Chapter 224 – The Bandits Find Home
Two thousand stones of grain somehow created an effect worth twenty thousand; what more could he say?
Liu Zhi asked, “Daily purchase limits… that’s not bad… but what if the common people buy excessively for several consecutive days?”
Jiang Pengji aimed to suppress grain prices, which meant that while prices skyrocketed at other grain shops, her prices remained the same or slightly higher than usual, yet significantly lower than her competitors, naturally drawing the common people to buy from her.
Most common people live frugally; if they can save a bit, they won’t spend recklessly.
After all, it’s not like they would starve; they were perfectly willing to wait a few days to buy cheaper grain.
Jiang Pengji smiled and said, “As long as we promote quietly that the grain shop is working for the benefit of the common people, insisting only on a small price increase when the market is soaring. With daily purchase limits in place, if the common people buy too much grain on consecutive days, that will surely leave some unable to buy any… this way, they should understand the grain shop’s good intentions… and it’ll lessen the pressure.”
Liu Zhi was left speechless.
He thought his daughter was naive and lacked understanding of the world, which led to her idea of controlling prices with two thousand stones of grain.
Now that he saw her, albeit inexperienced, she had a sharp mind that figured things out, able to correct flaws as soon as they were pointed out… Just this adaptability alone was enough to make one feel ashamed and admire her.
If her plan goes ahead, the shop would likely sell several thousand dan of grain smoothly while gaining the goodwill of Hejian County’s populace.
Earning enough money along with a good reputation.
Considering public opinion, other grain shops would likely find it hard to raise their prices.
As long as they could hold out until the autumn harvest season, grain prices would surely continue to drop, and the common people wouldn’t have to worry about grain shortages.
However…
“…but if that’s the case, the potential profits will be less than expected.”
Jiang Pengji shook her head regretfully; she originally wanted to sell the two thousand stones at the price of ten thousand stones, specifically to take advantage of the Hejian aristocracy. Now, it seemed she had to abandon that tempting thought. The amount of grain in her hands was far too little to play such a big game.
If Liu Zhi knew what was in her mind, he would probably roll his eyes.
Just her current plan was enough to stir up resentment; if she wanted to trick other aristocrats in Hejian, she was digging her own grave.
Cutting off someone’s source of income was as grievous as killing their parents.
Those aristocrats could still take this opportunity to clear out their granaries and make a decent profit.
With Jiang Pengji’s interference, the grain market share in Hejian was about to be seized by her over the next month.
How shameless!
Liu Zhi felt a mix of amusement and frustration, yet his confidence in Jiang Pengji grew.
A truly capable person can rise to unimaginable heights regardless of their starting point, and even if dealt a bad hand, they find a way.
Without a doubt, this daughter before him belonged to that kind of person.
Liu Zhi smiled lightly, “As long as we earn something; after all, it’s all thanks to the Meng Clan’s generosity.”
She spoke slowly, a grin barely contained at the corners of her lips, “Will the Meng Clan really give us an extra thousand stones of grain?”
As the saying goes, a moment’s nap leads to a good pillow; if the Meng Clan truly “kind-heartedly” sent over an extra thousand stones of grain, that would be fantastic!
“We’ll just have to wait and see,” Liu Zhi replied with a smile, “I may not have your keen eye for people, but I wouldn’t miss by that much.”
The “father and daughter” duo tacitly ignored the expressions when the Meng Clan delivered grain and the corpse of Meng Liang was sent away.
That scene would surely be delightful.
Initially wanting to use their “magnanimity” to humiliate others, reality delivered a hard slap to their faces.
Meng Hunyun a hypocrite?
Absolutely not!
He had guts and brains, snatching thousands of stones of grain from the Meng Clan, daring to swing the knife down for revenge on his wife and daughter!
While the Meng Clan wanted to stomp on Meng Hunyun’s face, Jiang Pengji had just crushed their entire clan’s pride.
The development of her band was going very smoothly, as Jiang Pengji had swiftly removed the troublemakers, leaving the remaining people, under the cooperation of Meng Hunyun and Xu Ke, unable to stir up any chaos; instead, they gradually adapted to the band’s lifestyle and accepted their current status.
What was so good about being a bandit?
People held a disdainful attitude towards those who steal from others, even the bandits themselves thought so.
If they could eat and wear warm clothes, being a proper citizen, who would want to be a despised bandit?
Watching the monthly silver handed out to others, those bandits initially snickered quietly, thinking, what could such little money do?
A couple of meals at an inn, and it would be gone; how long could they hold onto it?
But once they realized that every member of the band received seasonal clothing every quarter, and that the master provided food and housing, plus the monthly silver was theirs to spend freely with occasional rewards… the only downside was tough training, but overall it was far better than working the fields.
Better than their unstable, precarious life as bandits!
Thus, they became restless, envious, and furious!
Because they realized that all those rewards were pilfered from their own den.
Though they were bandits by trade, each of them had almost zero savings; the true wealth lay with the few leaders.
“Bull! I’m risking my life here! All the cash just goes into the pockets of those few leaders… we’re all working ourselves to the bone, while they get to enjoy the spoils; I’m working hard all this while and have never even seen a mother pig…”
His stance had begun to waver, and the previously uncertain attitudes of the others shook heavily.
“I’m scared of hunger too… the head family treats us well, there’s white buns every meal, and sometimes even scallion pancakes…”
“…If we don’t agree, won’t they say they’ll sell us off to others…” One person timidly suggested, “…We all know what scum those guys are… we might as well work hard and try to get chosen by the master…”
Right, what good is being a bandit?
To be despised, with children who can’t hold their heads high, forever beneath others. If they submit to this household, they’d officially become good citizens; and if they performed bravely, earning merits, who knows, they might just transform into someone important!
