Seeing that Master Zhao was truly enraged, Steward Zhao dared not say anything more. He could only steel himself and step forward, shouting at the top of his lungs to the crowd:
“My husband said that 150 coins a catty is already a discount for the sake of our fellow villagers. If you still think it's too expensive, then it'll be 200 coins a catty!”
Upon hearing this, the crowd erupted in uproar.
"What? Two hundred coins a pound?! Why doesn't he just rob us?!"
"That's right, this Master Zhao is too heartless, he's practically taking advantage of people's misfortune!"
"This ice is for the living, not for burning paper money for the dead. Why doesn't he go to the underworld and sell it for a high price?!"
The crowd was filled with righteous indignation and condemned Master Zhao's greed and shamelessness.
Despite the complaints, many families hesitated because of the high price when it was 100 coins per catty a few days ago, but in just a few days, it has increased by 50 coins!
If this continues for a few more days, won't the price skyrocket?
Thinking of this, some families that were slightly better off gritted their teeth and took out their silver to buy a few kilograms of saltpeter.
However, for most ordinary people, this price is still too high, leaving them only able to sigh in despair and unable to help but complain.
"Sigh, I originally thought that the imperial court's decree this time was meant to benefit all the people, but I didn't expect that it would only enrich these unscrupulous merchants. We poor people are destined to live a life of hardship."
"Who can argue with that? These days, money is hard to earn, but it's easy to spend. Life is getting harder and harder."
Master Zhao didn't care about any of that. He was overjoyed to see the saltpeter that he could finally sell, as if he could already see the gleaming silver flying towards him.
But before he could be happy for long, a voice came from afar:
"What? Saltpeter from Baifulai is only fifty coins a pound? I have to go buy some right away!"
The sound was quite loud, reaching everyone's ears, and immediately sparked a flurry of discussion among the crowd. Many couldn't believe the news. Fifty coins a pound of saltpeter—it was practically free!
"Impossible, right? Where can you find saltpeter this cheap these days?" someone expressed doubt.
"Yeah, could it be a scam?" someone else chimed in.
But many more people have been overwhelmed by this news.
"It's better to believe it exists than not! Let's go and see for ourselves!"
"Yes! Let's go check it out! If it's true, we can't miss this opportunity!"
In an instant, everyone who had been gathered in front of Wanshunlou ran away, and even those who had already paid demanded refunds, causing chaos in the scene.
"Hey! What are you doing?!" Steward Zhao shouted anxiously upon seeing this, "What good stuff could you possibly get for fifty coins a pound? Our saltpeter here is all top-quality, you..."
"It's not like it's gold, why are you distinguishing between good and bad?" someone rudely interrupted him: "Anything that can be used to make ice is good!"
After saying that, everyone left without looking back.
In the blink of an eye, the once crowded entrance to Wanshunlou was now empty except for Master Zhao, Steward Zhao, a group of servants, and several carts of unattended saltpeter.
Seeing this scene, Master Zhao was so angry he almost fainted! He never expected that someone would oppose him at this critical juncture!
"Bai Fulai..." Master Zhao muttered the name through gritted teeth. He grabbed the butler's arm and said sternly:
"Let's go! To Baifulai! I want to see what this guy surnamed Sun is up to!"
Master Zhao, accompanied by his steward, stormed to Baifulai Restaurant, only to find the entrance bustling with activity. Old Sun was cheerfully directing his staff to move saltpeter, weigh it, and sell it.
"Fifty coins a pound, no cheating the young or old! Guaranteed to make ice!"
The people surrounded Baifulai so much that they couldn't move. Upon hearing this, they went crazy and rushed to buy saltpeter.
"Baifulai has been a trusted brand for decades! Shopkeeper, give me ten catties of saltpeter!"
"I want ten pounds too, no, twenty pounds!"
Seeing this scene, Master Zhao felt a surge of anger, and his vision blurred.
He thought of the secret forces that had previously robbed them of saltpeter, and then he realized that this man surnamed Sun was close to that woman, Gan Li. He immediately understood that the two of them must have secretly conspired to trap him!
"You bastard surnamed Sun, how dare you play dirty tricks on me!"
Master Zhao roared, pushed through the crowd, squeezed in front of Old Sun, and pointed at his nose, cursing:
"You son of a bitch, wasn't it you who tried to steal my saltpeter and secretly raise the price?!"
Seeing his exasperated state, Old Sun felt a surge of satisfaction, but his face remained impassive as he slowly and deliberately spoke:
"Master Zhao, you can't say things like that. There are more than just the two of us doing business in Cangxi Town. How can you be so sure that I stole the saltpeter from you?"
"Hmph, besides you, who else would dare to mess with me?" Master Zhao roared, "Stop pretending!"
Seeing his impolite manner, Old Sun's smile vanished, and he sneered:
"Master Zhao, since you insist on arguing, I'll have a good talk with you today. I was the one who bought the saltpeter first, and you came later. If anyone's going to steal it, it's you who's fighting with me. How come it's become me who's going against you?"
As for raising prices, that's utter nonsense. Besides, even if I did raise the price, would I force you to buy? Since you were greedy and didn't consider the consequences, who can you blame?
Master Zhao was speechless after being refuted, feeling a tightness in his chest that he couldn't get out of.
He pointed at Old Sun and said angrily:
“I’ll settle those scores with you later. But let me ask you this: weren’t you deliberately trying to antagonize me by selling saltpeter so cheaply?”
As the saying goes, "Leave a way out for everything, so you can meet again in the future." We all live in the same town; I advise you not to be so ruthless!
"Haha, so Master Zhao understands this principle. But when you stole my Baifulai secret recipe, didn't you think of this?"
Old Sun looked at him, a cold glint flashing in his eyes, and sneered:
"Besides, I'm selling things, and I can sell them for whatever price I want. What's it to you?!"
The imperial court issued these decrees to ensure that ordinary people could afford medical care, not for you to make a fortune through unethical means! Am I wrong for not colluding with you?
The surrounding people nodded in agreement upon hearing this, their gazes toward Master Zhao filled with contempt and disgust.
"That's right, this Master Zhao is too greedy. I could tolerate him selling it for 100 coins a catty, but he's selling it for 150 coins!"
"The owner of Baifulai is right. We should support this kind of conscientious business!"
"Master Zhao, you'd better get back home right now, don't embarrass yourself here!"
Looking at the indignant crowd, Master Zhao felt a sense of fear and fled in panic, afraid that he would be beaten if he was too late.
Back at Wanshunlou, Master Zhao looked at the huge pile of saltpeter, his heart filled with resentment.
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