Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 367 Transporting Coal

He Tan chased after him unwillingly.

"Does Madam Xie know about this?"

"Hasn't your aunt noticed that you've changed?"

"You have to give me something in return, otherwise I'll feel guilty for keeping such a big thing from my aunt."

Wang Yan walked ahead with an air of nonchalance, while He Tan followed closely behind. Finally, he couldn't help but say, "Then I'll go find my younger brother and sister-in-law myself."

These words made Wang Yan stop, his clear eyes filled with smiles.

"What did you say?"

He clearly heard it, but was made to repeat it again. For the sake of the money, He Tan patiently said, "I'll go find my sister-in-law, my...sister-in-law..."

Wang Yan stretched out his hand: "Deposit the money into the bank and give me the receipt. As for how much money to use, that's up to A-Yan."

“Understood,” He Tan said. “It will be taken care of tomorrow.”

Wang Yan added, "I won't provide you with accounts, and I won't compensate you for any losses."

How could He Tan not understand? He nodded and said, "I know that." Not keeping accounts was for their own good; his sister-in-law was being very thoughtful.

After saying this, the two men led their horses and continued walking towards the government office. As they passed through the market, they saw someone driving a mule cart past them, which contained pieces of charcoal.

Wang Yan and He Tan stopped, and watched as the mule cart was surrounded by people in no time.

“Elder brother, younger brother,” Wang Zheng walked over quickly, “Did you see that? That’s… the Buddhist charcoal from Daming Prefecture, now it’s being sold in Bianjing.”

As Wang Zheng spoke, he glanced at the charcoal seller's face, but unfortunately, he didn't recognize the man.

Wang Yan looked at Wang Zheng and wondered why he had stopped talking so smoothly just now when they were in Daming Prefecture.
"It's still early!" Wang Yan said.

Those who are eyeing the Buddha Charcoal, hoping to trace the clues to Xie Yuyan, are likely to be disappointed.

"I also have some local newspapers from Daming Prefecture here. Ten coins a copy, would you like to buy some?"

Listening to the vendors' cries, Wang Yan smiled slightly. Everything was perfect, it was just a pity that he couldn't go to her.

……

The brothers Guo Xiong and Guo Chuan were dredging the river with their boat. As usual, they were focused on their work and ignored their surroundings.

When they first appeared on this waterway, several boats came to scout out their presence. Those boats must have found it quite remarkable to see them clearing the waterway.

When they rested, the other boats came up to chat with them.

"What are you doing?"

"We're cleaning up the riverbed," Guo Xiong said without hiding anything.

“This waterway has been abandoned for a long time,” they said. “Even if it were dredged, without any goods coming and going, wouldn’t you be wasting your time?”

At this point, Guo Xiong asked the people, "Which river is the best? Which one has the most goods? Which one can let us go there to do business?"

Those people burst into laughter upon hearing this.

How can it be?

The best sections of the river were all occupied by the four major families. The Guo brothers also tried to seize some of the business, but they almost ended up in jail. Now, having escaped death, they've finally figured things out and found a river that no one walks on.

As the days went by, those who came to gather information became too lazy to come anymore, and the Guo brothers continued to do their work as usual.

The waterway was not abandoned at all; it was just that fewer boats were passing through and it was neglected, so dredging it was not difficult.

Soon, the river widened considerably. Their boats were able to transport goods back and forth smoothly.

As instructed by the old lady, they brought some general merchandise and delivered it to the several general merchandise shops she ran in Heyin.

However, the goods in the new shop were not cheap, and the people of Heyin County were still used to buying things from their usual shops, so the shop did not do much business.

Guo Xiong didn't take this to heart and continued to instruct the boatmen to haul the cargo. They had just unloaded their goods and hauled only one load of silt when they saw several men in official robes waving at them from the shore.

Guo Xiong and Guo Chuan brought the boat closer.

Several officials wanted to board the ship.

"Take us on a tour of this river, and I'll give you one tael of silver for the boat fare."

The Guo brothers naturally accepted the deal. Following the official's instructions, they made a round trip on the waterway before escorting the official back to his original location.

Watching the official's departing figure.

Guo Chuan asked excitedly, "Brother, is the imperial court about to issue a decree?"

Guo Xiong could not hide his joy; this was the day they had been waiting for.

Guo Xiong said, "More or less."

Guo Chuan laughed and said, "Then let's go back and report to Madam."

Three days later, even more officials were standing by the river. They talked and pointed around, but the Guo brothers pretended not to hear and continued with their work. However, when they went to the Heyin government office to record their labor service, the county magistrate stopped them and praised them, saying, "You brothers have encountered good fortune."

Guo Xiong pretended not to understand.

The county magistrate said, "The river channels you have cleared are intended for the imperial court to transport coal. Starting tomorrow, the government will send more people to dredge the waterways."

Guo Xiong asked anxiously, "What about us? Will we still be able to do business on this waterway in the future?"

“You’ve really hit the jackpot,” the county magistrate said. “According to the laws of Daliang, you’ve done the dredging work, so not only can you travel on this river, but you can also be assigned to transport coal. Now report the number of your boats, and in five days, take your fleet to transport coal to Bianjing.”

The Guo brothers, Guo Xiong and Guo Chuan, almost jumped up from the ground. After regaining their senses, they immediately thanked the county magistrate.

Guo Xiong's heart pounded even faster; everything that Madam Xie had said had come true.

The joy doesn't end there.

Before they even started transporting coal, it became known outside that the coal would be transported to Bianjing City via Heyin, and merchants who received the news gathered in Heyin.

With more customers, their general store's business improved.

Guo Chuan was overjoyed. The best spots near the dock had already been rented or bought by them. By the time the other merchants realized what was happening, it was too late to make a move.

Just like now, those who used to laugh at the Guo brothers are now showing envy on their faces when they see that the Guo brothers' fleet has started transporting coal.

"There are eighteen boats in total, of all sizes."

Someone stood on the shore and counted it several times.

"Aren't there only nine ships?"

"They didn't reveal all the ships they had."

"How cunning."

The opinions were mixed.

Guo Xiong led the way in the lead boat, with Guo Chuan bringing up the rear. This was the first time in a true sense that the two brothers had led a fleet on this waterway.

Guo Xiong looked at the long fleet of ships, his heart filled with emotion.

He finally accomplished what he set out to do.

However, it is all thanks to Madam Xie that the brothers are where they are today.

Guo Xiong's nose stung, and his vision blurred.

"Put in more effort," Guo Xiong said, "and let the people here see what we're capable of."

The boatmen responded in unison.