Chapter 59: Did you take her to rob money to gain her trust?
The bows and arrows were old items that had been sold in Kyoto before. They were also the old items that Kong Fan and Sun Gui had secretly destroyed in exchange for money. After being traded elsewhere, they were to be transported to a designated location.
However, they were intercepted by a group of bandits when passing through Qingyao Mountain. The leader Xie Zhao then forged the bowstring according to the habits and terrain of the Baita people, forming their own weapon.
People who have lost contraband dare not report it to the police for fear of causing trouble, and can only swallow their loss in silence.
Xie Zhao ordered Bai Tu to settle Lu Tingwan. As soon as Lu Tingwan left the main hall, he heard Bai Tu and Xie Zhao discussing to pawn the goods and exchange them for property.
Lu Tingwan spent one night in Baita Village. Based on the constant wind blowing all night, she guessed that Baita Village was located in the lower valley of Qingyao Mountain.
She didn't sleep well that night. She was just passing through and would soon reach Jiangling and return home for the New Year.
She never expected to fall into the hands of thieves. Xie Zhao and Bai Tu wanted her to work for Bai Ta Village. Just based on the little skills she showed, they decided to keep her. It can be imagined that Bai Ta Village is in great need of people, and they want unfamiliar faces.
Once you enter Baita Village, it will be difficult to get out.
Lu Tingwan tossed and turned on the straw couch, unable to fall asleep. After half waking up and half asleep, she seemed to be back in Zhichunli and saw Luo Yunchu.
At first, the elegant young man in the dream was holding a fan and smiling at her. But when she came closer, the gentle smile suddenly turned ferocious.
She wanted to retreat, but found there was nowhere to retreat. To her left were Lu Mingqian and Lu Tingwu. Lu Tingwu stretched out her hand and called to her, "Ah Wan, come here, come to my sister."
Lu Mingqian said solemnly and fiercely, "Unfilial daughter, get back here right away."
Behind them stood the graceful Queen Mother Jiang, and behind her were countless guards who wanted to take her life. "Capture this woman and wait for her punishment."
Cheng Xianzhi stood on her right, his face expressionless. He only raised his eyes, and without saying a word, Lu Tingwan retreated repeatedly, still thinking about the divorce papers in her dream. Suddenly, Cheng Xianzhi took out a piece of paper and led her over. "Lu Tingwan, the divorce papers you asked for are here!"
Lu Tingwan happily stood up to get it, but halfway through, Gongsun Xue drew her knife and stabbed her in the heart, then proudly took Cheng Xianzhi's arm. The two of them were very close, and he looked down at her with a mocking look on his face.
She had no way to go, so she could only stagger and crawl towards the cliff behind her. Just as she was about to jump, there was a knock on the wooden door.
Lu Tingwan was sweating profusely due to the convulsion. The window frames were still creaking, and the urging voices outside the door continued.
"Sister Jiang, the boss wants you to go to the main hall. Are you up?"
The voice sounded like that of a person who was just over ten years old. Lu Tingwan opened her eyes and shook her head. The morning light was dazzling. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and only realized that she was in Baita Village after she came to her senses.
She dragged herself to remove the bolt, and a cold wind blew in her face, the chill making her completely sober.
There actually are children in Baita Village. Could it be that they captured them?
"Sister, come with me."
To walk from the thatched cottage to the main hall, one has to pass through a street. Although the street is small, it is no different from the towns at the foot of the mountain. There are steaming buns, fragrant and greasy pancakes, and hot soup just out of the pot.
A group of bandits crossed the main street and headed towards the main hall. The villagers greeted them warmly and offered them food.
The relationship between the villagers of Baita Village and the bandits is not incompatible.
Lu Tingwan inspected the surroundings and found that Qingyao Mountain was surrounded by mountains, and there were many rocks on the ground, making it unsuitable for farming.
The winter wind and frost are heavier than at the foot of the mountain, and survival is not easy. Perhaps these villagers have lived here for generations. As to whether the bandits came later or something else, she doesn't know yet.
"Little sister, you said the boss wanted me to come over. Is he usually nice to you?"
The child replied, "Thank you, brother, for being so kind to us. My mother said that if it weren't for you and Mr. Bai, we would all have starved to death in Baita Village."
The child’s words might be believed. Looking at the villagers, they were not afraid of the bandits, but rather showed respect.
The street was not long, and they soon reached the main entrance of the main hall. Lu Tingwan went in alone.
Outside the main hall, Bai Tu was checking the items intercepted yesterday. Judging from the traces left by the escort vehicle yesterday, this batch of goods was not heavy.
"The boss said that after we go down the mountain to sell this batch of goods today, we must quickly find someone to exchange money for some food, otherwise the food stored in the village will not be enough to feed so many people." Bai Tu ordered his subordinates to load the truck.
Lu Tingwan was brought into the main hall, and Bai Tu glanced at her back.
Xie Zhao had breakfast, a bowl of millet porridge with a few buns.
"Here they come." He waved his hand and his subordinates retreated.
"What is it that the boss wants me to come here?"
Xie Zhao didn't rush to answer, but waved for her to come over and sit down.
This man usually doesn't wear a mask, so why was he wearing one when I saw him yesterday?
Lu Tingwan sat down opposite him. Xie Zhao moved the bowl of millet porridge in front of her and took a bun and took a bite.
"Did you sleep well last night?"
When he asked this, Lu Tingwan suddenly felt sore all over, and the straw couch made a noise every time he moved.
The dark circles under her eyelids told him that she hadn't slept well.
"The wind is so strong in the valley that the windows have been rattling all night. It's really not good." Lu Tingwan held the rice porridge to warm his hands.
Xie Zhao curled his lips and put the remaining half of the bun into his mouth, eating one in two bites.
Seeing that Lu Tingwan still didn't eat, he simply handed over another bun.
Lu Tingwan took it and took a bite.
"Don't you ask me why I asked you to do something when I asked you to stay here?" Xie Zhao rested his feet on the bench, one hand on his knee, and looked at her.
Lu Tingwan put down the buns and said, "I'm here. It seems that no matter whether I ask or not, the boss will ask me to do something. I don't seem to have a choice."
Xie Zhao nodded. She was quite sensible.
He got straight to the point and said, "I want you to go down the mountain with Mr. Bai and the others and exchange yesterday's batch of goods for money, no matter what means you use."
How could he dare to entrust such an important matter to a newcomer like her, who didn't even know his background? Lu Tingwan thought for a moment and asked, "What kind of stuff is it?"
"This is the brocade from Jiaxu Cloth Shop," Xie Zhao gestured with his hands. "I want to sell it for this price, not a penny less."
Ten boxes of Yunjin for two thousand taels, this price is a bit too high.
"The boss wants me, a stranger, to find a buyer for Chairman Jia's cloth from Qingfeng County. Isn't that walking into a trap?" Lu Tingwan did not agree.
"If there is no risk, what do I want you to do?" Xie Zhaozheng stood up.
He asked her to make the trip because he valued her unfamiliar appearance. If the escort lost the goods, Jia Xu would soon receive the news. If the cloth was sold at this time, no merchant would dare to take it.
Lu Tingwan said, "How are you going to sell this batch of goods without me?"
Bai Ta Zhai has its own channels for delivering goods. If normal trade routes are blocked, there is still the black market. However, the prices in the black market are unstable, so this batch of brocade cannot be sold at the price he wants.
Xie Zhao pulled out the white blade from his waist and thrust it into the wooden table. The white blade flashed in Lu Tingwan's eyes.
"You don't need to negotiate. My brothers can't show up directly, but you can. You just need to go and deliver the goods in the name of Jia's shop."
Lu Tingwan shook her head, feeling uneasy. "The boss wants me to sell this batch of Yunjin under the Jia family's name. Since Jia Xu is the president of the Qingfeng County Chamber of Commerce, and Yunjin must be quite famous in Qingfeng County, selling it openly will only lead to trouble. Every store sells goods with their trademark on them. Why not hide the trademark here and sell it?"
"That way, we don't have to worry about people knowing that the batch of goods we sold was the one Jia Xu lost."
When it comes to doing business, Xie Zhao is not good at it and is not proficient in it. They rob the rich to help the poor, and they rob the money and goods of the wealthy. As the president of the Chamber of Commerce, Jia Xu is domineering and forces people to buy and sell. In order to make his cloth sell well in Qingfeng County, he monopolizes the market. Ordinary vendors can't even think of doing the same business with him.
"So what do you mean?"
"If you trust me, boss, I will take care of this batch of goods, but your people have to listen to me." Lu Tingwan said.
"Deal." Xie Zhao pulled out his dagger and put it back into the sheath. "But if you dare to do anything tricky, you will die!"
Lu Tingwan finished drinking the millet porridge, stood up and left the main hall.
According to Lu Tingwan's idea, after the trademarks on the ten boxes of Yunjin were removed, they were repacked into other boxes and delivered to Bai Ta Village. This was considered to be close to the confidential information of Bai Ta Village, and in this way, it would be even more difficult to get rid of it in the future.
But she is Lu Tingwan. She does not want to be trapped by the power of Kyoto, nor is she willing to be surrounded by the mountains and valleys of Qingyao Mountain.
Bai Tu and Xie Zhao would never completely trust her. At least when they were going down the mountain, Lu Tingwan was still covered with a black cloth. It was not until she came down the mountain and arrived at Fufeng Town that Lu Tingwan was able to see the light of day again.
Along the way, she thought about taking the opportunity to escape, but Bai Tu was smart and it was difficult to get rid of him.
Lu Tingwan asked them which shops they had done business with before, what kind of connections there were between each shop, and what kind of relationship they had with the Chamber of Commerce. She extracted and reorganized the information she obtained, and finally locked in on two shops that had little dealings with Jia's Cloth Shop and had a grudge against it.
Given the quality and craftsmanship of this batch of Yunjin, it is not difficult to sell it at a good price. The key is how to get people willing to accept this batch of goods.
For Lu Tingwan, this was not a difficult task. After nightfall, Bai Tu and the others rushed back to Qingyao Mountain. In the main hall, Xie Zhao looked at Lu Tingwan, who was sitting casually, leaning back in his chair, legs crossed, looking like a nonchalant mountain bandit.
He looked at the two thousand eight hundred taels in front of him.
Bai Tu and others sat separately, showing some respect to Lu Tingwan.
Xie Zhao couldn't help but ask: "I want you to sell it for 2,000 taels, and you sell it for 2,800 taels?"
Bai Tu and the others were scorned by him: "Did you take her to rob money?"
Lu Tingwan held the teacup and sipped the tea leisurely.
Bai Tu folded his hands over his chest and said jokingly, "Almost the same, but Miss Jiang's robbery is a civil one, which is different from ours."
Lu Tingwan nearly choked on his tea and coughed a few times. "The boss only allowed me to give him one penny less, but there's no rule that says I can't give him more. If you think it's too much, how about giving me the eight hundred taels?"
Lu Tingwan was confident and not afraid of his anger.
Bai Tu and the others laughed non-stop. "Miss Jiang was talking to the shop owner in such a confusing way that I, Second Master Bai, couldn't understand a thing. Before leaving, the shop owner even said cheerfully that if there were more goods next time, he would just give them to them."
Xie Zhao frowned, asked someone to put the silver away, and dismissed Bai Tu and his men. Only two people were left in the main hall.
Xie Zhao's tone was filled with warning: "Bai Tu's brain is not very good. As long as he sees money, he thinks it is a good thing. I don't care how you sold these 2,800 taels. If this brings disaster to Bai Ta Village, I, Xie Zhao, will sacrifice you, Jiang Yanli."
Lu Tingwan was unfazed by his threats and said, "The boss has become a bandit, and the government and the people are all shouting at him. Why should he be afraid of causing other troubles? Besides, I'm not that stupid. If I drag the Baita Village into the water, I will be the first to bear the brunt. Now we are in the same boat. Besides, I don't even know the way down the mountain, so what is there for the boss to be afraid of?"
"It's good that you know. I just want to remind you not to do anything that will bring trouble to yourself."
Someone outside the curtain asked to see Xie Zhao: "Boss, the thatched cottage in the south corner of the village was blown away by the wind and snow last night."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
