Yun Erman's heart skipped a beat. He turned to see several men who looked like constables approaching.
The man at the front was dark-skinned, large, and plump, likely their constable.
Seeing this, the young assistant's legs trembled. He looked at Yun Erman nervously, "M-manager, wh-what should we do?"
Yun Erman: "..."
Look at your lack of courage. We haven't done anything wrong, what's there to be afraid of?
"Stand still. They wouldn't dare do anything to us!" Yun Erman said calmly.
Actually, he felt a hint of worry. After all, this wasn't his hometown. If someone deliberately caused trouble, even bringing out the Crown Prince wouldn't help.
Distant water can't quench nearby thirst. He had to solve everything himself.
"Hey, hey, hey, talking to you two, stop!" The constable walked forward, his official saber slung at his side. He glanced at the carriage, "What's in here? Are you two selling smuggled salt?"
Recently, there had been many merchants dealing in smuggled salt, and the authorities couldn't catch them all.
Especially in this prefecture city, every day people carried baskets to the market to sell smuggled salt, and others sold it secretly from door to door.
The constable saw that Erman looked unfamiliar, clearly not a local, so he stopped them for an inspection.
Yun Erman: "???"
Do I look like a salt smuggler?
Dealing in smuggled salt was a capital offense. I'm still so young, with elders and children at home. Who would be so reckless?
"Officer, we are not selling smuggled salt!" Yun Erman smiled憨厚ly and quickly opened his money pouch, taking out two silver ingots and handing them over. "Officer, take this and have a drink with your brothers!"
Alas, wherever he went, he had to bribe these petty officials.
Seeing the silver, the constable's attitude softened slightly. He pointed at the carriage, "Open it and let's see what's inside!"
"Oh, it's just some worthless items. If you like them, officer, I'll give them all to you!"
Yun Erman's smile was brilliant. After speaking, he quickly instructed the young assistant, "Youwang, what are you waiting for? Hurry and pull down the tarp, let the officers inspect it freely..."
The assistant, named Youwang, responded and walked to the carriage, carefully pulling down the tarp.
Large wooden chests came into view, and a faint aroma filled the air.
The constable sniffed, his brow furrowed. "What is this smell?"
Why was it so pleasant?
Yun Erman didn't waste words. He pried open a chest and took out a large handful of tea leaves. "Officer, this is premium flower tea. Drinking it can relax your muscles, invigorate blood, and also calm the nerves and strengthen the spleen. All this tea is transported by me from Diannan, and I guarantee every box is legal and above board..."
That's right. Yun Erman's trip south this time was mainly to sell tea, along with some antique calligraphy and paintings, books, and high-quality Xuan paper.
These goods didn't need to be transported north. They were sold off at every stop, and were very popular with the common people.
Before autumn even arrived, Yun Erman was already counting money until his hands were numb, and his money pouch was bulging.
He couldn't manage alone, so he hired an assistant on the road to accompany him on his travels.
The constable grunted and checked the other chests. "Indeed, there are no problems. But your horse defecating and urinating on the street is seriously affecting the city's appearance, so you must be fined something..."
His intentions were clear: he wanted to extort two boxes of tea from Erman.
Yun Erman, being clever and quick-witted, dared not be stingy at this moment. He personally unloaded three large boxes of tea. "Officer, please drink it slowly when you get back. Next time I come to the prefecture city, I will bring you some other good things..."
"Hmm, go on, go on. You'd better find a cloth and tie it under the horse's rear, so its droppings don't fall on the ground!" the constable reminded him.
Yun Erman: "..."
So many demands.
In their hometown, donkeys, horses, cattle, and sheep could defecate anywhere in the village. After the dung dried, villagers would collect it for fuel, and in spring, it could be used as fertilizer for the fields.
"Ah, yes, I'll remember that!" Yun Erman replied with a smile.
After seeing off these petty officials, Youwang patted his chest. "Manager Erman, isn't this no different from robbery?"
This was too unreasonable!
Other carriages also let their horses defecate on the ground, why didn't they manage them?
It was clearly because Manager Erman was an outsider that they were deliberately making things difficult for them.
"You don't understand this, do you?" Yun Erman covered the tarp and led the carriage forward. "If you don't take care of these greedy ghosts, how can we do business in this prefecture city in the future?"
"It's just three boxes of tea. If you fret over it too much, you'll only lose out..." Yun Erman said with a smile.
Youwang pouted after hearing this. "Manager Erman, you have such a good attitude!"
He was being fleeced, yet he was still happy.
Actually, he was willing to follow Yun Erman because he was a good and diligent person with a business mind.
Besides, his parents were both dead, and he was the only one left at home. What prospects were there in guarding his small plot of land?
It was better to go out and temper himself, and perhaps even find a wife.
The carriage arrived at the market. Youwang set up a stall and displayed various teas and other sundries.
You must know that in the Great Liang Kingdom, not everyone could afford to drink tea.
This stuff was incredibly expensive. A pot of tea cost several copper coins, which was more than just drinking plain boiled water.
But the tea Yun Erman sold was of good quality, fragrant, and with full leaves.
Most importantly, the price was quite cheap.
"Come, come, take a look, take a look! New tea from Diannan, affordable prices, honest dealing!" Youwang set up shop and shouted at the top of his lungs.
Yun Erman sat on a small stool, smoking and smiling at the passersby.
He was contemplating whether to go home and see Shanshan and Xiaobao after selling this batch of goods.
It had been a long time since he had returned. He dreamed of returning to Dashui Village.
But traveling back and forth was too much trouble. The travel time alone would take more than half a month, or even over a month.
"Alas, forget it, I'll think about it after autumn!" Yun Erman murmured.
"Grandpas and grandmas, come and try this tea. It's free, no charge!" Youwang was extremely enthusiastic.
With his shouting, the pedestrians craned their necks to look over, then uncontrollably moved towards the stall.
"How much is the tea? What's the price?"
"I'll buy two ounces of tea, can you give me a discount?"
"Wow, this smells so good, like flower petals!"
"..."