Although Old Madam Kou didn’t reach an agreent with Su Jingchen, she wasn’t disheartened and had no intention of returning to Huizhou.
Backing down is not her style.
For a junior, she only needed to wear him down a few tis, using both persuasion and pressure, and she didn’t believe he wouldn’t surrender.
Old Madam Kou settled down in Yangzhou, but to avoid suspicion, she didn’t stay at the Heir Mansion. Instead, she took residence in the courtyard directly opposite Su Jingchen’s ho.
Indeed, this courtyard was Kou Family’s, purchased when Lord Yin was still a Salt Transport Envoy.
Like Lord Yin, this courtyard was full of hidden surprises, with underground tunnels and secret rooms far more nurous than those in Lord Yin’s mansion.
Old Madam Kou initially planned to employ a dual approach, to persuade bit by bit from inside Su Jingchen’s household.
After all, the identity of a Marquis Mansion descendant is far superior to that of a rchant’s son. Su Jingchen may be tough, but Yu Xiaolian might not be.
Which woman doesn’t want her husband’s family to be a bit more dignified?
Old Madam Kou was confident she could win over and soften Yu Xiaolian, encouraging Yu Xiaolian to sweet-talk Su Jingchen, which would likely be more effective than her attempt at persuasion tenfold.
Just as she was about to et her granddaughter-in-law in the capacity of a grandmother, the servants at Su Mansion unexpectedly inford her that Madam Su had left for Yu State half a month ago. Upon further questioning about her return, the servants evasively said there was no definite tiline; it could be sumr, or perhaps the end of the year.
"Our Madam hasn’t gone back to her mother’s ho for three years and misses it dearly. Plus, she has business in Yu State and hasn’t returned for many years. Even just settling accounts would take so ti!"
Having faced a closed door, Old Madam Kou felt extrely displeased.
She inwardly cursed Su Jingchen for being cunning.
This man hadn’t established himself in Yangzhou yet, and his wife went back to her parental ho, and this...
This was clearly evading her!
Yu Xiaolian, having evaded, was currently enjoying a grand al with all her family mbers.
This ti upon returning, she used more carriages than when traveling from Northern Land to Yangzhou, a total of nine.
Each carriage was filled to capacity with goods, including gifts, personal belongings of Su Yuntong, and mostly purified refined salt.
Of course, this salt was not secretly taken for personal profit; she had obtained a salt permit as a salt rchant for official wholesale.
As for the part of salt pre-sold by Lord Yin before his retirent, Su Jingchen had also found a solution to alleviate it.
Although the pre-sale money didn’t end up in Su Jingchen’s pocket, the salt rchants had genuinely paid for it, and they couldn’t be made to spend money with no salt in return.
However, Lord Yin pre-sold an enormous quantity, and if all were fulfilled, the salt industry would be monopolized by these people once again.
Su Jingchen had no other ambitions; he just wished that ordinary people could afford salt.
While salt couldn’t be sold at a flat price, it was achievable not to sell it at a high price.
A certain salt rchant, 3,000 pounds of sea salt.
There isn’t 3,000 pounds of sea salt, want refined salt instead?
Yes, but refined salt costs more, previously with the money for 3,000 pounds you can now only buy 1,000 pounds.
What? Disagree?
If you disagree, please queue behind, and once there’s sea salt, it will surely be redeed for you.
Su Jingchen used such thods to dismiss those salt rchants who had bought pre-sale salt from Lord Yin.
"Sea salt is inherently expensive, and refined salt is even pricier, doesn’t this an the salt price increased instead of decreased?" Ten-year-old Yu Ziqian tilted his head and asked Yu Xiaolian with a puzzled face.
Through the years of school training, Yu Ziqian was no longer the mischievous lad he used to be.
Yu Xiaolian saw that he grasped the crucial point imdiately, showed him an appreciative glance, then began to explain to everyone eloquently.
Although the court currently allows salt rchants to trade salt, it has requirents for the salt price, with a maximum selling price of three hundred coins per pound.
Therefore, although these salt rchants have been able to exchange for salt tickets as they wished, the actual profit margin is severely shrunk.
Especially since most salt rchants transport salt to remote, saltless areas for selling, the costs of carriage, city passage fees, and labor are also quite significant expenditures.
"What if salt rchants secretly sell at high prices, we wouldn’t know!" Yu Zixuan innocently interjected.
Yu Xiaolian gently patted her sister’s head and warmly said, "They wouldn’t dare, if found out by the Governnt, it wouldn’t just be about losing the salt rchant business, it could cost them their heads."
Salt is as important as grain, being the foundation of people’s livelihood, and the court does not tolerate manipulation in this area.
Of course, during years of disaster and wars, many rchants made use of the opportunity to inflate prices, and grain and salt once reached sky-high prices, but the law doesn’t punish en masse, it was uncontrollable and nothing could be done.
But as of now, it’s a peaceful ti, and it’s believed no one dares to be the first to break this taboo.
...
Yu Xiaolian stayed in Yu State with Su Yuntong for half a year, until the news of severe flooding in Huainan reached Yu State, making Yu Xiaolian sowhat restless.
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