Mo Sang – CH 321

Chapter 321. No Difference

Gu Xi spent three or four days busy, finalizing the arrangements with the Ministry of War and the Privy Council. He then invited Li Sangrou and Master Qiao from the backyard of the Shunfeng headquarters. Together with several elderly masters who had been digging ice cellars for generations and several geomancers, a group of twenty or thirty people went to inspect and select imperial estates in the capital region.

Bringing the geomancers was a special instruction given to Gu Xi by Prime Minister Wu after hearing about the matter.

According to Prime Minister Wu, firstly, digging such a large area and undertaking such a project was a major undertaking, and it was best to consider the feng shui; after all, there was no harm in it.

Secondly, feng shui involved looking at the wind, the water, and the terrain. Since this involved digging underground, if they discovered underground water veins after digging, or if they found the terrain too low-lying after a once-in-a-century rainstorm, causing flooding, that would be unsuitable.

Gu Xi, upon hearing this, found it quite reasonable and summoned several of the most renowned geomancers from the Imperial Observatory.

Early in the morning, Gu Xi, accompanied by the geomancers who had worked on digging ice cellars, left through the north gate and met up with Li Sangrou, Hei Ma, and others waiting outside the gate, as well as Master Qiao, Li Qi’an, and others. They proceeded at a leisurely pace towards the first imperial estate.

From the city gate outwards, houses and stalls were everywhere, and the population spread outwards in an inverted fan shape, gradually thinning out and stretching for a full seven or eight li.

The group reined in their horses, observing as they went. After passing this distance, amidst the crisscrossing fields, a small village nestled beside the official road came into view. In the threshing ground next to the road, a pole over two zhang tall stood, with a cloth banner half the length of the pole displaying three large white characters on a red background: “Cotton Harvest.”

Having received instructions from Gu Jin and having specifically instructed Ru-Yi to inquire about the cotton business, Gu Xi immediately reined in his horse upon seeing the words “Cotton Harvest” and looked at Li Sangrou with a smile. “Your cotton?”

“It’s not mine. It has nothing to do with me.

The first person to grow cotton was Blind Man’s senior sister, Wang. It was the Emperor who recognized its value and vigorously promoted it. It was Madam Meng from Yangzhou who invested capital to buy cotton, weave thread, and produce cloth. There seem to be other insightful merchants as well.

You see, this has nothing to do with me,” Li Sangrou said with a smile.

Gu Xi glanced at her sideways and, after a moment, smiled. “Alright, if you say it has nothing to do with you, then it has nothing to do with you. Let’s go take a look.”

Under the Cotton Harvest banner, on one side were three large bamboo baskets, each more than half a person tall, and on the other side were two wooden boxes, each about three chi tall. The bamboo baskets were filled with cotton, and the wooden boxes were piled high with gleaming copper coins.

Under the cloth banner, seven or eight people were lined up, each carrying a tattered bamboo basket piled high with varying amounts of cotton, facing two assistants and a coachman.

One assistant was carefully inspecting the cotton, while the other held a mat and a notebook for keeping accounts. The coachman carried a scale, waiting for the cotton to be weighed.

Li Sangrou and Master Qiao’s group were always unassuming, and Gu Xi, dressed casually today in very ordinary clothes and with few followers, was barely noticeable.

In Jianle City, a place frequented by dignitaries, and in the eyes of the well-informed people of the surrounding area, their group did not cause much of a stir.

“What’s the price of this cotton?” Gu Xi dismounted by the roadside, handed the reins to a guard, walked to the cloth banner, craned his neck to look around, and asked with a smile.

“First grade, twenty large coins; second grade, sixteen large coins; third grade, twelve large coins!” The shop assistant, having finished recording the orders, hurriedly replied with a smile.

“How much cotton can a village harvest?” Gu Xi carefully examined the three large baskets of cotton.

“It depends on the size of the village and how much is planted. Some villages harvest only ten or so jin, while others harvest four or five hundred jin,” the shop assistant said with a smile and a slight bow.

“Are you locals, or did you come from Yangzhou? Who’s in charge?” Li Sangrou, following behind, asked.

“I am from Yangzhou, and these two are locals from Jianle City. We came with the senior manager,” the shop assistant, having checked the cotton, quickly replied, bowing slightly, sensing the unusual nature of Li Sangrou’s question.

“How many people are harvesting cotton? Where is the senior manager?” Li Sangrou continued with a smile.

“There are twenty of us who came with me, each with two people, making twenty teams in total. As for management matters, I do not know,” the shopkeeper replied with a forced smile.

Li Sangrou hummed in agreement and looked at Gu Xi, who was enthusiastically examining the cotton in the baskets of the farmers in line.

“Hey, that’s all you have in your basket? Why is it so little?” Gu Xi noticed the third person, an old woman, whose tattered bamboo basket was barely filled with cotton.

The old woman glared at Gu Xi but ignored him.

“She pulled up the cotton seedlings to feed the chickens,” another woman behind her said, her tone clearly gloating.

“I want to feed them! So what if I feed them to the chickens? It is none of your business!” the old woman whirled around, yelling at the woman.

“I was not talking to you; I was talking to this old man!” the woman said, forcefully patting her half-full basket of cotton.

The old woman glared fiercely at the woman’s nearly full basket of cotton, then abruptly turned away.

Gu Xi, seeing the old woman’s glaring eyes, took two steps back, then looked behind her, not daring to say anything more.

The old woman had too little cotton. Clutching four large coins, she glared again at the woman who was watching the shopkeeper inspect the cotton, then huffed and puffed away.

The woman, carrying nearly a hundred large coins, beamed with joy, hugging her bamboo basket filled with copper coins, and practically ran.

Behind her was another old woman, her bamboo basket piled high with cotton. Gu Xi took a half-step forward, slightly craning his neck to look at the cotton in her basket, and smiled, “You have so much cotton! This cotton looks good. How much land do you have?”

“A lot! I have not even pulled a single seedling!” The old woman, her teeth chattering, lifted her tattered bamboo basket, her whole body beaming with laughter.

The cotton inspector hesitated for a moment. Gu Xi quickly stepped aside, gesturing to the two inspectors and the coachman, “You handle your work; do not worry about us.”

The inspector bowed in agreement, pulled over the old woman’s basket, which was stuffed full of cotton, and examined it carefully.

The inspector picked out the cotton bolls one by one from the old woman’s basket, divided them into three piles, and weighed them, and the other inspector recorded the amount. He then grabbed handfuls of large coins from a wooden box, squatted down, and counted them for the old woman.

The old woman’s eyes widened. At first, she stared intently at the cotton inspector, watching him put a single boll into the third grade, feeling a pang of regret as she leaned forward; then, seeing him put several bolls into the first grade, her eyes crinkled with laughter.

As the coachman weighed the coins, the old woman craned her neck, holding her breath, watching him lift the scale. The weight at the bottom almost slipped off, and she beamed with joy, repeatedly bowing in thanks.

Then the clerk, keeping the ledger, grabbed handfuls of copper coins. The old woman squatted down and carefully counted them one by one.

She counted a total of one hundred and ninety-eight coins, piling them in groups of ten on the ground. She meticulously counted them again, then carefully placed each handful into her tattered bamboo basket.

Looking at the thick layer of coins at the bottom of the basket, the old woman carefully picked up a handful, then let go. The coins clattered into the pile, a clear, audible sound. The old woman laughed out loud.

“You have money?” Gu Xi leaned closer, smiling.

“One hundred and ninety-eight! One hundred and ninety-eight!” the old woman shouted to Gu Xi.

“I mean, you have money now!” Gu Xi raised his voice.

“Of course! I could not bear to part with it! They all did, but I could not! Those tender seedlings were so beautiful! Look, they’ve grown into money! Big coins! Look at these big coins!” The old woman lovingly examined her large coin.

Gu Xi looked at her, speechless.

Li Sangrou chuckled, stepped forward, and whispered in the old woman’s ear, “Who’s this money for?”

“Nobody! To make new clothes! And to eat meat! It is my money!” The old woman, clutching her tattered bamboo basket, glared at Li Sangrou.

“Good! That’s how it should be!” Li Sangrou gave the old woman a thumbs-up.

The old woman glanced sideways at Li Sangrou, then grabbed the tattered bamboo basket. “That’s my money! Mine!”

Gu Xi laughed heartily, pulling Li Sangrou back a step. “Come here, that’s her money. Do not even think about it.”

Li Sangrou laughed too, taking a few steps back as she laughed.

“Let’s go,” Gu Xi gestured to Li Sangrou.

The two returned to the official road, mounted their horses, and continued onward.

Upon reaching the first imperial estate, Master Qiao exclaimed, “Excellent! This is it! Finalize it! Start construction immediately!”

Li Sangrou looked at her, speechless. Li Qiming quickly nudged Master Qiao. “Please do not speak yet; the Boss has not said anything.”

“This place is wonderful! Start construction immediately… Alright, you two take a look.” Master Qiao turned and saw Li Sangrou’s wordless expression, looking embarrassed.

Five or six expert ice cellar diggers, along with four or five geomancers, each wielding a long, thin shovel and compass, walked solemnly along the edge of the estate, shoveling a few steps at a time while simultaneously counting on their fingers and chanting incantations.

Gu Xi glanced around, then turned to Li Sangrou, lowering his voice to indicate to the ice cellar diggers, “This side is alright. Whether they can dig or not, it is a definite matter. Although they will definitely have to pick and choose, showing off their skills, it is still limited.

Those few,” Gu Xi gestured towards the geomancers, “you will see. They will not be able to find anything until they’ve thoroughly examined the entire estate. Even after that, they will put on an air of profound wisdom, racking their brains, nitpicking, and finding fault, and then they will definitely perform some kind of ritual to prove their skill!

It’s so annoying!”

“Then why did you bring them?” Li Sangrou glanced at Gu Xi.

“Grand Master Wu said they can read feng shui and assess the terrain. You are digging such a large area; we do not even know how to assess the terrain. What if we do not do a good job and encounter a once-in-a-lifetime, fifty-year, or even a century-long rainstorm?

Just bear with it,” Gu Xi sighed.

“You are the one complaining, and you are the one telling us to bear with it. I think it is great; they are so serious.” Li Sangrou looked at the serious-looking feng shui masters.

“That’s precisely why we have to bear with it. Let’s not talk about that. They definitely will not like this estate. Let’s go to the next estate for lunch. That estate has an orchard, and the chickens there eat fallen fruit; their meat is incredibly flavorful. They also have top-quality peach gum. I sent someone over yesterday to have them prepare.” Gu Xi changed the subject.

“Let’s eat beggar’s chicken!” Li Sangrou rubbed her fingers together.

“Beggar’s chicken?” Gu Xi stared at Li Sangrou with a hint of horror.

“It’s not very clean. If you think it is dirty, have Ru-Yi and the others make it for you. We will eat beggar’s chicken.” Li Sangrou gestured to Hei Ma and Xiao Lu, who were following behind the geomancer.

“When have I ever thought you were dirty? We will eat beggar’s chicken together,” Gu Xi said, subconsciously taking a step closer to Li Sangrou.

Li Sangrou glanced down at him, watching him move closer, and then took the same step to the side.

Gu Xi also glanced down at Li Sangrou, watching her move for a moment, then looked up at her out of the corner of his eye. Li Sangrou, hands behind her back, was intently watching the geomancer and Hei Ma following behind him as they walked further and further away.

Neither the expert in digging ice cellars nor the geomancer found it suitable; the group mounted their horses and headed for the next imperial estate.

Along the way, in every village they passed, they could see the large cloth banner advertising cotton harvesting, and under each banner were the same two workers and a coachman.

Gu Xi and Li Sangrou did not get any closer. After a few dozen paces, they reined in their horses, looked around, and continued on.

Halfway there, they encountered four or five horses. They slowed their horses and moved aside when they were a shot’s distance away.

Li Sangrou gestured to Gu Xi and spurred her horse towards four or five horses.

As she drew closer, a very capable-looking middle-aged woman on the lead horse greeted Li Sangrou with a smile. “It’s the Boss.”

“Inspecting the cotton harvest?” Li Sangrou rushed to the head steward and reined in her horse.

“Yes, the cotton harvest is alright, but Master Wang asked a few of us to help oversee the cotton harvest in each village. She said not to harvest too early, otherwise the cotton bolls will not be dry enough to fetch a good price. It would be such a waste to work so hard all year just because we are in a hurry and harvest a day or two early.” The head steward spoke crisply.

“Thank you for your hard work,” Li Sangrou said with a smile.

“I dare not accept such praise from you, Boss. You know perfectly well what kind of work our mistress does. If we do it wrong, she will immediately turn on us, and I will lose all my face after all these years,” the head steward bowed and smiled.

“I was also afraid your mistress would turn on me so suddenly; she’s so annoying. Alright, you are busy. If you need anything, just come find me at Shunfeng headquarters or at Chaomi Alley; you know where I am,” Li Sangrou said with a smile, turning her horse forward.

“Yes, thank you, Boss.” The head steward bowed in thanks from his horse, let Li Sangrou pass, shook the reins, and spurred his horse forward.

“Is this the steward under Madam Meng from Jiangzhou City?” Gu Xi asked with a smile as she rode alongside Li Sangrou.

“Yes, she’s Madam Meng from Yangzhou City. This is one of her most trusted stewards. She used to be an embroiderer, but her husband beat her, breaking two of her fingers, making her unable to continue. So her husband sold her off, and she ended up in Madam Meng’s hands. Madam Meng bought her and made her her steward.” Li Sangrou glanced back at the head steward, who had already ridden far away.

“She certainly lives up to her reputation as a woman,” Gu Xi said, also glancing back.

“Between men and women, there are physical differences, nothing more. Just like people, some are tall, some are short; some are beautiful, some are ugly; some are smart, some are stupid; some are strong, some are weak. One person is different from another, that’s all,” Li Sangrou said softly.

Gu Xi looked at her, and after a moment, hummed in agreement.