Chapter 167: Forced into a desperate situation

Zhang Quan smelled an uneasy smell in the Baochao Tizhusi today, but he didn't know where it came from.

When the court was dismissed, he didn't see any sign of Hao Zhao, but saw Hao Zhao's assistant rushing over. He finally knew what had been worrying him.

"Why are you here? Where's your boss?" Zhang Quan asked bluntly, "We agreed to give me a definite answer today. Are you the definite answer your boss gave me?"

"Sir!" The waiter did not dare to neglect Zhang Quan at all, and actually knelt down in front of Zhang Quan. "My boss asked me to bring you a message. Please save my boss!"

After listening to the waiter's description, Zhang Quan's face changed drastically. He finally understood where his uneasiness today came from.

Zhang Quan never expected that the matter Zhu Chong entrusted to him would lead to such an incredible turn of events.

But he was only an eighth-rank governor, and the county magistrate was not as good as the current one. He had no way to deal with the Five Cities Military Department. He could not even pass on a message or find anyone to inquire about it.

"You go back first. I will take care of this matter myself." After sending Hao Zhao's men away, Zhang Quan thought about it and decided that he had no idea how to deal with this matter. He could only ask Zhu Chong for help.

Originally, this matter was instructed by Zhu Chong. He is His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin. We should give face to the Buddha instead of the monk. The Five Cities Military Command would not even give Zhu Chong face!

Thinking of this, Zhang Quan went straight to Zhu Chong's courtyard, and under the guidance of Zhou Xiuying, he met Zhu Chong who was in the study.

"Sir Zhang, why are you here so late?" Zhu Chong was surprised by Zhang Quan's arrival. He had never seen this person before, and why did he come to see him at this hour?

"Sir, something happened. I am incompetent and feel ashamed of myself!" Facing Zhu Chong's question, Zhang Quan, like Hao Zhao's men before, knelt down in front of Zhu Chong.

"What's going on? Stand up and talk." Seeing Zhang Quan like this, Zhu Chong was surprised and puzzled.

Although Zhang Quan was only a small official in the Baochao Tizhusi, he was still one of Zhu Chong's men. Up to now, no one had done anything to Zhu Chong's subordinates, and some of them had already received retribution in this life, so Zhu Chong was very curious about what had happened to Zhang Quan.

Afterwards, Zhang Quan relayed to Zhu Chong everything that Hao Zhao had said to him.

Zhu Chong was completely bewildered. After hearing this, he looked puzzled. "When did the cotton merchants become the Wucheng Bingmasi's turn to control them? What's the meaning of blocking people and goods outside the city? Who gave the order?"

"I don't know either." Zhang Quan smiled bitterly. "I don't have any connections in the Wucheng Military Department, so it's hard to find someone to ask."

"But according to a clerk at a cotton merchant I contacted, the Five Cities Military Commission blocked all cotton merchants who wanted to enter the city today. They didn't check or question them, and simply left the people and their goods aside without any further concern."

"Really? That's interesting. Come on, let's go and take a look with me." Zhu Chong became interested.

It sounded like someone was looking for trouble. In the entire Yingtian Prefecture, Zhu Chong was the best at finding trouble, and now someone was actually looking for trouble with him.

Although they didn't come directly to his door, Zhu Chong had already come to a conclusion about the matter. Since the other party even moved out the Five Cities Military Department, don't blame him for using his power to bully others.

Taking Zhou Xiuying and Yang Miaozhen with him, Zhu Chong directly asked Zhang Quan to be his coachman, and the group drove straight out of the city.

As the capital of the Ming Dynasty, Yingtian Prefecture had no curfew at night. With Zhu Chong's Qin Wang badge, he had a smooth journey and arrived at his destination quickly.

At this time, cotton merchants such as Hao Zhao and Cheng Hongbo and others who had returned were confronting each other.

"What have you all thought? My dad just said that my 40 wen price is too soft-hearted. From now on, it'll be 30 wen a jin. If you're willing to sell, hurry up. After tonight, even 30 wen a jin won't be enough!"

The arrogant and domineering attitude of the Cheng family father and son completely angered the cotton merchants present, and Hao Zhao even stood at the front of the crowd.

"Cheng Hongbo, you're dreaming! I'd rather let the cotton rot in the car than let you, the father and son, get away with it!"

"Yes, that's right. I'd rather burn the cotton than sell it!"

"Fuck it, it's just a waste of time. I have money, I'm going to waste it with you!"

"I just don't believe that you few cotton merchants have so much cotton on hand. Without the cotton we have, how can you do business with the Baochao Tijushi?"

…

The crowd was excited, and Cheng Hongbo's face looked a little unhappy. He was a little nervous and secretly cursed his father for pushing him too far.

In his opinion, forty cents per pound was already a harsh enough pressure, but he did not expect that his father was even more cruel and actually reduced the price by another ten cents. It seemed that he was determined to push him into a desperate situation.

If these people were really pushed into a corner and burned or destroyed the cotton, the cotton merchants in the city would not have enough cotton on hand to trade with the Baochao Tizhusi.

Without cotton, Cheng Jitang’s so-called ways of making money are all bullshit, and none of them can be implemented.

But Cheng Hongbo quickly calmed down because he noticed that there were only a few cotton merchants who were making a fuss, and most of the other cotton merchants looked anxious.

Obviously, although the cotton merchants were angry, they were not united in their thoughts. They would rather die than let their friends die. When it came to the countless mouths to feed, they could not just burn or destroy it!

Since that’s the case, just wait and see. It’s not you who’s anxious anyway. Let’s see who can outlast whom in the end!

Thinking of this, the smile on Cheng Hongbo's face became more intense.

This scene just happened to fall into the eyes of Zhu Chong who had just got off the carriage not far away.

Zhu Chong glanced at Cheng Hongbo, who looked very pleased with himself, and then walked towards Hao Zhao under Zhang Quan's instructions.

When Hao Zhao saw Zhang Quan, he immediately showed joy on his face, especially when he saw Zhang Quan leading a young man who looked like an important person, his heart was even more excited.

However, he couldn't help but wonder, could Zhang Quan really control the situation by asking such a young man to come? Would the people from the Five Cities Army give this young man face?

Hao Zhao could see clearly that Zhu Chong was only wearing casual clothes, and Zhang Quan was only wearing the official uniform of an eighth-rank official of the Baochao Tizhusi. It was completely a pipe dream for them to want to suppress the Wucheng Bingmasi with such a grand display.

When Zhu Chong got closer and saw the carriage full of cotton, satisfaction was in his eyes. He then signaled Zhang Quan to go over and negotiate with the people from the Wucheng Bingmasi.

When the officers from the Wucheng Bingmasi saw Zhang Quan, they didn't want to pay any attention to him at first. However, when Zhang Quan showed Zhu Chong's badge as the Supervisor of the Baochao Supervisory Office, they quickly made way for Zhu Chong, Zhang Quan and others.

Seeing this scene, Hao Zhao and the others felt hopeful again, and rushed towards Zhu Chong and Zhang Quan...