With silver in hand—two million taels of it—
Chen Yi naturally would not leave it gathering dust at the bottom of a chest.
It had to be spent.
By his reckoning, more than half a month had passed since Yan Hai and the others had gone to Guangyuan to investigate.
It was time to take the first step in Hundred Herbs Hall's expansion.
For a Marquis of Military's residence with Two Hundred Years of Heritage to live such a hand-to-mouth life was truly hard to watch.
Not for his own sake, but for the drafty Xiao Family estate, strengthening Hundred Herbs Hall was imperative.
He could not let the Xiao Family worry over silver again.
They would become a laughingstock.
After giving his instructions, Chen Yi counted out a hundred silver notes worth ten thousand taels each from his robes and placed them on the table.
"Of these, five hundred thousand taels will cover the cost of purchasing grain a few days ago. The silver Xue Duanyun and the others earned from selling grain will also be entered into Hundred Herbs Hall's accounts."
"The remaining five hundred thousand taels..."
Chen Yi tapped the silver notes and looked at Wang Ji. "What happened with Xinglin Zhai this time reminded me of something."
"We cannot rely entirely on those merchants for our medicinal herb supplies. We should open a route of our own as well."
Wang Ji lowered his head. "Your Excellency's lesson is correct."
"Though Old Jia has had poor luck, in the end, it is because we have no other options."
"If we run into someone like Xinglin Zhai, rich and powerful enough to monopolize all medicinal herbs, Hundred Herbs Hall's business will inevitably suffer."
Wang Ji glanced at the silver notes on the table, his eyes burning with desire.