Chapter 2222 Quickly Trick Them
Bai Shan tilted his head: "A direct question?"
Mr. Zhuang and General Nie nodded together. General Nie said, "He is a very generous person." In fact, he is very direct. He says directly what he wants.
Manbao then asked, "How much does he want?"
Nie Canjun said: "If you want a guide, it will cost 20 taels. Ten taels for each person. Ten people, ten horses, and ten swords will cost 100 taels. Twenty people will cost 150 taels."
Manbao was stunned when he heard this. "So expensive? We already have quite a few people."
Nie Canjun nodded and said, "I think it's expensive too. We have a lot of people, so hiring two guides from him will be enough."
They are not a merchant caravan. Not to mention the soldiers accompanying them, even the guards from the Bai and Yin families have seen blood. With more than a hundred people, there is really no need to hire more people.
Mr. Zhuang, however, wanted to be more cautious. He was very concerned about what he said about the instability among people in various places.
He said, "This place is different from the Central Plains."
He paused and continued, "North of Xiazhou, information is lagging and distorted, and people's hearts are unstable. The imperial court only takes about ten years to subdue various regions, and only five or six years at most. In such a short period of time, the younger generation has not yet grown up. Therefore, in the hearts of most people, they probably don't care whether they are from the Great Jin Dynasty or not. They don't recognize Your Majesty either."
Everyone called the emperor the Heavenly Khan, which was not a sign of obedience to the Jin Dynasty, but a sign of fear for the emperor alone.
There are all kinds of rumors going around now. Rumors like the emperor is dead and the prince is fighting for the throne with his brothers are still mild. In the mouths of some people, the Central Plains may have already fallen into chaos.
In such a situation, there is no guarantee that there are no people with ulterior motives and other intentions.
"Whatever their intentions, money is their top priority. We have so much luggage with us, even if we're not a caravan, they won't let us go if we encounter them," Mr. Zhuang said. "If the mayor is willing to show goodwill, why don't we accept it?"
He said, "Although it is indeed very expensive?"
Lieutenant General Nie turned to look at Zhou Man and said, "Sir Zhou, the Ministry of Revenue won't give you this money. Will the Imperial Hospital report it to you?"
Manbao: "...Our Imperial Hospital is poor."
Mr. Zhuang said expressionlessly, "What a coincidence! The Honglu Temple is also poor. No, it's even poorer."
Lieutenant Nie said, "It's even more impossible for me. If the master knew that I had to hire someone else at a high price to protect him, and that he was a horse thief, then not asking about my crime would be a small punishment. We will have to pay for it ourselves."
After saying that, he looked at Manbao with bright eyes.
Manbao turned his head and looked at Baishan.
Bai Shan turned his head to look at Bai Erlang and others sitting nearby.
Bai Erlang, Liu Huan, and Yin Huo: ...
Even Yin Huo couldn't help but turn around and glare at Bai Erlang. "I can't say it, right? You insist on getting involved."
Bai Erlang never expected that he would have to pay just to come and listen?
Manbao said to General Nie Zhuang, "Don't worry about the money. We can discuss it among ourselves."
So he stood up and took Bai Erlang and the others upstairs to discuss.
Mr. Zhuang thought about it for a moment, nodded with a smile, said something to General Nie, and went back to the house to rest.
General Nie: ...really please!
Bai Erlang was the poorest at the moment, so he was very unwilling. "How many people do you want? Ten?"
Manbao said, "Twenty is the best deal."
Bai Shan was the most rational. "Besides money, there's also food and fodder for them. This is quite an expense. I think ten is enough."
He said, "We have a large number of people. Our soldiers and guards have seen blood and are no problem for marching and fighting. Face to face, I don't think other bandits can gain an advantage over them."
Yin Huo was puzzled: "Then why do we still need to invite them?"
Bai Shan said: "To avoid risks."
He said, "They are the local bosses here. Not only do they know the forces in this desert, they should also have some connections. They should be able to lead us to avoid danger. For the former, two guides should be enough, but if we accidentally run into them, two people are obviously not enough. But what if ten people come forward to negotiate with them?"
Manbao nodded. "Although we are not afraid and are confident that we can escape from the bandits, there will inevitably be casualties. Nothing is more important than human life. However, it is more important for everyone to arrive safely than to lose some money."
Bai Shan lowered his voice and said, "Everyone, follow us out. We can't just bring back their ashes, right? It would be hard to explain to their families when we go back."
Manbao was the chief officer, and the final decision on this matter was hers. Since she had made the decision, General Nie and others would not express their opinions even if they had any, so the matter was settled.
The one hundred taels of silver were divided equally among the five of them, with twenty taels per person. This didn't seem too expensive.
Bai Erlang and Bai Shan borrowed money to temporarily pay the debt. At this moment, he was very eager to reach the Western Regions as soon as possible so that he could sell the silk and other things in his hands and make money.
After they made their decision, they passed the message to the mayor. The mayor couldn't help but smile when he heard it. He turned to the housekeeper and said, "Go, tell the brothers that I have found a job for them. Tell them to pick out ten good hands and prepare to set off in two weeks."
The butler agreed and said with a smile, "Master, you are very thoughtful. I didn't expect them to actually agree. I see that there are quite a few of them, and they have a bloody aura about them. They are not like ordinary guards. I thought they would be reluctant to spend money."
The mayor said, "I didn't expect them to hire ten people. I thought two guides would be the best they could do."
After all, it is easy to get lost in the desert. Going down further, you will reach Yumen Pass. The whole way there is basically desert and the surrounding area, so it is easy to get lost.
He narrowed his eyes and said, "It seems that these officers are very soft-hearted and know how to care for the soldiers."
He thought for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Go to the storeroom and take out those herbs and wound medicines that we won't need for a long time. We'll put them outside the inn door tomorrow. Since you care about the soldiers, how could you not prepare some wound medicines and other herbs?"
The butler agreed and turned to carry out the order.
Manbao turned over with the quilt in her arms. It was very cold in the early morning here, so she pulled the quilt up to cover her head, but the noise outside continued to come from the window.
She could only turn over and look out the window.
Her eyesight was still good, so she saw Zhou Liru arguing with someone with a flushed face.
Manbao yawned, closed the window, and lay back on the bed, deciding to take some more sleep. She was not worried about Zhou Liru. All the yards around were their people, and the guards would not let Zhou Liru be bullied at her doorstep.
Zhou Liru was not a bully, so she didn't take it to heart. As a result, the quarrel did not stop, but became louder and louder.
Manbao couldn't help but sit up and had to put on his clothes. After tidying up his clothes a little, he opened the door and went out.
Bai Shan, who was also sleeping in, opened the door next to her and came out. He nodded when he saw her come out, glanced outside and said, "Let's go down and take a look?"
Manbao nodded.
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
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