Chapter 245 The Dou Family Has a Request
Chapter 245 The Dou Family Has a Request
Ma Yue smiled bitterly and said, "One hundred and forty shops! At least 30% of the shops are outside the city. The princess also gave us a dozen heavyweight shops. Today we took over the three Tongjitang pharmacies in Chang'an and renamed them Guangjitang. Tomorrow we will start taking over the ten pharmacies in Chang'an."
Xiao Xia immediately reminded him, "You need to take over the business of purchasing the medicinal materials from Baiyun Temple's medicine shop. I have a close relationship with that medicine shop."
Ma Yue nodded, "Don't worry, sir, I specifically asked for it and I've already brought it over."
Xiao Xia felt relieved and asked, "How many shops are there in total?"
"There are 18 counters in total for us, 10 in Chang'an, 4 in Luoyang, 2 in Jiangnan, and 2 in Bashu. It will take a month just to take over the counters."
“That’s not enough manpower!”
"It's really not enough. We need to recruit more people."
Xiao Xia was silent for a moment and said, "I know you are very busy now, but I still have to trouble you for something."
Ma Yue smiled and said, "Sir, you can say it, but we can actually wait a little longer before taking over the shop. Once they have sorted out their accounts, it will still be in time for us to take over."
Xiao Xia nodded and said, "I have taken over a group of warriors, and I need three to four martial arts schools to accommodate them."
Ma Yue hesitated for a moment and said, "Purchasing and receiving are not the same thing. Unless the other party takes the initiative to transfer, like the cloth shop, it is not so easy to negotiate. It may take some time."
"How long does it usually take?" Xiao Xia asked.
"It usually takes several months, but at the fastest it takes twenty days to a month."
Xiao Xia frowned, "One month? If we don't bargain, how long will it take?"
Ma Yue sighed and said, "The buying process won't take too long. The key is that the seller wants to estimate the value for his martial arts school. He needs to compare and calculate. This process takes some time, and it's not our problem."
Xiao Xia had no choice but to nod, "Okay! Let's start looking tomorrow. We need a martial arts gym that's bigger than a stable!"
"No problem, I'll start asking people tomorrow!"
At this time, Liu Wenjing smiled and said, "I have a suggestion for you, sir!"
"Sir, please speak!"
Liu Wenjing said, "Sir, don't you manage a military camp? You can have the warriors train in the camp for a month, such as practicing archery, horse riding, etc. When they are almost done with training, the martial arts hall here will also be almost done."
Xiao Xia's eyes lit up. This was a good idea. Let the warriors undergo military training for a month.
Xiao Xia returned to the mansion, but unexpectedly found her elder brother Yang Zhao and second sister Feiyan waiting for her in the living room.
"When did you come?"
Yang Zhao smiled and said, "I just got here not long ago, there are some things I want to tell you!"
Yang Feiyan said first: "Brother, let me speak first!"
"Let's go to the back house and talk!"
Xiao Xia took the two to the backyard. Yang Feiyan said somewhat dissatisfiedly, "Brother! You promised to give me a room, why don't you give it to me now? Next time I can go back to the backyard to rest!"
Yang Zhao hurriedly said, "Second sister, don't embarrass the third sister!"
"He is my brother, what does it matter? Don't I have a room in your house?"
Xiao Xia quickly smiled and said, "The courtyard on the far north, you can pick whatever you want, Second Sister!"
Yang Feiyan said happily: "I will go and pick one right away, but I promise you that when you get married, I will definitely move out and will never bother you."
"I don't know when I'll get married!" Xiao Xia suddenly remembered something and asked his elder brother Yang Zhao, "If I'm crowned a prince, what benefits will I get? For example, will I be given a palace?"
Yang Zhao smiled and said, "In theory, there will be an increase in manors, fiefs, and salaries. Especially now that the prince is no longer in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, he can't deduct your salary. I'll ask for you tomorrow!"
"Then I'll leave it to you, big brother!"
The three siblings came to the study. Xiao Xia moved a few Hu chairs for the two to sit on. Yang Zhao looked at the chairs and smiled, "A few years ago, a batch of such Hu chairs flowed out of the palace, and a Hu chair craze arose. I also have one in my house, but many noble families do not recognize it, saying that it is not elegant to sit on it. They still insist on sitting on the couch. My legs can't stand sitting on the couch. I also like to sit on this kind of Hu chair."
The Hu chair that came out of the palace was naturally the prince's masterpiece. Xiao Xia discovered that there were very few traces of the changes made by Prince Yang Yong in later generations, and this chair was one of them, and it was only popular in a small circle in Chang'an.
Xiao Xia smiled and said, "I think I should just follow my own habits! My knees hurt when I sit on the couch, and I feel more natural when I sit on the chair."
Seeing that the two brothers had gone off topic, Yang Feiyan coughed lightly. Xiao Xia apologized and said, "Second sister, go ahead!"
"Third brother, I would like to ask you for a favor!" Yang Feiyan said.
Xiao Xia nodded, "Just tell me! I will help you if I can."
"You must know Dou Dexuan! Can you arrange for him to be a general in your army?"
Xiao Xia's eyes widened and she looked at her second sister in surprise. How did her second sister get involved with Dou Dexuan again?
Yang Feiyan understood her brother's gaze, her pretty face turned red, and she spat, "Bah! What are you thinking? I have nothing to do with him. Because I often go to the restaurant, his eldest brother Dou Deming found me yesterday and said that he was willing to give me all the Dou family's share of the restaurant, and asked me to do this favor."
Xiao Xia was very confused. Why didn't Dou Deming come to her directly but to her second sister?
Xiao Xia suddenly realized that he had the Xihai Trading Company and was not interested in half of the restaurant. But his second sister was different. This restaurant was her only property, so of course she valued it.
Xiao Xia thought about it and smiled: "If he meets the requirements, I can help him, but I'm afraid he doesn't meet the requirements. What if the Ministry of Personnel doesn't approve it?"
Yang Zhao said on the side: "He has the honor of Kaifu Yitong Sansi. When his father Dou Yan was the Minister of War, he also got him the status of Qianniu Beishen. He also served as a guard in the palace for two years, and then went to study.
In addition, the court made a regulation in the ninth year of Kaihuang that the sons of old officials with meritorious service were allowed to serve as reserve generals if they met the requirements, and could be promoted to regular generals if they passed the assessment one year later.
The conditions are that he must be an official of Kaifu Yitong Sansi or above, and he must have served as a palace guard. Father Dou Dexuan tailored it for him according to this rule and gave him an official title, but the prerequisite is that the army is willing to accept him! This is the most difficult one. "
Xiao Xia smiled and said, "This one shouldn't be difficult, right? There are so many military offices in the world, and he can go to any of them to be a candidate general of chariots and cavalry. His father is the assistant minister of the Ministry of War, so he can't do this?"
Yang Zhao shook his head and said, "Then you don't understand. How can these noble children look down on the local military offices? What they want to join are the Left and Right Wuhou Guards and Qianniu Guards. These are the direct descendants of the emperor, with good treatment and high status. Many people want to squeeze into these three guards, but it is difficult to get in. There must be a vacancy in your fourth battalion. The Dou family must have smelled it, so they come to you for help."
Xiao Xia secretly admired the Dou family's sense of smell. Guo Rong went to Yunnan to quell the rebellion and took away a Lieutenant General and two Lang Generals. There were indeed three vacancies in his army.
"There is a vacancy, but do I have the authority to do so?" Xiao Xia asked with a smile.
"Yes! It is your power to promote generals and arrange reserve generals. The generals and the chief officers do not have the power. After you have made the arrangements, report to the Ministry of War for approval. Unless Dou Dexuan does not meet the requirements, the Ministry of War will generally approve it. The difficulty lies in finding an army willing to accept them. I guess the Dou family is stuck here."
Xiao Xia nodded and smiled, "The Dou family's share is that piece of land. Isn't that his ancestral property? He fought with me like a black-eyed chicken for that piece of land. Why is he willing to give it up now?"
Yang Zhao sneered, "Over the past thousands of years, how many families have given up their ancestral property? Even the ancestral throne was lost, let alone a piece of land. If the Dou family really cared about that piece of land, they would not have sold it to the Wei family. The Dou family cares about face, not whether the land is ancestral property or not. The key is who buys it. If they knew who your father was, I guarantee that nothing would have happened."
"That's true!"
Xiao Xia smiled and said to Yang Feiyan, "Okay! I can agree to this. Let him come to me later and I will arrange for him to be the alternate general. But you have to make it clear to them that if the Ministry of War does not approve, it is none of my business."
Yang Feiyan was overjoyed. Now she had 80% of the restaurant. Xiao Xia saw how happy she was and said with a smile, "I'll just give you the remaining 2% so that you can own the restaurant completely."
Yang Feiyan was so happy that she was spinning around in circles. She was afraid that her eldest brother would say something, so she quickly said, "I'm going to choose a room!"
She pulled Achu and ran away.
(End of this chapter)