Chapter 781: Chapter 594 Chaotic Da Rong Court _2
This is also why he sought out Deng Yuehe and brought Lv Xinghe to Star Moon Island.
The Zhu family, though known for producing Earthfire Steel, doesn’t have large quantities; they sell no more than a hundred weapons forged from Earthfire Steel each year. Yet, Yang Zhenshan requested three hundred pieces per order, which the Zhu family estimated would take seven or eight years to fulfill.
Zhu Changxing chuckled, "I can only provide Brother Yang with thirty pieces, each weapon priced at fifty thousand Silver."
Yang Zhenshan smacked his lips, fifty thousand Silver per piece, meow, that’s expensive!
It seems he had made a bit of a fool of himself just now.
Fifty thousand Silver for one; wouldn’t nine hundred pieces cost a total of forty-five million Silver?
Star Moon Island is wealthy, but not to that extent.
"Let’s start with thirty pieces then, twenty spears, five broadswords, and five longswords! As for the silver, Brother Zhu can take it away right now!" Yang Zhenshan spoke very generously.
The weapons of the Zhu family are quality goods. If they were sold in Da Rong, the mark-up could net Yang Zhenshan a hefty profit.
But, the Zhu family is indeed formidable, far more so than the Shen family in Xiangyuan Prefecture of Da Rong. With the same quality, the Shen family could only forge about a dozen pieces a year, while the Zhu family could craft a hundred.
Moreover, the weapons forged by the Zhu family are not limited to those made from Earthfire Steel.
"No rush, no rush. It will take about two or three months just to finish the twenty spears!" said Zhu Changxing.
The Zhu family does have some stock, but not much, especially since Yang Zhenshan needs twenty spears, which the Zhu family has to craft slowly.
"Haha, I have no doubts about the reputation of the Zhu family from Earth Fire Island. Take the Silver first, send over whatever weapons you have now, and the rest can be delivered after three months!" Yang Zhenshan spoke heartily.
For a force, the word "integrity" is very important, especially for a force that operates various businesses like the Zhu family; integrity is the foundation of their standing in the East South Sea Domain.
"Very well, I will not dally. Once I return, I’ll arrange to have ten weapons sent over first!" said Zhu Changxing with a smile.
He had indeed given Yang Zhenshan a favorable price. The Earthfire Steel weapons of their Zhu family could normally sell for seventy to eighty thousand apiece, so offering them to Yang Zhenshan at fifty thousand each was effectively a thirty percent discount.
He was willing to offer Yang Zhenshan a discount because the Zhu family wanted to cultivate a good relationship with him.
The Zhu family has considerable influence in the East South Sea Domain, but they are ultimately a family-run force and need the support of many other powers in many matters.
Although the Yang family, represented by Yang Zhenshan, is a new power in the East South Sea Domain, one must not forget that standing behind the Yang family is the Da Rong Dynasty.
This is actually a misunderstanding. The Zhu family and many forces in the East South Sea Domain think that Yang Zhenshan is the spokesperson for the Da Rong Dynasty in the domain. But in fact, Yang Zhenshan cannot represent the Da Rong Dynasty at all.
Zhu Changxing came to visit Yang Zhenshan for two reasons: one is because of the backing of the Da Rong Dynasty behind Yang Zhenshan, and the other is because of Yang Zhenshan’s unity with the Tenglong Guard.
Now, there are many areas where the Zhu family relies on the Tenglong Guard.
The Zhu family is an important partner for the Tenglong Guard in the East South Sea Domain, and conversely, the Tenglong Guard is an important partner for the Zhu family in Da Rong.
As for their mutual trade needs, the Tenglong Guard requires the Zhu family’s help to open up the trade market in the East South Sea Domain, while the Zhu family needs the Tenglong Guard to penetrate the trade market in the northeast of Da Rong, and they also need the Tenglong Guard to provide various scarce ores.
As a force with a focus on the forging industry, the Zhu family has a huge demand for various types of ores, and many of those ores are now transported to the East South Sea Domain through the Tenglong Guard’s merchant ships.
Previously, the Zhu family had to pay a high price to secure such a variety of ores, and the supply was extremely unstable, often running out. But since their cooperation with the Tenglong Guard, the Zhu family has secured a stable source of metals, which is why they highly value the collaboration with the Tenglong Guard.
After learning that Yang Zhenshan was staying on Star Moon Island, several elders of the Zhu family discussed and decided to send Zhu Changxing to visit as a gesture of goodwill.
Yang Zhenshan indeed felt the Zhu family’s goodwill. He got along very well with Zhu Changxing, and the two not only conducted business but also discussed many matters about the East South Sea Domain and exchanged insights on cultivation.
Zhu Changxing stayed on Star Moon Island for seven days before taking the initiative to leave, saying, "Brother Yang is ahead of me on the path of cultivation. If it weren’t for family matters awaiting me, I would truly wish to stay on Star Moon Island and seek advice for a year or two."
Over those seven days, he had many discussions with Yang Zhenshan, especially about Martial Arts cultivation. At first, he thought he was better than Yang Zhenshan and even wanted to offer some guidance, but to his surprise, after just a few words, he found himself being enlightened by Yang Zhenshan.
At this moment, he was not flattering Yang Zhenshan but genuinely wished to learn more from him.
Especially in regard to Daoist Intent, he felt there was a world of difference between himself and Yang Zhenshan.
In fact, the gap between the two was indeed vast. Despite Yang Zhenshan being much younger than Zhu Changxing and not as skilled in Mystical Mechanism and Ruwei, in terms of cultivation wisdom, Yang Zhenshan far surpassed Zhu Changxing.
The reason is quite straightforward: the Hidden Skill Pavilion of the Da Rong Dynasty was home to countless predecessors’ cultivation experiences, and Yang Zhenshan was exchanging thoughts with Zhu Changxing while standing on the shoulders of these predecessors.
These cultivation insights might seem insignificant, available for any Innate Martial Artists to peruse freely within Da Rong, but in reality, they represent a crucial foundation for Innate Martial Artists.
The wisdom garnered by predecessors might not help Yang Zhenshan improve his cultivation, but it did enhance his knowledge and understanding of the Innate Realm.
In terms of cultivation wisdom, the Zhu family was far inferior to Da Rong.
The foundation of an entire Dynasty is certainly not something a single family or lineage can compare with.
"Ha ha, Brother Zhu, should you find the time, do visit Star Moon Island again. I will surely clean the mat to welcome you!" Yang Zhenshan laughed.
Although the foundation of the Zhu family did not match that of Da Rong, exchanging insights with other peers was also beneficial for Yang Zhenshan. Every Innate Martial Artist has a unique understanding of cultivation, and mutual corroboration and guidance could help Yang Zhenshan better comprehend Daoist Intent.
In these seven days, Yang Zhenshan had much to gain, so he was also very welcoming towards Zhu Changxing.
"Ha ha, very well, once I have the time, I will come to visit Brother Yang again!"
Zhu Changxing took his leave from Star Moon Island, and Yang Zhenshan saw him off for more than ten miles before taking the opportunity to sea and circled around the four islands northeast, northwest, southeast, and southwest of Star Moon Island.
Luo Jingsong had already relocated twenty thousand refugees to the four Islands, and the government also established offices on each.
Yang Zhenshan took the opportunity to leave some Spiritual Spring Water on the four islands.
With the addition of the more than ten thousand people on Star Moon Island, the population under Yang Zhenshan’s governance now exceeded thirty-five thousand.
The number of people was not that great, but it was already sufficient for Yang Zhenshan.
In the following days, Yang Zhenshan devoted himself to secluded cultivation on Star Moon Island while also providing guidance to the youths in their training, leading a life both simple and fulfilling.
Star Moon Island was peaceful, but the Da Rong Dynasty had fallen into deep trouble.
Xingyue First Year, which is Yanping Year Eight of the summer.
Several prefectures in Longnan experienced seven days of continuous heavy rain, with the vast amount of water converging within the Ru River. This caused multiple breaches along the Ru River embankments within Shanhe Province, with floodwaters inundating hundreds of miles and countless civilians drowned.
With the famine in the southern five provinces yet to ease, and now flooding in the north, the Da Rong Court and officials were in a state of utter distress.
Within the Taiji Palace of the Imperial City in the Capital City.
Emperor Yanping watched the courtiers in the hall with an exceptionally gloomy expression.
At this moment, Emperor Yanping was truly furious. The Ru River embankments had broken, and the floods had nearly reached Shuntian Prefecture. However, the embankments of the Ru River in Shanhe Province had just been fortified two years ago.
The court had spent three million Silver in reinforcing the embankments, but what was the result?
In just two years, numerous embankments had breached. It would have been better if they had not been fortified at all!
"Does the Ministry of Industry have a protocol for repairing the embankments?" asked Emperor Yanping.
The Minister of Industry, Yang Ziheng, forehead covered with sweat, hurriedly came forward and said, "To report to Your Majesty, the Ministry has formulated a plan to repair and reinforce the channels of the Ru River, but—"
"But what?" Emperor Yanping asked angrily.
Yang Ziheng glanced towards the Minister of Revenue, Li Zhijie, next to him, and said, "But we need to levy a hundred thousand civilian workers, requiring four million taels of Silver and one hundred and fifty thousand dan of grain!"
Emperor Yanping’s expression turned grim as he stared at Yang Ziheng, "Is the protocol just about demanding men and money?"
"Your Majesty!" Yang Ziheng knelt on the ground with a thud, "We are incompetent, please punish us, Your Majesty!"
Yang Ziheng felt wronged in his heart as well.