The first snow has already fallen in northern Mobei. Qi Wenhan has been extremely busy lately, leading his team to inspect the situation everywhere, showing concern for the people's plight, and fearing that a snow disaster might occur again this year.
I didn't have any free time until three days later.
Upon learning from the steward that the Wen family steward was looking for him, he went straight to the door without even washing up. Only after entering the council hall did he discover that Manager Yu from the escort agency and Manager Mu from the clinic were both there.
He glanced at Shen Yu'an before straightening up from his bow, his tone becoming much more arrogant: "I wonder what business Young Master Wen has with me?"
Shen Yu'an stepped forward with a smile and told Qi Wenhan about his idea of ​​establishing a merchant guild. Before Qi Wenhan could process it, Shen Yu'an directly made a request: "Prefect Qi has been in Mobei for so many years, you should know which merchants in the various prefectures of Mobei are reliable."
"Reliable" is a euphemism; what he really meant was who had a grudge against Li's Trading Company.
Just like how clinics choose partners, businesses also have to choose those who have a grudge against Li's Business.
Moreover, this matter is of great importance, preferably involving a blood feud, or even a fight to the death.
Of course, this possibility is very small. After all, even if a businessman secretly wishes you were bankrupt, on the surface he still has to adhere to the principle of "harmony is the most important thing"...
Seeing Shen Yu'an looking at him with bright, sparkling eyes, Prefect Qi felt a real headache coming on.
He glanced discreetly at the unfolded screen, confirming that the young prince was behind it, before letting out a silent sigh.
He is the local official of Changzhou, not the governor of the entire northern desert!
It's fine if you ask him to find a few people in Changzhou who have a grudge against Li's Trading Company, but the entire Mobei region...
Your Highness really thinks too highly of him!
Besides, as a prefect, he wouldn't care about these merchants' affairs if it weren't for the young prince wanting to open a business.
But if he were to reveal at this moment that he knew nothing about the situation in other prefectures of the northern desert, wouldn't that be tantamount to admitting his incompetence?
The thought of the young prince looking at him with such disappointment and dejection made Prefect Qi feel uneasy...
He pondered for a moment and said, "It's best to avoid Quanzhou."
Since the Huo family's incident, the Northern Desert Army has undergone a major reshuffle. Merchants from the entire prefecture have colluded with the Northern Desert Army, which has become a secret among officials in the Northern Desert.
Therefore, once the merchants of the whole prefecture know about this, it means that the King of Chu will know that Li Ji Trading Company cannot buy salt permits, and will never allow other trading companies in Mobei to buy them. In that case, it will be the people of Mobei who suffer.
Prefect Qi silently calculated in his heart: "Of the five prefectures in the northern desert, besides Quanzhou and Changzhou, there are Qizhou, Qingzhou, and Dingzhou..."
He stared intently at Chief Secretary Xie, his meaning quite clear.
Chief Secretary Xie nodded slightly.
Dingzhou was the first prefecture we entered in the northern desert, followed by Qingzhou, Qizhou, and Changzhou. Qizhou and Qingzhou were ranked equally, but when the reward was robbed, Qingzhou did not send anyone to help, while Dingzhou, which was the furthest away, sent quite a few people.
Chief Secretary Xie immediately made up an excuse to exclude Qingzhou: "I heard that the prefect of Qingzhou has a close relationship with Li's Trading Company, so we should not contact the merchants in Qingzhou for now. We can try to contact Qizhou and Qingzhou instead."
He glanced at Manager Yu: "The bodyguards travel all over the country, they have seen a lot, and they know a lot of people. Manager Yu, go back and ask Head Bodyguard Geng."
What Chief Secretary Xie didn't mention was that after Manager Yu learned about this, he did provide a list of several merchant houses, but Chief Secretary Xie wanted double guarantees.
If a merchant is trusted by both Manager Yu and Prefect Qi, then there's basically no problem.
As they talked, Gu Yuzhi whispered to Manager Wen behind the screen. When he heard Chief Secretary Xie mention Qingzhou, Gu Yuzhi's face puffed up and he snorted, "This Qingzhou is the prefecture that didn't support us when the rewards were stolen last time. That prefect must be a big bad guy."
Having been here for over a year, Gu Yuzhi had been so busy that he had long forgotten that Qingzhou hadn't come to help. But when Xie Changshi brought it up, his temper flared up.
Gu Yuzhi's eyes darted around, and he said silently, "Manager Wen, Teacher Shu, what do you think? Should I have Xueye go and scare this Prefect of Qingzhou?"
Previously, Xie Changshi had said to remember the name so that he could seize the opportunity to kill him when he had the ability. At that time, he was only thinking about how to survive in the northern desert and did not remember the matter very well.
But now he no longer has to worry about the monthly wages of the people in his household. Shouldn't it be alright for him to take a small revenge on the prefect of Qingzhou?
Teacher Shu, of course, unconditionally supported him. After all, the prefect of Qingzhou hadn't offered any support before, which clearly showed that he didn't take Prince Gu Yuzhi seriously. He clapped his hands and said, "That's a good idea. But it's best if the young prince doesn't tell Chief Secretary Xie."
Gu Yuzhi tilted his head, his big eyes wide open, looking completely bewildered: "Why?"
"Have you forgotten how you made Guard Qi and the others put sacks on the burlap sacks last time? After Chief Secretary Xie found out, Guard Qi and the others suffered terribly."
In terms of status and position, Guard Qi was much higher than Chief Secretary Xie. He was from a prestigious family and was also a bodyguard in the imperial court. If he hadn't come to the northern desert, his future would have been bright.
Yet, even such a person would obediently accept a scolding when faced with Xie Changshi's anger, which is enough to prove how capable Xie Changshi is.
Gu Yuzhi recalled what happened that day and couldn't help but pat her chest gently with her small hand: "Teacher Shu was right to remind us, we can't let Chief Secretary Xie know."
This time he decided not to tell anyone, because Guard Qi was a bit dim-witted and Xie Changshi would notice his bad deeds immediately.
However, Xueye has gone to Xinliang now and can only do so after he returns...
Gu Yuzhi pricked up his ears to continue listening to the conversation outside, and then he heard Prefect Qi say, "Steward Xie, I went to the inn in person before I came, and there was a disturbance there."
Although the inn has not yet opened, more than 20 members of the Xu family have already moved in, cleaning and repairing the inn, and redecorating it in the style of the capital.
At this point, the original staff members of the inn who were still arguing were dumbfounded, especially the head chef.
He believed that no one in the northern desert could match his skills, but unexpectedly, the Wen family business bought people directly from the capital!
This is what it means to regret something you did wrong. This chef is a perfect example.
He disregarded everything else and started making a scene with his accountant and servants. If Qi Wenhan hadn't arrived in time with his men, a mass brawl might have broken out.
If it gets worse and there's more bleeding, then Wen's Inn should just close down!
Gu Yuzhi never expected that he had only talked to Teacher Shu and the others for a short while, and now people outside were talking about the inn.
He nimbly jumped off the chair, craned his neck to look outside, and really wanted to rush out and ask what was going on.
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