Building a long-lasting family lineage starting with genealogy

Chapter 21 Selling Tiger Skins

West Market, Qingjiang County.

Xu Mingwei held the reins and walked slowly, a knowing smile playing on his lips.

The sound of horses' hooves on the bluestone path was as fragmented as a water clock. The surroundings were bustling with activity, with shouts from wine shops, the clanging of copper scales in front of rouge shops, and the crisp sound of silver coins falling into plates from teahouses.

“Father was right after all.”

"The world is bustling, all come for profit, and the world is bustling, all for profit."

"With more people and more demand, all sorts of trades will naturally emerge."

"The West Market is full of vendors and small shops, but the combined profits of all of them may exceed those of the major shops in the East Market."

Oh!

Xu Mingwei then arrived at the Yunlai Inn, where Xu Mingyuan was temporarily staying.

Just as they reached the entrance of the inn, they saw Xu Mingyuan, Zhou Ming, Zhao Dalong, and others walking out.

"Ayuan."

Xu Mingwei suddenly shouted.

Xu Mingyuan, who was giving Zhou Ming instructions, was slightly stunned. He turned his head and immediately smiled, "Big brother."

The group walked over quickly.

"Brother, why are you here?"

"Young Master," Zhou Ming and the others greeted him with bows.

Xu Mingwei nodded and smiled, "I went into the mountains yesterday and had some success. I'm here to sell the hides. Father said he'll give you the money from the sale."

"I thought you were familiar with Qingjiang County, so I came to find you first."

“Then you’ve come to the right place. I’ve built up some connections in the county over the past few years.” Xu Mingyuan laughed. “If you go directly to a pawnshop or other places, you won’t get a high price.”

“Mr. Zhou, please do as we agreed beforehand. I need to take care of some things with my older brother.”

"Yes, Second Young Master."

Zhou Ming led Zhao Dalong and the others away.

Xu Mingyuan said, "Brother, let's talk as we walk. What good pelts did you hunt this time?"

"Is it the blue wolf's, the leopard's, or the silver fox's?"

"Take a look for yourself." Xu Mingwei opened the bundle and let Xu Mingyuan look at it for a while.

"That color...it's like a tiger?!"

"The fur is of good quality. Is there any damage? This drum must have been made from more than one piece of fur, right?"

“Two tigers, one male and one female, a husband and wife pair. The male tiger is about half a zhang tall and weighs over a thousand jin. The female is slightly smaller, but still more robust than an ordinary tiger,” Xu Mingwei explained in detail. “They also have a cub, which they took home to be Xueji’s playmate.”

"Uh, using tiger cubs as playmates?" Xu Mingyuan was slightly surprised. Most people wouldn't have the guts to do that.

After all, once they grow up, ordinary martial artists simply cannot handle them.

If one is not careful, even a top-notch martial artist can be severely injured.

“Father allowed it, saying there wouldn’t be any problem with Xueji raising her.”

"Alright, Father is probably right."

After a moment's thought, Xu Mingyuan stopped dwelling on the question.

He was quick-witted, and in the blink of an eye, he came up with a story that could increase the price of the two hides.

The two brothers arrived at the East Market and entered a quaint teahouse.

This teahouse is called 'Shuyuexuan' and has three floors.

The first floor is a hall with tables everywhere, and a storytelling stage in the middle. Every day, storytellers take the stage to tell stories about heroes, famous generals, and strange tales.

The table was mostly covered with a large stack of snacks such as melon seeds and peanuts.

The waiters would occasionally shout "Coming!" in a high-pitched, shrill voice.

The second floor consists of private rooms.

The deposit for just one private room is enough for one person in the lobby on the first floor to listen to music for almost half a month.

As for the third floor, reservations must be made in advance.

"A teahouse?" Xu Mingyuan looked surprised. "Selling here?"

"Brother, this Shuyue Pavilion is the most famous teahouse in the East Market. Its owner's surname is Chang, and his name is Chang Haowen. He is twenty years old."

"I heard he had a distinguished background, and the teahouse was just one of the businesses he ran. I met him by chance."

At that moment, a waiter strode over and called out, "Please, make yourselves at home. What would you like?"

"I'm looking for Young Master Chang."

The waiter was stunned for a moment, then immediately ran to the counter and said something to a middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man glanced over, then walked over, smiling and cupping his hands in greeting, "So it's Young Master Xu. My young master was just talking about you the other day."

Xu Mingyuan returned the greeting with a cupped hand, "Manager He, I wonder if Young Master Chang is here today?"

"It's a private room on the second floor. I'll take you there."

We arrived on the second floor. "Knock knock~"

"Young Master, Young Master Xu has arrived."

"Xu Mingyuan?" A deep, resonant voice came from inside. "Let him in."

"Please come in, gentlemen." Manager He opened the door, invited the two inside, and then returned downstairs to the counter to continue his work.

The interior space is quite large, with several chairs made of pale yellow pear wood placed around the coffee table.

A young man wearing a silver crown inlaid with jade and a gorgeous robe woven with red gold brocade sat lazily.

He had a handsome face, sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and a nonchalant smile always played on his lips.

Beside him, a beautiful young woman of about sixteen was gently waving a jade fan, serving him.

"Brother Xu is here, please make yourself at home."

"Oh, you brought people with you today."

Chang Haowen turned his head slightly and was somewhat surprised to see the two people who had come. After looking them over, he noticed that their eyebrows and expressions were somewhat similar, and said with a faint smile, "Is he your elder brother or cousin?"

Xu Mingyuan casually sat down and invited Xu Mingwei to join him, then introduced him: "He is my older brother, my own brother, his name is Xu Mingwei."

"Wei, high."

"The Southern Mountain stands tall and majestic, while the male fox roams freely."

Chang Haowen commented, praising, "It has the grandeur of a mountain and the ambition to soar to the clouds; it's a good name."

"Young Master Chang, you flatter me."

When Xu Mingwei clasped his hands in a gesture of respect, his back was as straight as a pine tree reaching towards the sun, his demeanor calm and composed, with no hint of flattery or arrogance in his eyes.

Chang Haowen nodded slightly, then looked at Xu Mingyuan, "You didn't come to see me today just for tea and idle chat, did you?"

"I'm here to build relationships and take care of a couple of things along the way."

Chang Haowen chuckled, "Go ahead and speak."

"Young Master Chang, please take a look at these two hides and give me your opinion."

Xu Mingyuan took out two tiger skins from his bundle and he and Xu Mingwei spread them out.

Chang Haowen showed no unusual expression as he carefully examined the man.

"Not bad, it can be considered a rare breed among tigers. Even a first-rate martial artist would have a hard time taking it down head-on, and these two tiger skins are in excellent condition."

He pondered for a moment, his eyes sparkling, and continued, "Either you'll be hit in the eyes or throat, resulting in an instant kill, or you'll be blasted to death by a series of punches."

"Regardless of which one, the one who killed this tiger is extremely skilled."

"Young Master Chang's insight is as sharp as ever," Xu Mingyuan praised with a smile. "However, there's something even more remarkable."

"Oh, what is it?"

"These two tiger skins, one male and one female, belong to a tiger couple."

"He fought desperately to protect his young child, and died from exhaustion."

“Indeed, it’s quite remarkable.” Chang Haowen said calmly, glancing at Xu Mingyuan before smiling. “Brother Xu, are you telling me this because you intend to sell it to me?”

"Young Master Chang, what do you think it's worth?"

"Two exotic tiger skins alone are worth a thousand taels of silver, but with this story, they're worth a thousand two hundred taels of silver."

"Young Master Chang doesn't believe what I'm saying?"

Seeing his expression, Xu Mingyuan smiled faintly.

"Merchants are driven by profit, and it's not uncommon for them to exaggerate the value of their goods."

"If I can prove it's true, would Young Master Chang be willing to accept 1,200 taels?"

Chang Haowen smiled slightly, not caring, "If you can prove it, then spending a little over a thousand taels to accept it is nothing."

"But how do we do it?"

“That’s easy. If Young Master Chang thinks what I said before was just a story, then the claim about the youngest child must be completely unfounded.”

"But unfortunately, the cubs of this tiger couple are being raised in my house. Young Master Chang only needs to send someone to my house to take a look. If there are cubs, then this story is naturally true."

Upon hearing this, Chang Haowen was slightly taken aback. "Your family wants to raise a cub of a different species of tiger?"

Even if they are raised from a young age, when their claws and teeth begin to gleam, they will eventually reveal their true nature in the wild, and if not careful, they will crush their owner's throat.

Even if it's not a demonic tiger, taming it requires beast-taming skills, a skill akin to that of a cultivator.

Xu Mingyuan lowered his eyes and smiled faintly, "We'll talk about the future later. If there's any intention to harm anyone, my family certainly won't keep this menace around."

Seeing that Xu spoke with such certainty, Chang Haowen believed him to be about 70-80%.

After a moment's thought, he said, "Brother Xu is a businessman. You once told me that although businessmen pursue profit, they also need to be honest as the foundation of their business."

"I naturally trust your character, so there's no need for verification."

"If your Xu family can truly be tamed in the future, please allow me to visit once or twice."

"Haha, thank you very much, Young Master Chang. However, the tour will take a while, as it is still just a little white fluff."

(End of this chapter)