"How much does this kitchen knife cost?"
Chu Mu weighed a kitchen knife and looked at the vendor in front of him.
The vendor immediately smiled: "Master, you have good taste, this is..."
"Stop talking nonsense, how much does it cost!"
Chu Mu glanced at the smiling vendor, and his voice became a little heavier.
"My lord, what are you talking about? If you want it, lord, take it. If you want any money, treat it as a small act of filial piety, my lord..."
Although he said this, the distressed expression on the vendor's face was very clear.
"Say a price, don't worry, your knife won't be in vain."
Chu Mu looked at the kitchen knife in his hand and replied without raising his head.
"Four...no, sir, just give me two silvers."
"Two silvers?"
Chu Mu raised his eyebrows: "It means you sell it to others for four silver coins?"
"My lord, it's not because I sell it expensively. The price of iron on the market has risen to thirty coppers per pound. There is still wear and tear on the knife. I have to hire someone. I really don't make much money. It's all hard-earned money." !”
"Is iron so expensive now?"
Chu Mu's eyes moved slightly, and he glanced at the billowing smoke still rising on the mountainside, and said casually: "The iron on the market is so expensive, is there no other way to get it?"
Hearing Chu Mu's words, the vendor's expression changed, he quickly looked around, then got a little closer to Chu Mu, and whispered: "Master, if you can get it, I'll give you this price!"
Chu Mu looked down and saw that the vendor's gestures were very clear, one one and five.
"Eat half of it, you have a dark heart!"
Chu Mu moved away and threw the kitchen knife on the vendor's table.
"My lord, it's not like you don't know that all the iron in the county is in the hands of a few gentlemen in the county. There is only so much on the market. Even if we take it, we don't dare to get it in our county. It all has to be transported." Go to the next county!”
"This time, people on the road eat horse chews and have to eat them up and down. It's really not profitable."
Chu Mu remained silent, just looking coldly at the chattering vendors.
"Well, sir, if the quantity is large, I will give you twenty. If the quantity is small, I will give you sixteen..."
"Okay, I will come to you if I have news."
Chu Mu patted his armor and didn't wait for the vendor to reply. He turned around and walked away, leaving the vendor alone in a daze, seemingly unresponsive for a moment.
"Sure enough, I still have narrow cognition..."
Chu Mu pursed his lips. The conversation with the vendor just now had formed a clear thread in his heart.
There is no doubt that no one is willing to trade at a loss, and no one will knowingly trade at a loss yet insist on doing so over and over again. If so, there must be a reason.
In Qinghe County, the high-ranking men obviously did not lose money.
Even if the county and city take away the bulk, the leftovers will be enough for those gentlemen to eat a lot, and the county and city will take away the bulk, which will also bring about the effect of making things more scarce.
And the gentlemen in the county just paid the price of an order.
The people above eat meat, and the people below naturally drink soup.
What the vendor said just now undoubtedly proves this point.
The mines and ironworks are all under inspection and supervision. Apparently, they have already had the courage to drink soup by taking advantage of their authority!
And what is certain is that this "drinking soup" is definitely not an exception. Otherwise, the vendor would never dare to say it so easily.
After thinking about it, Chu Mu seemed to understand.
Around the Nanshan Iron Mine, a large network of interests has already been formed in Qinghe County.
Those who eat meat eat meat, and those who drink soup drink soup. The collusion between the upper and lower levels is deeply ingrained.
Obviously, unless there is a big change from the bottom up, this big network is basically impossible to be shaken.
If he wants to slowly climb up in Qinghe County, it is impossible to avoid this big net.
While thinking wildly, it didn't take long for his own house to appear in Chu Mu's field of vision.
As expected, Xu Yuan was already waiting at the entrance of the courtyard.
"Brother Mu, what have you been doing and why did you come back?"
"Walking around the street for a while."
Chu Mu responded casually, took out the key, and opened the locked courtyard door.
"I bought a fish. Brother Mu will make braised fish for dinner tonight."
"Okay, you can go to the kitchen and get some rice to cook. I'll be here later."
Chu Mu waved his hand, walked directly into the bedroom, put down the books in his arms, took off his armor and sword, and then walked into the kitchen to get busy.
Not long after, three dishes and one soup were placed on the table, and Xu Yuan devoured them as usual, as if he had never eaten in eight lifetimes.
But this time after the meal, Xu Yuan didn't hang around and refused to leave as usual. As soon as he put down his rice bowl, he wiped his mouth and said a word before rushing out.
"Brother Mu, the corps leader told me to go to his house to help with the work after dinner. I'll go there first."
"Okay, slow down."
Before Chu Mu finished speaking, Xu Yuan rushed out of the door and disappeared.
"This kid..."
Chu Mu shook his head, put down the bowl and chopsticks in his hands, and sat on the chair for a while. Then Chu Mu slowly stood up and simply put away the bowl and chopsticks after the meal. When he left the kitchen again, the sky was completely dark. .
Chu Mu obviously didn't have time to relax yet, so he picked up his schoolbag containing pen, ink, paper and inkstones and went out again in the night.
Chu Mu was naturally familiar with the route to the private school, and did not delay anything on the way. After leaving home, Chu Mu went straight to the private school.
Reading at night after dinner every day, Mr. Chang Lao from the private school naturally did not have the energy to accompany Chu Mu alone. Except for the first two days, Mr. Chang Lao was his teacher, and since then he has been taught by one of Mr. Chang Lao's disciples. Chu Mu was able to read and write.
Although he is a disciple, he has been studying poetry and books since he was a child, and he is a student who is aspiring to achieve fame and fame. It is naturally more than enough to teach Chu Mu how to read and write.
In one night, after more than two hours of concentration, Chu Mu gained about thirty new words.
That enlightenment book that Chu Mu had stumbled through countless times, obviously became much smoother as the number of new words he learned increased.
When Chu Mu walked out of the private school, it was already almost curfew time.
It was pitch dark in the alley, and the lanterns on the side were swaying in the wind. Although it added a bit of light, it also added a bit of inexplicable terror.
"Hurry up, move quickly!"
In the darkness, a faint voice suddenly made Chu Mu slow down subconsciously.
The alley was narrow and extended in all directions. Although it was difficult to identify the direction in the darkness, Chu Mu was also a person who often walked at night. Soon, Chu Mu located the direction from which the sound came.
Chu Mu leaned against the corner of the alley, looking sideways at the bicycle frame parked at the entrance of a yard in the alley, and the figure carrying a wooden box and sack.
In this darkness, the sound of the iron blocks colliding in the sack was very clear.
Coupled with the distinctive patrol armor...
It is undoubtedly very clear what scene is in front of me...
…
