Damingfu in Beijing, the capital of Hebei East Road, has a population of one million and is as prosperous as Bianliang in Tokyo.
Gaokan and his party left Nanle and rushed all the way, finally arriving outside Damingfu Xiongcheng on the afternoon of the second day.
There is an endless stream of people coming and going on the official road, and all kinds of businessmen and travelers are mixed in. It can be said that dragons and snakes gather together.
Unlike Gao Kan, who first came to this city, he was a rice trader and reseller of grain. He came and went frequently, and he was familiar with all the rules in the city.
Seeing that there were guards at the city gate, and everyone who passed by wanted to be exploited, he took the initiative to talk to Gao Kan.
"Sir, Daming Mansion City has a lot of rules for defense. If you want to enter the city, you won't get into trouble. You will have to spend some money along the way."
Gao Kan nodded and said: "It doesn't hurt to spend some money, just go and do it."
"Yes, sir, later."
After receiving Gaokan's permission, Tian Mi quickly moved forward and looked for the city gate guard to talk to him.
I only saw two guards walking this way and took a brief look.
One of them asked: "Are you merchants from Bianliang, Tokyo, transporting food to the city?"
"To tell you what Jun Ye said, yes." Gao Kan said honestly.
"With so many carriages, what are they pulling?" the guard asked again.
"Reporting back to the military master, these are some ordinary goods. We thought that since we came to Daming Mansion, we would take some goods with us in exchange for money for traveling." Gao Kan continued to do his best.
At this time, Tian Mi stepped forward and said: "Master, you see, we have spent a lot of time on this journey. We are anxiously waiting to enter the city. I would like to ask you to show your respect. I will thank you first for the compliment."
While talking, he secretly took out some broken silver from his sleeves and quietly stuffed it into the guard's hands.
The guard weighed the weight and then said with satisfaction: "Since it's a business trip with rules, let's go in. We must follow the rules in the city and don't cause trouble."
"Thank you, Master Jun, for the promotion." Tian Mi immediately replied with a smile on his face.
In this way, the convoy successfully passed through the city gate and entered the city.
After entering the city, Tian Mi said to Gao Kan: "Sir, the inns in the city are crowded with people, dragons and snakes are mixed together, which is a lot of inconvenience. There is a lot of gold and silver on our carriages. If we don't find a suitable place to stay, I'm afraid there will be more. It takes a lot of energy.”
Gao Kan nodded and said, "That's true. Is there any convenient place to go?"
"Let the young master know that there is a warehouse station prepared by the dock ship merchant over in the west city. The place is spacious and a warehouse can be rented together. If we want to transport grain and grass, we can also directly ask the ship merchant Lifu to do the work in the future. Boats are the most convenient." Tian Milian said.
Business in the Song Dynasty was developed and there were countless merchants of all kinds.
With the increase in the number of merchants, various supporting facilities have sprung up like mushrooms after a spring rain. Ship merchants at the wharf can be regarded as traditional transport merchants.
Most of these people rely on the canal. They have cargo ships specially designed to transport goods for people, and they also have all kinds of manpower. However, ordinary ship merchants need the cargo owners to deliver the goods they need to transport to the dock, and then find Lux to load them onto the cargo ships.
Repeating this process is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and it also costs a lot of money.
These dock ship merchants in the west city of Daming Prefecture took all these big packages.
As long as you pay enough money, the goods can be entrusted to them in the city, and they will safely put them on the cargo ship and then deliver them all the way to the destination. It can be said that it is a one-stop service.
Gao Kan sent grain from Daming Prefecture to Bianliang. It didn't hurt to spend more money. The most important thing was that it was convenient and appropriate.
Then he nodded in agreement and said, "It's just right. Then go to Xicheng first and settle all the matters before we get busy with anything else."
"Yes, I have a ship dealer who I am familiar with at the wharf. You can meet with me first. If the negotiation is successful, we will allow long-term cooperation in the future. We will also negotiate the granary in Daming Mansion. In the future, we will transport and purchase grain without having to worry about it. I made a special trip."
Tian Mi said repeatedly.
As long as the grain warehouse freight is negotiated, this way of making money will be a complete undertaking.
Tian Mi originally wanted to do this, but at that time he had limited financial resources and no backing to rely on, so he never succeeded.
Nowadays, he has a high standard as a guarantee, and he has all the money and people, so he immediately seizes the opportunity to make suggestions.
Gao Kan did not doubt that Tian Mi had him, so he agreed to this in advance and waited until he had discussed it with the granary owner and the dock shipper.
The convoy passed through half of the city and arrived at the Xicheng Pier where ship dealers gathered.
After casually finding a tea shop to stay, Tian Mi went to look for a familiar ship dealer to come over to talk, while the others rested on the spot.
After waiting for about an incense stick, Tian Mi came leading a dark-skinned man who looked to be in his forties or fifties.
After entering the tea shop and sitting down, Tian Mi introduced: "Sir, this is Hong Jiang, the commander of the water camel team. Hong Bashi, this is Mr. Gao, the master's son."
Bao Shi Hongjiang looked at Gao Kan, cupped his hands and said, "I have met Mr. Gao."
"Hong Ba Shi is very polite. I heard from Shopkeeper Tian that Hong Ba Shi's fleet has integrity first. As long as the goods are entrusted to you, they will be safe." Gao Kan returned the courtesy and smiled.
"Thanks to the promotion given by Shopkeeper Tian, we are just lowly people trying to make a living on the water. We all rely on our strength to make a living."
Hong Jiang said very politely.
Gao Kan observed and saw that this man was a sturdy man, and he was quite satisfied.
He nodded slightly and then said: "I came to Damingfu this time to transport a batch of grain to Tokyo. Although it is possible to take the land route, it is too time-consuming, so I want to take the water route first, send it to Puyang and ask someone to take it over, and then go Bianliang, I wonder if Hong Bashi would be willing to help?"
"We are willing to be promoted by Mr. Gao," Hong Jiang said immediately.
At this moment, Tian Mi winked at Hong Jiang. After understanding, he nodded and stood up outside.
Suddenly seeing this, Gao Kan was a little puzzled. He looked at Tian Mi and asked, "Is there anything else?"
"Let the young master know that Hongba Shi and the others have a small boat. They usually escort a small amount of goods. The dozen or so people on board are all coolie men, and they have always been honest."
Tian Mi approached Gaokan and continued: "Originally, they relied on that small boat to make a living, but recently a river gang emerged from the pier. They were powerful and wealthy. They bought most of the scattered ships at the pier, leaving the rest. Those who are willing to commit themselves will be squeezed out of their way of survival."
"Hong Bashi and the others are honest people. They didn't want to get involved with the He Gang people, so they didn't sell it. They would rather not have the escort business and work hard at the dock. In this way, they offended the He Gang people, and they were not even allowed to work as coolies. Down."
Daming Mansion is connected to the Zhang and Wei rivers, connecting the north and the south, and has developed water transportation.
Relying on waterways, many people on the water are fed.
But this also gave rise to the likes of boat gangs, which gathered a large fleet of people and horses and monopolized the business on the river. Usually, river workers were the rivals of boat gangs.
If there is no background, annexation will be a matter of time.
People like Hong Jiang are all honest sailors, and the new river gang doesn't sound like good people. I'm afraid they want to do other business.
If the boat capsizes and the bottom is revealed, everyone above and below will be held responsible. Hong Jiang and the others are unwilling to follow, so they refuse. However, the He Gang will not give them a way to survive.
