely wealthy families will quickly decline. Do you know why?"

Li Weizhou thought for a moment and said, "To be slaughtered and eaten?"

Li Chang'an had certainly never heard of this saying before, but he could understand it from the literal meaning. He gave a thumbs up and smiled, "You hit the nail on the head, because there are many things that merchants can't solve with money!"
Even without venturing beyond the prefectures for trade, within our own Yongzhou region, once you leave Qingzhou Prefecture, you can at most reach Jingzhou Prefecture or Linzhou Prefecture. Going further east becomes extremely difficult. Bandits and highwaymen along the way, extortion by local gangs, and the biased exploitation by the government will all make it nearly impossible for caravans to move an inch.

Especially in government offices, the relationships between local merchants are complex and intertwined. They are wary of wealthy merchants from other places, wondering what the difference is between them and easy targets.
Therefore, the establishment of a trade route is the result of countless sums of money and extensive connections invested by various parties. It's already quite an achievement to establish just one such route; how could you possibly expect to amass wealth throughout the world?

Li Weizhou understood the meaning behind Li Chang'an's words and said thoughtfully, "Does Second Brother mean that being a merchant doesn't offer much of a future?"

Li Chang'an chuckled and said, "It's not that you can't be a merchant, but that you can't only be a merchant. If you only become a merchant and don't become an official, what kind of future can you have! Sanlang, you're so smart, it's a pity you don't become an official! How about I write a letter to Lao Si and ask him to find you a job in the capital? Don't be shy, it's his responsibility and he owes you. To be honest, I don't really want you to leave, I'm reluctant to let you go."

Li Weizhou said irritably, "Isn't this all the fourth brother's idea? Tell him to get lost. He doesn't owe me anything, and I don't need him to take care of me! He wants me to be his slave and worry about him? He's dreaming!"

……

(End of this chapter)