The old Yi man Derao rubbed his neck and glanced at Liang Chuan timidly. The impression of this man was deeply remembered in his mind.
The Nong people are no less aggressive than the Yi people. On Guangnan West Road, the Nong, Yi and Dong ethnic groups are the most aggressive. A few decades ago, before the Song Dynasty was in chaos, they fought for land every day. Fight.
He calmed down, pointed at a few Yunnan horses and said, "What do you think these horses are doing now?"
Liang Chuan took a look and saw the horses licking each other's bags on their backs. The sweat from the horses' backs wet several bags. After drying, it condensed into white crystals. The horses were licking the bags on their backs with relish. Crystals, very enjoyable!
"They are licking the horse's back, is there anything strange about that?" Liang Chuan looked at it again and immediately thought of a story.
When the Mongols were on their western expedition, because they had to travel long distances on horseback, mobility was their biggest advantage. They often didn't even have time to eat during the expedition. Sometimes they would cut fresh meat after finishing the dried meat they brought with them. , put it under the saddle. When riding, let the horse's back and saddle rub against each other. The heat emitted will directly cook the meat, because the meat will be stained with the sweat from the horse, and it will have a salty smell. Such meat It becomes their delicacy. .
Seeing this picture, Liang Chuan immediately thought of that. .
"Are they eating salt?"
"You may not have noticed, but we deal with animals all year round. We can tell at a glance what you are carrying? It's not difficult to guess!"
Liang Chuan believed what he said.
An excellent businessman often has superb insights that ordinary people do not have.
Large livestock are indeed not resistant to salt. After a long journey, they need to replenish electrolytes in their bodies. Just like people, supplementing with some salt can help people quickly recover their physical strength.
"I thought you were following us."
"There are so many people selling salt in Suining Town. Most of them are from Guangnan. Why do we need to hide? Dali is much more relaxed than we are in Song Dynasty. Many people buy salt here and transport it back. It’s not strange to sell it in my hometown!”
In the deserted alley, Liang Chuan's hostility had long since disappeared and he started chatting with the old man. It was his first time in Suining Town, and many things were still unclear. The old man in front of him was an old man, and he could get a lot of useful information from his mouth. information.
Liang Chuan saluted him and said: "We are new here, and we are worried that someone has evil intentions. We were impulsive just now. Di Qing, I want to tell you here!"
"Oh, misunderstandings are always inevitable. I am too direct, but your hands are really strong. You almost crushed my bones!"
"Don't you know what to call me, old man?"
"My name is Luo Chuo, and most people in Ningzhen call me Luo Gui." The old man chuckled, took out a sheepskin pot from somewhere, took two sips of wine, and was shocked.
"Are there many salt sellers in this city?"
"There's so much. The salt that Dali eats is all shipped from Zuining. It looks like your salt is shipped from Qinzhou, sea salt?"
Liang Chuan didn't respond, so Luo Chuo said: "Hey, that salt is not popular here. What people here like most is the well salt in Shuzhong, and then the green salt. As for the salt from other places..." Luo Chuo shook his head, it was obvious Denied. There is also peach blossom salt on the plateau, also known as pink salt. However, this salt is not available to ordinary people and cannot be entered into salt markets elsewhere. It is too easy for people to recognize!
Liang Chuan could tell from the old ghost's words that his profession was probably similar to that of a second-hand agent!
Isn’t there a shortage of such talents?
Liang Chuan took out the few remaining copper coins from his arms, counted ten coins and gave them to Luo Chuo.
Luo Chuo's eyes immediately changed when he saw Song Qian. His unhappiness was wiped away. After taking the money, he was secretly happy, but hey, he earned ten cents without doing anything. ?
The money is a bit short, but no matter how small the mosquitoes are, they are still meat, so why not do it.
"Take us around the town. If the salt can be sold successfully, I'll give you another ten cents!"
"You have found the right person!"
Luo Chuo completely forgot about Liang Chuan's troubles with him. If she has breasts, she is a mother, and he immediately started to serve these men.
The easternmost part of Suining Town is where the Suining garrison is located. There is a standing army in it, but it has not fought in decades, so it probably has little combat effectiveness.
To the south is the administrative seat of Zuifu, and to the west is a horse market, which is a distribution center for cattle and sheep trading. The northernmost part is where goods are traded. Luo Chuo led a few people to the north.
The market in the north is a little bigger!
There are a large number of goods shipped here from Sichuan and Guizhou. Dali has its own characteristics, but compared with the productivity of the Song Dynasty, they are still far behind. Many basic daily necessities, such as bamboo woven and lacquered porcelain pottery, have to come from the Song Dynasty. For imports, Dali also has some small production capacity, but the quality of the two is as good as the other, and there is no competitiveness at all.
During this period, the Song Dynasty was synonymous with quality and reliability. Not only were several surrounding countries obsessed with the items of the Song Dynasty, but many overseas countries also came from thousands of miles away, frantically shopping for goods and returning home, as long as they could arrive safely. The profits brought by one's own country are generally several times higher than at the beginning.
Luo Chuo took a few people to the market, and they still took many twists and turns, choosing remote paths. Liang Chuan's heart became anxious again.
The old fox saw through Liang Chuan's thoughts at a glance and immediately said: "Most of the salt now is circulated on the black market. There is not much on the market. If you want to sell or buy, you can't go to the salt sellers in the market. It's not worth it! I'm staying here. For decades, I know best where someone wants salt!”
"If we trade openly, the government will tax the salt we buy or sell, and we will get much less. This underground black market has been open for several years, and the government is aware of its existence. But there is nothing we can do about it. None of these people who want to make salt is a big force in the local area. Just these few sick cat veterans in Zuining Town can't do anything about them. On the contrary, they have to charge them every month. the benefits of!"
Luo Chuo was a very conscientious middleman. Not long after, he walked to a courtyard on the edge of a small town. It was very wide on all sides. Not far away were small dense forests and low mountains. If you burrowed inside, you couldn't find it, so you had to run away. If so, it's a good place.
These salt dealers are engaged in smuggling, so they naturally want to leave a way out for themselves.
The appearance of Liang Chuan and his entourage did not attract anyone's attention at all. The yard was packed with bamboo baskets, some were made of linen bags, and some were actually salt mines, a piece of snow-white salt stone with pink tints, but Not many.
Luo Chuo said to Liang Chuan: "Now, this is the place with the most salt transactions in Suining Prefecture. Most of them are outsiders. They are the best place to sell the salt you have. Do you want to talk to them yourself, or do you want me to come forward?"
Luo Chuo's meaning is very obvious. If you don't want me to talk, just settle the money and I will go do other things myself. Otherwise, you also need to show your intention!
"I have to let you worry a little more!"
Liang Chuan took out the money and handed it over. He gave him a few more pennies and asked him to help find a new home for more than ten pennies.
Luo Chuo led Liang Chuan to a salt stall. The salt seller seemed to be from Dali. He was wearing clothes he had never seen before and spoke Chinese that Liang Chuan could only understand.
As soon as the two met, they immediately began to communicate in words that Liang Chuan and the Nong brothers did not understand. The more they talked, the more intense their expressions became!
The two talked for a long time before Luo Chuo finally stopped, pulled Liang Chuan aside and said, "There is good news or bad news, which one do you want to hear first?"
Liang Chuan cursed in his heart, how could I know what the news was? Even if you were trying to trick me, I wouldn't understand!
Liang Chuan glanced at the people on the left and right, smiled bitterly and said, "Let's talk about it anyway, what's going on?"
Luo Chuo said solemnly: "I heard that Guangnan and South Vietnam are fighting! The South Vietnamese soldiers are now charging all the way and have conquered several states. Guangyuan and other places in the south have been defeated!"
What! When several people heard the news, they all stood in shock. The three Nong brothers looked at Liang Chuan blankly, not knowing what to do!
Guangyuan is the hometown of Liang Chuan and A Yue!
Liang Chuan didn't expect that there would actually be a fight!
I have traveled to a dynasty known as the most prosperous period in ancient times, and this is it? There is still a war going on right under your nose, how can you survive this day?
I heard that there are even more ruthless Dangxiang and Khitan people in the north. Could it be that what Secretary Shi said was all his motherfuckers’ nonsense, so the fighting there shouldn’t be more fierce?
"Did you hear wrongly, when did it happen?"
"Almost ten days ago!"
Luo Chuocai didn't want to say that Nanyue in the south wanted to rip off a piece of meat from the Song Dynasty and eat it. It was no longer a matter of a day or two. Many people saw it. They had known that such a thing would happen. It was just a matter of time. That’s all.
It was already a month ago that Liang Chuan and Nong Yao committed the crime in Qiyuan State! According to what Luo Chuo said, the estimated time really matches!
South Vietnam took almost twenty days from deploying troops to attacking. This was considered a rapid deployment of troops!
Judging from Luo Chuo's appearance, it didn't look like he was telling lies, and there was no need for them to deceive!
"Is this bad news?" Liang Chuan asked?
"No, no, no, this is good news!"
Luo Chuo said quickly, which confused Liang Chuan. Why is it a good thing that there is a war in his hometown?
The old man chuckled and said: "Now that there is a war in the south, your local salt will definitely skyrocket. Why do you come to Dali to sell salt? Hurry up and transport the salt back. The price will increase more than ten times! The private prices in the most Ning Town Many salt dealers have organized caravans to go to Guangnan. They have been looking forward to this kind of gluttonous feast for decades!"
Listening to Luo Chuo's words, Liang Chuan should either be happy or sad. There are always such people in every era. The suffering of the country and the nation is their grand event. They will not miss a single opportunity, and they will impose deeper sufferings on them. On the heads of the people. . These people are making money from the national calamity!
