When Wu Yunxuan said these words, the entire lobby fell into deathly silence.
Zhou Huai let out a long sigh of relief, while the other grain merchants' pupils shrank, their eyes dilated, and their faces were full of disbelief.
Annual output of 100,000 kilograms of grain?
What is this concept?
An's, the largest grain merchant in Jiangnan, only has an annual output of 48,000 kilograms!
The number of one hundred thousand is almost twice that!
How is this done?
This question couldn't help but arise in everyone's mind, but it was An who really asked it.
Officer An stood up with a swish sound, looked at Wu Yunxuan, and said, "Master Wu, are you mistaken?"
"How is it possible for the Zhou family to produce one hundred thousand kilograms of grain per year?"
"Bold! Are you questioning Mr. Wu?" Before Wu Yunxuan could speak, an official scolded him first.
An Yuanwai was choked, but there was nothing he could do.
After all, even if the other party is no more than an official in the county magistrate's office, it is not something that a merchant like me can offend.
"No, I just feel that this number is a bit... unreal."
"Everyone here is an old grain merchant. They have many channels for harvesting grain, and they also have their own fields. But every year, there are many, and the total adds up to only 30,000 to 50,000 kilograms of grain."
"I admit that the Zhou family is better than us, but there is no way it can reach 100,000 jins of grain every year!"
"Master Wu, please take a closer look."
Zhou Huai sneered when he heard this. Now he is more and more convinced that the original locust incident was caused by An's family.
Now seeing that the frame-up failed, he started to slander him again.
This kind of method is really bad.
But what's the use?
The truth is the truth. Gu Shijun's seeds have been tested by Mr. Wu and can withstand scrutiny.
This imperial merchant should belong to my Zhou family.
No matter how hard you, An, try, it won't help!
Zhou Huai was even thinking about how to annex the An clan in Jiangnan after being elected as the Imperial Shang.
A person who is petty is not a gentleman, and a person who is not poisonous is not a husband.
Zhou Huai was originally a man of strong temperament. He was repeatedly provoked and assassinated by An family. How could he not come back with revenge?
"Your suspicion is very reasonable, but I can tell you responsibly that the Zhou family will indeed be able to produce 100,000 kilograms of grain per year in the future, which is still the minimum amount."
"Then come out."
Wu Yunxuan gave an order, and an official in the background took out the golden swaying ears of rice.
Looking at this ear of rice, An Yuanwai felt a chill in his heart, subconsciously feeling that something bad was going to happen.
Sure enough, the next moment, Wu Yunxuan was heard saying: "This ear of rice is the seed that Zhou plans to sow next year. It is in excellent quality and is not afraid of floods. Even if it is planted along the Huaihe River, it can produce 400 rice a year." Kilograms of production.”
"So, do you still have any objections?"
As soon as he said this, An Yuanwai's face instantly turned pale, and the disbelief on his face gradually turned into horror.
If it is possible to have seeds with a yield of 400 kilograms per acre, plus the channels controlled by Zhou, then harvesting 100,000 kilograms of grain every year is really not a lot.
But where in the world can there be such a seed?
"I have no objection, but ordinary people would like to ask one more question, where does this seed come from?"
"Ms. Zhou, are you afraid that you can't get it out?"
"Yes, this is indeed not the seed of my Zhou family, but a gift from Huainan Gu Shijun." Zhou Huai said this while looking at An Yuanwai with extremely cold eyes.
"Huainan Gu Shijun..." An Yuanwai ignored Zhou Huai's cold eyes and just murmured to himself.
Suddenly I felt like I had heard this name somewhere before.
If you think about it carefully, isn't this the talented man who made the ice-patterned silk more than a month ago and helped Shen win the imperial merchant selection in one fell swoop?
He...he actually came up with a new seed with a yield of 400 kilograms per mu?
Damn damn damn!
Why did such a good thing happen to Zhou Huai?
Is it just because he is from Huainan?
But then, he was in a trance again, remembering that after the selection of cloth merchants, many merchants had approached Shen Gui and asked him to introduce Gu Shijun.
At that time, Zhou Huai went, but he did not go.
Because he felt that no matter how great Gu Shijun was, he could only do better poetry and fabrics.
What does he do as a grain merchant?
But now it seems...
"I regret it! I regret it!"
Officer An was beating his chest, as if he had missed a small goal.
"Okay, since there are no objections, I will announce that the person elected as the emperor merchant this time will be Huainan Zhou..."
Hearing this, Zhou Huai was immediately happy.
To be honest, after experiencing the locust incident, Zhou Huai felt that he had no chance to be selected as the emperor.
But who would have thought that Gu Beichuan would come out midway.
The creation of such miraculous rice seeds directly allowed him to overtake and reverse the situation with his annual output.
Along with the poems, the poems are astonishing and brilliant, and even the long-famous literary scholars are friends with his peers.
The cloth merchants worked together to create ice-patterned silk that surpassed Liuyun Satin.
Now on the grain merchants' side, they have made great achievements again!
It's really...unbelievable.
How could there be such all-round talents in the world?
Zhou Huai suppressed the joy in his heart and stood up slowly, preparing to accept the award.
However, before he could stand up straight, he saw a figure standing up first and said in a cold voice: "I have something to say."
Zhou Huai was stunned when he heard this, and when he looked closely, it was... Tian Yuanwai!
It's just that at this time, the kindness on Tian Yuanwai's face has long since disappeared, leaving only an ashen look.
"If you have anything to say, tell me quickly. If you don't tell me about your ugly appearance, don't blame me for being rude." Being interrupted one after another, Wu Yunxuan was also a little irritated.
"A few days ago, the Zhou family promised to give all the existing grain reserves to me, the Tian family. I wonder if Brother Zhou still remembers this?"
Zhou Huai frowned when he heard this and said, "It is indeed true, but I had not obtained Gu Shijun's seed at that time. I felt that there was no hope in this selection, so I made this move."
"After I got the seeds, I forgot to tell Brother Tian that it was my fault. Zhou can apologize to you."
"Forgot to inform me? I don't think you want to inform me at all?"
"Hmph, I thought in vain that you, Zhou Huai, have always been trustworthy, but now it seems that you are such a treacherous person!"
"Master Wu, as far as I know, the emperor's merchants choose not only the products, but also the merchants' conduct."
"With Zhou Huai's treacherous character, can he really become an imperial merchant?"
"If this is really the case, I, Mr. Tian, will be the first to refuse to accept it."
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire hall fell into deathly silence again.
Everyone's eyes were filled with disbelief.
"What are you doing outside Tian Yuan? Don't they, Tian Ji and Zhou Ji, always support each other, regardless of you and me?"
"Yes, Zhou Yuanwai was elected as the Imperial Merchant. For him, there are only benefits and no disadvantages. Why would he do such a thing."
Amid everyone's discussion, Zhou Huai was filled with despair.
He really didn't expect that his business partner who had been in business for more than ten years would treat him like this because of a trivial matter.
A kind word warms you for three winters, but a bad word hurts you for six months.
It was already winter, and coupled with Tian Yuanwai's words, Zhou Huai felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
