Cao Sengnu laughed twice: "Brother An, send a message to this private money maker for me, saying that I want to see him!"
"Meet him?" An Taishun became nervous again: "Why are you doing this?"
"We are all businessmen and have business dealings. Why not meet him?" Cao Sennu smiled and said, "Is it possible that Brother An thinks Cao is not worthy of meeting him?"
"Where, where!" An Taishun denied it quickly, but secretly complained in his heart. He didn't know what happened, how he ended up between these two families, and was in a dilemma. Is it really like what the monk in the temple said, who is evil in daily life? If you do a lot of things, you will be rewarded in this life?
"Since that's not the case, then please trouble Brother An to make a trip!"
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In the flower hall, the tapestries on the four walls have been taken down and piled on the ground in disorder, replaced by the Xiang Fei bamboo curtain. The exquisite pictures of ladies on it are gently swaying with the breeze, as if the figures of the ladies in the paintings are gently swaying.
"This tapestry was given to me by a Parthian merchant!" Li Shangdao pointed to the tapestry on the ground: "The picture embroidered on it is the hunting tour of the King of Parthia. It is said to be quite exquisite, but I still like this picture of ladies better, so I just hung it. It took only two days for people to replace the bamboo curtains!”
"Brother Li has an extraordinary background and noble aspirations. He is different from ordinary people like us!" An Taishun said with a smile: "Of course he doesn't like the things sent by the barbarian merchants!"
"Haha, haha!" Li Shangdao laughed when he heard this. He laughed a few times and suddenly asked: "Brother An, why are you free to come to my place today? Why don't you even care about business?"
"Brother Li, what are you talking about!" An Taishun said with a smile: "It doesn't matter if a small business is put down for a few days!"
"Lie!" The smile on Li Shangdao's face suddenly disappeared: "Brother An's feet are getting spanked when he runs in Yangzhou these days. Who doesn't know that you have a lot of hard goods on hand and have made several... It's a big deal, is there another line on which you can make a lot of money?"
The secret in his heart was revealed all of a sudden, and the smile on An Taishun's face disappeared immediately. He was about to deny it, but he heard Li Shangdao's voice: "You don't have to defend yourself. Although my surname is Li, I am too lazy to Take care of the Li family's affairs, it's up to you to make money, whether it's against the rules or breaking the law, the government will cause trouble for you, I won't meddle in your own business!"
"Yes, yes, Brother Li is so generous, I am inexplicably impressed!" After hearing Li Shangdao's words, An Taishun breathed a sigh of relief and quickly apologized. It turns out that although Li Shangdao was a private money maker, his background was unusual. His grandfather was Li Xiaogong, the prince of Hejian County who was second in martial arts in the early Tang Dynasty. This man almost pacified the entire south. Apart from Taizong Li Shimin, he was the most powerful person in the clan. The only general who stands alone.
After pacifying the south, he became the governor of Yangzhou. In the last years of Wude, someone falsely accused Li Xiaogong of treason, so Li Yuan, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, summoned Li Xiaogong back to the capital and replaced him with the warrior Xun. Li Xiaogong was investigated and questioned by relevant departments. Without evidence, he was pardoned as Zong Zhengqing and effectively withdrew from the political stage. Later, Li Xiaogong indulged in sensuality in Chang'an and died of a sudden illness in the 14th year of Zhenguan. Although Li Xiaogong had great achievements, he was just Li Yuan's cousin by blood. By Li Shangdao's generation, he was even further behind. Li Shangdao didn't like studying, so he hung out in Yangzhou. With the little shadow left by his grandfather, he actually started a prohibited business.
"That's all!" Li Shangdao waved his hand with some boredom: "What's the matter, tell me!"
"Someone has entrusted me with a villain who wants to meet you!"
"not see!"
"You didn't ask who he was and just said you couldn't see him?"
"What does it matter who you are? I just have a few bad money and an official hat!" Li Shangdao said with a smile: "As for the money, although I don't have much, it is enough to spend; as for the official hat, how can he still do it?" Is he more powerful than my grandfather? I don’t ask for his wealth, and I’m not afraid of his power, so I can naturally follow my own temper! If you don’t see him, you won’t see him!”
An Taishun saw that the other party looked helpless and looked like a market scoundrel, so he could only sigh: "You Li Taisui is missing, what can I do? I can only go back and get scolded!"
Li Shangdao laughed when he saw An Taishun's appearance: "You just take money too seriously, that's why you are manipulated by others!"
"As a merchant, how can I not value money?" An Taishun sighed: "Forget it, those coppers are the last batch. Mr. Li, you'd better use them sparingly!"
"Eh!" Li Shangdao grabbed An Taishun's sleeve: "How brave, you dare to threaten me with business! If I don't see your people, you won't do business with me?"
"How dare I blackmail you!" An Taishun said with a bitter smile: "It's just that these coppers are not mine. If you don't want to see the owner of the goods, they will naturally refuse to do business with you. What does it have to do with me?"
"Hahaha!" Li Shangdao laughed: "It turns out that the real owner is behind! Anyway, for the sake of that batch of copper, I will see him!"
"Okay!" An Taishun was overjoyed: "Then where will we meet Brother Li?"
"I have a weird temper. If I'm unhappy, nothing will happen. If I'm happy, no matter what happens! Anyway, I promised you today, so it's better to choose a different day. Now I'll go to your house. Bar!"
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Anzhai, study.
"I, Cao Sennu, have met Mr. Li!" Cao Sennu put his hands in front of his chest, holding his right hand with his left hand, with the thumb of his right hand raised, and his upper body leaning forward slightly.
"That's all!" Li Shangdao waved his sleeves: "I'm a person who makes private money, so I can't live up to the title of Mr. Li! What's the matter with you wanting to see me?"
"Your Excellency is the grandson of the Prince of Hejian County and a descendant of the clan, so he is naturally Mr. Li!" Cao Sennu said with a smile, "As for Xiao Ke's request to meet him, he has long admired his name. He hopes to meet him once and for the comfort of his life!"
"Have you admired your name for a long time? What is your wish to comfort your life?" Li Shangdao said with a smile: "You are really good at talking, but you obviously think that I, a famous general in the clan, will not serve the imperial court, but do such a low-level thing. It's just a joke." Vision, right?"
Cao Sengnu laughed twice: "How dare you, but when I saw the young master today, I felt that the young master acted willfully and naturally, not bound by the world, and he seemed a bit like Xiao Ke's master!"
"Like your master? Do you still have a master?"
"Of course there is. Otherwise, Master, do you think that just by relying on Xiao Ke, you can get so much copper?"
"That's true!" Li Shangdao stroked his beard. At that time, East Asian copper was a precious metal, and mining and smelting required a lot of manpower, material resources, and technology. It was definitely not something ordinary people could do to obtain so many copper bars: "Then Who is your master?"
Cao Sengnu laughed twice but said nothing. Li Shangdao saw this and sneered: "If you don't want to say it, that's fine. If you don't want to say it, then don't say it. If you want to see me today, I'll come. If you have anything else to say, tell me quickly. If you don't say it, I'll leave!" "
"Master Li, don't worry!" Cao Sengnu said with a smile: "I don't say the master's last name not because I look down on the master, but because he has a different identity. If I say it casually, I'm afraid it will cause trouble!"
"Different identities?" Li Shangdao snorted coldly: "If you want to see me for anything, tell me!"
"For no reason, I just want to take advantage of Young Master Li's popularity among barbarian merchants!"
"How popular am I among the barbarian merchants?" Li Shangdao laughed: "What a joke, how can I be popular among the barbarian merchants? The An Taishun business is also doing quite well. You have him to help you, why do you need to look for me?" ?”
"Some businesses can be done by An Taishun, but some businesses can't be done by An Taishun!" Cao Sennu said with a smile: "If Mr. Li agrees, Cao will take care of your future copper materials!"
"Seriously?" Li Shangdao's eyes lit up: "This is what you said!"
"Of course, Cao can still afford a few ships of copper materials!" Cao Sengnu said with a smile.
After seeing off Li Shangdao, An Taishun did not feel relaxed. On the contrary, his face showed worry. He paused, made up his mind, and said to Cao Sengnu: "Brother Cao, it's not that I'm too talkative. This Li Shangdao is a source of trouble. Don't mess with him!"
"Oh? How can I say this!"
"Brother Cao, you also know that he is the grandson of the King of Hejian County. Although he is already a member of the Shu clan, he is still a branch of the Tian family. It is no problem to start as a county magistrate or something. But have you ever thought about how he got there? Did this happen?"
"Didn't you say that he is incompetent in both civil and military affairs?"
"With his status, he can't be a civil servant but a warrior. As long as he is careful, he will be able to become the governor of a state in his forties or fifty. After all, some of his cousins have already become counselors in the Yizhou Governor's Mansion. , why is it difficult to take care of a brother of the same clan? Besides, Li Shangdao was quite famous when he was young!"
"Oh? Why is that?"
"I don't know the details, but I heard that he offended a very important person in Chang'an and moved to Yangzhou to avoid trouble. After all, the prince of Hejian County guarded the southeast, and there were many people who received his favor. , they miss their old friendship and will naturally take care of his grandson!"
Cao Sengnu nodded. Judging from his observation just now, although Li Shangdao laughed and cursed and looked like he didn't care about anything, it was not difficult to see the depression hidden in his heart. Although Li Xiaogong, the prince of Hejian County, was forced to leave the core of power during the Zhenguan period and entertained himself with wine and sex, he left many political legacies to his descendants. Li Shangdao didn't get any of it. The secret was really complicated and confusing, and it couldn't be explained to outsiders.
"What you said makes sense, but he can indeed do many things that are inconvenient for you and me to do!" Cao Sennu said with a smile: "As for you saying that he is a curse, I don't think so. Although he is wild and uninhibited on the surface, But in fact, the past events are still lingering in my heart. A person like this has a very accurate grasp of the key points, otherwise he would have died long ago!"
Yingzhou.
"Shi Wang Wenzuo, the marching commander of the Andong Dudu Mansion, is better than Jie Dongbing, Fang misses the spring day, Liaodong Yidi, fearing power and cherishing benefits, good governance, good fortune has been achieved repeatedly, white wolves are seen in the suburbs, Jiahe is born in the ridge, and his induction So. He can be called a loyal and filial man! Today I am allowed to take six months off to visit my hometown to fulfill my ambition. I will give you three hundred thousand dollars, a thousand pieces of brocade, a thousand stones of grain, and a set of gold and silver utensils as a token of comfort to the emperor!"
"Thank you, Emperor!" After hearing the imperial edict, Wang Wenzuo hurriedly kowtowed to the ground. The envoy who announced the edict walked up to Wang Wenzuo and said with a smile: "Wang Changshi, the emperor has given such a generous gift to even the most important officials in the clan. Congratulations!"
"Thank you for your help, angel!" Wang Wenzuo stretched out his hands, took the imperial edict, handed it to Cao Wenzong on the side, and said with a smile: "I have arranged a banquet next door, and I also asked the angel to take advantage of it!"
"That's natural! That's natural!" The eunuch who delivered the edict was very familiar with the situation in the palace. Naturally, he knew the status of the person in front of him in the heart of the Holy Emperor, and would not refuse the other party's invitation. The two exchanged a few words, and Wang Wenzuo sent the eunuch off. He walked next door and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Three hundred thousand dollars, a thousand pieces of brocade, a thousand stones of grain, and a set of gold and silver utensils made in the palace!" Gao Kan said with a smile: "Sanlang, the Holy Master treats you very differently!"
"It is a rare thing for the Holy Lord to repay you for being a minister!" Wang Wenzuo sighed: "It's just this matter about Anton, I only have to worry about Gao Duhu!"
"Haha!" Gao Kan said with a smile: "Sanlang, you don't have to worry too much. The court will give you half a year's leave. I don't believe anything will happen in these six months! I can't say that Liaodong can't live without you, Wang Sanlang." Bar?"
Gao Kan had already said this, and Wang Wenzuo could only smile and say: "The Protector is right!"
"Okay, Sanlang, you can leave with peace of mind, visit your parents first, and then marry Mrs. Cui. The most important thing is to marry Mei Jiao Niang back as soon as possible and have more sons to pass on the family business, otherwise it will be difficult for you to bleed and work hard. Who will I leave the title to?"
Gao Kan's somewhat vulgar words aroused laughter from all around. Wang Wenzuo smiled bitterly and nodded: "Then I will be on the road tomorrow with Gao Duhu's auspicious words!"
As soon as he left the door, Cao Wenzong whispered: "How many people are you planning to take with you when your husband returns home this time?"
"Let's select three hundred people in front of the Yamen!" Wang Wenzuo said: "Make a brocade dress for each of them. It will look more festive!"
"Yes!" Cao Wenzong responded and said with a smile: "Three hundred people are a little less, so we might as well make up the whole number of five hundred people. The Cui family of Qinghe is not an ordinary family. If there are less people, I'm afraid it will still be left to others." Look down upon!"
"I'm going to propose marriage, not to steal it!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile. He then thought: "Forget it, five hundred will be five hundred! Anyway, they are still young people. As long as they don't wear armor and only carry bows and arrows, others will If you ask, just say it's a servant boy!"
"Okay, I'll make arrangements as soon as I get off!"
Wang Wenzuo nodded. He agreed that Cao Wenzong chose more people to show off in front of the Cui family, not to show off in front of the Cui family, but for his "family members" who stayed in his hometown. No matter how powerful he is now and how many great contributions he has made in Liaodong, Korea, he is probably still a lowly domestic slave in the hearts of those people. Of course, it is not difficult to force them to recognize the reality, but if possible, Wang Wenzuo still does not want to make things too explicit. After all, no matter what, in the eyes of the world, they are their relatives in this world, and filial piety, brotherhood, friendship and respect were also important criteria for the evaluation of scholars at that time. It is much better to use mighty and majestic ceremonial propaganda to intimidate someone than to make them fall into pieces.
(End of chapter)
