Chapter 72 The situation in Huaizhou was more complicated than Xiao Che had imagined...
After several days of travel, they finally arrived in Huaizhou.
The situation in Huaizhou was even more complicated than Xiao Che had imagined.
Their main purpose for this trip was to raise disaster relief funds to purchase grain and repair dikes, but it was clear that getting money out of the pockets of those wealthy gentry and rich households was harder than climbing to heaven.
Inside the hall, Xiao Yan rapidly flipped through the donation book in his hand, his face growing increasingly green with each flip. Finally, in a fit of rage, he threw the book to the ground and cursed loudly:
"You have the nerve to offer this little bit of silver?! If you donate silver, I'll have to host a banquet to express my gratitude. Is this little bit of money enough to host a banquet? I'd probably have to pay out of my own pocket. What's the point of donating then?!"
The wealthy and powerful men sitting around below looked at each other, their faces showing embarrassment.
Just then, a very faint "clatter" was heard. Xiao Che placed the teacup on the table, turned slightly to the side, and looked at him leisurely with a lazy smile: "Second Brother, why get so angry?"
Xiao Yan turned to look at him, his tone softening slightly: "Third brother, tell me, is this how they conduct themselves? They are all well-known wealthy merchants and gentry in Huaizhou, with generations of accumulated wealth and numerous estates and shops. Do you think they have little money? And yet they only donated this little bit? Aren't they afraid of being laughed at?"
He then turned and pointed at one of the wealthy gentlemen, coldly snorting, "Master Cui, if I remember correctly, the Cui Run and Cui Zezhi that I met at the Wan Hua Lou yesterday are your beloved sons, aren't they?"
Upon hearing this, Cui Zhang quickly stood up, cupped his hands, and replied, "This humble subject is terrified. Ze Zhi is indeed this humble subject's son."
Xiao Yan sneered, "That's it. Last night he almost fought with me for the top courtesan. Hua Yao from Wan Hua Lou is worth a thousand gold pieces for one night. What, your son has money to patronize prostitutes, but you don't have money to donate silver?"
Cui Zhang hurriedly said, "My son has always been absurd and ignorant of his own limitations. I have failed to discipline him properly and I am truly ashamed. Your Highness, please calm down. I will definitely discipline him properly when I get back."
Xiao Yan snorted coldly, about to lash out, but Xiao Che put away the black bone fan in his hand, pressed the handle against his shoulder, and said with a smile, "Second brother, calm down."
Xiao Yan was slightly taken aback. He then saw Xiao Che turn around and scan the crowd, saying, "Regardless of the amount of money you have donated, it is all out of goodwill. The Second Prince and I are grateful. The Second Prince is also concerned about the disaster victims, so please do not take offense. I think the world is in a difficult time, and you must all have your own difficulties."
These words were tantamount to offering a way out, and the wealthy gentry and merchants naturally seized the opportunity to flatter them: "Thank you very much for the Third Prince's compassionate treatment..."
"These days are tough, money is really hard to earn..."
"That's right, business is getting harder and harder, with losses year after year. Even the biggest fortune can't withstand such deficits; it's just looking good on the outside..."
"I still have a lot of debts at home, and I really don't have any money left..."
"Yes, there's been a flood and a food shortage. Every neighboring prefecture and county is driving up grain prices. I can only raise them by a mere 10%. How can I possibly make a profit?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Che raised an eyebrow slightly and said, "Then why not raise it by a few more percent?"
"this………"
The merchants looked at each other in bewilderment; Xiao Che's words had truly left them speechless.
They came here to provide disaster relief, didn't they? They didn't have money to buy food, so they tried to get them to donate silver. Now that the price of food has gone up, won't the disaster victims be even less able to afford porridge?
Thinking this, the group all looked at him with suspicion.
Xiao Che then asked, "What is the price of grain in the neighboring county?"
"Your Highness, the price was originally 100 coins per dou, but it has now risen to 120 coins per dou. However, the government has issued a notice to limit the price of grain, so it will probably fall back down soon."
Xiao Che: "Is that so? Then you can raise it to 150 coins per dou."
Everyone was stunned. They had only ever heard of the government restricting grain prices and preventing arbitrary price increases, but this was the first time they had heard of a prince sent by the imperial court voluntarily requesting a price increase: "Your Highness, this..."
Xiao Che laughed: "Didn't you say that you can't make money if you only raise it by 10%? Now that I've raised it by 50%, aren't you happy, Mr. Hu?"
Hu Feng was the biggest grain merchant in the area. No merchant is without guile, and he was naturally eager to make a fortune off this national crisis, raising prices as much as possible. However, the court's proposal to raise prices was unheard of, and he feared there might be a trick involved: "Your Highness, are you perhaps joking with me?"
"Boss Hu doesn't believe me? Tomorrow I will have the prefect post notices and spread the word along the river that the imperial court will purchase grain at a price of 150 wen per dou. This is absolutely true."
Xiao Yan's eyebrows twitched, and his facial muscles twitched slightly. He finally couldn't help but turn to look at Xiao Che and lower his voice, saying, "Third brother, what... what are you up to?"
Xiao Che simply raised his hand, picked up the teacup, took a small sip, and said, "Second Brother, don't you believe me?"
"How could I not believe you? It's just... well, never mind, you always have your own ideas, and I always believe you. Whatever you say."
Xiao Che: "As you all have heard, and since the Second Prince has no objections, this matter is settled."
These words were no joke. Hu Feng's eyes lit up, and he immediately knelt down and kowtowed to express his gratitude. The grain merchants behind him were also filled with gratitude: "Thank you, Your Highness, for your kindness. We will never forget Your Highness's great kindness and will certainly repay your kindness in the future!"
Xiao Che simply smiled and said, "You flatter me. Just remember what you said today."
Upon hearing this, the merchants exchanged knowing smiles and replied, "Of course, of course, Your Highness's kindness will never be forgotten."
It is somewhat ironic that several middle-aged men nearing fifty were saying the word "filial piety" to a twenty-year-old.
It was called filial piety, but it was nothing more than bribery.
This Third Prince, who looks like a god, is no exception to the common people.
Indeed, everyone in the world is driven by profit; who doesn't love money?
This is probably the only reason they can think of for him to do this at this moment.
Xiao Che's reaction confirmed their suspicions.
Faced with the lure of enormous profits, people tend to believe what they want to believe, deliberately avoiding delving into anything unusual. For example, at this moment, those merchants were completely convinced of Xiao Che's motives.
——
After everyone left, Xiao Yan couldn't help but ask Xiao Che, "Third brother, what are you really thinking?"
"Those tightwads are so stingy, they won't budge an inch. Instead of helping me find a way to teach them a lesson, you're helping them raise prices. Isn't that playing right into their hands?"
"You didn't see their smug faces when they left. It almost made me furious. No, why should we? We traveled all this way to raise money, just to ask them to donate some, but they're all rolling in money. Each of them didn't even donate half a tael of silver. Who are they trying to humiliate?"
"This is a blatant slap in our face! They've already gone this far, Third Brother, why are you still making them so happy?"
“The national treasury is short of funds, which is why we need to raise money to buy grain. Third brother, the money that Father Emperor allocated to us was not enough to buy grain and repair the dikes. Now that grain prices have risen, there is even less grain available. How can we provide disaster relief? What are you thinking?”
Xiao Che remained silent until he stopped talking, then he looked up at him and asked, "Are you done?"
Xiao Yan, puzzled, nodded: "I'm done."
Xiao Che then pushed the cup of tea in front of Xiao Yan a little further away: "After you've finished talking, have a sip of tea to moisten your throat, Second Brother. You've said so much in one breath, isn't your mouth dry?"
"Third brother! I'm serious."
"Second brother, as I said, please calm down."
"The fish have only just taken the bait, why are you in such a hurry?"
Xiao Che simply smiled faintly: "Let's just wait and see."
"Once we use the 300,000 taels of silver allocated to us by the Emperor to purchase grain, I will set up six new soup kitchens in Huaizhou,"
“If Second Brother is really anxious,” Xiao Che tapped his fingers lightly on the table, “then why don’t you go to Wan Hua Lou less often and help me distribute porridge?”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan fell silent. He wasn't as tolerant as Xiao Che; he couldn't be without women for even a day and loved novelty. Although the two women he had with him were quite alluring, he had long since grown tired of them after playing around with them for so long.
He had finally found a brothel called Wan Hua Lou, which had many beauties, especially Hua Yao, whose beauty was beyond compare. Every smile and frown of hers was full of charm, making him dream about her every day. Now that Xiao Che was not letting him go, wasn't that taking his life?
Moreover, most of the disaster victims who came to collect relief porridge were covered in dust and dirt. Why would he leave the beautiful and fragrant women to mingle with those people?
Why not just leave this to someone below? Why should a prince like him get involved?
Xiao Yan coughed, touched his nose, and was about to find an excuse to decline when he suddenly caught a glimpse of a pinkish-white figure at the door.
Yan Jiarou was leaning against the door frame, peeking out with half her face exposed. Her dark, beautiful eyes were fixed on Xiao Che, and she looked hesitant, as if she didn't want to go in.
Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself that he was just wondering what else to say to gloss over the matter, and now that Xiao Jiarou had arrived, wasn't this a perfect topic?
He immediately changed the subject, winked at Xiao Che, and smiled meaningfully: "Third brother, your little imperial sister is here, and she's looking at you eagerly."
Xiao Che raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, then turned his face and met Yan Jiarou's gaze.
Their eyes met, and Yan Jiarou was now exposed. Her face flushed red, and she felt guilty and embarrassed at being caught red-handed.
Since everyone had already seen her, she no longer cared about hiding. She could only steel herself and step out from behind the doorframe, head down, fingers twisting together, as she walked slowly to Xiao Che's side. She whispered, "Third Brother, have you finished your meeting? I saw they all leave..."
Xiao Che looked up at her. The little girl's clear black and white eyes were staring at him expectantly. She had come over as soon as they left, as if she had been keeping an eye on what was happening here.
It's lunchtime, and instead of eating obediently, she's here keeping an eye on them. What's the little princess up to now?
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