Chapter 164 Five Cities Military Command
"That's right!" Cheng Jitang's proposal was unanimously agreed by Zhang Dongyue, Qi Dacheng, Su Wenzhe and others.
Seeing that no one objected, Cheng Jitang continued, "Besides that, we won't just be able to stop those people outside the city. We can actually buy all the cotton they have and make money together!"
"Yes, yes, it's just a matter of how much you earn. Mr. Cheng, you are wise!" Zhang Dongyue and others' eyes became brighter as they listened, and they all agreed.
"That's what we should do. We buy up the cotton they have and sell it directly to the Treasury and Banknotes Administration, hahahaha..."
"Not bad, not bad. We'll have a few fewer steps to go through, and we can all make money together!"
"But, have you ever thought about this? Those people also got the news. If they insist on not selling it to us, what should we do?"
"Don't want to sell it? That's not up to them. If they don't sell it to us, then no one else can sell it. It'll just rot in their hands!"
"That's right. The Treasury Department will collect 6,000 kilograms. Let's trap them outside the city for six days and see if they can handle it!"
Everyone talked at once, thinking about all the possible things that might happen, and even thought of solutions. They became more and more excited.
Seeing that everyone had stopped fighting among themselves and were united in facing the outside world, Cheng Jitang nodded with satisfaction and raised his hand to interrupt, "In that case, let's do as everyone says, but..."
Hearing Cheng Jitang's words, everyone looked over, and they only heard Cheng Jitang say slowly: "The Baochao Tizhusi only took 6,000 kilograms of cotton. If we divide it equally, our family will only get about 1,000 kilograms at most."
"Two hundred coins for one thousand catties, how much is that? So we can't do this deal at this price."
"Huh?" Zhang Dongyue was stunned for a moment. "Master Cheng, this is not up to us. The Treasury Department said they would only take 6,000 kilograms. If we don't do that, will they still accept our order?"
"Why not?" Cheng Jitang asked Zhang Dongyue. Everyone's expression suddenly changed when they heard this.
Zhang Dongyue's eyes flashed fiercely, "Mr. Cheng, we are not outsiders here, why don't you speak frankly?"
Everyone echoed, their eyes sparkling. Cheng Jitang bared his teeth and said, "According to my opinion, the Treasury Department must have collected cotton more than once. Perhaps they will ask for more in the future, or of course, they may ask for less."
"But no matter how much they want, this matter cannot be left to the Baochao Tizhusi. We should have the final say."
"Otherwise, who would own the extra cotton we buy from those small traders? The Treasury and Banknote Administration should buy it all."
"They're all going to use it anyway, so it doesn't matter whether we buy it early or late. But to achieve this, we all have to work together and put our efforts in the same direction!"
"And this price? The Treasury Department said two hundred coins per catty. I don't think this is fair enough. It should be higher. After all, we've put in so much effort, only to earn a hard-earned penny. It's really not worth it. What do you think?"
Qi Dacheng nodded repeatedly and bowed to Cheng Jitang, "Then, according to you, Mr. Cheng, how much is a suitable price per pound of cotton we have?"
This question reflected the thoughts of everyone present. Merchants are profit-driven, and what everyone cares about most is, of course, whether the goods they have can be sold at a good price.
The price of two hundred coins per catty of cotton offered by the Baochao Tizhusi seems fair, but if they could sell more, they would certainly be willing to do so.
Now that all the big cotton merchants in Yingtian Prefecture have gathered together, isn't their goal to sell more and get a good price? Since everyone has no objection, they naturally work together.
"I think this should be the number!" Cheng Jitang stretched out his palm. Everyone looked at Cheng Jitang's skinny palm and it took them a long time to react.
"Old Cheng is right. I also think that five hundred coins per catty is appropriate!"
"Right, right, that's right, Master Cheng is absolutely right. If that's the case, then we will follow Master Cheng's lead!"
"Yes, yes, everything depends on Cheng Lao..."
Everyone was grinning from ear to ear, raising their hands and feet in approval, as if they had seen mountains of gold and silver going into their pockets.
In fact, the cotton merchants present could have imagined that there would be great harvest today, but they did not expect the harvest to be so rich!
After all, the old ones are the wisest. They thought that if they could raise the price to two hundred and fifty wen, it would be the highest they could get. However, they didn't expect Cheng Jitang to be even more ruthless and directly doubled it, and it was the highest price they had imagined!
As a result, the largest cotton merchants in Yingtian Prefecture quickly discussed the details and began to prepare.
At noon the next day, Hao Zhao personally escorted the 3,000 kilograms of cotton that had just been purchased and headed towards the Baochao Tizhusi with great confidence.
This time, after hearing the news from Zhang Quan, Hao Zhao decided to go all out to purchase cotton. In addition to those within the city, he even sent people as far as Huguang Prefecture to purchase cotton.
For this, he even took out his life savings just to make a fortune. He had already planned that after this deal was over, he would pack up and leave Yingtian Prefecture to expand his business elsewhere.
The business in Yingtianfu has reached saturation, and his shop is completely struggling to survive. Instead of struggling to survive, it is better to find a new world and start over. Of course, the premise for accomplishing all this is that this business must be done!
However, he was full of confidence about this. When he went to other places to purchase cotton, the spies left in Yingtian Prefecture had already passed him the latest news, saying that the Baochao Tizhusi had posted a notice to purchase cotton at a high price. Hao Zhao's heart was completely settled.
As long as he delivers the cotton to the Baochao Tizhusi today, with just these 3,000 kilograms of cotton, he won't have to think about doing business this year!
But what Hao Zhao never expected was that when his convoy was about to enter the city, it was stopped by a group of soldiers.
"What's going on?" Seeing the guy in front of the convoy negotiating with the officers and soldiers for a long time but still not moving, Hao Zhao felt something was wrong and hurried over in person. Just then, the guy ran over to report to him.
"Boss, something's not right. The people from the Five Cities Military Division said they want to inspect our convoy." The waiter looked nervous.
"Wucheng Bingmasi?" Hao Zhao was stunned for a moment and frowned.
The Wucheng Bingmasi was the government office in Yingtian Prefecture that was in charge of the city's internal affairs. In short, it was the ancient urban management. Matters such as arresting thieves and clearing street congestion were all under the jurisdiction of the Wucheng Bingmasi.
Logically speaking, there was nothing wrong with Hao Zhao's vehicle after the Wucheng Bingmasi inspected it. However, when Hao Zhao saw that there were other cotton merchant convoys like his nearby waiting for inspection, his expression suddenly turned ugly.
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