Chapter 560: Salt Production, Silkworm Rearing, and Grain Cultivation (Part 1) [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
Absolutely no surprise.
Xu Quan was hit on the forehead with a stick.
This amount of force was like a tickle to a martial artist with a fearless heart. He covered his forehead and said, "You're getting angry already?"
Zhao Wei didn't make a move this time, but he ground his back teeth loudly: "After you finish your shift today, go for a walk around the training ground!"
Xu Quan muttered, "Then you still can't beat me..."
The next sentence, spoken in a louder voice: "General Zhao is also not here."
Zhao Wei couldn't summon her own father to fix the match.
Seeing that Zhao Wei was about to lose her temper, Liao Jia stepped forward to smooth things over. He watched coldly; Xu Quan and Zhao Wei did have a good relationship, and if a fight really broke out, the former wouldn't actually use his martial arts skills to bully someone, but he couldn't make a move in front of the government office.
Xu Quan only realized it was getting late after Liao Jia reminded him.
He hurriedly ran to the government office.
Liao Jia comforted Zhao Wei: "It's never too late for a young lady to take revenge. You've suffered a small loss today, but who knows if you can't get your revenge in the future?"
Zhao Wei's anger had not yet subsided.
Her knuckles turned white from gripping the gun so tightly. She wasn't angry at Xu Quan's teasing; what truly infuriated her was his "fearlessness"—his confidence in offending people without fear of threats. In contrast, she could only rely on her father.
Liao Jia's words of comfort only made her more emotional, and she stomped her foot in anger, saying, "How can I get revenge? Marry him and ruin his family for three generations? If I were my father, I would tear his mouth apart if he dared to talk so recklessly! Let's see if he dares to be so ruthless next time..."
Liao Jia: "...No, there's no need to go to such extremes."
He just has a sharp tongue, it's not like we have any deep-seated hatred.
With the morning meeting about to begin, Liao Jia didn't want to linger outside, so he let Zhao Wei have her own time and entered the government office's council hall with Qi Shan. Qi Shan said, "This young lady Zhao, are you perhaps Zhao Dayi's beloved daughter? How did you run into her?"
Based on Zhao Wei's appearance, surname, and her relationship with Xu Quan, Qi Shan guessed her identity with a high degree of accuracy.
Liao Jia said, "Naturally, we met on the way. She said she didn't like the arranged marriage her family was trying to arrange, so she ran away. The Zhao Dayi you mentioned, is it Zhao Feng under Wu Xian's command? Ha, he really is from a military family. No wonder he could raise such a temperamental young lady."
Qi Shan: "A newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger."
In this chaotic world littered with the corpses of the starving, even relatively strong men dared not easily leave their homes, fearing they would become someone's prey. Those who were lucky enough to survive would be treated as refugees, forcibly conscripted into the army, and die in some battle between friend and foe.
Liao Jia, on the other hand, greatly admired Zhao Wei.
He said, "Perhaps it's a case of like father, like daughter."
Qi Shan's eyelids twitched, and she glanced at him.
Liao Jia said, "Before I came to Longwu, I went to the River Governor. I wanted to meet an old friend, but he wasn't there. To make things easier, I planned to borrow his seal, but he valued a few family letters more. I inadvertently learned that my lord is actually a woman."
Qi Shan guessed who the old friend Liao Jia was referring to was, most likely Xu Wenzhu. However, he felt a slight sense of disappointment—Liao Jia knew his lord's gender in advance, so he wouldn't see Liao Jia's surprised and astonished expression in the future.
"After entering Longwu, I met that young man surnamed Lu again, or rather—should I call her Lady Lu? But she is clearly a martial arts master! And last night, Ning Tunan, who is clearly a woman, yet has condensed a third-grade literary heart..."
Liao Jia then made a bold guess.
"This Zhao Wei is clearly also of excellent aptitude for martial arts, and having practiced martial arts since childhood, she hasn't wasted much of her talent and can still make up for it. I suppose that under the lord's command, the old habit of women being unable to cultivate both literary and martial talents can be broken, right?"
Qi Shan nodded in affirmation.
He added, "That's true, but she is Zhao Feng's daughter, and her situation is somewhat different from that of Xu Jie's cousin, Xu Wenshi."
Xu Quan's joining Shen Tang was an investment by Xu Jie, who was a businessman by nature and would bet on both sides. The stake was his cousin, not his own brother or son. Even if Wu Xian had objections, he could use the excuse that "Wen Shi has his own ideas" to deflect the issue.
It's an unspoken rule that large families place multiple bets.
Wu Xian cannot disrupt it either.
However, Zhao Wei is Zhao Feng's daughter, and father and daughter belong to opposing camps. Wu Xian already had a rift with Zhao Feng due to his two-year absence; this latest incident, aside from whether it will affect the relationship between the two families, raises concerns that it might cause doubts about Zhao Feng's stance—that would be a serious problem.
Very good!
Qi Shan began to make plans in her mind.
"Why is that?" Liao Jia's expression suddenly became somewhat unfathomable. "Because our lord herself is also a woman?"
He then asked, "If the holder of the Imperial Seal is of a certain gender, then those of the same gender under her rule will have the opportunity to unite in both literary and martial spirit—so, you men, aren't you worried that your alchemy palace might be damaged if you join her? How can you still recruit so many scholars to serve you?"
This is something Liao Jia has never been able to understand.
Qi Shan does know.
only--
This answer was not kind to Liao Jia.
"Perhaps it's because of the word 'identification'."
Liao Jia's face immediately turned as cold as frost.
"Agreement?" His tone turned cold, and his eyes became slightly bloodshot. "Ha, what a fine agreement."
Qi Shan rebuked, "Control your emotions."
Even if you want to go crazy, consider the occasion!
He understood why Liao Jia suddenly lost his composure.
It's a sad story to tell.
Liao Jia's identity was awkward, and he suffered a lot of bullying in his childhood. The only kindness and warmth he ever felt came from the young female tutor in his household. He was able to start his education smoothly because she took pity on him and extended a helping hand, giving him the opportunity to show his talent and be nurtured.
Later, to realize her ambitions, the female teacher chose to serve the illegitimate prince of a neighboring country, devising strategies and working tirelessly behind the scenes to help him ascend the throne. However, she ended up confined within high walls, ultimately dying in despair, like a flower waiting for death.
On his deathbed, he wrote a letter entrusting his orphan to Liao Jia.
only--
Liao Jia, however, was unable to bring the female teacher's daughter out: "How can you take what belongs to someone else if it has already been discarded like trash?"
What truly made Liao Jia resentful was—
If "recognition" can give both men and women under one's command the opportunity to unite in both literary and martial spirit, then this means that female teachers, or women like them who choose to serve in government, cannot earn "recognition" even if they assist without reservation and are loyal to the end.
How ridiculous!
How tragic!
How cold-hearted and arrogant that person in power is! From beginning to end, he treats them as playthings that he can take into his harem at will, to be controlled and defiled, rather than as advisors who can earn his respect.
After the two finished their secret conversation, Shen Tang arrived just in time. Seeing that everyone had arrived, he got straight to the point and said his plan: "After the previous battle, the border defenses are now secure. The Ten Crows have lost their channels for smuggling and plundering, so the prices of cloth, salt, and grain are bound to rise sharply."
"Does the lord mean to buy from elsewhere at a low price and then resell to Shiwu? That would probably result in a loss."
Simply calculating the cost of goods is not enough; you also have to factor in the costs of labor and time. This money isn't so easy to earn.
In this day and age, even landlords don't have surplus grain.
Acquisitions aren't something you can just do with money.
Shen Tang laughed, "How could that be? How much effort does it take to buy and sell? And how much profit can you make? The most profitable business in the world is one with no capital. How much profit can a business with capital make? I didn't sleep a wink last night and discovered that the 'Tiangong Kaiwu' (The Exploitation of the Works of Nature) contains records of incantations on sericulture and textiles, as well as salt extraction technology far superior to what we have now. Perhaps we can make use of that. Even if the incantations don't work, if we can learn a few techniques, wouldn't that reduce the cost? As for grain, that's actually the easiest problem to solve..."
Even without "Tiangong Kaiwu" (The Exploitation of the Works of Nature), there is still Lin Feng, who possesses "Qimin Yaoshu" (Essential Techniques for the Common People). Longwu County is catching up with the spring planting season, and its food supply for this year and even next year can be temporarily self-sufficient. The grain that Lin Feng has prepared can be transported to Shiwu, and he will share 10% of the profits with her in return.
(End of this chapter)
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