In the secret room, a clay pot was spraying hot air on the charcoal stove. Zhao Min wrapped the handle of the pot with a wet towel. Heat first cleaned the tea set, and then familiarly washed tea and made tea. Lu Haoshan could still see the techniques of making tea such as "Guanguan City Tour" and "Han Xin Ordering Soldiers" commonly used in later generations. Zhao Min poured it back and forth in several containers. It was probably emitting heat and looking for the most suitable temperature to release the mellow fragrance of the tea leaves to the maximum extent.

It is really worthy of starting from tea, and every step is fine. The tea used is of course excellent tea. The charcoal used in the charcoal stove, the water used for making tea, the temperature, technique of making tea, and the tea set used for drinking tea are all very particular. Even when the tea leaves touch boiling water, they immediately produce a unique chemical reaction, and the room is filled with the faint and pleasant tea fragrance.

"Sir, please use tea." As a VIP, Zhao Min handed the first cup of tea to Lu Haoshan first to show his respect for him.

"Miss Zhao is here." Lu Haoshan was not polite. After thanking him, he picked up a cup of tea and sipped a small sip, allowing the drained tea to flow through his teeth, making the fragrance of the tea more delicate and long in his mouth. Good women need to appreciate it, and good tea needs to be tasted. You need to swallow it slowly to know the three flavors. If you drink it like a big bowl of tea that a peddler on the roadside, it would be a waste of resources.

Zhao Min smiled and gave everyone present a cup of tea, then stepped aside and listened carefully.

Lu Haoshan understood that Zhao Min was not qualified to attend such meetings that were related to the rise and fall of the family, because she was a woman. If she was a man, she could naturally think that Zhao Yuqing's successor was to be heard, and others were understandable. The greatest possibility of Zhao Min's appearance here was not because she could make tea or she was the daughter of the clan leader, but because she was proficient in Nine Chapters of Arithmetic. If necessary, she could give a reminder to avoid the loss of her family.

Everyone first tasted tea and introduced each other politely. After a cup of tea, Lu Haoshan put the tea cup and said lightly: "Okay, Chief Zhao, we can talk about cooperation now."

I really don’t have the interest in playing tricks with these old guys. Maybe in their eyes, whoever speaks first will lose the opportunity, but for Lu Haoshan, these do not exist because he has enough chips in his hands. Negotiation requires skills and sufficient negotiation skills to take more initiative and advantage in negotiations, but the negotiations are still strength.

"Refreshing" Zhao Yuqing put down the teacup and said calmly: "The county magistrate is quick and easy to speak. It is indeed a person who does big things. However, before the negotiations, I wonder how much does the county magistrate know about tea and horse transactions?"

Lu Haoshan spread his hands and said frankly: "To be honest, Lu only knows that tea and horse trading is a profitable industry, but he can be said to be ignorant of its operation. Otherwise, he would have eaten alone and would not have asked Chief Zhao to cooperate with him. Please give me some advice."

Zhao Yuqing was not surprised by Lu Haoshan's words. For example, the tea and salt business is a fool. Even the industry is known to be a profitable industry. Especially now, the political situation is turbulent, and the peaks are everywhere. The demand for horses is greater. The greater the demand, the higher the profits are. This is one of the reasons why Zhao Yuqing can't sit still. He smiled and said with a smile: "Lord Sheng Meng can respect it, so Zhao will briefly introduce the tea and horse transaction."

"It's a blessing to Chief Zhao."

Zhao Yuqing took a sip of tea, pondered for a while, and then began to say: "The tea-drinking trend began in the Tang Dynasty. After the Song and Yuan dynasties, it was already very prosperous by the Ming Dynasty. We are accustomed to calling the Tibetan and Mongolian ethnic minorities living outside Shaanxi Xifan. They lived in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and lived in nomadic ways. Eating beef, mutton and cheese, they needed to relieve greasiness and aid digestion. They had an unstoppable need for tea. Some people described it as "not allowed to tea, because of illness". Secondly, tea has a deep connection with the religion and customs of Xifan. Tibetan cloud strips are blood, wasteland is water, and tea is life. Men and women are used to using tea as a betrothal gift, and the atmosphere is very strong. However, Xifan Heytea cannot grow tea, which provides a specific prerequisite for tea-horse transactions."

"Since Hongwu, the court inherited the habits of the previous dynasty and began to control tea, opened tea horses, tea bureaus, etc., successively established tea inlets, gold medal letters and other restrictions, as well as limited quantities, stopping horses in the grate, etc., and tried every means to use tea to control the Tufan tribes in the west. After all, tea horse trading is a game. The Ming Dynasty was afraid that the western region would not be disciplined, so it used tea to control them, and at the same time exchanged for the war horses they needed, and also made great profits from it."

Lu Haoshan knew a little about these things, and then asked with interest: "I don't know how many kilograms of tea and horses are there for a horse?"

"Hahaha" Zhao Yuqing smiled and said, "Everyone can do business by means. How can there be a constant change? Usually the distance is longer and the price is only a little. It depends on the skills. In the early Ming Dynasty, one thousand eight hundred kilograms of tea was exchanged for a horse. Later, Master Hongwu ordered to set up a horse, give one hundred and twenty kilograms of tea, one horse, give one 70 kilograms of tea, one horse, and fifty kilograms of tea. At this price, the foreigners would cry. When the price was paid, the emperor of Yongle was far away and the people increased the tea kilograms. The Tea and Horses of the Paimen used more than 80,000 kilograms of tea, and only seventy horses were replaced. Most of these horses were thin horses. When it comes to the ministers of the Ming Dynasty cried, anyway, they could not generalize them at one time."

"Where is the current price of horses?" Lu Haoshan asked.

Zhao Yuqing took two sips of tea, moistened his throat and continued: "If Hanchuan tea is more valuable, you can change to a horse with one hundred to two hundred kilograms. If it were Hunan tea, it would be difficult to change to a horse with five hundred kilograms. Of course, it depends on the transaction volume, whether there are competitors, etc. Before the auction price is set, everything is possible."

Lu Haoshan asked in surprise: "Hanchuan tea? Hunan tea? What's the difference?"

"Hanchuan tea refers to the tea leaves in the Hanzhong area and Sichuan, such as Ziyang, Anyuan, Langao, Sichuan Shiquan and other places. The tea produced in these areas has a sweet and thin tea flavor, and is full of sweet and fragrant taste when drinking, which is deeply loved by the French people. The lake tea tastes bitter, and it is thorny when eaten, and the French people are also greatly affected. Many Chinese people shake their heads when they hear about the lake tea. Therefore, the value of Hanchuan tea is high and the value of lake tea is low. Another important thing is that there are many fake teas in Hunan. Do you think the difference is big?" Zhao Yuqing said with a smile.

He is indeed an expert, and he is very good at talking about the tea and horse business. Lu Haoshan nodded secretly. He was looking for the right person himself. With Zhao Yuqing leading the way, there are fewer detours.

"Yes, the Chief Zhao is indeed an old master," Lu Haoshan praised with a smile, and then asked casually: "Is it still strict to lose tea to Xifan now?"

"There are two different things about strictness and not strictness, but Zhao hopes that the border defense will be more strict."

"How can I explain this?"

Zhao Yuqing said with a serious expression: "From Hongwu to Wanli, the emperor attached great importance to tea and horse transactions. This not only concerns the stability of the northwest, but also the fiscal revenue. In the late Wanli period, mobs broke out everywhere and the Later Jin Dynasty was waiting for an opportunity to cause trouble. For the court, nomadic peoples such as Xifan were no longer important forces that threatened the Ming Dynasty. The biggest threat came from the Later Jin Dynasty. They were unable to provoke Xifan too much, so they did not want to get too angry with Xifan, so they relaxed a lot of tea and horse transactions. Besides, the smuggling was serious and the profit was not as good as before. If it weren't for this, Zhao would not have considered going out."

"Captain Zhao, do you say that Yan or Buyan have two words, and you also want to investigate it more strictly. What does this mean?" Lu Haoshan asked to the end.

"It's very simple" Zhao Yuqing said calmly: "There are two aspects of strictness, one is the strict system, and the other is the strict border defense. If the court investigates strictly, there will be no personal matters. It will be just a matter of their own duties. It will be difficult to get any benefits anyway. This is the first situation, and the second situation is that the court will let it go. However, the ward along the ancient Tea-Horse Road regards tea-Horse mutual exchanges as money trees. If you don't have any connections or benefits, you can't get it. The people will not fight with the officials. As long as there is a profit, there will be someone watching this piece of fat. How much can you eat depends entirely on your personal ability. Zhao is still a friend and hopes that the investigation will be strict. In this way, there will be less tea, and the supply will be in short supply, and the profit will be large."

So that's the case. Lu Haoshan nodded and finally got a little surprised at this.

Seeing Lu Haoshan suddenly realized his mind, Zhao Yuqing smiled and said, "Mr. County Magistrate, I think you have already understood it well, so we might as well get to the point."

I have just introduced so much, and indirectly explained that my experience in this industry is a partner who can cooperate. Zhao Yuqing introduced it very skillfully, only talking about the history of tea and horse mutual intercourse. As for channels and connections, as well as the small tricks, Zhao Yuqing didn't say anything. He would not reveal it easily before the two officially decided to cooperate. These are the most precious trump cards of the Zhao clan.

Lu Haoshan nodded and said with a smile: "Okay, let's get straight to the topic."
Chapter completed!