Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 527 Food
Apart from this, Kang Youfu also thought of another point, which was what the other party said, that if the rebel army took over other territories in the future, they could still guarantee Hengtong's promise.

In this way, Hengtong is in an invincible position. No matter whether it is the imperial court or the rebel army, no matter how the situation changes in the future, Hengtong will be safe and sound.

It has to be said that this is indeed an opportunity, even Zhu Shenzhui is very tempted.

However, Zhu Shenzhui's considerations were much more comprehensive than Kang Youfu's. Although the rebel army was powerful, it was not a force to be reckoned with after all. Moreover, Zhu Shenzhui did not have much trust in the rebel army's promises. In his eyes, whether it was Wang Jiayin or Gao Yingxiang, these people could rebel. How could a group of bandits have any credibility? How true were their promises?

Furthermore, Zhu Shenzhu knew very well what the fate of Wang Jiayin and Gao Yingxiang would be. Although they were quite powerful now, they would not be able to achieve anything in the end. Even if Li Zicheng, who had not yet appeared and whose name had not been heard at all, became the future King of Chuang, he still could not escape the short-sightedness of his humble origins. Otherwise, how could he fail in the end when the situation was so good?

For a moment, Zhu Shenzhui couldn't help but fall into deep thought, wondering whether he should cooperate or not.

If he refused to cooperate, the detained people would be in danger, and the loss of property would not be a small amount. In addition, the interruption of trade in Shaanxi would have a significant impact on the business. But once he cooperated, there would also be risks. Moreover, the rebels wanted food. Zhu Shenzhu had a lot of food, which he had accumulated over the years. However, he had a use for all the food. The climate in the past two years had become more and more abnormal, especially the severe drought in the northwest. Many places had not harvested any crops for two years due to the disaster.

The situation in Shanxi is better than that in Shaanxi, but not much better. Last year, Shanxi also suffered from drought, and grain production dropped significantly. No one can predict how long this drought will last. Zhu Shenzhu only remembers that the severe drought in the late Ming Dynasty caused chaos and rebellions in various places. This means that this disaster will last for a long time. In times of disaster, grain can save lives.

It was for this reason that Zhu Shencui had been preparing for the future by reclaiming wasteland and purchasing large quantities of food. In addition, there was the problem of the grassland. Zhu Shencui had to ensure that the Tenger tribe's position in Tumed was stable. The Ming Dynasty had suffered a disaster, and the grasslands further north would naturally not be spared. He was only worried about not having enough food. How could he have any extra food to sell to the rebels?
"What's the current situation of grain procurement in the south?" Zhu Shenzhui frowned, thought for a while, and asked.

"This year's grain prices are 40% higher than in previous years, and transportation between provincial capitals is not as convenient as before. The cost of transporting grain along the way is also much higher," Kang Youfu replied.

Nodding silently, the disaster in the north has affected the south, and the food shortage has affected the south. This situation is unavoidable. However, even if the price of food rises, it will be fine once we get the food. As the saying goes, if you have food in your hands, you won't be worried. No matter how expensive the food is, it's worth it if you can buy it.

"What price can they offer?" Zhu Shenzhui suddenly asked.

"The letter said that it was several times higher than the market price, but it didn't say the exact price. However, I estimate that it should be no problem to sell the grain at five times the price."

"Five times? Haha." Zhu Shencui smiled and shook his head. It seemed that the rebel army's food shortage was very serious. They were willing to buy food at five times the price. However, Zhu Shencui was not satisfied with just five times the price. Since they wanted to cooperate, they had to get the greatest benefits.

"Well, you tell them that if they want to buy grain, it's fine, but the price must be ten times the market price. In addition, the promises to Hengtong's people and goods must be guaranteed. If they agree, there's no problem with cooperation. If not, then there's no need to talk further."

"Ten times?" Kang Youfu was stunned. He didn't expect Zhu Shenzhui to offer such a price right out of his mouth.

"Why? Ten times more?" Zhu Shenzhui asked with a smile, "No matter how much gold and silver there is, it is just dead stuff. Right now, food is something that can save lives. People are starving to death. In front of a bite of food, let alone ten times, even a hundred times or a thousand times will be willing to give it with both hands as long as you can give it."

Kang Youfu reacted instantly and nodded immediately: "Sixth Master is right, I was thinking wrongly, so, shall we send someone to negotiate according to the price set by Sixth Master?"

"Yes!" Zhu Shenzhu agreed, but he reminded Kang Youfu that the amount of grain sold must be controlled and must not affect the amount of grain stored. Temporarily, part of the grain purchased from the south can be allocated to trade with the rebels.

In addition, all the gold and silver earned should be invested in grain purchases, and efforts should be made to purchase grain from the south to ensure that there is enough grain stored. This is a must.

Kang Youfu said he understood and they discussed some details. After half an hour of discussion, Kang Youfu stood up and said goodbye.

After sending Kang Youfu away, Zhu Shencui concentrated on thinking that he only wanted to do business with the rebels because of the gold and silver in their hands. If it wasn't for the huge profit, Zhu Shencui would never agree. In addition, Zhu Shencui did this out of pity. After all, most of the rebels were ordinary people who couldn't afford to eat and were forced to rebel. These ordinary people were actually poor people. Selling them food was like saving a life, which was better than building a seven-story pagoda.

However, Zhu Shenzui never believed in the bottom line of the rebel army. As mentioned earlier, most of the rebel army were pitiful people, but there is also a saying in the world that there must be something hateful about pitiful people, especially the leaders of the rebel army. At the beginning of the uprising, their ideas were very simple, but as the uprising succeeded and their strength grew stronger, these people were no longer the same as ordinary people. The evil side of human nature was exposed over time, and many people could do anything and had no bottom line.

Just like now, they are willing to spend a lot of money to buy food from him, that's because they can't get food and have no choice but to do so. No matter how much gold and silver you have, you can't survive without food. Let alone Zhu Shenzhu's offer of ten times the price, even if the price is higher, you can only bite your teeth and buy it. But if you think the rebels are easy to talk to, you are wrong. Zhu Shenzhu believes that once the rebels have the ability to take food directly from him, they will do so without hesitation. Maybe the day before, you are still smiling friends, and the next day the leader of the rebels can look at your head without hesitation, and then take all your things for himself. This has happened before, so the rebels are not trustworthy.

The cooperation between the two parties is just to get what they need. Once the balance is broken or one party has an absolute advantage, the situation will be completely different. In simple terms, it is more appropriate to use a tiger to get its skin. Now Zhu Shenzhui is interested in the money in the hands of the other party, while the other party is interested in Hengtong's channels and ability to get food, so this kind of cooperation is impossible to last long.

However, from the very beginning, Zhu Shenzui never thought about long-term cooperation with the rebels. Even if they cooperated, it would only be short-term cooperation.

To put it bluntly, the rebels are just a bunch of bandits. They have no stable base at all. They roam around and are extremely destructive. They don't engage in production, so it's hard for them to become powerful. Therefore, the rebels' promise to Hengtong is meaningless. It's fine for short-term cooperation, but there is no basis for long-term cooperation.

Of course, Zhu Shenzui is not a sheep. He has enough confidence. Even if the rebel army turns against him, even if he suffers a temporary loss, Zhu Shenzui has the ability to make up for it.

In fact, in addition to the reasons mentioned by Kang Youfu, Zhu Shenzui had another plan for agreeing to trade with the rebels.

He did not tell Kang Youfu about this plan. Although Kang Youfu was Zhu Shencui's confidant and was the chief manager who helped him run Hengtong, Zhu Shencui was very clear about the use of his subordinates. Kang Youfu was only responsible for Hengtong's business on the Ming side, and was not responsible for anything else.

Even though Kang Youfu had contact with the grassland trade at the beginning, after Zhu Shenzui had consolidated his roots in the grassland, he divided Hengtong and grassland trade into two, thus separating the grassland affairs from the main body of Hengtong. Kang Youfu seldom had contact with the grassland side and left it to other people to take charge of.

In other words, Hengtong is now divided into two parts, one in Ming Dynasty and the other in Mongolia.

Kang Youfu was the leader on the Ming side, while others were in charge of the Mongolian side.

Hengtong of the Ming Dynasty is the main body, and Mongolia is a branch, but the branch has considerable independence. Kang Youfu does not directly manage the Mongolian side except for assisting, so Kang Youfu is not clear about many other things. The purpose of doing this is not only to strengthen the top-down management structure of Hengtong, but also a skill of employing people, which can ensure Zhu Shencui's absolute control over Hengtong.

"Wang Jiayin? Gao Yingxiang? Ningxiang? Shilou?"

Thinking about the names of these two people and what Kang Youfu said, Zhu Shenzhui suddenly laughed.

These two rebel forces are now causing great trouble in the western part of Shanxi. Moreover, the rebel forces are now cooperating with Hengtong and are hoping to exchange gold and silver for food through Hengtong. This may be a good opportunity.

If this thing was done well, Zhu Shenzhui might be able to take advantage of this opportunity to do another thing, which was something he had wanted to do for a long time but had never done.

A gleam of light suddenly flashed in his eyes, and Zhu Shenzhui quickly made up his mind. He immediately called the servant and asked the old servant to invite someone to the house. The old servant responded and hurried away. Less than an hour later, Zhu Qiuqi arrived at the house.

A few years have passed, and Zhu Qiuqi is no longer the down-and-out person he used to be. Now Zhu Qiuqi is considered a top figure among the royal family.

Following Zhu Shenzhui, the three uncles and nephews Zhu Minfeng, Zhu Minqi and Zhu Qiuqi have accumulated considerable assets. Just by getting a share of Hengtong's purchasing and trade, their wealth has increased greatly.

Life became better and the family property became more abundant. Needless to say, the three uncles and nephews were very grateful to Zhu Shencui. The three of them had long been obedient to Zhu Shencui and were Zhu Shencui's staunch supporters among the Pingyang royal family and were trustworthy.

However, compared with the two brothers Zhu Minfeng and Zhu Minqi, Zhu Qiuqi is bolder and he is also very smart. He has vaguely noticed some things about Zhu Shenzhui over the years, but he has never said a word to outsiders, not even to his wife and children. He has always kept these things in his heart. On several occasions, he secretly expressed in front of Zhu Shenzhui that he is willing to follow Zhu Shenzhui to "do big things", and he is determined to do it even if it means going through fire and water.

(End of this chapter)