Coming out of Shengji Old Wine, Sima Jingwen and Gu Rong first went around the Chai Market twice before turning back to Chaji Rice Shop.

Seeing that Sima Jingwen and Gu Rong were here again, the guy who checked the record hurriedly put down the work in his hand and greeted him with a smiling face.

"Yo, two nobles, can you eat at noon? We're still used to eating Jiangdong dishes, right? The guy talked.

"Hehe, it's okay!" Gu Rong replied with a smile.

Sima Jingwen still looked cold: "What about your shopkeeper?" ”。

"The shopkeeper is taking a nap inside, the two nobles will wait for a while, and the little one will call him out."

The man answered, turned and entered the inner hall.

Shopkeeper Xu heard that the two distinguished guests in the morning had returned and greeted him from the inner hall.

The usual smile on his face: "The two nobles have walked around, can you clear the market of this firewood market?" ”

"Yes, it's still a big shop, but the price is ......." Gu Rong deliberately stretched the word price longer, not fully expressed, but let the shopkeeper understand.

Of course, Shopkeeper Xu understood what Gu Rong wanted to say, and said with a smile: "Business, it is necessary to talk slowly, two nobles, if you don't dislike it, it's okay to have a cup of tea in first?" ”

Sima Jingwen nodded.

"Your Excellency, please!" Shopkeeper Xu humbly.

As he spoke, he said to the guy, "Cook the pot with good tea." ”

"Okay!" The guy replied loudly.

Entering the inner hall, everyone sat down, Sima Jingwen looked around the inner hall, different from other merchants, this inner hall reads: Harmony of kindness and righteousness.

It's just that this law has no characteristics, and it is even a little crude, and at first glance it is the master's own question.

The guy served tea, and the three of them were polite, so there was no need to elaborate.

Gu Rong quickly introduced the topic to the topic: "Dare to ask the shopkeeper, how many stones can you provide for the current round, and how much can you get on the ship?" ”

"10,000 stones, you can get on the ship within ten days."

"Thirty thousand stones." Sima Jingwen sipped tea in his hand and said casually.

"Thirty thousand stones!" Shopkeeper Xu couldn't help but be taken aback when he heard this, and the tea he had just mentioned almost spilled because of his trembling hands.

Shopkeeper Xu realized his gaffe, and immediately said with a smile on his face: "Noble, you are really generous." The opening is 30,000 stones. ”

"What? The store can't do it. Sima Jingwen said expressionlessly.

"Your Excellency misunderstood, it's not that we can't do it, such a large amount will take some time to be adjusted."

"How long will it take?" Gu Rong asked.

"Your business's business really makes my little shopkeeper uncontrollable, this business is indeed difficult, please forgive me." After speaking, the shopkeeper stood up and bowed deeply.

"Oh? If there is any difficulty, the shopkeeper Xu will say that it is okay."

"The nobles must also know that the imperial court has been collecting grain from the people in order to help the victims, and the 20,000 stone of grain that was just transported away a few days ago was inexplicably lost on the Huaishui, so the apportionment of this levy is heavier, and the people's grain storage is getting smaller and smaller. The nobles need such a large amount of food, and it is not raised at once, so it is necessary to report it to the owner. ”

Hearing what Shopkeeper Xu said, which was indeed the case, Gu Rong couldn't help but ask: "In that case, how can the owner you check raise money?" ”

"I don't know much about this, but with the ability of our host, we will definitely meet the needs of your nobles."

"In this case, the shopkeeper knows that my owners are all generous, can I be more accommodating in terms of price?"

Shopkeeper Xu pondered for a moment, and after some thought, he gave the price: "How about one hundred and twenty dollars and one stone?" ”

Gu Rong looked at Sima Jingwen noncommittally with the attitude of a housekeeper.

Sima Jingwen thought to himself: This Cha Yong must be inseparable from the Yin Bing borrowing grain case, and he must take the opportunity to meet Cha Yong. If it is too high, the shopkeeper will agree, and only if it is low, he will not be the master.

So he said coldly: "One hundred dollars and one stone!" ”

"Noble man, there is no price of a hundred dollars a stone in the rice market. I'm afraid it's hard to get this price for a nobleman! ”

So Sima Jingwen smiled lightly: "Since Shopkeeper Xu can't be the master of the owner's family, it's useless to talk more, and let's talk about it when I see your owner." ”

"What the noble man said is very true, and wait for me to reply to the owner, and wait for the owner's opinion."

"No, we're going to see your host!"

Hearing that he wanted to see the owner, the shopkeeper's face showed a look of embarrassment: "Back to the nobles, our owner has never seen a benefactor, I'm afraid this is difficult?" ”

When Gu Rong heard this, he smiled and said, "Other guests may not be good, but our master, your host is afraid that you will definitely see it." “

As he spoke, Gu Rong took out a beautifully made wooden thorn and handed it to the shopkeeper Xu.

The shopkeeper's hands respectfully took the thorn, glanced at it, suddenly changed his face, and hurriedly returned the thorn with both hands respectfully.

The smile deepened, and he cautiously asked: "The noble man turned out to be the son of the Langya Wang family." So who is Shangshu today? ”

Sima Jingwen said lightly: "Shopkeeper Xu doesn't need to ask more, you can arrange it." ”

"Yes, yes, yes, the villain will arrange it."

"So just wait for the news of the shopkeeper, we live in Tiancheng Inn, my surname is Gu, as soon as there is news, you will send someone to come immediately."

It turned out that Sima Jingwen took a few famous thorns from his friend Wang Dao on this trip, and Gu Rong showed the shopkeeper Wang Dao's famous thorns.

Sima Jingwen and Gu Rong left the Chaji rice shop, and the shopkeeper Xu immediately repaired a book, and instructed his subordinates to immediately go to the helm of the twelve halls of the Huaiyin Caochuan River.

Sima Jingwen and Gu Rong came back first, and at dinner, Murong Jia and Qinghu also returned.

Everyone had dinner downstairs in the inn, and Yi Xue, Murong Jia, and Gu Rong followed Sima Jingwen back to the Tianzi room. Qinghu, Wuji, and Zhou Rong continued to eat and drink downstairs and look at the wind.

Yi Xue first talked about meeting Guan Lao, and told him to go to Zhifeng Teahouse to meet the owner Pang Qing the next day.

Gu Rong also talked about the agreement between Sima Jingwen and Chaji Rice Shop.

For the harvest of this day, everyone is happy.

Only Murong Jia listened carefully, and stood at the door with his chest and head bowed as if thoughtful.

"Senior brother, what news did you get from that Long Si?"

Hearing Yi Xue's question, Murong Jia raised his head and fixed his mind: "That Long Si is very strange, he led us to a secluded wine shop, I asked him about the proverbs of children, he didn't answer me, but seemed to be sure that we are not merchants, and suggested that we go to the places where the grain is collected to check and see the current situation of the current grain collection." ”

Referring to the grain levy, Yi Xue also said: "The sister-in-law we met today also mentioned the grain levy, and also said that the grain levy official Hu had a problem and wanted people's lives. ”

"Long Si said that on the surface, the local government still pursues the imperial court's land occupation system, paying eight liters of grain per mu, but in fact, they enter and exit the small Hu."

"It is a common trick for the imperial court to collect grain, and it is a common trick for the big Hu to enter and small Hu to come out, but the number of Hu is different, and the purpose is to collect more grain." Gu Rong has been an official for so many years, and he still has heard of this.

"I'm afraid that this extra levy has gone into the private pockets of Li Zhao and Shi Li."

Yi Xue remembered the words of the sister-in-law during the day, and said hatefully: "The grain collected by the people, in addition to paying the court taxes, the farmers also have to pay tenant rent, and now the profiteers are hoarding and cheating on the government's grain collection, Jiangnan, which is known as the land of fish and rice, has such a difficult life for the people, not to mention the Central Plains and the land of Beijun!" ”

When they heard this, they all sighed.

"This Long Si asked us to go to various places to see the situation of grain requisition, presumably just to let us investigate this matter." Sima Jingwen, who had never spoken, suddenly said.

"yes, that's what he said." Murong Jia replied.

"On the surface, this Long Si seems to be a tooth man who begs for small profits in life, but looking at some of his behaviors, he always feels like a tooth customer." Mu Yixue said puzzled.

"That's right, how could the tooth be so concerned about the matter of requisitioning food, so concerned about the survival of the people? Thinking about it carefully, it seems that it is no accident that this Long Si met from Jianye to this Jiangdu! Gu Rong also agreed.

Yi Xue suddenly thought of something, and took out the brocade that Long Si gave him with the secret words of Luofeng Villa written on it, "This is a good brocade, how can a tooth guest use such a good brocade?" Yi Xue said as she spread out the brocade, looked at it carefully, and handed the brocade to Sima Jingwen.

Sima Jingwen took the Jinpa and looked at it: "The workmanship of this Jinpa is very exquisite, and it is indeed not used by ordinary tooth customers." ”

"Where is this dragon four? The Yin soldiers borrowed the grain to tell him that there was a grain ship in the ditch, and guided us to the grain market through children's proverbs, intentionally or unintentionally told him to check the details of Yong, even the secret words of the Zhifeng Tea Shop He also knew, and now he guided us to check the grain. Yi Xue muttered.

"It seems that this dragon four is indeed not simple." Sima Jingwen also fell into thought.

At this time, Murong Jia said again: "This Dragon Four also hints that we want to fight for Cha Yong!" ”

"Oh, you want to fight for Cha Yong?" Sima Jingwen looked up at Murong Jia Dao when he heard this.

"Well, Long Si said that although Cha Yong is a hero, but he is also righteous, and it is helpless to be attached to the government, Cha Yong is good to the brothers of Caoyun Wharf and the guys in each shop, many people on both sides of the Huaishui rely on Caoyun Wharf to live, and there is Cha Yong, and there are many fewer incidents of merchant ships being robbed by water bandits in the past." Murong Jia said.

Gu Rong also said: "As far as I know, this Cha Yong is indeed not a great evil person, and he can't help himself in the rivers and lakes, he is not attached to the government, and he can't be the chief helmsman of the Twelve Halls of Caoyun." ”

Sima Jingwen nodded when he heard this, and agreed with Murong Jia and Gu Rong's words: "This Long Si is afraid that he knows our details, and hopes that we can verify the matter of requisitioning grain, and suggests that we strive for Cha Yong, I am afraid that there is something strange in this." ”

When Yi Xue, Murong Jia, and Gu Rong heard Sima Jingwen's words, they fell into deep thought, and the room suddenly fell silent

After a while, Murong Jia saw that everyone didn't speak, and showed his big white teeth and smiled: "Since we can't think of it, let's just wait until we go to Luofeng Mountain Villa tomorrow." ”

"Then let's wait until tomorrow when I see the owner of this Luofeng Villa. The shopkeeper Xu who checked the rice shop must have sent the news to Cha Yong, and there should be news tomorrow. Sima Jingwen said.

At this time, there was already the sound of the second watch, so everyone returned to their respective rooms, washed and rested.

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