EBE Chapter 958 Shangguan Fusheng confesses his love to Bai Lu. She was almost scared to death.
Chapter 958 Shangguan Fusheng confesses his love to Bai Lu. She was almost scared to death.
His voice was low.
"They lack iron, salt, and cloth. They have horses, ginseng, and furs."
Shangguan Fusheng's words were simple, but Bailu understood them instantly.
"Is it about doing business with the Jurchen tribes outside the Great Wall?!"
Bai Lu thought about it and realized that the Jurchen tribes had always been characterized by a scarcity of fine goods and inconvenient living conditions, but their overall fighting strength was relatively high.
If milk tea or various cosmetics were to spread, it would certainly be much more convenient.
She looked at Shangguan Fusheng, and Shangguan Fusheng nodded.
"Go ahead, I'll give you 60%. All you have to do is ship the goods."
"I'm in charge of the channels and connections... I get 40%."
The terms he offered were acceptable.
Bai Lu's brain was working at lightning speed.
The Bai family has no shortage of goods right now. Their workshops in Qingzhou are producing day and night, with enormous output. While the Western Regions trade route has been opened, its absorption capacity is ultimately limited. Opening up another sales channel would be a huge boon for the Bai family.
Moreover, ever since Zhao Bingyu gave Bai Lu 30% of the trade routes, Bai Lu can sell not only milk tea, but also cosmetics and other similar products. She can sell products from all over the country.
Moreover, Bai Yansong also owns some of his businesses.
"I need to think about it."
Bai Lu did not agree on the spot.
"it is good."
Shangguan Fusheng nodded, showing no intention of offering any advice.
He seemed to have only come to inform Bailu of this opportunity, and he didn't care whether Bailu seized it or not.
Give me an answer in three days.
Three days later, she gave Shangguan Fusheng a reply.
She agreed to cooperate.
Bai Lu's decision was not surprising. From Liangzhou to Qingzhou, and then to Zhaozhou...
She will gradually become the richest person in her region, and eventually the richest person in the country.
Bai Lu saw Shangguan Fusheng again after she had finished dealing with all the matters related to sending Shen Congyun and others to the Western Regions.
This time, the meeting place was a secluded villa outside Qingzhou City. This was Shangguan Fusheng's private property, quiet and undisturbed.
The two sat in a lakeside pavilion, an unfinished game of chess on a stone table.
Shangguan Fusheng remained dressed in white, his face expressionless. He placed a white piece, his movements swift and decisive.
Pei Huizhou has been dead for a long time...
He spoke, his voice flat.
Bai Lu paused briefly in mid-air with her black piece, then gently placed it on the board without saying a word.
"Your engagement with him can be annulled."
Shangguan Fusheng looked at the chessboard, his gaze not meeting Bai Lu's.
The silence of Bailu made the atmosphere in the pavilion somewhat stagnant.
Shangguan Fusheng finally raised his eyes and looked at Bai Lu. His eyes, which were always like those covered with a thin layer of ice, now held a rare look of inquiry.
"Whom do you want to marry now?"
His question was direct and abrupt, without any preamble.
Upon hearing this, Bai Lu couldn't help but look up at him. She hadn't expected Shangguan Fusheng to care about such things. In her mind, he was someone only interested in business and profit.
"I have no intention of getting married."
Bai Lu's answer was calm and firm. She had been through too much; marriage was no longer a necessity for her.
She picked up the teacup and took a small sip.
Upon hearing this answer, Shangguan Fusheng's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.
"Unwilling to get married?"
He repeated it, his tone carrying a hint of disagreement.
“This sentence can have many meanings.” Shangguan Fusheng put down the chess piece and leaned forward slightly. “One meaning is that he really doesn’t want to get married.”
"The other one is that you already have someone in your heart and are waiting for that person."
Bai Lu looked at him, startled, wanting to hear what he had to say.
Seeing that she remained silent, Shangguan Fusheng continued speaking to himself.
"You've remained chaste all this time, perhaps... you were waiting for Gu Liang?"
He uttered a name that Bai Lu never expected.
"Gu Liang will be going to the capital to take the imperial examination next year. With his talent, it will not be difficult for him to pass with flying colors."
"He comes from a respectable family, is ambitious, and is grateful to you. Perhaps he is the right person for you."
Bai Lu was completely stunned. She looked at the man in front of her, who was seriously analyzing her marriage, and felt it was somewhat absurd.
She felt that Shangguan Fusheng seemed to have some mental issues.
"I have already made it very clear that I have no intention of getting married."
Bai Lu emphasized her words, trying to end the conversation.
"I have no such thoughts about good or bad people."
She put down her teacup, her expression returning to its usual aloofness. She couldn't understand why Shangguan Fusheng was behaving so strangely today.
"You don't like Gu Liang?"
A hint of surprise cracked across Shangguan Fusheng's icy face.
He seemed unable to understand. In his view, Gu Liang was a candidate who perfectly fit conventional standards.
Bai Lu was getting a little impatient.
"do not like."
Her answer was resolute.
Shangguan Fusheng's surprise deepened. He looked at Bai Lu as if he were getting to know her all over again.
You don't like Pei Huizhou either. You don't like Gu Liang either.
He muttered to himself.
"Then... what about Sun Nanxing?"
He then offered another name. Sun Nanxing was the son of the prefect of Qingzhou, an outgoing man who had always harbored feelings for Bailu.
"I don't like it either."
Bai Lu felt her patience was running out. She couldn't understand why the focus of today's meeting had shifted from business in Pingzhou to her personal issues.
Silence fell over the pavilion once again.
A breeze blew across the lake, ruffling the hem of Shangguan Fusheng's clothes.
After a long silence, he spoke again. This time, his voice was lower and more earnest than before.
"Do you like me?"
The moment those words were spoken, the whole world seemed to fall silent.
Bai Lu was completely stunned. Her eyes widened, wondering if she had misheard. She looked at Shangguan Fusheng, whose expression remained cold, but his clear eyes reflected her astonishment.
Shangguan Fusheng ignored her shock and continued to speak in his straightforward tone, delivering his earth-shattering words.
“My younger sister, Shangguan Yi, is married to your second brother, Bai Liezhao. If you were to be with me, it would be a double blessing for our family.”
"I will treat your seven daughters as my own and raise them well."
"With the wealth of our Shangguan family and the power of your Bai family... Qingzhou and even the entire Great Wu will be ours."
Bai Lu felt her head buzzing.
She finally snapped out of her shock. Looking at the handsome, serious-looking man before her, she was momentarily at a loss for how to react.
She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.
"Shangguan Fusheng".
She called him by his full name, her tone extremely serious.
"I didn't mean that. Please give up on that idea."
Shangguan Fusheng looked at her, and finally a strange expression appeared on his face, which seemed to be disappointment, or perhaps understanding.
Bai Lu didn't want to continue this topic. She stood up, walked to the pavilion, looked at the distant lake, and forcibly steered the conversation back on track.
"Let's talk about Pingzhou. Now that we've decided to cooperate, we should set off as soon as possible and go there to take a look."
Shangguan Fusheng sat on the stone bench for a moment, then slowly stood up. He walked to Bai Lu's side and stood beside her.
All the emotions on his face had faded, and he had returned to his cold, aloof demeanor as the head of the Shangguan family.
"Ok."
He spoke softly, as if the earth-shattering confession from just moments before had never happened.
The decision to go to Pingzhou was thus made.
Bai Lu was not an impulsive person. Before setting off, she arranged everything in Qingzhou and the Bai family in an orderly manner.
Bai Qingze and Shen Congyun manage the trade routes in the Western Regions. Luo Niangzi manages the business in Liangzhou. As for her local businesses in Qingzhou, she needs a reliable person to oversee them.
She chose Sun Nanxing.
The Sun family has deep roots in Qingzhou. Prefect Sun is an upright man, and although Sun Nanxing is somewhat impetuous due to his youth, he is very reliable in his work. Most importantly, they are Bailu's most steadfast allies.
Bai Lu personally paid a visit to the prefectural government of Qingzhou.
"My dear daughter, you can rest assured about everything in Qingzhou during your journey."
After hearing Bai Lu's plan, Prefect Sun stated without hesitation, "Nanxing will do his best to assist in managing the Bai family's businesses. Your daughter will also be well taken care of. You can go with peace of mind."
Sun Nanxing stood to the side, nodding vigorously.
"Bai Lu, don't worry! Leave everything at home to me! I guarantee that when you come back, I'll have made you a fortune!"
He patted his chest and made a solemn vow.
With the Sun family's promise, Bai Lu had no more worries.
Seven days later, a caravan quietly left Qingzhou and headed northeast towards Pingzhou.
The group was led by Bai Lu and Shangguan Fusheng. The guards were the elite of the Shangguan family, as well as Bai Lu's good friends, Qin Liangyu and Bai Qi.
Mu Guiying was sent to the Western Regions again to protect Bai Qingze.
The journey from Qingzhou to Pingzhou is not long, but the scenery changes dramatically along the way.
After the team entered Pingzhou, the most immediate impression was that Pingzhou was rich in water and grass.
The terrain here is flat, with a dense network of rivers. Large and small rivers, lakes, and ditches crisscross the land, dividing it into irregularly shaped plots. Many villages and towns are built along the water.
This scene is somewhat similar to Zhaozhou in Jiangnan, both being water towns.
However, Pingzhou did not feel as prosperous and refined as Zhaozhou.
The houses in Zhaozhou are mostly white-walled and black-tiled, with upturned eaves, exuding an elegant charm reminiscent of literati. In contrast, the houses in Pingzhou appear more simple and practical.
The walls are mostly constructed of a mixture of local bluestone and yellow mud, making them sturdy and thick. The roofs are also more gently sloping and have little decoration.
There are also significant differences in climate. Although Pingzhou is also humid, it doesn't have the hot and sticky feeling of Zhaozhou. The wind here carries a refreshing northern feel, making it comfortable even in summer.
The procession traveled along an official road, flanked by endless rice paddies. In the paddies, farmers were driving water buffalo to plow the fields, preparing for the next planting season.
Their first stop was Yong'an City, the largest city in Pingzhou.
The closer they got to Yong'an City, the busier the waterways became. Large and small boats, laden with goods, came and went in the canals. Boatmen on the banks shouted their work songs as they pulled the heavy cargo boats upstream.
The city walls of Yong'an City are not high or particularly magnificent, but the area inside and outside the city gates is unusually bustling.
Upon entering the city, a bustling atmosphere immediately greeted us.
The markets in Pingzhou differed from those in Qingzhou, which were orderly, and from those in the capital, which were bustling. The markets here were full of the vibrant atmosphere of daily life.
The streets weren't very wide, but they were lined with shops on both sides. Restaurants, teahouses, cloth shops, rice shops—you name it, they had it. Even more numerous were the small stalls scattered haphazardly along the street.
Farmers selling their own homegrown vegetables and fruits, vendors carrying wontons on shoulder poles, craftsmen repairing pots and pans at their stalls, and hunters selling herbs and mountain products—all these sounds mingled together, creating a vibrant, bustling atmosphere.
Bai Lu noticed an interesting phenomenon.
At several stalls, she saw buyers and sellers using a paper voucher to conduct transactions. The voucher was about the size of a palm and had intricate patterns and numbers printed on it.
"That's Jiaozi (paper money)."
Shangguan Fusheng, who had been silent all along, explained softly beside her.
“Pingzhou has well-developed waterways and frequent trade, but the copper coins minted by the government are inconvenient to transport. Therefore, several large local money shops jointly issued this kind of paper money, which can be used throughout Pingzhou.”
Shangguan Fusheng was very familiar with this business information.
Bai Lu nodded. This was very similar to the economic model of the Song Dynasty that she had learned about from the system. The level of commercial activity in Pingzhou exceeded her expectations.
“Pingzhou is a prosperous commercial center, but the government’s control is relatively weak... This gave us an opportunity.”
Shangguan Fusheng added.
Bai Lu understood what he meant. The more developed the commerce, the greater the space outside the rules. What they needed to do was to utilize this space.
They stayed at the largest inn in town.
As night fell, Bailu stood by the window, gazing at the brightly lit streets below. In the distance, fishing lights twinkled on the river, echoing the stars in the sky.
It lacks the historical weight of Qingzhou, the prosperity of the capital, and the desolation of the Western Regions...
Pingzhou, here I come.
A good night's sleep during the White Dew season.
The border trade in Pingzhou was never a purely commercial endeavor from the very beginning. It was also a crucial strategic move by the emperor, intended to use economic means to contain the various tribes beyond the Great Wall, especially the increasingly powerful Jurchens...
The next morning, before it was fully light.
Shangguan Fusheng sent someone to deliver a message, informing them of the time and place of the meeting.
Bai Lu changed into a fine blue dress, her hair simply tied back, looking extremely elegant and possessing a remarkable temperament.
Qin Liangyu, still dressed in an inconspicuous gray outfit, silently followed behind her like a shadow.
As agreed, the two went to the stables in the backyard of the inn.
Shangguan Fusheng was already waiting there. He had also changed into a dark-colored casual outfit, and his handsome face remained expressionless.
"Let's go."
He spoke succinctly and then mounted a black horse.
Bai Lu nimbly mounted her mount. The group didn't leave through the main entrance of the inn, but instead exited through a hidden door in the back courtyard, merging into the still-sleeping streets of Yong'an City.
Instead of leaving the city, they wandered around in circles until they finally stopped in front of an inconspicuous courtyard.
The courtyard was located deep in a secluded alley, surrounded by ordinary houses. The high walls separated the inside from the outside, making it exceptionally quiet.