Trekking through wind and snow.
It is said that traveling in winter is the most difficult. Although there is a carriage to block the wind, there must be someone outside to control the direction.
It was Wang Xiaosong at first, but Zheng Ruqian was not the one with a bad conscience who oppressed workers, and always had to go out and replace him.
When the early spring wind blew on his face and it was biting and cold, Zheng Ruqian missed his sister, the small courtyard with hairpin flowers, the warm quilt, and the big braised elbows made by his aunt.
But who told their industry to rely too much on temperature? The colder the weather, the better to preserve things.
If you can drop money into your arms while lying in bed, who in the entire Dayu Dynasty is willing to endure hardships and stand hard work.
Thinking of little Jiang Sheng being well fed and clothed and happy, and thinking of his family's savings doubling, Zheng Ruqian let out a breath of white air and continued to move forward.
The curtain behind him was opened, and Wang Xiaosong sniffed and complained, "Isn't it said that the further south you go, the warmer it gets, but it doesn't feel warm at all. I'm even shivering from the cold."
Zheng Ruqian thought about it carefully.
When my eldest brother was reading miscellaneous works, he once said that although Anshui County is located in the north, the climate is dry and windless. Danyang County going south has a slightly higher temperature, but the air is humid and rainy, and it is even cooler and biting when the wind blows.
"Xiao Song, sometimes it doesn't all depend on the temperature whether it's cold or not, it also depends on the humidity of the rain and the direction of the wind." He shook his head, assuming a mature and seasoned posture.
Wang Xiaosong had little education, so he was really frightened, and he admired his boss even more.
In this way, we arrived at Danyang County in a bumpy way.
Zheng Ruqian did not rush to buy a cart of roast duck and take it back. Instead, relying on his upright face that was loved by his elders, he asked around among his aunts and found the most authentic one.
Roast duck is weighed by the catty, and a whole duck costs about fifty cents. Even if Danyang County is rich, the price is not low. Most people prefer to chop half of the duck, or take a quarter of it home as a dish. eat.
When Zheng Ruqian said he wanted to buy a hundred ducks, the store owner was shocked. He stared and asked in Danyang dialect, "Young man, one hundred is a lot of money. Are you serious?"
Serious, of course, serious.
But Zheng Ruqian didn't intend to take away a hundred ducks for five taels of silver. He rolled up his sleeves and spoke eloquently, "Boss, we want hundreds at a time. Is there a discount for a hundred ducks? They say that in business, small profits are important." Sales, we sold more to you, can you give me some profit?"
Bargaining is a gift and an addiction.
After half an hour of hard work, Zheng Ruqian got his wish and won one hundred ducks for forty coins.
It's just that the store's manpower is limited, and it usually sells thirty to fifty ducks a day, but can't bake a hundred ducks at all.
Zheng Ruqian had to wait for two days in Danyang County before getting the hundred ducks one after another.
After settling the four taels of silver with the boss, he immediately took Wang Xiaosong and rushed to Anshui County at high speed.
According to the price given by Shopkeeper Hao, it is two taels of silver each, and one hundred is a full two hundred taels of silver.
Such a huge profit stirred Zheng Ruqian's heart. He did not even plan to stay in the hotel. Instead, he and Wang Xiaosong took turns resting in the car, thus shortening the half-month journey to six or seven days.
But unexpectedly something happened.
When the carriage arrived in Anyang County, Wang Xiaosong smelled a sour smell in the carriage. He boldly opened the package and found that the roast duck he bought on the first day was rotten.
I opened the duck roasted the next day. Although it was still intact, it was no longer fresh.
He called Zheng Ruqian, and both of them were heartbroken.
We have just arrived at Anyang County. We are still at least three days away from Anshui County. The roast ducks are already damaged. How many of the hundred will be left when they are delivered to Youranju?
No wonder Shopkeeper Hao paid a sky-high price of two taels of silver. There was no way this thing could be shipped back to Anshui County.
"My boss, although four taels of silver is a lot, if it really doesn't work, we have to stop the loss." Wang Xiaosong advised in a sour voice, "Let's just think that this trip was in vain and we lost four taels of silver."
How can that be done?
This is not only four taels of silver, but also his hope to make money, a breakthrough for long-distance transportation of food, and the key to making the business bigger and stronger in the future.
Zheng Ruqian didn't just plan to transport the roast duck. If possible, he also wanted to transport the vinegar fish from Yuhang County. He wanted to go to Yongjia County further south of Yuhang to eat some delicious food. He even wanted to transport it back so that the people of Anshui County could have a chance to taste it.
People who do business should not give up easily.
Zheng Ruqian thought hard on the carriage for a long time, and finally decided to distribute the edible roast duck to the people of Anyang County, then turn around and go to Danyang County.
Along the way, he was thinking about how to preserve the roast duck.
The reason why they travel around the New Year's Day is that they rely on the cold winter air and want to preserve food for two more days.
But after seven days of no sleep, the roast duck still rotted and deteriorated, indicating that the air was not cold enough and the temperature was not low enough.
Danyang County is even warmer than Anshui County. Snow rarely falls, let alone being stored in the snow.
It seems the only option is ice.
Zheng Ruqian remembered that Fang Heng mentioned that most wealthy families in Fengjing basically have ice cellars, which are kept frozen in winter and used to cool down in summer.
His mind began to quicken.
It is winter now, the season for making ice. The price of ice should be cheaper than in summer. Even if it is expensive, as long as the profit is within the two taels of silver promised by shopkeeper Hao, the roast duck will be shipped.
However, the temperature in Danyang County is relatively high, so it may not be easy to freeze.
Zheng Ruqian wanted to understand the situation, reined in his horse urgently, and ran back to Anyang County under Wang Xiaosong's puzzled eyes.
After asking around carefully, I found that someone really sells ice.
He bought half a cart and laid it in the carriage, staring at the ice seller.
"Do you have any disease that requires sleeping on ice?" the ice seller asked in confusion.
Zheng Ruqian scratched his head and said, "I want to transport something that is not hot."
"Then you can't do this." The ice seller kindly reminded, "The ice cubes will melt quickly when placed in the carriage, especially now that the weather is getting warmer. If you want to preserve the ice, you have to cover it with thick cotton wool. On."
The function of cotton wool is to keep warm. It can keep warm as well as cold.
Zheng Ruqian suddenly realized it and quickly bought two thick quilts and covered all the ice cubes inside.
After saying goodbye to the ice seller, the two went straight to Danyang County and bought another hundred roast ducks.
Still four taels of silver, still working hard, day and night, but with the protection of the ice, one hundred roast ducks were finally transported back to Anshui County safely.
The spring breeze in March is no longer biting, blowing on the face like a mother's hand caressing her gently. Familiar counties, familiar people, and familiar shouts rush into my ears.
Zheng Ruqian, who has experienced back and forth, lost four taels of money, and determined to buy ice to transport goods, is dark, thin, and most importantly, exhausted.
I haven't had a good night's sleep in the past two months. I huddle in the corner of the carriage every day, snuggling up against the ice, and worrying about the roast duck.
If it weren't for his strong willpower, he might have fallen headlong.
But this kind of support instantly turned into dizziness when he saw the slim little girl at the entrance of Hairpin Garden.
He didn't even have time to call out "Little Jiang Sheng" before he fell softly to the ground.
