Chapter 465: Times have changed, don't be careless when it comes to money

Chapter 465: Times have changed, don't be careless when it comes to money

Chapter 465: Times have changed, don't be careless when it comes to money
After getting the token from the Zhanshiyuan,

Lu Yunyi's journey was smooth sailing, and he learned from the gate guard of Yingtian that
The token in his hand is the token of the Chancellor of the Chancellery.

This token alone is not enough to enter Yingtian City, he also needs his official position as the prince's guest.

To a certain extent, he entered and exited the city gates at the orders of the prince.

This made Lu Yunyi feel very strange.
Since the dismissal of the Secretariat and the abolition of the Four Assistant Officials, there has not been a single guest for the Crown Prince, but there are quite a few Chancellors.
Now it seems that this power seems to be tailor-made for me.

Since it was intentional, he had to think deeply about it.

With these thoughts in mind, he returned to the military camp.

Although the soldiers were on leave today, at this time,

There were only a few lights on in the entire military camp, scattered throughout the camp, and the newly built bamboo and wooden houses in the distance were pitch black.

Lu Yunyi arrived at the central army tent. Although it was extremely dark inside,
However, because there are important documents and military secrets, there are still soldiers guarding here.

"Black Hawk hasn't come back yet?" Lu Yunyi asked as he walked into the military tent.

"Reporting to the Lord, General Liu has not returned today."

Lu Yunyi looked suspicious, and waited for Gong Xianzhi to light the candle.

He touched his deflated stomach and said:

"Go see if there's any food left in the army. Take whatever you can, even if it gets cold.
The firemen have all gone to bed, don't wake them up."

Gong Xianzhi tidied up the general's tent and smiled:
"Sir, I used to be a fireman. I can just find you some food and heat it up. It won't alarm them."

Lu Yunyi looked at him in surprise:
"You used to be a fireman? How come you're fighting in the battlefield?"

"Reporting to the Lord, although the fire troops are safe,

But there were few opportunities to make meritorious contributions, so I applied to become a scout, and later joined the front army. "

Lu Yunyi nodded and said, "You have made some solid progress. If you don't want to be a personal guard anymore, just tell me and I will transfer you out."

"Thank you, sir! I will go first."

"Go."

Lu Yunyi washed his face, returned to the long table and sat down.
He pulled out a pen and paper from the side, lowered his head and thought, and began to carefully draw up the blueprint.

After just a few breaths, Lu Yunyi's eyelids began to droop, his head felt dizzy, and he felt extremely tired.

Lu Yunyi sighed helplessly. After a busy day,
We have just carried out some detailed planning in the Prince's Mansion. The consumption is almost the same as fighting a big battle.

He shook his head as he took out a handful of candies from the drawer and stuffed them into his mouth, chewing them carefully.

Sugar is indeed the best choice for replenishing energy.

Soon he regained some energy and began to write and draw on paper.
In less than two quarters of an hour, Gong Xianzhi came in with a plate of food.

There were two side dishes, two steamed buns and a bowl of rice, all steaming hot.

He looked towards the desk and was suddenly stunned.
I saw that my master's hair, which was originally neatly combed, was extremely messy, like a chicken coop, and there were more than ten paper balls on the clean and tidy ground.
The adults' sitting posture doesn't seem to be that decent either.

With one leg on the ground and the other on the chair, he hugged his knees and wrote quickly, occasionally scratching his head with the pen.
He doesn't look like a general, but more like a scholar preparing for an imperial examination after studying the Four Books and Five Classics.

After hesitating for a long time, he placed the plate on the central round table and spoke softly:
"My lord, the meal is ready."

"Leave it there, and bring me a steamed bun."

"Yes!"

Gong Xianzhi quickly took a steamed bun and handed it to his master's outstretched hand.
He found that the adult didn't even look up, so he took his hand back and held the bun in his mouth.

"Sir, there is food on the table."

"Got it, move aside, you're blocking the light."

Gong Xianzhi quickly lit another candle and placed it on the table.

After taking a quick glance at what the adults had drawn, he retreated to the entrance of the army, with a deep sense of doubt in his heart.
"What is this?"

As time passes, the curtain symbolizing night slowly draws to the other end of the sky, and the summer morning quietly blooms in Yingtian City.

A hint of light blue quietly peeks out, gradually turning into a gentle orange.

Then it turned into dazzling golden light and quickly spread to the entire world!
In the morning light, Yingtian City slowly woke up from its slumber.

On the street, the cobblestone road glows softly in the sunlight, the aroma of breakfast shops begins to spread, and the steaming buns and soy milk emit a fragrant aroma.

The trees swayed gently in the morning breeze, and the light leaking through the green leaves was dappled.

As the city gates opened, the Yingtian River became busy again.

The ferries on both sides of the river began to pick up and drop off pedestrians and vendors.

Liu Heiying, who had just walked out of Yingtian City, glanced behind him vaguely, his eyes narrowed to an almost imperceptible level.

Since leaving the camp yesterday, he had noticed the same surveillance as the last time he came.

Although the personnel had changed, he still found familiar faces.

In order to confirm the number and quantity of people being tracked,
Liu Heiying, who had just walked to the ferry, suddenly turned around and walked towards the wonton stall not far from the city gate!
Almost at the moment of turning around, he noticed some suspicious expressions.

Surprise, shock, panic, caught off guard, etc.

Liu Heiying chuckled triumphantly.

In order to prepare for this sudden investigation, he had not made such a sudden turn or change of direction throughout the whole day.

"One, two, three, four, seven, eight"

With a glance, the face of the person quietly emerged in my mind.

Liu Heiying was a little surprised. As his achievements increased, more and more spies followed him.

However, Liu Heiying did not care. Instead, he slowed down his pace, tilted his head slightly, and asked Hu Xiaowu:

"several?"

"Six, sir."

"Nonsense, I need to practice more. I saw eight of them."

Liu Heiying turned to look at his personal guard Mao Gu, "How many?"

"My Lord. Four."

Mao Gu was less than twenty years old and had a rather immature face. Perhaps he felt that he was useless, and he scratched his head in embarrassment.

"You need to practice more."

Liu Heiying curled his lips and walked straight to the wonton stall.
After a year, the stove is still clean and the pot of steaming water is still there.

The difference is that the business is not as good as last year, and the shop owner looks a little older, with a few more gray hairs on his temples.

Liu Heiying took out fifteen copper coins from his pocket, slapped them on the stove, and said:

"Three bowls."

When the shop owner saw that there was business coming, his eyes lit up and he stood up quickly.

But when he stood up, he uttered a light "eh", tilted his head to look at Liu Heiying, and said with a smile:
"Sir, you look familiar. Have you eaten here before?"

Liu Heiying didn't expect that the store owner still remembered him. He smiled and nodded:

“I came here last year.”

The shopkeeper thought for a moment, and his eyes suddenly lit up:

"Oh~ I remember now, you are the guest who ordered nine bowls of wontons last time!"

Liu Heiying raised his eyebrows. The last time he came to find Jinyiwei through voice, he did ask for three bowls again and again.

"Hahaha, the shop owner has a good memory. It's me."

After receiving a positive answer, the shopkeeper laughed.
For him, it is a happy thing to meet acquaintances.

He looked at the copper coins on the table, smiled, picked up three copper coins and handed them over:

"Sir, you still look the same as you did last year. There is no change.

But the wontons are going to change, take this money, it’s four cents a bowl now.”

Looking at the copper coins in his rough big hand, Liu Heiying looked at the shopkeeper strangely.

"How come it's cheap? Although this is an open-air stall, you can't make much money from this small business." The shopkeeper smiled embarrassedly, threw the wontons into the pot, covered the pot, and then moved closer and whispered:
"Sir, last year during the war, the government collected an extra tax, so wontons are sold for five cents a bowl.

Now that the war has been won, Master Hongwu has exempted the tax, so I don’t have to pay this extra penny.”

Liu Heiying was a little bit unbelievable.

Among merchants, there will be various emergencies that will cause the prices of items to rise, such as major disasters or wars.

But often, once things go up in price, it becomes difficult to bring them down again.

Even if the price drops, it will be a 40% increase and a 20% decrease. There is no reason to drop it back to the original price.

At least, that's how his family's fruit and vegetable business and many other businesses operate.

Thinking of this, Liu Heiying smiled and said:
"Shopkeeper, I am also a businessman. The price of things has always been increased, not reduced.

It’s just one penny, it doesn’t seem to make any difference whether the price is lowered or not.”

The shopkeeper shook his head and looked at Liu Heiying:
"Sir, you are a wealthy family.

Not to mention a penny, even if it was a dime or an ounce, you wouldn't care.
But in the eyes of ordinary people like us, every penny is still money, so we should save as much as possible.

Wontons are not easy to sell in summer, and if they are too expensive, no one will buy them.”

At this point, the wontons are cooked.

The shopkeeper took three large bowls and put salt, vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, chopped green onions, and coriander in them.
As he was serving, he said:

"Actually, at my age, money isn't that important.

I take every penny I deserve, and I don't take every penny more than I deserve.

Now that the war is over, it is not morally right to earn an extra penny."

Liu Heiying looked at the boss several times with awe in his eyes. He asked himself if he could be so frank.

After the wontons were served, Liu Heiying left the stove and walked to the small square table and sat down.

After the investigation and inspection just now, he has confirmed it.

There are eight people following us, but it is still unknown what forces these eight people belong to.

Now that he had found out the number of people and remembered their appearances, Liu Heiying turned his attention to eating the wontons.

At this time, a sturdy man in his thirties with wrinkles on his face walked to the wonton stall, his steps hesitant, with some hesitation in his eyes.

He was wearing a black shirt that was slightly too small and had been washed to a pale color.

He was wearing clean cloth shoes and carrying a large package on his back.

His eyes stayed on the steaming pot for a moment.
Then he turned to the many small tables at the back and saw diners at several tables with their heads down enjoying their meals.
He pursed his lips, as if he had made up his mind, he cleared his throat and took a step forward:
"Here is a bowl of wontons."

Upon hearing this, the shop owner looked up at the new customer and a smile immediately broke out on his face.
It is an undisguised enthusiasm that treats every customer equally.

"Sir, would you like a large or small portion?"

The man hesitated for a moment, as if making a decision: "A large portion."

"Okay, four cents. Please take a seat. I'll be right there. Do you want some coriander?"

"want."

The lid of the pot was opened, and the boiling hot water still carried the lingering fragrance of the previous pot of wontons.

The big man stopped there, took two deep puffs, and walked to the back.

He found an empty seat and sat down, not far from Liu Heiying.
At first he did not notice the well-dressed guest.
He just carefully took out four cents from his money, put them in his hand, rubbed them gently, and a barely perceptible uneasiness flashed in his eyes.

Soon, the shopkeeper gently placed a large bowl filled with wontons in front of him:

"Enjoy your meal, sir. Eat it while it's hot. If you like strong flavors, you can add some salt."

"Thank you."

The big man nodded, looked at the steaming wontons, licked his lips gently, and revealed a satisfied and pure smile.

On the side, Hu Xiaowu looked at the wontons in his bowl and whispered:

"Sir, how can his four cents be so much?"

Liu Heiying blinked, straightened up and looked over.

Sure enough, the wontons in that person’s bowl had one more layer than theirs, and looked very densely packed!
Just as Liu Heiying was thinking, he saw the man's face, froze in shock, and tentatively called out:
"Li Wu?"

"Ok?"

Li Wu, who had just taken a sip of soup with a spoon and was feeling satisfied and savoring the taste, was startled by the sudden shout.
His body shivered and he started coughing, cough cough cough.

He usually works at the South City Gate, but today he came to the North City Gate. How come someone still recognized him?
He looked up, and immediately a warm current rushed to his head, making him excited!
"Big"

He recognized the very burly Lord Liu in front of him and was about to speak.
But I feel that there are too many people here and the words that come to my mouth are stuck!
The work of pulling a cart this year has made him grow a lot, and he quickly changed the subject:
"Master Liu, I didn't expect to see you here!"

He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Lord Liu also laughing.
He quickly showed the package he was carrying across his body and kept pointing at it.

"Master Liu, these are the insoles my wife made recently.
I heard you guys were back, so I wanted to send it to you, but I didn’t expect to meet you here, what a coincidence.”

The more he spoke, the quieter Li Wu's voice became, and the more nervous he became.

He originally wanted to take the insoles to ask General Lu if he could drive.

But here I met Mr. Liu
If Lord Liu takes the insoles back, what reason should I have to ask him?

Liu Heiying noticed his hesitation, smiled gently, and waved:
"come on."

Li Wu nodded and smiled flatteringly, straightened his bag, and sat down with a big bowl in his hand.

He thought he was already tall among the drivers.
This year I had some money, so although I couldn’t afford to eat, I didn’t go hungry.
But when he sat down, he realized how thin he was!

The three people at the table sat on stools, like three mountains piled there, which made him involuntarily feel shorter and his voice became much softer.

"Master Liu, you still remember me."

"Of course I remember. Your method is very effective. Now the army has included your tricks in daily training. You can be said to have made great contributions."

For some reason, Li Wu was very happy.

"Sir, that method can only be used to run a sports car in my hands. If it can be used in the army, I will be happy."

Liu Heiying was not shy at all. He picked up the bowl and sipped it, finishing the wonton soup in one gulp, letting out a long sigh.
"Cool~"

"Sir, would you like another bowl?" The shopkeeper looked over and asked with a smile.

"No, it's too hot today."

Liu Heiying touched his stomach, looked at Li Wu, and asked:

"Tell me, what's the matter with going to the military camp?"

Li Wu's thoughts were revealed and he smiled embarrassedly.

He did not keep it a secret, nor did he dare to hide it, and expressed his idea of ​​opening a car dealership.
Finally, he added quietly:

“Sir, I didn’t dare spend a penny of the money General Lu gave me, I just kept it.

But I don’t understand the reason and don’t know whether I should open it or not.

So, I want to ask you and General Lu for some advice."

Liu Heiying nodded and looked him up and down:
"Not arrogant or impatient, it means you have something serious to do.

As for the car dealership, although I know how to do some business, I am not sure whether it can make money. Come with me after you finish eating and I will ask the adults. "

"Thank you so much, sir!!"

Li Wu was so excited that he couldn't say anything. He didn't expect that things would go so smoothly.

He looked at the wontons in the bowl, a trace of pity flashed across his face, and he said quickly:

"Sir, there is no need to wait for me, let's go now."

As Li Wu was about to stand up, Liu Heiying pressed his shoulder:

"Sit down and eat slowly. Don't ruin the store owner's kindness."

"Yes!"

"Let me see your insoles. I need to replace them soon." Liu Heiying pointed to the package on his chest.

Li Wu quickly unwrapped the package and handed it over, feeling relieved.
(End of this chapter)