A leisurely life in the world of cultivation

Chapter 58 Closed Loop
Authentic brothel dances, especially those performed right before your eyes, are worlds apart from the short videos you see on your phone.

It wasn't as flamboyant as I'd imagined, but the real-life beautiful woman, dressed in light gauze, danced with a graceful and charming figure, her gaze full of tenderness, every smile and gesture exuding allure...

That alone is enough to bring joy to the soul.

Li Weizhou was probably really into watching, so much so that when Manager Zheng of Shenglong Money Shop arrived with a young man, he couldn't bear to look away, only gesturing for them not to rush and to watch the dance first.

Feng Biwu lowered her eyes expressionlessly, her thoughts unreadable...

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the "Cloud Dress Dance" was over. Wanwan was slightly out of breath, making her appear even more delicate and pitiful.

Li Weizhou even clapped, only to receive a glare from Wanwan before he smiled and got up to greet the guests.

He cupped his hands and said, "I've long heard that the young master of Shenglong Money Shop is an outstanding person, and he truly lives up to his reputation. Last time, right here, Qi Zhenkun asked you to help him find spices. How's it going? Did you find them?"

The young master of Shenglong Money Shop would be a classic example of a rich, handsome, and successful man on Earth. Although he is not particularly good-looking, he has a very imposing presence.

However, upon hearing this, the young master, who was around twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, restrained himself and bowed to Li Weizhou, saying, "I am Zhuang Chengxiao, greetings to Master Baibao. Uncle Qi... didn't come looking for me, I'll ask him next time. But if Young Master Li is willing to sell the secret recipe for spices, you can name your price."

They seem very sincere.

Li Weizhou smiled, gestured to a chair nearby and invited him to sit down, then said with a smile, "Last time, I used two jars of spices to trick Brother Pang into giving me a secret manual. Although I couldn't master it, it was still quite interesting. Next time, I'll trick him into giving me a good sword, and that shouldn't be a problem. Yesterday, Manager Zheng came to me, saying he was seeking cooperation, but he himself couldn't make up his mind, so we met today. Actually, these are all minor matters; we can leave them to the managers below to handle."

Feng Biwu lowered her head and pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling that the two of them should switch their surnames...

Of all the people she's met, this is the first one who can put on such a show.

When Zhuang Chengxiao greeted her, she casually raised her face and said, "Fudehao is also interested in half of the jewelry and ornaments from Baibaolou."

Fudehao was an imperial shop registered under the name of the Eastern Palace Chamberlain's Office.

Out of respect for Qi Erniang, she helped raise the price once.

Since it involved interests, Zhuang Chengxiao didn't hold back and said, "I'm afraid Lord Biwu can't make the decision for the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, right? Besides, Fude Company doesn't have enough financial resources to take on such a treasure."

Royal families may be noble, but those in charge are mostly eunuchs and palace attendants. How much business acumen do they have?

Furthermore, the money earned had to pass through the hands of those greedy eunuchs, so the imperial shops were not as wealthy as these merchant guilds.

Moreover, those eunuchs valued their respective territories more than their own lives, and because it was a matter of dignity, the infighting among them was extremely fierce.

Although Feng Biwu was quite famous, he was mostly unable to get involved in such valuable businesses.

Zhuang Chengxiao knew these inside stories, so he naturally felt no pressure.

Feng Biwu sneered and said, "There aren't enough to go around in the palace alone." Then she ignored him.

Manager Zheng boldly remarked, "This price is still far too high..."

Li Weizhou looked at Zhuang Chengxiao with a puzzled expression, his eyes seeming to ask: Are your subordinates this unruly?
Before Zhuang Chengxiao could speak, Manager Zheng retreated with an expression as if he had been violated by a celestial hound.

Fortunately, Zhuang Chengxiao wasn't stupid. He could tell that Li Weizhou was no pushover and didn't take him, the young master of Shenglong Money House with Yuanjian Mountain behind him, seriously at all...

He pondered for a moment and said, "The price is negotiable, but there is one condition: Baibaolou's headdresses and jewelry can only be sold to my Shenglong Money Shop."

Li Weizhou chuckled and said, "Then you go to the capital or a wealthy area in Jiangnan and find a brothel to auction it off to the highest bidder. Not only can you recover the silver, but you can also boost the silver shops under the Shenglong Money Shop name, right? Heh... Okay, no problem."

"..."

Everyone fell silent for a moment.

Li Weizhou smiled and said, "Baibaolou never hoards business. We share all the gold and silver in the world. What would my family need so much gold and silver for? I want to see my partners make a lot of money. It's truly good when everyone is doing well."

Hey!
The crowd exclaimed in amazement at his boldness!
Zhuang Chengxiao laughed and said, "I underestimated the heroes of the world. Now I truly believe that Uncle Qi is a good friend of Master Li!"

As long as there's profit to be made, he's willing to say a hundred nice things.

If all these unique gold and silver jewelry pieces from Baibaolou were supplied to Shenglong Money Shop alone, it would be equivalent to Shenglong Money Shop having them all!
There are countless jewelry stores in the world. As long as Shenglong Money Shop can establish its reputation, wealthy families will prioritize buying jewelry from stores under Shenglong Money Shop's name. The profits are enormous!

Despite having Yuanjian Mountain as its backing, Shenglong Money Shop could only gain a foothold in the north. In the capital and in the south, it was completely ignored.

Other forms of suppression are relatively easy to resolve, since everyone needs to come to the northern region to participate in the horse market. Sheng Long Money Shop can give them face in exchange for gaining access to other territories.

If the goods themselves have limited competitiveness, then they have no one to blame but themselves.

The jewelry and headwear from Baibaolou were enough to be a sharp weapon, helping Shenglong Money Shop to open up new opportunities!
However, Li Weizhou laid out the unpleasant truth upfront: "Baibaolou only accepts gold, or you can exchange it for your gold jewelry. Also, goods will be shipped on the first day of each month, and payment must be received on the fifteenth. If you miss a deadline once, supply will be suspended. If you miss two deadlines, this contract will be void."

When the time is right, Shenglong Money Shop can't blame Baibaolou for supplying goods to other merchant groups. Besides, Baibaolou is willing to be a long-term partner of Shenglong Money Shop. Of course, it was agreed beforehand that they would each provide three pieces of gold jewelry to Zuixianlou and Yimengge every month. This amount is insignificant, isn't it?

Making money is the most important thing these days; only with money can you buy large quantities of pig's blood.

If you're not strong enough, you'll always be just a bully relying on others. What if Li Laosi doesn't live up to your potential?
So for now, just focus on developing and waiting until you've unlocked all 365 acupoints, then you can do whatever you want!
Or wait until you've mastered the Golden Bell Shield to the maximum level, or until you've mastered the Seven Star Steps to the same level as the Lingbo Steps. Then, with two Barrett rifles in hand, you can do whatever you want!
Zhuang Chengxiao left in a hurry, probably to retrieve the gold; the first day of the Lunar New Year was fast approaching. Of course, he might also simply not want to be with someone who claimed to be Qi Zhenkun's close friend, as it would lower their social standing.

After Zhuang Chengxiao left, Feng Biwu looked at Li Weizhou, who was in such a good mood that he casually gave Wanwan a precious silver bracelet, and then glanced at Wanwan, who had excitedly kissed him on the cheek. After a cold smile, she asked, "Didn't you say you wanted to open Baibaolou all over Daqian?"

Li Weizhou nodded and said, "Not only Daqian, but also Donghu, Xihu, Xueshan, Nanzhao... I want them all! But I don't want to keep them all to myself. As long as they are reliable, I am willing to cooperate with anyone."

I know I'll have to share some of the profits, but that's fine. I'm not interested in how much money I make, nor in a lavish lifestyle. Opening Baibaolou was my mother's dying wish, and I want to fulfill it—that's all.

Wanwan was completely won over and was moved by what she heard. She said, "Now we know how pure and filial Li Sanlang is!"

Feng Biwu, being a seasoned veteran, glanced at the petty and greedy girl before saying calmly to Li Weizhou, "For Qi Erniang's sake, I'll say one more thing. Profit is a powerful motivator. These jewels and ornaments of yours will attract countless covetous eyes and cut off the livelihoods of many silver shops. You should weigh the consequences yourself. Besides, the Qi Prince's Mansion is no pushover; they won't let anyone use their name for shelter for nothing."

Wanwan's eyes also showed worry, but Li Weizhou felt that she wanted another gold bracelet.

Ignoring the gold digger's gaze, Li Weizhou chuckled softly, "That's why I'm giving Yuan Jianshan such face. Anyone with objections, go talk to Yuan Jianshan. I was forced into this..." He paused and added, "Qi Zhenkun is truly my sworn brother!"

"..."

Feng Biwu left without saying a word, while Wanwan invited Li Weizhou to sit in her room.

Li Weizhou regretfully declined, saying, "You're too expensive."

After Li Weizhou left briskly, Wanwan finally reacted, gritting her teeth and spitting out, "You bastard! You're the one who's selling yourself... I'm selling myself, and I'm not worth that price?!"

……

Sichuan, the City of Hibiscus.

After inspecting the newly acquired dried pig blood powder factory, Li Weizhou once again emphasized to the factory manager the principle of separating the blood collection pool from the factory.

In other words, the blood collection pool is responsible for collecting, filtering, and cooking pig blood, while the processing plant is responsible for drying, crushing, screening, packaging, inspecting, and finally storing the greatly reduced blood clots.

Even their finances are separate, essentially turning them into two separate factories.

The reason is to ensure the absolute hygiene of the pig's blood, and to assign a specific person to be responsible if any problems arise, so the two sides are not allowed to interfere with each other.

Furthermore, the dried pig blood powder produced by these two factories is not used as pig feed, but as fertilizer for the land. Therefore, after production, it is temporarily stored in warehouses and finally shipped to Xinjiang or Northeast China for internal consumption. Both factories have contracted land in Xinjiang and Northeast China.

Of course, the original factory can only start work after the new blood collection pool is built, and wages will continue to be paid during this period.

The manager of the dried pig blood powder factory was laughing his head off. With no sales targets in place, what's the difference between this job and receiving a pension?
Therefore, we have repeatedly assured that we will absolutely manage worker discipline.

After dealing with the factory leaders, Li Weizhou called Xu Qiang over.

Xu Qiang is now in charge of the refrigerated truck transportation team. He is responsible for signing pig blood supply agreements with various slaughterhouses and then sending a fleet of trucks to pick up the blood every day.

Xu Li had an even harder time, having to travel to western Xinjiang and northeastern China to contract land for rice cultivation and ginseng farms in the northeast.

That's right, it's Xinjiang. There are many rice-growing regions there. Because of the large temperature difference between day and night and the long hours of sunshine, the rice has a chewy texture and a rich aroma.

The Rouge Rice from Lijiazhuang after this must have an origin...

Ginseng farms are even easier to run; they can contract mountain forests for 30 to 50 years at a time to grow ginseng for 30 to 50 years!
All the dried pig blood powder produced in the future will be transported there to be used as fertilizer.

Dried pig blood powder is rich in nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. It can be used as an organic fertilizer in the soil to improve soil structure, increase soil fertility, and promote crop growth.

This completes the final piece of the business "closed loop".

Of course, there are still many loopholes, but as long as the taxes due are paid in full, it is unlikely that anyone will bother to investigate these matters in the short term, nor is it necessary.

After all, apart from some large slaughterhouses, most small and medium-sized slaughterhouses are struggling with how to dispose of pig blood, which is something that costs money to treat as garbage and has very strict environmental protection requirements.

As for the long term, Li Weizhou didn't expect to keep it a secret indefinitely; it's just that by then, he might already be qualified to cooperate...

From that day on, another Baibaolou store opened on Chunxi Road in Furong City.

Grand opening special: Customers who purchase goods worth over 500,000 yuan will receive a pound of Rouge Rice as a gift.

This once again proves the saying: you can doubt whether truly wealthy people are kind or inhumane, but you don't need to doubt their judgment.

The gold jewelry crafted by master craftsmen from Daqian features ancient gold-making techniques never before seen, making it exquisite and bringing many surprises to connoisseurs.

Nearly one-fifth of the shops on Chunxi Road are gold shops, yet in just one week, this new Baibaolou store has stood out in this pedestrian street that is like a gold shop dynasty...

……

PS: Last day

(End of this chapter)