Do you know: I am the crown prince

Chapter 100 King Qin

Fang Zhongrong was gone for nearly two hours, and it was already dark when he returned.

Not only did he bring back the market quotation, he also brought back a piece of news that the next market would open in three days, and someone would help them make an appointment with a dozen or so famous merchants from the Liao Kingdom so they could meet and talk in person.

Sheng Wei was very happy to hear this, because what he was most worried about was how to contact those Liao merchants.

After all, it was his first time to come to the border trade, and the things he brought could not be displayed ostentatiously.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Xing had arranged all of this.

Sheng Wei was a very cautious person, and fearing that his alcohol would be discovered, he stayed in the inn for the next few days and did not go out.

Three days passed in a flash. Early in the morning of this day, merchants from various inns in Xiongzhou City carried their goods and headed towards the north gate.

Sheng Wei was not in a hurry. Instead, he waited until after noon when fewer people were leaving the city before taking the goods out of the city.

The trade session is opened every ten days and lasts ten days each time.

In fact, there are only eight days. The first day is for vendors to enter, and the last day is for vendors to pack up and leave.

The time agreed with the merchants from Liao was in the evening, so Sheng Wei was not in a hurry.

After years of development, the trade market is no different from a small city.

Sheng Wei arrived at the gate of the market and saw from afar the soldiers checking the goods brought by the merchants entering the city, but he was not worried.

Fang Zhongrong had told him before that their city permits were exempt from inspection.

Sheng Wei has also heard from others that as long as one has a connection or spends money to bribe people, one can get a city permit that exempts one from inspection.

Whether it is carrying some prohibited goods or concealing the quantity, merchants can make a lot of extra money.

Soon it was their turn, and when Sheng Wei took out the city permit, he was allowed to pass immediately.

After entering the market, they first rented a warehouse to store the goods, and then found an inn to stay in.

The operating rights of the market were divided along the central axis, with the Song and Liao sides each holding half.

Of course, this refers to restaurants, inns, and warehouses, and does not restrict merchants from entering each other's areas.

If merchants are willing, they can also store their goods in Liao’s warehouses, as long as they feel safe.

After settling in, at night, Sheng Wei and Fang Zhongrong, with a cart of wine, went to Baixianglou in the Liao area.

The Liao area is not much different from the Song area. Most of the people we see have Han faces, except that they dress differently from the Song people. Khitans are rarely seen.

In fact, the Liao Dynasty was the first to use the "one country, two systems" policy.

The Liao Dynasty established two courts, the Southern Court and the Southern Court. The Southern Court was specifically used to manage the Han people and also employed some Han officials.

Most of the merchants from the Liao Kingdom who came to the market to trade were Han people, and there were not many Khitans.

Firstly, the status of merchants was low, and secondly, the Khitans were not good at business.

However, although most of the merchants in the Liao Dynasty were Han people, they were supported by the Khitan nobles.

When they arrived at Baixianglou, Fang Zhongrong had a conversation with the waiter, and Sheng Wei and Fang Zhongrong were taken to a private room on the third floor.

There were only four people chatting in the private room at this time, and two guards stood behind each of them.

Seeing Sheng Wei and Fang Zhongrong coming in, followed by several guards holding wine jars, one of them said with some disappointment: "So it's wine. If I had known, I wouldn't have come. What a waste of time."

"Yes, but we still have to give face to Marquis Qingyuan. Let's take a look first." said another person.

"Everyone, my name is Sheng Wei." Sheng Wei bowed.

"Brother Sheng, is the only merchandise you carry wine?" a man in his thirties asked, returning the salute.

"That's right, but the wine I brought is much stronger than any other wine on the market," said Sheng Wei.

"Oh?"

Several people instantly became interested after hearing this and asked, "Brother Sheng, can you open it and let us taste it?"

The Liao Kingdom knew how to brew wine, and the Song Dynasty court also sold wine to the Liao Kingdom, but they were not interested in wine.

But the Khitans liked strong liquor, and when they heard Sheng Wei say it was strong liquor, they became interested.

"Haha, everyone hasn't arrived yet. When everyone is here, I'll have someone open it and let everyone taste it." Sheng Wei said with a smile.

Although they were a little unhappy when they heard this, they didn't say anything. After Sheng Wei sat down, he started chatting with them.

These people are all Han people, but the current emperor of the Liao Kingdom values ​​Han people, and these people have been ruled by the Liao Kingdom since their ancestors, and have no sense of belonging to the Song Dynasty.

After chatting for a while, the rest of the people arrived one after another. Among the dozen or so Liao merchants, there was not a single Khitan person, all of them were Han people.

Sheng Wei did not keep the audience in suspense. He asked someone to open the wine and pour it for everyone to taste.

For a moment, the house was filled with the aroma of wine.

Just by smelling the wine, everyone knew it was good wine. After tasting it, their eyes lit up and they asked Sheng Wei about the price.

"You have all tasted it, so I won't introduce it in detail. This wine is expensive, costing one hundred taels of silver per pound!" Sheng Wei said.

"What a joke! A warhorse is only fifty taels of silver."

"That's right, Brother Sheng, do you think we are fools? How many people can afford a pound of wine for a hundred taels of silver?"

"Brother Sheng, did you say it wrong? It's 100 taels per jar?"

When everyone heard Sheng Wei's offer, they were furious.

Is one hundred taels expensive?
It’s not really expensive, but that refers to the rare and old wine.

Although the wine Sheng Wei brought was good, they could tell that it was new wine.

This shows that this wine can be brewed in batches.

Scarcity makes things valuable. No matter how good something is, it won’t sell at a high price if there are too many of them.

"Everyone, I'm not kidding. Because this is the first transaction, I can sell it at half price. But in the future, I will restore the original price. And in the future transactions, I don't want money, I want horses." Sheng Wei said.

The merchants of Liao were not surprised that Sheng Wei wanted horses. Most transactions in the market were based on barter, and cash was rarely accepted.

You can make more money by shipping the exchanged goods back.

However, they were very dissatisfied with the price, but Sheng Wei refused to give in, so they ended up parting on bad terms.

After returning to the inn, Fang Zhongrong asked in confusion, "Mr. Sheng, although I don't know much about business, I know the principle of asking for a high price and paying back on the spot. You refused to give in and offended everyone. What should I do next?"

"General Fang, don't worry. It was just because there were too many people just now. Someone will definitely come looking for us next time." Sheng Wei said with a smile.

Merchants pursue profits, and what they care about is not the cost of buying things, but whether it is profitable.

Fang Zhongrong was skeptical, but as soon as Sheng Wei finished speaking, someone came to report that someone wanted to see him.

Sheng Wei smiled slightly and asked someone to bring the person over.

Fang Zhongrong stood up and stood behind Sheng Wei, acting as a bodyguard.

Soon, the person was brought over. He was one of the Liao merchants who had just met, named Li Ge.

After the meeting, Li Ge said that he was willing to buy all the wine that Sheng Wei brought at the price of fifty taels per catty.

However, Sheng Wei did not agree and only agreed to sell him one car.

No matter what Li Ge said, Sheng Wei refused to give in. Even when he offered to pay more, the other party still refused.

Seeing that Sheng Wei was not interested, Li Ge hesitated for a while and said, "Brother Sheng, don't you want horses? As long as you agree to trade with me only, I promise to trade with horses in the future. Brother Sheng, you should know that the Liao Dynasty has restrictions on the flow of horses to the Song Dynasty. Others can't afford to trade with you many war horses."

"That's why I can't agree to trade with you alone. After all, the war horses you can provide are limited." Sheng Wei said lightly.

"I am different from them. I am the King of Qin's man. I have as many war horses as I want." Li Ge said.

Sheng Wei had never heard of the King of Qin, and he didn't believe what Li Ge said. Just as he was about to refuse, he felt Fang Zhongrong pulling him from behind.

"I need to think about this matter." Sheng Wei said.

"Okay, I'll wait for Brother Sheng's good news. I believe that among the merchants in the entire Liao Dynasty, no one else can provide horses in large quantities except me." Li Ge said confidently.

Sheng Wei complimented him a few times, sent him away, and returned to the house and said, "General Fang, why did you hint to me to agree just now?"

"Mr. Sheng doesn't know King Qin of the Liao Dynasty?" Fang Zhongrong asked in surprise.

"I've never heard of it. It sounds like it's a vassal state of Liao?" Sheng Wei asked doubtfully.

Fang Zhongrong didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and said, "King Qin is the younger brother of the current emperor of Liao."

(End of this chapter)