94 Cargo Manifest

The host and guest sat separately. Zhan Xiaobai wanted to learn about the origins and background of Jiang Family Village, but he could hardly ask outright. After a moment’s thought, he took a roundabout approach and opened the conversation.

“Old Village Chief Jiang, your village is truly flourishing. I have traveled all the way from Wuwei, yet this is the first time I have seen a medium-sized village of such immense scale and complete facilities. It is truly admirable!”

A servant brought over two cups of tea and placed them on the small table beside Old Village Chief Jiang Huai and Zhan Xiaobai.

Old Village Chief Jiang Huai smiled broadly, took a sip of tea, and replied, “Village Chief Xiaobai is too modest. If we are speaking of self-reliance, Xiaobai Village must be ranked first beneath heaven. My Jiang Family Village merely had the advantage of our clan’s existing manpower, allowing us to build a medium-sized village with ease in less than half a month.”

“Oh? What do you mean by that? Why did you not remain in Tianshui? Tianshui is the ancestral home of the Jiang clan, so your influence there must be deeply rooted. Surely it would be much easier to survive there than in this barren land of Longyou.”

Zhan Xiaobai pretended not to understand and asked humbly for guidance.

Old Village Chief Jiang Huai pondered for a moment before saying, “These are matters of family business, but there is no harm in telling Village Chief Xiaobai. At the beginning of this month, the Jiang clan of Tianshui made a decision. They would leave the main clan in Tianshui while relocating the several dozen smaller branches of the family to various parts of the country. I am the elder of one such branch. I led forty or fifty men and women of the clan here, along with more than four hundred Jiang-family guards, servants, craftsmen, and tenant farmers, to put down roots in this place.”

Zhan Xiaobai keenly sensed that something was amiss and asked, “The entire clan has been scattered? What happened?”

“Tianshui is gradually falling into disorder. From the imperial court down to the local authorities, the struggles have grown far too fierce.”

Old Village Chief Jiang Huai sighed and stroked several strands of his beard. Then, suddenly remembering that he and Zhan Xiaobai were still strangers, he halted the subject and said instead, “For my Jiang Family Village to put down roots here, we will need the assistance of the villages throughout Longyou before we can establish ourselves firmly. Especially you, Village Chief Xiaobai—you are the leader of all the villages in Xiliang. In the future, I am afraid we will have to rely on your care and protection.”

What an old fox, Zhan Xiaobai thought to himself. He had revealed only the slightest bit of valuable information before clamming up.

He hurriedly said, “You flatter me. Compared with the strength of Jiang Family Village, my Xiaobai Village is so crude and weak that I can scarcely hold my head up. By the way, I have a small question. I hope Old Village Chief Jiang can enlighten me!”

“Please, ask.”

“Did Jiang Family Village rapidly advance from a small village into a medium-sized one, or was it a medium-sized village from the very beginning?”

“We began migrating half a month ago. Five days ago, we established a small village here, and four days ago, it was upgraded into a medium-sized village. Most of the buildings in the village were only recently constructed.”

Zhan Xiaobai immediately pressed him. “In that case, you must have used village blueprints as well. May I ask where you obtained the blueprint for upgrading to a medium-sized village? Do you have any other blueprints in your possession?”

Seeing Zhan Xiaobai’s eager expression, Old Village Chief Jiang Huai could not help laughing heartily. “Of course we do! Village Chief Xiaobai, there is no need to be anxious. I was just about to discuss this matter with you.”

Zhan Xiaobai relaxed and gave an embarrassed smile. “Village-upgrade blueprints are of enormous importance. How could you expect me not to be anxious? A few days ago, I made a special trip to Wuwei City to see whether I could purchase a blueprint for upgrading to a medium-sized village. I never expected that although the shop did have one for sale, the price was absurdly high—two hundred taels of silver [one tael of silver equals one guan of copper]. Even if I sold everything Xiaobai Village possessed, I still could not afford it. I wonder whether Jiang Family Village designed its blueprint itself or brought it from Wuwei. How many do you have left, and what price are you asking?”

Old Village Chief Jiang Huai gave Zhan Xiaobai a meaningful look. This young man appeared straightforward, yet his mind was as intricate as a seven-windowed heart. Every sentence struck at the crux of the matter. If he revealed even a little more, the young man would probably see through the true strength of Jiang Family Village entirely.

He smiled faintly. “As for where the blueprint came from, Village Chief Xiaobai need not concern himself with that. Why do we not discuss the transaction instead? You wish to obtain a blueprint for upgrading to a medium-sized village, correct?”

Zhan Xiaobai nodded and quickly replied, “That is correct. Please go on. What conditions must I meet to obtain the blueprint in your village’s possession? Must I complete a task, or can I purchase it outright?”

Old Village Chief Jiang Huai took another sip of tea. “It is quite simple. You need only exchange goods for it.”

Zhan Xiaobai blinked.

Bartering? Nothing could be better. If he had to pay in copper coins, he had no idea where he would find the money.

“What goods are required?”

“Ordinary goods will suffice. Since Village Chief Xiaobai is the first guest our village has received, I will not name an inflated price. Supply this village with seven hundred and fifty pounds of grain, one thousand units of timber, one hundred pounds of high-grade iron ore, and goods worth one hundred guan. In return, I will give you the blueprint.”

“Grain, timber, iron, and another one hundred guan?!”

One guan equaled one thousand copper coins, so one hundred guan was certainly no small sum.

Zhan Xiaobai was startled. At present, every kind of goods on the market was extraordinarily cheap. Even a bundle of worthless materials might not fetch two or three copper coins. More expensive goods, such as iron ore, could be bought in large quantities for just ten copper coins. Goods worth one hundred guan were easier to obtain than one hundred guan in copper, but gathering everything together would still be extremely troublesome.

He asked, “How are the prices of the goods determined?”

Jiang Huai took a sheet of paper from inside his robe. “Here is a price list for various goods. Village Chief Xiaobai need only calculate according to it.”

Zhan Xiaobai accepted the paper and unfolded it. It contained numerous categories of materials:

Animal hides: one inferior small-animal hide equals two copper coins; one intact deer hide equals ten copper coins; one intact yak hide equals one hundred copper coins...

Ores: iron ore, copper ore, stone, jade ore...

Medicinal herbs: notoginseng, ox bezoar, Chinese angelica...

And so on.

It was an extremely comprehensive price list for low-grade goods and wealth, consisting entirely of raw materials. All he had to do was gather goods worth one hundred guan.

Zhan Xiaobai noticed that the listed prices were somewhat higher than those on the market and asked, “Can we simply buy the goods and sell them to you?”

Old Village Chief Jiang Huai shook his head. “Jiang Family Village is not wealthy either. We cannot afford to pay such a large sum in copper. Therefore, our village does not purchase any goods directly from outside. We can only exchange blueprints and similar items for goods.”

Zhan Xiaobai nodded and roughly estimated the total value of what he would need to provide.

Grain naturally accounted for the greatest expense. One thousand five hundred pounds of grain could not even be purchased on the market. It was an enormous cost. Timber and iron ore, on the other hand, would be relatively easy to obtain. As for the remaining materials, players had stockpiled them in great quantities, so their current market prices were exceedingly low. There were plenty of sellers and few buyers.

Gathering the goods on the list would not be too difficult. With Xiaobai Village’s strength, it was entirely possible.