The early morning haze in Niangziguan is gloomy, the ancient city is desolate and simple, the sky outside the window is gray, the cold wind carries small snowflakes, and ice flowers bloom on the windows.
Li Guolou stood up from the bed and stepped on the thick and soft cashmere carpet with his bare feet. A warm and comfortable feeling came to his heart. A smoker on the tribute platform was blowing out wisps of smoke, and the refreshing fragrance floated.
Smelling the breath has the effect of calming the mind and concentrating the mind.
Wan Niang knelt on the carpet, her eyes flashed with enchanting charm, and with a sense of satisfaction, she bowed and saluted: "Master, you are awake."
"Well, Wan Niang, if you have nothing to do, go out to see the snow scene. I also want to inspect the military camp." Li Guolou does not take Wan Niang out. She is just a maid, serving others. If he is sincere to every woman who loves him,
, how can I leave the capital? For the sake of the country and the people, I have to put aside my children's personal relationships and find my own fault.
Due to the road closure due to wind and snow, Li Ziying had to rest in Niangziguan for a few days, but Li Guolou did not indulge himself. He got up early as usual and practiced in the yard wearing thin training clothes.
I saw Jin Erzi, Ma Dequan, Ma Liang, Yang Liguang, Yan Jingming, Li Yunkai, Xiao Shitou, Xu Biao, Niao Fu Guozhong and others consciously getting up and exercising in the snow. There was no surprise. To be his subordinate, you must seize the day and night.
Awakening. I was quite surprised to see Zhu Dinghe, a fellow Jinshi from the same town, also kicking and stretching his muscles in the courtyard.
"Lao Zhu, you got up so early?" Li Guolou held a shovel and wanted to build a snowman in the yard.
"Yes! I will accompany you to patrol the camp later." Zhu Dinghe heard and saw beside Li Guolou and felt an upward breath.
"Okay, let's call up Fan Dahui, Wei Hanyu, and Xu Lan. We haven't played together for a long time. We'll go see Niangziguan Waterfall in the morning, and enjoy the snow and warm wine at noon." Li Guolou looked at the snow-capped land, covered with silver flowers.
head, decorating the courtyard to be particularly enchanting.
"Yes, it's been a long time." Zhu Dinghe picked up a large piece of snow and stepped forward to pile up a snowman. The two of them helped, and soon a snowman looked like it was sitting in the yard. It felt like he had gone back to the past. I was glad that Li Guolou didn't
Change, without the airs of being a high official, old friends can still get together.
500 meters southeast of the east gate of Niangziguan City, the pleasant scenery of beautiful mountains and clear waters makes people feel relaxed and happy. The "Niangziguan Waterfall" hangs hundreds of feet and flows down the cliff, forming a gorgeous water curtain of icebergs, such as
White jade is hanging in the air. Beside the waterfall, there are Shuilian Cave and Baotu Spring. The scenery is extremely beautiful. There are many springs in the mountain city and valleys. The locals call them the hanging springs of Haiyan, which form a natural picture of small bridges and flowing water.
Li Guolou, Zhu Dinghe, Fan Dahui, Wei Hanyu, and Xu Lan were all in high spirits and lingered in front of Niangzi Pass. Soldiers from Li Ziying traveling on vacation could be seen everywhere.
"Guo Lou, write a poem." Zhu Dinghe stood on the city wall, looking at the snow-capped mountains, his heart full of pride. Like Li Guo Lou, he would also become a famous minister admired by the world.
"Who is the most dangerous on the pass through the mountain? Jingxing is the most dangerous place surrounded by water."
The beacon smoke and the wolf attack the brave women, and the golden armored eagles hang and the heroes rise.
The ancient garrison towers are still there today. I lean on the railing and want to ask about the great Qing Dynasty.
The wind on the battlefield is like a drum, and the sword is drawn to break the enemy and face the morning dew."
Li Guolou paced, thinking about the poem, and slowly read it word for word. This was an inspirational poem, using the past to reflect the present, expressing his aspirations. Everyone around him nodded in praise.
"That's right! I won't write poems, so as not to be compared with you." Zhu Dinghe stroked his beard and expressed his appreciation. He is worthy of being the emperor's imperial concubine. Now they, fellow students from the same hometown, admire Li Guolou so much that they regard him as Li Guolou's friend.
Be proud of.
"What a poem, what a poem! I haven't heard such a poem that expresses my feelings for a long time. Mr. Li, I'm the old man from Cai Mao Hall. I wonder if Mr. Li has heard of it." A middle-aged man with blue eyes, who looked like a businessman, stepped on the snow.
Come.
His appearance is consistent with that of a wealthy businessman from the Central Plains. He wears a fur windbreaker over a silk gown and a firefox hat. He is tall and energetic. This person is Hu Yangyue, the owner of "Cai Mao Tang". His race is a hybrid. From the appearance
We can see the clues. Hu Yangyue is the largest merchant in Niangziguan.
Businessmen and officials are people with two completely different social statuses. "Officials" are always superior, while businessmen must rely on the protection of high-ranking officials to survive in the dangerous world. Many high-ranking officials do not want to associate with businessmen, but Li Guolou is an official businessman, and there is no such thing.
This is a taboo. Hu Yangyue had already found out who Li Guolou was, so he came to do business with Li Guolou.
What excuse do businessmen use to find officials? Generally, they start by saying that they are from a scholar background and have passed the imperial examination. Everyone is a scholar, so they should first raise their own status so that they will not be looked down upon by officials with a Jinshi background. Hu Yangyue
He told the story of his misfortune when he tried repeatedly and failed, and solemnly invited Li Guolou and others to his home.
Hu Yangyue said with a smile: "With his poems, Mr. Li has a high moral character and integrity, and he should be regarded as a national hero of the Qing Dynasty. Hu is somewhat proficient in writing and calligraphy. Although he was admitted as a scholar, it was a pity that he could not advance to the next level. Mr. Li came all the way, and it was really a great achievement.
Thank you for your hard work. Hu likes to make friends with literati and prepare banquets at his house. Thinking that Mr. Li will take the wind and wash away the dust, do you want to invite Mr. Li and all your friends to show your favor? "
Yesterday, General Qianzong Song Qing, the guard of Niangzi Gate, introduced Hu Yangyue of "Cai Mao Tang" to Li Guolou, saying that Hu Yangyue was able to travel around the land of the Three Jin Dynasties, and here "Cai Mao Tang" was better than Qiao Zhiyong's "Fu Sheng".
"Gong" is also famous. That's why Hu Yangyue came to the city today to invite him. In fact, President Qian Song Qing was Hu Yangyue's backstage. This is the same as Li Guolou's visit to Li Hongzhang, and everyone chatted tacitly.
Li Guolou squinted at Hu Yangyue and said, "I didn't expect Mr. Hu to be an elegant person, so we just warmed the wine and recited poems to bother Mr. Hu."
Hu Yangyue was overjoyed and quickly led the way. Then he whispered a few instructions to his family members. One of the family members hurriedly mounted his horse and headed to Niangziguan.
A group of people boarded two carriages that had been prepared and returned to Niangzi Pass, accompanied by personal guards on horseback to protect them.
Hu Yangyue's house in Niangziguan is spacious and fully equipped with screen walls, ear rooms, wing rooms, etc., especially the brick carvings are exquisite and delicate. The lintels of the houses where people buy and sell naturally write "Wealth and Treasures" and "Prosperous Wealth". Although it is different,
But it also reveals a simplicity, which is the characteristic of Jinzhong businessmen.
A sumptuous banquet was prepared in the West Flower Hall. Not only people from the Hu family, but also five well-known businessmen from Niangziguan were also queuing up to wait for Li Guolou to arrive.
Hu Yangyue has been transporting rations to the Niangziguan army for many years, which means that there are nearly a thousand soldiers on the roster of Niangziguan Qianzong Song Qing. Normally, business is handled by Hu Yangyue of "Cai Mao Tang".
This is how the army does business. In addition to normal training, soldiers spend most of their time making money for the army. If half of the soldiers in an army train every day, it would be huge. Generally speaking, 30% are soldiers who are stationed and trained for a long time. Others
The soldiers on the roster are either empty quotas or used as cheap labor. This has been the case from ancient times to the present. The trick is obvious to anyone who steps into the military camp. This is why the combat effectiveness of the army decreases and the atmosphere of merchants in the army becomes stronger.
Gao Yu, the shopkeeper of Qiao Zhiyong's "Fu Sheng Gong", approached Li Guolou and wanted to cover the material needs of Li Ziying all the way. However, Li Guolou did not agree to Gao Yu's request and instead gave "Fu Sheng Gong" part of the business.
, he did not want to let his commercial competitors become stronger, nor did he want to owe Qiao Zhiyong any favors. Although local governments in each jurisdiction provided food, grass, civilians, and vehicles along the way, many problems would still be encountered during the daily march.
When marching for a long time, the most important thing is to maintain good physical strength, which requires rich and sufficient nutrition. Li Ziying's baggage team brought enough salt, tea bricks, some Jinhua hams, sausages, dried chickens and ducks, and dried tofu.
Dried vegetables, peppers, pickled cucumbers, dates, peanuts, and ten days’ worth of grain and grass, etc., but you cannot bring fresh vegetables, so you need to provide them from the government along the way.
Shanxi was destroyed by the Nian Army, but the military disaster had passed, and the difficulties Li Ziying encountered during the march were not too great. By the time they reached the Shaanxi-Gansu area, Li Ziying's team of more than 2,000 people would be good if they could not go hungry.
But Li Guolou wanted this army to be strong and not be worn down by the march, so he needed supplies to keep up, so he also needed merchants to provide his team with the supplies they needed.
When Hu Yangyue of "Cai Mao Tang" came to visit, Li Guolou sold a favor to Song Qing, the guard general of Niangzi Gate, and readily agreed to cooperate with "Cai Mao Tang" and let the caravan of "Cai Mao Tang" take his place.
Li Ziying purchases daily necessities and will cooperate in many fields in the future.
Hu Yangyue's face was full of smiles and glowing red. He raised his wine glass and sang congratulations: "Master Li traveled thousands of miles to Shaanxi and Gansu to wipe out the thieves for the Qing Dynasty. His loyalty is truly touching and admirable.
Although Hu is a merchant, he also knows the principle of loyalty to the emperor and the country, and is willing to personally accompany the army to transport supplies."
Since last year, Hu Yangyue had heard of Li Guolou's name, and now he was very familiar with it. He tried his best to curry favor with the most powerful officials and businessmen in the Qing Dynasty. However, he was a shrewd businessman and knew that he wanted to win over Li Guolou.
To do business with Li Guolou, you must first make a good deal with Li Guolou. As long as you don't lose money, it doesn't matter whether you make money or not. In order to make Li Guolou pay attention to him, he can also invest money in the Li Group in the future and embark on a successful career.
The road to industrial prosperity.
"Mr. Hu, if I need food in the Dong Zhiyuan area or the Yan'an area further away, how much food can your caravan provide me?" Li Guolou's more than 2,000 soldiers eat a lot of food every day.
With 45 kilograms of grain per month, more than 2,000 soldiers would consume 3 kilograms of grain a day. There were also more than 800 horses, cattle, and camels. Since they were marching outside, the feed was six times as much as the soldiers ate.
The food consumption is very huge. There will be months of fighting in the future, and countless amounts of food and grass are needed. When Li Ziying arrives at the front line, there will be frontline quartermasters to uniformly distribute food and grass to all armies, and life will be difficult. Until then, he still has
With so many mouths under his command, he had to think of a way to feed more than 2,000 soldiers.
Hu Yangyue and five other big businessmen gathered together and whispered, and then announced: "Master Li, the price of food shipped to Li Ziying is seven taels and five cents per 100 kilograms. Cai Maotang can provide you with 100 taels.
Thousands of kilograms of grain. And he is willing to transport it with the army. The condition is that Li Da
We all want to take shares in people's family businesses, especially "Open Source Company" and "Great Harvest Flour Company", we very much hope to take shares, and "Firebird Match Company" is an emerging industry in the future, and we are also interested in large industries.
I am very interested and want to send people to visit and study.”
Hearing that Hu Yangyue and several other businessmen were willing to provide him with logistical support at a low price, Li Guolou was quite happy. He waved his hand and said: "Okay! Mr. Hu, since you are willing to serve the country, please relieve me of my worries.
We share blessings and share hardships. In the future, the imperial court will give you the status and honor you deserve. The Li Group needs more knowledgeable people to join. As long as Mr. Hu and all your friends are interested, there is no problem in visiting or becoming a shareholder."
Li Guolou bowed together, expressed his gratitude to the other businessmen, and drank all the wine in one gulp. Hu Yangyue and several other businessmen also joined in the toast. Doing business with the army was a refreshing experience. At the banquet, everyone drank wine frequently and made jokes.
Zhu Dinghe, who was sitting on the other side of Li Guo Tower, came over and whispered: "Little Lizi, I heard that Hu Yangyue was a gangster in the past. His wife, the Yang family, was rich and powerful. He relied on women to make his fortune, but he is the same as you."
Similar people."
Li Guolou looked unmoved and secretly stepped on Zhu Dinghe's feet to make him hairy. How could he be joking in public?
Zhu Dinghe was not afraid of the pain. He stood up and said with a laugh: "My old cousin from Shanxi is a good friend, and I will come to Shanxi to serve as an official in the future. Come! We are deeply sentimental. I, Old Zhu, would like to offer you a glass of wine."
Afterwards, everyone drank freely, with plates and bowls full of delicacies, including sausages, hand-made hard noodle buns, mutton soaked buns, Hunyuan jelly, shaved noodles, tofu curd, and buckwheat noodles.
Finally, make a mutton offal soup. In a large pot, put the mutton liver, lungs, stomach, intestines, heart, tendons, etc. and cook them thoroughly. Then add onions, ginger, coriander, vermicelli, and tofu and cook until cooked. Add them in after they are cooked.
In a bowl, pour mutton soup, then add coriander, vinegar, salt, pepper and other seasonings. The soup is fragrant, white in color, hot and delicious.
Everyone took spoons and drank the delicious mutton soup. Zhu Dinghe took a few sips of the hot soup. Thinking of Wan Niang, the maid raised by Li Guolou, there was a fire in his heart. After drinking, he yelled: "This mutton offal"
Soup
But it’s a good thing. There is a poem that goes: ‘The original soup is juicy and delicious. It can remove coldness and warm the stomach and add energy. Eat it in summer to prevent stomach cold, and eat it in winter to warm the whole body.’ Lord Escort, you are the only one who can eat more here.”
Li Guolou burst into laughter and shouted loudly: "Old Zhu, don't think you are a Jinshi. You have normal needs as a man when you go out. I don't believe you don't have fun."
Zhu Dinghe had a history of visiting brothels to treat guests, and he had a dirty background. He couldn't help but laugh evilly. The "horse thieves" who couldn't hold it back had gone to play last night. Wasn't he waiting for his friends to go play with him today?
Fan Dahui laughed and said: "Lao Zhu, we must also contribute to the long-term peace and stability of Niangziguan. Mr. Hu must fulfill his friendship as a landlord and accompany us to see the scenery in the afternoon."
"It's easy to talk about!" Hu Yangyue glanced at Li Guolou, beating a little drum in his heart. He wondered whether he should invite Li Guolou to see the scenery? Should the orchid raised in the mansion invite Li Guolou to play, or send an orchid to serve Li Guolou?
Guolou, I’ll ask Mr. Fan later.
Three days later, Li Ziying set out, and a caravan appeared behind the army. Most of them were Hu Jia businessmen whom Li Guolou met when he was resting in Niangziguan. A team of more than 2,000 people had unlimited business opportunities. This made Li Ziying's caravan