Grass and mustard reign supreme

Chapter 95 Leaving without saying goodbye
After dinner, Yang Can slowly walked back to the flower hall in the back courtyard.

Night had fallen, and only one lamp was lit in the flower hall, casting a dim yellow glow that enveloped a beautiful figure.

Rena remained seated, leaning slightly forward, her head bowed, seemingly engrossed in something, oblivious to Yang Can's footsteps as he entered.

Yang Can was curious, so he didn't call out to her, but instead quietly walked towards her.

Only when he got closer could Yang Can see the tabletop illuminated by the candlelight:

On the table was a woolen felt cloth with a fine grid pattern, on which dozens of exquisite bone sticks were neatly arranged.

These bone sticks are about the length of a finger, uniform in thickness, and have a translucent white texture. They look like they were made from the leg bones of some kind of bird.

Otherwise, it would never be so small and light, and it would not have such a faint bony sheen.

Rena was looking down, muttering to herself.

She deftly manipulated the bone sticks with her hands, sometimes arranging them vertically, sometimes horizontally, and occasionally pulling a few out and placing them aside, her brows slightly furrowed as if she were carefully calculating something.

Upon seeing this, Yang Can immediately had a guess: Could this be the legendary "counting rods"?
Although he had previously used modern methods to calculate accounts, he had never used such an ancient calculating tool.

He didn't know whether Li Damu used counting rods or not; he had never seen Li Damu do accounting.

In fact, this is indeed a counting rod. The "counting rod" in the ancient Chinese saying "to plan and strategize" refers to this inconspicuous bone rod.

In this era, counting rods are the most advanced decimal system calculation method in the world.

According to the rules, the ones, hundreds, and ten-thousands places should be arranged vertically, while the tens and thousands places should be arranged horizontally, and so on. When the digit "zero" is encountered, the corresponding position is left empty.

Through different arrangements and combinations, counting rods can not only perform the four arithmetic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, but also perform complex calculations such as square root extraction and solving equations.

Of course, compared to the abacus invented by later generations, counting rods are much more cumbersome to operate and much less efficient.

But before the abacus was invented, counting rods were the most convenient calculation tool in the world.

Yang Can had no interest in counting rods. After glancing at them a few times, his eyes began to linger on the two towering snow-capped peaks.

"Ah, Master Manor!"

Rena was engrossed in her calculations, having just positioned a bone stick with her fingertips, when she suddenly noticed two burning gazes.

She suddenly looked up and was startled to see Yang Can standing beside her.

Rena quickly stood up, nearly dropping the bone stick in her hand.

Seeing this, Yang Can smiled gently at her, appearing every bit the gentleman.

"Hey! Don't be nervous, I just came over to take a look. What are you calculating so intently?"

Rena breathed a sigh of relief, sat down again, pointed to the counting rods and the spread-out copy of the contract on the table, her eyes shining with seriousness.

"I'm calculating our profits. Based on the investment amounts agreed upon by the plantation owners and ranchers in today's contract, and combined with the costs and selling prices along the trade route, I'd like to estimate how much silver we can earn from our first transaction."

Yang Can sat down in the chair opposite her with great interest, propped his elbows on the table, and asked curiously with his chin in his hand, "Oh? So, according to your calculations, will our first deal be very profitable?"

When business was mentioned, Rena's eyes lit up instantly, and her voice was full of excitement: "Of course, it's very profitable!"

Hey! If our caravan were to set off from Tianshui for the first time, carrying a thousand bolts of medium-quality silk.

According to the purchase price in Tianshui, each bolt of silk was worth about two taels of silver, so one thousand bolts would be worth two thousand taels of silver.
In addition, there are taxes to be paid at the checkpoints along the way, which amount to about three hundred taels.

There were also the caravan's provisions, guards' wages, horses' fodder, and other travel expenses, totaling about five hundred taels.

Therefore, the total cost is approximately 2,800 taels of silver, which is about 280 taels of gold.

She paused, lightly touched the felt with her fingertip, and continued:

"But as long as we can successfully transport this batch of silk to Samarkand, each piece of silk can be sold for five taels of silver according to the local market price. A thousand pieces would be five thousand taels of silver, which is equivalent to five hundred taels of gold!"

If the silk could be transported further to Rome, the price of each bolt of silk could increase to ten taels of silver. A thousand bolts would be ten thousand taels of silver, which is equivalent to a thousand taels of gold. The profit could be several times higher!
And this is only the outbound journey; we won't return empty-handed, will we?

Bringing back gems and spices from the Western Regions and selling them in the Central Plains yielded roughly the same profit!

After hearing this, Yang Can couldn't help but take a deep breath, secretly marveling at the experience.

"Trading with merchants from the Western Regions is indeed a highly profitable business."

No wonder so many people throughout history have been willing to risk their lives to travel this Silk Road.

Seeing his emotional reaction, Rena gently shook her head, her excitement fading and replaced by the caution typical of a businesswoman.

Born into a merchant family, she knew best the risks of doing business and didn't want Yang Can to think it was a sure-fire way to make money.

"Master, what I just calculated was the ideal scenario where everything goes smoothly."

But doing business is never that easy.
If something unexpected happens along the way, such as the caravan being robbed by bandits, encountering natural disasters like sandstorms or blizzards, or suddenly having taxes increased at checkpoints along the route, or even being harassed and extorted by local powerful figures..."

Her tone turned serious, and her eyes showed a hint of gravity: "If these accidents happen, we will not only fail to make money, but we may also lose everything, and the caravan members will be buried in the yellow sand and never come back."

"Moreover, this is a business that not just anyone can do."

Rena added, "Without strong self-defense capabilities, you can't protect the caravan, you can't do it."

Without understanding the treacherous geographical environment along the way, and not knowing where there are water sources or dangerous areas, it's impossible to do it;

He had no connections with the princes, nobles, and officials at checkpoints in the countries along the way, and he encountered obstacles everywhere, making it impossible to succeed.

If you don't know which places are lacking what goods, or which places are rich in what specialties, and you can't find the right business opportunities, you still can't succeed.

After listening, Yang Can smiled with satisfaction. He looked at Rena and spoke with a hint of teasing but his praise was undeniable.

"So, buying you back then was the best decision I ever made."

I made a huge profit from buying you, my 'female slave'.

With you, I was able to accurately find the path to gold in this vast desert.

Otherwise, even if I had a lot of capital, it would all be wasted.

When Rena heard the word "female slave," her azure eyes suddenly flickered as if stung, and then her cheeks flushed slightly, her gaze becoming somewhat complicated.

At first, she found the term "female slave" particularly jarring and even wanted to remind Yang Can that they had signed a contract: she would help Yang Can earn money for five years, and in return, Yang Can would give her her freedom; she was not a true slave.

But on second thought, I realized that Yang Can wasn't wrong.

If Yang Can hadn't bought her back then, she might have been sold to a wealthy family.

At that time, her fate was probably to become her master's plaything, her only purpose being to sleep with him.

If you're lucky, you might get favored for a while; if you're unlucky, you'll be sold off once they get tired of you.

They might even be casually passed around among noble young men, without any basic dignity.

Yang Can not only preserved her innocence, but also allowed her to participate in business plans, giving her an opportunity to showcase her talents and realize her business dreams.

Thinking of this, Rena's initial discomfort gradually dissipated, replaced by deep gratitude.

She stood up, gently placed her hands on her chest, bowed slightly, and greeted Yang Can with traditional Persian etiquette.

She solemnly said in her mother tongue: "Sepasguzalam, Badalai Yebi Kron, Azadi Yekhoyshrobazhahmhered."

"Hmm?" Yang Can raised an eyebrow, his face full of doubt.

He didn't understand a single word.

Seeing this, Rena smiled and quickly explained in fluent Mandarin.

"I mean, thank you, my lord. I will do my utmost to help you earn endless wealth and will never let you down."

Is that right?

Yang Can looked at her suspiciously, but seeing that her eyes were sincere and her smile was earnest, she didn't seem to be lying, so he nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

He cleared his throat and said, "Ahem, there's something I need to make clear to you."

From now on, you are not allowed to speak your hometown dialect in front of me.

Whether in public or in private, one must speak Chinese.

Rena was taken aback at first, then realized what she meant, and a knowing smile appeared in her eyes.

She muttered a phrase in Persian: “Eh Adam-Yabad-Ghman!” (Okay, you paranoid fellow.)
Yang Can still didn't understand, and seeing that she wasn't speaking Mandarin, his eyebrows rose dangerously.

Seeing this, Rena quickly suppressed her laughter and respectfully explained in Chinese, "I mean, yes, Your Excellency."

"Hmm!" Yang Can nodded in satisfaction.

……

Meanwhile, in another room in the back courtyard, the light was soft.

On the soft couch by the window, Dugu Jingyao was holding a scroll of scripture, sitting upright like a dignified white jade Guanyin statue.

She frowned slightly, her gaze fixed on the scriptures, as if she were carefully pondering the true meaning of the text. Her expression was solemn and dignified, and she seemed completely focused.

But only she knew that her mind was completely elsewhere, and she hadn't absorbed a single word.

She kept a close eye on the sounds coming from the adjacent flower hall, and was secretly muttering to herself.
“Three and a half months have passed since he entered the room, and he and Rena are still alone together…”

In the timekeeping system of this era, "one character" represents five minutes, and "three characters" is "one quarter," which is fifteen minutes.

"Three and a half words" means a little over seventeen minutes.

Dugu Jingyao is a girl with an air that surpasses even the most virtuous monks. Is it a problem that she has high requirements for the precision of time?

"You said you liked me, and this is all?"

Dugu Jingyao pouted, feeling a little sour. He really was a smooth-talking, stinky man.

At the inn, in Yu Xiaobao's residence, the attendant was speaking with a hint of self-satisfaction.

"First, Ba Limo left with his men. In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Tu Ba Junxie led his men to catch up with them. Judging from their posture, they were bound to fight."

Yu Xiaobao tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his mind churning with thoughts.

At the banquet, he witnessed firsthand how the estate owners and ranchers fawned over Yang Can while ignoring him. Their attitude of "treating others like Zhong Wuyan when they need something, and Xia Yingchun when they don't" deeply stung him.

He realized that if he wanted to expand his power and influence, he could only rely on "outsiders".

And the two Xianbei leaders, Balimo and Tuoba Junxie, are now the best "outsiders".

If the bald-haired falconer is difficult to win over, then win over the weak one.

If I could win over one of them, I might be able to gain more leverage.

Since that's the case, Leopard Lord is determined to get involved in this mess with Bald Falcon Evil and Bald Mo.

Having made up his mind, Yu Xiaobao asked in a deep voice, "Do you know where they went?"

“I asked the villagers, and they said that Ba Limo and Tuoba Junxie’s men went in the direction of ‘Tielin Liang’.”

"Tie Linliang?"

Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaobao was taken aback, a look of confusion on his face.

The road to Tielinliang leads to Tianshui City. Why would those Xianbei people leave their own territory and go to Tianshui City?
Seeing his confusion, the attendant quickly added, "Master Leopard, I know you care about their whereabouts, so I specially invited two of the most experienced hunters in the village."

These two hunters are experts at tracking; they can find even footprints from days ago and will never lose track of them!

Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaobao was overjoyed. He slammed his hand on the table, stood up, and spoke decisively.

"Well done! Go and gather our men immediately, we're going after them right now!"

"Yes!" the attendant replied hastily, bowing respectfully, and hurried off to gather the men.

Before long, Yu Xiaobao led his twenty-odd men and hurriedly left Feng'an Fort.

Leopard also left Yang Can without saying goodbye.

(End of this chapter)