"Princess, could you make it a bit cheaper? Ninety wen?" Prince Tuchuo pleaded pitifully.
Seeing that Li Jingyun didn't agree, he wanted to continue playing the victim.
He had just said a couple of sentences, "There are still many people in Huihe who are so poorly clothed that they are frozen to death in the heavy snow."
"Spare me those idle words. Since they are the people under your rule and are having a hard time due to the disaster, of course you should figure out a way to solve the problem. There are tens of millions of people in the Tang Dynasty. How can they have the time to care about this?" Li Chengqian couldn't stand it anymore and directly interrupted Prince Tuchuo.
These words were fresh the first time you heard them, but they became boring after hearing them a few more times.
"Yes, Your Highness the Crown Prince." Seeing that this tactic didn't work, Prince Tuchuo gave up.
To be fair, a hundred wen wasn't expensive. He knew that those Huihe merchants would buy the goods at a hundred wen and sell them for five hundred wen.
The price bottom line set by his father was about the same.
"Crown Prince, Crown Princess, Princess, I've made up my mind. A hundred wen it is. I'll sign and seal the contract right away." Prince Tuchuo said.
As soon as he gave in, Su Gui immediately presented the paper and brush.
Prince Tuchuo carefully checked the contents on it, the location and time of the transaction. After making sure that everything was correct, he signed on it.
He really miscalculated today. This princess, although young, was not easy to fool, not to mention that the Crown Prince and his wife were sitting beside her.
The couple had seen more tricks. The words he had prepared were not enough to persuade them.
Only real gold and silver in front of them might make them change their minds.
Su Rui, the Crown Princess, looked at her younger brother with full of emotion. "You can't even sit still to study. How come you have such a talent for business?"
"Hey? What do you mean by that, Sister?"
Su Gui couldn't stand it anymore. "I just don't like studying. It doesn't mean I don't understand. Next year, in the spring imperial examination, I must get a good rank!"
"You've always refused the official position given by the princess. Do you want to earn one by yourself?" Su Rui was greatly shocked when she heard this.
"The official position given by the princess is an irregularly appointed one. Even if I really work under the princess, I hope it's bestowed by His Majesty."
Su Gui stuck out his neck and argued with his sister word by word.
Su Rui felt a headache. This kid was good in every way, but just too stubborn. He was just like a stubborn donkey.
At first, when Su Rui heard that her younger brother was working for Princess Chengyang, she was worried that her brother might lose his temper and offend the princess. Fortunately, nothing like that happened. Everything had been fine for the past half a year.
Xinxing and Gaoyang: They did quarrel once, but they were persuaded to make up.
These two had similar temperaments. No wonder they could get along.
"Okay, then I'll see what result you can achieve in the imperial examination next year." After a long while, Su Rui managed to say this.
Li Chengqian quickly comforted his wife. "Ruir, children and grandchildren have their own blessings. No, this saying seems a bit off. Anyway, Su Gui has his own ideas. Let's not interfere."
"Hahaha."
His words made Su Rui laugh. Su Rui said with a smile, "Okay, husband. I'll listen to you."
Li Jingyun stared at Su Rui's belly. She had been pregnant for more than two months, almost three months. Counting the time, she got pregnant just a few days after she got married. Her due date was close to that of Sister Lizhi.
The immortal master didn't say anything about this pregnancy, but Taoist Sun Simiao said that the pregnancy looked very good.
"Hongxuan, in a few more months, your little nephew will meet you. Aren't you happy?"
Su Rui was in a good mood and started to tease her younger sister.
Li Jingyun nodded like a chick pecking rice. "Happy. But what if it's a little niece?"
"A little niece is of course good too. Daughters are considerate. When she grows up, it would be best if she can be like you, her aunt." Su Rui said with a smile as she stroked her belly. She didn't care whether it was a boy or a girl. She had only been married into the Eastern Palace for less than a year and was already pregnant. Would it be difficult to have a son in the future?
Her casual words made Li Jingyun feel a bit flattered.
Was she really that good?
It seemed so!
After Prince Tuchuo left the sweater shop, a young man dressed in Huihe clothes immediately followed him. He was the prince's cousin, Tongluo.
Tuchuo wasn't born to the principal wife, so he wasn't valued. He had practiced his eloquence hard and was sent to negotiate business with the Tang Dynasty. Once there was any trouble between Huihe and the Tang Dynasty, he would surely be the hostage.
Cousin Tongluo was the son of his biological mother's elder brother. They were real brothers.
"Cousin, how was the business? Was that little princess moved by what you said?" Tongluo asked in the Huihe language.
Tuchuo also complained in the Huihe language. "That princess is young, but she's not easy to fool. I even knelt down, but she didn't show any sign of giving in. I thought I could persuade her to give us more discounts or even donate, no, bestow some money on us. But I didn't expect her to be so stingy."
"How could this be? She's only five years old!"
Tongluo was extremely shocked.
Tuchuo snorted and didn't want to face this fact. "It's true that she's five years old, but there were also the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess of the Tang Dynasty present. They are much older than five."
"Then, cousin, what was the final price?" Tongluo felt a chill in his heart and then asked.
Doing business was not easy these days.
"A sweater costs a hundred wen. It's okay. Compared with those two unlucky guys from Tubo and Turkic, we're in a better situation." Prince Tuchuo felt a bit comforted when he thought of this.
Then he stared sharply at Tongluo. "I told you to find out how the sweaters are made and try to find some skilled sweater - making craftsmen. How did it go? Why did you come back alone?"
When it came to this matter, Tongluo's face turned even worse. He complained to his cousin dejectedly. "You don't know. There are only about a thousand people in the whole Chang'an who know how to make those sweaters, and they are all in the two mansions of Princess Chengyang. I couldn't get in at all."
"Couldn't you just wait for them outside the door? Give them more silver. Would they still not come?"
Prince Tuchuo was trying to hold back his anger. He didn't expect that not only was he outwitted by the siblings of the Tang Dynasty in the negotiation just now, but also the attempt to recruit the sweater - making craftsmen had failed.
This stupid younger brother of his was really a blockhead!
Tongluo cried with a long face. "I did wait. They told me that each of them was responsible for a part. Some only knew how to spin wool, some only knew how to knit sweaters, and some only knew how to dye the wool. Moreover, the tools for making sweaters were specially made and couldn't be bought outside. To get those things, you have to build connections with the Ministry of Works or the Directorate of Buildings!"
"What?!"
Prince Tuchuo completely lost his temper. He kicked a persimmon tree by the roadside. The ripe persimmons wobbled and fell down, hitting Tuchuo right on the head.
This made a few three - year - old kids around who didn't know any better burst into laughter.
Even Tongluo couldn't help laughing.
Prince Tuchuo's anger burned even more, but he had no other way for the time being. He could only plan for it slowly.
But what he didn't know was that Li Shimin didn't plan to give them the time to plan slowly. In two days, he would send the Turkic people, the Tubo people, and their Huihe people out of Chang'an together.
This farce had lasted too long. It was time to end it.
The Tang Dynasty was still waiting for the cattle and sheep from Tubo and Turkic.