Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 398 Xia Rui
After seeing off the customer, Ji Xuan said, "My dear, with the books in the shop, we can help to boost the sales of toys. However, the variety of toys is a little limited."

Zhao Zhen said, "I have read "Kao Pan Yu Shi" and it records forty-five kinds of stationery. Stone carvings such as pen holders, inkstone stands, pen beds, pen screens, seals, copper and iron tools such as cutting knives and scissors, and wooden works such as book boxes can all be made and sent to you. But I can't do anything about porcelain, jade and the like."

Ji Xuan said: "These are enough. Not everyone needs to have all of them. Most people can only have an inkstone and a pen holder."

Zhao Zhen nodded.

I don’t know if it was the effect of the sign that was hung up, but soon more and more people came into the store to choose books, and some people also picked out toys.

Zhao Zhen saw that although the two assistants were busy, they were able to handle the situation. He said to Ji Xuan, "Madam, I haven't been to the market for a long time. Today is a good time for me to go out for a walk."

Ji Xuan said, "Husband, I have also counted everything here. I'll accompany you." As she spoke, Ji Xuan closed the account book in her hand.

The two of them left the bookstore and walked around the market aimlessly.

Until noon, they still hadn't seen anything worth buying. Zhao Zhen was planning to go back with Ji Xuan when he saw a lot of people gathered around a stall in front, making a lot of noise.

Zhao Zhen went to take a look and saw more than ten bamboo tubes of different sizes on the stall, and a large wooden box behind them. The most eye-catching thing was the more than twenty beehives of different sizes on the stall.

It was these beehives that attracted many people to come and see them. Two young men dressed as hunters were greeting the crowd.

"Come and see the freshly picked honey and honeycombs."

In just a short while, two people agreed on the price and bought two bamboo tubes of honey. When others saw this, they also hurried forward to negotiate the price.

Ji Xuan said, "We don't lack honey at home, what are you looking at, my husband?"

Zhao Zhen pointed at several beehives on the stall and said, "This doesn't look like a beehive."

After that, he said to the two people who were setting up the stall: "Boss, how much is this beehive?"

"which one?"

Zhao Zhen pointed with his hand: "I want both."

The two stall owners were delighted. The taller one said, "There are 25 beehives of all sizes, and they cost 30 guan."

"What kind of bees are these?"

"We have bumblebees, bumblebees, and wall bees. These three are golden-ringed tiger bees. The box contains captured adult golden-ringed tiger bees, which are best for making wine. Do you want any, sir?"

Zhao Zhen nodded and said, "Is there a queen bee in this nest of golden-ringed tiger bees?"

"Yes, there are two honeycombs in this box. This box of golden-ringed tiger bees costs 20 strings of cash."

Zhao Zhen said, "I want all 50 strings of cash, but I need you two to deliver them to my house."

The man looked at the bargaining customer with embarrassment and said to Zhao Zhen, "Sir, this honey has not been sold out yet, but you have to wait a while."

Zhao Zhen asked, "How much do you want for this honey?"

"It's in a bamboo tube, and I haven't weighed it. I estimate it to be about thirty kilograms. It only costs one hundred and fifty strings of cash."

Zhao Zhen said: "If no one wants it, I will take it too."

The tall hunter was overjoyed when he heard this, and said to the other hunter, "Taozi, we're closing the stall, the big customers have all been booked."

After hearing this, the people who were bargaining took out the bamboo tubes in their hands, stuffed the money into the hands of the short hunter, and left.

When the others saw this, they cursed in a low voice and then dispersed. The tall hunter said to Zhao Zhen, "Sir, the remaining honey only costs 120 strings of cash."

Seeing Zhao Zhen nod, the two of them hurriedly packed up the honey, beehives, etc., put them on two loads, and followed Zhao Zhen back to his house in Nanshi.

Along the way, Zhao Zhen talked with the two men and learned from their casual chat that they were both hunters. The tall one was called Mou Kaichuan and the short one was called Xie Tao. They went hunting together in the mountains every day. They had picked these beehives long ago. They took advantage of the beginning of autumn when there was the most honey in the beehives and took them out at once to sell in the city.

Arriving at Zhao Zhen's residence, Zhao Zhen settled the bill and said to the two men, "Brothers, my shop also buys entry-level spiritual materials. If you find them in the forest, just send them to me. This will save you two from setting up a stall and wasting time."

Mou Kaichuan asked, "What are you buying here, sir?"

Zhao Zhen said, "Spiritual materials, spiritual plants, and spiritual seeds, as long as they are of a certain level, I want them all. If you have any rare wild game, you can also send them over. I won't be short of money for you two. There are also many specialties and spiritual items for sale in the shop."

Mou Kaichuan said to Xie Tao: "Taozi?"

Xie Tao hesitated for a moment and said, "Sir, we two cast a net on the mountain and caught a black fry. Would you like to take it?"

Zhao Zhen was surprised when he heard this, but he didn't show it on his face. He asked, "What's the price?"

"Five thousand strings of cash."

Zhao Zhen heard this and said, "It's too expensive. This black pheasant is just a small fortune. Some time ago, someone in Qi State captured a white pheasant and presented it to the royal family, but he was only rewarded with 3000 strings of cash."

"If you two are sincere in selling, I will offer you 2000 strings of cash."

After hearing this, Xie Tao shook his head and said, "This is too little. Although the black pheasant is a bad omen, it is also a good omen. 2000 strings of cash is too little."

Mou Kaichuan also said: "Sir, 2000 strings of cash is indeed too little, please add more."

Zhao Zhen said, "You name a price. If you are not sincere, forget it. This is said to be a good omen, but no one knows what it is. Qi State got the white pheasant, but now it is facing the invasion of fog. I am interested in Hei Zhi, but I have never seen it before, and I just want to broaden my horizons."

The two discussed it for a while, and Mou Kaichuan said, "Sir, this black pheasant is a good omen after all, 2000 strings of cash, plus two spiritual objects that can strengthen my body."

Zhao Zhen pretended to hesitate and frowned, saying, "You two bring the black pheasant here. If it is intact, I will pay for 2000 strings of cash plus two four-bearded carps that can strengthen the body. If the black pheasant is damaged, the price will be negotiated separately. How do you think?"

Xie Tao nodded and said, "It's a deal. The two of us will go get the black pheasant right away."

Having said that, he pulled Mou Kaichuan away.

After the two men left, Ji Qingwan, who had been silent the whole time, asked, "My husband, do these two really have black pheasants?"

Zhao Zhen said: "It would be best if they could say so themselves. I have never seen such a thing."

"If it's really Heizhi, this deal is a win." Ji Qingwan said.

Zhao Zhen asked, "Madam, have you met Black Pheasant?"

Ji Qingwan shook her head and said, "I have never seen it, but I have seen it in books. This kind of auspicious sign must be extraordinary. It may be a good harvest, or treasure, or the cessation of disasters and epidemics. At worst, eating it can help people strengthen their bodies, cure diseases and prolong their lives."

"It's just that auspicious signs are rare. Therefore, few people know the uses of different auspicious signs. Everyone keeps it a secret and only publicizes its auspicious properties. People who don't know, when they get auspicious signs, mostly exchange them for money."

Ji Xuan asked: "What are the effects of black pheasant?"

Ji Qingwan said: "How would I know? Maybe Brother Gao Hu knows."

Zhao Zhen said, "Let's wait until these two are sent here."

(End of this chapter)