Chapter 284: Red Ginseng Case (I)

The night was dark, and in the Daming Mansion's inn, King Yan Zhu Di was walking back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back. Two quick letters from Peking were placed on the table. One letter was written by military advisor Yao Guangxiao. Only a few short sentences changed the situation in the whole world.

"The imperial army has occupied Guanzhong and the Qin King was killed."

Zhu Di retreated after hearing this rumor. Now that the rumor has been confirmed, he feels an unspeakable anxiety and melancholy in his heart, which means that his road to the west has been blocked. At this moment, he began to realize more and more clearly that he was gradually moving away from that position.

What should I do now?

Yao Guangxiao’s suggestion is to keep a low profile, take Hebei and Shanxi as the foundation, strengthen their strength, and wait for the opportunity for the Southern Dynasty to change its fortunes.

But there was another letter on the table, which was a secret letter written by Lu Siyuan to him, and it also proposed to take Hebei and Shanxi as the foundation. However, his other half's suggestion was exactly the opposite of Yao Guangxiao. "Over time, the roots of the Southern Dynasties should be pushed to change the sky as soon as possible."

In just one short sentence, Zhu Di understood Lu Siyuan's painstaking efforts. The opportunity was impossible to wait, and he could only create it himself.

Yao Guangxiao and Lu Siyuan both saw that the Ming Dynasty would change sooner or later. Li Weizheng's actions could only coax those scholars and literati. Whatever restoring the Tang system was all just an excuse to weaken the imperial power and enhance the prime minister's power. Isn't it just to increase Li Weizheng's power? When the opportunity comes, he might advocate Yao and Shun's abdication system and give up the Ming Dynasty to him Li Weizheng. That is when the Ming Dynasty changes, but at that time, will Zhu Di still have a chance?

Zhu Di suddenly thought of something and couldn't help but sneer. Perhaps Yao Guangxiao meant to leave this opportunity to his eldest son Zhu Gaochi!

He slowly walked to the window and stared at a peach tree in the yard. The peach blossoms had already faded and the branches and leaves were lush. He couldn't help but think of himself. He was over forty years old, but the road to ascending the throne was still out of reach. Could it be that he would be a lonely and nameless vassal king in his life?

Moreover, Hebei and Shanxi where he is located are adjacent to the northern Mobei. In recent years, the Northern Yuan Dynasty split and the Tatars and the Oirat have been in constant internal strife, which has made the border peaceful. But in a few years, once the Mongols are cleansed, they will inevitably invade the south in large numbers. How can he resist it?

Zhu Di sighed deeply, and slowly walked back to the table and picked up Lu Siyuan's letter.

The news of the Yan army retreating north in the capital made the streets and alleys lively again. With the stable political situation and Li Wei ascended to the rank of the ranks, the Ming Dynasty's economy gradually began to recover. The most obvious thing was the soaring housing prices. When Li Jinglong was defeated, there were large-scale house sales. The shops in the most prosperous Fudong Street fell by 2,000 taels of silver. Now even the shops in the most ordinary streets cost more than 1,000 taels of silver. The shops in Fudong Street even rose to more than 1,000 taels of silver, and there was no market price, so there was no store for sale at all.

That morning, the weather was sunny and the Dragon Boat Festival was approaching. The crowds of people were everywhere on Fudong Street, and all the big shops were doing business, and the shouts of shopkeepers were heard one after another.

"New tea is on the market, with Shanghao Longjing, Yunwu Maojian, and a collection of famous teas in the store. Dear tea guests, come and have a look! The price is good."

"Japanese pearls and elegant folding fans have just arrived. Dear fellow villagers, I want to be fresh!"

"The best Korean ginseng is all a hundred years old. Those who know the goods are welcome to come in!"

All major shops have tried their best to attract customers. Some invite famous actors to perform improvised performances, and some invite famous calligraphers to write for souvenirs. Among them, the largest business in Fudong Street is Guji Guji, Guji, with eight major stores. They made their fortune from the earliest Guji pastries and became the world's number one. They not only became a must-have for famous families, but also were court tributes. The late emperor Zhu Yuanzhang loved it especially, making Guji cakes rich. However, Gu Ying, the big boss who cared about cakes, was not satisfied with making cakes. She came out four years ago and established Guji Store. Major cities in the north and south of the Yangtze River have semicolons, specializing in large-scale transactions such as grain, tea, sugar, etc. Last year, he took advantage of the store's plunge and ate seven large shops in one go, operating various commodities, and even began to engage in overseas trade last year.

The Gu Ji Trading Company now has more than 150 stores, more than 30 workshops nationwide, and an ocean-going trade caravan composed of hundreds of ships and more than ten sea ships. It is employed nearly 10,000 workers. It can be said that the Gu family is now the largest merchant in the Ming Dynasty. The owner of this huge businessman is a young woman who is only twenty-two years old and has not yet married.

Everyone in the capital knows that the Gu family is now the number one business in the Ming Dynasty, but few people know that the Gu family has a special relationship with Li Weizheng, the current Ming Dynasty prime minister. The Gu family’s old boss is Li Weizheng’s uncle, and Gu Ying is his cousin. It is precisely this relationship that the Gu family’s true development started from Liaodong. It once became the largest agent in Liaodong. More than 60% of the huge demand for raw materials for Liaodong’s military industry are supplied by Gu Ji Trading Company.

Although Gu Ji Trading Company is huge in scale, its headquarters is very low-key. It is located at the entrance of Sanfu Lane, the northeast of the east of the mansion. It is a mansion covering an area of ​​ten acres. The gate is closed all day long. However, in fact, its bulk money and goods enter the back door. The back door is close to the inland river and there is a private wharf. From this wharf, you can take a boat to the Qinhuai River, then enter the Yangtze River, and even all over the country. This is the characteristic of merchants in Jiangnan. They use boats instead of cars, and are low-key but not ostentatious.

At noon, a carriage headed towards Fudong Street under the escort of more than a dozen followers. There were two young women sitting in the carriage. One of them was tall and fair-skinned. This was Qianqian. The other was a young woman with a slightly dark skin but her eyes were as bright as gems. Naturally, Gu Ying, the big boss of Gu Ji Trading Company.

The two of them have the closest relationship. When Qianqian was a mute girl, she lived in the Gu family in Suzhou for more than half a year. At that time, Li Baihu, the Jinyiwei, ran to Wuchang. The two slept in the same bed and sat on a stool, and were inseparable. Later, they went to Beijing to open a store together.

Although Qianqian went to Liaodong for several years, this did not affect their friendship. This time, Li Wei was taking the whole family over the capital, so Qianqian often came to talk to Gu Ying.

Gu Ying and Qianqian are the same age as Qianqian. They are already twenty-two years old this year. Qianqian's daughter is almost two years old, but Gu Ying is still Yunying is still unmarried and is alone. She still doesn't get married at the age of twenty-two. This is incredible in the Ming Dynasty. Just like the thirty-four or five-year-old girl now, on the one hand, it is because the Gu family's business is in the hands of Gu Ying, and her marriage means that the Gu family's business changes its surname, so she has always used this as an excuse and has never been willing to get married. Her younger brother Gu Jun is too honest and honest, and he has only guarded the Gu family's ancestral property Gu Ji cake shop. He does not have the ability to take over the big business.

Originally, Gu Ying's parents meant to recruit a son-in-law to marry into the family, and he also liked a few smart and capable young people. However, his daughter refused to do anything, and the old couple had no choice but to go with her.

In the carriage, Gu Ying hugged Qianqian's daughter Li Shuang'er very lovingly and teased her with a small snack, "Little guy, smile! I'll give you some food when I smile."

Qianqian looked at her, and suddenly she smiled and said, "I thought you didn't like children, so I refused to get married. It seems that this is not the case now! Tell me the truth, why are you reluctant to get married?"

Gu Ying snorted contemptuously: "You damn girl, how many times have you told you, why don't you believe it? I have to worry about such a big business, with so many people and their families all over the country, and tens of thousands of people rely on me for dinner. Do you think I am like you, and I have nothing to do all day?"

"I think this is not the reason! You went to our house for dinner a few days ago, why did you panic when your cousin came home? What's the reason? I don't understand."

Gu Ying's face turned red, and she immediately covered it up and said carelessly: "Is that so? I didn't pay attention. Maybe it was just a coincidence! I also wanted to talk to my cousin about trade with Japan, so why didn't I dare to see him?"

Qianqian looked out the car window, suddenly lowered her voice and smiled: "Sister Ying, just tell me honestly! Are you waiting for him?"

"What are you talking nonsense! Why am I waiting for my cousin? I'm too busy doing business..."

Before Gu Ying could finish her words, Qianqian covered her mouth and laughed.

"Damn girl, why are you laughing at?" Gu Ying pinched her fiercely.

Qianqian shaved her face with a jade-like finger, blinked and smiled at her, "Don't tell me!" I just said whether you are waiting for him, but who is he? I don't know."

Gu Ying finally couldn't hide it anymore. Her face turned red and she turned her face to look out the car window, but there was a little tears in her eyes. Qianqian's words aroused her sadness. It's been seven years, and she has been waiting for him for a full seven years. Does he know?

Qianqian looked at her silently and remembered the tears in her eyes deeply in her heart.

The carriage slowly stopped at the back door of Gu Jifan's store. Gu Ying had returned to normal. She smiled at Qianqian and said, "Do you go into the store with me, or do you go home directly?"

Qianqian looked at her daughter who was already asleep in her arms, and smiled and said, "It's still early, so let's go and have a look with you!"

The two walked into the vassal store. The so-called vassal store was a store that specialized in imported goods. There were gems from Samarkand, spices from South China countries, Japanese pearls, tortoiseshell, folding fans and lacquerware, as well as medicinal materials, crystals, etc. These were precious items purchased by Gu Ji Trading Company during the Liaodong period. If they were tortured by Zhu Yuanzhang, they would have to be beheaded. Although after Emperor Jianwen ascended the throne, the criminal law was much tolerated, he never let the entry of seafood. Until a few months ago, the court completely relaxed the ban on maritime, and these items could finally be bought and sold publicly.

However, due to the short time, only Gu Ji Fan Store sells these vassal goods, so the business is extremely popular.

As soon as they entered the back door, they heard the noise from the front store. Gu Ying said to Qianqian as she walked: "Yesterday, Empress Ma sent someone to say that she wanted a top Korean ginseng to treat the emperor. She was not very satisfied with the few I sent to the palace. She said it would be better to ask for red ginseng. I remember that there was a top-quality stock in the store, so I came over to take a look."

As they said that, they came to the next door of the lobby, which was the shopkeeper's room. From here, you can see the lobby through the thin gauze. Because the business is booming today, the lobby is crowded with people and the sound is very noisy.

The shopkeeper of the vassal house was a middle-aged man in his fifties. He heard that the main Dongdao had the best Korean ginseng, so he quickly took a few wooden boxes from the warehouse and placed them on the table, "The main owner, we are all here."

Gu Ying raised her eyebrows and asked, "Where is that red ginseng?"

"Yes! I saw it the day before yesterday, why is it gone?"

The shopkeeper hurriedly found the account book and searched it. Suddenly he found the record, "Owner, the red ginseng was bought yesterday for 3,000 taels of silver."

"Three thousand taels of silver!" Gu Ying was stunned, and she asked quickly: "Who bought it?"

"The boss wait, I'll go and ask." As he said that, the shopkeeper opened the door and went out.

Gu Ying sighed lightly and said to Qianqian: "This kind of red ginseng is very rare, and most people don't know it. There is only this one in my store. It has been on sale for two years and no one has ever cared about it. However, I didn't expect it to be bought yesterday."

Qianqian smiled and said, "It would be such a coincidence that the queen sent someone else to buy it?"

"It's possible, otherwise it wouldn't be so coincidental."

At this time, the shopkeeper came back and reported: "Owner, I asked. The shopkeeper Yang said he was a middle-aged man and refused to be named. However, he heard that a delivery guy knew this person. Unfortunately, the guy happened to deliver the goods."

"never mind!"

Gu Ying waved his hand gently, "If you buy it, forget it, don't ask anymore."

It was already very late for Li Wei to return to the mansion. During this period, he was extremely busy and had a lot of things waiting for him to do. He was already the prime minister and no longer just focused on military affairs. The memorials of the six ministries had to be sent to him first, and he would directly approve the small matters. The important military affairs were discussed by several important officials of the Political Affairs Hall and decided on opinions, and then handed over to the five ministers of the Secretariat to draft the decree, calling it "Wuhua Judgment". Finally, he reviewed one of them and sent it to the palace for Zhu Yunwen to approve the redemption. In fact, the imperial edict had been drafted. Emperor Zhu Yunwen had only one right to agree, but in the end he had to go through the decree. The Secretariat had to re-imagine the decree, and the emperor had to approve the decree again until the review of the decree was approved. This is the traditional Chinese politics. There was never any monarchical autocracy, and it was not completely abolished until the Qing Dynasty.

After Li Weizheng returned home, he went directly to the study. Although he was not allowed to take home for military and national affairs, he had to deal with the affairs of Liaodong. As soon as Li Weizheng sat down, the door was pushed open. Qianqian came in with a lacquer plate, which contained his supper.

"Eat first and then do things!" Qianqian put the meal in front of him and ordered with a smile.

"Oh! I'm really hungry."

Li Wei was patting her stomach and picked up the bowl. While eating, she asked vaguely: "Where is Shuang'er, why don't you bring her here?"

"I'm already asleep, and the wet nurse is taking care of her."

Li Wei was smiling bitterly and shook his head and said, "Hey! The children didn't wake up when they left in the morning, and they fell asleep again when they came back. I, a father, are unqualified!"
Chapter completed!