Ma Xiancheng knew that it was the Li family's Ding Xiaoqi who ruined his daughter's reputation, but he had no way to take the Li family, and he couldn't even take any action against Xiaoqi's father.

Once he touched Xiao Qi's family, people would be suspicious, things would be ganged up, and if the news that his daughter would rather marry a house slave than marry the grandmaster's son really spread, the clan would be angry again.

The fact that the Ma family can't help the Li family doesn't mean that they are not in danger, a few days after the incident, Xiao Qi's younger brother Xiao Ba hurried over from the salt farm, and expressed his apology to Li Ling as soon as he entered the door.

"Young Master, I'm guilty, the Li family handed over the entire salt farm to our father and son, but instead of managing it well, we made the salt farm suffer a loss because of my brother's affairs, we are sorry for the trust of the master and the eldest young master!" Xiao Ba burst into tears and told what had happened.

The Li family pays attention to integrity, and the eight father and son also abide by the instructions of the master's family and never mix fine sand and other substances into the salt, and the price of salt sold in the salt shop is fair, and the salt merchants like to go to the Li family's salt farm to extract salt.

The number of people who come to patronize the salt works is increasing. The Li family's salt farm is expanding year by year, and the business is very good.

Xiao Qi's matter came too suddenly, and his father didn't know exactly what was going on, so Xiao Qi left the salt pan with enough entanglement.

This was just the beginning, and a few days later the saltworks were in the midst of a huge crisis.

Many salt merchants who had ordered salt at the salt factory approached Hachi's father and demanded a refund of the order, even though they would have to pay a deposit of 10% of the purchase price.

"Young Master, there are more and more salt merchants who come to refund orders, and if this continues, our salt factory will be suspended!" There are no more orders, and the workers at the salt works will have to stop working.

It is rainy in the south of the Yangtze River, and the storage of salt has quite high requirements for the warehouse, and there will be a loss if you are not careful, in this case, everyone is generally produced according to the order, and the labor force in this era is much cheaper, even if the labor is idle, it is more cost-effective than the huge cost required to expand the warehouse.

The condition of the Li family's goods is relatively better than that of other salt farms, the price is not expensive, according to reason, it should be a hot item, the Li family and the salt merchants have been working together for many years, why would they give up this hard-won friendship?

"Young master, I have inquired clearly, it's all because of Governor Liu of the Salt Transportation Division, it's all his ghost, the shopkeeper of the Zhongtai quietly told me that it was Governor Liu who threatened him, if they buy from our salt field again, he will do something with the salt introduction next year, and the Zhongtai don't want to get even a salt introduction from the Salt Transportation Division!"

Xiaoba inquired clearly, Governor Liu's son has been trying to find ways to tie up the Ma family these days, thinking that it was because of his brother's affairs that Governor Liu burned his anger to the salt field, and the Li family was affected by the pond fish, in the final analysis, it was because of his brother that he felt a little guilty.

Liu Fu only wants to desperately tie up the Ma family, just because he wants to get acquainted with the grandmaster and get fame through the grandmaster, but today's saints hate favoritism and fraud in the imperial examination, and Tang Jieyuan was dismissed a few years ago because he was involved, and he was not hired for life, such a lesson is not deep enough? Even if the grandmaster can release water in the academy exam, what about the county exam and the prefectural exam?

Ma Wencai is just a special case, Liu Fu wants to go down such a path again, but I am afraid it will be even more difficult.

If Liu Fu can't even pass the county test, the clan will help him plan? He would never risk his future.

"Go with them, the goods in our salt works are good, the price is fair, they don't want to be their own losses, what about the salt merchants in other places, how about them? Do you want to go back on it? ”。 Li Ling didn't dwell too much on responsibility, but asked Xiaoba for the truth of the matter, wanting to find a way to solve the problem.

"People from other places are all paying money with one hand and delivering goods with one hand, and they are not bound by Governor Liu, so the merchants have not decreased much, but the share of merchants from other places is a small half after all, if the problem is not solved, I am afraid that the salt factory will still be suspended!". Xiao Qi replied truthfully.

The concerns of the local salt merchants will not be resolved within half a month, but they are afraid that the salt factory will really stop working, and according to the rules of other fields, the workers will not be paid wages for the shutdown.

The workers in the salt factory are all local hardships, the better conditions are only some tenants, and more are poor people who can't even rent land, they work in the salt field all the year round, and they can only mix a meal to keep a meal, if the Li family salt factory is closed for a long time, these people are afraid that they can only find work in other fields for their livelihood, and those who can't find a job can only starve.

The little eight father and son have been with everyone for so many years, and they will naturally consider those long-term workers, and he also undertakes the task of asking for the long-term workers this time, if the people's hearts are unstable, the efficiency of the work will be low.

"After you go back, let them rest assured that there should be no work stop this time, and tell them that even if it is a short stop for a few days, the Li family will pay them according to their usual income!"

Li Ling made up his mind, and today he asked several shops of the Li family to step up the sale of salt, and now they still have about seventy salt leads, and they can also sell nearly 30,000 catties of salt, so that they can last a few days. Whether you can still get salt in the next half a year depends on the will of God.

Most of the local salt merchants and the Li family are world friends, and he comes forward in person, and most of the other party will sell his face.

His time is still very sufficient, as long as the time is long, the salt of other salt farms is contested for purchase, its price will inevitably rise, and the price of salt will definitely rise, and the salt merchants in other places are as shrewd as monkeys, and they will definitely choose the Li family salt field to purchase, and the crisis of the salt field can be solved.

"What the eldest young master said is yes, I'll tell my father and the long-term workers when I go back, so that they can rest assured!" Hachi's brows finally relaxed,

He felt that the eldest young master's words were very reasonable, the quality of the salt produced in their salt shop was much better than that of other families, and it was usually sold to local salt merchants in order to let the people in their hometown eat good salt, and if they announced the opening to the outside world now, there would be no fewer merchants who were attracted to it.

The day after Xiaoba left, Li Ling went to visit the boss of Zhongtai, although he was a salt merchant and in the same place, but the relationship between the two families was not bad, the salt trade has always been under the absolute control of the government, and there was no competition between the two families at all.

"Virtuous nephew, it's not that the uncle won't help you, it's just that there's no way! Governor Liu's son has been to the Wang family many times, and he has made it clear that as long as we buy salt from you, we will cut our salt introduction, which is very difficult for me to do! ”。

Uncle Wang is in his fifties, and he has been in charge of the Wang family's salt shop for decades, so he naturally has his own way of dealing with people.

It is no wonder that Governor Liu holds the lifeblood of the salt merchants, and without the salt lead, the salt merchants will not be able to move an inch. The Wang family chose to rely on Governor Liu, which is also reasonable.

Li Ling couldn't accept this fact, the friendship between the two families for several generations was watching and helping each other, how could it be that once something happened to the Li family, their Wang family only wanted to get out?

"Uncle, the quality of the salt produced in our salt shop is still good, as long as you are willing to buy it, how about I give you a discount of one percent? This is already close to the cost of the price, please help my Li family! ”。 Li Xiucai gritted his teeth and decided to work on the price, the businessmen made profits, and the real benefits given to them should be much better than those ethereal friendships.

"I said eldest nephew, this is not a matter of price, if we don't respect Lord Liu's wishes. I'm afraid that it will be difficult to get salt in the coming year, it's not that the uncle won't help you, it's really powerless, you better go elsewhere and take a look! ”。 Uncle Wang was unmoved, rejected Li Ling straightforwardly, and put on a posture of sending off guests.

Li Ling expected that things should be more difficult to do, but he didn't expect the Wang family to be so resolute, and it seems that Governor Liu has also put in a lot of effort.

"In that case, I'll take my leave, I'll find another house to try!"

As soon as Li Ling left, a bewitching woman turned out from behind the screen in the living room, but it turned out to be his most favored concubine, the woman came directly to Uncle Wang's side, and asked softly: "We have a very good relationship with the Li family, why don't we help them at this time, you must know that the conditions offered by Li Gongzi just now are already very rich, and we will not be able to get a good reputation and get benefits." Why can't it be adult beauty? ”。

"What do you know, the Li family has been absent-minded all these years, and has been laissez-faire about the affairs of the salt shop, so that our Wang family can crush them in front of the local squire, but now, the eldest son of the Li family is not only talented in high school, but also quite capable, you say, if you don't take advantage of the current time to suppress them, will there be a way out for our Wang family in the future?"

The woman was short-sighted, and Uncle Wang didn't want to explain more to him, since the day Governor Liu's son came to visit him, he had made up his mind, so many salt merchants to deal with the Li family's salt farm, which he secretly linked, in order to limit Li Ling's commercial development and maintain the status of the first salt merchant in the county, after all, this glory belonged to the Li family twenty years ago.