Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

"Sir, the Zhu family and his son are asking for a meeting, and they also brought money to buy the land."

"Ask them to go to the side hall."

"yes."

The main hall is used to receive distinguished guests. The father and son are not qualified enough to enter the side hall, which is considered a special concern for Lao Bai.

Ju Ming followed the servants along the way, observing the buildings and decorations along the way, and said quickly in a low voice in Mandarin: "The wealthy rich people in the Song Dynasty seemed to be shabby. From the outside, they looked like they occupied a large area, but once inside, it was very simple. It’s not as good as any house in the TV series.”

Zhu Guoxiang said: "Maybe it's because we are too poor here to afford good repairs."

Both father and son were carrying a basket with iron money in it, which added up to more than seventy kilograms.

For ten acres of mountainous land, the price ranges from 800 to 1,300 yuan per mu, depending on the condition and the distance to the stream. Ten acres of forest are all counted as 200 cents per acre. Total price: 12 pieces, 600 yuan.

"You two, please come in."

"Thanks for the guidance."

Old Bai had already sat down in the side hall. Because his legs were inconvenient, he asked a servant to carry him over.

In this situation, as a son, Zhu Ming could not talk too much. Zhu Guoxiang had to be responsible for the entire negotiation, so that he would be more convincing and credible.

Zhu Guoxiang bowed his hands and said: "I, Zhu Guoxiang, have met Lao Yuwai. Thanks to Lao Yuwai's permission, I sold twenty acres of firewood forest in the mountain. I will send you the money to buy the land today."

"I can't move this leg. It's really rude," said Mr. Bai, who was sitting outside and cupped his hands. "Please sit down, please, and just put your money down."

The father and son raised their hands in thanks and then put down their backpacks.

"Look at the tea!"

The old man called his servants, and without even counting the money, he just carried it away.

The tea is loose tea, which is convenient, but the group tea has to be ground slowly.

Of course, in order to show hospitality, this loose tea is not low-grade, at least it is better than what the villagers drink.

Ju Ming took a sip. It was still bitter, but the astringency was lighter.

He suddenly discovered a new market for roasted tea, which was "tea for entertaining guests". There are always some guests who come and go in a hurry and can't wait to order tea slowly. In this case, loose tea must be brewed directly, and the taste of fried loose tea is far better than that of steamed loose tea.

Two members, Zhu Guoxiang and Lao Bai, were chatting and observing each other.

They can vaguely smell each other's scent!

In Zhu Guoxiang's eyes, the old white officer gave him the impression that he was the kind of powerful old man in the department. He has met many such people, but he has no close friendship with them.

In the eyes of Lao Bai, Zhu Guoxiang's demeanor and conversation were a bit like a certain county magistrate he had served.

The county magistrate was a Jinshi. He liked to do things personally and was polite to his subordinates. But it took two full years to bring the county government officials into submission. Old Bai was forced to resign and return to the countryside. If he didn't get out, he would go to jail.

Can you detect this in a short period of time?

It may sound mysterious, but it's actually very simple. Having experienced many people or things, unless the other person is deliberately pretending, you can tell the clues at a glance, mainly by observing the expression, eyes, tone and body movements.

Of course, many people have been around for a lifetime and don’t know how to observe words and emotions.

Zhu Guoxiang didn't know how to do it when he was young. He only knew how to work hard. Later, I suffered too much and was forced to live in a way that I hated in order to grab projects. As a result, I accumulated a lot of money and started to advance step by step after the age of forty.

Old Bai Yuanwai asked: "I heard that Mr. Zhu went to sea and led a fleet to fight against pirates?"

His son had already blown his reputation, and Zhu Guoxiang could only wipe his butt: "There is no need to mention old things. Eight ships were hit by hurricanes and all sank to the bottom of the sea. Hundreds of crew members were buried in the belly of the fish. I I had a chance to escape by holding on to a mast. Alas, even the ship and its cargo, hundreds of thousands of dollars, were all wasted, leaving it like this."

Hundreds of thousands of dollars...

Old Bai Yuanwai couldn't help but be dumbfounded. His family's savings from several generations, including the house, land and shops, could barely make a fortune of ten thousand yuan.

No wonder this man, with his calm demeanor and extraordinary bearing, turned out to be a bankrupt sea merchant. The official aura he carries can be understood. It cannot be said to be official aura, but an aura of power and position. After all, he once managed hundreds of crew members and even fought with pirates with real swords and guns.

Mr. Lao Bai didn't completely believe it, so he continued to inquire: "I know that there are maritime merchants in Hangzhou. Your Majesty also went to sea in Hangzhou?"

The father and son had a serious discussion about this matter last night, and the farther away the destination was, the better.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "I am originally from Liuzhou, and have been doing business in Guangzhou since my great-grandfather's generation. In two or three generations, we gradually accumulated some wealth. At first, we traded in Cochin. Cochin bandits plundered Guangnan, and my family's ship was also robbed twice. Later, I simply sailed to the South Seas and sailed to Borneo and Java. These two places are rich in spices. Once shipped back to Guangzhou, the profit will be ten times."

"Ten times the profit?" Old Bai was unable to imagine.

The ethnic minorities in Hehuang like to drink Yazhou's famous mountain tea. But transporting it all the way from Sichuan is only three or four times the profit. Is there actually a business in the world that is ten times the profit?

Zhu Guoxiang shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Although there is huge profit, it is earned through hard work. The old man lives in the mainland, so he may not know the power of the sea. If there is a storm, the waves will rise several feet high and can smash the big ship on the spot. All the people and goods are gone. There are many hurricanes in summer. Does anyone know what hurricanes are?"

"I've heard a little about it." Old Bai had never heard of it.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "The hurricane blows from the sea and blows all the way to the land. Coastal residents all say that the hurricane is the anger of the Dragon King. When the hurricane blows, accompanied by heavy rain, it can uproot the trees in the arms."

Lao Bai said in shock: "It's hard to imagine."

Zhu Guoxiang said with emotion: "In this maritime business, many people become rich in one day, and many people lose their families overnight. Our Zhu family was ruined because of a hurricane. The elders in the family warned that the descendants can do anything in the future, but they are not allowed to do anything. Go out to sea and fight for your life again.”

Member Lao Bai asked again: "Are all the overseas stories told by Zhu Dalang true?"

Zhu Guoxiang smiled and said: "Half true and half false. Meeting the savages is true, but meeting the daughter country is false. Where in the world did the daughter country come from?"

Member Lao Bai continued to ask: "I heard that if you set sail on the sea, you can reach Zhu and Persia?"

Zhu Guoxiang suddenly stood up with a teacup in hand, dragged his chair and walked to the old member.

He dipped his fingers in tea, drew a few curves on the wooden board of the chair, and said: "Old man, look outside, this is Guangzhou, and sailing to the southwest is Jiaozhi. Then cross this strait and continue west to reach Tianzhu. As for Persia, Then go further. I also wanted to trade with Tianzhu, but there are a lot of pirates entrenched near the strait. If you have many ships, you are powerful, so you have to pay for passage. If you have few ships and are weak, the pirates will kill people and steal goods."

Officer Lao Bai was shocked, not because of the pirates, but because Zhu Guoxiang could draw the sea chart easily.

I just don’t know if this chart is true.

After talking about this, Mr. Bai already believed that Zhu Guoxiang had indeed been a maritime merchant before. He pretended to be calm, nodded and said, "Just like the water bandits in the Han River."

Zhu Guoxiang shook his head: "If you encounter water bandits in the Han River, you can still jump into the water to escape and swim to the shore. If you encounter pirates in the sea, you can't escape. If you jump into the sea and narrowly escape death, you can only pick up a knife and gun to fight the pirates for your life."

Old Bai Yuanwai began to imagine that scene, and felt extremely horrified. He was unwilling to take the risk even though it would be a hundred times more beneficial.

Zhu Ming suddenly interjected: "As I know, there is a gangster in Bai Market. His name is Bai Sheng, and his nickname is Bai Erhu."

"I've heard a little bit about it," said the old white man.

Ju Ming sneered disdainfully: "We, father and son, picked up a horse downstream. Seeing the wealth, Bai Erhu came to rob it at night. But what kind of person is my father? My father sailed on the sea and met pirates no less than five times. He killed at least twenty pirates with his own hands, and a few rural ruffians were not enough, so he defeated them all in just a few strokes."

The old man's pupils shrank and he looked at Zhu Guoxiang again, but Zhu Guoxiang just smiled, which made him feel even more incomprehensible.

These two foreigners have human lives on their hands!

Zhu Guoxiang said at the right time: "Old man, don't worry. Fighting with pirates is a desperate attempt to survive. Once we get ashore, we are all good people and will not use knives or guns easily."

I believe you ghost!

The old man regretted selling the land. The squire was afraid of such desperadoes, so he immediately smiled and said, "Young little bandits should be killed."

This rhetoric was discussed repeatedly by father and son.

Because Zhang Guangdao once said that neither the old member nor the new member is a good person, it's just which one is more shameless.

Once sweet potatoes and corn show amazing yields, the value of useless slopes in the mountains will increase rapidly.

At that time, the Bai family will inevitably have the desire to annex and seize more barren mountainous land.

He had to pull off a piece of tiger skin and pretend to be a desperado, so that the old white people would be afraid of others.

Of course, this is just one way.

At the same time, more villagers must be allowed to plant corn and sweet potatoes to enhance the rural prestige of the father and son.

This prestige may also make old white members timid.

In addition, he made good friends with Li Hanzhang and Zheng Hong and used all means to build connections.

Just protesting will not last long, and some soft measures must be used. The right way is to use both kindness and power.

So Zhu Guoxiang added: "Others may not believe it, but I have a method that can increase rice production and reduce the labor required during planting rotation."

"Really?" Old Bai was doubtful.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "If you are an old man who dares to take the risk, you can pick out a paddy field and let me direct the tenants to cultivate it. I will not take any rice grains to increase the income, nor will I take a penny. I will only repay the kindness of the old man for selling the land." "

Mr. Bai thought about it carefully and thought he could give it a try.

Pick a small field for testing. Even if you don't harvest the grains, you won't lose much money.

"Then choose a paddy field." Old Bai said.

The smile on Zhu Guoxiang's face remained the same, and he smiled even more happily in his heart. Isn't this a free experimental field?

When the villagers see the Bai family making a profit, they will definitely follow suit next year.

When the whole village adopts Zhu Guoxiang's farming methods, he, Dean Zhu, will become a farming expert that everyone trusts, and he will be able to speak for himself in terms of agricultural farming.

If extended to other villages, it might even alarm the county magistrate!

By then, even without the Ganoderma lucidum as big as a millstone, the father and son would be able to establish a firm foothold in Xixiang County.

There will be many big landowners who sincerely invite him to guide farming, and he can take the opportunity to establish contacts with the gentry and powerful people in the county.