The most popular meat in the Song Dynasty was not pork, but mutton.

From high-ranking officials to ordinary people, everyone loves mutton.

Since the opening of the Chongqing hot pot restaurant under the name of Tokyo City Yongxing Trading Company, people have become more fond of spicy hot pot lamb.

The way of eating Chongqing hotpot quickly spread to Youzhou, Jingzhao Prefecture, Xingqing Prefecture, Chengdu Prefecture, and Kuizhou.

Because of the hot and humid climate in Chengdu Prefecture and Kuizhou (later Chongqing), the people there absolutely adore Chongqing hot pot.

Youzhou, Jingzhao Prefecture, and Xingqing Prefecture, being located in the north and experiencing cold winters, practically wanted to fill the entire city with hot pot restaurants.

The booming catering industry has boosted agriculture and transportation.

For example, after Chongqing hot pot gained a broad market, the essential red chili peppers were widely cultivated by merchants, and sheep herding was also developed into a separate industry.

Merchants from Jingzhao Prefecture were buying large amounts of grassland in the northwest to raise sheep.

Liu Yuanshan was the brother-in-law of Sun Bangyuan, the military commissioner of Yongxing Army Road. In recent years, under the new commercial policies of the imperial court, Liu Yuanshan had made a lot of money.

He successively established private cement factories, contracted several highways, and acquired several plots of land in Chang'an City.

Not only that, he also vigorously cultivated sweet potatoes and potatoes.

Furthermore, they enclosed a lot of land and sheep.

His sheep were all transported to Tokyo, where several large restaurants were his regular clients.

His wealth quickly rose into the top ten in Jingzhao Prefecture and continues to grow.

He owes his current position entirely to Sun Bangyuan's promotion.

According to the Jingkang New Policy, officials were not allowed to engage in business.

But rules are rules, and there are always ways to circumvent them.

The officials of the Song Dynasty thought that they couldn't let their power go to waste!

Anyway, the money earned belongs to Liu Yuanshan. As for Liu Yuanshan giving gifts during holidays, that's another matter.

On this very day, Liu Yuanshan had just finished meeting with a foreign merchant from Xingqing Prefecture and discussing a silk deal when he received word from the imperial court about beef.

This matter was top secret, and very few people knew about it. Only high-ranking officials like Sun Bangyuan, who had deep connections in the court, could find out in advance.

Sun Bangyuan was originally the military commissioner of Yongxing Army Road. The center of Yongxing Army Road was Jingzhao Prefecture, and the center of Jingzhao Prefecture was Chang'an City.

The city of Chang'an today is many times larger and more prestigious than it was in the past.

It was the secondary capital of the Song Dynasty and the political, economic, cultural, and technological center of the Northwest.

Sun Bangyuan's position as military commissioner was higher than that of an ordinary military commissioner, as he was in charge of the secondary capital.

It was equivalent to the official position of the Luoyang Magistrate during the Tang Dynasty.

Or rather, he was only one rank lower than the Prefect of Kaifeng, which would be considered a high-ranking official in the capital city of Tokyo.

Sun Bangyuan immediately informed Liu Yuanshan of the news about the beef.

Inside the secret room, Liu Yuanshan's jaw nearly dropped.

"What! The imperial court is going to allow the army to be supplied with beef! This..."

Sun Bangyuan stroked his beard and said, "That's right, I received a secret letter from Prime Minister Tang. This matter is top secret."

"That……"

"Quickly acquire the land, and then I'll find a way to approve your trading company as one of the beef suppliers for the Northwest Theater!"

Whose business dealings are guaranteed to make you money?

And the imperial court!

Although the payments are a bit slow, there's definitely a profit to be made.

The imperial court generally wouldn't haggle, but private merchants also dared not quote prices arbitrarily.

In short, this business practice is very stable.

The Song Dynasty's army was concentrated in the Yan-Yun and Northwest war zones, creating a huge demand for beef, which presented a great opportunity to make a fortune.

Moreover, Sun Bangyuan also predicted that beef would definitely be made available to the public in the future.

Liu Yuanshan also keenly sensed the court's underlying intentions.

In fact, most people know about the nutritional benefits of beef.

Eating more beef will make a person's blood and energy more vigorous.

The imperial court supplied beef to the army because it was taking into account the army's combat effectiveness.

After some time, several places in the north secretly received news that the ban on beef had been lifted.

Some of the richest people in various regions have begun to rush to acquire land for raising beef cattle, all vying to be the first to do so.

But a month later, the news spread throughout the industry.

One trading company has already been selected!

This caused a stir in business circles.

Everyone was curious about which trading company it was.

Upon inquiry, it turned out to be Yong Sheng Trading Company of Tokyo City!

Yong Sheng?

This is a famous and large trading company!

In recent years, Yong Sheng's subsidiaries, Huaxing Spinning Wheel and Huaxing Steam Engine, have been raking in patent fees.

Unexpectedly, Yong Sheng!

Upon further inquiry, it was discovered that Yong Sheng had already provided 300,000 cattle!

Holy crap!

This shocked the businessmen.

300,000 cattle!

Where did Yong Sheng come from?

Is Boss Ye Chong some kind of magician who can conjure up 300,000 heads in one go?

Before the imperial court lifted the ban on beef, who the hell would have the time and energy to raise 300,000 cattle?

Unless Ye Chong already knew that the ban on beef would be lifted!

That's absolutely impossible!

Three hundred thousand cattle, and they are all adults, and have been raised for at least three years.

Did Ye Chong find out three years ago?

Absolutely impossible!

Those merchants naturally didn't believe it.

Not only did the businessmen not believe it, but Ye Chong himself felt like he was dreaming.

Three hundred thousand heads!

The net profit per head is two strings of cash, so 300,000 cattle made a net profit of 600,000 strings of cash in one go!

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!