To be honest, the scene in the market did not surprise Bai Ang. The most he saw was that there were more people than he had imagined.
The entire market was much cleaner and tidier than anything Bai Ang had ever seen. On both sides of the road, wooden frames were carved out, and the vendors placed their wares in them. Of course, the more sophisticated ones even brought straw mats, on which they placed their wares, while the less sophisticated ones simply placed their wares on the ground...
The variety of goods was no more than Bai Ang could comprehend. They were nothing more than chickens and ducks raised by farmers, wild products, chicken and duck eggs, pickled and salted fish, and so on...
Um, pickled fish?
Bai Ang remembered clearly that salt was an imperial commodity. Ordinary people didn't dare put salt in every meal. Only when they could no longer bear it would they pinch a little coarse salt to add to their food to give themselves a little strength.
How can salted fish be sold in a market in Qinghe?
But it's normal to think about it. Lin Hai's sphere of influence has covered the entire southwestern Sichuan, so the Fushi County that is said to have an artesian well is also under his control.
Although the Daliang Empire had never truly ruled western Sichuan, Bai Ang had heard of the name of Ziliujing in Fushi County.
The discovery that an ordinary well could produce its own brine, which, after filtering and boiling, turned into high-quality refined salt, has been the envy of many nations for centuries. Phu Shi County was once known as the pearl of the southwestern Chen Dynasty, and the salt trade alone generated countless treasuries for the Chen Dynasty.
It was because Fushi County was so important that when the Three Kingdoms were fighting for the southwest, the offensive and defensive battles around Fushi County were particularly fierce, and the imperial army, blood-thirsty, attacked the city defenses of Fushi County in waves.
However, due to the rich local finances, Phu Sai County was the city with the most complete city defense in the southwest except Jinguan City. The imperial army fought for three months but failed to break into the city even a little. In the end, the Khmer army, which came to support the Chen Dynasty under the banner of an ally, stabbed the city in the back, causing chaos in the city, and the imperial army took advantage of the chaos to rush into the city.
Of course, things didn't turn out as well as expected.
In order to prevent Daliang and Cambodia from gaining the benefits of Phu Sai County, the helpless Chen Dynasty defenders filled up every artesian well they could find and killed every experienced miner, even the apprentices. Finally, they burned the brine workshop to the ground.
Although Daliang finally occupied Fushi County, the officials sent by the Ministry of Revenue, after careful evaluation, concluded that without ten years of restoring the artesian wells and training experienced workers, Fushi County would probably lose its former glory.
How could the empire, after a war, have the spare money to build a city in the far southwest?
The preparatory work for the reconstruction of Fushi County, which had already been progressing extremely slowly, was also halted as the war broke out again.
Unexpectedly, under Lin Hai's rule, Fu Shi County started producing salt again.
As for whether Lin Hai violated the imperial salt monopoly law, and whether Fushi County was within the imperially appointed Qinghe County, Bai Ang did not intend to discuss these issues now. Otherwise, with only a dozen followers, he would really not be able to leave Qinghe, and might even not be able to leave this market.
"How much is the salted fish?" Bai Ang asked as kindly as possible.
"Are you a local or an outsider, sir?" asked the woman who was shooing away flies.
"You didn't recognize my accent, so of course I'm from another place. Why, only locals can buy this salted fish?" Bai Ang asked curiously.
"There are no locals here. I also fled from the Chen Dynasty. The Earl of Qinghe said that it all depends on your household registration. If your household registration is in Qinghe, you are a local. Otherwise, you are an outsider. But you are right about one thing. Only locals can buy this salted fish."
The salted fish girl cleaned herself up very neatly. Although she still smelled of fish, she spoke politely and rationally. She was the most polite person to Bai Ang today. There is no harm without comparison. Lord Bai inexplicably developed some good feelings towards this girl.
"Why not sell it to outsiders?"
"Sir, you should know that the imperial salt monopoly, along with side dishes like salted fish and pickled vegetables, is regulated and not allowed to be sold by the government. Now that the Earl of Qinghe has driven out the bandits entrenched in Fushi County and rebuilt two artesian wells, we have been able to obtain some cheap salt, but we dare not sell it recklessly."
The salted fish girl raised her head and smoothed her hair, then smiled and said to Bai Ang, "It's fine if merchants from other places buy the salted fish and vegetables for themselves, but I'm worried that they might mistake them for salt and then sell them back home. If the empire investigates, I'm afraid all the local salted fish will be lost."
"Hahahaha, I see. You can rest assured. My last name is Bai, and I'm called Bai Benguan. I buy salted fish just to eat. Look, there are so many of us. A few salted fish only take up the time it takes to make a meal. I definitely won't sell them. How about selling me a few?"
"Sir, you're obviously a man who's seen the world. Naturally, you wouldn't look down on a few salted fish. However, you also know that the laws in Qinghe are strict. Even if you want to eat them yourself, I wouldn't dare sell them to you. How about this, please wait a moment. I'll ask the official from the market management office to come over. If you allow me, I'll sell you these salted fish at a low price. Just consider it as an apology to you."
Seeing that Bai Ang really wanted to buy it, the salted fish girl didn't want to lose this business, so she went to find someone from the management office on her own.
Zhao Zan looked at Bai Ang in front of him and really couldn't understand why the dignified Xiangyun prefect and assistant minister of war would be craving for a few salted fish.
Could it be that the empire's finances have reached this point?
"Bai..." Zhao Zan was about to speak when Bai Ang immediately interrupted him, "This gentleman also knows that my last name is Bai? I am truly honored.
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