I was a conman in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 101 The Grain Price Dispute 3

Chapter 101 The Grain Price Dispute (Part 3)

Zuihualou.

Liu Rushi frowned as she looked at Wang Wenzhou and said irritably, "You are the head of a county. Grain prices are soaring, how come you act as if nothing is wrong and don't care at all?"

Wang Wenzhou initially thought Liu Rushi was looking for him to have sex, but well, he was definitely overthinking it.

“Ruru, if you were the county magistrate, what would you do?” Wang Wenzhou asked.

"Open the granaries and release the grain to stabilize grain prices!" Liu Rushi replied.

“I have already done that! Moreover, there are only 10,000 shi of grain left in the Ever-Normal Granary. It cannot be sold anymore and must be reserved for the refugees outside the city,” Wang Wenzhou said calmly.

"Hmph! I think it's clearly you who colluded with those unscrupulous merchants to buy up the grain in the Ever-Normal Granary, and then you speculated on it and raised the price. Now a shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain is selling for three taels of silver, and there's a purchase limit of 10 jin (a unit of weight) per person per day," Liu Rushi said indignantly.

“Ruru, you’re really overthinking it. I’m not a good person, but I’m not that stupid either. I’m a county magistrate, after all. If I wanted to make some money, people would stuff handfuls into my pockets. Why would I need to be so despicable? We swindlers make big money and try our best to leave a good reputation. Those unscrupulous merchants make big money while being cursed, and they’re happy to do it.” Wang Wenzhou said with a smile.

"Don't think I don't know!" Liu Rushi said irritably, "On the day the Changping Granary opened, those unscrupulous merchants were buying grain not far from it. Did you not see that? I don't believe you had nothing to do with them!"

Liu Rushi believed that Wang Wenzhou was definitely colluding with unscrupulous merchants to manipulate grain prices. She had inquired thoroughly about several grain shops in the city, and found that the owners of three of them had a very good relationship with Wang Wenzhou and treated him with utmost respect. Wang Wenzhou claimed that the soaring grain prices had nothing to do with him, but Liu Rushi genuinely didn't believe him.

“Ruru, let me ask you, if your father sold you, and then someone offered money to buy you? This is a perfectly normal transaction, can I interfere?” Wang Wenzhou asked.

"Hmph!" Liu Rushi sneered, "That's just sophistry! You're clearly colluding with unscrupulous merchants!"

"I'm getting married in ten days. If I can stabilize grain prices within ten days, will you marry me?" Wang Wenzhou asked with a smile.

"Dream on!" Liu Rushi said fiercely.

“Everything has a specific value. When an item’s value far exceeds its intrinsic worth, it’s definitely being speculated on. Soaring grain prices have absolutely nothing to do with me. Of course, I also admit that the higher the grain prices rise, the happier I am,” Wang Wenzhou said with a smile.

Sheng Lan brought over the tea and said, "Miss Liu, please have some tea."

Wang Wenzhou pulled Sheng Lan onto his lap and teased, "Lazy Lan, don't call her Miss Liu anymore, just call her sister. Ru Ru will marry me sooner or later, so you should address each other as sisters."

Sheng Lan smiled wryly. Her master was good in every way, except that he was a bit unserious.

Liu Rushi took a sip of tea and said irritably, "I want to know, why are you happier when grain prices are higher?"

Wang Wenzhou thought for a moment and then said, "Whether it's a country or a city, food security is a very important issue. Take Hanshan County for example. If the government could control all the grain, there wouldn't be any unscrupulous merchants speculating on grain prices. Am I right?"

Liu Rushi nodded silently.

“But how can the government control all the grain? Although the government has granaries, it can’t buy all the grain. The majority is still controlled by merchants. Moreover, if I were to order the government to sell all the grain, many people who make a living by selling grain would definitely stand up and oppose it,” Wang Wenzhou argued.

Liu Rushi thought about it and realized that it made sense. No matter who it was, even if it was a government agency, if someone took away another person's livelihood, they would definitely face opposition.

Wang Wenzhou continued, "If the price of grain rises, for example, to five taels of silver per shi (a unit of dry measure), then I will issue an order that no one may sell grain without authorization. Grain can only be bought and sold through the trading houses established by the government. At that time, I will lower the price of grain. Will the people support this?"

“Of course I support it!” Liu Rushi said.

"So, I'm just waiting for the price of grain to rise to 5 taels per shi," Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly.

Liu Rushi frowned deeply; it turned out that this fat man had planned this all along.

Wait a minute! Liu Rushi suddenly realized that if the government established a unified business guild, wouldn't that be competing with the people for profits?

"What you're doing is competing with the people for profit!" Liu Rushi said irritably.

"Ruru, stop accusing me of all sorts of things! Everything has its advantages and disadvantages. What's wrong with competing with the people for profits? If it can stabilize grain prices and bring them down, that's a good solution. Otherwise, give me some ideas. Considering how much I want to sleep with you, I'll use your method if it works," Wang Wenzhou teased.

"Hmph!" Liu Ru slammed her teacup heavily on the table and said irritably, "Farewell!"

Wang Wenzhou watched Liu Rushi's retreating figure, then hugged Sheng Lan and cried, "Lazy Lan, Lazy Lan, I want to sleep with Rushi."

"Sigh..." Sheng Lan sighed and gently stroked Wang Wenzhou's hair. Adults really are like children, saying things like that in front of others.

……

Spring Breeze Pavilion.

Wang Wenhua and the four talented scholars drank heartily together.

They bought up all the grain in the Ever-Normal Granary, and now they completely control the grain price. The price of grain has risen to three taels of silver per shi (a unit of dry measure). If they sell all the grain they have, they can make more than 20 taels of silver from this deal.

Ma Deyun raised his glass and said, "I'd like to toast Brother Yang. Without your brilliant plan, our business wouldn't have gone so smoothly this time."

Yang Shan repeatedly declined, saying, "Brother Ma, you're too kind!"

Suddenly, chaos erupted inside Chunfeng Pavilion. Ma Deyun went outside and looked over, only to see more than 20 burly men rushing in, beating anyone they saw and smashing anything they could find.

Ma Deyun's expression changed, and he asked loudly, "How dare you! Who is it that dares to cause trouble at Chunfeng Pavilion?"

Li Feiqing cursed and said, "You didn't know you hadn't paid your protection money this month?"

"What the hell?!" Ma Deyun was so angry he almost vomited blood. Chunfeng Pavilion was the property of the four great talents of Hanshan. Where did this scoundrel come from, daring to collect protection money from Chunfeng Pavilion? He must have a death wish!

Wang Wenhua stood up, pointed at Li Feiqing, and solemnly said, "How dare you! I, Wang Wenhua, am the cousin of Wang Wenzhou, the magistrate of Hanshan County! How dare you extort money from me in front of you! This is utterly lawless!"

"That's Wang Wenhua! Quick! Beat him!" Li Feiqing shouted, pointing at Wang Wenhua.

When Li Feiqing's brothers saw that they had found the real target, they rushed forward with a roar.

"Stop hitting me! Stop hitting me!" Wang Wenhua begged for mercy, covering his head.