I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 137 Tea-Horse Trade
Gu Ci stayed by the bedside until dawn.

Granny Song knocked on the door and came in. "Young master, breakfast is ready." She peeked in and saw that the young lady was sleeping soundly. She seemed to be complaining but was actually defending her. "The young lady is getting lazier and lazier. The chickens in this garden have crowed three times. How come she is still sleeping? It's all because the people at Liuli Workshop and the estate are incompetent. They have to ask about everything for the young lady."

"How can a young lady manage such a large general's mansion, estates, and shops all by herself, and now she has to manage the entire Wuwei Prefecture? How can she possibly manage all of this!"

“The capable are often burdened with more work. Madam is exceptionally intelligent, so naturally she has to work harder than ordinary people,” Gu Ci said. “I am not usually by Madam’s side, so I will trouble you, Granny, to remind Madam to eat and rest properly.”

"Would the young master like to have his meal first?"

Gu Ci looked down at the hand holding his sleeve. "No need. We'll use it when Madam wakes up."

"Oh!" Granny Song couldn't stop smiling. "Then this old servant will go and warm up the breakfast."

Two hours later, Tang Zhao, who had slept soundly, slowly woke up, stretching lazily on the bed while still waking up with his eyes closed.

Gu Ci looked away, got up and left the inner room.

Tang Zhao had had enough of staying in bed, so he got up, washed up, and went to the dining room, where Gu Ci was already sitting and waiting.

Good morning, my husband!

Gu Ci reminded him, "It's noon."

"Yes, it's time for lunch," Tang Zhao said as he sat down. Dongmei came in carrying two large food boxes, and Chunfeng and Xiamo set out the food.

Tang Zhao picked up his bowl and chopsticks and ate two large bowls of food with gusto.

Gu Ci was puzzled. With such a large appetite, how come she didn't gain weight? How busy must she be every day?

What are your plans for today?

Tang Zhao put down the soup bowl. "I plan to go to the tea-horse trade market."

Tea and Horse Trade? Gu Ci frowned. "What are we going there for?"

Tang Zhao sighed, "Make money."

Adhering to the principle that people from Chongqing should not cheat other people from Chongqing, Tang Zhao's glass products were priced high, but far below the standard of overcharging.

But how can one become rich without killing people? So Tang Zhao decided to choose a different race to kill.

"The Turkic and Tibetan peoples are rich in jewelry, cattle, sheep and horses, which are all best-selling items in Chongqing. I plan to do some market research to test the intelligence of the Turkic and Tibetan merchants."

Gu Ci cautioned, "Take it easy on me."

Although foreigners may not be very bright, they will become wary after being cheated too many times.

After having brunch, Tang Zhao invited Lu Ying to discuss the resettlement of the disaster victims and then handed over the reins of power to him.

Tang Zhao was very generous. "This is my golden seal. With this seal, you can withdraw money, grain, and manpower from any shop or estate under my name. Just remember one thing: use it for work relief."

She doesn't want to have a bunch of idle people around.

Since he entered officialdom, Lu Ying had served in many prefectures and counties, and he was always very frugal, wishing he could stretch every copper coin in half. After arriving in Wuwei, he didn't even buy any new clothes.

I'm so happy to have such a generous boss.

"Yes, then when should this humble subject come to the residence each day to report on the progress?"

"I will be away for a few days, and my return date is uncertain. Please keep a record of the accounts, and I will review them when I return."

"Where is Your Highness going?" Lu Ying asked, puzzled. Was there anything more important than resettling the disaster victims?
Tang Zhao said solemnly, "To make money."

Lu Ying's expression was solemn; this was indeed more important. "Your Highness, please rest assured, I will certainly not fail your trust."

Tang Zhao offered a few more words of encouragement, giving Lu Ying a real boost of morale. After the others left, he and Gu Ci led their men to Liulifang.

In the glass workshop, workers carefully packed the finished mirrors and glass cups into boxes and loaded them onto the carriage. Wu Twelve, who was urging the workers to finish, saw Tang Zhao and jogged forward, "Your subordinate greets you, Miss!"

Tang Zhao dismounted and asked, "Have all the things I requested been prepared?"

"Everything is ready. One hundred mirrors and thirty sets of glass teacups have all been shipped," Wu Shier said. "It's just that the glass workshop is short-handed, and the orders from Shu Prefecture haven't been completed yet."

"Hurry up! The floods have affected the southern prefectures, and the grain yield will definitely be greatly reduced during the autumn harvest. The price of grain in Shu Prefecture will definitely change every day," Tang Zhao frowned. "Merchants are profit-driven. They may raise prices on the spot or be unwilling to sell too much grain, and we will be at a disadvantage."

"My subordinate understands!"

Tang Zhao inspected the area and, seeing that Wu Shier had taken care of everything properly, felt even more at ease. "If there are any honest and law-abiding people among the disaster victims, feel free to hire them, just make sure they don't come into contact with the furnace."

Wu Shier responded.

Tang Zhao mounted his horse again and followed Gu Ci westward to Xiakou Pass, where the Prince Xuan's residence had set up a separate courtyard.

Tang Zhao's back ached from riding the horse, but he forced himself to listen to Gu Ci's arrangements for the courtyard and guards before following Gu Ci back to the main courtyard to rest.

The next morning, Tang Zhao ate breakfast while yawning, and then Gu Ci carried him onto a horse and took him to the tea and horse trade market outside the Xiakou Pass.

Tang Zhao reached out and grabbed wildly in the air, but couldn't reach the reins of his beloved horse beside him. He protested, "Let me go, I can ride by myself."

Gu Ci retorted, "Open your eyes first."

Tang Zhao decisively closed her eyes and, as if it were second nature, leaned against Gu Ci and fell asleep.

Gu Ci slowed down his horse and avoided potholes along the way. In half an hour, he arrived at the entrance of the tea and horse trade market.

The tea-horse trade market was bustling with people, as merchants from the Great Yu, Turkic and Tibetan territories traded their goods loudly and with gestures.

Tang Zhao was so shocked by this scene that she was completely sober. At the same time, she realized that she had made a fatal mistake: she had not translated.

In her past life, everyone in China spoke Mandarin, and her fluent Mandarin was enough to communicate with everyone. But now...

Tang Zhao turned back to look at Gu Ci with hopeful eyes.

Gu Ci nodded.

Tang Zhao breathed a sigh of relief.

The two dismounted, handed the horses to the guards, and walked in.

Tang Zhaoru was like Grandma Liu visiting the Grand View Garden. She would stop for a long time at every stall she passed, finding everything novel and interesting.

Gu Ci asked, "Do you like it?"

Tang Zhao shook his head and put down the yak wood carving in his hand. "I'm just curious how this thing, which is so ugly, could still be passed down for thousands of years."

Gu Ci ignored Tang Zhao's nonsense, but the street vendors were not happy and started yelling loudly.

Tang Zhao listened intently and discovered that he could understand a few words of Tibetan. He couldn't help but sigh, and then cursed back at an even louder voice.

Gu Ci was surprised, "You also speak Tibetan?"

Tang Zhao modestly replied, "I only know these two lines."

This was something Tang Zhao had specifically learned when she went to Tibet to steal business in her previous life. When the translator learned that her goal was to gain the upper hand in a verbal battle, in addition to teaching her "Jabaso" (eat shit), "Zaru" (idiot), and "Kyodkugepayin" (idiot), he also specifically reminded her that if she couldn't win the argument, she could insult the other person's mother or curse them to go to hell.

Tang Zhao tried once, and if he hadn't run fast, he would have been beaten to death by his opponent.

Just like now, Tang Zhao dragged Gu Ci for dozens of meters before shaking off the Tibetan vendor.

Zhao Zhao: Every time I go to a new place, I learn a new language for swearing.