Prince Li You of the Great Tang Dynasty begs the noble families to their deaths!

Zan Junmo suddenly said, "My lord, if you want to buy slaves, there are people in Luoyang who specialize in selling slaves from the north. They have prisoners of war from the north, who are strong and powerful. Once you buy them, they can not only work but also fight on the battlefield."

Li You was taken aback when he heard this, but after thinking about it, he realized that Zan Junmo's suggestion was very constructive.

Ultimately, Huang Chao's army was an army whose ultimate goal was rebellion, and rebellion meant having elite soldiers and generals who were good at fighting.

Now, in order to build up base areas, Huang Chao's army was more like a production and construction corps than a combat force.

Zan Junmo's father was Han Chinese and his mother was Hu. He had actually served in the border army and fought against those "Northern Pass" people, so he knew their fighting capabilities.

"Alright, Hongxin, you go with Junmo to Luoyang and take a look around."

"promise!"

Next, we discussed how to open up sales channels for charcoal in Xiangzhou.

The charcoal is of excellent quality, and there is demand. The current challenge is how to transport this high-quality product and then sell it.

Not only do we need to sell, but we also need to sell at a reasonable price.

Zhou Shengyi priced his charcoal at five coins per pound in Guangzhou.

This price may not sound high, but it's actually not cheap.

Compared to the grain prices at the time, a dou (斗) of rice cost ten wen (文). A dou here is approximately twelve jin (斤).

Converted, the price of one jin of grain was 0.8 wen.

In other words, for every 1 jin of charcoal Zhou Shengyi produced, it was equivalent to producing 6 jin of rice.

Ordinary people would certainly not do such a business; they would rather go to the mountains to cut firewood themselves.

For wealthy households, this price is just right, neither too high nor too low.

Jing Song and his team investigated the price of inferior charcoal in Xiangyang City; it could sell for three coins per pound.

Based on a price of three coins, Li You ultimately decided that the high-quality charcoal his family was about to sell in Xiangyang would be one coin more expensive than the price set by Zhou Shengyi, selling it for six coins per pound.

Six coins, exactly twice the price of three coins.

The number six not only sounds good, but it can also subtly tell customers that the quality of our charcoal is at least twice that of inferior charcoal.

In addition, Li You also has an even higher-end product: bamboo charcoal made from moso bamboo. This product has a light fragrance, which allows it to be priced higher. However, he has to wait until the charcoal starts to generate profits before launching it.

After discussion, the personnel to carry out this operation were also decided.

Gao Shun led the way, with Zhou Chuji and Jing Song as his deputies, leading three hundred soldiers to Xiangzhou immediately.

……

Xiangzhou is more than 200 li away from Suizhou, which is slightly farther than the journey to Guangzhou.

Three hundred soldiers were fully equipped and ready to go. Each of them carried a basket on their back, containing not only grain but also ten catties of charcoal.

Jing Song, as the guide, walked at the front, leading the group towards Xiangzhou.

It took them five days to reach the outskirts of Xiangzhou.

Gao Shun and his men did not immediately enter Xiangzhou City, but instead went up a nearby mountain—Laojun Mountain.

Mount Laojun is also covered in lush forests. Jing Song and his men had already found a hiding place in the mountains that was safe from being seen.

After unloading the charcoal from their baskets and resting for a day, the soldiers began to cut down trees and build thatched huts and earthen kilns.

Five days later, the thatched huts and earthen kilns were almost finished. Gao Shun gathered one hundred soldiers, who carried baskets filled with charcoal and set off for Xiangzhou City. The remaining two hundred soldiers stayed behind, continuing to cut down trees and put the wood into the earthen kilns to make charcoal.

Xiangzhou is located in the middle reaches of the Han River, a vital passage between north and south, and has extremely high strategic value. Its city walls were also built to be extremely thick and heavy.

Gao Shun, Jing Song, and Zhou Chuji each led a squad of soldiers and entered Xiangzhou City through the three city gates.

Jing Song's group entered from the north gate.

Upon entering the city, one sees government notices posted on both sides of the city wall, with clerks standing there patiently explaining the contents of the notices to the people coming and going. There are quite a few people listening to the notices.

Jing Song found it strange, so he gestured to his soldiers to go into the city first, while he squeezed next to the notice to hear what it was about.

"Fellow villagers, listen up! Goguryeo in the north has rebelled, and the imperial court is sending troops to quell the rebellion. Various regions will need to allocate labor and provisions, so this year's land tax will be increased by 20%!"

"Fellow villagers, not only our Shannan Prefecture, but also Jiannan, Hedong, and Jiangnan Prefectures will have their land taxes increased! Jiannan Prefecture will even pay 10% more than us! Once we win the war, there will be no need to mention it next year!"

Hearing this news, the people were not in a good mood.

Fortunately, the increased land tax was not high, so it was not unbearable.

So that's what happened.

Jing Song noted this down and prepared to have someone report it to Li You.

Three charcoal-selling teams entered Xiangzhou through three different city gates, and after entering the city, they chose three different places to start selling their charcoal.

One group of people were in charge of hawking their wares, while another group pretended to be interested in the charcoal and quickly got the place buzzing with excitement.

Many of the people from Xiangzhou in the past were attracted here.

Jing Song chuckled inwardly; the "asking for help" method that his lord had instructed him to use was indeed very effective.

Of course, most importantly, the goods they had were black and hard.

Only high-quality products can truly touch the hearts of customers.

The essence of business is actually the relationship between supply and demand, with demand being the most important. First, identify the demand, then produce excellent products based on that demand; only then can you sell your products smoothly. Many people don't grasp this concept; they're always self-centered, resulting in a mad rush into the business world, ultimately losing everything without even understanding how they lost their money.

"How much is your charcoal?"

"Sir, this is top-quality goods imported from out of town. It burns very well, and it's only six coins per pound!"

"Six coins? Other places only sell it for three coins. Are you guys crazy for money?"

"Sir, you look like a wealthy person, you must have used charcoal before. Whether it's good or not, you only need to touch it to know."

Jing Song picked up the goods and handed them directly to the man who had asked the question.

The man didn't refuse; he took the charcoal in his hand and weighed it in his hand.

"Wow! How come your charcoal is so light?"

"Sir, please break it open with your hands and take a look inside."

The older brother followed the plan and snapped it open, and... it broke.

"Oh dear, sir, please be gentle..."

"Hiss... Your charcoal is all black inside too, maybe it's actually something good..."

"Sir, this broken piece is yours for the taking. Take it home and burn it with fire, and you'll understand. I guarantee you won't hear a word!"

The old man, however, was not one to take advantage of others. He took out a dozen or so copper coins from his pocket and handed them to Jing Song.

"Give me two pounds, I'll take them home and try them out."

"Okay!"

With the arrival of the first customer, other customers who wanted to try it out also started to spend money.