The Republic of China: From Storyteller to God

"Oyster sauce?"

Uncle Nine looked puzzled: "I've only ever heard of lard and beef tallow. Can oysters be used to extract oil?"

"sure."

Looking at the oyster shells scattered on the ground, Liu Che laughed and said, "If you're interested, you can invest too, and we can make money together."

In his previous life, he started doing business after he was promoted to the fifth rank [Martial Master] and his finances became insufficient to sustain himself.

He researched some easy-to-start businesses, with honeycomb briquettes and oyster sauce being two of the simplest projects.

Therefore, after being reborn in this life, he used honeycomb briquettes to earn his first pot of gold in the north.

When you get to the South, it's time for oyster sauce to make its appearance.

Upon hearing Liu Che's invitation to Uncle Nine to invest, Wen Cai and Qiu Sheng, who were standing nearby, lit up and winked at Uncle Nine, hoping he would agree quickly.

They witnessed firsthand Liu Che's generosity in casually handing out a pile of silver dollars to the oyster farmers.

If you do business with him, you're sure to make money.

But Uncle Nine seemed oblivious to their glances, simply shaking his head with a faint smile: "Mr. Liu is joking. I'm not cut out for business."

"It's just an investment; you don't need to run the business. You just need to wait for the dividends at the end of the year."

Liu Che tried to persuade him again.

Uncle Nine has a high talent for Taoist priests, and if we can win him over, it would be a great help to him.

But Uncle Nine still declined decisively: "I'm more used to being a Taoist priest. I really don't know anything about doing business."

"All right."

Seeing his resolute attitude, Liu Che didn't try to persuade him any further.

Seeing this, Wencai and Qiusheng could only shake their heads and sigh in disappointment.

In just a short while, the [Phantom Oyster Beads] had dried out their slime and shrunk to the size of soybeans.

Liu Che collected them, wiped them clean, and put them together with the one Uncle Afa had coughed up earlier, counting them.

There are seventeen in total.

It's alright, it should last him for a while.

It's unlikely that [Phantom Oyster Beads] will appear again in the near future.

This is a good time to set up procurement channels.

"Uncle Fu".

Liu Che approached the village elder and called him aside: "After the oyster poison is cleared, there shouldn't be any more toxic oysters entering the oyster fields to cause trouble in the next month or two."

"Very good!"

Uncle Fu was extremely grateful: "Mr. Feng, I really don't know how to thank you enough. Tonight I'll host a banquet so the whole village can come and express our gratitude in person!"

"That's easy to discuss."

Liu Che glanced at the oyster farmers sorting through the oyster shells and whispered a reminder: "But don't forget, the toxic oysters in your village's oyster fields have been cleared out, but what about the oyster fields in other villages?"

Also, I heard that the oyster farms in the Taishan area have also suffered from oyster infestation.

Uncle Fu, being quite old and experienced, immediately understood the hidden meaning in his words and quickly asked in a low voice, "Mr. Liu, what do you mean?"

Liu Che didn't hide anything: "I've already demonstrated the solution to the oyster plague."

Why don't you find a few reliable oyster farmers and go to the surrounding oyster fields and Taishan to help them solve the oyster plague?

Even if each household only pays one silver dollar, wouldn't that be more profitable than the arduous task of oyster farming?

The words had been made clear, and Uncle Fu, being no fool, naturally knew how much profit was hidden inside. He was so excited that his beard trembled.

"Mr. Liu, are you really willing to teach us this skill?"

Liu Che laughed: "Didn't I make the red sauce right in front of you? Just follow along, okay?"

"Mr. Liu is joking."

Uncle Fu said respectfully, "How could such a skill be learned just by watching it once?"

The proportions of that red juice must be quite mysterious, and we dare not speculate wildly.

They were even less willing to repay kindness with enmity and to secretly learn the master's skills.

If you truly intend to teach us this craft, we are willing to contribute money and effort, and even swear a blood oath that we will never reveal a single detail of your skills!

Seeing his serious expression, Liu Che nodded to himself.

He does have some brains, after all.

"I just enjoy talking to smart people."

Liu Che laughed and said, "Since that's the case, then I won't play any tricks. You and I will sign a blood pact, and I will teach you the recipe for the red juice."

You go and get me all the oyster poison from all the oyster farms along the coast.

If you handle this matter well, I will give you a great fortune.

Are you willing?

Having said all that, Uncle Fu solemnly cupped his hands and said, "I am willing to make a blood pact with you, sir. If I break this pact, you may take my head at any time!"

Blood pacts are not formal contracts, but rather a spontaneous agreement formed among the people.

A death contract is a type of blood pact.

The two parties who sign a life-or-death contract are willing to risk their lives for each other. If either party is killed, they must admit that they are inferior in skill and cannot report it to the authorities, otherwise they will be disgraced and never be able to hold their heads high again.

Therefore, the object of the blood pact of life and death is the lives of both parties.

However, not every blood pact requires both parties to risk their lives to establish the contract.

For example, in the Tianjin area, some people would go to gambling dens to challenge them, then lie down and let the thugs beat them up.

No matter how badly this person is beaten, they cannot cry out in pain.

If someone is beaten half to death and still doesn't back down, the gambling den boss, who wouldn't dare kill him, will have to send him home to recover and visit him with gifts, asking a doctor to treat his injuries.

Once he recovers from his injuries, he can get a share of the gambling money through intermediaries.

Moreover, as long as the gambling den remains open, he can continue to receive this allowance without missing a penny.

At the government level, the legality of blood contracts is not recognized.

However, in folk tradition, blood pacts are highly binding contracts.

Thus, witnessed by the entire village, Liu Che signed a blood pact with Uncle Fu.

Liu Che produced the recipe for the "Red Juice," and Uncle Fu swore that if the recipe was leaked, Liu Che could kill him, and no one could report it to the authorities.

As he pressed his bloody fingerprint onto the contract, all the oyster villagers knelt down in unison.

They all knew that Uncle Fu had risked his life to secure a way for everyone to make a living.

As agreed, Liu Che told Uncle Fu the recipe for the [Red Juice].

Uncle Fu also assured him that he would take the oyster farmers from the village all over the coast and get his hands on all the oyster poison.

At noon, Uncle Fu hosted a banquet at his home, inviting Liu Che, Uncle Jiu, and others.

After a hearty meal, Uncle Fu, along with the villagers, personally escorted Liu Che and the others to the dock.

Before boarding the ship, Uncle Fu assured Liu Che, "Mr. Liu, I will have someone deliver the oysters to you tomorrow afternoon."

Liu Che planned to make a batch of oyster sauce, so he asked Uncle Fu to collect a boatload of oysters and send them to him.

You can buy oysters here for only 15 yuan for 500 jin (250 kg).

However, Liu Che still kept forty silver dollars according to the purchase price in Guangzhou.

Before boarding the ship, Liu Che bid farewell to Uncle Jiu: "Uncle Jiu, I'm leaving now. If you have time, you can come to Guangzhou to find me."

Uncle Nine was going in a different direction, but he came along to see him off on the ship.

"Okay, I'd like to try it too. What does this oyster sauce you're talking about taste like?"

After bidding them farewell, Liu Che boarded the ship returning to Guangzhou.

That evening, he returned to Guangzhou.

I drank quite a bit of alcohol at noon, but barely ate any food.

Therefore, after returning to the vicinity of the inn, Liu Che and A Wu found a restaurant, had a meal, and then returned to the inn.

As soon as Liu Che entered the inn, the innkeeper stopped him: "Mr. Liu, a Mr. Chen came looking for you yesterday and this morning."