The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

The purchase cost of each bolt of Shu brocade was as high as 800 coins, plus an average cost of 400 coins for transportation and transshipment along the way, bringing the total cost to approximately 1,200 coins. Zhuge Liang sold them to aristocratic families at an average price of 3,000 coins, making a gross profit of 1,800 coins per bolt.

According to the agreement between Su Shuang, Zhang Shiping, Ma Chao, and Zhang Lu, Liu Bei and Zhang Lu would each receive 30% of the profits, while Ma Chao would receive 40%. Based on this calculation, Liu Bei would earn 540 coins per horse.

The 10,000 bolts of Shu brocade traded brought Liu Bei a profit of 5.4 million coins.

These 10,000 bolts of Shu brocade earned Liu Bei 5.4 million coins.

Not only that, Zhuge Liang also collected additional collateral from the powerful and wealthy families.

Without any new subscriptions, this batch of pledged money would essentially allow Liu Bei to gain 18 million coins out of thin air; if there are subsequent new subscriptions, the total amount of pledged money will increase further.

Without considering inflation caused by private minting, the usual price of one shi of grain is one hundred to one hundred and fifty coins, which can soar to two hundred to four hundred coins during times of war. The five million four hundred thousand coins of net profit that Liu Bei received from these ten thousand bolts of Shu brocade, plus the eighteen million coins of pledge money, is enough to purchase one hundred thousand shi of grain!

For Liu Bei, who was short of money and supplies, this was undoubtedly a huge windfall.

Moreover, this was only the initial transaction of 10,000 bolts of Shu brocade; the Shu brocade would continue to bring Liu Bei new profits.

This success was also inseparable from the skillful cooperation of Zhen Yi, who represented the Zhen family.

The first person to respond to Zhuge Liang was Zhen Yi, Zhen Mi's cousin, who was specially placed in the crowd by Zhuge Liang as a "plant".

As a powerful clan in Zhongshan, the Zhen family was well aware of the importance of attaching themselves to powerful forces.

The original intention of marrying Zhen Mi to Yuan Xi was to curry favor with the Yuan family, which had held high office for four generations. However, the Yuan family's power quickly declined and disappeared.

Now Yuan Xi holds only the nominal position of governor, hiding in a separate residence in Zhongshan State, indulging in wine and women, and ignoring worldly affairs.

This left Mrs. Zhen feeling deeply helpless.

If Yuan Xi were to serve under Liu Bei with peace of mind, relying on their old acquaintance and the financial support from the Zhen family, he could at least become a powerful governor in the future, which would undoubtedly be the most advantageous situation for the Zhen family.

Seeing that Yuan Xi was unreliable and that there were few adult males in the clan, the clan leader Zhen Yao chose to befriend Liu Bei.

If Liu Bei hadn't been childless, Zhen Yao would have even considered arranging a marriage between his niece and Liu Bei.

But Zhen Yao was quick-witted.

Although Liu Bei had no sons, he had two daughters.

Zhen Yao's eldest brother, Zhen Yu, and second brother, Zhen Yan, both died young and had legitimate sons, Zhen Xiang and Zhen Chang, who were about the same age as Liu Bei's daughter.

Zhen Yao then sent his two nephews to study at the official school in Zhuo County, simply because Liu Bei's daughter was also studying there.

Zhen Yao's plan was clear: the marriage alliance should start from childhood, cultivating feelings first.

Regardless of which nephew wins the favor of Liu Bei's daughter, given Zhen's wealth and status, it's likely that Liu Bei wouldn't refuse the marriage.

After everyone had left, Zhen Yi deliberately stayed until the very end, firstly to thank Zhuge Liang for the 20% concession, and secondly to privately reveal a confidential piece of information to Zhuge Liang: "Yesterday I received a letter from the head of the family, saying that Young Master Xi has been frequently demanding huge sums of money and grain from the family recently, and his actions seem to indicate that he is not up to any good." Although Yuan Xi was Zhen's son-in-law, it did not mean that Zhen had to give everything for Yuan Xi, and besides, Yuan Xi was not the only son-in-law of Zhen.

If Yuan Xi behaves himself, Zhen will treat him with courtesy; if Yuan Xi tries to cause trouble, Zhen will not tolerate him bringing disaster upon the family.

Therefore, Zhen Yao feigned compliance to keep Yuan Xi in check while urgently sending a secret letter to Zhen Yi in Zhuo County, instructing him to find an opportunity to report the matter to Zhuge Liang and request advice on how to respond.

Of Yuan Shao's four sons, the eldest, Yuan Tan, died in the Battle of Pingyuan; the second, Yuan Xi, was addicted to wine and women; the third, Yuan Shang, secretly plotted a comeback; and the fourth, Yuan Mai, was currently studying at an official school.

Liu Bei also arranged for his two daughters to attend the official school, with the same purpose as Zhen Yao: to enable his daughters to learn to read and write and to cultivate their manners, and also to hope that they could form a friendship with Yuan Mai.

If one of the daughters is compatible with Yuan Mai, then the Liu and Yuan families can strengthen their relationship through this marriage alliance.

This move also benefits Liu Bei's appointment of former protégés and subordinates from the Yuan family.

As for Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang: Yuan Xi was weak and cowardly, unlikely to amount to anything, so Liu Bei didn't pay much attention to him; Yuan Shang, on the other hand, was bold and reckless, restless and uneasy, causing Liu Bei great concern, and was also among the key figures Zhuge Liang was on guard against.

Now, even Yuan Xi is showing signs of restlessness, which surprised Zhuge Liang quite a bit: given Yuan Xi's usual temperament, he would never have repeatedly demanded huge sums of money and grain from Zhen Shi without being instigated by anyone.

Seeing the worry on Zhen Yi's face, Zhuge Liang immediately promised, "General Zuo is known for his benevolence and virtue. If someone makes a mistake, the blame lies with that person. No matter what trouble Yuan Xi causes in the future, as long as Zhen Yi remains uninvolved, General Zuo will never hold a grudge against her."

Upon hearing this guarantee, Zhen Yi breathed a sigh of relief and solemnly swore: "From now on, the Zhen family will only advance and retreat with General Zuo, and will never have any other intentions."

Zhuge Liang nodded slightly: "I will convey Zhen's wishes to General Zuo as truthfully as possible."

Zhen Yi was secretly pleased, then cupped his hands in farewell and said, "In that case, I will not bother you any longer."

As Zhuge Liang watched Zhen Yi's figure disappear into the distance, the solemnity between his brows deepened, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

After a moment's thought, Zhuge Liang immediately picked up his pen and wrote a letter, instructing his page Wang Ji to send a reliable messenger to Lu Nu in Zhongshan, so that he could personally deliver this secret letter to Pang Tong.

Liu Bei's empire was just beginning, and its foundation was not yet stable.

Whether Yuan Xi's actions were influenced by others or were solely driven by personal desires, Zhuge Liang could not tolerate any thought that might undermine Liu Bei's foundation!
Setting aside Yuan Xi's matter for the time being, Zhuge Liang focused his thoughts on how to allocate the newly acquired twenty million coins. His words to the representatives of the powerful clans about "land reclamation, water conservancy projects, accommodating displaced people, relieving the treasury's financial difficulties, and ensuring the well-being of the local people" were merely polite formalities. The specific allocation would have to be decided by Zhuge Liang after careful consideration.

Liu Bei lacked money, food, military equipment, and warhorses; he needed money everywhere. Twenty million coins seemed like a lot, but when allocated to the nine commanderies, the three kingdoms, and Liu Bei's future war preparations, it seemed like very little.

Zhuge Liang wished he could make every penny count and hoped to generate more money from it.

After much deliberation, Zhuge Liang sent someone to summon Cao Xuan, the Commandant of Revenue and Expenditure. Zhuge Liang was responsible for formulating strategies regarding funds and provisions, while Cao Xuan was responsible for their execution.

"Commander Cao, the nine commanderies and three kingdoms now under the control of the Left General are mostly newly recruited refugees. These refugees have little money and are accustomed to trading with goods. However, powerful families and clans have a lot of Wuzhu coins, which has led to a flood of Wuzhu coins and soaring prices. I intend to recast new coins to stabilize prices. What do you think?" Zhuge Liang pointed out the current problems in the nine commanderies and three kingdoms.

Cao Xuan was taken aback and hurriedly advised, "Forgive my ignorance, but in the past, Dong Zhuo minted small coins to replace the five-zhu coins, which caused coins to be cheap and goods to be expensive. A shi of grain cost tens of thousands of small coins. If you, strategist, were to mint new coins, wouldn't that cause prices to skyrocket?"

Looking at Zhuge Liang's serious and earnest face, Cao Xuan's doubts resurfaced: The strategist has always been knowledgeable about finances and provisions, so why would he propose reminting new coins today? (End of Chapter)