As the saying goes, if something can be solved with money, don't rely on favors. Besides, this young master Lu has feelings for Yunling. If he uses this favor to force Yunling to marry him in the future, what should they do?
"Let's wait two more days. Two days later, we'll go to Xia Liang Town. If we're taking a boat, we'll definitely stop at Xia Liang Town."
Seeing that there was really no other way, Zhang had no choice but to follow Yun Shenghua's method.
These past two days have been incredibly stressful for Zhang, making her feel restless and unable to eat or sleep. She desperately wants time to pass so she can grow wings and fly to Yunling's side.
Yunling was also feeling unwell. The ship was about to dock, and she was thinking about renting a cabin and hiring someone to transport cotton. She had no experience in this area and didn't want to be like a headless fly, lest she be seen by that person who had been around the docks for a long time and be bullied.
"Ling-ge'er, come, have a cup of hot water."
"No, I'm thinking about something."
Gangzi chuckled, "Drinking water won't stop you from thinking. Maybe you'll come up with an idea right away after taking a sip."
"He's probably thinking about how to get the cotton back."
"Little bastard" hit the nail on the head. He had just seen Yunling drawing something on the ground. Why did she have to draw it now, just as the boat was about to dock? And their destination was Pingcheng, not the two towns below. What else could it be but looking for a warehouse to store goods?
Seeing that this man was calm and collected, and must have traveled a lot by water, Yunling humbly asked, "Uncle, how should we transport it properly?"
Eryi was delighted to hear Yunling call him "Uncle," and after glancing at Gangzi with a haughty air, he replied, "Looking for a broker."
"A human trafficker? Doesn't a human trafficker involve buying and selling people?"
"Hey, since he's involved in people, there's bound to be someone helping you transport things. He's just making a profit too."
Yunling nodded. This was a good idea, and brokers usually had shops, so she wasn't afraid they would cause trouble.
Er Yi continued, "I don't know what the situation is like in these two towns, but I've been to so many docks, and there's always one or two brokerage firms not far from them."
"Uncle, thank you."
Yunling can now relax and enjoy a cup of hot water.
Two days later,
The boat slowly docked at the pier of the two towns below. Yunling and Gangzi disembarked first to inquire about renting the warehouse, but they hadn't gone far when a figure suddenly appeared and grabbed her, while her bottom was being slapped repeatedly.
She felt utterly bewildered; it seemed this staged accident had fallen on her. This was outrageous! Just as she was about to unleash a torrent of abuse, she heard Zhang's voice.
"You good-for-nothing! Why didn't you write back to let us know before you changed your route to water? Luckily your father is wise, otherwise we would have been waiting anxiously at the escort agency for you to return."
Zhang became increasingly angry as she spoke, and then slapped Yunling hard on the buttocks again.
She was being somewhat impulsive, but fortunately Yun Shenghua managed to calm her down.
"Chunniang, there are other people here."
Following Yun Shenghua's gesture, Zhang looked towards the ship and first saw the two escorts from the security company, then five people with schadenfreude expressions. She immediately felt very sorry for Yunling.
Yunling generously introduced, "This is my mother, she's not usually like this. This is my father, he's usually like this."
The head镖师 (bodyguard/escort) quickly explained, "Young man, you are very capable. You are calm and composed in the face of adversity and are capable of shouldering great responsibilities."
Eryi chimed in, "Yes, yes, yes, young man has guts. He'll be something special when he grows up."
"..."
Zhang was naturally happy to see so many people praising Yunling, but she felt even more sorry for her. To receive so much praise, she must have done something big or dangerous. However, it was not convenient to ask right now, so Zhang smiled and remained silent.
With Yun Shenghua there, the matter of renting the warehouse was naturally left to him, while Yunling and Zhang went to find the brokerage firm. According to Yun Shenghua, they would find the brokerage firm by turning left at the intersection ahead.
Following the directions, they indeed found a brokerage shop on the left corner. As soon as they entered, the broker greeted them warmly.
"Honored guests, honored guests, have you and your wife come to buy maids and servants?"
"I have a shipment of goods at the dock warehouse and I'd like to find a middleman to transport it to the Yun family in Dongtou Village, Pingcheng. I wonder if you can take on this job?"
"Yes! Of course!"
When Ya Lang heard about the distance, and that it was both Pingcheng and a rural village, his mind started calculating. He figured he could make some money from such a long journey.
"Distinguished guests, please have a seat. Do you enjoy the brick tea?"
"Can."
Okay.
The broker quickly went inside and rummaged around for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. He then came out with two cups of tea. Yunling was already thirsty, so she took the cups and quickly took a sip. Even though the taste was excellent, she couldn't eat any more, lest she lose face.
"What kind of stuff is this? How much is there again?"
"It's cotton, a light commodity, one thousand catties."
Before even mentioning the matchmaker, Zhang almost spilled the tea in her bowl.
Zhang remembered that Yunling had mentioned several hundred catties before leaving home. Even if she bought nine hundred and ninety catties, it wouldn't have the same impact as buying a thousand catties.
The broker grinned broadly, "Brother, although your cotton is a light commodity, it takes up quite a lot of space. Even a donkey cart can barely carry ten or so pounds, and the distance is far. It will take about twenty days to transport a thousand pounds."
Yunling roughly understood that they were treating her like a piece of meat on a chopping board, ready to be slaughtered at will, so she decided to remain silent and observe the situation first.
"Alright, please give us a price, broker. If it's not suitable, we can look elsewhere."
“Oh, sir, what’s wrong with that? Our brokerage is known for its fairness.”
The broker instantly lowered the price he had set at 120 coins per person per day to 100 coins, and after a moment's calculation, continued:
"We'll need to hire at least twenty people, and we'll also need to rent donkey carts. That'll come to 40 strings and 600 cash. If we give you a discount, it'll be 40 strings and 500 cash."
"Five strings of cash."
“Young master, you’re joking. Five strings of cash wouldn’t even be enough to hire a servant. Let’s each take one step, forty strings and four hundred cash.”
Yunling stood up. "Then let's work together again next time."
"No, oh dear!" The broker hurriedly stopped the man. "If you're not satisfied with this, just say you are. There's no need to leave. I won't take your few hundred coins, just forty strings."
Yunling said bluntly, "I asked people to transport things back from Qingcheng, which is so far away. It only cost three copper coins per person, and fifteen copper coins for five people. But now you're asking for forty copper coins. Even a lion's mouth isn't as big as yours."
The broker chuckled and said, "Young man, you're quite the joker. Your fifteen strings of cash only get you five people, but I have twenty here. It's not easy to find people like this."
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