Doctor Xu Jia said: "Food is the foundation of the world. Salt is what the people rely on for their livelihood. If the foundation is easy to rely on, it will surely be used by the people of the world and the country of the world will be conquered. Prince, please check it out!"
Prince Qin said: "The people must be based on food. The king of Wei ordered that not a single grain of food be allowed to leave the Liang territory. Isn't that right? How can we be so busy with our city?"
Dr. Xu Jia said: "In the past, the princes allied themselves in Kuiqiu and swore that there would be no way to defend or stop buying. Although our city has little food, we dare not stop buying in a big country."
Prince Qin said: "If you buy it at a reasonable price, you can easily lose something if you have something to spare. How can you be in trouble?"
Doctor Xu Jia said: "Now our city has been affected by it."
Prince Qin said very sincerely: "I am accustomed to the way of business, but I have gained nothing. The doctor is good at business, I hope you can teach me."
Dr. Xu Jia has never come to negotiate and come to teach, but the other party treats him sincerely, and it seems that the negotiation cannot go on unless he makes it clear. So I bowed down and bowed before saying, "Your Majesty, when I see you, I will give you a detailed report!"
Prince Qin also bowed in return and said, "I sincerely accept your advice!"
So Dr. Xu Jia explained in detail the impact of exchanging grain for salt on Wei's economy. During this period, the prince asked many questions about what he had learned. Xu Jia answered some of them one by one if he could answer them; he also put forward his own opinions on some that he could not answer. The prince was very eager to learn, and the questions he asked were very accurate, which scratched Dr. Xu Jia's itch. Dr. Xu Jia never showed his knowledge to others. On the contrary, he himself felt that doing business was actually a very unpromising thing, and management He was already an important minister of the royal family and could participate in the life of King Wei, but he still felt that he was just an agent. Now being consulted respectfully by Prince Qin, he unconsciously displayed all he had learned in his life. The discussion between the two lasted from after dinner to sunset, and both sides still had unfinished talk. The Prince of Qin wants to keep Dr. Xu Jia for dinner. How dare Dr. Xu Jia: the crime of liaison with the princes is a capital crime!
Dr. Jia came out of the post office and immediately rushed to Wei Qi's mansion to report. Wei Qi hosted him for dinner and heard from him that Prince Qin originally did not understand the situation and thought Wei was blaming him; now he is understanding the situation. If you convince him, you might be able to provide some help. Wei Qi also felt helpless and said: "It's really unexpected that Duke Qin's buying and selling happened like this. It's great that the doctor can tell you! This matter cannot be delayed. If the doctor has nothing important to do, he can go and talk about it from time to time. But Don’t talk too much about military matters!”
Doctor Xu Jia said: "I only talk about business matters, and I dare not say a word about military affairs."
From then on, for several days in a row, Dr. Xu Jia arrived at the Qin Prince's Pavilion Post on time and explained to the prince the economy of the Wei State, how money and grain flowed among various classes in the country, and how the policy of exchanging grain for salt broke this flow. . Finally, Dr. Xu Jia concluded: "Grain enters Anyi, and money flows to the princes. Grain is expensive but money is cheap. The original is prosperous but the end is harmed!"
Prince Qin said: "Isn't it great to be proud and have the people return to their fields?"
Dr. Xu Jia said: "Scholars, farmers, industry and commerce are the four dimensions of a country. If one of them is missing, the country will collapse."
Prince Qin said: "Since the time of Lord Shang, our city has always been engaged in farming and warfare, focusing on agriculture and suppressing business. How can a country be like this?"
Doctor Xu Jia said: "The land in Guanzhong is vast and the people are few, and the grass is not cultivated. Therefore, the merchant king must want the people to work on his agriculture, but temporarily suppress his business, and wants the people to be common people. Sincerely Qin will cultivate all the grass. That is, if you are not a businessman, you will not be able to get rich, so you should continue to do so; if you are not a scholar, you will not be able to teach how to practice business, so you should continue to do so."
Prince Qin said: "If it weren't for the doctor's teaching, how could I know about it? What policy should I follow now?"
Dr. Xu Jia said: "If the east of the river is not limited to grain, things will be harmonious."
Prince Qin said: "This doctor is planning for Wei. Today there is little food in Hedong. I hope that the doctor will work for Qin and benefit both Qin and Wei!"
Prince Qin's question immediately puzzled Dr. Xu Jia. In the past, they only considered how Wei could benefit, and never thought from the standpoint of the Qin people. They only hoped that the prince would bid and then bargain. Prince Today's question is obviously asking the other party, how could I give up on something that is so beneficial to me? If I were asked to give up, what kind of compensation would Wei be prepared to make?
Dr. Xu Jia said to the prince with some embarrassment: "If the prince has any ideas, he can teach his ministers!"
The prince said: "I don't have a plan, but I would like to ask the doctor for advice."
Doctor Xu Jia didn't know whether it was true or not, so he had to say goodbye: "I would like to think carefully about it before dedicating it to the prince!" The two of them said goodbye.
After Dr. Xu Jia came out, he immediately rushed to find Wei Qi and reported to him the results of the negotiation with the prince: The prince asked how to make Qin and Wei both benefit!
Now Wei Qi was in trouble. The serious consequences of the exchange of grain for salt in Hedong are related to the long-term peace and stability of Wei State. If Hedong is to give up, Wei State must pay a heavy price. But what happened in Hedong is just a chronic attack, which makes people feel very uncomfortable, but they will not die for a while; but if they have to pay for it all at once, it will be acute pain, and they may die in an instant. He had no choice but to say to Dr. Xu Jia: "It's almost the New Year, so I can pay homage to the prince frequently, whether it's yin or yang to explore what I'm looking for."
Dr. Xu Jia had no other choice but to come out. Send something to Guanyi every few days and have a chat. But the prince insisted on not letting go, and he must ask Dr. Jia to come up with a plan that would satisfy both parties.
Dr. Xu Jia felt exhausted and went to Wei Qi for advice. Unexpectedly, when he saw Wei Qi, Wei Qi was furious and cursed at the people below: "You are so stupid, so stupid! How could you be alive?" Since Dr. Xu Jia was a frequent visitor to Prime Minister Wei's Mansion, the concierge did not inform him, but just told him. Prime Minister Wei is angry, but the reason is unknown. Xu Jia arrived at the foot of the steps and listened silently for a moment. It seemed that these people did not find out what was going on in time and delayed something. Then he coughed at the foot of the steps and said, "I have an audience with Xu Jia!" Wei Qi listened and said, With a "duh" sound, everyone in the hall was kicked away. When these people came down to the hall, they happened to see Xu Jia at the foot of the steps. They all shrank their heads and did not dare to come over to meet them.
After all these people had left, Wei Qi came out of the hall, greeted him on the steps, and bowed Dr. Xu Jia into the hall. Dr. Xu Jia did not ask about what happened just now, but simply reported: "Prince Qin will not give in, and he will also ask for bribes from Wei."
Wei Qi suddenly became excited and shouted: "Why do you need another request? I will do it myself!"
Xu Jia was startled and asked quickly: "What do you mean?"
Wei Qi said: "How can Zhi Shou be so stupid as to open Zhi Pass for Qin! You, my slave, know it! Isn't it a mistake!"
Xu Jia said: "How can I open Zhiguan?"
Wei Qi said: "Formerly, Qin sent envoys to Zhi and wanted to move the Zhe people to Anyi. Zhi guarded them with grain, but Shao allowed them to do so! In addition, Qin wanted to build a warehouse at Zhi Pass, either to store salt for Qin or to store grain for Qin, and to cooperate with Zhi. Tithe. I can't bear to guard Zhi, but I actually made a promise. Now the Zhi Pass is connected to Qin! But what, what can I do?"
Dr. Xu Jia said: "Zhiguan is connected to Qin, and you take tithes? Why is this?"
Wei Qi said: "You are even stupider! Who are you to take small profits and forget the great righteousness? Who is this!"
Xu Jia spent a lot of effort and finally figured out what happened between Zhiguan and Zhishou. It turned out that they opened the warehouses at Zhiguan to the Qin people for them to store salt and grain, and they reaped the tithe of the profits. Zhi Shou and Zhi Cheng were already colluding. Only Zhi Wei still had a trace of righteousness (perhaps because of the uneven distribution of the spoils), but he did not dare to object publicly and passed the news to Wei Qi privately. When Wei Qi sent someone to inquire about it, he was immediately furious! Those men who snooped were severely punished.
Dr. Xu Jia was also shocked when he learned about this. Zhicheng is the largest city in Nanyang, where merchants gather money and food. Those who guard Zhicheng are all members of the Wei family and the most trusted people of the King of Wei. People like this are also playing tricks on themselves today. Who else can people trust? He asked Wei Qi: "Does Wang Qi know this?"
Wei Qi replied: "Weiye."
Dr. Xu Jia asked again: "Does Lord Xinling know?"
Wei Qi replied: "Weiye."
Doctor Xu Jia asked again: "Who knows about that minister?"
Wei Qi replied: "Only the officials and ministers!"
Doctor Xu Jia said: "How can the people of Qin enter Zhi? ... They must also build a wall and return to the city. If there are no walls, how can Qin enter Zhi?"
Wei Qi thought about it carefully and found that it was indeed true. If the Qin people wanted to enter Zhi Road, there was only one way, and that was to take Daoyuan City. If the Qin people took the road to Yuancheng but Yuancheng did not report it, then Yuancheng... Wei Qi did not dare to think about it anymore: at the beginning of the year, Duan Ziqian sent hundreds of craftsmen to Yuancheng to set up arsenals and mine and smelt there; then he asked for more than ten thousand yuan. He was a prisoner who went into the mountains to mine...and...some people said that the Yuanling was Chen Si, an old soldier of the Wei Dynasty, who might have surrendered to the Qin Dynasty! At that time, it caused an uproar in the court, but it was finally calmed down. What if... Wei Qi didn't dare to think about it anymore and asked urgently: "What can I do?"
Dr. Xu Jia said: "I would like to come to the palace as soon as possible and repay the king. There is no delay."
Wei Qi said: "If you don't have a plan, how can you enter the palace?"
Dr. Xu Jia said: "Since you have entered the country and acted according to the king's orders, things must be harmonious. Otherwise, you must be attributed to Lord Xinling!"
Wei Qi didn't expect Doctor Xu Jia to say this. He glanced at him and said, "Doctor, please wait a moment. I'll be back soon!" He hurriedly changed his clothes and entered the palace. When he came back after a short time, he was so anxious that he was sweating profusely and said, "The matter is urgent. The king wants to punish Prince Qin, but what can he do?"
Dr. Xu Jia did not expect such a result. According to the previous practice of the King of Wei, he usually ordered "Let the Prime Minister of Wei discuss the countermeasures in detail!" Why did he change his gender this time? He asked Wei Qi what was going on, and Wei Qi replied: "When the king of Wei heard about the change of Zhi Shou, he was worried and angry at the prince, and said: The prince is a hostage, how can it be a child's play? If Qin does not retreat, I will Cook the prince!"
When Dr. Xu Jia heard this, he sighed and said, "Since Zhishou has been connected to the Qin Dynasty, why does it matter to the prince? I'm afraid the prince doesn't know about it either."
Wei Qi said: "If the king is like this, what can the general do?" He replied: "When you come in, you will know what the prince is like."
Doctor Xu Jia said: "I came to the government because I wanted to repay the Prime Minister. Something unexpected happened, but it has not happened yet. I visited the prince several times to get his words, but he insisted on me, in order to have the best of both worlds." I thank you again and again, but I still can't get it. I also have no plan, and I don't know what I can do."
Wei Qidao: "The matter is urgent now! Please go to the post office to see the prince again and talk about Zhi's affairs and the king's anger. I hope the prince will be good at planning his strategy! I should visit Lord Xinling to find out his strategy!"
Dr. Jia said, "Here!" He said goodbye to Wei Qi. Wei Qi went out of the back door to find Lord Xinling, and Xu Jia went out of the front door, boarded the car and went to Liangxi.
