Xiao Jinxing actually understood the meaning of Qu Bao's question, and from his words, Xiao Jinxing could hear that Qu Bao wanted to take care of his business.

From a certain point of view, Qu Bao, as a big man, has no need to take the initiative to ask Xiao Jinxing's business.

After all, it was Xiao Jinxing who wanted to do it for himself.

I only heard Xiao Jinxing say to Qu Bao quite respectfully:

"Brother Qu, my shop is in Lanlu County, Qinlan County.

The main trafficking is grain and refined iron.

So Jin Xing wants to buy some goods from the eldest brother.

And Brother Qu can get horses, furs and other northern specialties from me. ”

When he heard the goods that Xiao Jinxing wanted, Qu Bao glanced at Xiao Jinxing with some surprise, and then looked at Zhezhe behind him and keenly noticed a trace of abnormality.

He frowned and said:

"It turns out that Brother Xiao started his ancestral business.

There is naturally no problem with food, and you also know that the eldest brother's goods have the best achievements in food.

It's just that this iron ore is an official product, and I'm afraid that it will cause you trouble if it is used for trading. ”

What Qu Bao said was not actually a shirk, he was also thinking about Xiao Jinxing.

Because he is already an official businessman in Daqin, iron ore naturally belongs to the scope of goods that he can operate.

But Xiao Jinxing is not an official businessman, once the iron ore mine is seized by the government, the bankruptcy of the family is just a trivial matter, and it is not impossible to harm his life.

Moreover, he clearly felt from Xiao Jinxing's tone that he was afraid that the quantity of goods required by Xiao Jinxing was by no means a small amount.

In his puzzled eyes, Xiao Jinxing still looked smiling.

"Brother Qu, the amount of fine iron I want is not large, just to make cooking utensils and horse harnesses.

The eldest brother didn't know that the iron business in northern Qinbei was controlled by some big families in the name of the government, and ordinary people couldn't afford or buy these items at all, and ordinary people used some stone pots to cook at home, which was extremely inconvenient.

Therefore, Jinxing thought of taking chestnuts from the fire, firstly, to make some money, and secondly, to facilitate the people. ”

Qu Bao listened carefully to what Xiao Jinxing said, and was relieved when he heard the reasons for each of them, but he still reminded with some worry:

"Brother Xiao, although you can be regarded as a good thing for the convenience of the people, it is still troublesome for the government to pursue it.

Why don't I supply you with finished products such as iron tools, stirrups, etc., without you taking the risk? ”

Xiao Jinxing was stunned when he heard this, but he immediately smiled and said:

"This is very good, but if it is like this, it will increase the cost, and the people are afraid that it will not be convenient."

Qu Bao laughed when he heard this:

"Brother Xiao, rest assured, except for some transportation costs, Big Brother won't make a lot of money from you."

Xiao Jinxing pretended to be happy, got up and saluted Qu Bao repeatedly, and then told Qu Bao about the food needs.

Although Qu Bao was a little surprised by the amount of food Xiao Jinxing wanted, he still readily agreed.

Because that number is only a small part of his business.

After discussing all the matters of the transaction, Qu Bao and the happy Xiao Jinxing had a drink and finalized the matter.

Qu Bao asked with some hesitation:

"Brother Xiao, judging from the amount of grain and grass you need, brother, your business must be very large.

But the eldest brother never understood anything, and asked Brother Xiao to tell me the truth. ”

Seeing that Qu Bao said quite seriously, Xiao Jinxing also stopped smiling, and said:

"Brother Qu wants to ask, why did I come to you?"

A look of affirmation flashed in Qu Bao's eyes,

Nodding.

"Brother Xiao, there is Lingzhou in the west of Lanlu, Suibei City in the south, and Qi in the east across the river to the west, and all three places can get grain.

Moreover, buying grain from those places can also greatly reduce the freight and fire consumption of grain transportation labor on the way, so I really don't understand why you came here to find me to buy grain from Chu State, brother. ”

After listening to Qu Bao's question, Xiao Jinxing pretended to be helpless and sighed to himself.

He then told Qu Bao the draft that had already been typed in his chest, although he couldn't bear to lie to Qu Bao many times, but what he said was also true.

"Brother Qu, the northern part of the Qin State is located in a bitter cold land, and the grain harvest is extremely low, if there are a few days of drought in the spring, then the harvest of the whole year will be greatly reduced.

What's more, those grain and grass businesses are also in the hands of some big families, and once there is a disaster year, hoarding will happen from time to time.

Those people are just beasts who recognize profit and do not recognize righteousness.

If you buy from them, not to mention that the price is not much lower than that of buying from you, and the grain and grass you buy are often shoddy, and the old is new.

It makes me feel guilty for the people who come to buy food.

That's why I came up with the idea of buying from you. ”

Qu Bao listened carefully to Xiao Jinxing's explanation, and saw that he also involved those nobles when he spoke, and knew that what he said was indeed from the bottom of his heart, so he believed it.

He thought for a moment and clapped his hands and said:

"If that's the case, let's do it.

If you are a brother, you can trust the eldest brother,

Sell me the furs and horses you have received at a fair price, and I will sell them at a high price in the south, and then divide the difference with you.

The purchase price of grain and grass was bartered according to the price of horses and furs in the Chu State, and the cost of transportation was borne by me.

Then you will be able to make more money when you sell your grain again, brother. ”

After hearing this, Xiao Jinxing was moved beyond measure.

In the final analysis, he has no deep friendship with Qu Bao, but Qu Bao vigorously defends himself, and even does not hesitate to give most of the profits to himself.

It is often said that righteousness is slaughtered every time the dog is slaughtered, and it seems that this statement is very appropriate for Qu Bao.

A businessman, his words and deeds are much stronger than those hypocrites in the court.

Back then, he just gave him some advice, and in exchange for Qu Bao's friendship.

Xiao Jinxing was even more unhappy with his deception of Qu Bao.

The two talked for a long time, and Xiao Jinxing knew how far Qu Bao's business had been in the past five or six years.

I dare not say that the wealth is rivaled by the country, but it is also one of the few in the world. On the trade route from Nanjing in the Chu State to Xiayang City in the Qin State alone, Qu Bao monopolized the trading of grain, furs, rare jewelry, and many minerals.

Moreover, according to Xiao Jinxing's planning counselor, Qu Bao's shops have also opened in dozens of cities along the Xiashui Road.

He also held the status of official and merchant of Zhou Wangji, Chu and Qin, which means that the foreign trade of these three regimes always had to pass through the hands of Qu Bao.

Although officials and businessmen are not the only ones, as long as a businessman of Qu Bao's size can participate in the official trade of a country and make a lot of money, it is certain.

It's just that in just five or six years, such remarkable achievements have been made, and even Xiao Jinxing is a little impressed by Qu Bao.

It seems that man cannot be seen, and the sea cannot be measured.

This Qu Bao really has a special talent for doing business.

At the same time, Xiao Jinxing also realized that being able to follow him to such an inconspicuous shop in Xiayang City to drink as Qu Bao was enough to show Qu Bao's trust in him.

Or maybe he didn't want to save face.

The two talked happily and told each other the anecdotes that had happened to each other in recent years. At the same time, they also agreed to trade in Lanlu County next spring.

The two drank this wine from the afternoon to the evening, and after Qu Bao invited Xiao Jinxing to go to Xijing with him many times and was politely refused, Qu Bao had to say goodbye to Xiao Jinxing with the support of the servants who came later.

Zhezhe silently helped Xiao Jinxing, who was a little drunk and hazy, back to the inn, where Ayi'er and Xin'er were still waiting for the two of them in the dark night.

"How did he get drunk like this?"

Ayi'er looked at Xiao Jinxing lying on the couch and asked Zhezhe.

Zhezhe just shook his head, and then whispered: "Originally, I thought that the people in the Guannai were all treacherous and cunning, but today I know that there are also people in the Guannai who value love and righteousness. ”

In Ayi'er's puzzled eyes, Zhezhe led Xin'er out of the door.

Tonight, Ayier will serve Xiao Jinxing and sleep peacefully.

In more than five years, this is the first time that Zhezhe has seen Xiao Jinxing so happy, so simple, and so unguarded and happy.

……

A month later, Xiao Jinxing and the four of them came to Lanlu County.

This is the northernmost small city in Qinlan County, and it is a hundred miles away from Lingzhou in the west.

The northeastern corner is connected to Shuofang County of Qin, which is said to be a vast sea of sand and inaccessible to people.

It is connected to Yangping County due east, but there is a large jade mountain between the two counties.

And directly north of Lanlu is Qinlan Mountain, here, the Qinlan Mountain Range, which was thought to be a barrier of Shenzhou, suddenly turned a corner and stopped at Lanlu.

And the yellow water is also blocked by Qin Lanshan here, and the flow to the north is rushing towards the east.

The population of Lanlu County is less than 50,000, scattered over a vast land, and less than 10,000 people live in the county.

Xiao Jinxing and the four of them came to Lanlu, and in advance he spent some money to set up an official introduction as a child of the Xiao family, so after entering Lanlu County, no one came to embarrass them.

At any time, as long as you have money, there is nothing you can't do.

Since he became the head of the Yu clan, Xiao Jinxing has never been short of gold, silver and money, although that thing can't even be exchanged for horses on the grassland.

However, Rong Di has gone on expeditions to the customs before, and almost every family has plundered gold and silver utensils, and in terms of practicality, these gold and silver utensils are not as good as iron and copper.

Therefore, before coming to the Qin State, Xiao Jinxing did not spend much effort, he collected a lot of gold and silver objects and melted them into small pieces one by one.

But gold and silver are heavy objects after all, so this time the four of them only carried a dime of it with them.

However, even if it is a drop in the bucket, it is enough for them to be able to accomplish many things smoothly on this trip.

After exchanging a piece of silver for a dilapidated shop that his family had set up in Lanlu County, the four of them had a place to live from then on, and they no longer had to be displaced.

And the title "Xiao's Shop" disappeared for five years, and once again hung up on the streets of Lanlu County.

More than five years ago, when the party leader's house was slaughtered by the Qi people, the Xiao family's shop was no longer taken care of, and the people hired also ran away and fled.

In the end, it was the government that came forward to manage this unowned land in order to prevent the loss of water in this uninhabited house and the damage to others.

But it was only a visit that the officials had only come to visit once in a long time.

When Xiao Jinxing walked into the yamen with the silver in his arms, and told the county government master that he was a child of the Xiao family and wanted to reclaim the private property, it was only a matter of time before the shop returned again.