Entrepreneurship in the Late Tang Dynasty

Chapter 137 Lychee
When Zhao Huai'an was finally pulled back to his seat by the group of Rongzhou officials, he turned to the embarrassed Pei Ke and said:
"Old Pei, I just had a drink here, and you want to borrow my Baoyidu to go across the river and wipe out the Liao people? What kind of wine is this? You've only had a few cups and you're already spouting this nonsense?"

Pei Ke, whether feigning ignorance or not, replied very earnestly:

"This is our local lychee wine. It is made from lychees from Xishan Mountain, soaked in our Rongzhou spring wine, and then stored in an ice cellar. Only about ten jars are produced each year, which is very rare."

Zhao Huai'an choked for a moment, then suddenly smacked his lips, clearly sensing a rich aroma of grains, and it was a complex aroma, probably containing sorghum, rice, glutinous rice, and wheat. In addition, the wine was probably aged, making the taste even richer.

So Zhao Huai'an couldn't help but pick up his wine glass again and take another sip. Hmm, the lychee was very sweet, and honey must have been added for preservation, but the main thing was the wine. The taste was still mellow, and after drinking it, there was a rich aroma of wine on the tip, surface, and back of his tongue.

What a wine!
Suddenly, Zhao Huai'an thought of something, paused for a moment, and then calmly put down his wine glass.

It all started when Zhao Huai'an suddenly realized that Rongzhou was the future Yibin, and what was Yibin most famous for? Wuliangye liquor!
This local so-called spring wine may not be as good as Wuliangye in terms of technique, but it already shows signs of being on par with Wuliangye.

A proper Wuliangye liquor should contain sorghum, rice, glutinous rice, wheat, and corn, but where did the corn come from here? So it's probably just "four-grain liquor".

But this is already incredible! This wine isn't famous in Rongzhou right now, but if it gets packaged by Zhao Da and marketed with some mythical stories, wouldn't it sell like hotcakes?

At this moment, Zhao Huai'an looked at Pei Ke with his round face as if he were a god of wealth.

If he wants to expand his business and gain more profits in inland waterway trade, he can't rely solely on entrepot trade; he needs to have his own flagship products.

He used to want to properly develop the tea industry in Gwangju, but now the mountains of Gwangju are full of makeshift tea plantations. If he doesn't remove these people, who will honestly grow tea?

Therefore, there is no sign of Guangzhou Maojian tea for the time being, but the "spring wine" that we accidentally obtained in Rongzhou has great potential.

While Zhao Huai'an was lost in thought, Pei Ke, with his round face, felt uneasy under his gaze.

The general named Zhao Da was indeed a fierce general who had been promoted to governor after meritorious service on the battlefield of Nanzhao. Just looking at him made him feel like he was being stared at by a hungry wolf.

But Pei Ke still tried his best to suppress the panic in his heart, and looked at Zhao Huai'an with a smile, hoping that he would agree to his request.

In reality, he had no choice. Recently, some peddlers and merchants from the other side of the river had brought him news that they often heard the sound of bronze drums being struck in the mountains and forests on the other side.

During his years in Rongzhou, he had become very familiar with the fighting customs of the Liao people. They had a custom that no matter how small the village was, they would always collect copper ingots to cast a large drum.

The reason for this is that anyone who owns a bronze drum can be elected as the chief elder and become the prestigious leader of the cave.

Because the tribes of Liaodong often fought each other and had deep-seated hatred for each other, they would beat bronze drums to gather the tribes scattered in the mountains and forests whenever they needed to assemble their troops.

Therefore, anyone who wants to become an elder must collect a bronze drum.

Now, the spies and peddlers are saying that the sound of bronze drums is heard from time to time in the mountains on the south bank, and it never stops. This is no longer a small-scale conflict, but rather that the capital is gathering its troops.

But in the Rongzhou region, besides their Rongzhou city, what other place is worth the large-scale invasion of the Ge Liao forces on the other side?
Although he had already reported the situation to Chengdu in advance, he also knew that the main force of Xichuan had suffered heavy losses in the decisive battle of Hanyuan in March, and even the pillar of Xichuan, Yang Qingfu, had been killed in action.

Therefore, even if Rongzhou sent the alarm to Chengdu, reinforcements could not be sent from there.

Just as the civil and military officials of Rongzhou were filled with fear, they learned from the daily correspondence of the governor of Jiaozhou upstream that Zhao Huai'an, the "Tiger of Western Sichuan" known as "Hu Baoyi," had led his fleet south and would arrive in Rongzhou soon. He instructed the people of Rongzhou to treat him well and not to lose face for the officials of Sichuan.

Pei Ke was overjoyed and sent about ten teams upstream to report back to him once they spotted Bao Yidu's fleet.

So Zhao Huai'an was right; the entire Rongzhou region had indeed gone to great lengths to receive Zhao Huai'an and his entourage.

Pei Ke had no choice but to rely on a martial artist like Zhao Huai'an.

He was appointed governor not through military merit or by passing the imperial examination, but through patronage and gradual advancement.

Although Pei Ke himself came from a collateral branch of the Pei clan of Hedong and belonged to the aristocratic family, the truly powerful direct descendants were all in Chang'an, and those who remained in their hometowns had already become a shadow of their former selves.

Therefore, he gave up his ambition to pass the imperial examination early on and entered officialdom by virtue of his family's background, which included his grandfather serving as a military advisor in Luozhou and his father serving as a military advisor in Mianzhou.

Therefore, Pei Ke's official career began in the Xichuan military headquarters. Then, in the twelfth year of the Dazhong era, when Nanzhao attacked Yazhou, Pei Ke, who was then serving as the military advisor of Jiazhou, was promoted for his meritorious service in assisting the governor in organizing the local militia for defense.

Then, in the tenth year of Xiantong, during the war when Nanzhao invaded Bozhou, he organized the supply of provisions to support the front line. He excelled in the imperial examination and finally became a county magistrate.

Over the years, he gradually accumulated merits and rose to his current position as the Prefect of Rongzhou.

Rongzhou was a lower-level prefecture with a small population, and its cities were scattered along the Jinsha River, making it unable to support the prefecture's administration.

Given this situation, who else could he rely on if not Zhao Huai'an?

Seeing that Zhao Huai'an still had no intention of negotiating terms, Pei Ke couldn't hold back and offered one:
"Among the local products of our military region, lychees are the best. If Governor Zhao can help Rongzhou overcome this difficulty, in the past, Governor Zhao's family could buy the best lychees from our region when they came to Rongzhou. These were not included in the local tribute."

Seeing that Zhao Huai'an did not speak, Pei Ke thought that Zhao Huai'an did not know the value of lychees, or perhaps he had never even heard of lychees. After all, he had heard that this Zhao Da was from Shouzhou and was poor, so how could he have seen such a tribute?

So he introduced him to Zhao Huai'an:

"There are three places in the world that produce lychees: Fujian, Lingnan, and Sichuan. Among them, the quality of lychees from Fujian is the best, followed by Sichuan, and then Lingnan. As for the lychees from Sichuan, the quality from Luzhou is the best, followed by Fuzhou, and then Hezhou. The rest are not worth mentioning."

"The lychees from Fuzhou are a tribute item. Back in the day, Yang Guifei ate two hundred lychees a day, and they were all from Fuzhou. The lychees from Luzhou and Rongzhou are even better. Does Zhao Dalang know the value of this? To put it bluntly, the lychees from Rongzhou ripen every June, and at that time they only cost eight coins a pound. But if they are transported outside, just one lychee can sell for twenty strings of cash. The profit is more than a thousand times greater!"

Zhao Huai'an understood. They were using the special trade license for lychees to trick him into sending troops to help them fight the Liao people!
But does this round-faced old Pei think he's stupid?

At this moment, Zhao Da, feeling quite insulted, snorted:
“Prefect Pei, are you trying to fool me, Zhao Da, with my ignorance? Those lychees rot so easily, they turn sour and smelly in just three days. Even if there is profit to be made, what use are they if they can't be transported out?”

With that, Zhao Huai'an was really about to get up and leave. He was furious; the old ancestor had made a fool of him.

He stopped calling Lao Pei by his name, which shows how unhappy he was.

Now, Pei Ke really couldn't sit still. He had only thought Zhao Huai'an was a clueless bumpkin because he didn't seem interested in lychees, but he never expected that this person was so knowledgeable.

Seeing Zhao Huai'an about to leave without looking back, Pei Ke's legs really trembled.

A civil official like him, if he fell into the hands of those barbarian tribes, would truly be devoured.

So his legs went weak, and he no longer cared about saving face. He rushed over and grabbed Zhao Huai'an's leg, pleading:

"Prefect Zhao, you must help Rongzhou get through this calamity! Whatever you want, Rongzhou will give you!"

Zhao Huai'an let Pei Ke hold onto his leg, and just like that, he dragged him along the slippery path, about to leave.

Pei Ke cried even louder, and seeing their superior in such a state, the officials and military officers of Rongzhou swarmed to the doorway, then prostrated themselves on the ground and kowtowed to Zhao Huai'an.
"I beg Governor Zhao to take pity on the innocent people of Rongzhou and save them."

Seeing that the road was blocked, Zhao Huai'an sighed and looked down at Pei Ke, whose hair was disheveled, and said:

“Old Pei, it’s not that I don’t want to save you, but you’re sending my brothers to their deaths! The mountains on the south bank are densely forested and we’re not locals. We’re also afraid of the miasma. Even if I had a hundred thousand troops, let alone only a thousand or so, we wouldn’t be enough to be swallowed up by the mountains. So, Old Pei, I can’t help you at all.”

At this point, Zhao Liu added, shouting:

"I've heard of it all in Guanzhong. These southern barbarians can fly their heads to eat while they sleep, and then fly back after they've eaten their fill, so they don't need to eat all day. With heads that can fly, how can we kill them? We wouldn't be able to kill a single one!"

Zhao Huai'an also gave a strange laugh, glanced at Pei Ke, and added:
"Here's a suggestion for you!" Pei Ke listened blankly.

Then Zhao Da said:

"With so few men, you can't win a fight, and without reinforcements, you can't hold out either. So you might as well run away, to the north or the upper reaches of the Min River. As for you, Pei, you are the governor in charge of defending the territory, and you have a duty to do so. So even if you run away, you will still die. In order not to implicate your clan, you might as well hang yourself."

Now Pei Ke was utterly despondent. He collapsed to the ground, his lips trembling, muttering strange words.

Seeing Pei Ke's appearance, Zhao Huai'an finally felt relieved and was about to start with a "but" when he suddenly saw Pei Ke leap up and charge towards a large pillar in the government office.

Zhao Huai'an was so frightened that his voice changed, and he shouted in a broken voice:
"Stop him!"

Then Huo Yanchao took a step forward, blocking Pei Ke's path and sending Pei Ke flying back.

Zhao Huai'an dared not frighten the man any longer, and hurriedly went to pull up the dazed Pei Ke, saying urgently:

"Okay, I'll help you with this. But if I ever need anything in the future, you'll have to do everything you can to help me!"

Pei Ke cried, he really cried. He held Zhao Huai'an's hand and wailed.

"Waaah, I, Pei Ke, will never forget your great kindness, Governor Zhao. If you need anything, I will definitely help you."

Zhao Huai'an took a handkerchief and handed it to Pei Ke to wipe his tears, adding:
"It's not just helping, it's helping with everything we have."

Pei Ke nodded repeatedly as he wiped the cloth.
"Yes, we'll help even if it costs us our lives!"

Zhao Huai'an was delighted. He lifted Pei Ke up with both arms and greeted him affectionately:

"Don't call me Governor Zhao, just call me Zhao Da. Of course, if you're not going to be so polite, you can also call me Xiao Zhao."

Pei Ke paid no heed to what followed and kept shouting:

"Zhao Da is here! Rongzhou is saved!"

Only Zhao Huai'an looked at the lychee wine on the table and snorted, "I want both of these!"
……

The night in Rongcheng is quiet, with only the ceaseless flow of the Minjiang River gently lapping against the banks and moored boats.

In the darkness, countless eyes greedily gazed at the ships moored on the north shore, certain that they held countless grains of rice and valuables.

The night wind on the river was cold, but it couldn't dispel the passion in these people's hearts.

These people were lying in wait on the south bank. The bustling market town of Liao had fallen silent during the day, so they lay in wait on the other side of the market town.

After an unknown amount of time, a rustling sound came from the opposite bank, followed by the sound of a wooden boat cutting through the water. After an unknown amount of time, the pontoon bridge that had been taken down was now being erected again.

So there was a spy among them!
Then a few torches flashed by, quick but conspicuous in the thick darkness of the night.

Then, the cavemen lying in wait on the south bank could no longer contain themselves and hurriedly tried to cross to the other side.

Although these Ge Liao people have a unified ethnic title, it does not mean that they share a common understanding, and even the so-called cave is just a temporary gathering.

The reason why these Ge Liao people are so numerous and are often suppressed by the Qing Qiang is that these Ge Liao people are scattered throughout the valleys, eat snakes and insects, and have no leader or chief. Only when the bronze drum in the cave sounds will these people return.

So when they saw that the pontoon bridge had been rebuilt, they didn't care whether you were old or not. They rushed forward, stepping on the heels of those in front of them in the dark, and stumbled onto the pontoon bridge.

Tonight, there are more than several thousand Ge Liao lying in ambush on the south bank. If they swarm up now, how can they hide their movements? Yet even so, they failed to provoke the Tang people on the other side, so these Ge Liao became even more unscrupulous.

By this time, some people had already started calling out to their friends in the Liao language. They formed groups and ran from the pontoon bridge to the north bank. Some of them rushed to catch the boats on the shore, while others headed straight for Rongzhou City.

Everything in the city was stimulating the rationality of these people. They shouted in various Liao languages ​​and rushed forward, brandishing short knives, ring-pommel swords, bamboo spears, and bamboo crossbows.

In the darkness, everyone's eyes were bloodshot. They had Ge Liao's spies inside the city. According to the plan, they would take down the city gate and let the others in from outside.

Halfway there, they suddenly heard several screams coming from behind the city gate. But this did not make the Ge Liao hesitate. Instead, they ran even faster, fearing that if they were a step too slow, the woman they liked would be snatched away by someone else.

Not everyone is that stupid. Some well-nourished elderly people began to notice something was wrong and subconsciously stopped in their tracks.

Several people couldn't help but look back.

Behind them, more than a thousand people had already followed in their footsteps, rushing across the pontoon bridge to the north bank. Many more were behind them, anxiously urging them to go even faster.

But the next moment, they saw a nightmare scene.

Three large ships painted with images of evil spirits emerged directly from the black mist and crashed onto the pontoon bridge.

How could the already fragile pontoon bridge withstand the impact of three massive ships? In an instant, the pontoon bridge crumbled into pieces.

The more than twenty Ge Liao who were on the pontoon bridge were directly knocked into the river and then crushed under the hull by the large boats that were going downstream.

But that wasn't the worst of it. Suddenly, countless torches lit up the boats moored on the north bank, and then hundreds of Nanzhao archers emerged.

These elite archers, with their powerful bows made of yew wood, accurately shot and killed the Ge Liao on the shore.

These Ge Liao people collapsed after being hit by the first volley of arrows. They abandoned the corpses in the cave and ran back in panic.

But the next moment, they ran back.

The reason was that the gates of Rongzhou City, which had just been lying like a sick lion, were wide open, and more than fifty impatient cavalrymen immediately leaped out on their horses.

The leader, dressed in white armor and a white cloak, wielded a gleaming spear and roared:
"Kill them all!"

Then, the fifty riders started up and accelerated in the darkness, and then, like the Grim Reaper, they reaped the Ge Liao people on the north bank.

These people were generally unarmored. Even the bravest among them wore only leather or rattan armor. Out of ten, only two carried bamboo spears. However, they lacked the ability to cooperate and form ranks, which led to their slaughter and left corpses strewn across the battlefield.

Meanwhile, some of the Ge Liao crossbowmen frantically fired at the tall, large horses in the darkness, but either missed or were deflected by the armor.

At this moment, the gap in civilization is almost equivalent to several eras.

It's unclear how long the fighting lasted, but by the time the Ge Liao people on the north bank were either killed or captured, the south bank had become eerily quiet.

It was as if those Ge Liao had never appeared.

They ran away.

What a victory!
(End of this chapter)