A daily intelligence report; in chaotic times and famine years, grain is plentiful.

After leaving the military camp, Chen Mo did not return to the village immediately.

He happened to be in town today and was going to buy some building materials.

Now that he has a lot of money, he plans to buy a batch of bricks, which are sturdy and durable, and better than rammed earth walls and wood.

There is a brick kiln on the east side of Shannan Town, which seems to be the only place in town that fires bricks.

The town wasn't big, and Chen Mo arrived at the brick workshop after walking for a short while.

At this time, the brick kiln was not emitting smoke from its chimneys, and it seemed somewhat desolate.

Is anyone there?

Chen Mo walked to the door and called out.

The workshop was quiet, and there was no one in sight.

He called out twice more before a middle-aged man slowly walked out from inside.

The man stared at Chen Mo listlessly, his eyes weary.

"Who should I look for?"

The middle-aged man's voice was hoarse.

"I'd like to order a batch of blue bricks; I need them for the fence around my yard and the house. Do you have any in stock?"

Chen Mo got straight to the point.

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man was slightly taken aback and couldn't help but scrutinize Chen Mo's attire.

At this moment, Chen Mo was dressed as an ordinary farmer and did not look like a rich person.

"You're here to order blue bricks? Seriously?"

The middle-aged man's eyes showed some impatience.

In his view, these days, who can afford bricks? Having a wooden house to shelter them from the wind and rain is already a blessing.

Previously, brick kilns mostly supplied goods to wealthy people, but now the market is bad, and the workshops' business is getting worse and worse.

"I'm genuinely here to buy. Give me a price, and I'll order if it's in stock."

Chen Mo said calmly.

"The factory has no stock left, and judging from your tone, you need quite a lot. We'll have to restart the furnace, so it can't be done..."

The middle-aged man waved his hand and turned to walk back.

His brick kiln is on the verge of bankruptcy. He had already sold off a batch of bricks at a low price, and now he has very little stock left.

Moreover, restarting the furnace would cost money for materials and labor, and this farmer-looking man in front of me couldn't possibly come up with so much silver.

"etc!"

Seeing this, Chen Mo didn't waste any more words with him and reached into his pocket to pull out a heavy cloth bag.

The middle-aged man stopped and slowly turned his head.

"Is this number enough?"

Chen Mo opened the bag, revealing the silver inside.

Upon seeing the silver, the shopkeeper's eyes lit up instantly, and the impatience in his eyes vanished in an instant.

"Here are ten taels of silver. This is the list of goods I requested. You can calculate that it should be enough."

Chen Mo handed over the list first, but kept the money in his hand.

"Ten taels?"

The shop owner quickly walked up to Chen Mo and took the list.

"Is that enough?" Chen Mo asked.

"Enough! Enough!"

The shop owner readily agreed, his attitude changing drastically.

He also wanted to do more, but the workshop's production might not be able to keep up.

If this deal can be successfully completed, it will greatly alleviate the workshop's urgent needs.

In this famine year, ten taels of silver can buy a lot of grain, but this seemingly ordinary young man can actually take out so much silver to buy bricks, so his background must be extraordinary.

"Young man, are you sure you're serious?"

The shop owner still couldn't quite believe it.

"Of course it's true. My family is preparing to build a new house and needs a batch of good bricks," Chen Mo said.

"Don't worry, it's absolutely good!" the workshop owner assured him. "My kiln has been firing bricks for over ten years; I guarantee it's good enough. If you really want it, I'll get someone to start the kiln right now!"

The shop owner exclaimed excitedly.

"Isn't this much silver enough? I'll buy a small batch first, and then order more later."

Chen replied seriously.

"No problem, but esteemed guest, which family in town do you seem to be from?"

The shop owner asked curiously.

The town is only so big, and he knows all the families with some wealth, and they are all regular customers.

The young man in front of me looked unfamiliar and didn't seem to be from a wealthy family in the village.

"I'm from Lingtou Village."

Chen Mo replied truthfully.

"Lingtou Village".

The shop owner was taken aback again, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"Didn't Lingtou Village suffer a disaster a while ago? I heard the villagers are starving, is that true?"

The shop owner said doubtfully.

Thinking about it this way, he felt that Chen Mo was even more extraordinary.

Lingtou Village is not far from Shannan Town. The village head knew that anyone who could afford to spend ten taels of silver to build a house at this time was definitely not an ordinary farmer.

"You don't need to worry about that. I'll pay a two-tael deposit first. You can burn a batch and send it to Lingtou Village. The rest can be sent over after they're burned. If there's more, I'll buy it too."

Chen Mo didn't offer much explanation.

The batch of blue bricks he wanted to buy was not only for building a new house; if he had more, they would be of great use later.

"OK!"

The shop owner quickly agreed, fearing that Chen Mo might change his mind at the last minute.

Now the price of blue bricks has dropped to two copper coins per piece, so ten taels is considered a large order.

"May I ask your surname, sir? I'll have someone deliver the goods to your door."

The shop owner asked politely again.

"My name is Chen Mo. Just ask around at the village entrance; everyone knows me."

Chen Mo responded.

"Chen Mo?"

The shopkeeper read the name twice, feeling that it sounded very familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before, but he couldn't remember where.

But he didn't care about all that. After all, business had come knocking on his door, so he couldn't worry about anything else.

"Yes, Mr. Chen, I'll prepare the goods for you today, and send one truckload over in three days."

"Keep the deposit safe. It's best to do it as soon as possible so as not to delay the construction period. Also, make sure the bricks are of good quality, or I will refund your money."

Chen Mo took out two taels of silver and handed it to the shop owner.

"Don't worry, don't worry!"

The shop owner took the silver, held it tightly in his hand, and his smile widened.

How much inventory do you have left in your workshop?

Chen Mo looked around.

"There's only one or two thousand left. How about I send someone to deliver it to you today?"

The shop owner replied.

"Yes, I remember, it's Lingtou Village to the east."

Chen Mo replied, then gave a few instructions before turning and leaving.

Having settled the matter of the blue bricks, Chen Mo then strolled around the town again.

There are quite a few things missing at home, so I'll take this opportunity to buy them all during this trip.

When he first received the reward of several dozen taels of silver, Chen Mo didn't dare to spend it openly, but now the situation is completely different.

After all, the family's food reserves were enough to last for a year, and the crops in the fields were about to be harvested, so the money in hand could be used in other ways.

He first went to a grocery store and bought a lot of daily necessities, filling a large package.

We came in a rush and didn't prepare in advance, so we'll have to come back another time to get what we need.

Chen Mo was about to leave the town when a young man carrying a basket on his back blocked his way at the town gate.

Chen Mo stopped in his tracks, looking at the young man warily.

The man's eyes were equally wary. After glancing around, he finally spoke, "Brother, want to buy salt? It's much cheaper than official salt..."

Hearing these words, Chen Mo finally lowered his guard.

At that moment, he suddenly remembered something.

So, this seemingly strange young man in front of us is actually a salt smuggler?