Ink panel: Hunting the sun and surveying the sky from the bow

Shen Qing manipulated the reins skillfully, mixed in with the numerous convoys, and walked to the gate of Taiping County again.

The arched gate was wide open, revealing the main road behind the gate.

After years of walking, the main road paved with gray bricks has been worn black and shiny, and snow water has accumulated into small puddles between the bricks.

If you look closely, there are still a few piles of horse manure scattered on it.

The guards wearing old-style armor stood in the city gate. They either leaned against the wall or sat on simple wooden benches, but they had no intention of cleaning.

Let the horse manure be continuously crushed back and forth by the wheels of the passing vehicles, turning into green manure water.

The guards' eyes wandered carelessly between the passers-by and the goods.

Occasionally, they looked up and just asked a few lazy questions, checked the luggage as a routine, and waved their hands and let them go after receiving the entrance fee.

It was the peak time for entering the city in the morning, and the flow of customers was not small.

Shen Qing and the other two waited for two quarters before it was their turn.

"Whoa!"

Shen Qing stopped the carriage and calmly took out the silver that had been prepared in his bag. He took the initiative to hand it over without waiting for the guard to speak, and his movements were smooth and natural.

"Half a tael of silver, I know the rules." Shen Qing smiled indifferently, with a bit of sophistication and indifference in his words: "I am a disciple of the Linfeng Hall Master's family, brother, please help me."

The guard took the twenty coins and was very satisfied with Shen Qing's understanding.

Then he habitually muttered a short "Go in", and waved lazily to let him go.

After paying the entrance fee, Shen Qing drove his horse slowly through the city gate.

Because he entered the city earlier this time, it was just in time for the morning market.

As soon as he entered the city gate, a piece of sound waves rushed towards him like a tsunami.

All kinds of hawking, shouting, and laughing sounds gathered together, which seemed particularly noisy and noisy.

The air was still filled with the smell of various fried cakes.

There were no nobles on the street, basically there were vendors setting up stalls, some woodcutters carrying firewood through the streets and alleys, and servants who came out to buy.

Compared with the awkwardness and dissatisfaction of the first time, Shen Qing was already very familiar with the route in the city after just walking through it once.

He took a quick look at the location, and then took the "two tigers" towards the direction of Wanfeng Tower.

On the way, Shen Qing bought three cakes and the few people dealt with breakfast.

After walking for a while, they arrived at the door of Wanfeng Tower. After explaining their purpose, they went directly to the backyard of Wanfeng Tower.

Now is the peak hunting season in winter, and there are no less than seven or eight hunters from other villages rushing to the backyard of Wanfeng Tower.

However, they are basically individual investors, and there is no one like Shen Qing who pulls a cart.

Even so, looking at this atmosphere, Shen Qing has a bad feeling in his heart.

He asked around and learned that the price of purchasing mountain products this time has been lowered.

Shen Qing calculated that in this market, his earnings would be reduced by almost half.

Before, he could make a net profit of about 700 coins, but now it is only less than 200 coins, and he might not make any profit at all.

Isn't this obviously bullying?

"A total of 120 coins!"

In the backyard, Wang Qiyao was counting the value of the goods with an abacus in his hand.

There was an accountant next to him, holding a brush and preparing to pay the silver.

"These are 18 hares, how can it be more than 120 coins?"

The hunter was a little unwilling and wanted to fight for it again.

"So you don't want to sell it?" Wang Qiyao glanced at him, walked past him and shouted, "Next."

The ignored hunter rushed forward and grabbed Wang Qiyao's sleeve and said, "No, no, no, one hundred and twenty is one hundred and twenty."

Wang Qiyao shook his sleeve and shook the hunter's hand away. He glanced at him and said, "I'm not deliberately cheapening it. Now is the best time for you mountain herders to harvest. If you sell all of them to me, these mountain products will naturally not sell at a high price. After the spring, the price will naturally go up again."

The hunter's face was a little contemptuous.

He knew that what Wang Qiyao said was right, but by the beginning of next spring, hunting would be banned in the mountains.

Those who dared to go up the mountain at that time basically either had connections or were simply desperate and had to take risks.

The county government of Taiping County was good at making up excuses, not to mention anything else.

If you are caught, they will not let you go until you are completely eaten up.

By then, those who have no roots in the mountains will have to shed a layer of skin and be half dead, even if their families are not destroyed.

The hunter seemed to have accepted his fate. He handed over the mountain products he brought, took the reward of 120 Wen and left in depression.

Wang Qiyao, the manager of Wanfeng Building, seemed to be used to it. When the hunter left, he casually explained the matter of the mountain delicacies and began to pick the next household.

Shen Qing saw with his sharp eyes that the hunter was holding a pheasant with colorful feathers. It was of good quality. In the past, it should have been sold for 150 Wen, but Wang Qiyao quoted 80 Wen.

The hunter's face turned pale.

But he had no choice.

The only family in the county that could collect mountain products was the Song family. If he didn't want to sell it, he could only eat it himself or let the meat rot, and he couldn't make a penny.

In the end, the hunter had no choice but to swallow his anger and accept the deal.

At this time, a hunter regretted his decision and came back to break the contract and take his mountain products away, but was stopped by the servants of Wanfenglou. Wang Qiyao shouted: "After the payment and goods are settled, the things here belong to the boss and have nothing to do with you. Throw him out."

The servants of Wanfenglou rushed up and knocked him to the ground with one punch, then lifted him up and threw him high outside the courtyard wall.

"My arm, my arm..."

Shen Xiaohu and Tian Xiaohu couldn't help but change their faces when they heard the wailing and screaming outside the courtyard wall.

There is really no mercy here.

Shen Qing saw all this and knew that Wanfenglou was taking advantage of the changes in supply and demand to lower the price.

They must have a special ice cellar. At this time, they collected a large amount of mountain products at a very low price and put them in the ice cellar. When the mountain products on the market are in short supply after the spring, they will sell them at a high price.

The money earned in the middle comes from these unrelated low-level hunters.

To put it bluntly, it was the Song family who was bullying the market.

Just as he was thinking about it, it was his turn to acquire Wanfeng Building.

Shen Qing put away those thoughts in his mind and walked forward with a smile: "Manager Wang, I haven't seen you for a long time. I come to bother you again."

"You are..." Wang Qiyao felt that Shen Qing looked familiar. He met many people every day and had no impression of Shen Qing.

Shen Qing introduced himself: "I am Shen Qing, from Hongshan Village."

"Oh, it turned out to be you." Wang Qiyao immediately recalled and had a little impression.

"I didn't expect that Manager Wang could still remember me. Come and have a look. These are the mountain products in our village this time. There are deer, rabbits, goats, pheasants, and mushrooms, Ganoderma lucidum and other rare things. Manager Wang, please calculate the price for me." Shen Qing said very respectfully.

Wang Qiyao picked and chose, without any emotion on his face.

Crackling.

He counted on the abacus and finally quoted a price: "You have quite a lot of goods, worth a total of 3 taels and 5 cents."

Shen Qing's face looked a little ugly.

Last time, similar items could be sold for 10 taels of silver, but now they are only worth 3 taels and 5 cents. This difference is not a little bit, it's simply a big discount.

"Manager Wang, can you raise the price a little bit? This price is too cheap."

"Cheap? Your cart is full of ordinary mountain goods, and our caravan has collected a lot in various villages. I'm still giving you more." Wang Qiyao turned his head to look at Shen Qing, and said with a confident look: "Do you want to sell it?"