Chapter 295 His Ties
After a moment of stalemate, He Jinghui sighed and said, "I'm not stopping you from going."
"But if you leave tonight, the whole capital will know about it. What do you think His Majesty will think?"
"Qi Xiu, you have never been so impulsive in the past. What's wrong with you now?"
Mu Nanzhao's eyes were heavy, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
"I also know how I got to where I am today. Even if I don't want to sacrifice my life, I have to take you into consideration."
All those who risked their lives to follow him, close friends and allies like He Jinghui and Huo Jiang, as well as Gu Xixi and Huachi Ducun...
He Jinghui was startled, "So what do you want?"
Mu Nanzhao said, "I'm in a bad mood, so I plan to run a few laps at the Jinwu Guard's training ground."
He Jinghui breathed a sigh of relief, but he almost fainted. He reached out to hold on to the wall, "Oh my God."
"I was thinking, what if you really go crazy and get angry and I can't stop you, and I can't beat you? Fortunately, it's okay."
Mu Nanzhao led the horse towards the corner gate.
He Jinghui said weakly, "What are you doing again?"
Mu Nanzhao: "Go home and sleep."
He Jinghui hurriedly chased after him, "Wait a minute! It's curfew, I have to sleep at your house for one night!"
…
During the New Year holidays, Gu Xixi's family drank tea every day.
Finally, three varieties with the best flavors were selected. They were slightly inferior to the Pu'er tea that Gu Xixi had bought from the tea merchant before, but as long as they were stored and fermented for a while, they should be almost the same.
An Qinghe had been eyeing the tea business for a long time, but although he had found the right method of making tea, he lacked the raw materials.
He asked Gu Xixi, "So are you going to plant more tea trees next?"
Gu Xixi nodded, "If you want to do this business, you can control the raw materials in your own hands, which can greatly reduce costs."
"Let's do what we are good at. I will grow tea, and you will be responsible for making and selling it."
An Qinghe was very happy, "Yes, I think so too."
"But if you want to build a large tea garden, it may not be easy to choose a site or buy land."
"The Seedling Chamber of Commerce has sufficient financial resources, but I don't want them to get involved. I'm afraid that you will be constrained by the Chamber of Commerce in your future work."
Gu Xixi thought of what Jiang Mingyuan had said before, and pondered, "If we can persuade the government, get support from the government, and reclaim the wasteland, plus our investment, maybe it will be feasible."
"Then the tea traders can directly get the tea permits issued by the government."
“If we can go one step further and have the status of official tea, we can naturally be selected as tribute tea.”
An Qinghe was a businessman, so he naturally knew that it was not easy to get along with the government.
But once it's done, it's like getting a pass to do business.
An Qinghe asked, "Do you have a candidate for the job?"
Gu Xixi said, "Jiang Mingyuan."
She looked straight at An Qinghe and said, "If this matter has any clues, I will go to the capital in the spring."
"The capital?" An Qinghe frowned, then understood. "The capital has the most prosperous trade routes, and it concentrates the best goods of the Daye Dynasty. You want to go there to see more, compare more, and consider what grade our Fu tea is?"
Gu Xixi said seriously, "Yes, after the inspection, I can decide which varieties of tea trees to plant in the tea garden."
"You can also consider how to choose the tea trade route in the future."
An Qinghe said excitedly, "I will go with you. First, I can protect you on the way. Second, I also want to understand the tea drinking habits and tastes of the people in Beijing."
"In the northwest, the tea bricks needed must be strong in flavor, cheap, and durable. What are the needs of people in Beijing?"
Gu Xixi had no reason to refuse, so she agreed, "Okay, I'll write to you in the spring and make an appointment."
She stood up and sighed, "Looks like my New Year's Day is over."
The next morning, An Qinghe set out back to Yunling.
Thinking about the big things that would happen in the future, he had to finish the work at hand, organize all his property, and wait for Gu Xixi to call him.
Gu Xixi went to Qingtian County alone that day.
Jiang Mingyuan was the county magistrate at the time. When he heard that Gu Xixi was coming, he immediately came out from the back hall to greet her in person.
"Xixi sister, you came to me."
Gu Xixi nodded, "Yes, I do have something to discuss with Brother Zichu."
Jiang Mingyuan said politely, "Please come in."
In the back hall of the county government office, Jiang Mingyuan listened to Gu Xixi's ideas on developing a tea garden and thought for a long time.
"The northwest is poor, and the imperial court has exempted taxes for two years. The county government's public funds are already somewhat insufficient."
"If the county government can generate some income, and at the same time establish a local tea garden, prosper the tea trade, and open up trade routes, it will also have a ripple effect on the local economy."
"But this matter..."
Gu Xixi asked, "Brother Zichu, if you have any concerns, please speak frankly."
Jiang Mingyuan said, "I can mediate in front of the county magistrate, but Boss Gu needs to come up with something convincing."
Gu Xixi said, "This is easy. I have a small tea garden right in the farm you visited last time."
"If the county magistrate is interested, you can come and see it in person to prove that I can grow tea trees in the northwest."
"In addition," she took out a piece of tea cake, "please ask the county magistrate to taste it together."
Jiang Mingyuan smiled, "You really thought of convincing me. You came prepared."
Gu Xixi also joked, "Giving homemade tea to my brother to drink shouldn't be considered bribery."
Jiang Mingyuan smiled, "Of course not!"
Farm outside the city.
Chen Dafu was holding a working ox in his hand, smiling even happier than during the Chinese New Year.
"From now on, it will be our good friend!"
Widow Wu, Mrs. Wu, and their two daughters, who were introduced by Chen Dafu to look after the farm, surrounded the ox and looked at it curiously. "Such a big ox, and it's in its prime. It must have made a lot of money, right? Our boss is really willing to spend money!"
Chen Dafu's wife's surname was Tao, and she also came to the farm with her husband to work.
Chen Dafu kept his eyes glued to the oxen, fondly touching the firm muscles of the oxen, and said with a smile: "The boss said that this is called giving up in order to gain."
"If the boss didn't have such foresight, how could we three share 21 acres of land? We simply wouldn't be able to do it!"
"This year the boss wants to use the wheat planted in the spring, just wait and see!"
In addition to the farm and the six acres of land nearby, Gu Xixi spent a huge amount of money to buy a working ox.
He also drew the blueprints himself and paid someone to make several labor-saving farm tools.
These were what she planned to accomplish before going to the capital.
Each person who subcontracted the land took turns using the oxen, and with the addition of various labor-saving farm tools, farming efficiency could be greatly improved while saving manpower.
So accordingly, Gu Xixi reduced the share of each acre of land appropriately.
Even so, because there were more of these lands, the three employees' total benefits would eventually increase compared to the past, so they naturally had no objection.
As the host, Gu Xixi also earned more.
Just as the party was getting lively, Gu Xixi arrived and asked with a smile from afar, "Has Uncle Chen brought the oxen back?"
Several people looked in the direction of the sound and were all surprised.
Mrs. Wu's two little maids ran over excitedly, "Auntie Xixi is here!!"
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