Chapter 35: Falling into the Trap
After entering the customs, the weather became hotter day by day. The caravan was delayed by scorching sun and rainy days, so even if it wanted to move faster, it couldn't.
The weather was too hot, and fearing the heat would harm their livestock, they could only find a place to rest for an hour or two during the hottest part of the day. The medicinal herbs they were transporting couldn't be exposed to rain, and summer rainstorms were common. If they were suddenly blocked by a rainstorm, they would have to find shelter.
The weather is a small matter. When the weather is good, you can hurry on your way without any delay. The most important thing is to avoid encountering robbers.
The journey from north to south was smooth. When they were about to reach Luoyang, they encountered a group of bandits who were robbing houses in the southern part of Taihang Mountains.
At that time, Gu Youan's nerves were tense. When he drew out his swords, spears, and halberds to fight, the group of people on the opposite side trembled as they took out kitchen knives and hoes. Everyone was stunned.
Originally thought they were vicious people, but unexpectedly they were just farmers. Uncle Du stepped forward and spoke to them, and persuaded them to leave with a bag of rice.
After leaving here and entering the county town, Tian Erlang asked whether they should report to the police. Uncle Du and his men were already scared, so there was no need to report to the police for the time being.
They also went north along this road when they went to Songjiang City. They did not encounter any bandits on this road, nor did they hear any mention of them from the caravans along the way, which meant that this group of farmers just had a sudden impulse.
"It's not easy. If we run into it again on our way back, we can talk about reporting it to the police."
Tian Erlang frowned. "This place isn't far from Luoyang, and there hasn't been a disaster here since last year. Why are the people now engaging in highway robbery?"
"What's so strange about this? A harsh government is more ferocious than a tiger. Sometimes being too close to Kyoto isn't a good thing."
Speaking of which, compared with the interior of the country, although the outside of the country seems bitter and cold, the people of Songjiang City live better than the people inside the country. At least no officials dare to mess around with taxes.
Uncle Du said, "These are not our business, nor our responsibility. We just need to do our own thing."
Gu Wenqing looked up and saw a river flowing quietly into the distance. He said, "Are we almost at the reed marsh?"
Tian Jilang nodded: "Almost there."
When mentioning the reed marsh, Tian Erlang and Gu Wenqing thought of the same thing. They turned around and saw Guo Su talking to Gu Youan. They didn't know what interesting things they were talking about, but they both laughed.
Feeling two gazes, Gu Youan asked with a questioning look: What are her brother and Tian Jilang looking at her for?
Tian Erlang hurriedly turned around, touched his face and sighed. Even though he had martial arts skills, he still subconsciously retreated when he met the eyes of Gu Youan, who had little martial arts skills.
"Go get some water to feed the horses. It's cloudy today, so we can rest for half an hour and then leave. We'll try to reach Luoyang in two days."
"yes."
The closer they got to Luoyang, the more complicated Tian Erlang and Gu Wenqing felt. Gu Youan felt okay, because the Luoyang in her memory was the two-courtyard house of the Gu family in Huazhi Lane. Apart from that, Luoyang was no different to her.
Two days later in the afternoon, the escort leader, his men, horses and goods found an inn outside Luoyang City to stay in. Uncle Du took Gu Youan and others to pay and enter the city.
After entering the city, Tian Erlang said, "Let's go to the north of the city and find an inn to stay in. It's close to Xinglin Street."
Uncle Du nodded and said, "Okay."
The Tian family lived in the north of the city. Tian Erlang couldn't wait to go to their house to find the silver hidden by his mother. For such a thing, he could only go at night.
Uncle Du, who was familiar with the place, took them to a clean inn in the north of the city to stay.
In the evening, Gu Youan washed up in the room, dried his hair, and sat on the Luohan chair by the window to enjoy the breeze and watch the bustling street market downstairs.
"Knock, knock, knock."
"who?"
"It's me."
Gu Youan went to open the door, and Guo Su came in sideways, holding a big bag of osmanthus cakes, glutinous rice balls, flower cakes, candied fruits, etc.
"Hahaha, I'm back. Come and try some. I just bought some on the street. Look at these glutinous rice balls, some are sweet and some are salty. I just watched the cook make them herself. They're still hot."
Gu Youan wasn't hungry after dinner, but he didn't dare eat the filling glutinous rice ball. He picked up a piece of dried apricot meat and ate it. He said, "You only had one bowl of rice tonight. You left your stomach empty just to eat this?"
Guo Su's eyebrows danced with joy: "This is my first time in Luoyang, so of course I have to try more of Luoyang's delicious food. I'll tell my brothers and sisters about it when I get back."
Gu Youan then remembered that Master Guo and his companions had lived in Suzhou before going to Songjiang City, so he asked, "Didn't you pass through Luoyang when you went to Songjiang City?"
"No, at that time we moved with our whole family. We had so many people and things, and it was more convenient to go by water than by land."
Guo Su handed Gu Youan a piece of flower cake: "Try this, it is said to be made from flowers picked today."
Gu Youan couldn't finish a whole pancake, but he couldn't refuse the hospitality, so he broke off half a piece of the pancake and ate it slowly, saying, "Where are my eldest brother and the others? I don't see them going upstairs to rest, so they are downstairs?"
Guo Su smiled mysteriously: "They are not downstairs, don't ask, you will know tomorrow morning."
"Did they go to the Tian family's old house?" Gu Youan thought of it immediately.
"Well, Tian Erlang asked around and heard that no one else had moved into their house since it was confiscated. So Tian Erlang didn't wait until midnight. He went over now and climbed over the wall as soon as it got dark."
"By the way, after going to the Tian family, Tian Erlang and your elder brother will go to Huazhi Lane to take a look."
After hearing what Guo Su said, Gu Youan didn't care anymore. She was too lazy to comb her hair before going out, so she went back to the window to watch the hustle and bustle in the street.
As Guo Su ate his cakes, he mumbled, "I heard that the Lantern Festival in Luoyang City is particularly lively every year during the Mid-Autumn Festival, New Year's Day, and Lantern Festival. I wonder if we can make it."
"I don't think we'll make it. It's already late June. After we sell all the herbs and go to Suzhou to buy cloth for Songjiang City, we won't be leaving until mid-July at the latest."
We will leave in mid-July. If we are quick, we will probably be able to get back to Songjiang City in early September. Then we can buy some medicinal herbs and go south. When we come back to Luoyang, it will be early winter.
Guo Su also counted the days. She felt it was a pity, but then she smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. If it doesn't work this year, we can come back next year to join in the fun."
Guo Su came over and acted coquettishly: "An An, when you go on a long journey in the future, you must hire me as your escort."
Gu Youan agreed with a smile.
It was completely dark. Guo Su had eaten and drunk his fill, rinsed his mouth and was about to go to bed. Gu Youan had also made the bed when someone suddenly knocked on the door.
It’s Uncle Du.
Uncle Du led a member of the Du family into the house and said, "I just ran into an acquaintance. He said that Manager Han is still in Luoyang."
"Still in Luoyang? He left half a month earlier than us, and he hasn't left yet?"
Uncle Du gave a meaningful smile: "If you offend someone, you have to take the trouble to apologize."
If he hadn't offended someone, the Han family would not have been divided yet, and Manager Han would have been anxious to return to Songjiang City, so he would have left long ago and would not have stayed until now.
"Uncle, please tell me in detail."
"Simple, it's still the ginseng that's causing the trouble."
Everyone knows that ginseng is expensive. In Luoyang, ginseng not only represents wealth but also power. Ginseng is limited in quantity, and first-grade ginseng is even rarer. Giving it to someone or not is a matter of offending others.
"The Empress Dowager was ill a few days ago, and the imperial physician prescribed ginseng. All the prominent families in Luoyang were buying ginseng to send to the palace. Shopkeeper Han arrived just in time, and the ginseng he had was sold at a high price."
"Everyone knew he had ginseng, so they came to him. He accidentally offended the Xianfei family. The other day, he was beaten up by some hooligans on the street, and they even extorted money from him."
Gu Youan felt something was wrong: "Don't the Han family sell all their medicinal herbs through local pharmacies in Luoyang?"
The people behind those drug stores are all powerful and influential. With them stepping up, who would come to Manager Han?
"That was supposed to be the case, but among the people who came with Shopkeeper Han was his eldest brother's manager. That manager was ignorant and only knew that the ginseng price was high, so he sold it privately. As a result, the Han family not only angered the nobleman, but also offended the people behind the medicine store, which led to this end."
Uncle Du explained the reason in detail, and Gu Youan understood it. She thought for a moment and said, "The medicine store takes too much commission. If our ginseng is sold through the medicine store, they will not only make money but also gain favors from various families. We will be at a huge loss."
"What do you want?"
Gu Youan said, "We can refuse favors, but we still need to earn money. Instead of offering ourselves to be taken advantage of, it's better to wait for others to come to us."
Every place has its own rules. Gu Youan doesn't want to offend anyone, but she doesn't work hard in business just to help others.
After Gu Youan whispered this and that to Uncle Du, Uncle Du said, "The demand is greater than the supply. If you raise the price, you might not only make money but also lose the people..."
"I know my limits."
Taking advantage of the fact that there were still people walking on the street, Gu Youan packed up his bags and left the inn, taking Guo Su to another inn to stay.
The next morning, Gu Wenqing and Tian Erlang returned. Uncle Du and the others were having breakfast in the house. Tian Erlang pushed the door open and walked in. He was so happy that his mouth was about to break up, but he pretended to be normal and said, "Do you know what good thing happened to me?"
"Did you find a thousand taels of silver?"
Tian Erlang laughed heartily and high-fived the other man: "You are very clever, and your guesses are always correct."
The people sitting around the table burst into laughter.
Uncle Du said with a smile, "Don't show off when you're out. Be careful of thieves and kidnappers out there who might give you a false alarm."
"Thank you for your guidance, second uncle. I know what I'm doing now." Tian Erlang bowed, with a very proud expression on his face.
"Hurry up and sit down to eat."
"Hey, I'll be right there."
Gu Wenqing sat down and didn't see his sister, so he asked Uncle Du.
Uncle Du finished his porridge, wiped his mouth, and said, "Your sister is busy with something."
Gu Wenqing frowned: "Where did she go?"
"I went to Zhang's house."
"Zhang family? Which Zhang family?" How come Gu Wenqing didn't know that their family had relatives named Zhang in Luoyang?
Uncle Du laughed and said, "Silly child, aren't Zhang Shinan's family relatives or friends of yours?"
Gu Youan knew that because the Zhang family presented Zhang Shinan's treasured maintenance recipe to Concubine Liu, one of Zhang Shinan's cousins entered the Imperial Hospital as an imperial physician.
The Zhang family did not enter through the proper channels, so they must have had a hard time in the Imperial Hospital. Gu Youan gave the Zhang family a chance to do a favor, and the Zhang family would surely not refuse.
The Zhang family wants favors, and Gu Youan wants money. Both families think this business is very good.
When Gu Wenqing and Tian Erlang returned to the inn, Gu Youan had already had a cup of tea at Zhang's house. Over there, Imperial Physician Zhang had already examined the ten first-grade ginsengs that Gu Youan had sent.
"The ginseng you sent is worth one thousand taels each. Our Zhang family wants it."
Gu Youan glanced at Guo Su, who slid quickly to the front of Imperial Physician Zhang, slammed the ginseng box shut, snatched the box and held it tightly in his arms.
Imperial Physician Zhang was surprised: "What does this mean?"
Gu Youan stood up leisurely, brushed off the nonexistent dust on his body, and walked out, saying, "Since Imperial Physician Zhang has no sincerity in doing business, then let's just give up."
"etc!"
Before Gu Youan even stepped out of the door, Imperial Physician Zhang stopped her and said, "Young lady, since you've come to me, you should know how popular ginseng is in Luoyang right now. Carrying this box of ginseng out is like a child carrying gold in a busy market. The consequences are beyond your imagination."
"That's my business, don't worry about it, Imperial Physician Zhang."
Before going out, Gu Youan drew a face for himself and Guo Suzhong. Even if the Zhang family was not kind, Gu Youan was not worried that someone would find him.
As Gu Youan stepped out of the door, Imperial Physician Zhang quickly said, "My Zhang family doesn't have that much money."
Gu Youan stopped, turned his head to look at him, and smiled slightly, saying, "There's no need for the Zhang family to advance the money. I'll send someone to go with you. I'll take whatever silver the ginseng sells for."
Imperial Physician Zhang's eyes widened. What a cruel person! He used the Zhang family's name to sell ginseng, but didn't even give them a sip of soup, right?
"Doctor Zhang, what do you think?"
Imperial Physician Zhang gritted his teeth and said, "I agree."
Who told the Zhang family to be incompetent? Who told them to put their best foot forward and be ignored? Serves them right!
For Zhang Shinan's sake, Gu Youan still made things convenient for the Zhang family.
Imperial Physician Zhang spent one thousand taels of silver to buy a head of ginseng from Gu Youan, and that morning he sent it to the Emperor through Concubine Liu, who then presented it to the Empress Dowager as a tribute.
The Zhang family had made an appearance before the emperor, and with this as an excuse, someone came to the Zhang family that day to inquire whether they had any stock.
Imperial Physician Zhang was half-hearted and received many compliments and half-true and half-false promises from various parties. Within a few days, he sold dozens of first-grade, second-grade and second-grade ginseng.
So many ginsengs suddenly appeared in Luoyang City, and the noble who was unhappy with Shopkeeper Han also gave up. Shopkeeper Han was thinking that he was lucky and the matter was finally over when he met Gu Youan on the street.
Shopkeeper Han slapped his thigh. It was over! This little girl had caught him in a trap. One wrong step led to another, and the Han family had fallen into a trap.
Gu Youan greeted Shopkeeper Han with a smile. Shopkeeper Han was furious and asked, "Did you sell the ginseng?"
"I sold it. I helped Shopkeeper Han out of trouble. Can Shopkeeper Han thank me?"
Thank u?
Shopkeeper Han was so angry that he almost fainted. This money should have been earned by his Han family!
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