In the end, the money for the grain was not used by He Xiaoniangzi and Wang Buyou, but was instead taken by Doctor Gu.
"This was originally the money he gave me to buy medicine; I was thinking of giving it to you once he had enough."
The old man placed the silver notes on the table and pushed them to He Yi. Huo Xiaolong, who was standing next to her, pretended that nothing had happened and looked up at the sky. She knew that after Doctor Gu left, she would definitely lose her backside again.
The little dumpling was now racking her brains trying to figure out how to escape, so the woman suppressed her slight anger and said with a smile.
“This money is too much for our family to handle. General Xiao has had a tough time too, all for the sake of Great Yan. How about this, I’ll give him all this money in the form of military rations?”
Doctor Gu came here after hearing rumors of rising military ration prices. He nodded and said...
"Okay, whatever you say is fine."
We'll return the money to the Huo family once Xiao Lanyi's military pay arrives. That's the only way for now. The emperor really doesn't do anything good; he's distributing money and then causing trouble behind the scenes.
After Dr. Gu took his leave, he looked at his daughter who had run away without finding a reason.
"Huo Xiaolong?"
"Mother~"
Don't you think you should explain yourself?
"Hmm~ it's just..."
"How many times have I told you! You're not allowed to use those skills outside! Your father and brother aren't here today, let's see who you'll find to protect you!"
"Mom! Mom! My mom's going to hit me!"
He Yi chased after her with a feather duster. The little girl jumped and leaped over the wall to the brothel. The maidservant working in the backyard was already used to it.
Everything has its novelty. The initial excitement of finding the little dumpling has probably worn off. Huo Xiaolong is a bit of a troublemaker, so it's normal for him to get a beating.
Besides, Madam He wouldn't hit hard at all; she'd only hit him three or four times, then the little dumpling would cry a bit, and that would be the end of it.
"Steward Xu, you know the situation of the border troops. They are all fighting to protect their homes and country, for the sake of Great Yan. We absolutely cannot let them go hungry."
Wang Zheng, sitting in the main seat, spoke politely and reasonably to them. There was nothing he could do; even the prefect had to consider the power of these wealthy merchants from Great Yan. They had a legitimate reason for raising prices, and even if the Emperor himself came, they would still have a reason.
"Your Excellency, I am but a merchant, and so are the men behind me. If we don't make money, what are we doing here?"
The people sent to negotiate this time were all the head stewards from the mansions of various wealthy merchants. Only Wang Buyou came by himself. He had originally planned to have some fun with He Qingzhu and check the profits of Huaxuetang's other stores. Who would have thought he would get involved in this kind of thing?
The young master was unhappy. He wanted to go to the brothel for a good meal and a massage. He discovered that the plum blossom ointment at the brothel was much better than what was sold elsewhere.
Men also need to take care of themselves; they also want to stay young.
"You're the one talking, don't drag me into it. Our Wang family doesn't do this kind of opportunistic thing."
Butler Xu snorted. As expected of a spendthrift who doesn't know the value of firewood and rice, he wouldn't even bend down to pick up money that was right under his feet.
"In that case, what about the rest of us..."
"Old Xu, excuse me, but look at this? I just received some silver notes. My master said that as long as we can sell last year's stored grain at a normal price, it's fine."
Butler Liu took out a stack of silver notes and slammed them on the table, as if to say, "My family is not involved in this matter, so don't drag my family into it."
The people next to him were immediately displeased. Those of them who did accounting every day could tell at a glance how much money was on the table. Could the Liu family afford to eat all of that by themselves?
If there were a way to clear out the inventory, who would be willing to profit from the national crisis? Putting aside everything else, they couldn't live with themselves.
Not everyone is like the Xu family.
Some people might ask, since the weather is bad and the harvest is poor this year, why don't they sell their grain? The price would definitely be higher than that of military rations.
The problem is that these grain merchants who supply the military with special provisions have signed contracts with the government. All the grain they produce can only be supplied to the army. If you're not afraid of losing your head for a pittance, then sell it.
The wind suddenly shifted, and seeing that the situation was unfavorable, Steward Xu sat there silently.
The Xu family suffered in silence this time, but he will not let either the Liu or Wang families get away with it.
"Butler Xu, what do you think of now?"
"Since that's the case, then so be it. As imperial merchants, the Xu family should naturally do its part for the Great Yan."
Tsk tsk tsk, how shameless! If the people around here could visualize it, they'd be rolling their eyes to the heavens. It was your Xu family who stirred things up, and now you're the one saying nice things. You're playing both the good guy and the bad guy, aren't you?
Do they really think the prefect is a fool?
Wang Zheng smiled outwardly, but in his heart he had already wished the Xu family could be tortured to death a thousand times over.
Imperial Merchant?
You want to compete in terms of wealth, huh?
The man looked at Wang Buyou, who was leisurely drinking tea. This guy has a good family background, good strength, and good brains. Why don't we give him a hand?
After taking a few sips of tea, Young Master Wang looked at it with disdain. "What is this? Is the government office really that poor?"
Forget it, she's a bit too delicate.
"You really need to thank Ah Cen for the military rations this time. If it weren't for her, the border army would probably be starving."
"Thank you, thank you! What should I give her as thanks, Madam? Is there anything else of value we could send her?"
Hua Luan looked around and said with a pursed mouth.
"We don't seem to have anything valuable at home."
The couple sat facing each other on the kang (a heated brick bed). Hua Luan applied face cream while talking to her husband about the day's events. This had been their routine for many years.
Wang Zheng was worried that she would be bored at home, so every night when he came back he would tell her about what happened at the county government. Hua Luan would always give him advice when things were most difficult.
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