During the spring equinox, although Xiao Ye saw a little loss in the eyes of some military households, there was no land to cultivate here in Shiguantun, which was a fact, and he was helpless, so he could only explain to the two shops, get some cabbage seeds, and distribute them to the military households to find small pieces of land to plant.

With the well-defended stone fort, the affairs of the mill could be freed, and fifty rear-loading guns and projectiles not only made him owe the Tian family a large amount of silver, but also filled the small arsenal.

Fortunately, in another warehouse, fifty silk cotton coats and 100,000 thick white stunned papers, Xiao Ye didn't care about the heavy IOU.

Only Mei'er, who faces a few ledgers every day, crackles and crackles all day long, and her brows are barely stretched.

As for the Huang family's shop, Huang Deshan was almost guarding the gate of the stone fort, and a cart of plaster was immediately pulled away, hoarded in the warehouse in the backyard of the shop, and the Tian family was not allowed to interfere at all; If it weren't for the order of 100 households, Huang Deshan would have been eager to stay in the mill day and night.

Huang Deshan didn't even blink his eyes at the grain sent by the 100 households in Ximen, and waved his hand to let the guys count the food, and the other goods were also paid when they saw the 100 households' seals, and there was no ambiguity at all.

According to Young Master Huang's pigeon letter, the more debts the hundred households in Ximen owe, the monopoly of yellow plaster can be the monopoly of the Huang family, and what I am afraid of is that people do not owe debts.

For a while, the business of the Tian family's shop was suppressed by the Huang family.

That night, Xiao Ye had dinner and was about to go to bed with Mei'er to rest, when he heard that the little six sons outside came to report, and the shopkeeper of the Tian family asked to see him.

Xiao Ye, who was fighting with his wife, let go of Mei'er's little hand unhappily, got up and went out of the inner room, and sat down on the chair in the hall, "Let him come in," Mei'er took out an oil lamp, put it on the table, and went to the back room to clean up the bed.

In the courtyard of the hundred households, Tian Fangjun handed over the pastries and ale wine in his hand to Xiao Liuzi, and pulled the cotton curtain into the stone house, "Tian Fangjun has seen the Ximen Hundred Households, congratulations on the housewarming of the new Hundred Households," the hundred households are in person, and Tian Fangjun is more thoughtful than Huang Deshan.

"Shopkeeper Tian doesn't have to be polite, sit," Xiao Ye smiled slightly, waved his hand to let him sit down, "I don't know, what is there when Shopkeeper Tian comes here at night and needs the help of this official?" ”

Stretching out his hand not to hit the smiling person, not to mention the relationship between himself and Tian Xiuxiu, Xiao Ye was not good at treating him coldly, so he asked patiently.

"There is news from the north that the Mongol Tatars are beginning to move westward, and they are going back to the summer pastures," Tian Fangjun was not verbose, and opened his mouth to give Xiao Ye a great piece of information; Xiao Liuzi carried a pot of strong tea and two teacups, and came up to pour hot tea.

"Well, the official knows," Xiao Ye knocked on the table depressedly and thought for a long time, "Shopkeeper Tian, how many types of minerals does your family have?" ”

An abrupt question made Tian Fangjun stunned for a moment, and then reluctantly smiled, "Hundreds of households don't know, although the Tian family has a lot of minerals, but there are only seven or eight kinds, saltpeter, sulfur, and iron ore are not large, and the coal mines are the most, and the others are scattered,"

As for gold, silver, lead and tin, although the Tian family also has mining sites, but there are local stocks involved and monitored by the imperial court, and he is a shopkeeper, so he is not very clear, even if he knows, how dare he easily confide.

"Oh, that's it," Xiao Ye nodded indifferently, "Then you can contact the shops in Wuguan Town to see if you can get some different raw materials, the more the better, you can get a hundred and ten catties of each, and the official will pay the bill according to the price,"

"This is natural, the villain will contact the Wuguan Town Commercial Bank immediately after he goes back, and a caravan will come over in two days, just by the way," although the eyes are hot The Huang family's monopoly on the trading of vanity mirrors and yellow plaster, Tian Fangjun is not in a hurry, and the family let him nail it here, mainly because of the unique ticket paper.

Especially the two new water purification collectors, but they opened his eyes to Huang Deshan, it was not easy to come in the stone castle, but Yang Tianshou's small courtyard, with a little tea, he could fight for a long time, Yang Xiucai was not as difficult to talk as Xiao Ye.

But the water purification collector with a price of up to 1,000 taels, that thin umbrella-like thing, even Tian Fangjun is unwilling to spend money to buy it.

Depending on the situation, the Huang family doesn't know about the ticket, so his Tian Fangjun's task can be regarded as being explained, and the rest is just a handy deal. Thinking of this, Tian Fangjun felt a lot more at ease.

When Tian Fangjun said goodbye, he took away only two large bags of bulging silk short coats, and the two young men carried them away; The precious white stunned paper, Xiao Ye didn't see Tian Xiuxiu, so he didn't let him touch his hands at all, but it made Tian's shopkeeper smile bitterly.

Back at the shop, Tian Fangjun asked his men to count all the sulfur, saltpeter, and lead in the warehouse, and then sent them to the stone castle, and hid in the account room to ponder the contents of the pigeon letter.

The movement of the Tian family's shop, naturally unable to hide from Huang Deshan's ears and eyes, hearing the things that Tian Fangjun sent to get back, Huang Deshan, who was sitting in the rocking chair, laughed secretly, "Your Tian family is still a little late, and the big head can't be taken away,"

In the middle of the night, a group of twenty pack horses, escorted by the sergeant, bypassed a mountain road to the west, came from the side of the coal pit, and quietly entered the mill stone fort; The noisy sound of horses' hooves, whether it can be heard in the two shops, Xiao Ye doesn't care anymore, as long as no one shows up to peek.

At the foot of the mountain, Huang Hanxiang, who was covered in dust, handed over the two smoked and roasted hares to Wang Hu, "Bring a message to my father and mother, I am very good on the grassland, and the nine brothers are fine, and I will tell each family as well,"

"I know, Brother Huang, you can be regarded as free, a few of us are still guarding the mountain," Wang Hu looked at Huang Hanxiang enviously, "I really want to exchange with you, why don't I go to Baihu to discuss?" ”

"Damn, you kid, I don't know what Lao Tzu suffered, those new sergeants, but they didn't suffer from Lao Tzu's wooden sticks, they were simply exhausted," Huang Hanxiang glared dissatisfied, and complained with smugness on his face, "Yu Shan and Du Ding, the two reckless men, almost trained the sergeants to death, I took over the training and it was better, no, let me transport the stones, and bring back the fire gun and earth-shaking thunder when I go back,"

The two of them chattered in the darkness at the foot of the mountain for a while, and the pack horse team went down the mountain in the dark, and the grain and wooden boxes were full, not much different from when they went up the mountain.

"Brother Hanxiang, everything is loaded," under the torch, Xiao Liuzi called Huang Hanxiang and said in a low voice, "Two hundred stone grain, thirty firecrackers, two individual tents, no earth-shaking thunder, two hundred medicine belts, 100 households have confessed, the raw materials on the mountain are not enough, let you run again as soon as possible, the Tartars have moved west,"

"Well, I know, farewell," Huang Hanxiang's face moved when he heard this, and he greeted his sergeant, got on his horse and hugged his fists and was about to leave.

"Wait," Xiao Liuzi stepped forward, grabbed the reins, took off a small burden from his shoulder, and handed it to Huang Hanxiang, "There are three protective clothing inside, Baihu said, you and Yu Shan, Du Ding must wear them,"

Although there were not many words, Huang Hanxiang's eyes were already sour, he grabbed the burden tightly, and sighed for a long time, "Xia Guan understands, take care," turned the horse's head, and led the pack horse team to the direction of Shiguan.

Although Xiao Ye never spit out the news of the protective clothing, the Wang family's one was enough for them to show off before and after, and Xiaoqi and the sergeants also knew something faintly.

But despite this, as the captain of the personal guard of the hundred households, Xiao Liuzi has not yet obtained this kind of invulnerable treasure.

Xiao Liuzi watched the horse team disappear into the night, and sighed dejectedly, these sergeants wearing tartar leather robes, compared to them, that is, they can sleep on a warm kang, and the others can't envy them.

Three days later, at noon, the caravan under the banner of the Tian family arrived at Shiguantun in a chaotic manner, and as usual, the cart of the horse team stopped in front of the shop, and the goods were sent to the warehouse in the backyard. Then the convoy went to the training ground, and the guards set up tents to tidy up the livestock.

A middle-aged man in a green robe and a short beard, accompanied by Tian Xiuxiu wearing a veil, went to the mill stone castle to visit the Ximen Baihu; In the small hall of the hundred households, Xiao Ye met Tian Xiuxiu's second uncle Tian Guangcheng.

Tian Guangcheng, who is good-looking, has been talented for many years, but he can't go further, and after falling to Sun Shan in the examination several times, he had to go home to help his eldest brother take care of business, and gradually became interested in business.

The eldest brother Tian Lunyu only has an only daughter Tian Xiuxiu under his knees, and the other two brothers in the family are operating in officialdom and have been in business for a long time, but Tian Guangcheng slowly has an idea, but he has two strong sons.

Tian Xiuxiu is very smart and manages business affairs in an orderly manner, especially recently when she got the kind of ticket paper with water patterns and dark flowers, and her right to speak in the family has been improved by more than one grade, but Tian Guangcheng is quite dissatisfied.

In particular, Tian Fangjun, who was stationed in Shiguantun, kept sending pigeon letters, stating that the Ximen Baihu who held the source of the ticket paper not only used ruthless methods, but also threatened to recognize only Tian Xiuxiu in the ticket and paper transaction, and Tian Guangcheng, who was self-reliant and steady, was angry and couldn't eat for several days.

However, because of the business of Shiguantun and the Huang family, Tian Guangcheng is not good at making another secret move, in case this young hundred households tears his face and hands over the business to the Huang family, it will be embarrassing if the sheep is not eaten.

So, after the New Year, he rushed over from Shanxi to meet the hundreds of households who controlled the supply of goods.

In the slightly damp hall, there was a white wooden square table in the center, a few rough wooden chairs, and only the clean stucco floor under his feet, which made Tian Guangcheng's eyes refreshed.

Standing in the middle of the hall, Xiao Ye received the business representatives of the Tian family with a smile; Today, he was in a good mood.

After sending Huang Hanxiang away last night, Xiao Ye did not go back to sleep, but on a whim, he asked the guards to cut some tender green vine grass branches and leaves, wear thick leather gloves, and stuff a large pile of rattan grass into the stone grinding eye. Like a bottomless pit, it still devoured those vines and grasses.

The three thousand catties of stone charcoal also went to the grinding eye in distress, and Xiao Ye soon saw the shining pattern on the grinding plate; In the pattern, what he saw was another picture.

"Field equipment," a yellow-green field backpack, wide enough to fit a child, two sets of split yellow-green clothes for spring and autumn clothes and winter clothes, the material is thick and a little hard to the touch; Holding a stick of sandalwood, he poked it on the fabric with a fire for a while, and there was no hole like a silk coat, but Xiao Ye couldn't close his mouth with a smile.

Especially the copper zipper on the clothes, like the silk cotton coat, made Xiao Ye curious for a while.

Although 3,000 catties of coal can only be exchanged for a set of "field equipment," he is already very content, you know, in the shops on the mountain, cloth is the biggest profit in addition to food; And what Xiao Ye lacks most is silver.

The three of them met in person, Tian Xiuxiu, who was an acquaintance, naturally introduced his second uncle to Xiao Ye first, and Xiao Ye also bowed his head, after all, he was weak-hearted.

"Hehe, Ximen Baihu, Tian Guangcheng is polite," Seeing this young and somewhat excessively young Baihu, Tian Guangcheng's face was bright, and he also straightened up and smiled; Let him give gifts to the little hundreds, he is still embarrassed.

"Don't dare, Mr. Tian is for the elders, he came to the door, Xiao Ye was already panicked when he didn't welcome the guests," his mouth was long-winded, Xiao Ye stretched out his hand to let the two of them sit down, and he also sat down.

Tian Guangcheng didn't figure out the meaning of Xiao Ye's words, but under the veil, Tian Xiuxiu's face turned red, and she quietly glared at Xiao Ye, and then sat down on the chair seriously.

After the guards sent the coarse tea, Xiao Ye looked at Tian Guangcheng with a smile, "Mr. Tian personally escorted the caravan, it was extremely hard, it just so happened that my guards shot a wild boar yesterday, and I can taste the game for dinner,"

In the wilderness here, Tian Guangcheng also knew that he couldn't eat much good food, so he laughed and took out a list of points, and asked him to chat with a rude military man.

"Thank you for the kindness of the hundred households, this time on the Shiguantun, I would like to represent the Tian family, to send 10,000 catties of sulfur and saltpeter to the 100 households, after receiving the news from Fang Jun, I bought 1,000 catties of copper and lead materials, 100 catties of tin, and a number of other materials in Wuguan Town," Of course, this is to spend money to buy.

Putting the list on the table, Tian Guangcheng stroked his beard, his eyes flashed, "I don't know, can Ximen Baihu have the materials to be delivered?" Between the words, Tian Xiuxiu couldn't be allowed to interject.

Xiao Ye didn't look at the list, picked up the teacup and took a sip of bitter hot tea, and swept Tian Xiuxiu out of the corner of his eye, "So that Mr. Tian knows, I don't have any land in Shiguantun, and the charcoal is not enough to keep warm, and the most is the mountains of stones, the iron content is very low, and money and goods are scarce,"

What he said, how could Tian Guangcheng not know, even Tian Xiuxiu was also clear, the two listened quietly, nodded slightly, and didn't even look at the teacup.

Xiao Ye, who was deeply bored, could only speak, "Twenty silk short coats, for ten taels of one, Mr. Tian can send someone to accept it,"

That's it, Tian Guangcheng stroked his beard for a moment, and his face stiffened, it seems that this hundred households are quite reputable in their commitment to themselves.

"Well, the ticket thing?" Tian Guangcheng pondered for a moment, and asked tentatively, isn't the purpose of his trip just the white paper.

With the ticket paper that could not imitate the water pattern, it soon replaced the paper used for large silver tickets in Tianjia Qianzhuang, and the handwriting on it could not be erased and tampered with, which made Tianjia Qianzhuang's silver ticket prestige greater.

There are already a few good merchants, secretly negotiating with the family, trying to buy this precious ticket paper, and the exchange of interests is inevitable.

"100,000 tickets have been prepared, at the beginning of the new year, Quan Dang gave Miss Tian as a New Year's gift, and he didn't take anything," Xiao Ye, who was very heroic, looked at Tianxiuxiu lightly, and there was not much meaning in his tone, but this gift was very heavy.

"Si, this," Tian Guangcheng gasped, this kind of ticket paper worth thousands of gold, originally he wanted to buy it out with a large amount of money, but now it seems that he can save it.

looked at Xiao Ye with an indifferent face, and then at his niece wearing a veil, although Tian Guangcheng couldn't see the clues, he could also feel this unusual taste, and suddenly smiled in his heart.

This niece who can't get married, there are still people with blue eyes.

"Haha, okay, Ximen Baihu is bold," Tian Guangcheng gave a rare thumbs up, and his old face was full of joy, if he, a niece who couldn't get married, married to this Baihu, it would be to keep a source of wealth, or the kind that didn't need money.

But then Xiao Ye's words made him a little confused, "Mr. Tian, gifts are gifts, but the transaction cannot be ambiguous, the Tian family bought the deposit of the white paper, and it has not been delivered this year, I don't know if it was brought this time?" ”

"Deposit? What kind of deposit," Tian Guangcheng was a little confused, and vaguely felt that things were not as simple as he thought.

Sure enough, seeing that this old guy was confused, Xiao Ye showed his teeth and was happy, and the pie in the sky was falling from the sky, this old Xiucai really thought that there was one, and he was not afraid of choking himself.

"The official and Miss Tian reached a verbal agreement earlier, and every year Miss Tian will send 5,000 catties of sulfur and saltpeter, and 500 catties of lead, and the Tian family is the only buyer of the white paper, and the price of the white paper is determined by the official," Xiao Ye, who opened his mouth widely, turned the deposit over without changing his face in front of Tian Xiuxiu.

"This? Yes," Tian Guangcheng looked at his niece suspiciously, and when he saw her nodding slightly, he understood the Tao inside, it turned out that the price of this white paper was not cheap; If the 100 households of this slippery head raise the price again, plus the deposit paid first, the cost of the ticket paper will be large.

Hearing this, Tian Guangcheng also understood, it seems that the matter of the ticket paper is indeed not something that he can interfere with, if Ximen Baihu is happy, he will also smile for nothing, if he is unhappy, it will be his own family that loses money.

At the stall where Tian Guangcheng's face was red, Tian Xiuxiu, who didn't want his second uncle to be embarrassed, finally opened his mouth, and his crisp and glutinous voice made Xiao Ye's heart warm, "Xiao Baihu, my second uncle is also for the family business, you don't have to embarrass him, my Tian family will pay the deposit, but the price of the ticket,"

"Hehe, it's free this time, look at my mood next time," Xiao Ye took over with a smile, "I hope we can cooperate happily, and the Tian family's supply should be timely,"

"Okay, good, Ximen Baihu is refreshing," Tian Guangcheng, who turned his anger into joy, immediately stroked his palms and responded, this trip, how to say that it is a big profit, next time, next time, let my niece be tired and run a trip, just sit in Wuguan Town.

Tie up the Tian family, Xiao Ye is also a last resort, if the Huang family is allowed to sit in Shiguantun, once the supply of food and materials is controlled, then Huang Changzu will not be so polite, and the price of yellow mortar will be lower and lower.

A steamed bun is broken in half, and the two families can't eat enough, so he Xiao Ye will be stable.

Tian Guangcheng, who couldn't stand the wet humidity in the room, got up and said goodbye after chatting for a few words, and ran a long way, and he still had to take a breath in the shop room.

There are also guest rooms in the mill stone fort, Tian Xiuxiu took the maid Xiaoju, went to the inner room to chat and make love with Mei'er, and stayed in the castle at night.

The meaning in Xiuxiu's eyes that he saw was very refreshing, Xiao Ye waved his hand very happily, and asked the guards to inform Uncle Kun that he took the white stunned paper and silk cotton coat out of the warehouse and handed them over to Tian Fangjun, who had been waiting for a long time, and sent a wild boar hind leg by the way.

As for the sulfur and saltpeter that Tian Jia pulled up the mountain, 10,000 catties of copper and lead, and 100 catties of tin, they were also transported into the mill under the supervision of Xiao Liuzi; Among the materials that the Tian family brought up the mountain, there were also a small number of rare goods such as mercury and tin, but Tian Guangcheng did not mention it, which was originally to sell them at a good price, but now they have also been collected into the mill.

Xiao Ye's payment for the goods owed to the Tian family is also increasing at a rate of 1,000 taels.

The guards in their own mill sent all these mountain-like raw materials into the stone mill without falling to the ground.

Tens of thousands of catties of charcoal outside the mill were also sent in by the guards in a wheelbarrow. Xiao Ye, who was standing at the door of the mill, turned around several times before he made up his mind.

In the inner room of Xiao Ye's house, Tian Xiuxiu and Mei'er chatted for a while, and let Xiaoju go out, and she got up and was about to kneel down in front of Mei'er, but Mei'er was startled, and hurriedly stepped forward to support her, "Sister Tian, what are you doing?" ”

"Sister Mei'er, it's not right to be a sister, but my sister is also a last resort," Tian Xiuxiu, who had already taken off the veil, choked with red circles in her eyes, "According to the name, Xiuxiu still calls you sister,"

With her words, the smart Mei'er understood that it was her husband who caused the trouble, so that this eldest lady of the Tian family had a place to belong.

Seeing Mei'er's face turn white, Tian Xiuxiu smiled reluctantly, "I was dizzy that night, but in my family, I can't be allowed to marry a hundred households for the time being, although they all say that I am Kefu's life,"

Talking about her life experience, in addition to business matters, Tian Xiuxu was also in tears, two men who had never even met in person, and she was asked to take responsibility when she died, and she was aggrieved in her heart, and only one person was crying.

"I don't want a name, and I don't dare to expect to marry into the Ximen family, just as Xiao Lang is just a red face, I hope Mei'er has mercy," Tian Xiuxiu, who was soaked in the handkerchief, said the last words that made Mei'er breathe a sigh of relief; The location of her main room is safe, so she naturally cares about this sister.

"Sister, don't say that, Xiao Lang can meet you, count it as his blessing," Mei'er, who always refused to let go, comforted Xiuxiu for a while, and did not spit out the words to make her a flat wife, but it made Xiuxiu's heart gloomy.

After all, she "killed" two men, and Mei'er didn't want Xiao Ye to take this risk. But anyway, acquiescing to her identity has made her less embarrassed.

In the afternoon, Xiao Ye went to the private school, the clinic and the coal pit, and stayed in the mold filling field with Wang Dali for a long time, and then took his personal guards, rode to the west mountain valley, and after a few firearms with the two teams of sergeants who practiced shooting, Shi Shiran returned to the mill stone fort when it was about to dark.

Xiao Ye, who has not received formal training in the army, has a soft spot for firearms, and he also takes a fancy to the simplicity of training, and he can't afford to spend that money on drills that are too difficult.

When he returned to the Baihu Office and saw Mei'er's pretty face that seemed to be smiling but not smiling, Xiao Ye knew that Xiuxiu must have confided in her inner feelings, and this Miss Tian family with a soft face and a strong face would not hide it for long.

"You, it's really me a jealous woman, the girl Tian doesn't care about her reputation, you also have to be more accessible, just tell me earlier," didn't mean to persuade her husband to marry, after Mei'er cleaned up the dishes and chopsticks, Si Mo entered the inner room with Xiao Ye.

Tonight, Zuo Shi led the team to guard the castle wall, and Han Juan went to Mr. Private School's house again, and it is estimated that she will sleep in Mei'er's previous room; My father-in-law is now interested in teaching Hanjuan, but he is much older than before, and he enjoys it.

The warm ondol, the soft quilt, clinging to the hot body, demanded Mei'er twice, and put a small pillow under her waist, and then let her husband go, "Go, Miss Tian, you still have to deal with it, I'm also tired,"

"Oh, then you rest first," Xiao Ye, who put on his clothes, ran out of the inner room and didn't hear the light reproach behind him.

Outside the guest room, Xiao Ye saw the maid Xiaoju, who was waiting in circles, raised her eyes and saw his figure, and hurriedly ran over, "Ximen Baihu, you are here, Miss didn't even eat tonight, and she burst into tears,"

"Well, Xiao Liuzi, you take Xiao Ju to the porter, there is a stove where it is warmer," Xiao Ye waved his hand and walked into the southernmost guest room. The little sixth son behind him hurriedly grabbed Xiao Ju and went to the gate of the castle with a smile.

In the small courtyard of the guest room, looking from the half-open window, under the dim oil lamp in the room, Xiuxiu sitting on a chair with red eyes made Xiao Ye scratch his head for a while.

When she saw Xiao Ye walk in, Tian Xiuxiu turned her face away, and there was another burst of tears; Sighing secretly, Xiao Ye stepped forward and hugged Tian Xiuxiu in his arms, letting her sour tears flow.

"I don't want a name, but you can't ignore me, otherwise I can only go," Tian Xiuxiu, who raised her face, looked at Xiao Ye with a crying voice, so that Xiao Ye couldn't help but lower her head and blocked the second half of her sentence with her mouth.

"Mei'er, I'll talk about it, the title will be given to you sooner or later, and I will also give you the title of wife and shadow," staring at Xiuxiu's flustered eyes tightly, Xiao Ye said seriously, "My life is hard, no one will overcome it, don't worry,"

After speaking, he picked up the still trembling delicate body, Xiao Ye strode into the inner room, tonight, it was another sleepless night.