Chapter 44: Dealing with the Deal
Gu Youan returned home safely after his business trip. Two days later, Gu Wenqing and Tian Erlang also returned from Songjiang City.
The whole family was present, and with the southern specialties brought back by Gu Youan, the Gu family invited the Tian family and the Zhang family to gather at home, and everyone had a lively and fresh feast.
The delicious vegetables brought back from Nanjing, such as salted duck, plum cake, pressed duck, bacon buns made with pickled bamboo shoots, and butter noodles, etc., and with Mrs. Yang's good cooking skills, she prepared a large table of southern dishes, which made everyone very satisfied.
After finishing his meal, Zhang Yinshan smacked his lips and said, "Freshly made butter is still better. The butter I brought back has lost some of its flavor."
Tian Erlang kicked him and said, "That's enough. You said it on purpose to irritate us. Be careful and you'll get beaten."
Zhang Yinshan dodged nimbly and said with a smile, "I really didn't mean to anger you. I was just telling you the truth."
Tian Qingde poured himself a cup of Yuhua tea and asked Gu Youan, "Is the south safe?"
"An Wen, I see the impact of the Taihu Lake breach has been largely eliminated. This year is a bumper harvest, and the local grain price has dropped by two or three cents per bushel compared to last year."
Alas, if Songjiang City had closer ties with the imperial court, there wouldn't be any worries about people dying of starvation due to drought.
How big is Songjiang City and how many people are there?
There is no need for the imperial court to provide disaster relief. As long as Shanhaiguan does not block the way, the drought in Songjiang City can be alleviated by relying on the large and small caravans in Songjiang City to transport food.
Tian Qingde: "The people at Prince Qi's mansion are demanding that the caravans start delivering food to the border at the beginning of next year. They've also spread the word that there's no need to worry about not being able to pass through the customs. Brother Gu, do you think this is true?"
Gu Youan raised her head. She also wanted to know whether this was true or not.
Gu Wen said: "I think it is about 60% true."
"Why do you think so? Everyone in the court knows that the relationship between Prince Qi and the emperor is bad. Do you think the court will help us?" Tian Qingde obviously saw through the emperor's hypocritical appearance of loving his people like his own children.
Gu Wen smiled and said, "There are two key points to this matter. The first is whether the imperial court knows about the drought in Songjiang City. If they don't know yet, there will be a time lag. The second is that the Yanzhou general in Shanhaiguan openly has no contact with Prince Qi, but who knows what he is secretly doing..."
There was no need to explain it clearly; everyone present understood.
Gu Youan thought carefully, if Prince Qi could really control the mouthpieces in the court to make the court know about the drought in Songjiang City later, and then make the defenders of Shanhaiguan turn a blind eye, the grain transportation would still be a safe matter.
"The people of Songjiang City have some food stored at home, and since they live in a mountainous area, they can still find a way to fill their stomachs even if the harvest fails. Compared to the people, the people most affected by the drought in Songjiang City are the Northeast Army."
As I said before, Songjiang City is too small, with too few people, too little land, and too little food. Even in a good year, the food obtained by Songjiang City is not enough to easily feed an army.
The relationship between the Northeast Army and Prince Qi is there. It is well known that once the imperial court runs out of food, the Northeast Army will use Songjiang City as a retreat.
"The policies implemented by Prince Qi's Mansion are all good. If we give Prince Qi's Mansion ten years, the imperial court will no longer be able to control Prince Qi's Mansion with troops and food. By then, it is not certain who will suppress whom."
“What a pity!”
Zhang Shinan glanced at Tian Qingde. Wasn't this fellow exiled for speaking out? How could you, a censor renowned for your loyalty and integrity, utter such outrageous words?
"Hahaha, I'm loyal to my emperor, even though I eat his salary. I was exiled for speaking out and making false accusations. Now, I haven't taken any advantage from the emperor. My conscience is clear, so why shouldn't I tell him the truth?"
Zhang Shinan said with a smile: "Brother Tian is a true man who stands tall and upright, and he is worthy of heaven and earth!"
"Cheers to the heavens and the earth!"
"Cheers to the heavens and the earth!"
Gu Youan smiled and drank a glass as well.
Gu Youan suddenly remembered what Guo Yuanchun said. Her family really didn't have to worry now. They had family wealth in their hands and relatives and friends around them. They had been through life and death together and relied on each other. They could overcome any difficulties.
Not to mention the wonderful day together, in the middle of the night, Gu Youan suddenly felt cold, got up and put on his clothes, which woke Xiaoju up.
"Miss, do you want some water?"
"If you don't want to drink water, I'll go take a look outside."
Xiaoju woke up and felt cold. She rubbed her arms and sat up: "Why is it so cold all of a sudden? Miss, please don't move. I'll go add some firewood to the kang."
Xiaoju didn't need to do anything. Wang Quan whispered outside the door, "It's snowing outside. Miss, don't come out and catch a cold. Chen Chang and I will go add some more fuel to the fire."
Gu Youan still wanted to go out and take a look. She put on her coat and went out. The door was open and the cold wind blew in from outside, making her long hair dance wildly in the wind. Gu Youan was dazzled by the snowflakes.
"An An, are you dressed warmly?"
Gu Youan hummed: "Dad, it's snowing heavily tonight."
Gu Wen looked at the dark night with wind and snow outside and sighed, "Let it snow, and have more heavy snow sooner rather than later."
"Don't stand outside, go back and rest."
"Um."
The father and daughter had a brief conversation and then went back to their rooms to rest.
The door was closed and the room was warm. Xiaoju was rubbing her hands and hurriedly lifted the quilt: "Miss, come in and warm up."
Gu Youan crawled into bed and asked with a smile, "Songjiang City is much colder than Luoyang. Will you be able to bear it?"
"I can bear it. I am happy to be with the young lady."
Xiaoju was sold to the Gu family by her brother and sister-in-law when she was young. She grew up under the protection of the Gu family and didn't feel any difference. After the Gu family fell into decline, she and Yang Po went to another family to make a living. Only then did she realize how sad it was to be a maid and be bullied by others.
Now, I am finally with the young lady again. The heavy snow and cold weather and the remoteness outside the pass are no big deal.
Xiaoju, who had just been awakened by the wind and snow that had just opened the door, couldn't sleep and whispered, "Miss, if you get married in the future, you must take me with you. I will make your bed and fold your quilt. Please don't think I'm stupid."
Gu Youan closed his eyes and hummed, "I'll take you wherever I go. Even if I go begging or become a bandit in the mountains, I'll take you with me."
Xiaoju was shocked: "Miss, you still want to go up the mountain and become a bandit?"
Gu Youan teased her and said with a smile: "My archery skills are not perfect, but I am also a master archer. If I were to become a bandit, I would definitely be the most powerful bandit within a hundred miles. Do you dare to come with me?"
Xiaoju gritted her teeth and said, "Go, miss, be a bandit, and I will be your maid."
Gu Youan laughed so hard that tears welled up in his eyes. After he had laughed enough, he said, "Silly girl, go to sleep."
"Why."
The warmth in the house made people's pores open, but the cold wind was blowing outside and heavy snow fell all night. When he woke up the next morning, the snow had piled up to Gu Youan's knees.
"Oh, the snow is falling just in time!"
When Mrs. Du opened the door in the morning, she saw heavy snow outside. She was so happy that she said "good" three times and asked everyone in the family to come out and see.
Gu Wen smiled and said, "It's a good thing that it's snowing. Let's make breakfast quickly. After breakfast, I'm going to town."
"Hey, I'll do it right away."
Mrs. Du happily went to the kitchen. Mrs. Wei and Mrs. Zhang were one making the fire while the other was washing rice and cooking porridge. Mrs. Yang was cutting the soaked kelp.
"Grandma Yang, what delicious food are you making?"
Grandma Yang smiled and said, "To answer Madam, I saw yesterday that the young lady and the younger sister really enjoyed eating the boiled kelp. Today I want to make a dish of pickled kelp to try."
Mrs. Du looked at the dough rising on the stove and the freshly prepared bun fillings and said, "Oh, thank you for making so many delicious dishes so early in the morning. You just got here, so you should take it easy and don't tire yourself out."
"I'm not tired. I took the bus more than walked on the way back. I'm in good health."
Mrs. Wei and Mrs. Zhang also said that they were very energetic and they could just be asked to do any housework.
Mrs. Du smiled and said, "It's not busy in winter. You should rest when you need to. When spring comes, you will be busy again."
Outside, Gu Wen was talking with Wang Quan and Chen Chang. Gu Wen said, "Chen Chang will still follow me when I go out to do things. Wang Quan, you are the housekeeper. You need to take care of everything inside and outside."
"As you command."
"At your command, sir."
Wang Quan and his companions had been in Songjiang City for two or three days, but the master had not assigned them any tasks. Wang Quan and Chen Chang had been feeling uneasy, but when they heard that their master still wanted them, they both excitedly agreed.
"An An should have told you everything she needed to say. You all know what the situation is like at home now."
Wang Quan and Chen Chang lowered their heads and listened to their master's orders.
Gu Wen's tone was steady yet passionate as he spoke slowly, "Back then, I brought you all from Yizhou all the way to Luoyang. Over the course of a decade, I rose from a scholar to a powerful official in the Ministry of Works. Now, I'm starting over again. Besides you, I also have a pair of wonderful children to help me. I believe the Gu family will continue to thrive."
Wang Quan immediately knelt down and said, "I obey the master's orders."
Chen Chang also knelt down and kowtowed excitedly.
Gu Wen smiled and said, "Get up. After breakfast, Chen Chang and I will go to the town to do some work. Wang Quan will go to the lady and ask if there is anything she needs to do."
"yes."
"yes."
Gu Youan was listening to her father talking to Wang Quan and Chen Chang in the yard. After they finished talking, Gu Youan looked at the snow-capped Tiger Ridge, which was so crystal white in the sunlight, and thought to herself, today is really a good day for hunting.
The Gu family's breakfast is ready: two kinds of porridge, hand-rolled noodles, bacon buns, braised eggs and a few side dishes.
Tian Erlang had already dressed up like a hunter and came to the Gu family for breakfast. As soon as he entered the house, he greeted Gu Wen and Mrs. Du and said with a smile, "I knew your family had a rich breakfast. I came at the perfect time."
Mrs. Du smiled and beckoned him to sit over. "Would you like a bowl of noodles? Grandma Yang made both the noodles and the buns this morning. The toppings are either spicy or sour, or salty and fresh. They're all delicious."
"Thank you, auntie. I'll have a bowl to try." Tian Erlang was not shy at all and treated the Gu family as his own home.
Good brother Gu Wenqing peeled two braised eggs and put them in Tian Erlang's bowl: "Grandma Yang's speciality is even better than what they sell outside."
Tian Erlang ate a braised egg and found it delicious. He praised Yang Po's cooking skills repeatedly.
Mrs. Yang returned to the kitchen and said to Mrs. Wei and Mrs. Zhang, "The young master from the Tian family speaks very nicely."
Mrs. Wei and Mrs. Zhang both laughed.
After the whole family had a lively breakfast, they went to the mountains to hunt with Gu Wenqing, carrying bows and arrows.
Gu Youan had nothing to do, so he took his bow and arrow and went up the mountain with them.
"Brother, sister, I want to go too." A Xuan caught up with her short legs.
Gu Wenqing hurriedly carried her back and handed her to Xiaoju, coaxing her, "Be good, we'll go to the mountains to catch rabbits for you to eat."
"No, I'm going."
A Xuan refused to do so. She just wanted to go play in the mountains. She was like a sticky candy, holding on to her brother's clothes and wouldn't let go.
"Ah Xuan, be obedient!"
When Gu Youan glanced over, Axuan quickly let go of her hand and hid her little hands behind her back. She shrank back a step, afraid that her sister would scold her.
Tian Erlang stood by with his arms crossed, watching the fun. When the three Gu siblings had finished fighting, Tian Erlang grinned and said to Gu Wenqing, "As the eldest brother, you're not as effective as Gu Youan in getting your say."
Gu Wenqing rolled his eyes at him and asked, "Do you think I'll pay attention to you?"
Tian Erlang laughed, and the three of them went up the mountain carrying bows and arrows.
A heavy snowfall temporarily alleviated the anxiety of the people in Songjiang City about the drought. Except for Gu Youan and the other three, many families in the village went up the mountain in groups of three or five.
Gu Youan ran into the three Luo brothers on the road. Seeing Luo Dalang carrying a firewood chopping tool on his shoulders, Gu Youan asked with concern, "How are you?"
Luo Dalang patted his belly and smiled, "Thank you Miss Gu for your concern. Everything is fine now. Doctor Zhang said there's nothing wrong with me and it won't affect my work in the future."
"That's good."
"I really want to thank Doctor Zhang so much. My stomach was broken at that time. Without Doctor Zhang, I am afraid I would have lost my life."
Gu Youan echoed, "Doctor Zhang is a good doctor."
After chatting for a while, Gu Youan said goodbye to the three Luo brothers when they reached the mountain.
The three of them walked on the mountain until mid-afternoon. In addition to picking up a few pheasants and rabbits in the snow cave, they were lucky enough to encounter a lone wild deer, which was very fat. After they brought it back, they shared it between the two families and it was enough to eat for several meals.
The three of them carried the wild deer home. As soon as Gu Youan entered the house, Mrs. Du said, "We had a visitor this morning. It was someone from Prince Qi's residence."
Gu Youan put down his bow and arrow and asked, "It's about the food."
"Exactly. Besides Prince Qi's Mansion, Master Guo sent word that the three-story house in Minren Lane at the west gate of the city is no longer for sale. They say it's for rent."
Gu Youan was in no hurry to rent a warehouse. She smiled and said, "Let's wait for a while. There might be changes later."
Things turned out just as Gu Youan had guessed. After this heavy snowfall, there was no more heavy snowfall until after the New Year and the beginning of spring.
There was too little snow water, and rumors of drought and crop failure were rampant in Songjiang City. The three-story house in Minren Lane was going to be sold again, and the price was much cheaper than Gu Youan had estimated.
Gu Youan bought the house without hesitation and asked Gao Jin, who had been staying in the village for a winter, to move in with other guards. They trained every day in preparation for their business trip.
In the spring, the shopkeeper Han held a spring banquet. Gu Youan brought his people to the house for the feast, and the shopkeeper Han and his wife personally went to the door to greet them.
After the Han family’s spring banquet, Hu Changpu, the eldest grandson of the Hu family in the mountain, got married, and the entire Gu family went to the wedding to attend the wedding.
It was clearly a great day for the wedding, but the smile on Hu Changpu's face looked very forced. After the wedding was over, Hu Changpu went to find Gu Youan.
"Han Dalang is going too far!"
"What did he do to make you so angry?"
"Hmph, Han Dalang sent his steward to discuss this year's medicinal herb business. He claimed that the market is not good this year and wants to lower the price by 20%."
Gu Youan was surprised: "Does he have any brains? Although the quantity is small, things are valuable because they are rare. It can't be said that the market is bad."
Hu Changpu sneered: "What a short-sighted guy! Do you really think I have to sell my herbs to him?"
Gu Youan: ...I feel sorry for the property left by Mr. Han...Poor Shopkeeper Han, he was happy for just two days before he was implicated by his elder brother again.
Gu Youan was secretly delighted, but a trusting smile appeared on his face: "Sell it to me, and I will buy the herbs at last year's price. Or you can exchange the herbs for food."
"How much food do you have?" Hu Changpu asked hurriedly.
Gu Youan had quite a lot of food in her hands. The food her father had stored was enough for the whole family, and the food stored in her space had not been touched yet.
Hu Changpu made up his mind: "In exchange for food, the price of the herbs cannot be cheap, but I promise that this year my ginseng will only be given to you."
"make a deal!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
