The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

Chen Huai'an was filled with awe.

In just a few words, it is clear why the other person was able to live for so long and ultimately become a rare example among the meritorious officials of the early Tang Dynasty who enjoyed both good fortune and longevity, and whose honor and favor remained with him throughout his life.

Once you've made a contribution, immediately find a mistake; the merits and demerits will naturally cancel each other out.

To be honest, Cheng Yaojin was truly an extraordinary person.

"teacher!"

Cheng Chumo, having somehow gotten wind of Chen Huai'an's arrival, immediately rushed over excitedly.

"Why didn't you let me know you were coming? I could have let my old man... father prepare."

Cheng Yaojin's face immediately darkened. Based on his understanding of his son, Cheng Chumo was probably referring to Lao Deng.

Chen Huai'an twitched the corner of his mouth and chuckled: "No need to prepare anything. I came here today to discuss some things with your father, so there's no need for elaborate preparations."

"Alright, please come in." Cheng Yaojin's heart stirred, remembering what Cheng Chumo had mentioned to him some time ago, and he made a gesture of invitation.

The group arrived at the Duke of Su's living room. Cheng Yaojin ordered tea to be served and asked directly, "Mr. Chen, what brings you here today to discuss something with me?"

Chen Huai'an handed the prepared gifts to the servants, then placed the solidified cement block on the ground: "Before we get down to business, I would like to trouble Duke Su to invite Duke Cao, Duke Ju, as well as Tang Heshang and Li Zhen over."

"I wonder if that's alright?"

"Of course, no problem!" Cheng Yaojin readily agreed and immediately sent someone to invite people according to Chen Huai'an's request.

Cheng Yaojin knew perfectly well that Chen Huai'an intended to take them on a business trip, so of course everyone had to be present.

Even if they only took 10% of the profits from the beverage business, the three families would still make a fortune, so he dared not underestimate them at all.

After giving his instructions, Cheng Yaojin didn't rush to ask about the business. Instead, he pointed to the brewed tea and said, "Haha, Mr. Chen, you see, speaking of which, this tea was actually taken from you by my little brat."

"I must say, drinking some on ordinary days does have a unique flavor, and it's especially suitable for entertaining guests."

"If Duke Su likes them, I can send more over later." Chen Huai'an pointed to the gifts he had brought. "Of course, I also brought quite a lot this time, enough for Duke Su to drink for a long time."

"Thank you so much!" Cheng Yaojin was delighted. This tea was not available on the market; only Chen Huai'an could provide it.

The two chatted for a while, with Cheng Chumo listening quietly from the side, occasionally interjecting with a word.

At this moment, Cheng Yaojin casually brought up something: "By the way, Mr. Chen, given the situation this year, with the locust plague imminent, is there still a chance to send troops to the Eastern Turks?"

"Of course." Chen Huai'an understood what the other party was thinking. "Not only this time, but in the future, the Tang Dynasty will probably face many more battles."

"The decision to send troops to the Eastern Turks is a foregone conclusion. The Tang Dynasty has been preparing for war for a long time, and it is impossible to stop just like that."

"Then... in your opinion, sir, do I have a chance?" Cheng Yaojin asked tentatively.

Chen Huai'an shook his head: "Duke Su, you misunderstand. I never get involved in these matters, so asking me is useless."

"However, as I just said, there will be many more opportunities in the future. Even if there are none this time, there will be others in the future. Just be prepared, Duke Su."

"Opportunity always favors the prepared mind."

Cheng Yaojin understood and realized what the other party meant, so he didn't ask any more questions.

Not long after, Duke Cao, Li Shiji, and Duke Ju, Tang Jian, arrived at Tanghe with Li Zhen.

Upon seeing him, Li Shiji exclaimed, "Mr. Chen's strategic planning is truly admirable."

Tang Jian carefully looked Chen Huai'an over and greeted him politely.

The two little ones were quite happy, winking and making faces at him.

Once everyone was seated, Chen Huai'an stopped being mysterious and pointed to the hardened cement he had brought: "Please take a look, everyone. This is the business I want to do with you all."

"Cement?" Tang Heshang blurted out. He had heard Chen Huai'an mention this word before.

"Yes!" Chen Huai'an bent his fingers and gently tapped the cement. "This is cement."

"Don't be fooled by its appearance. Strictly speaking, it's extremely important. This business can't be done by one company alone; everyone has to work together, and it's best to share the profits like you would with alcohol."

Cheng Yaojin, Tang Jian, and Li Shiji's expressions became more serious.

Ideally, the profit distribution should be the same as that for alcoholic beverages. What does that mean?

You have to understand, when they invested their money, they were only trying to build a good relationship with Chen Huai'an and get him to teach their children a lesson.

It's true that parents always have such a heart for their children; for this, they were willing to give up 100 strings of cash, which is no small amount.

Later, however, the profits from the drinks far exceeded their expectations, and they realized that Chen Huai'an hadn't been joking, and Cheng Chumo and the other kids hadn't been fooling around either; they were really doing big business.

The problem is, those were the days.

Back then, no one was familiar with each other, so they only took 100 strings of cash, accounting for 10% of the profits. Empress Zhangsun contributed more money, so the royal family was able to take more.

It has nothing to do with politics; it's all about who pays more.

If they had known it was this profitable, they could have easily come up with the money needed for brewing, let alone a partnership.

But now, Chen Huai'an says that this matter must be distributed according to the previous profit distribution. Even if you can contribute more money, you can only take a maximum of 10%.

What does that mean?

This undoubtedly means that this deal is too big; unlike alcoholic beverages, it must involve royalty.

Otherwise, none of us can withstand it.

Li Shiji said seriously, "Mr. Chen, we have some questions. Could you please explain what cement is and what its purpose is?"

Cheng Yaojin and Tang Jian remained silent, their eyes fixed on Chen Huai'an.

"It's simple in theory," Chen Huai'an said, holding the cement. "It's actually a building material, but explaining it is a bit complicated. Let me show you how it works."

"Let's go outside and ask Duke Su to find a hammer."

"No problem!" Cheng Yaojin readily agreed and arranged for people to make preparations.

The group followed Chen Huai'an outside. He found an open space and casually threw cement on the ground, making a "bang" sound.

Everyone's eyelids twitched as they watched Chen Huai'an easily pick up the piece of cement. They had thought it was just big but actually very light, but now it seemed that this inconspicuous thing was quite heavy.

Soon, a servant came over with a rather large hammer.

"Come on, take your hammer and hammer with all your might," Chen Huai'an said to the servant.

The servant hesitated for a moment, then looked at Cheng Yaojin, who nodded: "Do as Mr. Chen says."

"Yes." The servant no longer hesitated, picked up the hammer, and smashed it down hard.

"..."