Chapter 355 Xu Yu, Don’t Go Away
There is no need to worry about safety when you are with Chen Jing'an.
Xu Yu concentrated on finding out the details about the salt bandits, while Sang Zhixia devoted his energy to thinking about buying land.
When the shopkeeper learned that Sang Zhixia wanted to buy land, he was surprised: "It's common to see people coming to Shu to buy salt, but I've never heard of anyone buying land."
"Don't think I'm being noisy, but I'll beg you to ask: what do you plan to do with the land you bought? You can't produce salt from that wasteland."
Sang Zhixia said with a smile: "Of course I bought the land to farm it. It has nothing to do with salt."
It is true that smuggling salt can bring huge profits, but it is also a business that puts your life on the edge of a knife.
Sang Zhixia had no intention of exchanging his life for money, and he really had no intention of doing so.
The shopkeeper was surprised and said, "Strange! This is the first time I've seen anyone want to farm in this place."
"You don't know, do you? To produce more salt here, everyone who could move used to work in the salt fields. The weeds in the fields were taller than people, and you couldn't even pull out a grain of rice."
"If you're interested in experiencing the leisurely life of farmers, you should go to the land of fish and rice. I'm afraid you won't be able to enjoy that kind of leisure here."
Sang Zhixia couldn't hold it in any longer. She held her forehead with her hand and smiled bitterly, "It's not as complicated as you think. I just want to buy some land. It doesn't matter if it's been abandoned for years. As long as it's obtained from legitimate sources, it's fine."
"Do you have any connections to help me find out?"
As for other things, the shopkeeper may not be able to do it.
But when it comes to buying wasteland, it's really not difficult at all.
The shopkeeper immediately said, "Just tell me how much you want and what your requirements are."
"As long as you can list them, I promise to find something satisfactory for you."
Sang Zhixia exhaled slowly, without making any requests, but just smiled and said, "The more the better."
"No matter how much land there is, as long as the owner comes to me with the deed, I'll take as much as I can."
The shopkeeper was so shocked by Sang Zhixia's generosity that he covered his chest and gasped.
Sang Zhixia thought for a moment and emphasized seriously: "There is only one thing, the deed must be valid, and the owner must come in person. I will not accept those with unknown origins."
Don’t bother with unsolved problems.”
As for the price...
Sang Zhixia thought about what he had seen and heard in the past few days, shook his head and sighed.
The people here are always in fear of starving to death or being hanged, and have long forgotten the value of the land that has been forgotten for many years.
As long as they see silver, no matter how much, these people will be willing to sell.
The facts were exactly as Sang Zhixia had expected.
As soon as the innkeeper announced that someone wanted to buy the land, a long queue formed at the inn's door.
These people all came to sell their land after hearing the news.
The Central Plains area was mainly based on farming. When the imperial court had strict control over the salt fields, no one was allowed to make salt in any way or sell private salt. Once discovered, it was a capital crime.
So these salt workers who now have nowhere to go used to have their own farmland in the past, the only difference was the amount.
Sang Zhixia looked down from the second-floor window and said to Ling Chu behind him, "Go down and keep an eye on it. Check the land deeds carefully and register them clearly first."
"If the title deed is correct, only half of the money will be settled today. The remaining half will be settled after we inspect the land and see if there are any problems."
When there are many people involved, things are bound to go wrong if you let your guard down a bit.
At this moment, Shu was like a frying pan with the lid forcibly closed, with various forces mixed together. Sang Zhixia didn't want to be too conspicuous and cause unnecessary trouble at this time.
Ling Chu nodded in understanding: "Don't worry, Boss, I will act cautiously."
"Okay, go ahead."
In order to keep a low profile as much as possible, Sang Zhixia did not personally appear in the purchase of the land.
Chen Jingan's manpower here is of great help.
In just one day, Ling Chu had accumulated a thick stack of booklets in his hands.
Useless wasteland can be exchanged for life-saving silver. No one would have dared to think of such a good thing before today.
Those who got the silver spread the news, and people who got the news also came one after another.
The shopkeeper, who had been busy all day, wiped the sweat from his forehead and sighed, "Today is only the first day. From tomorrow onwards, the number of people coming here will only increase. Are you really going to buy all this useless wasteland at once?"
"Why not?"
Sang Zhixia said with a smile, "They're short of silver, and I'm short of land. It's a win-win situation for both sides, isn't that a good thing?"
A large amount of land at a low price, such a good opportunity will never come back again, so Sang Zhixia will certainly not hold back.
Sang Zhixia gestured to Lingchu to give the shopkeeper a hundred taels of silver, and said with a smile: "Thanks to your help these past few days, everyone has worked hard. This is a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it, shopkeeper."
The shopkeeper kept refusing: "No, no, no."
"You are the master's guest. It is an honor for us to help you. Besides, you have already given us a reward. What should we do..."
"I'll have plenty of trouble for you to run around for while I'm in Shu, but this is nothing."
Sang Zhixia pointed to another tray that Lingchu brought out and said with a smile, "This is for the eight people below. Ten taels each. Please take it and divide it among them."
The shopkeeper didn't expect that there would be such benefits for obeying orders and helping out. He was so surprised that he thanked Sang Zhixia profusely and said a series of nice things, then walked out with the silver in his hands.
Sang Zhixia pressed her irritated brows, closed her eyes and said, "We can continue to collect the land deeds here, but we can't just blindly collect them."
"After a few days, you can prepare and we can go out of the city to take a look."
The terrain here is special. Unlike the vast plains in the northwest, the mountains are undulating, the roads are winding and uneven, and the differences between cultivated lands are also great.
Sang Zhixia was worried that the large amount of money he had spent would be wasted, so he had to go out of the city to check it out in person.
Ling Chu was not surprised by this and just said, "Young Master said before he left that he would be back in five days at most."
"By the time the young master returns, we should have a rough idea of what's going on here."
Sang Zhixia thought about it and nodded and said okay.
Just as Lingchu was about to leave, Sang Zhixia suddenly said, "The imperial envoy sent this time has a surname of Zhao. What's his name?"
"Zhao Zhongquan."
Ling Chu lowered his head and said, "Zhao Zhongquan is the old Grand Tutor and the highest-ranking official among the three imperial envoys from Shu."
Sang Zhixia rubbed his fingertips thoughtfully, lowered his eyes and asked, "Where are Zhao Zhongquan and the others now?"
"At the Gongyuan Salt Works."
Gongyuan Salt Field...
Sang Zhixia tasted these words on her tongue, and she had a guess about Xu Yu's whereabouts. She exhaled and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, five days will be about the right time."
"Go back and prepare. If Song Liu sends back any news about your young master, remember to tell me in time."
Ling Chu was surprised by Sang Zhixia's sharpness. He was stunned for a moment before quickly lowering his head in response.
After Lingchu left, Sang Zhixia couldn't help but look down at the jade buckle hanging around her neck. The corners of her lips tightened as she murmured silently, "Xu Yu, don't let anything go..."
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