Business

Steward Qian sat barefoot on the couch in the middle of the main room, his hands folded before him. There was even an armrest beside the couch for him to rest his arm on, and a cushion tucked into its inner corner... in other words, a fancy big chair with armrests and a sofa cushion.

On the table farther forward, the mistress of the house had thoughtfully set out several yellow-and-white pastries, though there was no telling whether they were made of rice or wheat flour.

All one could say was that he had learned a thing or two in his master's household. He simply had not mastered the bearing to match, so it was hard to say what score he deserved.

As for the two Lius, they had politely placed a small folding stool each below him and sat on either side, watching him without even taking off their shoes. From the looks of it, Steward Qian might have been a wealthy member of the gentry, while they were lesser gentlemen visiting him and suffering discrimination on account of their standing.

Yet all three men present knew that was not the case. Steward Qian himself knew just how absurd this scene was.

He knew he was merely a slave retainer. Even a slave retainer of the Xie Clan was still only a slave retainer, whereas the two men opposite him were genuine sons of the gentry. Fallen on hard times or not, they were still entitled to exchange formal greetings and converse with the Xie Family's young masters and ladies. He also knew that these two could kill tigers, that dozens of reckless young men from Northern Chu had attached themselves to them, and that they might have several thousand refugees and a Refugee Camp behind them. Considering the crimson headscarves on their heads, they might even have some real connection with the Way of the Celestial Masters. More than that, he knew they had found his little nest and personally witnessed him carrying goods into it. It was as good as having his balls clenched in their fists.

But he was not entirely without something to lean on. He was, after all, the Xie Clan's Accountant, and had served them since before they rose to prominence. Otherwise, how could he have become Accountant of the Inner Residence, in charge of its expenditure? The Xie Clan's current power was there for all to see. If these fallen gentlemen really resorted to force, then even if he staked his life and possessions on it, could they possibly come to a good end?

His only fear was that these men were young, had no sense of proportion, and would take things beyond the point of return.

To give him his due, Steward Qian was one of the few high-level managers of this age. Despite all the tangled thoughts in his head, he still seized upon one crucial point and suddenly spoke. "Gentlemen, if you have any business, please speak freely. I must return to Black Robe Alley before sunset to arrange the supplies, or the young masters and ladies of the Inner Residence will grow anxious."

Yet the moment those words left his mouth, the Accountant realized he had misspoken. On the surface, he had reminded them of his backing, but he had exposed his weakness at the same time.

"That's quite all right." Sure enough, the tall, stooped fellow called Liu Lang gave him a half-smile. "Go ahead, Steward Qian. We'll watch your house for you. We can just as well talk tomorrow."

Steward Qian glanced at his young wife, who had no idea what was happening. Having served the pastries, she was now sorting the goods in the courtyard outside. For a moment, he felt his chest would burst. He almost shouted for her to forget about him and run out with the native slave carrying the goods to call for help.

"Now, now." Just then, the young, money-grubbing lad, apparently called Liu Cheng, spoke at precisely the right moment. "Brother Jili, why would we need so much time? Provided Qian Agong does us the courtesy, this little matter of business can be settled in no time..."

Steward Qian nodded at once, but his mind was already made up. His wife had married him at such a young age; whatever happened, he could not let her fall into the tiger's jaws. At worst, he would let these men extort a great sum from him today. Once he had fobbed them off, he would immediately have his wife find a house beneath the commandery city walls opposite Black Robe Alley and move in. Then they would see what he still had to fear.

"Take a look, Agong." Seeing this, Liu Acheng went straight into the courtyard and carried a bundle of firewood into the main room. Pointing at it, he announced loudly, as though he were earnestly introducing a product, "This bundle isn't ordinary firewood. Every piece is fine peachwood. We had Master Lu-Lu Song, the Grand Libationer of the Way of the Celestial Masters-perform a Blessing and Disaster-Averting Ritual over it. Cook with it in your kitchen over the New Year, and it will ward off evil, banish illness, and turn calamity into good fortune! You needn't worry about the Xie Family's young masters questioning it, either. If they don't believe us, they can send someone with us to Master Du Ming's Manor to meet Master Lu in person, and even bring back a talisman... Master Lu may be an eminent man of the Dao, but like us, he came down from the north this year. We all know one another. We wouldn't deceive you about this."

At these words, not only did Steward Qian open his mouth and find himself momentarily speechless, but Liu Jili's eyelids also twitched wildly. Even the woman outside, presumably hearing talk of warding off evil and banishing illness, cast several curious glances into the room.

Liu Acheng returned to his folding stool and continued calmly, "As Accountant of the Xie household's Inner Residence, Agong, you naturally know market prices... A load of mixed firewood, two bundles weighing fifty jin, costs five sheng of rice. Pinewood burns hot and lasts well, but gives off a lot of smoke. Good as it is, it can only be supplied to military colonies or used by servants in government offices and great households, so it fetches just seven sheng of rice. Turkey oak is much better than pinewood because it gives off less smoke. That makes it the best ordinary firewood, and someone who knows its worth will give a dou of rice for it."

"Steward Qian," Liu Jili cut in to ask, "we haven't got that wrong, have we?"

"If you really can guarantee the wood is dry and unmixed, those prices are about right." Steward Qian remained silent for a while before answering.

"Then what do you think this peachwood blessed against disaster by a master of the Way of the Celestial Masters ought to be worth?" Liu Jili pressed.

"How much do you gentlemen want for it?" By this point, Steward Qian had instead become somewhat composed. Was it not simply extortion?

Liu Jili instinctively looked at Liu Acheng.

The latter gave an answer that left both other men present somewhat startled. "I think even allowing for scarcity driving up the price, ten times is the most it should fetch. Five dou of rice for a load of peachwood would already be remarkable."

Accountant Qian was no fool, after all. He did not immediately tell his wife in the courtyard to fetch two bolts of cloth and send these two men on their way... What a joke. Others might not know, but how could he, as the Accountant, be ignorant? The cloth left at the scene that day alone had been entered into the accounts as a hundred bolts, and there had actually been more than ninety.

These men were Refugee Commanders, after all. Would they come to the home of a mere head slave retainer and threaten him over two bolts of cloth?

With that thought, he spoke cautiously. "How much peachwood do you gentlemen have? And how much turkey oak? Let me speak frankly... The Xie household cannot possibly burn mixed firewood or pinewood, and even turkey oak is only used in limited quantities... As for peachwood, novel though it is, I'm afraid I would still need to explain it to the young masters. You should also know that the young masters and ladies of our Xie household are all intelligent people. If there's too much peachwood, even if you really can obtain Master Lu's talismans, they will probably ask why this Master Lu spends all day doing nothing but blessing firewood against disasters."

"Quite right," Liu Acheng said with a nod. "I actually know that the Xie household mainly uses charcoal. There's no reason for it to use much firewood. As for this peachwood, sorry for the trouble, Agong, but please ask for us. If the member of the Xie Family in charge is willing to use it, then sending you two loads every three to five days would already be plenty. If he doesn't believe in the Dao and won't use it, then never mind."

By now, Liu Jili had begun to savor what lay behind these words. Not only did he raise no objection, he did not even glance at the man beside him, as though the two of them had prepared this pitch long ago.

"If that's the case, why would gentlemen of your standing lower yourselves to come to my house in person?" Steward Qian finally could not restrain himself. "For just a few bundles of firewood, you could have sent any smooth-tongued Daoist over..."

"If we sent just anyone, how could we show our sincerity?" Sitting there with his hands on his knees, Liu Acheng smiled. "Qian Agong, let honest men speak plainly. This sort of business may look simple and straightforward, but someone who makes as many purchases as you do naturally understands its true secret.

"Take this firewood again. It's everywhere, and the labor needed to sort it isn't worth much... If you were willing, Qian Agong, you could call out to the firewood sellers in the market, and dozens of them would immediately sort their wood and deliver it themselves, all neat bundles of turkey oak. So why must you buy ours? Or, to put it even more directly, you could go back and have the household's slave retainers sort it themselves. They could pick the pinewood and turkey oak out of a heap of mixed firewood just as well. Why buy it at all?"

The Accountant in the seat of honor opened his mouth again, but still said nothing.

"So," Liu Acheng concluded, "the key to this business isn't good wood or bad wood. It's the person willing to buy from us... Qian Agong, we came specifically for you. We hope you'll give us a chance and buy as much as possible from us, whether it's firewood, charcoal, or even other things-pottery, ironware, textiles, livestock."

Steward Qian's expression changed slightly.

Although Liu Jili had already understood Liu Acheng's thinking, he still gave him another look, as though hoping to find a flower blooming on his companion's face. But the latter was merely smiling, and his smile could hardly be called a flower in bloom.

"Aren't your appetites rather too large?" Steward Qian remained silent for a long while before slowly objecting.

Liu Jili was about to speak.

"Hold a moment." Just then, Liu Acheng suddenly stood and waved a hand to stop the conversation. Turning toward the door, he called out loudly, "Young lady in the courtyard, we've reached the crucial part of a major deal. Thank you for taking the fellow outside to sit at the alley entrance for a while. There are some things we really cannot let spread."

Hearing this, the woman outside covered her mouth and laughed. "Little brother, what makes you think I'm a young lady?"

Despite her words, once Steward Qian nodded with some effort, she took the young slave retainer and went out, remembering to close the courtyard gate behind her.

"Rest assured, Qian Agong. We certainly won't let you lose out." Once the courtyard gate closed, Liu Acheng turned back. Rather than sitting, he narrowed his eyes at the old man before him, placing one hand behind his back and holding up three fingers with the other. "I offer three guarantees...

"First, there will be no forced buying or selling. We'll draw up a list, and you can send us an order for whatever you find useful. We'll deliver after we receive it. Conversely, whatever you cannot buy from us, you're free to obtain through your usual channels.

"Second, we guarantee quality and quantity. Just as we can certainly take anyone who questions this peachwood to see Master Lu, we will never deliver other goods that aren't up to standard. You can also return them at any time, and we'll sell them in the streets ourselves.

"Third, we'll give you a twenty-percent cut. However much money, grain, or cloth you pay us, we'll calculate it clearly and have someone deliver your share here that very day. If anything is short or mistaken, you're free to stop doing business with us."

By now, Liu Jili had fully caught on and understood Liu Acheng's complete line of thought.

What had happened? At the beginning, when the two of them had reached the end of their rope and sat helplessly on their mats in Black Robe Alley, discussing how they did not know how to dig a charcoal kiln, Liu Acheng must already have thought of borrowing their neighbors' kilns in the Way of the Celestial Masters—sending over their own wood to be burned into charcoal and then selling it. But they had no buyers then, so he had been reluctant to bring it up. After they spotted this Accountant, Liu Jili had thought of using him to secure all the Xie household's firewood purchases. Acheng, however, must already have thought of making charcoal with the Way of the Celestial Masters and taking over the household's charcoal supply as well, or he would never have called out those words at the gate. And now, the fellow had clearly changed his thinking again. If they could borrow the sect's kilns to make charcoal and sell it through this Accountant, why not go one step further?

After all, the things this Accountant had bought along the way were of every description. Though the Refugee Camp did not even have the ability to make charcoal, they were already preparing to borrow kilns from the Way of the Celestial Masters and sell what they produced. Why not simply become middlemen?

Otherwise, they would truly be wasting the position of the Accountant before them.

Meanwhile, Steward Qian naturally had no idea that these men were trying to snare a white fox with empty hands. His Adam's apple bobbed, and he could not help asking seriously, "So you gentlemen actually intend to do long-term business? Major business?"

"Of course we want long-term business." Liu Acheng shook his head and laughed heartily. "But we won't conceal this from you, Agong. Our people only arrived here this year. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been so poor that three brothers went into the mountains for firewood and ran into a tiger. Now winter has come, and unfortunately Grand Commander Chu Pou has fallen critically ill. The Wang, Xie, Xi, Xun, and Yuan families are openly and covertly battling around the Prince of Kuaiji and the Empress Dowager, leaving us without even basic relief... You know about that, don't you, Agong?"

Know about it, my ass! All I do all day is buy supplies and arrange things for the Inner Residence!

Utterly speechless, Steward Qian nevertheless nodded. "Within the Xie Clan's residence, one inevitably hears a few things. I simply never expected them to involve me one day."

"In short, we've reached the end of the mountains and rivers. With no income in sight, people will starve to death this winter." Liu Jili suddenly interjected again, but unexpectedly sounded much more sincere. "As it happens, a certain Master Lu came south with us. He's a master of the Way of the Celestial Masters. The moment Master Du Ming met him, he gave him the manor behind Flower Mountain and even arranged a position for him in Langya Commandery's Household Office. That allows us to draw on the Way of the Celestial Masters and make a living under its wing. The charcoal kilns, iron furnaces, and weaving workshops on its manor are all open to us, and among our several thousand people, we have no shortage of skilled craftsmen... So today's business is fundamentally about meeting an urgent need. But we do understand that ruining our long-term prospects for a moment's greed would be a true failure to distinguish what matters."

Having delivered this mixture of truth and falsehood, Liu Jili actually rose of his own accord and bowed to the other man:

"Qian Agong, I was rash and impatient in my words earlier. Please forgive me. We want to do business for the long term, but we also need to get through this winter's emergency. For the sake of several thousand lives, please help us as much as you can."

Steward Qian fell silent and gave no immediate answer.

"Do not misunderstand, Accountant." Just then, Liu Acheng, who had remained standing all this time, abruptly changed his expression. "You must understand that we're not homeless dogs wagging our tails and begging for pity. We're the tiger fallen on hard times that crashed into those curtains that day. Nor have we come to negotiate with you. We're asking you to cooperate so we can survive! If we survive, naturally we'll be grateful to you. But if we cannot survive, then there will naturally be no way for you to live, either! I left our attendants at Jianchu Temple and came here in person with Brother Jili only to demonstrate our sincerity. So, Accountant Qian, let's stop quibbling over the rights and wrongs of this visit. Just tally up the gains and losses clearly and give me a swift answer! Otherwise, I'll open the gate and call our men right now, and first invite your young lady to be a guest at our camp!"

"With you gentlemen wielding both the soft hand and the hard, what else can I do?" Steward Qian withdrew his gaze from the empty courtyard, then let it fall on the other man's shoulder. His face ashen, he shook his head. "Then please come here again in two days, gentlemen, and draw up a list with me."

"Good. Steward Qian is a decisive man." Liu Acheng exchanged a glance with Liu Jili, then gestured with his lips. "In that case, let's go."

As he spoke, he bent down and picked up the bundle of peachwood.

"I won't see you out." Feeling as though he had received a pardon, Steward Qian waved a hand.

"You misunderstand, Qian Agong. I mean let's go to the Xie household together." Liu Acheng gave a cold smile. "For this first delivery of two loads of wood, we must personally take them to the Xie residence for you. Then we'll bring back one shi of rice, and be sure to deliver two dou here first, to get things off to a good start... Not only that, every future delivery of peachwood will be made by the two of us in person... Conversely, if you feel things aren't going smoothly, Qian Agong, or that we're coercing you, you can shout out in Black Robe Alley at any time and have us beaten to death! How does that sound?"

Steward Qian stared blankly at the two men before him, then gave a dry laugh. "Why go so far, gentlemen? Of course I trust you."

"You misunderstand again, Steward Qian. We aren't doing this to win your trust, but to show our resolve. To you, this is merely an ordinary business deal. To us, it truly is a matter of life and death. Please understand what is at stake, and don't push things beyond the point of return." Liu Jili also coldly picked up the thread. "Well, shall we go? Or do you need to give your young lady some instructions? If so, we'll call her back for you and wait outside the gate!"

"No need, no need. I can just say a word as we leave. Let's not involve her." Steward Qian jumped straight down from the couch and shook his head repeatedly. "I underestimated your courage, gentlemen. In that case, I'll lead the way, and we'll make a trip to Black Robe Alley."

And so the three men went out together. Steward Qian drove the cart, while the two Lius shouldered the peachwood and headed toward the alley entrance with him. Before they reached it, the young slave retainer came to meet them. Emerging at the entrance, they found the woman standing there laughing and talking with the children, just as expected. On seeing Steward Qian, she remembered to remind him that the weather was turning cold and he should keep warm at night. Steward Qian also pointed at Liu Acheng and his companion and said they would be delivering two dou of rice later.

Liu Acheng was all smiles now, with not a trace of that tiger fallen on hard times about him. He nodded to the woman, addressed her as elder sister and the like, and greeted the children too, saying he would see them next time. Only then did he follow the ox cart out of Changgan Lane. They passed Jianchu Temple and joined the remaining slave retainers, who had been idling there. Inevitably, Steward Qian explained matters again, stating plainly that this was special, high-grade firewood delivered by the Way of the Celestial Masters, and payment had to be made in person.

The party then entered by the back road at the western end of Black Robe Alley. They passed the lightly armored warriors and the slaves armed with blades and axes, exchanging repeated greetings, before turning down a side passage and entering the Xie residence's rear courtyard through a thresholdless side gate.

Once there, nothing untoward happened. The two Lius simply unloaded the peachwood at a kitchen. By the time they came out, Steward Qian had already had a shi of new rice prepared and securely bundled.

The two Lius accepted the new rice, shouldered it as before, and left the Xie residence with words of thanks. After leaving Black Robe Alley, they duly found Qian Agong's home in Changgan Lane and delivered two dou of rice. Unexpectedly, a small complication still arose there.

The widow actually handed the two dou of rice back and took out a handful of coins as well, hoping the two men could bring her a Fertility Talisman.

Neither man accepted the money or rice. They simply agreed at once, and only then was the matter settled.

At dusk, the two returned to camp and had someone take the new rice to make porridge, which need not be detailed. Early the next morning, before daylight, they took another seven or eight men straight to the Way of the Celestial Masters' fortified manor and intercepted Lu Song, who was preparing to ride to the Commandery Office for his official duties.

This time, Liu Jili had said beforehand that he would handle the negotiations. Liu Acheng naturally had no objection.

"Brother Lu, we only need a quarter of an hour." Liu Jili cupped his hands before the horse and spoke earnestly. "Many people fled over to us earlier, so you should know about how we accidentally crashed into the Xie household's curtains while hunting that tiger last time?"

"Fortunately, you handled that matter properly, or even Liu Rengong would have had to keep fleeing south." Lu Song merely sneered from horseback. "Rest assured, I'm not a petty man who takes advantage of another's plight. I won't use it as leverage to threaten you, nor will I take it to curry favor with the Chen Commandery Xie Clan... Even if I wanted to curry favor, I have no way in."

"Of course we trust your character, Brother Lu," Liu Jili continued with his head held high. "To tell you the truth, we had no choice and no connections, so we could only draw on the favor owed us for that tiger hunt and seek out the Xie residence in Black Robe Alley. Though the Chen Commandery Xie Clan looks down on us, they still took pity on our helplessness this winter and specifically promised us the residence's winter purchases... And of course we know that we've only survived to this day thanks to the care of Brother Lu and everyone in the Way of the Celestial Masters... So we've taken the liberty of coming today to repay that kindness!

"May I ask whether this private estate has any surplus supplies to sell? Whether charcoal, firewood, ironware, pottery, textiles, furniture, or livestock... Please be sure to draw up a list for us. We'll do everything we can to resell them for you in Black Robe Alley."

Lu Song was stunned for a moment.

At this point, Liu Acheng offered a further reminder. "And we need a Fertility Talisman."

"Right." Liu Jili caught on and repeated it. "And we need a Fertility Talisman."

In the beginning, Emperor Taizu was a commoner, and the multitude had yet to recognize him. Xie Ju of Chen Commandery alone saw his extraordinary worth, and once told him, "You shall be a hero of your age." When Emperor Taizu fell on hard times in Jingkou, he often provided him with assistance and introductions.

-Old Book of Qi, Biographies, Volume 34