17

Nie Huanzhang reluctantly left Yucheng town. He promised Zhou Chuyu that he would come back to visit him next time and then headed to see Yue. He discovered that Feng Yuan and his wife took excellent care of Yue so he expressed his gratitude by giving Feng Yuan a substantial profit. He also casually mentioned the situation regarding the return to Huichun Tribe, without revealing the tasks assigned by Yuhong Xuan. Feng Yuan understood that future business dealings in Huaichun would become more challenging so Nie Huanzhang said:

"Don't worry too much. It's not yet a desperate situation. I'll inquire more about this this time."

Feng Yuan sighed and said:

"I don't worry. I just feel that the current business is really difficult. Not only is it tight domestically but many people have also quit. Only those skilled artisans still have relatively good merchandise."

Nie Huanzhang smiled and said:

"Don't be anxious. If you don't want to continue in this line of business, it won't affect me much. You have other ventures to consider. I think you should focus more on those."

"What do you plan? Are you still going to do this business?"

"I don't know either. That is why I want to visit other clans in Huichun Tribe first. After all we don't know what the Khan in Huichun plans to do, how the eight clans might change and what moves our country might make. These are all variables."

"I'll wait for your decision first, to be honest, I've been focusing more on my own business now. My wife also wants a normal life, considering the future for the kids. With her pregnant and Yue living with us, we can't let the children suffer in any way. I don't want to sorry to Yuheng."

"Is your wife pregnant again? Congratulation, Mr. Feng! I didn't expect you to be quite considerate."

"What about you? You're about 20 years old now. It is time to consider marriage. Once you have a wife, life will stabilize and you won't need to travel around. The two of us can focus on domestic business. To be honest, I quite like partnering with you."

Upon hearing Feng Yuan mention his marriage, Nie Huanzhang couldn't help but think of Zhou Chuyu and smiled. Nevertheless, he responded:

"Yeah, I quite like partnering with you too. Speaking of domestic business, let me introduce you to a potential partner. You've met their youngest master, Zhou Chuyu. Their family mainly sells things from their own shops and manors and estate, and they've been doing quite well in the vicinity. The eldest child, Zhou Chuqin, who is Zhou Chuyu's eldest brother, wants to expand the business territory. He inquired about the commercial routes to Huichun Tribe from me as I don't have given Zhou Chuqin a definite answer regarding the current situation in Huichun. So I thought I'd explore other possibilities to help him. Since you're my partner, I wanted to bring it up with you. It's up to you whether you want to collaborate or not."

"I remember you mentioned that the kid came from Yucheng town, right? I recall the Zhou family in Yucheng is indeed quite prominent. Alright, since you brought it up, I'll pay them a visit. To be honest, it is impossible for me to do business with him if there is no great profit. What if they don't trust me?"

"Zhou Chuyu knows you. And if you mention me to him, he'll trust you. Of course you decide by yourself whether to cooperate with him. Don't worry!"

"Oh, it seems you have quite a special relationship with this Zhou Chuyu. But can he make any decision at home?"

Huanzhang smiled and said:

"Well, that boy! He is the darling of their family. Despite being born out of the concubine, his several legitimate siblings treat him like a treasure. His legitimate mom even regards him as her own. But regarding to the business, you should talk to his eldest brother, Zhou Chuqin first."

"Alright, I will head to Yucheng in a couple of days."

Nie Huanzhang swiftly set out westward with his goods. He didn't have decided which border crossing to use yet, but considering the situation in Huichun Tribe and what actions the government might take, he thought it best to gather information first. Thus, he decided to cross through Liangzhou city and meet with Yuhong Xuan. As soon as he arrived in Liangzhou, he went to the Xinglong Inn, expecting someone from Yuhong Xuan to come and meet him. Surprisingly, Yuhong Xuan himself arrived, accompanied by Yu Weiwei.

Nie Huanzhang said, bowing deeply to Yuhong Xuan:

"Your Highness, my visit this time is purely for personal reasons. I know that after learning about the situation in Huichun Tribe, you will take appropriate actions. Therefore, I want to gather some information to decide how I should proceed. If Your Highness could share some insights, I would be immensely grateful."

Xuan Yuhong smiled and said:

"No problem, I can tell you but not for free. You'll need to do something for us. Don't worry, there is no danger. Weiwei, go ahead and inform him then we can discuss other matters."

Nie Huanzhang sighed, realizing that Yuhong Xuan wouldn't let him off so easily. He nodded and Yu Weiwei proceeded to inform him of the recent development in Huichun Tribe and the government's plans in that regard. Finally Yu Weiwei said:

"So now all of the trade on the western border is under control. As for businesses like yours that won't be affected, the government is currently regulating bulk goods. I believe the Ministry of Rites and Nanyue Kingdom are negotiating on various matters and the officials from the Ministry of Revenue should be on their way to Nanyue. We should have some news soon."

Upon hearing this, Nie Huanzhang knew that the government's decision wouldn't immediately impact his business and breathed a sigh of relief. Yuhong Xuan glanced at him and said:

"Now, let's discuss our matters. As part of the exchange, this time you need to go to the designated location to gather information for us. We need you to find specific items and if possible, you might need to create something for us."

Nie Huanzhang said in a hurry:

"But I've made it clear that I won't work as a spy. I only share the information I heard with you. I'm sorry but I don't want to get involved in anything dangerous."

Yuhong Xuan said:

"Don't worry, I've assured you there won't be any danger. Here's the deal: you listen first and if you have any objections, we can discuss further."

After speaking, he costed another glance at Yu Weiwei. Yu Weiwei said:

"We want you to go to Furu clan. You mentioned that Furu and Doga have a marital relationship and the two clans complement each other. We want you to understand the extent of their relationship, whether there are any grievances and what kind of grievances they have. Then, based on these grievances, we can decide whether there is anything we can do."

"Do you want to sow discord between Furu and Doga? That doesn't seem easy. Alright, I can agree to go to Furu and gather any information about their relationship. That's no problem. But finding their grievances and doing something about it, I'm afraid my abilities may not be sufficient."

Yuhong Xuan said:

"To be honest, we thought about this when we were discussion it so this time we want one of our people to go with you, that is Yu Weiwei. You two can figure out how to proceed when the time comes."

Nie Huanzhang said:

"Alright, I'll follow Mr. Yu's lead. Rest assured, I will do my best. Besides, I have a friend over there named Cheng Hao'er in Furu clan but he is from Doga. He is my intermediary between Furu and Doga."

Yu Weiwei remarked:

"I didn't expect you to have quite a few connections over there."

Huanzhang smiled and said:

"Without the locals as intermediaries, our line of work would be quite challenging. These are relationships passed down from our predecessor, not something I could establish personally."

In Yucheng town, in Zhou Chuyu's room, the soundly sleeping Zhou Chuyu suddenly saw Nie Huanzhang approaching him in a dream. Joyfully, he ran towards Nie Huanzhang and tightly embraced him. They held each other tightly. And the next scene was of Nie Huanzhang holding him while riding on Step Snow, racing across a vast grassland. Zhou Chuyu cheered in Nie Huanzhang's arms and the peacefully sleeping Zhou Chuyu revealed a sweet smile. His dream continued, revealing a more surprising scene this time: He was kissing Nie Huanzhang's response left him feeling a bit….. In his dream, Zhou Chuyu felt his breath quicken, murmuring:

"Ge!"

From then on Nie Huanzhang became the main role in his dreams.