428 Spend lavishly

Ping'an never expected that an inn near a market would be so well decorated, it could even be described as luxurious.

"Ping An, this is the inn I want to stay in. It is pleasing to the eye and comfortable to live in."

He Jin came over and said, "Master Ping An, Young Master Wang has paid for the food and lodging. He said he doesn't have to spend any money. The fish we caught today will be given directly to the innkeeper. It's enough for us to eat and stay."

"Uncle He, that's fine. The market will definitely be busy tomorrow. Please have our people pay attention."

A dreamless night.

Ping An got up early in the morning, put on an ordinary cotton jacket and cotton pants, applied a thin layer of facial concealer, and tied a wide waist belt of the same color around his pants. He looked inconspicuous, but quite heroic.

"Ping An, why do you dress yourself up as a bodyguard? Actually, you are wrong. You may receive some goods today. Some people will not want to talk to you when they see you dressed like this. How can they give you room for bargaining?"

Fu An was wearing a sky-blue brocade robe, his body was as white as jade, and he looked like a handsome and elegant young man. It was almost the twelfth lunar month, but he was still waving a folding fan in his hand, looking very showy.

Chen Xuan also looks like a young man from a wealthy family, but he is dressed normally, giving off the temperament of a gentle and refined scholar.

"It doesn't matter. I'm here mainly for convenience. I can also be your bodyguard today. Let's go."

When they went downstairs, Wang Tao and his people were already sitting in the lobby waiting for them. As soon as he saw them coming down, he hurriedly asked them to serve breakfast.

"Ping An, I'll buy a few more baskets for your guards to carry. It's not easy to come across a big market like this. There's a small market every five days and a big market every ten days. If you see something you like, you can bargain harder with the seller. Follow me later. I know this place better than you do."

"Thank you, uncle."

Half an hour later, the group went to the market.

The inn is not far from the market, only a quarter of an hour's walk away, so there is no need to bring a carriage.

I entered the inn last night and have not come out. I walked along and observed carefully. It is rare to see a market that stretches as far as the eye can see. It is a very wide road with shops on both sides. There are basically oilcloth awnings in front of the shops, and there are a dazzling array of goods inside and outside the shops.

On both sides of the street, there are retail vendors. A large piece of oilcloth is spread on the ground, and all kinds of items are placed on it.

Ping An observes that at small stalls like this, the most popular items sold are things like dried fish, there are also many fresh seafoods, and occasionally some pearls are also sold.

"This stall won't work, I'll take you over there."

"Sir, something happened in the military camp, and the Marquis asked you to return quickly."

"Awen, what's going on?"

"Our people rescued a boatload of foreigners at sea. They seemed to be distinguished guests going to the capital. Only you can communicate with them normally, so the Marquis asked you to go back immediately."

"Ping An, I'll leave Ah Xing and Ah Yang to accompany you. I have to rush back to the barracks right away. I'm really sorry."

"Uncle, even if you take all your people with you, don't you still have the boatman? Otherwise, I can hire a carriage and go back to the barracks from land. It's just a little farther. Just tell my master."

Wang Tao laughed, "That's too far. Ah Xing and Ah Yang will stay, plus two boatmen, to ensure your safety on the way. But I can't accompany you shopping. Without further ado, I have to go."

Ping'an no longer refused. His people were not familiar with the ship, so it would be better for Ah Xing and the other two to stay.

But he had to send a few of his own people to follow Wang Tao, otherwise he would still feel uneasy.

He discussed it with He Jinyi.

He Jin directly selected four of the eldest son's men, with the reason being that they had played all kinds of games following the eldest son over the years.

Wang Tao didn't hesitate and took his people and left immediately.

"Ping'an, there are more than twenty of us here. It's not convenient to have a large group. There's not much to do in the big market. Why don't we move around freely and go back to the inn after shopping?" Fu Ando said.

Ping An thought about it and realized that it was true. "Uncle He, Fu An is right. We should go shopping separately. It's still early. Let's meet at the inn at 3 p.m. We bought everything in the morning."

"Okay, Lin Feng, Er Qiang and I will follow you, Ah Xing will follow us, Xiao Wu and Ah Yang will take care of the others, and at the latest Shen Shichu must return to the inn."

It is indeed much more convenient once we separate.

In just one hour, Ping'an bought a lot of things, all of which were dry goods that could be stored. After returning to the city, he planned to ask his master for help to send them home for his mother to try. There were many families in the capital who needed to send gifts, so if it was convenient, he could send some.

I wonder how the shed vegetables are doing? They should be out by now, right?

Last year, the vegetables from the greenhouse were sold until the end of the month. He earned a lot of money in more than two months and also did many favors. This year, he also instructed Da Wu to continue delivering vegetables to these families. Four times a month would be enough.

"Master, what is that? It's so beautiful." Xiao Ming asked, pointing at a stall.

Ping An turned around and smiled: "This is coral, an ornamental thing, also from the sea. If the price is right, I will buy more."

He walked closer and saw that the corals were big and small, some of them were really good, with beautiful colors, and would be suitable as gifts.

I heard that corals of this size are very expensive in the capital, no cheaper than gold and silver.

"How much is this?" Ping An asked, pointing at a large one.

"Sir, a piece this big costs one hundred taels."

Ping An thought it was not expensive.

Xiao Ming beside him gasped: "My God, the price you're asking is too high. It's just coral from the sea. It's okay to look at it, but it's not worth anything. My brother is not a rich young master. Why are you asking so much?"

Ping'an didn't say anything. A lot of the things they bought before were bargained for by this little guy. Erqiang and Huzi were sending them to the inn.

The man blushed and began to stutter, "You can bargain a little when I bid. These big plants are of good quality and hard to get. I'm not selling them at a high price."

If he sent such goods to a shop, a large one could only be sold for around twenty taels, while a smaller one, two taels, or even two hundred wen could be sold.

"Twenty taels per plant. We'll take the big ones. We'll also take the smaller ones at a cheaper price. You know, no matter how hard you try, if you can get a few plants in a year, you'll get a hundred or so taels of silver. The villagers can't even save ten taels in a year."

Ping An's mouth curled up. This little guy was really ruthless. He directly lowered the price to 20%. Half of it would be fine too.

The man was dumbfounded. It would be better to send it to the shop at this price, at least it would be all paid at once.

"No, you're paying too much. Today's batch of goods is of good quality and it's not easy to find them in the sea."

Ping An spoke up: "My little brother is right. After all, these are not gold or jade. Why don't you add a little more? I'll take all these small ones."

The last five large ones are all calculated at thirty taels each, the medium ones are calculated at ten taels each, and the smaller ones are calculated at two taels or one tael each.

Just like that, Xiao Ming kept complaining that the items were too expensive, and the man was afraid that he would ruin the deal, so he gave him two smaller ones.

The total amount was only more than two hundred taels, but the goods were not easy to carry. The man learned that they were staying in a nearby inn and said he could transport them over by car.

Fang Wu hurriedly led his men over. How much did the master want to buy today? Silver flowed out in a rush, not enough to eat or drink.