Chapter Sixty: Porcelain Jar

  Due to the uprising of bandits in Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan provinces, trade routes have been cut off, so Qingyan salt is already in short supply in Jining, with a current price of 500 wen per catty.

  It's laughable, but it's just a matter of time, and yet they're selling it for over 50 taels per dan of salt. Compared to Li Meng's one tael for five qian per dan of salt, it's enough to make you cry.

  There are also people who use Huai salt and Lu salt to make refined salt as a substitute, but they can't sell it for a good price, at most it's only ten taels per dan. Jining is the hub of water transportation and is located at the intersection of Henan, South Zhili, and Shandong provinces. It is the first-class rich area within Shandong province. The wealthy families are particular about their lifestyle, although there are substitutes, whoever uses them feels that they have lost face. They would rather pay a higher price to buy the original Qing salt.

  Those two bosses behind the counter are obviously from a prominent family, and their family is also looking for this green salt. However, no one had ever thought that there would be a day when it would be out of stock, so they bought and sold as they went along, without any reserves.

  Back in his own estate, Li Meng sent someone to call a kiln worker responsible for private salt transactions. This master was responsible for inspecting the quality of salt goods in Fengmeng Town and then setting prices. He and Hou Shan both lived in this estate, so it was convenient to call him over.

  "How much more would our Ling Shan salt cost if it were refined into fine salt?"

  The master hesitated for a moment, pinched his fingers to calculate, and said:

  "Ling Shan salt now costs about three mace of silver for one dan, if it's refined salt, there are several more procedures, which would require more labor...hmm, eight mace of silver per dan!"

  Li Meng slapped the table beside him and said loudly:

  "Go to Xuejia Island's salt pan tonight and find two salt workers to follow you. Starting tomorrow, refine the fine salt. Remember, don't be stingy with money as long as the salt is good. Tell the stove workers there to divide the salt pan into two parts for production."

  The master was confused, and the fine salt really didn't know what to do except for brushing teeth. Everyone bought coarse salt, but seeing Li Meng's serious expression, he didn't dare argue, and followed Li Meng and the salt worker to hurry on their way.

  The next morning, Li Meng shouted to more than a dozen subordinates, saying that they were going to enter Jiaozhou City. There were indeed over 200 people around him, but only these dozen or so people could ride horses. Everyone was a novice at riding, and no one's skills were particularly good. At least the horse wouldn't be afraid of falling off when it ran.

  There were horses instead of walking, and in just one hour, Li Meng and his party had already arrived at the city of Jiaozhou. With their current identity being different from before, the soldiers guarding the gate looked at the dozen or so horses galloping towards them, and without even mentioning who was on the horses, the momentum alone was not something they wanted to offend, so they smiled early and gave way.

  When the cavalry arrived, they saw that it was Li Meng, the salt policy inspector, and they bowed their waists to the ground, extremely respectful. For some reason, when Li Meng saw these city guards who looked more like refugees than soldiers, he felt annoyed and disgusted, even though they had no conflict with him and were very friendly.

  Li Meng also knew that it was unnecessary to get angry with these petty people. As he passed by the city gate, although his horse did not stop, he still took out a string of coins from his saddle bag and tossed them over. The soldiers guarding the gate smiled and caught them, shouting loudly behind Li Meng as he departed:

  "Thank you for Mr. Li's reward."

  Not living in the city of Jiao is also a bit troublesome, for example, those regular silver coins have to be processed in the city, Li Meng went to the Zhiyuan government office and politely handed over the regular money to each level of officials, and the salt administration inspection side sent money to the Zhiyuan government office just to facilitate mutual convenience.

  Moreover, the patrol team is powerful, even if it doesn't care about the provincial government office, it's normal. The former Mu patrol team was always indifferent, but Li Meng wasn't like that. According to modern concepts, these expenses are all necessary public relations fees. If you don't spend them, although these officials have no jurisdiction over you, they might give you a hard time at any moment. By then, it would be too late to spend money to smooth things over. Li Meng didn't experience this in modern times, but he learned a lot from his surroundings.

  Anyway, the money given to them is not a lot, and it can make both parties have a good impression on each other, so why not? Therefore, now when Li Meng goes to the government office of Jiaozhou, from the governor to the lower officials, everyone welcomes him with a smile, and everyone praises the salt administration inspector for his benevolence.

  After finishing these official duties, Li Meng arranged for his subordinates to find a teahouse to rest in and called two people to follow him to the streets on both sides of the Xiao Baihe River.

  Two salted fish were overjoyed, but also had some doubts, thinking when their master would have the mood to go shopping.

  His walking speed was too fast, Li Meng just looked at the sign and walked quickly past, didn't even take a second glance, and just like that, he walked past more than a dozen shops, suddenly stopped in his tracks, and directly walked in. The two salted eggs exchanged a confused look.

  This is a porcelain shop, porcelain is nothing but for decoration, gift-giving and household use, it's a very durable thing. Li Meng had already given out the silver money and gifts that should have been given out earlier, and his own household doesn't lack them either, what's the point of buying these things?

  According to Li Meng's intention, the two salt guards stood at the door, and Li Meng himself walked in. The owner and apprentices of this porcelain shop did not know Li Meng, but they recognized the salt guard's attire - a brown earth-colored short gown, knowing that Li Meng was also the leader of the salt stick team.

  As soon as he entered the door, the shopkeeper came up with a smile all over his face. Don't look at these salted fish not even wearing silk clothes, but they have money in their hands, big customers!

  Li Mengyi entered the shop and looked around. Those colorful, extremely beautiful large flower vases, ceramic horses, and ceramic jars were all glanced over in an instant. Instead, he searched everywhere for those small ceramic pots. The shopkeeper was somewhat puzzled but still followed him with a smile. On the bottom layer of the shelves, Li Meng found what he was looking for.

  A small blue porcelain vase, the workmanship is quite rough, looks very ordinary, seeing Li Meng bent over to pick up the vase, the shopkeeper accompanied by saying:

  "Sir, this jar is usually used by ordinary people to hold salt or pickled vegetables. Isn't your use of it a bit inappropriate?"

  Li Meng didn't care, holding the jar and turning it over to examine it. The jar had only a few decorative patterns on it, and the outside wasn't very shiny. It was just a large-bellied jar with a lid, the kind of kitchen utensil used in ordinary households. Li Meng weighed it in his hand and asked:

  "How much is this vase?"

  "Thirty-Five Articles."

  The shopkeeper responded with a sentence, but then felt somewhat uneasy and hastily added:

  "This porcelain is worthless, guests like to take it away, in the future there will be more business and take care of Xiaohao."

  Li Meng shook his head and smiled:

  "I won't take advantage of you, where was this porcelain jar fired?"