Traveling through ancient times, I led my family to prosperity

"Brother Xuan, what kind of friendship do we have? Don't worry, I will definitely take good care of Xiao Lan and make sure not a single hair of hers is lost." Hu Yidao promised hurriedly, "Miss Xiao Lan asked me to accompany her to Xingyuan Mansion. This shows that she thinks highly of me and treats me as her own family."

The carriage had already been padded with a thick quilt. Xiao Lan patted it and then sat in the carriage.

Zhang put a bundle on the car, and Xiao Lan cried out, "Mom, we are going a long way this time, and there is not enough space in the car to carry the goods. There is really no need to pack so many things."

"These are all things you can use daily, you must take them with you." Zhang said righteously. "After all, you are still a girl, we can stay at a place to stay on the way, don't sleep outdoors just to save money."

"Take good care of yourself, Xiaolan." Shen said.

"Grandma, mother, don't worry. We are following General Shen's caravan this time. It will be safe." Xiao Lan smiled and waved to everyone, "Okay, we are leaving. You can go back now."

Hu Yidao waved his whip and saw Xiaolan couldn't help but look back, "Can't bear to leave, right?"

"Yes, this is the first time I go out so far alone. My family misses me and I can't bear to leave them." Xiao Lan looked up at the weather. "It's not too cold now. I hope it will still be this cold by the end of the month."

"It shouldn't be a problem." Hu Yidao said, "Your father wanted to accompany you last night, why didn't you let him go?"

"I have a lot of land at home, and I should start planting it next month. If my father follows me to Xingyuan Prefecture, it will take more than a month if everything goes well. If not, it will be good if he can come back before the New Year." Xiao Lan said, "Once my father leaves, the land at home will be left uncultivated. I don't know what the harvest will be like next year. Vegetables are half a year's food, so we have to plant the land this year no matter what."

Because it is late autumn, the weather is not particularly cold yet. Everywhere you look, you can see yellow leaves, and there are even some trees that have already fallen all their leaves, leaving them bare.

When the two arrived at Liaodong Prefecture the next day, Hu Yidao first sent Xiaolan back to her house. Aunt Liu was already waiting for them at the door.

"Aunt Liu, why are you here?" Xiao Lan hurriedly got out of the car and greeted her.

"Before your uncle Hu left, he told me that you would be back today, so I bought some food and came here." Liu said, "Open the door quickly. You must not have eaten well during the journey. I will cook for you and heat up the kang so that you can be warm at night."

Xiao Lan was also polite to the couple. After all, her family and the Hu family had shared weal and woe, and Xiao Lan had long regarded Uncle Hu's family as her own family. Otherwise, she would not have brought Hu Yidao with her on this trip to Dajin to do business.

"Uncle Hu, let's take a break this afternoon, and tomorrow we'll deliver the money to the merchants and bring back our goods." Xiao Lan discussed her plan with Hu Yidao, "Once this is done, we'll go ask the merchants who have been to Dajin what precautions there are when doing business with the Hu people."

Hu Yidao nodded and said, "We have to ask about this matter privately. Neither Daqi nor Dajin supports trade between the two countries. Those merchants risked their lives to do business in Dajin. This does not stand up to scrutiny. After all, it is smuggling."

"Miss Xiaolan, there will be a temple fair in Quanshui County in a few days. After passing Quanshui County, go north a little and you will reach the territory of the Hu people. We can go to Quanshui County to explore the way first."

"Okay, let's do it." Xiao Lan said.

The next day, Xiao Lan followed Hu Yidao to settle the money with the sellers and agreed on a time for them to deliver the goods to her house.

Just when the two were busy counting the goods, He Mingyu came to visit.

"Hey, Miss Xiaolan, you're really generous this time." He Mingyu said with a sigh as he looked at the goods piled up in the yard.

"We are just a small-scale operation, and we are not as good as your General Shen." Xiao Lan said. "I heard that many of your supplies were transferred from the nearby prefecture city. Tsk tsk, your general is amazing when he does something."

"What's the old saying? If you don't open a shop for three years, you can make a living for three years after you open it. Why don't you persuade them? After all, this is our first trip to Xingyuan Prefecture and we are not familiar with the route. Aren't you afraid of losing money?"

"Look at what you said. If you could get compensation, would you buy so many things?" He Mingyu gave Xiao Lan a sidelong look and said, "I came here to ask you about your arrangements. It's almost the end of the month."

Xiao Lan thought that He Mingyu was a promising man and knew that she was well versed in business, so he would not be disdainful of asking her questions just because she was a twelve-year-old girl.

He Mingyu must go to Xingyuan Prefecture. As the first counselor under Shen Liu, he naturally has to do what his master can do. Xiao Lan must also go with him. The interests of both parties are tied together, and cooperation is a win-win situation and each side gets what it needs.

"We plan to go to Quanshui County tomorrow. We heard that there will be a temple fair there in a few days." Since everyone is cooperating for mutual benefit, there is no need for her to hide anything.

He Ming and Shen Ada followed them to explore the way to Quanshui County. After rushing, they finally arrived at Quanshui County before dark.

"We will split up tomorrow." Xiao Lan said. "It just so happens that I haven't been shopping for a long time, so this is a good time to go shopping to my heart's content."

Although they said they were going shopping, Xiao Lan and Hu Yidao's main task tomorrow was to sell fabrics. This time they brought half a truckload of fabrics just to test the waters.

The temple fair lasted for three days, with many merchants and small vendors coming and going. Early the next morning, Xiao Lan and Hu Yidao drove the carriage out. Hu Yidao climbed onto the carriage and untied the ropes, "Here are the finest brocade and silk. Come and see them, everyone."

Hu Yidao's voice was loud and powerful, making everyone who heard it couldn't help but look in that direction.

Hu Erhan stood in the teahouse and looked down at Xiao Lan's carriage. He took in all the fabrics on the carriage. "The Han people's brocade is better looking than our furs, but it's just good-looking and useless. It's not as warm as our furs."

"Second Young Master, the people of Daqi are just like these flashy brocades, good-looking but useless. The people of Daqi Dynasty are cowardly and incompetent. Sooner or later, our Dajin will be able to swallow them up." Wu Mengdao, who followed Hu Ershan to secretly come to Quanshui Town to gather information.

Hu Ershan didn't believe it. They had just suffered a defeat and paid a lot of tribute to Daqi. The people of Daqi Dynasty seemed cowardly, but they were very tenacious, which was why they were defeated in the wars they launched.

Hu Ershan pondered for a moment, then pointed at Xiaolan's stall and said to Wu Meng, "Go and buy a piece of each type of fabric."

Wu Meng was puzzled. "Second Master, winter is coming soon. It's cold on our grassland. These fabrics are not as warm as our furs."

Hu Ershan glanced at him coldly.

Wu Meng's heart skipped a beat. "I deserve to die. How can I interfere with the Second Young Master's decision?"

"Go and buy one of each," said Hu Ershan.