Transportation team
The elite cavalry wiped out Black Tiger Stronghold with minimal effort, although many bandits were "scared away" in the process.
Xie Zhuo thought Fu Zhi Qiao was only going to recruit Cheng Ye Xuan, but he didn't expect her to be so bold as to recruit over a hundred bandits.
Xie Zhuo wondered if he had become an accomplice to evil.
"It's actually a good thing that I've recruited the mountain bandits! It's avoided a life-or-death battle and minimized casualties on both sides, isn't that a good thing?"
Xie Zhuo could not deny that only a dozen or so members of the elite cavalry were injured in this bandit suppression operation, and none of them were in mortal danger.
The enemy was annihilated while our army suffered only minor injuries. Such a victory is something to be proud of at any time. Although Xie Zhuo admitted that Fu Zhi Qiao's argument had some merit, it still caused a great conflict with his worldview.
Seeing his expression, Fu Zhiqiao felt a little guilty and repeatedly assured him that she was not letting wolves into the house and that she would definitely keep them in check so that they would not come out to harm the people again.
"Turning away from evil and turning to good is the right path. Heaven has a benevolent heart, so let's give them a chance to reform!"
Fu Zhiqiao still remembered Master Dongjue telling her, "Doing good deeds and accumulating virtue will bring blessings." She wasn't sure if what she did counted as doing good deeds and accumulating virtue, but because she played a role in the process, neither the Swift Cavalry nor the Black Tiger Stronghold suffered major losses, avoiding a lot of unnecessary casualties, which was a good thing in a way!
After successfully suppressing the bandits, the elite cavalry returned to the capital.
Before leaving, Xie Zhuo left her a letter, instructing her to keep an eye on the bandits and prevent them from causing trouble, to take good care of herself, and to write to him if anything happened. He also said that he would definitely take responsibility for her.
Men and women should not touch each other. Since he has held someone's hand and put his arm around someone's body, he naturally has to take responsibility.
Xie Zhuo felt a sweet warmth in his heart. He was thinking that once he returned to the capital and settled in, he would bring her over and protect her under his wing...
Fu Zhi Qiao took it as a simple farewell letter and didn't think about it too much, because she had more important things to do.
*
Establishing a transportation team was an idea she had had for a long time.
The Great Wei did not offer transportation services, so she had to pay for people to transport the grain and wine jars she bought herself. The winery was located in the countryside, and each time the wine was transported to the city, it was a journey of forty or fifty miles. Each shipment required hiring bodyguards, and these expenses amounted to a considerable sum.
She also runs a liquor store, which requires significant transportation capacity due to the need to purchase raw materials, source goods, and deliver them.
Although the establishment of the guard team helped alleviate some of the pressure, the guard team still had to patrol and had their own duties to perform.
The price of Taibai liquor is high, and it's hard to guarantee that no one will be tempted to do bad things. Hiring bodyguards long-term is also not cost-effective. She's tired of entrusting her life to others, given the issues of escort fees, task allocation, and liability division in case of accidents.
Now that Taibai Wine Shop's business is gradually expanding, if she cannot establish her own influence, she can only develop within a radius of several dozen miles, which is too limiting. Her goal is not limited to Qingzhou.
She currently has enough money to support the transportation team's expenses, and for long-term planning, it is necessary to establish her own freight fleet.
A transportation fleet that is entirely owned by itself, from vehicles to personnel.
Especially since the members were originally bandits and all had some fighting skills, this greatly enhanced the transport team's external defenses, ensuring that no one would dare to target her goods.
Once and for all.
After receiving a reply from Cheng Yexuan, Fu Zhiqiao quickly took action and planned out all the wasteland in the manor.
Her belief in Cheng Yexuan does not mean she believes in this group of bandits.
Fu Zhiqiao was worried that their wild nature would be hard to change, so she personally wrote down a code of conduct to restrain them and asked Cheng Yexuan to train them. Anyone who broke the rules was to be kicked out immediately.
Perhaps Cheng Yexuan said something, or perhaps they misunderstood that the cavalry was Fu Zhiqiao's backer. The bandits accepted what they were about to do and were no longer as arrogant as before. They were all more docile than sheep.
Having enough to eat and wear, and living a down-to-earth life, is always more meaningful than fighting and killing.
After taking in the bandits, Fu Zhiqiao didn't sit idle. He immediately allocated funds to build houses for them. Instead of letting them live in thatched huts, Fu Zhiqiao built uniform wooden houses with tiled roofs.
The estate has no shortage of land; clearing out a few plots of wasteland to build houses is a piece of cake.
Because they knew the house was for their own use, everyone worked very hard.
Since a professional transport team is to be established, foals and grain carts are indispensable.
She and Cheng Yexuan personally selected the horses for the transport team from the horse market.
Qingzhou is located in the Central Plains, not a horse-producing region. As a result, horses are a scarce resource here, and the horses circulating in the market are all from other places.
In the horse market, an ordinary horse starts at least at thirty taels of silver, not to mention the warhorses in the army; a true Akhal-Teke horse is priceless.
Horse breeding requires specific environmental conditions, and raising a good horse requires a significant investment.
First, there needs to be an open space for them to walk and run. Second, there needs to be sufficient hay and clean water. In addition to basic hay, some fine feed such as barley and oats should also be prepared.
A young horse consumes about 20 jin (10 kg) of feed per day.
There also needs to be someone specifically assigned to wash the horses, clean their hooves, and check their health regularly... In short, raising horses is very expensive, and only wealthy families can afford to keep horses.
There are many horse dealers in the horse market, and the quality of the horses varies greatly, ranging from plump and strong to sick and weak old horses, which really tests the buyer's judgment.
As the two approached, the horse trader stepped forward and asked, "Young lady, would you like to buy a horse?"
Fu Zhi Qiao nodded. She and Cheng Ye Xuan had been browsing the horse market for half an hour, but hadn't found anything they liked yet.
The horse dealer enthusiastically introduced his horses, "Young lady, you have excellent taste! All the horses here are top-quality, tall, strong, and especially their jumping and running abilities are simply superb!"
Pointing to a group of horses behind him, the horse trader said proudly, "How about that? Take a closer look. These days, it's rare to see such young and strong horses."
Fu Zhiqiao glanced over and saw that the horse had a glossy coat, strong and long limbs, and evenly distributed muscles. She nodded to herself, thinking that it was indeed a fine horse!
She reached out and stroked the horse's back. The horse was very sensitive and, sensing someone touching it, it raised its front hooves and neighed.
Fu Zhiqiao was very satisfied with its strength and quick reaction.
As a professional, Cheng Yexuan examined the horse's teeth: "It's under three years old, so it's fine for pulling a cart."
Seeing that he was a connoisseur of horses, the horse trader immediately stepped forward and chimed in, "That's right, these are all young horses. Look at their limbs, how sturdy they are!"
Fu Zhiqiao asked, "Boss, how much is this horse?"
Sixty taels.
She cast a questioning look at Cheng Yexuan, who nodded slightly, confirming that the horses were worth the price.
Fu Zhiqiao: "Would you sell it for fifty taels?"
"Ten taels of silver off in one go?" The horse trader choked, secretly observing Fu Zhi Qiao's clothes. They were all made of the finest materials, and she wasn't poor. Why was she bargaining so fiercely?
Cheng Yexuan also glanced at her in surprise, seemingly not expecting her to bargain.
Fu Zhi Qiao could easily sense such an obvious look. She secretly rolled her eyes. She may be rich, but who would complain about having too much money? She should save where she can. She had to be frugal to make ends meet!
The horse trader whispered, "Young lady, do you know that things are not peaceful in the Northwest lately? The war at the front is intense, and horses are in short supply. These are all fine steeds, worth the price!"
Can I get a discount if I buy a lot?
"How much would you like to buy, young lady?"
"I want all six of your horses."
The horse trader's eyes lit up; a big customer had arrived. "Fifty-eight taels!"
"Fifty-two taels."
"No, no, I can't afford to lose money if the price goes up even further!" the horse trader said with a bitter face.
"If it doesn't work out, then forget it. Besides me, who else could buy all your horses in one go?" Fu Zhi Qiao glanced at him, then turned her face away indifferently, as if she was going to look at other horses.
"Hey, young lady, don't go!" The horse trader was anxious. He had been at the horse market for so long, and many people had taken a liking to his horses, but in the end, none of them chose to buy them because of the price. He turned his gaze to Cheng Yexuan, trying to get this knowledgeable horse expert to approve his price.
Aside from saying a few words when selecting horses, Cheng Yexuan remained silent the rest of the time.
It seemed the young lady from before was the one in charge, so the horse dealer immediately made the decision: "Considering your sincerity in buying the horse, it'll be fifty-five taels, no less!"
The horse trader looked miserable; this young woman was inexplicably putting a lot of pressure on him.
As someone who frequently negotiates, bargaining is a basic survival skill for Fu Zhi Qiao!
The essence of haggling is a psychological tug-of-war between the buyer and the seller.
For example, we can first offer a low price to test the other party's bottom line. This way, we can find out if our price is within the other party's acceptable range. If not, we can then gradually raise the price from the low point and negotiate with the other party.
Only by firmly grasping the initiative can you make the other party follow your rhythm!
Sure enough, she cut off five taels of silver for each horse.
Each horse cost fifty-five taels of silver, and Fu Zhiqiao bought a total of six horses.
Yinxing followed behind and paid the bill.
After buying the horse, the two turned onto another street and bought a mule.
Compared to horses, mules are much cheaper, costing only five or seven ounces. Although mules are not fast, they have great endurance, so buying some to carry heavy loads around the estate is a good idea.
After the horses and mules were bought, they were handed over to a specialist for care. Fu Zhiqiao built a stable for the horses and also assigned a special horse breeder.
At the same time, Cheng Yexuan also conducted selections within the bandits. Those with strong fighting skills and great strength were assigned to the transport team, while the rest were assigned to the manor to cultivate wasteland according to their abilities. She needed more land to grow sorghum.
Before the bandits officially entered the winery, Fu Zhiqiao had a task to give them.
The plum season is almost here, so it's a good time to ask this group of people to pick plums.
Fresh, green plums hang from the branches, emitting an enticing fragrance; the heavy fruit bends the branches low.
A group of people carrying baskets walked among the trees picking plums. For the plums that were hard to reach from high up, they used long, thin bamboo poles to knock them off the branches, and the plump plums fell to the ground with a soft rustling sound.
Picking green plums, packing green plums, carrying green plums—everyone was doing their part, working enthusiastically.
Several open-air thatched sheds were set up on the open ground outside the orchard. The picked green plums were sorted here. Smaller ones or those damaged by birds were discarded. The plump and good-looking green plums were selected and then transported back to the winery for processing.
When the first batch of green plums was transported from the orchard, the plum wine production facility finally became lively.
A group of female workers were already eager to get started.
The picked green plums are first rinsed with water to remove surface dust, then a whole basket of green plums are submerged in salt water to soak. The rinsed plums are all covered with glistening water droplets. Finally, they are placed in the sun to dry and the process is complete.
The subsequent processes require secret brewing inside the factory, which is not open to ordinary people.
A group of former bandits cast envious glances at the female worker, thinking that one day they would become one of their own.
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