"As the old saying goes, you can eat mountains if you rely on mountains, and you can eat water if you rely on water. Hanzhong now relies on Cao thieves to the north and Qiang and Hu to the west. Of course, we found it from them."
After Zhuge Qiao heard this, his expression changed on the spot. If it hadn't been for the letter from his mother, he would have jumped into the crime on the spot, directly suspecting that this person was a thief.
"How do you say this?"
Zhuge Qiao suppressed the impulse in his heart and asked.
"Brother, should you know that my little brother used wool to make woolen cloth some time ago?"
"Wenxuan has already told Brother Wei about this matter. Speaking of which, if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Brother Wei wouldn't believe it. Even the Qiang and Hu people discarded it like wool, but Mingwen could actually use it. Weave good cloth.”
Speaking of this matter, Zhuge Qiao couldn't help but praise it.
"Since my brother has said it, in the eyes of the Nahu people, the wool is discarded like worn out shoes. If we exchange it with them, then they will definitely be overjoyed and come in droves, and the cost is probably not counted. It’s too big. When I introduced it, I would weave the wool into cloth and sell it. Every time I went in and out, the profit I made was probably as good as salt and iron.”
These days, salt and iron are a national monopoly, and the profits are terrifying. But if you look at the ratio of cost to profit, wool is probably much higher than salt and iron. However, Feng Yong did not dare to speak too highly. After all, the benefits of salt and iron were already one of the best deals for the Han Dynasty.
Zhuge Qiao's eyes lit up, then he pondered for a moment, then shook his head and refused: "That's inappropriate. The wool matter is of great importance and is beyond our control."
He looked at Feng Yong and said with some doubts: "From what Wenxuan said, when the woolen cloth came out, Mingwen was the first to say that this matter could only be decided by the imperial court. Why do you want to change your original intention now?"
Feng Yong had expected that Zhuge Qiao would ask this, and immediately smiled: "That's why I said this can only be done for a short time to solve an urgent need. Brother, do you know how many times a year can the wool of a sheep be sheared?"
"Brother, how do you know that?" Zhuge Qiao smiled, "It is clear that before we use wool to make cloth, we are barbarians. Who will care about such useless things?"
"Twice." Feng Yong stretched out two fingers, "Once in late spring and once in late autumn."
Zhuge Qiao frowned and thought, what does the time of shearing have to do with this matter?
Li Yi's eyes lit up after hearing this.
"Brother, is this the time to shear the sheep?"
"Not bad!" Feng Yong nodded, glanced at Li Yi appreciatively, then looked at Zhuge Qiao and said, "Brother should also know that the Qiang and Hu people are about to drive their cattle and sheep elsewhere to spend the winter. Miss this At that time, I was afraid that even if I wanted to harvest the wool, I would not be able to do so. My brother thinks, can the court make regulations regarding the wool before winter?"
Zhuge Qiao immediately shook his head, "This is impossible, the time is too hasty. I'm afraid it will take a month and a half before the matter is finalized."
It takes a month to go back and forth between Hanzhong and Jincheng. During this period, the charter must be negotiated. One and a half months is the fastest time.
"It's already winter then. Where can I find wool?"
Feng Yong took a sip of water and continued, "Besides, those Qiang and Hu people have to eat a lot of cattle and sheep as rations throughout the winter. After the winter, the wool that can be harvested will probably not be enough." Less than a third of the time.”
"So if we can't harvest the wool once before winter, it will be wasted?" Li Yi had a look of concern on his face.
Seeing Feng Yong nodding, Li Yi looked at Zhuge Qiao and said, "Bosong, what do you think?"
Zhuge Qiao looked a little struggling. He looked at Feng Yong, then at Li Yi, and murmured: "It would be a pity if this is really the case."
"It's more than a pity!" Li Yi said, "Bosong, brother, it's not that I want to do this for a long time. I just want to prevent this wool from being wasted in vain before the court decides on the regulations. If Bosong agrees to this matter, it can be done Why are you so hesitant to prepare some military supplies for Hanzhong without violating the imperial decree?"
"It is said that everything is difficult to switch. Even if the court starts collecting wool next year, I am afraid that it will make mistakes due to inexperience. If my brother tries it out first, it can be regarded as making some preparations for the court to do this next year."
Feng Yong added a fire on the side.
Zhuge Qiao gritted his teeth and finally agreed: "You two worthy brothers are right. I will accept this matter as a brother, and I will write a letter to explain to you when the time comes."
At the same time, I thought to myself, speaking of it, this matter can be regarded as being done for the public and not for personal gain. Your Excellency should not blame me.
"But even if the wool is not worth much, if we have to exchange it with the Qiang and Hu people, the Hu people won't just give it to us for nothing, right?" Zhuge Qiao made up his mind, but then remembered something, "Then I'll wait. What should I exchange with them?"
Feng Yong wanted to be a profiteer in this matter, so he was naturally prepared: "I dare to ask brother, what do Hu people lack most in winter?"
"Nature is clothing to keep out the cold and food to wrap your belly around."
"That's right. These two things are urgently needed by them. As long as they are exchanged with them, why worry about not getting wool?"
"Hanzhong also needs these two things, and there is no surplus. How can I give them to them? It's inappropriate!" Zhuge Qiao was shocked and refused again and again.
"It's just that the Hanzhong army doesn't have it. Others may not have it."
Food is the most precious thing in winter for the Qiang and Hu people. Using their most precious things in exchange for their most rubbish wool, a stone of food is not exchanged for hundreds of kilograms of wool. Is the bandit's slogan of "Smart Words, Lingse Feng Langjun" in vain?
Taking out a hundred stones is basically enough.
After all, this is the first exchange, and time is tight. The Hu people have already begun to drive their cattle and sheep to find a place to spend the winter. The news would definitely not spread far, and the only people who could come over to exchange were basically the Qiang Hus nearby.
"who?"
"Brother, you forgot again? Didn't you just say that Madam Huang is the richest person in Han Dynasty?"
"But this matter is about preparing military supplies for Hanzhong, so how can Madam Huang be involved?"
"It's not impossible if Madam Huang is not involved. As long as Hanzhong Mansion provides some food, it doesn't need to be much. It only needs more than a hundred stones. Brother, maybe I can get it?"
Feng Yong asked unceremoniously.
You don’t have capital, but you still want to get away with nothing? There is also bait for fishing!
No matter how stupid the barbarians are, if you say you want to collect some wool, they will eagerly give it to you? If Ma Chao was still in good health, if he roared twice, some Qiang Hu might come over and lick him.
Zhuge Qiao's face instantly turned red.
Feng Yong sighed and said: "Brother, to be honest, if my brother hadn't come to ask, I wouldn't have told this matter. According to my idea, if the two of me join forces with Lady Huang, they will be able to produce food. If you have the strength to contribute, I will ask Erlang to go and talk about General Ma later, so that General Ma can gain this reputation. Brother, do you think this can be done?"
"It can be done... naturally."
The honest man Zhuge Qiao couldn't say anything against his will, so he nodded and said.
"The food in Hanzhong Mansion has a fixed amount. Even though my brother is the grain and grass officer of Hanzhong, I'm afraid he can't misappropriate it without authorization, right? If you still have to report to the prime minister, come and go, what's the difference between waiting for the imperial court's regulations?"
Feng Yong just wanted to bully an upright gentleman like Zhuge Qiao, otherwise he would have been replaced by someone who had lost his conscience. When he heard about such a good thing, he would have turned the official matter into a private matter and done something wrong with Hanzhong's military rations to leak out such a small amount of food. The profits obtained are directly divided in half, so why does Hanzhong’s military resources matter?
