The elder brother who travels through is hard to do

Xu Bei was very happy when he got home, because Brother Zhang finally wrote him a letter. He stuffed the worthless gadgets he brought back from Suanzhou City into Min Qing's arms, and dragged him and Lao Qiu to the bed. The goods brought back from the mountains will be delivered to the address given by Brother Zhang.At this time, he didn't have the intention to hoard the goods, so he quickly cleared the goods in his hand and turned over the money.

Xu Minqing played with several animal-shaped wooden carvings and showed a happy and innocent smile. He remembered that when he was a child, his father brought him a cloth tiger when he went to the market. He snatched it up, and triumphantly tore the cloth tiger to pieces, spilling the cotton wool inside, and it was the elder brother who rushed up and beat up his cousin.As a result, the eccentric old lady called the eldest brother over and scolded him, saying that he was helping outsiders instead of his own family, and sooner or later he would raise a white-eyed wolf.

From then on, he asked no parents to bring toys, because he knew that even if they brought them back, they would not fall into his hands.Maybe the eldest brother can't remember the early years, but he likes it very much, because no one will come to snatch it from him.

The money in Xu Bei's hand has doubled. Apart from keeping it for family use, he has 300 taels at his disposal. The prices here are high, especially in winter, the price of fur is several times higher than ours, and by the way, there is also ginseng, which is the favorite of those nobles in the capital."

Seeing Xu Bei staring at him without blinking, Lao Qiu rolled his eyes and said angrily: "Since when did you speak so bluntly, you want me to find a way, I have to think about it." Think about finding someone you know." Both fur and ginseng are not a business that ordinary people can get involved in, and the money required for the turnover inside is not a small amount. The old Qiu in the past is not qualified to contact, but he often runs errands for others. I also know some past customers.

Lao Qiu said again: "Did you come up with these ideas in Wazigou before?"

Xu Bei confessed honestly: "I have some ideas, but they are also planned for the future. At that time, I didn't expect to have the opportunity to go to the south, so now I have a different idea. I think if I have time, I will go to Wazigou. , but not to accept their goods but to help them sell their goods, which can be regarded as running errands." Now Xu Bei is giving some benefits out of the idea of ​​making friends with those people, after all, it only takes up some space, and there is no need to spend too much on his own. With a lot of hard work, and being able to make friends with some capable people, why not do it.

"You boy, that's fine. If we have enough time, let's take a trip. They do have some goods in their hands." Lao Qiu knew that he had misunderstood Xu Bei. Do them a favor.

"Old Qiu, if you believe me, try to raise as much money as possible to invest in it. This trip will definitely make you a lot of money." Xu Bei reminded, his behavior should be called running errands and carrying personal belongings, fourth son He clearly separates the business of the shop over there from his own money, and of course he should try to expand his assets as much as possible while doing the fourth son's errands well.

Lao Qiu's eyes lit up, he never thought that this kid Xu Bei not only has business acumen but also is loyal enough, he hurried out without any excuses to raise money and explore the channels of goods. For him, being able to save It is very satisfying to add a few acres of fertile land to the family with some money.

Both of them were very busy, and Xu Bei himself had to go to both ends of the Kang County prefecture. The business of the store was not handed over to the shopkeeper, and there was also the issue of distribution of goods in the store.

The new shopkeeper of the grain shop is the clean shopkeeper Qian introduced by Steward Wang. Looking at the young shopkeeper, he obviously felt a little unreliable, so he came to ask the shopkeeper with his own questions: "Boss, I went to inquire about the market. The price is generally high, is it really okay to open a grain shop at this time?" You must know that his face was extremely ugly when he saw that there was no grain in the shop, isn't the boss really joking?Could it be that there is so much money that you want to throw it into the water for fun?It was clearly a loss-making business, and he wondered if he should persuade the owner to change to another business. After all, the wages offered by the owner were higher than other shops, and he still wanted to work hard.

"It's okay." Xu Bei wore coarse clothes but looked rich and powerful, "The money shopkeeper just needs to find the source of the goods, no matter how high the price is, and use all the money in the account, even if I lose money, I will take care of it." .”

Shopkeeper Qian's face turned greener. Does the owner know how to run a business? If the shop closes at a loss, he won't have a good reputation as the shopkeeper, and it will be difficult to find another shop.But he had signed a contract with his boss, and he had to do what his boss ordered. Looking at the 1000 taels of silver on the book, the treasurer Qian had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree.

Xu Bei laughed as if he didn't see the livid face of the money shopkeeper, and reluctantly moved his eyes away from the account book, 1000 taels of silver, fortunately he is a person who distinguishes between public and private, and he didn't stretch out his eager hand to the public account.In fact, he really wanted to tell Shopkeeper Qian that it doesn't matter if he loses all the 1000 taels on the account, it's not his money anyway, really.

After knocking and knocking, the two shops finally opened, and the impact on the square market on North Street was almost negligible.

Shopkeeper Qian's face became even more gloomy, almost dripping ink. The food he bought at a high price after so much painstaking efforts, was actually let him sell at a price slightly lower than that of other shops, which almost made him spit out old blood.Now, he doesn't even have superficial respect for Xu Bei, and he has made up his mind to find another way out as soon as the contract expires. Even if he changes his career, he can no longer stay with such an owner. Now he is envious of shopkeeper Sun of the grocery store. , obviously they all work under the same boss, how come the situation is so different.

Shopkeeper Qian was dissatisfied, but Xu Bei was very satisfied with him. He said that the people Wang Guanshi hired were also quite capable. They were all prepared to take Big Brother Zhang's token to the river when Shopkeeper Qian really had nothing to do, and ask Big Brother Zhang's people to help get some food to meet the emergency.

Lao Qiu came to look for Xu Bei, and seeing the attitude of Shopkeeper Qian towards him, he pulled him outside the shop and smiled, "You boy is really embarrassing Shopkeeper Qian, I didn't see the eyes staring at you behind his back, and he was about to spit fire." It is estimated that if he continues to do this, he will lose a few years of life."

"Old Qiu, don't gloat, tell me if anyone has found it, and you have to get our goods quickly before you can rest assured." Xu Bei urged.

Lao Qiu endured a smile and said, "I found two dealers, who came to show you the goods. Go, go, go there quickly, otherwise the good ones will be picked up by others."

On the way, Lao Qiu told Xu Bei about the situation of these two merchants. One of them was his regular customer. He never expected to meet this regular customer again. I also don't like Lao Qiu's small business. The business of one or two hundred taels is really not taken seriously: "This man is called Niu Dafu, and he has a motorcade in his hand that runs to the northwest. I heard that he used to I have a way to do business with the tribes on the grassland, but later I offended someone, almost lost my life, the fleet has shrunk greatly, and the business is not as big as it used to be.”

But even so, the goods in their hands are not something Xu Bei and the others can underestimate, "I followed their convoy back then, and on the way I received news that a group of people were waiting for them. You know, I just knew the way. He is not good at anything else, so I helped him avoid the people blocking the way. Although it took a little more time on the way, the goods were saved. Hehe, the salary that Niu Dafu gave was not bad No, after taking it back, I built three green brick and tile houses for my mother-in-law."

"You're amazing!" Xu Beichao gave him a thumbs up. He didn't dare to underestimate Lao Qiu's scout skills, and they were quite useful at critical times.

"Where is there," Lao Qiu said modestly with the corners of his mouth curled up, "Another ginseng merchant was also introduced by Niu Dafu, so I can be regarded as going out to meet noble people." Speaking modest words with a proud expression, this skill is completely I learned it from Xu Bei, Xu Bei now finally understands how Lao Qiu wanted to slap him to death.

"Okay, then go and meet Lao Qiu, your nobleman." Xu Bei rolled his eyes, anyway, as long as there are good products, let this bastard get away with it.

The two came to an inn and knocked on the door of a small courtyard at the back. Niu Dafu knew that Lao Qiu was here and came out to receive them personally.The image of Niu Dafu fits his name very well. He has a big belly and a round waist. At first glance, he looks like a wealthy nouveau riche. Thinking of his image in the eyes of outsiders in his previous life and his goal in this life, Xu Bei almost stepped forward to talk to him. People shook hands with him enthusiastically and exchanged ideas.

"Haha, Lao Qiu, this is the little brother you told me about before. It's not bad. I can't help but close my eyes when I saw it. Come in quickly. Your brother is my Niu Dafu's brother. Haha..." The unrestrained voice quickly The roof was overturned, and Niu Dafu was accompanied by rough and sturdy men. Some of them knew Lao Qiu and entertained them warmly.

"Brother Niu, you are my role model and the goal of my hard work. I will be satisfied as long as I can earn a fraction of you from Brother Niu in the future." Xu Bei flattered.

"Little brother, my Lao Niu's wealth is nothing. I saw that the little brother is a capable person, and he will definitely be more capable than my Lao Niu in the future." The thick gold ring on his finger flashed quickly, blinding Xu Bei. My eyes are gone, I count them, there are always eight gold rings on my ten fingers, six of them are inlaid with precious stones, and in the waist thicker than a bucket, there is a belt inlaid with gold and jade, just this outfit , It is estimated that there are hundreds or thousands of taels of silver that cannot be taken down.

Xu Bei pretended to be shy and said, "Where, if it wasn't for Lao Qiu saying that he knew Brother Niu, the boy wouldn't dare to come to the door with the cheek, and he would be ashamed to embarrass himself in front of Brother Niu with just such a few coins."

Lao Qiu twitched the corners of his mouth, and Niu Dafu was stunned for a moment and continued to say boldly: "This is a stranger, I think that my old Niu just came out with the money from selling land back then, and it was not as good as you, little brother, at that time. In this world, as long as you have the courage to dare to venture and fight hard, you can make a fortune everywhere, don't talk about it, let's go, I will take you to see the goods, don't worry, I will give you the lowest price, and I will definitely not make money from you."

"That's not okay. How can I let Old Brother Niu make a trip for nothing? I still have to earn the money I should earn, otherwise I will be embarrassed to come to Old Brother Niu's door again next time."

……

Lao Qiu, who had originally led people to the door, fell behind. Looking at the two people ahead who were spitting, Lao Qiu felt that his other eye was about to go blind. Qiu whispered: "Old Qiu, how did you know this little brother? He's very good."

Lao Qiu blushed, knowing that the old guy meant that Xu Bei was thick-skinned, so he said with a dry smile, "Hehe, if I didn't have this ability, I wouldn't be able to hang out with him."

The man patted Lao Qiu's shoulder understandingly. You must know that Lao Qiu didn't agree when the owner wanted Lao Qiu to join their motorcade. It’s quite promising, not bad.” Those who come out to venture out, their face is too thin to get things done, and they have to tear their face off, talking about people when they see people, and talking nonsense when they see people.

Lao Qiu followed all the way, and also felt that he didn't know enough about Xu Bei before. Niu Dafu and Xu Bei, one of them offered the lowest price, and the other refused to let Niu Dafu lose money. When negotiating the price, one of them seemed to be vomiting blood with a heartbroken face, while the other bargained down the price with reluctance. Everyone thought that the two of them would end up negotiating, but after Xu Bei paid the money, the two They talked and laughed again, one humbly asked for experience, and the other kept praising the younger generation.

When he moved a bunch of goods and left the courtyard, Lao Qiu wiped his sweat. He was just a spectator in this weather, but he would be sweating profusely.

Seeing his expression, Xu Bei said, "Old Qiu, you don't really think that Niu Dafu sold it to us at a loss, do you?"

"Isn't it?" Lao Qiu doubted.

Xu Bei took out a small notebook from his arms and said, "I haven't been idle for the past few days when you've been away. I've gone to the fur shops to inquire about the prices and prices. You don't even know how many times I've stared at you. , I had to have a thick skin to inquire about what I wanted, and I also learned some ability to distinguish the quality of fur. But it’s just on his psychological price.”

Lao Qiu took a look, but he didn't see anything bright, they were all twisted ghostly symbols. Of course, Xu Bei would not tell Lao Qiu that what was written on them were actually Arabic numerals, and he was the only one who could read them. Gotta understand.

After two days, Xu Bei used up all the dozens of taels of silver that he could mobilize and that Lao Qiu had brought over, before returning to his home in Kang County, two waves of people came to him, one was Lao Qiu helping him The person who looked after the nursing home came just in time, and Xu Bei would have wanted Steward Wang to find someone for him if it was later.This person is called Sun Dagui. Although the name seems to be related to Niu Dafu, he is not noble at all. He injured a leg on the battlefield and became crippled, but his strength is not small. After seeing it, Xu Bei agreed to let him stay. It was done, of course, with Min Qing's consent, after all, Min Qing stayed at home the longest.

The other was the person who had sent the message to Brother Zhang before, and brought a message from Brother Zhang again. It had only one meaning, that is, he, Xu Bei, could set off, and provided a route to take a boat all the way south from the river.

"Brother..." Xu Minqing didn't expect that his elder brother would leave so soon, and this time he was going to the capital, which made him even more uncertain. What did the fourth son ask his elder brother to do? Why did he let his elder brother go to the capital?

"Don't worry," Xu Bei patted his younger brother's head, Lao Qiu and Sun Dagui left the room, and let the two brothers talk, "I'll go and come back quickly, besides, with Brother Zhang taking care of me, it won't be too hard, but You have to be good at home, and don’t stay up too late reading at night, so as not to burn your eyes.” There were no glasses in this era, so he specially brought some candles from the grocery store back, and the light from the oil lamp was too dim.

Xu Minqing's eyes were flushed, and he tried not to shed tears, but the more petite he looked, the more Xu Bei's heart softened and hurt. Thinking about it, it's no wonder that Minqing is sad. As his elder brother, he often runs away and leaves his younger brother to outsiders Take care, even though Granny Qian and Sun Dagui were hired by him to take care of Min Qing with a silver tael, they are still outsiders after all, how could Min Qing get along with them without barriers.

He also discovered that since he left Shangpo Village, Min Qing has become more and more dependent on him. Although he doesn't say anything, it can be seen from his usual relationship with outsiders, including Lao Qiu and Qian Qian, who has been with him for the longest time. Mother-in-law, her attitude was slightly alienated, and even Lao Qiu sometimes said that it was not easy for Min Qing to be young.

Min Qing only showed a close and dependent side to himself, which made him feel proud and at the same time distressed. After all, he still treated his brother badly.

"I will definitely come back at the end of the year. At that time, our two brothers will celebrate the New Year together, and we will go back to Shangpo Village to visit our parents' graves together." Xu Bei tried his best to promise, but he dared not say that he would not run away for such a long time in the future It's time, who knows what will happen to the fourth son.

"Brother," Xu Minqing endured and endured, and finally raised his eyes to look at his elder brother. His pair of long and curly eyelashes were a little wet, and his eyes were also moist. "I will study hard, and when I pass the examination of the academy, Brother, you have to promise me that you will take me with you wherever you go in the future, I don't want to leave brother for too long, just this time, okay?"

Being watched by these eyes, Xu Bei's heart softened, and he replied involuntarily: "Okay." After he finished speaking, he realized what he had promised, and felt annoyed in his heart, but he saw Min Qing showing a little sly expression of success again. While smiling, he said helplessly, "But you also have to promise me a few conditions."

Xu Minqing immediately started counting with his fingers: "I know, first, you must keep exercising and not burn your body; second, you must not read too late at night, right? Third, you must eat well, dress well, sleep well, don't I don't want to spend money. Fourth, I need to be more careful, and I can't be deceived. If I have something to do, I can go to the shop on Fucheng North Street for help, or ask for help from Wang Guanshi in the west of the city. Brother, I keep it in mind, but Brother, you have to answer me too."

When Xu Bei watched Min Qing earnestly repeating one by one with his fingers, he was very happy. When he finished counting, he was surprised and said: "Didn't you just put the conditions before? Why are there still conditions?"

Xu Minqing poked his elder brother's chest earnestly and angrily and said, "Eldest brother knows to let me take care of my health, but what about elder brother himself? Brother, do you think I won't know if you don't tell me about getting sick in the mountains? I'll just say that elder brother last time How could you lose weight after coming back from the mountains, brother, you still hide it from me, and you deliberately make me feel useless, don’t you?” The more you talk, the more angry you become, and the strength you use in your hands is getting bigger and bigger.

Xu Bei secretly glanced out of the house, he must have been tricked by Min Qing, he quickly grabbed Min Qing's fist and said with a smile, "It's the elder brother's fault, but do you see that the elder brother is now stronger than before? "Now he is exercising with Lao Qiu every day, and he feels that his muscles are much stronger. Seeing Min Qing still not letting go, he quickly surrendered and said, "Okay, brother, just like you, you should also take care of your body. The next time I come back, I will definitely not lose weight again, and I will just ask Min Qing to check it, and if I lose weight, I will punish him as Min Qing will."

Xu Minqing hummed twice and said nothing.

Outside, Lao Qiu looked in the direction of the house, and said to Sun Dagui who was on the side: "Look, these two brothers are sticking together endlessly. I think Boy Bei is about to tie his precious brother to his belt. Where are you going?" Where to take it."

Sun Dagui stood up straight and said with a smile, "I think you are jealous, Lao Qiu. They are only two brothers left. It's no big deal if they are clingy. Besides relying on each other, who else can they rely on?" Xu Bei didn't hide the fact that he was driven out almost clean, so even Sun Dagui later took care of the two brothers as juniors.

Lao Qiu gritted his teeth, another person who didn't see Xu Bei's true face clearly.

"Okay, I won't say anymore. Anyway, the boy is the most reluctant to let go of this precious brother. You have to be careful when we are away." Finally, Lao Qiu couldn't help but reminded Sun Dagui Hearing this, he secretly laughed.

Because they walked by water, Xu Bei and Lao Qiu couldn't go to Wazigou after all, so they had to find another chance in the future, and Lao Qiu also expressed regret.

Xu Minqing took time to find Jiang Feng again after his elder brother left. The development of his elder brother gave him a sense of urgency. According to the current speed, when will he catch up with his elder brother?He often heard his elder brother talk about business matters, and he also found that Jiang Feng's actions were too conventional. When will he be able to establish his own power if this continues?Don't say that you can't use it for yourself, I'm afraid it will hold you back.

Usually, he deliberately asked his elder brother about some business matters, also in order to find a way to make money for Jiang Feng's family. He couldn't do it step by step like his elder brother, so he could only take a slant.