Chapter 83

Xizhicai had his own intentions.

"Brother Qinyu, I would like to invite you to join my Songli Association and serve as the head of the Jingnan branch. Are you willing?" Xizhicai deliberately emphasized the words "my Songli Association."

"From what I know, the Songli Association is Cao Si Kong's enterprise, and Brother Zicai is only the agent in Jingxiang," Qinyu reminded the other party to be careful with his words.

"Of course, it is now, because I have only been here for two years," Xizhicai's words were blunt but also had a bold and domineering air. "Within five years, it can be mine."

Qinyu asked curiously, "Why?" Even if you make the Songli Association in Jingxiang as solid as a rock, there are thirteen provinces and hundreds of counties in the empire, and Jingzhou is only a small part of it.

"Because the Songli Association only came into existence after I arrived in Jingzhou, and currently, it only has a branch in Jingzhou. The Jiangdong branch is still in the planning stage."

"You are thinking of..." Qinyu couldn't figure out what Xizhicai really wanted, and why he was telling these things to an outsider like him.

"Since I was young, I have had an ambition to control the spies of the world," Xizhicai didn't hide his intentions. "Only Cao Si Kong supports my idea, so I followed him. However, I lack capable people, and now I can only be considered to have just started. I want to extend my reach to the six or seven most important provinces in the empire within five years, and I urgently need top-notch talents to join. Your family has great influence in Jingnan, and you are young, alert, and energetic, which is exactly the kind of talent I need."

Xizhicai's clear eyes gazed deeply at Qinyu.

"I can cooperate with you!"

"Do you trust me?" Qinyu countered.

"I trust Xiaolan," Xizhicai smiled slyly. "I can see that you like her very much, and you entrust all your wealth and treasures to her management. What else can I not trust you with?... You are right; she has a talent for money, but she never works for me." His voice had a hint of resentment at the end, feeling frustrated by his sister's favoritism.

"What benefits do I get?" Qinyu asked directly.

"Very good! You are smart and don't waste words," Xizhicai smiled in satisfaction, revealing a deep dimple on his left cheek.

Qinyu shrugged. He had long been prepared to cooperate with Xizhicai, although this meeting had repeatedly challenged his understanding and didn't match his image of a wise man. However, he also admitted that the other party's bold and straightforward words were actually the way of communication he liked best.

He felt a slight alertness, perhaps because the other party's emotional and intellectual intelligence far exceeded his own, and had long seen through his character, allowing him to be so direct and firmly control him.

However, listening wouldn't hurt.

"First, I can give you a legitimate title from the court..."

Qinyu's face was expressionless. Nonsense, I am far from needing that!

Xizhicai smiled. "Second, I will transport a batch of machinery to you. In Jingzhou, Yizhou, Jiaozhou, and even Yangzhou, you can't buy such fine military equipment with all the gold and copper in the world!"

Qinyu's eyebrows twitched. In this late Han period, the development of the area south of the Yangtze River was still very poor, lacking everything and lagging behind, especially in military weapons like swords, spears, bows, and crossbows, which were far behind the Central Plains. Sun Ce borrowed three thousand troops from Yuan Shu and swept through Wu and Kuai in two or three years, becoming a powerful warlord, partly due to the advanced military industry in the north.

"Do you have warhorses?"

"Not many," Xizhicai hesitated for a moment. "Don't be too ambitious! You are developing in the south, and good horses from Guanwai and Hebei are of no use to you."

"Short-sighted! I will eventually develop branches in the north," Qinyu retorted bluntly.

Xizhicai stared at Qinyu for a while, then suddenly chuckled.

"Don't worry, by the time you need to go north, our Songli Association will definitely have developed, and we can find good horses for you there," Xizhicai said confidently.

"What is the third benefit?" Qinyu didn't dwell on this issue. Cao Cao himself didn't have many cavalry, and it took a lot of effort to barely assemble three thousand tiger and leopard riders. Xizhicai definitely couldn't provide horses for him.

"You can ask me for gold, silver, copper coins, pearls, and jade. As long as I think you really need it, I will allocate it to you within a certain limit."

"How much activity funds do I have per year?" Qinyu's eyes lit up.

"Up to one hundred gold pieces at most."

"Such a small amount? Forget it!" Qinyu was deflated. He had at least a thousand gold pieces in assets.

"You will need it," Xizhicai's dimple appeared again, showing that he was smiling. "This is under normal circumstances. In special situations, most of it can be converted into supplies for you."

"Is there a fourth benefit?" Qinyu calculated, and it was basically like this.

"I will let Xizhilan follow you. If you need manpower, I can give you a hundred young servants, half of them at the Mingjing level."

"Grand gesture, but I don't need them; I can't afford to keep them! Just find me ten beautiful young girls, at least at the Mingjing level, to follow Xiaolan and serve her."

Xizhicai's face had already turned sour, but he nodded in agreement when he heard the last sentence.

"That's no problem. But why beautiful young girls?"

"So they don't embarrass me when I go out!" Qinyu said casually.

Xizhicai's eyebrows twisted, and his expression was quite vivid.

"Just a joke, don't take it seriously," Qinyu chuckled, easing the atmosphere. "What do I need to do for you?"

Xizhicai looked at Qinyu's indifferent expression, thought for a moment, and said, "Nothing."

"Nothing?" Qinyu was surprised.

You are providing funds, military equipment, various manpower, and even a legitimate title from the court, and you don't need me to do anything?

"Yes, I don't need you to do anything for me," Xizhicai answered firmly. "You just need to fully support Xiaolan."

X, it's all the same.

"If something happens, you can throw her out," Xizhicai said.

"Be a scapegoat?" Qinyu said casually, then realized that the term "scapegoat" was a foreign word, though it was common in the future, the other party wouldn't understand it.

"?" Xizhicai's eyes showed a questioning look.

"Trade a pawn to protect the general?" Qinyu changed his words.

Xizhicai said, "Oh," and understood.

Qinyu was frustrated, but fortunately, the game of Xiangqi was quite developed in the Eastern Han.

"So I will give you twenty female assassins at the Mingjing level," Xizhicai's dimple showed a hint of sarcasm. "This way, you have at least twenty pawns to use repeatedly, without needing my sister to protect you."

"Fine, I don't want the unattractive ones," Qinyu's retort was more like a joke.

Xizhicai laughed heartily.

"Deal!"

"We agreed, the treasures from Yuan Shu's carts, I get eighty percent, you get twenty percent, and we pick the first four items."

Xizhicai waved his sleeve and said, "No problem. As long as we can handle it, it's all yours." Seeing Qinyu about to interject, he chuckled again, "Anyway, it can be deducted from future supplies."

Qinyu said dejectedly, "Fine, you're just talking nonsense." He looked at the sky. "It's about time. What's our next move?"

"My people are tracking the convoy, and we will have news soon."