107 Suffering a loss

◎“My husband eats it occasionally, but I don’t really like it myself.”◎

Upon hearing Shen Suqin's name, Ge Sanzhou, unusually, straightened his robe and said, "So you are Shen Suqin." He looked Shen Suqin up and down, "That kid Xiao Pingchuan got lucky."

Shen Suqin walked into the room, swept aside the messy bowls and chopsticks on the table, sat down, and said bluntly, "I think Lord Ge is a straightforward person, so let's get straight to the point."

Ge Sanzhou crossed his arms, gesturing for her to continue.

“We come from Yunzhou. The prefecture has a salt administration office, which oversees supervisors and salt officials. The salt officials are responsible for all matters related to procurement and sales, and the imperial court takes 40% of the profits. This policy is not strict and gives everyone plenty of leeway. Lord Ge, if the Great Liang were any wealthier, His Majesty wouldn’t have considered this.”

Shen Suqin's words were clear and logical; she had said everything she needed to say, and now she was just waiting for Ge Sanzhou's reply.

To everyone's surprise, he suddenly asked, "Xiao Pingchuan's troops haven't withdrawn from Liangzhou yet, have they? When do they plan to withdraw?"

A hint of wariness appeared in Shen Suqin's eyes, and his tone became somewhat indifferent: "Naturally, we will retreat when he thinks it is time to leave."

"Ha, more than 100,000 men fought down to only 70,000 or 80,000, and the court not only doesn't appreciate his good deeds, but also watches his military power like a hound. The court's provisions can't even feed his brothers, yet he still rushes to Liangzhou to help. Although I respect him as a man, suffering too much makes him seem foolish."

"You!" Pei Tingfeng was displeased. "Do you think everyone is like you, just picking a place and staying there for years? Don't you find it stifling?"

Ge Sanzhou was originally a military commander, but later somehow he got the position of governor and never moved up again.

"I'm willing, it's none of your business."

"I don't care what you do, I'm only asking about Chi Yan. Are you going to give in or not?"

Ge Sanzhou remained silent.

“This matter involves the entire Xizhou region, so we might as well give Lord Ge some more time,” Shen Suqin said. “Lord Ge, please arrange a clean place for him to stay, and please prepare some fine food for him as well.”

"You're not at a disadvantage," Ge Sanzhou said with a stern face.

“My husband eats it occasionally, but I don’t like it myself.”

Ge Sanzhou: "..."

As night fell, Ge Sanzhou settled the people in the prefectural government office and instructed his servants to take good care of them. He then disappeared without a trace as soon as darkness fell.

Before going to bed, Shen Suqin went to Pei Tingfeng to inquire about Ge Sanzhou's situation.

“Ge Sanzhou is from Jinzhou,” Pei Tingfeng said.

"Hmm?" That's right, he's tall and robust, with deep-set features, clearly a northerner. "Then why is he in Xizhou?"

Pei Tingfeng touched his nose. "Speaking of which, he was actually defeated by your husband."

Shen Suqin's expression was somewhat indescribable. "He was one of the leaders of the refugee uprising back then?"

"yes."

"No wonder his words were so sarcastic."

“Now that Jin’an is famous throughout the world and has such a powerful Black Flag Army, it’s normal for him to be envious. The problem now is that he might take his anger out on you and use your identity as an excuse to refuse to cooperate.”

"It can't be that bad, he seems like a narrow-minded person to me."

Pei Tingfeng shook his head. "It's hard to say."

"Then what do you think about if he doesn't cooperate, we should just send a large army to the border?"

"The next Liangzhou?"

Shen Suqin twitched the corner of her mouth. "I was a little too hasty."

“Ge Sanzhou’s ancestors for three generations were all scholars, and he himself is very clear-headed. Otherwise, how could he have survived and even become the governor of a prefecture when so many refugee leaders died back then?”

“But the salt from the pond supports the officials throughout Xizhou, not just him alone.”

“Sigh,” Pei Tingfeng said helplessly, “Sometimes I feel that the Great Liang is already old and frail, and there are many things that it simply cannot do.”

"I never thought that you, Pei Tingfeng, would say such a thing."

Ever since he met Pei Tingfeng, he's been running around like he's on steroids, and I've never heard him say anything so dejected before.

"It won't be that bad. Once the taxes from salt, iron, and even tea are collected, the national treasury will be full very quickly," she reassured. "Then we'll have money to do whatever we want."

"I wonder how long it will be before I can spend money as I please again," Pei Tingfeng said, his mood instantly souring again.

"So what? Life is unpredictable..."

"Knock knock knock." A knocking sound suddenly rang out. "Madam, the bath water is ready. Would you like to take a bath first?" It was Li'er who asked the question. She insisted on following Shen Suqin to serve her.

Shen Suqin thought it would be good to take her along to avoid suspicion.

"Come in."

Pear pushed the door open and came in.

"Did you make the hot water yourself?" Shen Suqin asked.

"Yes, I asked the cook in the manor to borrow the kitchen."

"You're quite clever," Shen Suqin said with a smile. Then she said to Pei Tingfeng, "Go back and rest first, and we'll see how things go tomorrow."

Pei Tingfeng nodded.

After seeing the person off, Shen Suqin followed Li'er to the bathroom. The room was filled with steam and even red flower petals, exuding a fragrant aroma, showing that it had been carefully prepared.

Shen Suqin patted her hand, "You don't need to worry about these things. I don't treat you like a maid."

“I enjoy doing these things. Madam, please change your clothes. I'll massage your shoulders.”

"good."

Shen Suqin immersed half of her body in the bath, only resting her two white, jade-like arms on the edge of the tub.

Pear bent down and knelt by the pool, rolled up her sleeves, and gently massaged her shoulders.

"Li'er, is your brother usually very unkind to you?" Shen Suqin asked with her eyes closed.

"Actually, it's not too bad. It's just that he works very hard every day and doesn't pay much attention to things at home. I don't like to bother him with these things."

What does he do?

"He worked as a laborer in the silk workshop, boiling silk; it was physically demanding work."

Where are your parents?

“I died when I was ten years old, because of the Shatuo people.”

"Hmm." Shen Suqin didn't press the matter further.

“So, madam, I am willing to serve you. Besides, you saved my life, and I should repay your kindness.”

Shen Suqin patted her hand, "You're still young, there are some things you don't need to worry about."

"I'm not young anymore, madam. I'm seventeen this year."

"You're seventeen now. Besides being a weaver, what else would you like to do?"

Pear pursed her lips, "I... I want to study, Madam. I want to be like you."

Shen Suqin remained silent for a long time.

Studying in Daliang was a privilege reserved for wealthy families. Leaving aside the cost of tuition, the price of writing materials alone was considerable, something that ordinary families could not afford.

Moreover, the books were mostly privately collected and inherited by aristocratic families, which was equivalent to a monopoly on knowledge. It might not be difficult for ordinary people to recognize a character, but to receive a more in-depth education, they had to enter the family school of aristocratic families.

“You can study after you go to Ningyuan; there are free schools there,” she said.

"Really?" Pear asked incredulously. There really was a place where studying didn't cost money.

"Absolutely true."

Early the next morning, shortly after Shen Suqin and Pei Tingfeng had finished breakfast, Ge Sanzhou led a large group of people into the prefectural capital.

The two men's guards immediately tensed up and surrounded Shen and Pei before the group even stepped into the dining hall.

In the morning light, about ten people on each side faced each other, their eyes filled with vigilance.

"What are you doing?" Ge Sanzhou asked first.

"Then what do you do?" Pei Tingfeng asked in return.

“These are all people involved with Chi Yan. I brought them to see you,” Ge Sanzhou said, bewildered. “If you want to take money, you should at least ask for their opinions.”

Upon hearing this, Shen Suqin waved her hand, signaling Xu Youcai and the others to step back.

Xu Youcai nodded slightly and gave a wink, signaling his men to put away their weapons and retreat behind Shen Suqin.

Ge Sanzhou looked at this scene, clicked his tongue, and said sarcastically, "This is the Black Flag Army? Not so great."

Shen Suqin suppressed his sarcasm and steered the conversation toward Chi Yan, asking the assembled crowd, "Lord Ge has surely already told you what the higher-ups think of Chi Yan. I'd like to ask, what are your plans?"

An elderly man, over seventy years old, standing only half a step behind Ge Sanzhou, spoke up: "The imperial court wants to make money from the salt ponds, so what does it plan to do with the money it earns?"

Pei Tingfeng has the right to say this.

Shen Suqin stepped aside, gesturing for Pei Tingfeng to come forward.

“In response to your question, sir,” Pei Tingfeng said, “although he did not know the identity of the person opposite him, it was always right to respect the elderly. After the land was reclaimed and the land was distributed equally, many water conservancy facilities need money to be repaired; several major rivers also need to be managed; in addition, official roads, post stations, schools, and many other places urgently need money.”

"Is this His Majesty's will?"

"Yes, and it's something the Ministry of Revenue needs to address in the next few years."

"And who are you?"

"I am Pei Tingfeng, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and the eldest son of Prime Minister Pei."

The old gentleman pondered for a long time.

“Old sir, the Great Liang is in dire need of reconstruction, and we have no other choice,” Shen Suqin said.

"And who are you?"

“My name is Shen Suqin. I am the one who wrote the ‘Ode to the Eastern Liang’. I am the owner behind Xingyuan and Shenji, and also the Commissioner of the Three Departments responsible for opening up the salt route.”

"Oh right, you're that lady, I know you."

The old man had a long, white beard on his chest, which he slowly stroked, lost in thought.

After a long pause, he looked at Pei Tingfeng and said, "If you can guarantee that the money from selling salt will be used for the benefit of the people, then the salt can be taken back."

Pei Tingfeng was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously looked at Ge Sanzhou.

Ge Sanzhou said expressionlessly, "This is the head of the Wanqi family, the most respected elder in Xizhou."

The Wanqi family is an ancient clan with a history spanning thousands of years, based in Xizhou, and has always maintained a low profile. No one knows how wealthy the Wanqi family is; all that is known is that compared to the Wei family, the difference is like night and day.

Pei Tingfeng was overjoyed, "I didn't expect this matter to have alarmed you."

The old man waved his hand, "Originally, this was none of my business. I just wanted to hear it for myself, so I shamelessly came along. I can make the decision about the salt. Yunzhou will contribute 40%, and Xizhou will contribute 50%."

Pei Tingfeng was surprised by how smoothly things were progressing, and neither was Shen Suqin.

"What do Lord Ge and the other officials think?" Shen Suqin asked subconsciously.

“We are the same as the head of the Wanqi family.”

"Yes, a 50/50 split is best."

Shen Suqin and Pei Tingfeng exchanged glances, then looked at Ge Sanzhou. Seeing him wave his hand, the two of them finally felt a sense of reality.

However, before the two could express their gratitude, they heard the old man say again, "You don't need to go to Chazhou either. I'll put in a good word for you. It'll be the same as Xizhou, 50%."

The two quickly expressed their gratitude: "Thank you, thank you all."

"What are you two thanking me for? You are the ones who should be thanking me for being loyal to the emperor while receiving his salary."

Pei Tingfeng smiled but didn't reply.

“Remember this: the reason Xizhou is so proactive is because you said this money wouldn’t be used elsewhere, but would be used for the people,” the old man continued.

"Don't worry, sir," Pei Tingfeng said. "The money from Daliang will definitely be used for the benefit of the people of Daliang. Anyone else who wants to get involved should think twice about their own capabilities."