Chapter 163: Interfering in the Cheng Business

After finishing what he wanted to say and watching Guo Yuan and the others leave, Mo Xiaobai finally let out a breath.

It was time to meet Fatty Cheng!

He signaled his subordinates to call Cheng Qian from the Guest Room. As soon as the two met, Fatty Cheng smiled bitterly and said, “My Lord Baron, this whole mess is my fault. I have caused you trouble.”

“Caused trouble? What kind of trouble?”

Mo Xiaobai laughed dismissively and said, “I don’t know what trouble you are talking about. The only thing I know is that if you lose my Gold Coins, you will be in huge trouble.”

“How dare I? How dare I? I carried them with me all the time. To guard them, I did not even dare to step out of my room for several days,” Fatty Cheng said while pushing a nearby box forward. “It is all here. We sold for a total of 1,500 Gold Coins. I only took 100 Gold Coins, and the remaining 1,400 are in this box.”

The Fat had taken only 100 Gold Coins?

Mo Xiaobai opened the box and saw layers of small Gold Coins filling it. His face lit up with a smile.

A thousand gold!

This was the first time Mo Xiaobai had seen such a sum since his rebirth, and before his rebirth, he had never seen it.

If it were not for the training over the past days since his rebirth, Mo Xiaobai might have almost lost his composure.

“I said an eight-to-two split back then, and we drafted a contract. That will not change. Even if you are willing, I will not greedily take your fair share,” Mo Xiaobai said while counting out 200 Gold Coins from the box and signaling Cheng Qian to take them.

Although the money sparkled in Fatty Cheng’s eyes, he did not reach out with his hand. “My Lord Baron keeps his promises, and I, Cheng Qian, truly admire that. But this time, by borrowing the name of ‘Lingzhi Wine’, my Cheng Ji Pharmacy has already become famous throughout the Great Han. Taking 100 more Gold Coins is already the limit. I dare not be greedy, so please take it back. Also, the contract signed that day can be changed. In the future, if there is another auction and my Lord Baron trusts me, I will only take a one-percent share.”

Oh?

The money-loving Fatty was actually refusing these 200 Gold Coins?

This was pure profit!

Thinking back to when he first negotiated with the Fatty, seeing how moved the Fatty was over 100 Gold Coins, Mo Xiaobai now had a much higher opinion of him.

“Keep the 200 Gold Coins. I have another matter I need to discuss with you.”

Mo Xiaobai waved his hand, pushing the Gold Coins toward Fatty Cheng, and said, “The last time you came to see Dong Zhen, you wanted to discuss with her about getting supplies from her Medicine Fields, right?”

“This… indeed, I cannot hide it from my Lord Baron. I did have this thought, but Jun Xin did not agree. She still follows her family’s old rules and absolutely refuses to do any medicinal herb trading.”

The Fatty nodded helplessly. He knew the Dong Family’s eldest daughter best. The herbs cultivated by Dong Zhen were of much better quality than the ones they had bought before.

It was a pity that the Dong Family had a strict tradition from ancient times regarding medical ethics, and Dong Zhen had no intention of going against it.

Watching the Fatty’s disappointed expression, Mo Xiaobai smiled secretly in his heart. You Fatty, trying to get ideas about Dong Zhen? Do you know what moral standards “Medical Immortal Dong” has? Talking about money with her is just asking for trouble.

This kind of tacky business is definitely something I, your Lord Baron, am better at!

“In fact, Daming Village has more than just the Dong Family with Medicine Fields. I have also developed a batch of Medicine Fields. If you want to cooperate, we can continue to talk about this.”

Besides getting the Gold Coins, the most important reason Mo Xiaobai wanted to meet the Fatty was to expand their cooperation.

After all, with so many herbs being refreshed in Daming Village every day, not using them would be a waste.

If it was just for brewing wine, having one or two units of Medicine Fields would be enough.

However, when Mo Xiaobai mentioned wanting to cooperate with the Fatty, Cheng Qian’s expression turned strange.

Medicine Fields developed by Daming Village?

Just with those old farmers he borrowed?

What kind of quality herbs could they possibly grow?

Cheng Qian felt very awkward right now. He wanted to refuse but feared making Mo Xiaobai unhappy. Yet if he agreed, he himself would feel depressed.

“What? Do you not believe that Daming Village has high-quality herbs?”

Seeing Cheng Qian hesitate, Mo Xiaobai immediately understood the other’s thoughts and snorted coldly, “It seems I must let you see the Ginseng and Ganoderma produced by Daming Village with my own eyes.”

Saying this, Mo Xiaobai took out a portion of the precious herbs produced in Daming Village from his Xumi Bag.

Cheng Fatty did not care much at first when he took the herbs from Mo Xiaobai’s hand, but after a careful observation, his eyes narrowed sharply. He reached out, plucked a bit of the Ginseng root hairs, and put them in his mouth.

In less than three seconds of chewing, the surprise in his eyes became even deeper.

“This… such a Ginseng root was produced in my Lord Baron’s Territory?”

“What? You still do not believe me?”

“No, no, it is not that I do not believe you. It is just… it is beyond comprehension. Even though the old farmers under my command are experienced, if they were to raise Ginseng, they would surely fall far short.”

“People of Daming Village are talented, and the land there is spiritually rich. Naturally, our Medicine Fields are extraordinary.”

Mo Xiaobai smiled confidently and then spoke, “Your Cheng Ji has been operating in Juancheng for so long. Do you only plan to stay hidden in Yan Province? If you are willing to cooperate, you can completely spread Cheng Ji to all the Prefecture Cities of the Great Han.”

Spread Cheng Ji to all the Prefecture Cities of the Great Han?

How could that be possible?

Listening to Mo Xiaobai’s “bold words,” although the Fatty was tempted, he knew it was unrealistic. “My Lord Baron probably thinks this is too simple. Leaving other issues aside for now, just regarding the supply issue, Cheng Ji can only supply Yan Province. Occasionally, when we go on business trips as a Traveling Merchant, it is only once every two or three years.”

“I know this very well, which is why I am talking to you about cooperation. Our Daming Village has plenty of herbs. Like the Ganoderma and Ginseng you see right now, whether you want one hundred or one thousand jin, I can produce them for you right now!”

One hundred jin! One thousand jin!

This was not 1,000 jin of rice; this was 1,000 jin of Ginseng!

How was Ginseng sold?

It was sold by money!

The total price for a single Ginseng root was very high.

And normally, how much did a single Ginseng root weigh? It was probably less than half a jin.

After all, Ginseng was not a radish; it was impossible for every one to be white and round.

Cheng Qian was completely confused by Mo Xiaobai’s words. Mo Xiaobai had borrowed his medicinal farmers back then. How much time had passed, and could he grow 1,000 jin of Ginseng?

This must be a joke, right?

“My Lord Baron is surely joking?”

“Do I look like I am joking? Your Lord Baron is very busy and has no time to joke with you.”

The chips Mo Xiaobai needed to play were already on the table. He immediately followed up, “Now it only depends on whether you are willing. If you are willing, you can expand the business scope of Cheng Ji to the entire Great Han. In the future, it might even spread to all the major dynasties around us. Or, you can take this money first, go to other Prefecture Cities, rent a new shop there, and take over the herb business of two provinces. Then we can talk about the whole Great Han.”

Speaking this far, the reason why Mo Xiaobai was willing to give the Fatty a twenty-to-eighty split finally came to light. He was not simply generous; he was purely using Gold Coins to tempt Cheng Qian.

Mo Xiaobai wanted to interfere in the business of NPC players and wanted to have his own shop in a Prefecture City. But he knew how strict the review for Players opening shops in Prefecture Cities was. If you were not registered in that Prefecture City, even if you were a Baron, it would be hopeless.

The method of opening a shop directly would not work for him, so Mo Xiaobai had to find another way. This method was also something some Players from his previous life had thought of.

Partnering with NPCs for investment would allow him to reasonably avoid the strict reviews of the Prefecture Cities while successfully allowing a Player to insert himself into the commercial transactions between NPCs.