Chapter 216 The Surprise Brought Back
"Sister Lian, is there a Han merchant caravan here?" At noon, a man in velvet trousers came over.
Sui Yu looked over when she heard the sound, and when the man approached, she smelled a faint aroma of alcohol.
Without Sister Lian saying anything, the man had already spotted Sui Yu and asked, "Shopkeeper, do you still have the mulberry wine you brought from Chang'an? Sell me ten jars."
Sui Yu nodded and said, "What's your offer?"
"Didn't Lao Wo just buy some mulberry wine from you yesterday? I'll bid the same as he does."
Sui Yu looked at the trousers he was wearing. If she was not mistaken, the cloth should be made of cashmere, which is much thicker than linen and has a very good drape. She wanted to buy a few pairs for Zhao Xiping to take back. Of course, if they were shipped back to Dunhuang and sold, they would surely fetch a good price.
"Exchange this cloth with me." Sui Yu said.
"Oh, sure, but it's more expensive than a blanket."
Sui Yu shook his head and said, "Don't try to fool me. The blanket I'm exchanging with Lao Wo isn't a plain blanket woven by ordinary people. The pattern is elaborate and the dye is expensive. The material you're looking for is exquisite, as cashmere is less common than wool, which is why it's so expensive. So, I'll give you a can of mulberry wine in exchange for a six-foot-long, four-foot-wide piece of cashmere cloth. I can take it back and cut it into two pairs of pants, one long and one short."
Seeing that she was making sense, the man chuckled and said, "Well, I'll just take the loss. It's my own fault."
Sui Yu asked Zhang Shun and Qingshan to lead the team and deliver ten jars of mulberry wine by camel.
"Do you have anything else?" the man asked.
Sui Yu led him into the house and Song Xian followed.
"The silks you brought are of good quality and beautifully woven. How do you plan to exchange them?" The man was moved when he saw the silks.
"Goods bought from Chang'an are naturally not inferior goods." Song Xian chimed in to raise the price.
Sui Yu shook his head and said, "I don't have anything I want to exchange for now. Do you have anything to exchange with me?"
"Fox fur, I just got a fox fur, it's shiny and pretty good."
Sui Yu was a little hesitant. Fox fur was difficult to maintain. He would be traveling back and forth for half a year. If it got moth-eaten or moldy, it would be a disaster.
Seeing Sui Yu hesitate, Song Xian picked out a piece of sky-blue silk from her goods and said, "Take a look. If you like it, I'll trade it with you. But I don't want the fox fur either. I'll trade it with cashmere cloth and a blanket."
The man carried the silk outside to look, and when he was sure that Sui Yu did not intend to exchange it with him, he accepted Song Xian's silk.
The silk Song Xian brought was bought in Dunhuang, where it was more expensive than in Chang'an. This piece of azure silk cost 1,500 coins, equivalent to 25 jars of mulberry wine. However, 25 jars of mulberry wine could be exchanged for 125 sheepskins, but not for a piece of silk. It wasn't a matter of value, but of quantity.
After bargaining, Song Xian and Sui Yu left Yanqu with the camel caravan carrying mulberry wine. In the man's storeroom, Song Xian selected a carpet half a meter long and ten feet wide, enough to cover the entire floor. She also personally measured a piece of cashmere cloth twenty feet long and six feet wide. These two items were worth a whole bolt of silk.
It was dark again, and Sui Yu sat in front of the fire to finish packing his bag.
Song Xian sat opposite her, looking at her, and said thoughtfully, "Should I bring some gifts back for Congzu and Lu Yaer as well?"
"Sure, have Mr. Qin take it to the guesthouse and give it to Zhao Xiping, who will then deliver it to your house."
"Then what should I give you?" Song Xian held her chin.
Sui Yu smiled at her and did not answer.
After the kid's bag was ready, Sui Yu took out a black and white blanket and prepared to make a big bag for Sui Liang, one for each of the uncle and nephew, so that one of them would not be left without one and would be sad.
The next day, Sui Yu took his men out with camels to set up a stall to sell pottery. On the way, they met a Han merchant caravan, whom they knew.
"Shopkeeper Yu, when did you arrive?" asked the merchant.
"Today is the third day since we arrived." Sui Yu replied.
"You're quite fast! We only left a day later than you." Speaking of this, the merchant recalled encountering Zhao Xiping and the boy on the way from Dunhuang to Yumen Pass. He asked, "Captain Zhao didn't catch up with you at Yumen Pass, did he? We ran into them on the way, and they said they were going to look for you."
Sui Yu was so shocked by these words that he couldn't recover.
Seeing this, the merchant hurriedly said, "I don't think it's anything serious. I saw that the father and son were both in good spirits that night. They didn't look like they were in trouble."
Sui Yu recalled Zhao Xiping's words about wanting to escort her out of Yumen Pass when they were leaving Dunhuang. She came to her senses and said, "He didn't catch up with us. He was traveling with the children and couldn't go fast."
"Well, I just said it, you guys go and get busy."
Sui Yu thanked him and continued walking towards the city.
Returning to the place where he had sold wolves before, Zhang Shun went to ask the Han people who were setting up stalls. He learned that he had to pay to set up stalls here. He took a string of copper coins to the end of the street and came back with several wooden signs in his hands.
"Boss, how do you set the price?" Xiao Chunhong asked.
"A total of nearly two hundred pottery pieces cost seven hundred and forty coins. You can estimate the price and sell them for three thousand coins in total. But it depends on your ability. I only want three thousand coins. If it is more than three thousand coins, the excess will be distributed to you on the spot." Sui Yu planned to let them practice. She couldn't always be the one standing in front to talk business.
Several servants gathered together to whisper. Sui Yu called Song Xian, and took Gan Da and Gan Er with him, and the four of them went for a walk on the street together.
"What is this?" Sui Yu picked up an irregular yellow-brown cup. It felt slightly cool and did not look like it was carved from wood.
"What is this made of?" Sui Yu asked the person with his head down again.
The disheveled man with dark circles under his eyes looked up with a gloomy face. Song Xian was startled when she met his eyes. She secretly poked Sui Yu and said, "This man is weird and a little scary. Let's go quickly."
"Made of human bones." He said hoarsely.
Sui Yu almost dropped the cup because of her shaking hands. She took another look, quickly put the bone cup down, forced a smile, and said, "It's quite interesting. I almost recognized it."
After saying that, the two of them hurried away with Gan Da and Gan Er.
"Where did this lunatic come from?" Song Xian cursed softly as they walked away. She asked uncertainly, "Are they really human bones?"
Sui Yu didn't know either. She rubbed her hands vigorously and said impatiently, "Don't mention it. It's really unlucky."
A group of Hu merchants came from the west. The sound of camels and horses' hooves raised dust on the ground. Sui Yu and Song Xian led their men to stand aside and make way for the caravan.
"Where is this caravan from? They look unfamiliar." Song Xian said.
Sui Yu understood that what she meant by unfamiliar was their appearance. People from the same place have similarities in bone structure. They had seen many Hu merchants, but this group of merchants had no similarities in appearance with the Hu merchants they had seen before, so they looked unfamiliar.
When the camel caravan passed by, in addition to the dust and the unique stench of livestock, Sui Yu smelled an extremely strong scent of spices. This team of Hu merchants brought a lot of spices.
The caravan stopped in front of a shop, and the Loulan people inside came out quickly to greet them. Both sides chatted for a while, and the Hu merchants unloaded two large boxes of spices and handed them over.
"I want to buy some spices." Song Xian said. She pulled Sui Yu over and asked, "How much are the spices?"
Hu Shang looked over, then looked at the Loulan people, and motioned him to translate.
After another round of chatter, the Loulan people said, "Are you from the Han Dynasty? They want your silk."
"How much spices can one piece of silk be exchanged for?" Sui Yu asked.
The Loulan people raised two fingers.
Sui Yu raised three fingers. Silk is unique to the Han Dynasty, but spices are not unique to any small country. She can make a bold offer.
"They want to see your goods." The Loulan people said.
"Where did they come from?" Song Xian asked curiously.
"Kangju, have you heard of them? They come from Kangju, which is so far away. They have to cross many mountains to get here." The Loulan man picked up the spice box and said, "I won't talk to you anymore. I'm here to do business."
A lot of mountains? Could it be the Iranian Plateau? Or somewhere else? Sui Yu wondered.
She and Song Xian waited there and sent Gan Da and Gan Er back on camels to get the silk.
Qin Wenshan learned that a large caravan from Kangju was coming. They brought goods with them and came with Gan Da and Gan Er, exchanging gems for spices.
"Didn't you go to Kangju last year?" Sui Yu asked on the way back.
"No, the mountain is too high, I don't dare to try." Qin Wenshan shook his head. "Oh, by the way, I met a fishing boat fishing in Yanze this morning and bought a dozen saltwater carp. I'll share half with you. You don't have to buy food for lunch."
"Are there fish in the salt lake?" Song Xian asked.
"Yes, the fish is quite fat."
Not many pottery items were sold, and Xiao Chunhong and the others didn't plan to close the stall. Sui Yu let them do as they pleased, saying that the meal was ready and asking Gan Da and Gan Er to bring it over, and then went back.
The saltwater carp was quite big, and Sui Yu had never eaten it before. After stewing it in the pot, she tasted it and found it was not salty, so she had to add water and salt and continue stewing it for a while.
"Before we leave Loulan, let's go to Yanze and see if we can buy some dried salted fish and take them to Qiuci and Luntai to sell. There is probably only this big lake in the desert, and it will be difficult to get fish in other places." Sui Yu planned. No matter how small a mosquito is, it is still meat.
"Okay." Song Xian had no objection.
That night, Sui Yu hooked another shoulder bag. She packed the two shoulder bags together and went to find Qin Wenshan, asking him to help bring them back.
"Remember what you promised me." Qin Wenshan reminded.
"I won't forget it. Next time you come to Dunhuang, I will definitely let you get the finished book." Sui Yu promised.
"Okay, I'll introduce you to the business tomorrow. You can bring all the goods you have." Qin Wenshan said.
Song Xian took her goods with her, and when Qin Wenshan's caravan went to pick up the goods, Sui Yu and Song Xian both led their teams to follow.
While Qin Wenshan was still around, Sui Yu used his influence to bargain with the merchants. She exchanged two pieces of silk, two pounds of silk, and five jars of mulberry wine with the Loulan merchants for exquisite carpets, jade, and agate bracelets. Song Xian exchanged seven pieces of silk for a Ferghana horse and a box of agate stones with the Loulan merchants.
The so-called Loulan merchants here do not refer to just one person, but a gathering of merchants. Merchants from all over the country brought rare treasures to Loulan, where they exchanged treasures with other owners.
Afterwards, the caravans went their separate ways, carrying their treasures.
…
More than half a month later, in early April, Zhao Xiping took his cub to the field to plant wheat. After sowing the wheat seeds, they were covered with a thin layer of soil. All they had to do now was wait for them to break through the soil and sprout.
The boy put a handful of wheat seeds in his pocket. He planned to plant a small piece of wheat in the vegetable garden outside the guesthouse. When the wheat turned yellow, he would be the first to see it.
He asked his uncle to do this, as he was not capable of digging holes and digging the soil.
The sound of camel bells came from the distance. Sui Liang took a look and saw that it was a caravan coming. He kept his eyes open while digging a hole. When the caravan approached, he dropped his hoe and went to meet them.
"It's Master Qin. Your story has spread among Dunhuang and the caravan." After recognizing the person, Sui Liang knew what this person liked to hear, so he smiled and announced the good news.
Qin Wenshan noticed a new building to the south of the kitchen courtyard. He asked in surprise, "The teahouse is already built? You guys are really quick to act."
"Yes, last winter, I have been promoting the story of your business ventures." Sui Liang mentioned it again.
Qin Wenshan smiled and gestured to his nephew behind him. In a moment, Sui Liang received a handful of reward money.
Sui Liang chuckled and said, "How about we stay in the same guesthouse you stayed in last year?"
"It's up to you."
The camel caravan entered the guesthouse to unload the goods. Qin Wenshan took out the satchel that Sui Yu had asked him to bring back, and sent someone to deliver it to the boy.
The satchel fell into Sui Liang's hands first, and he shouted in surprise: "Little boy, your mother sent someone to bring us something back."
The kid was squatting in the vegetable garden digging holes and throwing wheat seeds. Upon hearing this, his little hands trembled and he scattered half a handful of wheat seeds into a hole.
"Look, little one." Sui Liang came running over with two bags, "This is what my sister gave me."
"There's also mine." The kid shouted. He ran over and grabbed Sui Liang's leg and jumped up, "Uncle, give it to me quickly."
Sui Liang didn't give it to him.
"Good uncle——" The kid was about to cry, but he still knew how to say nice words to please him.
Sui Liang chuckled and handed over the red shoulder bag.
The kid grabbed it, his eyes still fixed on the big bag, feeling itchy and wanting another one.
"It looks pretty good." Sui Liang touched the bag again and again as he slung it over his shoulder, feeling surprised and happy.
The cub withdrew his greedy gaze, and followed suit by carrying the red and white bag. Seeing that there was a dog on it, he screamed with joy.
"Mine is the best looking," the cub declared loudly, "This is a gift from my mother."
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