Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 332 Speculative Business

  The trading of head coupons is the most prosperous speculative business in Revodan at the moment.

The official name of the    head ticket is [Tiefeng County Military Merit Land Replacement Certificate in 559 of the imperial calendar]. This name is too tongue-in-cheek, no matter who hears it for the first time, the reaction is: "Ah? What?"

   Therefore, in the vast majority of occasions, people use its common name - head coupon.

   There is no public exchange for head coupons, and there is no universally recognized real-time price.

   But whether it is a physical head or a paper certificate, apart from the fluctuations in the price during the initial circulation period, the price has generally risen in the remaining days until today.

   After the results of the "Battle of Blood and Mud" were passed back to Rewardan, those speculators who immediately bought the head with a single throw, quadrupled or even tripled their net worth to say the least.

   A businessman with a slower reaction and a more conservative personality will not lose money even if he bets a small amount.

   A business that only has big profits and small profits, like commodities that are always going up in price, even a person who is calm and restrained will have greed in his heart.

   For a time, the head coupons occupied the living rooms, bedrooms and kitchens of the Revodans.

  In front of the fire, at the dining table, on the bed, from the rich merchants and the gentry to the merchants and pawns, everyone is talking about the head ticket.

   Talk about why the price of poll tickets will increase, when the poll tickets can go up, and whether to buy some poll tickets.

  …

   Old Priskin's study.

   "Tell the truth." Old Priskin knocked on his pipe and asked slowly, "How many head tickets have you collected?"

   "Not much." Little Priskin snorted.

"How many?"

   Seeing that he couldn't escape, little Priskin said a number.

   A big, big number.

   Little Priskin shrank his neck, ready to meet the thunderous wrath of his grandfather.

  Unexpectedly, old Priskin just filled his pipe and said plainly: "It's your ability to get this number with that little capital."

   After saying that, Old Priskin motioned for his grandson to sit down: "Tell me, tell me from the beginning to the end, 1510."…

  A father may be strict with his son, but there must be no way to take his grandson.

   Probably because there is often an invisible competition between father and son, and there is only "love of calf" left after a generation.

   When little Priskin was caught plotting a rebellion, old Priskin was so angry that he broke his leg.

   After a while, the old man's anger subsided, and little Priskin became grandpa's precious grandson again, but he was not allowed to participate in the family's business.

   The Priskin firm didn’t spend much on “first-tier speculation,” but was one of the first sellers to acquire the first-tier.

   As early as when the good news came back to Rewardin, the old Priskin called his grandson into the study and gave the latter a small bag of gold coins to buy some heads.

  Little Priskin counted the money and looked embarrassed: "Grandpa, that's all?"

   "This is not a business." Old Priskin said to his grandson: "It's enough to show your attitude."

   "Oh." Little Priskin was reluctant.

   It is not because the old man did not see the business opportunities, but because the Priskins are one of the richest businessmen in Gervoudan, and they do not take risks.

   The old man was like a mirror in his heart: as long as the blood wolf fulfilled its promise, the price of Hurd's head would definitely rise to the sky; but if you want to make money, you have to lower the purchase price.

   And "purchasing the head at a low price" is nakedly squeezing those soldiers with military merit, which is tantamount to digging the foundation of blood wolves.

  If someone else was standing at the table, the old man didn't say a word. But his own grandson, the son of the deceased eldest son, cannot but teach.

   "You have also climbed the city wall. How dangerous is the battle? You don't know. The arrow of the barbarian Heard flies over and can kill people at once." Recalling the experience of defending the city, old Priskin was also moved:

"A soldier has to sacrifice his life to get a head. In the end, you spent a few small money and bought it easily. Is this fair? If you make a little trouble, Your Excellency the tribune may still be able to grit his teeth. Endure it. If you go too far, the blood wolf will overturn the table! Never forget, they have a knife in their hands."

   Little Priskin said "Oh", looking rather frustrated.

  There were only two grandparents in the study. Old Priskin asked, "Do you know why I won't let you do business again?"

  Little Priskin's voice was barely audible: "Because I got into a big accident."

   Old Priskin asked again, "You think I'm punishing you?"

   Little Priskin lowered his head and said nothing.

"Your father left early, and the person who loves you the most in the world is me. How could I punish you in this way? You are not allowed to do business, let you idle, and become a captive pig in the end?" Old Priskin looked at Sun Son, the more he looks like the deceased eldest son: "Don't you understand? I will no longer let you deal with business, because I have a more suitable arrangement for you."

   Little Priskin raised his head in confusion.

"Your uncle is timid and cautious by nature. If you hand over the Priskin firm to him, he will not be defeated." Old Priskin sighed: "Don't you like to take risks? You like to bet on luck? Door business is more suitable for you."

   "What...what business?" Although little Priskin was reckless, he was not stupid and quickly reacted: "Grandpa, shouldn't you let me go..."

Thinking of the phrase "don't cry, laugh" etched in his mind, little Priskin shuddered subconsciously and refused with all the body language: "No no no no... If I don't go, you can let me be Captive pigs, I am willing to be a captive pig...or let me be an apprentice to my uncle, whatever..."

   "You're right." Even if the grandson wanted to be a pig in captivity, old Priskin couldn't allow it: "I just want you to go to the Montagne tribune."

  …

   took up the errand of grandfather, and little Priskin began to wonder where to buy the head and how to buy it.

   At that time, the siege of Gervoudan had just ended, and the head of the barbarian Heard, the militiamen who defended the city of Gervoudan, were also cut off.

  Some militiamen brought their families with them, can't wait to exchange the land, and want to sell the first-level emergency;

   There are also militiamen who have many people working together on the same head. They don’t know how to allocate land in the future, so they simply exchange it for money.

   There are many militiamen who are willing to sell their heads, but very few are willing to buy them, for two reasons:

   First, no one knows if Blood Wolf will keep his promise.

   After all, "make a wish before reaching the goal, turn around and deny the person after reaching the goal" is the traditional culture of the old man.

  If the blood wolf turns his face and does not recognize the person, the head is just a stinky, twisted human head, and it is not worth a single penny.

   Second, even if the blood wolf fulfilled the contract and fulfilled the first-level merit, when the new land reclamation army quelled the rebellion, the land that was distributed would definitely be taken away, and it would still be empty in the end.

   Therefore, even if they smell business opportunities, most people still choose to wait and see. Ready to move, but dare not act rashly.

   However, for little Priskin, these two problems are not problems at all.

  Little Priskin had seen the blood wolf before, and although he did not get along well, he was sure that the blood wolf would never break his oath easily.

   In addition, little Priskin walked beside his grandfather and came into contact with a lot of "insider information".

  For example: what determines the victory of the **** mud is a hussar charge - but there are no hussars in Tiefeng County;

   Another example: Mrs. Ronald, who was still living in the official mansion, dismissed the cook and servant;

   Another example: Grandpa is counting the number of backlogs of goods in various businesses. Judging from the posture, he wants to negotiate a big deal at one time.

   Various signs made little Priskin have a bold idea: Is it possible... Is it possible that the New Reclamation Army intends to recruit the blood wolf rebels?

   If so, then the issue of [land legality] is no longer an issue.

   Little Priskin is also convinced that the blood wolf will definitely add the requirement of "legalization of land grant" to the negotiation conditions.

   That guy is that kind of person, cruel, violent, but he never eats and slaps his **** and walks away - little Priskin has such a strong feeling.

  God-sent opportunity was right in front of him, little Priskin could not suppress his inner excitement, and suddenly had endless energy.

  …

   Gervodin, goldsmith's workshop in Ille.

   "Two to eighteen." Little Priskin held onto Ille's arm and didn't let go.

   "No, no, no." Ille shook his head like a rattle: "Impossible."

   "Two against seventeen!" Little Priskin raised his voice.

  Ile was helpless: "Master Priskin, you should go to another workshop and ask."

   Little Priskin let go of his hand and slapped the table hard: "Two against sixteen!"

   "The market is now two to fifteen." Ille's expression was extremely uncomfortable.

   "But I have to pay more!"

   "That doesn't work either, I lose one for two. I can't do this business wow."

   "Gold coins will definitely continue to rise in price, while silver coins are depreciating all the time, and there is no way to exchange them against you."

  Ile, the goldsmith, sighed: "Then we have to look at the fineness of the gold coins first."

   "Don't worry! Can I lie to you?" Little Priskin happily took out the purse he got from his grandfather: "It's all the best Ducats."

"Master Priskin, it's because you said that you need to exchange a lot at one time, so I reluctantly agreed to two to sixteen." Ille directly lowered his face, and he weighed the purse: "This can't be called 'a lot' ."

   "There's more!" Little Priskin quickly took out a wooden box from his backpack.

  I opened the wooden box and saw that there were gold and silver necklaces, earrings, buttons, knives and forks…

  Ille's face was ugly: "Master Priskin, are you trying to abscond?"

   "Of course not." Seeing that the goldsmith Elle's face was so black that ink was about to drip, little Priskin hurriedly eased the atmosphere: "These gold and silverware should be equal to two to fifteen."

   "Two to fifteen?" A few dull hums came from the depths of Yile's nose: "It takes fire to melt the utensils into coins."

"Then I will pledge it to you, and I will redeem it after a while." Little Priskin raised his backpack and asked tentatively, "By the way, do you want to buy a sword? The best steel mouth, the relief is Weissinbe. The craftsmanship of a master craftsman...or do you know who wants to buy a sword?"

  …

   Gervodin, the house of the potter Megan.

  A half-sized boy about the age of little Priskin walked into the living room with a clay pot: "What the **** are you doing? Are you in such a hurry to borrow money?"

   "Don't worry about it." Little Priskin has been waiting impatiently: "I promise to pay you back."

  The clay pot was taken outside, and the potter's son, little Priskin's playmate from childhood, little Megan raised the gavel, stood for a while, and finally turned back with a sad face: "I can't let it go."

   "I'll do it." Little Priskin took the gavel and smashed the belly of the clay pot.

  Silver coin "Crash" flowed out.

  …

  Gevodan, the home of Tom the builder.

   "Aunt!" Little Priskin pushed in the door: "Can you lend me some money?"

  …

   Recently, there has been a "conversion gap" in the value of gold and silver coins in Gervoudan.

   2 Gold Plates or 12 Silver Plates can buy a Malt's worth of flour, but it takes 15 Silver Coins for 2 Gold Coins.

   This is because the haze of war has not yet dissipated, and people generally prefer to receive gold that is conducive to preservation and stable currency.

  Little Priskin tried his best and finally got six thousand silver plates - silver coins minted by the Republic of Palato.

   With this start-up capital, little Priskin did not directly buy the first grade, but first bought a batch of flour from the Revodan grain merchant at a low price in the name of Priskin's firm.

  He played a trick, first hired a few homeless people to carry barbarian heads to walk through the streets and alleys in the slums to sell them at a particularly low price.

   But no matter how low the price is, the slum dwellers can’t afford it, let alone buy it.

   After successfully driving down the valuation of the head in people's minds, little Priskin began to exchange flour for his head.

   At the very beginning, little Priskin bought the first class in Gervoudan.

   But he soon discovered that because the blood wolf allocated military rations for civilian use, the demand for flour by the civilians in Revodan was not large, unless it was a family with many children.

   In fact, the most in-demand materials for the civilians in Gervodan are non-staple foods, such as bacon and vegetables. Some are even willing to trade a head for a bottle of wine.

   In contrast, those villages and towns that were more severely damaged by the war had greater demand for food, and the distribution was extremely balanced.

  The grain hoards of some villages are well-kept, and the Hurds get nothing;

  In some villages, all the food stocks were looted, and the farmers returned to their homes and had to flee again as a last resort.

   Little Priskin smelled an opportunity.

   The civilian population in Gervodan is not short of food for the time being, but the army is very short of food. Because the army has to consider the future, not the present.

   On the one hand, little Priskin exchanged grain for horse corpses, used a convoy of a commercial firm to bring back the corpses of war horses in batches from the battlefield, and then exchanged heads from the Revodan militia.

   On the other hand, he spared no effort to hire people to promote the "uselessness of the head" in Gervodin, desperately driving down the purchase price of the head.

  Things were going well, but little Priskin soon discovered a problem: he was out of money.

   Buying food, dispatching carriages, hiring manpower, everything costs money.

The    head has been collected, but the purse has bottomed out. Because Little Priskin tried his best to lower the price of the first grade, the purchase price was getting lower day by day, and there was no way to return the funds.

  It stands to reason that things should end here.

   But at this time, other speculators entered the market.

   From "don't dare to buy" to "buy with courage", there are many reasons that affect the mentality of businessmen in Revodan.

   For example: the stationed station issued several announcements to reiterate the validity of the "Decapitation Order".

   Another example: Priskin Firm's aggressive acquisition of the first grade has deeply stimulated speculators who are just around the corner.

  Heads became a hot commodity in Gervodin for a while, and speculators with gold and silver poured into the slums and barracks, pestering the militiamen to exchange the twisted and blue dead heads.

   Little Megan ran to find little Priskin: "Are you borrowing money from me to buy a head?"

"right"

   "Then how much have you bought now?"

   Little Priskin said a number.

   Little Megan almost dropped her chin: "This...you...then didn't you make a profit this time?"

   Little Priskin was a little listless: "Maybe."

   "Then can you pay me back first?" Little Megan asked pitifully.

   "What? Are you in a hurry to spend money?" Little Priskin knew that his friend was not a jealous person.

   "The price of the first grade has risen very high recently." Little Megan fiddled with her fingers: "I also want to buy a few."

   Little Priskin suddenly had a flash of light and took a breath: "I'm afraid I won't be able to pay back the money. My money has become the first level, and I have no cash."

   "Oh." Little Megan was a little disappointed.

   "But I still have a way."

"what?"

  Little Priskin patted his buddy on the shoulder: "How about I count you as a shareholder?"

  …

   Gervodin, goldsmith's workshop in Ille.

   "Mr. Ille!" Little Priskin pushed open the door: "Do you know what I'm doing to exchange money?"

  …

  Gevodan, the home of Tom the builder.

   "Aunt!" Little Priskin ran into the house in a hurry: "Do you know what I'm doing with the money?"

  …

   Old Priskin's study.

   Old Priskin did not criticize, praise, or surprise. He slowly smoked his pipe until he heard this before he asked the first sentence: "You borrowed the second capital like this?"

   "Borrowed some, but not much." Little Priskin dared not show any pride.

   "Go on."

  …

  After more merchants began to participate in this speculative business, the price of the head rose in Revodan.

   It has become very difficult to replace the head with grain and non-staple food as before, and the cost is also rising.

The idea of ​​  Little Priskin's partners is to "sell the head, and then go to a remote village and town to buy it again. The head outside Gervoudan should still be very cheap, and you can earn a price difference."

"It's fine to buy a head in a village or town, but not to sell it." Little Priskin categorically refused: "The head is not a dead head, but a hundred acres of land. How much is a hundred acres worth? How much is a head? The price of the head will definitely rise higher in the future, and it would be a loss to sell it now!”

   "What about that?" Little Megan spread out her hands: "That's all we have for money."

   "Perhaps...there is another way."

  …

   Gervodin, the goldsmith's workshop in Ille.

   There are three precious metal craftsmen in Gervodan, and the other two have been invited to the workshop by Ille at this moment.

  Precious metal craftsmen tend to make a little investment because they have a lot of gold and silver deposited by customers.

   "Wait, what are you doing?" a square-faced goldsmith asked with a frown.

   Little Priskin repeated in a steady manner: "Please take your share."

   "Invest in shares?" Another long-faced silversmith glanced at Eller: "In what shares."

   Little Priskin talks about his little business.

   Of course, goldsmiths and silversmiths also know about the head of the Hurds.

   But the square-faced goldsmith quickly shook his head: "There are profits and losses in doing business. It's easy to say when you make a profit, but if we lose our money, we can't afford it."

   After saying that, the square-faced goldsmith stood up and looked like he was about to leave.

   The long-faced silversmith nodded in agreement, and left the chair with his buttocks.

   "You can't buy shares." Little Priskin asked loudly: "How about borrowing?"

   "How much to borrow?"

"a lot of."

   "What collateral?"

   "Head's head."

  The goldsmith categorically refused: "No, who knows whether the head of the Hurd will be worth anything tomorrow?"

  Little Priskin said an interest, very high interest.

   The square-faced goldsmith fell silent.

  The long-faced silversmith asked, "If you don't pay the principal, what's the use of setting the interest at a higher rate?"

   "Do you know who I am?" Little Priskin asked back, "Will I pay you back?"

   "Mr. Priskin." The square-faced goldsmith's attitude softened visibly: "You now...is your grandfather's point of view, or are you making up your own mind?"

   "Of course it's my grandfather's errand." Little Priskin simply revealed it, and put forward a more attractive condition: "I can double the interest for you - but there is a requirement."

   The long-faced silversmith did not directly refuse, but asked hesitantly, "What request?"

   "I can pay you high interest, or I can use my family's property as a mortgage." Little Priskin proposed arrogantly: "But when repaying, you must allow me to repay in the form of the head."

  …

   Old Priskin's study.

   "They said yes?" asked old Priskin, squinting.

   "No." Little Priskin replied gloomily.

   "Not too stupid."

   Little Priskin swallowed: "But in the end they agreed to lend me a sum of money - the head and the deed of Megan's house as collateral."

"Oh?"

   "One is to look at your face, and the other is... something happened the next day."

"what?"

   "The county government issued an announcement saying that all heads should be exchanged for [head coupons]."

  …

   In the days that followed, little Priskin's actions became simple.

  He bought grain from villages with surplus grain and transported it to those famine villages for replacement.

   On the other hand, he simply used money to buy poll tickets from the soldiers stranded in the town of Sank. The hussars were his big clients.

The hussars brought by   Gisa were guest troops, and even if they cut off more heads, they would not be able to settle down directly in Tiefeng County.

   So the vast majority of hussars exchanged head coupons for drinks, and of course some hussars secretly hid a few head coupons.

During the    period, little Priskin sold part of the head, but mortgaged more times.

   Relying on the method of [buying, mortgage, re-buying] and [absorbing shareholders], little Priskin's speculative business was booming, until he was called into the study by the old Priskin who heard the wind.

  …

   Old Priskin put down his pipe, and little Priskin stood up at once.

   "You've been through a lot of misfortunes since you were a child, and I rarely blame you. Do you know why?" asked old Priskin.

   "Because you hurt me." Little Priskin replied in a low voice.

   "Because your great-grandfather said something to me." Old Priskin slowly repeated his father's words: "Those who can make big troubles can do big things."

Old Priskin paused for a moment, then continued: "However, those who can do great things can also cause great troubles. There is often a dotted line between doing great things and making great troubles. I will die sooner or later. You have to learn to grasp the difference yourself.”

   Little Priskin was silent for a long time before replying in a low voice, "I see, Grandpa."

   "It's useless for you to know now." Old Priskin sighed: "Go to the blood wolf yourself and ask for forgiveness."

  …

   The single officer's residence, the parlour.

   Three knocks on the door.

   "Please come in."

Little Priskin pushed open the door uneasily, and saw the blood wolf wearing an ugly knitted coat, half-reclining on the bench, and a chubby, round-faced middle-aged man who he couldn't understand. dialect talking about something.

   Seeing him walk into the room, the blood wolf sat up straight.

   "Do you have a guest?" The fat middle-aged man said goodbye: "Then I'll avoid it first."

   "No, you have to keep it, this is the person you want to meet." The blood wolf also smiled and glanced at little Priskin: "He is the [strangely pronounced sea blue dialect]."

  Little Priskin saw the fat middle-aged man sizing him up and down, and suddenly laughed: "It turns out that our little mouse is here!"

   [No pigeons, no pigeons, must be more, must be more, coo coo].jpg

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   (end of this chapter)