Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

Yu Zhengqing at the city gate had also given orders early on. Whether relying on Shen Zheng's face or the familiar logo on the convoy, they could leave the city without any hindrance.

Just now in the city, they were afraid of waking up the sleeping people, so they walked very slowly. Once they were out of the city gate, the horses gradually quickened their pace.

The sound of horse hooves and wheels played together. Shen Zheng was tossed around in the carriage and fell asleep in a daze.

When she woke up again, she opened the window and saw that the night was still as dark as before. Looking around in the darkness, she could only vaguely see the street scenes hidden in the night, which did not look familiar.

After stretching his stiff hands and feet and rubbing his face, Shen Zheng lifted the car curtain, bent down and walked out.

The cool breeze made her mind clearer. She looked at the street scene ahead and asked, "Are we in Yonglu County yet?"

Wang Guangjin was frightened by the sudden voice and shivered. He patted his chest and turned back and said, "My lord, are you awake? We have just left the main street of Yonglu County and it will take a while to return to our county. Can you rest for a while?"

Shen Zheng shook her head: "It's almost time to rest."

She went back into the carriage, took out some snacks from the small drawer, and gave a pack to Wang Guangjin. "Want some?"

Wang Guangjin did not refuse and took the cake with one hand. He ate it and said, "I am really a little hungry. I guess the brothers driving the car are also hungry."

Shen Zheng nodded: "There are not many snacks in the car, so we can only take them back to the county and buy some hot snacks for everyone."

While eating some snacks, Wang Guangjin smiled and praised: "Your Excellency is so kind."

Shen Zheng smiled and shook her head.

Since she didn't want to sleep anyway, she simply sat on the car with Wang Guangjin, occasionally looking up at the night sky with twinkling stars, and sometimes turning her head to look at the trees on both sides of the road.

She smelled the faint smell of cotton in the air and suddenly asked, "How do you negotiate the price for cotton purchases?"

Finally asked him!

In fact, Wang Guangjin had wanted to talk about this a long time ago, but who knew that Shen Zheng was so patient that she didn't ask him for a whole day!

Seeing the opportunity to "take credit" coming, Wang Guangjin unconsciously sat up straight and wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand: "I'm dying of holding it in, sir, you finally asked!"

It seems like he's holding it in quite a bit.

Shen Zheng chuckled: "After all, it's a done deal. It doesn't matter whether you ask sooner or later, the result will be the same."

Wang Guangjin secretly admired him - is this the mindset of an adult?

Then, Wang Guangjin talked incessantly about his experience of buying cotton with Wei Que.

"My subordinate and Lord Wei went to Ximi Prefecture, which is located in the westernmost part of our Great Zhou. There is no canal transportation there. After my subordinate and Lord Wei arrived at the neighboring Heta Prefecture, we rode to Ximi Prefecture. The good cotton area is not deep in Ximi Prefecture, otherwise my subordinate would not be able to get back now!"

Ximi Prefecture was the capital city that was captured by the cavalry of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

This is a fertile place. Although the grain output is not high, it is rich in fruits and vegetables, and is also well-known for its cattle and sheep. The horses here are especially strong in endurance and good in adaptability. They are a high-quality breed that makes countless soldiers jealous.

A hundred years ago, the vast Ximi Prefecture was not within the territory of the Great Zhou, but was occupied by the Huns. Further northwest was also the territory of the Huns.

The previous dynasty said that the territory belonged to them long ago, but the Huns refused to acknowledge it. The two sides fought for many years, and finally a hundred years ago, the ancestors of the Great Zhou started this long-planned war.

The war was won with great difficulty, but it was won anyway. One of the reasons was the bravery of the soldiers of the Great Zhou.

Another reason cannot be said to be shameful, it can only be said to be the fate of the Huns - the Arab Empire to the west of the Huns has also coveted the Huns' horses for many years. They could not defeat them head-on, so they could only launch a sneak attack when the Huns were fighting with the Zhou Dynasty.

This theft actually relieved the combat pressure on the Great Zhou and brought in food and reinforcements.

The Huns lost a lot of their territory and a lot of their horses were looted by the Arabs. Shen Zheng guessed that they were still holding their breath, looking left and right, not knowing where to seek revenge first.

Wang Guangjin was still talking: "Over there, most of the cotton fields are not specially developed for cotton cultivation, but the cotton grows well there, and the flowers are plump and white, which is very pleasing to the eye!"

"When I went there with Lord Wei, the cotton had already matured, and many of the cotton fields had not been picked. They were just left to rot in the fields. I felt so sad when I saw it!"

Shen Zheng estimated that the early cotton would mature in August, and the late cotton would have to be picked in December at the latest. Wang Guangjin and Wei Que would be able to catch the opportunity this time.

"Then what?" Shen Zheng asked.

"Then, most cotton fields have no one to guard them except for those vicious dogs. Lord Wei and I can... go and see for ourselves, to see which cotton is better and has less pests, and compare more."

"Aren't you afraid of the vicious dog?" Shen Zheng was surprised.

The dog in the west must be a small Tibetan mastiff, right?

"A dog can't see it all." Wang Guangjin began to be proud: "Such a large piece of land, at least dozens of acres, how can a dog see it all. Let me tell you..."

Wang Guangjin approached mysteriously and said, "Those dogs have never eaten meat buns. I threw the meat buns aside and threw them in the opposite direction. The dogs sniffed everywhere and looked for them! They were so busy drooling that they had no time to look at the cotton field."

"Very resourceful." Shen Zheng was stunned for a moment after praising him, and then asked: "Why don't you... greet the owner of the cotton area before going to see it?"

“Ah…” Wang Guangjin showed his disgust. “A small number of people over there have Xiongnu blood. They are hostile to us fair-skinned and authentic Great Zhou people… well, I can’t say how much, but they are just unfriendly. They charge us two coins for each visit! And they don’t want copper coins, they only want small change!”

It’s broken.

Shen Zheng frowned when she heard this: "If you buy cotton from them, won't they definitely rip you off?"

"That's what Lord Wei and I thought at the time." Wang Guangjin said, "So we explored the background of the owners of each cotton-growing area. If they are unfriendly to us, we will just ignore them and wait for their cotton to rot in the fields. When they know how good we are, we will see if they will continue to rip us off."

Shen Zheng laughed.

Purchasing is a two-way transaction. Cotton is produced in abundance in Ximi Prefecture, but there are fewer people going to purchase cotton. In fact, if we want to judge who is better, it has to be the other party who pleases Wang Guangjin and the others.

Otherwise, we can only wait for the cotton to rot in the fields as Wang Guangjin said.

What Wang Guangjin meant by "our good" is that the other party has cotton but does not have many means to "turn waste into treasure", so it has to be wasted.

By selling cotton to them, the next time the ship goes there, it may bring back some of the things they need, thus achieving mutual benefit.

"The last one we liked was owned by a family from Heta Prefecture who went to Ximi Prefecture specifically to rent a large cotton field," said Wang Guangjin.