Since the caravans started arriving in the spring, Zhao Tingduo has been patrolling the area every five days.
Although he could arrange for others around him to do these things, he could simply stay comfortably in the city.
But the future of Mida City is important. It is currently in the early stages of construction, and the greater its reputation, the greater the risks will be. He would only feel at ease if he led the team himself.
However, this time they encountered a caravan of thousands of merchants after only three days of travel, so they escorted the caravan back.
In the tea room in the front courtyard of the city lord's mansion, Song Liyun met an acquaintance she hadn't seen in a long time.
"Uncle Wan!"
Song Liyun smiled happily.
The person who came was none other than Wan Liangjin, who had been in the capital for over a year.
Manager Wan and Song Liyun had a friendship that began with smuggling leather goods, and they also had a partnership with a luxury leather trunk shop, so they were already in the same boat.
Later, Manager Wan introduced Wan Yanming, who managed the business on Southeast Road, to Song Liyun, opening up sales channels for horn products and wool. This allowed the Wan family to enter Mida City.
After finalizing the deal, Manager Wan went to the capital to discuss the expansion of the luggage business with his family there.
Unexpectedly, Manager Wan came along as soon as Song Liyun arrived in Mida City.
After a year apart and a long journey, Manager Wan has lost a lot of weight, but he is still in high spirits and full of vigor.
Upon seeing Song Liyun, he bowed and greeted her, saying, "I, Wan, have come to see the young mistress. I was away from home and unable to attend the wedding of the young mistress and the young master in person. I apologize for that!"
Before Song Liyun's wedding, the Wan family had sent gifts in advance. What Steward Wan was saying at this time was simply that they had not gone to the Wuda tribe to attend the ceremony.
Song Liyun didn't care about such things and said with a smile, "Uncle Wan, why be so formal? The set of jewelry you gave me is already quite valuable!"
Zhao Tingduo also said, "Manager Wan, you're too kind. The ox horns sold by Wan Family Trading Company have already solved the predicament of our tribe. I am extremely grateful."
The tribe has as many cowhides as there are cow horns.
Although there are leather products, they require skilled craftsmen, and ordinary people have little use for cow horns.
But Wan Jia and Lin Qingyuan ground the piles of ox horns into horn combs and ornaments, which were sold far and wide in Wu Dynasty, and the supply could not meet the demand.
The Uda tribe collected the horns of cattle and sheep from other tribes, turning waste into treasure, and actually sold them for a thousand taels of silver.
Even though Steward Wan was usually calm and composed, he couldn't hide the pride on his face after being thanked by Lord Mida.
The Uda tribe earned a thousand taels of silver; the Wan family will only earn more.
When the accounts were being finalized at the end of the year, the gleaming numbers on his notebook were the envy of the other branches of the family.
After exchanging a few polite words, the three finally got down to business.
Steward Wan said, "Young Madam, you once asked us to buy some servants for you. A year has passed, and I have finally found some. I have brought them to you this time!"
Song Liyun asked in surprise, "You brought them? How many do you have? What are their skills?"
Before her marriage, she mentioned to Steward Wan that she wanted to help buy a few servants who were skilled in farming.
Such people are rare and hard to come by. She forgot about it after saying it, but unexpectedly, Steward Wan actually brought her all the way to Mida City.
When Song Liyun asked how many people there were and what skills they knew, Manager Wan felt a little uncomfortable. He cleared his throat before saying, "They're just kids, they don't know any skills!"
"Huh?" Song Liyun was puzzled. She wanted a craftsman, so why was a child sent instead?
When she saw a string of little kids being led in single file, she was dumbfounded.
Twenty children of all ages were standing in the front yard.
The oldest was eight or nine years old, and the youngest was only five. Although they were not disheveled after the long journey, they were still very thin and had messy hair.
Looking at the children who were staring at her timidly, Song Liyun asked, "What are your names? Who else is in your family?"
No one spoke.
Song Liyun pointed to the oldest boy and said, "What's your name? How old are you? Come out and talk!"
The boy bit his lip and stepped out of the crowd, kneeling on the ground to reply, "Madam, my name is Xiao Ba, I am eight years old. My family suffered a disaster and had no food, so we were sold..."
His voice choked with emotion, and tears welled up in his eyes. His grandparents were sick from the cold, and he and his sister had been replaced with charcoal.
Upon hearing about the disaster, Song Liyun nodded without asking any further questions. She simply instructed Di Nu Shayi to take the children to the dining hall to eat something first, and then to the large bathhouse to clean themselves.
If there are any problems, Manager Wan will explain, and Song Liyun will also have to hear why he sent these children, who are considered a burden, here.
After the children left, Manager Wan began to explain in detail.
It turned out that these children were sent by Wan Yanming from Southeast Road.
Winters on Southeast Road are not usually too cold. The coldest period lasts only one month, with little snow and a lot of rain. You can just tough it out, so each household prepares a small amount of firewood to get through the winter.
Last year, however, the winter rains were relentless, and hundreds of thousands of people were shrouded in torrential rain for months. Not only were the woodpile soaked, but there wasn't even a single dry branch in the forest to start a fire.
Those who were slightly better off would spend money to buy charcoal, while those who were poor would all hide under the covers.
There was no fire to warm them, and not a drop of hot soup to drink.
The stove and pot were cold, the outhouse leaked, and even the beds and bedding were wet. In the cold rain and wind, the elderly and children kept getting sick.
The roads were muddy and difficult to traverse, making transportation challenging. Charcoal prices soared, far exceeding those of grain, making life extremely difficult for both city dwellers and villagers.
Food is no longer the most important thing; heating is the key.
The practice of exchanging people for charcoal arose as a result. A boy could exchange for 300 jin of charcoal, while a girl could only exchange for 200 jin.
The charcoal obtained from exchanging these children is enough for a family to drink hot water and cook some rice porridge to last until spring.
There was another reason why the Wan family chose these children for Song Liyun.
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