Sang Hongyang

Buying a house in Chang'an City is not easy, as there are various intricacies involved, but renting a "lièsī" or "dìshè" is not difficult.

Once you are registered in the market according to the government's ranking system and have paid the market rent, you can set up a stall or rent a "shop" or "house".

'Lie Si' is similar to a small stall, with only a few square meters of space, but it is located in a bustling area and can be used to sell some common items.

'Dishe' refers to a warehouse or storehouse, such as an inn or guesthouse. Most 'Dishe' are located on the street and are independent buildings.

The former is cheaper and suitable for flexible employment, while the latter is necessary when a business reaches a certain stage.

Demand was obviously low during the early stages, so Zhang Xuezhou rented the Lie Si for two years with 500 and a half taels of silver.

"My few bushels of millet, even if the price doubles, won't sell for more than five hundred and a half taels of silver!"

Xu Yuan led his donkey, carrying two bushels of dried millet, into the city, and then entered a place called "Ge Sanhao Grain and Material Store".

"Don't even think about your few bushels of millet. There are other people selling millet too," Zhang Xuezhou said. "When we see people selling grain in bulk, we'll buy it and put it in our stalls to sell. We can earn a little extra in commission, it's not a loss. It saves them trouble, and it gives us something to do!"

The millet we eat isn't so particular, but the millet used for seed is something we have to be careful about.

Xu Yuan had extremely high requirements for the seeds used for germination, and Zhang Xuezhou allowed him to slowly select the best ones.

Right now, they're haggling over every penny, but once this business expands, they'll not only have people helping them with the work, but they'll also have a steady stream of money and assets.

If he fails, Zhang Xuezhou will simply consider it a waste of money.

He now has more than ten taels of gold and thirty taels of silver. Although it's not enough to make a fortune, it's enough to do some small business without any pressure.

"Cousin, there's someone over south carrying two loads of millet, about two bushels, and he's asking for twenty coins!"

Zhang Xuezhou chatted idly, while Xu Yuan was busy selecting millet varieties and displaying regular millet for sale.

A short while later, Rong Tianding had been out running errands, returned.

"This price is not bad," Zhang Xuezhou said. "As long as they are relatively dry, we can buy them!"

"It's not about the price," Rong Tianding said in a low voice. "The south side sells millet for twenty coins, but I saw someone in the north selling two shi of millet for twenty-five coins, while the shops sell it for fourteen and a half liang per shi."

"It seems there's a price difference. Are there many people selling millet in the south?"

"There are seven or eight people selling them now, all charging ten and a half taels of silver per stone!"

"Look, here comes the money!"

Zhang Xuezhou shrugged.

There is a general market price for grain, but this price fluctuates with market conditions, and it is normal for some farmers who come to the city to ask for prices higher or lower.

It happens daily that there's one price on the south side of the market and another on the north side.

Farmers are not market researchers, and carrying a load of over 200 pounds is not suitable for wandering around, which creates a certain price difference.

Buyers are often unsure whether prices are cheaper in the north or south, and when they need something urgently, they tend to choose the nearest option.

Zhang Xuezhou urged them a few times, Rong Tianding then took Xu Yuan to collect the scattered grain.

It was harvest season, and there were many people buying and selling grain, making business very easy.

After collecting and sorting the grain, they could likely sell it that same day, so they didn't hoard any grain in the market.

This is somewhat similar to Zhang Xuezhou's business dealing with exotic animals, only in a different form.

Doing this kind of thing is not illegal, nor does it violate any of the laws of the Great Han Dynasty. In fact, there is no tax on this kind of retail sale at present.

"If we can successfully sell it, we'll have a net income of thirty to forty and a half taels of silver a day. We'll recoup the rent in about ten days, and that'll be enough to feed the three of us!"

If you stay in the cheapest hotels and eat the simplest food, the income from this reselling is more than enough for three people to live on.

The businesses in the East and West markets aren't limited to just these seven or eight people. If Rong Tianding were to wander around and gather more business information, his income would obviously increase.

Once they hire a few more people, their efficiency will improve further.

"I wonder if anyone's broken a leg or arm recently?"

In today's world, making money through a small business is only possible with minimal capital; you won't starve, but you won't get rich either.

Zhang Xuezhou thought about some of his long-time clients and his steady, reliable luck, and finally banished the idea of making quick money from his mind.

His goal has always been clear: to become an official and even a "censor".

Only by riding the wave of the Great Han Dynasty could he act with confidence and boldness, and not be afraid of making quick money.

This is his biggest takeaway from his repeated experiences in recent years: once he falls into the belief that luck brings results, he will obviously stick to this belief until he satisfies this need.

The existence of 'movement techniques' further supports this idea.

"Boss, where are your twelve and a half taels of millet per shi?"

Rong Tianding and Xu Yuan collected the grain, while Zhang Xuezhou tended the shop.

As he pondered the various aspects of the technique, he heard a clear voice, which made him look up and see a young man asking a question outside the stall.

"How much do you want?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"I'll take as many as you have!" the young man laughed.

He casually reached into his waistband and then took out a long string of half-ounce coins.

"I'll take your job. Please have a seat here. I've already sent my men to haul away the grain. As long as you have the money, you can take as much as you want!"

Zhang Xuezhou with joy.

Before they could even stand in the West Market hawking their millet, customers came to buy it.

This young man was only fifteen or sixteen years old, but his tone was quite boastful.

But with that half-ounce coin as a base, Zhang Xuezhou would still do the business today, no matter if the other party was fifteen or sixteen years old, or even five or six.

He moved a stool over and let the young man wait in the stall.

When it comes to killing time with casual conversation, Zhang Xuezhou is a pro.

Before long, he had learned a thing or two about the young man's situation.

"Brother Hongyang, I didn't realize you were in charge of purchasing grain. Your daily demand must be quite substantial," Zhang Xuezhou said with a smile.

"It's only a couple hundred shi (a unit of dry measure), one carriage can easily carry it all!"

The boy's name was Sang Hongyang, Sang as in mulberry tree, not Shang as in merchant.

But the other party enjoys doing these kinds of business transactions.

Zhang Xuezhou and Sang Hongyang had several conversations, and Zhang discovered that Sang was extremely skilled in calculation, but also extremely averse to discussing family background, place of residence, and other such matters.

This prompted Zhang Xuezhou to quickly steer the conversation towards arithmetic.

"There is an unknown number of objects. When counted in groups of three, there are two left over; when counted in groups of five, there are three left over; when counted in groups of seven, there are two left over. How many objects are there?"

Zhang Xuezhou posed several questions in succession, which greatly interested Sang Hongyang. He felt that this millet seller was careless in his business dealings but extremely good at setting questions.

He answered several questions in a row, and only when he heard a sound coming from outside the store did he look at the two young men carrying loads on their shoulders and pulling donkeys to haul goods.

"Our millet has sold out. This Brother Hongyang needs one hundred to two hundred shi every day, and he'll buy it all as long as it's twelve and a half liang per shi!"

Before Rong Tianding could even ask, panting, Zhang Xuezhou immediately directed the buyer.

"My money is here, my wagon is there. As long as you have goods, don't worry about me not having money!"

Sang Hongyang took out his money pouch and pointed to an old horse pulling a cart standing in a corner about a hundred meters away.

After everyone weighed the grains, they all handed over the millet that they hadn't yet selected.

Even after receiving the money, Xu Yuan still looked somewhat incredulous.

They had already earned a net profit of twenty and a half taels of silver after running only one mile.

And I can make at least two more trips like this today.

The key point is that this kind of business is long-term. Sang Hongyang seems to be very interested in Zhang Xuezhou and has already sought long-term cooperation with the Ge Sanhao Grain and Materials Company, and even intends to expand acquisitions.