After Xiahou Mao finished writing the documents and left a personal token, Liu Qi nodded with satisfaction.
Seeing the grief and anger on his face, Liu Qi smiled and said: "Young master, there is no need to be like this. From now on, you will resell Jingzhou's medicinal materials, jewelry, and Dukang wine to the Central Plains. You will never suffer any loss."
"Seriously?" Xia Houmao was pleasantly surprised and couldn't believe it: "Is everything you said true?"
Liu Qi sighed helplessly: "The richest people in the world are all in the Central Plains and Jizhou. It's a pity that I can't make this money, so I have to make some difference from you!"
Xia Houmao rubbed his hands in excitement, and then remembered that Liu Qi loved money as much as his life, and asked cautiously: "I wonder how much general... he wants to earn?"
"Not much, I'll only add 30% to the cost, and I guarantee it will be much lower than the price in Jingzhou -"
Liu Qi made a look of regret and pain, bared his teeth and inhaled: "As for how much you can sell, it all depends on the young master's ability."
"Okay, it's a deal!" Xia Houmao was overjoyed, his face flushed and glowing, and he shouted excitedly: "I want as much as you can!"
During this trip to Xiangyang, Xiahou Mao saw a lot of novel things, but he couldn't handle them in the Central Plains, such as those pearls, corals, ivory from South Vietnam, poisonous sandalwood, and even the Dukang wine from Xiangyang, he couldn't handle it. Come out, let alone make money.
I thought that this time I would be proud and proud, gain Cao Cao's trust, find a way to open up trade routes, and send people to buy and transship the goods. Who would have thought that Liu Qi would actually agree to supply the goods? Isn't this pie in the sky?
Although in today's war-torn times, the people are hungry and the Central Plains was once empty, but Xia Houmao knows that this has no impact on those wealthy families.
The people who don't have enough to eat or wear warmly are the common people. The wealthy families still have plenty of money and food, even if they are rotten and moldy, and these goods have nothing to do with ordinary people, so making money is not a problem.
Liu Qi smiled and said: "What I want is not money, but rare goods from the north, such as animal skins, medicinal materials, pig iron, horses, etc..."
"This..." Xia Houmao was startled, "Everything else is easy to handle, but I'm afraid this horse won't work. This is a weapon. The Prime Minister has strictly ordered not to sell it privately. In the worst case, your home will be ransacked, and in the worst case, you will be beheaded."
Liu Qi waved his hand and said: "I don't have to ask for a horse, it's just that it has the highest value and is convenient for trading! Nothing is difficult in the world, I'm afraid it depends on whether the young master can act according to the situation and operate in secret."
Xia Houmao was heartbroken for a while, but he also knew that the stakes were very high and that he would even be a traitor to the enemy. He did not dare to agree easily. He cupped his fists and said, "I will do my best."
Liu Qi sighed: "Today the two armies are clashing, and the war will last more than one day. Although you and I are each our own masters, the property should not be divided between the enemy and ours, let alone the people. After returning this time, I plan to give up Ye County and will This place will be set up as a market to facilitate the exchange of goods with merchants from the Central Plains. When the time comes, we will need to rely on the mediation of the Young Master."
"Put it on me!" Xia Houmao was naturally happy to see such a good thing come to fruition and vowed: "The prime minister is fond of wine and has never forgotten Jiangnan fruits. It's just a business transaction. I don't think he will refuse."
It was decided that Liu Qi would hold a banquet to quell the shock. Xia Houmao was in a hurry to return to Fei, not wanting to be seen by people from Jiangdong. He swept away the dejection of the redemption and left in a hurry with many thanks.
Liu Qi took the receipt and flicked it with his fingers, and said with a proud smile: "I can't make money from the north, why don't I want to be a general agent?"
For a talent like Xia Houmao, even if he didn't want to give up a cent, he wouldn't be willing to kill him.
Xia Houmao returned to Qibao Mountain overnight. Under Xu Shu's arrangement, he risked his life and sneaked into the camp, rescued more than 200 Cao soldiers who no longer wanted to serve as soldiers, pretended to set fire to seize the horses, and fled down the mountain.
It was already dawn when he came down the mountain. He hid in a mountain col to rest. Xia Houmao told everyone that he was defeated for the first time when he led an army. He felt ashamed and took the risk to save others.
After this incident, he no longer wanted to stay in the army, and everyone did not want to follow him to escape for his life. Those who were willing to follow him to do business would help escort the goods in the future, so that they would not have to live this precarious life.
Cao Jun was overjoyed when he heard this. Some of them were forcibly recruited, and some were forced by life. They were tired of fighting just for a bite of food. Now Xia Houmao rescued them and provided them with jobs. They all expressed their willingness to be loyal and repay their kindness.
In this age of war and chaos, it is no easier to become a trusted follower of a wealthy family than to be a filial and honest official, not to mention that Xia Houmao's status is second only to Cao Pi.
Xiahou Mao took more than two hundred people as his confidants and passed through Chaohu. Along the way, he saw many deserters, all of whom were in a state of panic. Only then did he know that Cao's army was defeated again and the remaining soldiers had returned to Hefei.
Everyone secretly thought that it was a lucky thing that no matter whether these people escaped or returned to the army, their lives would not be easy for a year, but they could follow Xia Houmao and enjoy the good life.
Xia Houmao arrived in Hefei and came to see Cao Cao. At this time, the city was full of soldiers who had fled back from defeat. No one would ask him how to get back to the city. As long as he could come back alive, he would be lucky.
Cao Cao's navy was killed by Zhou Yu in Chao Lake, and Cao Cao was chased for thousands of miles. If Cao Ren's troops had not arrived in time, Hefei would have been lost.
Cao Cao was lying on the bed, still feeling heaving and shaking, and his sleep was restless. Seeing Xia Houmao coming, he breathed a sigh of relief: "It'll be good if Zilin comes back, it'll be good if he comes back!"
Xiahou Mao said: "Now the war is unfavorable. We have lost a lot of food, grass and weapons. My son-in-law can't help with military matters, but I hope to share the worries for the prime minister. When I return to Xuchang, I will empty the wallets of those wealthy families and use them as military supplies." .”
Cao Cao shook his head and said: "Zilin must not be reckless. Many officials have been dissatisfied with the previous fundraising. If we force donations again, there will be chaos."
"My son-in-law is not trying to plunder!" Xiahou Mao explained Liu Qi's plan to make money, and said loudly with clasped fists: "Although my son-in-law knows that industry and commerce are worms in the country and are looked down upon by others, for the great cause of the prime minister, he is willing to bear the infamy. I swear he will not give up!"
Cao Cao smiled happily and warned: "It's rare for Zi Lin to have such filial piety. Businessmen are as cunning as soldiers. You have to be more careful to avoid being tricked."
Xia Houmao smiled confidently, patted his chest and said: "My son-in-law knows nothing about marching and fighting, but the prime minister knows how flexible my brain is in doing business and making money. Someone who can scheme against me has not yet been born!"
Cao Cao admired confident and heroic men the most. Although Xia Houmao seemed to be not doing his job properly, money and food were indeed the most important thing in the army. It was rare for him to have such a responsibility. He made one million yuan in just a few months, which shows his ability.
He sighed with emotion: "In ancient times, there was Tao Zhugong, and now there is Xiahou Mao! Just feel free to do it. When I calm down the world, I will rectify your name. You should be Xiao He of my Cao family!"
Xia Houmao was overjoyed, cupped his fists and said, "My son-in-law has set a small goal: earn him 100 million first!"
Cao Cao added: "You are doing business with Jingzhou, and I have a secret arrangement: you can arrange for your confidants to sneak into the caravan and find out more about Jingzhou. If you get important information, it will be considered a great achievement for you."
This time Liu Qi increased his troops in Jiangling and prepared to attack Yizhou, but Xuchang had no knowledge of it, indicating that something unexpected happened to Jingzhou's details and they had to be redeployed.
"Yes!" Xia Houmao was excited and proud.
In addition to making money, he has another layer of secret identity, which was personally appointed by the Prime Minister.
