Since Li Quan was not very urgent, and he could not refute Meng Jiucheng's reason, he agreed to wait for two or three months, and took out the money to buy a batch of grain.

After dealing with this matter, it has been more than half a month. Meng Jiucheng was a little more relaxed, dealing with official documents sent from various places every day, and maintaining correspondence with generals and officials from all over the country.

History has proven that as long as there is a stable social environment and the people's minds are stable, the speed of production recovery will be very fast.

What's more, the policies implemented in the base areas are relatively reasonable and relaxed, the sea trade channels are also constantly expanding, and the financial situation is also gradually improving.

At this time, there was no war in the Southern Song Dynasty for many years, and there were no major natural disasters, the treasury was full, and the price of grain was very low. And selling grain in Qingdao and Lanshan, even if it is two or three times the price, is also a lucrative method.

With the increase in the amount of grain sold from the south and the introduction of incentive policies such as the access system, the grain price of the Qingdao Commodity Exchange has also been declining, from 10 times the original to 3 to 4 times.

If you include the freight, the price of grain is actually not too high, and there must always be enough room for merchants to make a profit in order to maintain long-term commerce.

In other parts of Shandong, people have been displaced by the war, and the fields are barren, but the price of food is rising, and even money cannot buy it.

In other places, the food shortage is becoming more and more serious, and the Lianghe area is even "thousands of miles of red land, and the population is cut off". It is strange that the situation in the area is constantly improving.

Because of this, the territory of the Red Turban Army continued to flood with fleeing refugees. Haizhou, which is close to the Huai River, has also attracted many displaced people who fled south to the Huai River because of its stability and the preferential policies introduced.

At that time, the Southern Song Dynasty was not friendly to the "naturalized people" in Nandu, and it was common for the order to change every day. Although at present, due to the weakening of the Jin State, the magistrates on the border of the Southern Song Dynasty have resettled the displaced people, but it is only unsatisfactory.

Living in a state of unease, relying on the porridge and food of the relief, coupled with the fact that it is difficult to leave the homeland, it is not an accident that the displaced people return.

The Red Turban Army took this opportunity to expand again and organize battalions for training. By the time he entered the fourth year of the reign of Zhenyu (1216 AD), the total number of troops reached more than 40,000.

In the land of three states, 40,000 horses is actually not much. But this is compared with other rebels, and in Meng Jiucheng's view, or according to the finances of the base area, it is already the limit.

And if you want to have more troops and collect more taxes, you have to make the cake bigger, that is, you have to expand your territory.

At present, it will take one or two months to send troops to fight, lay down territory, send officials, calm the people's minds, and implement policies.

In this way, it will be the beginning of spring, just in time for spring plowing and sowing, so as not to delay the agricultural season and reduce the financial burden.

Meng Jiucheng calculated very carefully, and mobilized more than 30,000 troops to assemble in the north, preparing to unite with Li Quan and launch a large-scale attack on Qing, Wei, Zi, Lai, Ninghai (under the jurisdiction of Muping and Wendeng counties) and other prefectures.

The so-called soldiers and horses have not moved, and the grain and grass go first. Just when he was about to attack, Meng Jiucheng rushed to Qingdao and personally presided over the auction. To put it bluntly, it is to raise military spending.

This auction was rumored two or three months ago, and this year is the only time, and all the large treasure mirrors will be sold. Even if it is temporarily out of stock, reservations are accepted and appropriate benefits are available.

In other words, if you miss this auction, there will be no large mirrors for sale this year, and you won't be able to get any money.

As for the reservation, it also has to wait for the previous year, and the deposit is about one-third of the price of the treasure mirror, and a certain interest rate will be reduced when the goods are delivered.

In this way, the two years of treasure mirrors will be sold at this auction, and there will be no more such goods for sale within two years.

The temptation is certain, but there are also Meng Jiucheng's tricks. For example, reservation money is equivalent to a low-interest loan, which is equivalent to borrowing.

In any case, Meng Jiucheng had just come to Qingdao, and as a gesture of goodwill, he invited many businessmen who came, and even he was very surprised.

Because there are not only merchants from the Southern Song Dynasty, but also merchants from Quanzhou, but also merchants from Goryeo and Wa.

Of course, Meng Jiucheng didn't know that the shrewd maritime merchants had reopened the trade routes of Goryeo and Wa with the help of Qingdao, and sold mirrors, soap and other goods, making unusually rich profits.

It is not uncommon for Goryeo and Japanese merchants to know about the reopening of the port of Qingdao (during the Song Dynasty, a "city shipping department" was set up in Banqiao Town (in Jiaozhou City) to manage foreign trade) and tried to run twice.

In fact, in the Southern Song Dynasty, Mingzhou (Ningbo) was the country's three major foreign trade ports, and the main trade objects were the Wa Kingdom and Goryeo. The history records that "those who went to China from Goryeo and Japan, but Qingyuan was sent to accept it." ”

Many of the Mingzhou people were hired by the Japanese merchant ships as interpreters, although their Japanese skills were not very high.

Naturally, you can't say anything more at the banquet, just to express your welcome. When Meng Jiucheng returned to the house, several merchants came to visit.

In terms of financial resources, the merchants are the most abundant; However, Meng Jiucheng found that there were several Southern Song Dynasty merchants who were obviously royal or came by order of the emperor to purchase goods for the Southern Song Dynasty royal family.

In the feudal era, whoever was the richest was naturally the emperor. The whole world is his, and who is richer than him?

Therefore, these Song businessmen also seem to be rich and confident.

There were also Goryeo merchants and Japanese merchants, and it seems that the Goryeo merchants also had the shadow of the royal family behind them, while the background of the Japanese merchants was unknown.

Goryeo merchants and Japanese merchants had never seen large mirrors, and only a few small mirrors were sold to their countries, which was enough to surprise the Goryeo and Japanese people.

It was only when they saw the large mirrors placed in the commodity exchange that the two businessmen realized that they were frogs at the bottom of the well. I want to buy and return to China and make a fortune, but I don't have enough money to carry.

The sea ships of the Fan merchants, the grain and other materials of the Song merchants, the sulfur of the Wa Kingdom, and the ...... of Goryeo

Meng Jiucheng thought about it for a long time, and he didn't know what help Gao Li could provide him at present. But in the long run, Goryeo is also an ally worth wooing.

Therefore, Meng Jiucheng did not refuse the request of the merchants of Goryeo and Wa, but promised to leave them a treasure mirror for each of them, and wait for them to bring the goods they need, or bring enough money, and then deliver the treasure mirror.

Although it is claimed to be a public auction, in order to take care of the interests of all parties, there are always several treasure mirrors that are agreed on in private.

Of course, the price is lower, but it can be compensated for by other aspects, such as the long-term sale of ships, grain, cotton, metal, and other goods.

After sending away the businessmen who had visited all parties, Meng Jiucheng breathed a sigh of relief, drank tea, and thought about it seriously. When he felt that there was nothing missing, he went to the back house to rest and rest.