Chapter 1264: 商议

Jucheng had only one small river, located right behind the shop where He Lingchuan had last eaten.

All was quiet, save for a few women washing clothes by the river, their heads bowed.

After walking for a while, Yu Hai was the first to break the silence. "So, both the Dou brothers are working for you now? Old Dou is easygoing, so that's understandable. But if Old Dou the Second is willing to go, your archipelago must be quite extraordinary."

In Lingxu City, Dou Wenguan and Dou Wuxing had both shared drinks with him. Yu Hai had an excellent memory and recalled the personalities of both brothers.

He Lingchuan chuckled, "The Dou brothers were truly underutilized in their hometown. Only on my island can they truly display their talents."

"Even in Lingxu City, I sensed you were no ordinary person," Yu Hai sighed deeply. "Now it seems, alas, I underestimated you back then. You can take root and flourish as soon as you go to a new place. How many people here long for that but cannot achieve it?"

He Lingchuan said without humility, "When I first went to Yangshan, I also had no foundation whatsoever. I had only fourteen people with me."

"How many people now?"

"All in all, probably around a hundred thousand," He Lingchuan admitted. To be honest, he was not satisfied with this number. However, there was indeed no surplus population near Yangshan to absorb. "Our place is small and sparsely populated, unlike the Blazing Gold Plain, where the population is dense."

The population of the Blazing Gold Plain made his mouth water.

Ultimately, the most important resource was still people.

Yu Hai gasped. "That's more people than in Jucheng. However, Brother He's ambitions aren't limited to a small archipelago."

Otherwise, why would He Lingchuan, instead of being a carefree island master on his island, come all the way to the Blazing Gold Plain, a place plagued by years of war?

"Others only see the poverty of the Blazing Gold Plain, but I believe it has great potential and is worth developing," He Lingchuan said slowly. "I heard that Brother Yu also established the Hometown Association in Lingxu City. Is that organization still active?"

"It fell apart long ago," Yu Hai said with a bitter smile. "After returning to the Blazing Gold Plain, everyone hoped it could continue to operate, facilitating mutual support, given our past camaraderie. But, alas, I had some issues to deal with here and couldn't attend to the Hometown Association."

He Lingchuan then said, "I also heard from Situ that the Yu family is currently in deep trouble."

"A year ago, a series of torrential rains caused the embankment to break, flooding the fields and sweeping away over three hundred people," Yu Hai said, rubbing his face with both hands. "That embankment was supervised by my father. His adversaries reported him, the monarch held him accountable, and my father was imprisoned and fined a large sum in compensation. My family raised funds from various sources, selling off all our land, shops, and assets, and borrowing every debt we could. I'm not afraid of you laughing, Brother He, but to pay this money, I also have to thank several members of the Hometown Association for their strong support. After finally paying it, my family was left with nothing."

He was a proud man, and his face flushed with embarrassment when he spoke of it.

He Lingchuan sighed with emotion, "Brother Yu, you've had a tough two years."

Yu Hai chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Let's just say it was losing money to avert disaster."

Both fell silent.

He Lingchuan waited for him to speak.

Yu Hai walked a few more steps and finally said, "Since Brother He says the Blazing Gold Plain has great potential, where do you plan to start now?"

"I came here first to conduct an inspection," He Lingchuan chuckled. "I saw that Gaopu, with its rich mines and strong horses, has everything my region needs. Actually, the Blazing Gold Plain is rich in resources, many of which are needed externally, yet people don't know about them, and logistics are inconvenient. I intend to open up a trade route here, and if I can do more business with the locals, even if they are small ventures, I'll be perfectly satisfied."

"Small ventures?" Yu Hai laughed.

"Hey, don't laugh, I truly mean it," He Lingchuan said. Yangshan Archipelago was new here and not yet firmly established, so how could easy or highly profitable businesses fall to them?

However, doing business in a chaotic place like the Blazing Gold Plain, how could one manage without local powers as a protective umbrella?

This was a lesson he had learned in Peng Kingdom and Situ's territory.

Yu Hai nodded. "Brother He has foresight. By the way, would the Yangshan Chamber of Commerce be interested in the pearl and medicinal herbs business?"

"Pearls are everywhere, aren't they?" He Lingchuan said casually. "My Yangshan Archipelago is rich in pearls, with sea monsters specifically diving into the deep sea to harvest them. Sometimes they even retrieve night-shining pearls as large as broad beans."

"Pei Kingdom has many lakes, and two of them produce unique pearls," Yu Hai explained. "One kind is called 'Peach Blossom,' and the other, 'Clear Sky.'"

With that, Yu Hai took out two small brocade boxes from his pouch and opened each one.

On the black velvet cushion of the first box lay three perfectly round pearls, each the size of a red bean, delicately pink, like a maiden's blushing cheeks.

In the other box also lay three pearls, the color of sky-blue, exactly resembling the clear sky above their heads.

People often spoke of 'jewel-like radiance,' and it referred to the luster of these two types of pearls.

They were lustrous, understated, and soft.

He Lingchuan didn't find pearls of this size and roundness particularly rare. What was rare was that all three pearls were identical in hue and size, as if cast from the same mold.

They would be perfect for making necklaces, earrings, headbands, or belts.

"The quality is indeed excellent," He Lingchuan said. Being an island master with treasures equal to his stature, his discerning eye for appraisal was far superior to before. He didn't directly reach for them. Instead, he took out a pair of spider silk gloves, put them on carefully, and then gently picked up the pearls to examine them. "Even if sold in Beijia, they would be rare and valuable commodities."

"If Brother He would accept them, please take these two boxes of precious pearls."

These pearls were certainly not cheap. Yu Hai's family had fallen on hard times, and his money pouch was emptier than his face; how could he afford such valuable items? While admiring them, He Lingchuan said, "It would be disrespectful to refuse; Brother Yu, you are truly thoughtful."

Yu Hai chuckled, "How could I afford to give this as a gift now? To be frank, Brother He, these were gifts from my monarch."

He Lingchuan tucked the brocade boxes into his robe, without a hint of surprise on his face. "Then please tell your monarch, Brother Yu, that I truly like this gift."

Yu Hai was slightly taken aback by his reaction, but he continued to introduce Pei Kingdom's natural resources.

He Lingchuan had not expected that Pei Kingdom was actually a source of Ghost Cicada Exuviae!

This was an essential material for him to perform the Plum-for-Peach Substitution technique. It could also be used in medicine to produce various elixirs. It was difficult to obtain elsewhere; whether in the Panlong World or the Yangshan Archipelago, he had always paid a hefty price for Ghost Cicada Exuviae.

Yet, it was one of Pei Kingdom's specialties.

Yu Hai then went on to introduce several other precious medicinal herbs, and one of them made He Lingchuan's heart pound with joy:

That was the medicinal primer for refining the Hundred Goodness Pills.

The Hundred Goodness Pills were refined from Imperial Ambrosia and were specifically for cultivators' daily use.

By 'daily use,' it meant they had to be purchased regularly; the medicine couldn't be stopped.

The Yangshan Archipelago sold Hundred Goodness Pills, and currently, they cost as much as two hundred taels per pill, yet supply couldn't meet demand. Besides the Imperial Ambrosia being precious, the other medicinal herbs weren't cheap either.

If the cost could be reduced, it would increase profits.

After all, Imperial Ambrosia had been frequent recently, but cultivators' daily demand for Hundred Goodness Pills had never weakened. If the price of Hundred Goodness Pills dropped later, even more people would buy and consume them.

He quickly calculated in his mind, but outwardly remained calm, keeping his thoughts carefully hidden.

Yu Hai felt uneasy, knowing that the other party was evaluating the situation.