Chapter 150 Revenge does not last overnight

The suggestion was very reasonable, but what Li Wei could not accept the most was a price reduction, so he yelled at them: "Isn't it also a loss if the price is reduced? Besides, are you sure that the price reduction can squeeze out Qiqiao Pavilion?"

Seeing that Li Wei was still angry, the managers under him didn't dare to jump out and provoke him. They all lowered their heads and pretended to be dead.

The more Li Wei looked at them, the angrier he became: "You are all useless. I have raised you for nothing!"

Although the Li family was the local tyrant in Yanshi and had a lot of land, forging ironware was their main source of income. Since my great-grandfather's generation, the Li family had been making moves in secret, and finally gradually monopolized the ironware market in the entire Luoyang area, earning huge profits beyond imagination.

In order to defeat the Huns, Emperor Wu of Han promoted the official sale of salt and iron. Salt was a necessity for survival, while iron was a necessity for production. Both the tools used by craftsmen and the farm tools used by farmers required sturdy and durable iron, otherwise labor efficiency would be greatly reduced.

Therefore, the iron trade in a region was monopolized, and the profits can be imagined.

For many years, the Yanshi Li family had been making money without doing anything, but now they have been ambushed by the Qiqiao Pavilion, which has snatched away a large amount of their business, causing their income to plummet.

It is said that it is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but it is difficult to go from luxury to frugality.

Li Wei, who was used to spending money lavishly, naturally could not tolerate the fact that the income from his own industry had dropped sharply. For this reason, he even sent people to secretly spread news that was unfavorable to Wang Jing, slandering Wang Jing for competing with the people for profits, which led to the bankruptcy of many civilian blacksmiths, their lack of life, and even the destruction of their families.

In short, no matter how exaggerated he tried, it had little effect. Even with the old party fanning the flames and taking sides behind the scenes, Li Wei could not stir up the common people.

After finding it difficult to shake Wang Jing's status and reputation in the eyes of the people, Li Wei became more and more irritated. He looked at the account book in his hand and was so angry that he couldn't eat.

But before he could calm down, worse news came again.

"Master, something bad has happened!"

"Why are you so panicked?"

"My Lord... All our craftsmen have been poached by the people from Qiqiao Pavilion!"

The servant who came to report the news took a few deep breaths and then told the whole story with an anxious look on his face.

When Li Wei heard the news, his head suddenly buzzed, and his blood rushed to his head, causing him to almost have a stroke and faint, with his hands and feet shaking constantly!

"Tell me clearly! What happened? Did Qiqiao Pavilion really come to our Li family to poach people?"

Li Wei was almost driven crazy by the news. The other party was simply going too far. First, they cut off the Li family's financial resources, and now they were going even further, actually coming to dig up his foundation.

He turned around, glaring at the stewards with red eyes: "Go down and find the person for me immediately. I don't care what method you use. Do you understand me?"

Seeing the patriarch Li Wei, who looked like a demon and almost insane, getting furious, several managers looked at each other and did not dare to refute. They could only do what Li Wei said obediently.

After the stewards left, Li Wei was still restless, pacing back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back. The more he thought about it, the worse it felt. "No, I have to go and see. Wang Yuanxu really doesn't wait to get revenge. He's so brutal when he strikes. He's simply leaving no way for the Li family to survive! He's really going too far!"

Li Wei was worried at the moment, so he immediately left the county town and went to the countryside.

In order to protect their own smelting technology from being leaked, the Li family occupied an iron mine in the countryside and built a dock around it, which contained a series of furnaces dedicated to smelting ore and forging ironware.

It is precisely relying on such a production base that several generations of the Yanshi Li family have been able to gain a firm foothold and expand the industry. Today, there are hundreds of blacksmiths and thousands of skilled smelting workers in the fort.

Many of the blacksmiths are from the Li family, but after hundreds of years of branching out, the treatment of members of the side branches is actually not much different from that of recruited outsiders.

These are the fruits of the hard work of several generations of the Li family and are the cornerstone for the Li family to gain a foothold in Yanshi.

But when Li Wei arrived at the fort, it was empty. It took him a long time to meet a man from the same family. Li Wei immediately stopped him and asked, "Zimao, where are the others? Why are they not working in the broad daylight? Do you still want your wages for this month?"

The person Li Wei called out to was none other than Li Feng, a bastard from the Yanshi Li family's side branch. He pulled at his backpack with a blank face and said in a cold tone, "I guess they all went to seek refuge at Qiqiao Pavilion."

Li Wei then realized that Li Feng had already packed his bags. He immediately frowned and said unkindly, "Where are you going?"

Li Feng raised his head and glanced at Li Wei. His attitude was still cold, and he had lost all his fear and humility towards Li Wei. He straightened his back and said as a matter of course, "Go to Qiqiao Pavilion."

Li Wei, who was already suspicious, became furious when he saw Li Feng was so openly planning to surrender to the enemy: "Are you crazy? Don't forget, your last name is Li too!"

But Li Feng's response was also very disdainful: "Haha, now you remember that my last name is Li? When my mother was dying and asked you to borrow money, why didn't you tell me that my last name was also Li? My father was killed by bandits in order to protect the Li family's goods. Did the family provide any compensation afterwards? No, you didn't even say hello!"

Although he was born in the Yanshi Li family, it was difficult for even a small family to treat everyone equally, let alone a local powerful family with hundreds or even thousands of members.

Li Feng was just a branch of the Yanshi Li family. His status as a concubine doomed him to have difficulty making a name for himself within the family. He was even deliberately suppressed by the main branch because he was too outstanding. Not only did the two sides have no family affection at all, but they were also deeply resentful and hostile to each other.

In the past, Li Feng had no choice but to swallow his anger and work for Li Wei to earn a living. No matter how dissatisfied he was, he had to bury it deep in his heart.

But now that he had a better way out, he naturally didn't have to live under the rule of Li Wei's family anymore. Therefore, he ignored Li Wei's threats and curses, and left this sad place without looking back.

"Unworthy descendant! You are an unworthy descendant of the Li family! Once you leave this door today, don't even think about coming back!"

Li Feng's determination made Li Wei break down directly. He pointed at his back and yelled at him crazily, but Li Feng turned a deaf ear to him. He had no attachment to the so-called "family" behind him.

Not far away, we saw more than a dozen black four-wheeled carriages parked on the road. They were painted with the unique logo of Qiqiao Pavilion and were easy to identify.

Li Feng hurried forward, but before he could speak, the receptionist was even more enthusiastic than him. He smiled and said, "Your arms are strong and your steps are steady. You must be a blacksmith, right?"

"good eyesight."

"Haha, welcome, welcome, get in the car!"

"By the way, what's your name?"

"My surname is Li, and my given name is Feng."

"Well, your last name is Li?"

"Why, you won't accept the one with the surname Li?"

"I'll take it! I don't care what your last name is, as long as you can forge iron, I'll take you. The more the better! By the way, you can forge iron, right?"

"I can."

"Then we are co-workers from now on. My name is Zhai Ping, and I come from the Mohist school."

Zhai Ping was very talkative. He cheerfully stepped forward and stretched out his hand to shake hands with Li Feng. Then he began to happily calculate how much money he could earn from this trip, as he had brought so many people back.

Although Mohists should not be greedy for money, Qi Hou said that a gentleman loves money but gets it in a proper way. There is nothing shameful about money earned in a fair and honest way!

Compared to Zhai Ping's liveliness and liveliness, Li Feng, due to his childhood experiences, seems a bit withdrawn, serious and untalkative.

Along the way, Zhai Ping was the one who talked non-stop, while Li Feng just listened silently.

After talking for so long that his mouth was dry, Zhai Ping took a sip of the sweet mountain spring water from the sheepskin kettle. He then curiously inquired about Li Feng's situation: "Since your last name is Li and you have mastered the iron smelting technology, you must be from the Li family. Why did you leave the Li family?"

"I do not want to say."

Seeing Li Feng's tense face, Zhai Ping did not continue to ask, but changed the subject: "What is your current level?"

Li Feng thought about it, and finally said, "Craftsman."

Zhai Ping's eyes widened. Li Feng in front of him looked to be in his early twenties. Such a young craftsman?

To be a blacksmith, you need at least three to five years to become a master from an apprentice. After becoming a master, you are just an ordinary craftsman. Without certain attainments and talents, you are not qualified to accept apprentices and become a master.

What’s more, the Li family has been smelting iron for generations, so the craftsman’s skills are naturally more valuable.

Zhai Ping couldn't believe it so much that the confusion on his face deepened. He couldn't help but ask: "Are you a craftsman? Will the Li family let you go?" Li Feng closed his eyes and didn't want to say more.

In fact, he could have been a trainee a year ago, but Li Wei, in order to save some wages, suppressed him and refused to acknowledge it. He didn't expect that now he would force Li Feng to leave in anger.

If he treats his own people like this, one can imagine how stingy Li Wei is towards those craftsmen who are not from his family.

Previously, the entire smelting industry in the capital was monopolized by the Yanshi Li family. Everyone was angry but dared not speak out and had to endure Li Wei's exploitation and oppression.

If Li Wei had not exploited his craftsmen too much over the years, how could it be that when Qiqiao Pavilion came to poach them, all the employees from top to bottom ran away?

Even many branches of the Li family chose to leave like Li Feng.

It is really that the main branch that Li Wei belongs to has gone too far over the years, and its behavior is so ugly that it is unpopular.

On the gravel road, the sound of wheels rolling over stones echoed in the carriage.

Li Feng glanced out of the car window, his "hometown" and "home" moving farther and farther away. His gaze gradually became absent-minded, with a faint light constantly flowing in the depths of his eyes.

More than a dozen four-wheeled carriages stopped and started along the way and were soon filled to the brim.

It was not until the evening that we finally arrived at our destination.

"We've arrived, everyone get off the bus!"

Just as they were arriving at the restaurant, the canteen of the workshop was filled with the tempting aroma of food. The steamed rice in the pots seemed to be filled with mist after the lids were opened. The hungry groom immediately drooled and hurriedly urged them loudly: "Get off the car quickly, be quick, and don't miss the meal!"

Li Feng held his backpack tightly and cautiously jumped off the carriage with several fellow villagers. Also accompanying them was Zhai Ping, a chatterbox who kept talking along the way.

Zhai Ping's nose twitched, and he knew what the meal was today just by smelling it. He dragged Li Feng to the canteen, muttering, "Today we have fried fish and braised pork, Zimao, you are in for a treat."

When we arrived at the canteen, a tall and fat cook stopped us at the door. He was holding a gourd ladle in his hand and a large vat of water beside him. He stood at the main entrance of the canteen like a big and strong door god: "Wash your hands before eating. You are not allowed to eat without washing your hands!"

Li Feng was full of curiosity about everything in front of him, especially when he washed his hands and walked into the cafeteria, he saw pot after pot of braised pork and crispy river fish. His face was full of disbelief: "You let the craftsmen eat this?"

Zhai Ping happily picked up the rice bowl and filled it with corn rice, then took Li Feng to order food. Each person could get a fish, a spoonful of braised pork, and boiled vegetables and bean sprouts.

Such a rich variety of food, both meat and vegetarian, was beyond Li Feng's imagination.

If it were the Li family, ordinary craftsmen might not even be able to have such a meal during the Chinese New Year.

Zhai Ping took the rice bowl and sat down in a corner. He immediately ate with gusto, his mouth full of oil. He glanced at Li Feng who was still in a daze without moving his chopsticks, and asked, "Why? It doesn't suit your taste?"

Little did he know that Li Feng at this moment was filled with emotion. When he thought of the hard days he had spent in the Li family over the years, he couldn't help but feel sad and tears welled up in his eyes.

This made Zhai Ping, who was sitting next to him, panic: "Hey, hey, I say, it's just a meal, there's no need to cry, right?"

In fact, Li Feng was not the only one shedding tears in the cafeteria.

There were many blacksmiths from different places, some of whom were not recruited from the Yanshi Li family. However, unless they happened to be hosted by a wealthy family, they would only have a few meals like today throughout the year.

The status of craftsmen in the Yanhan Dynasty was very low. Not only were they subject to heavy taxes and exploitation, they were also often required to perform corvee labor and work for the court or the powerful for free. Not only did they have to provide for their own food and drink, but they could even lose their lives if they were not careful.

When the Ten Eunuchs were in power, many wealthy businessmen and craftsmen were cheated. It was hard enough to build a garden for the emperor, but not only did they work for free, but they also had to bribe the Ten Eunuchs with huge sums of money. Otherwise, they would not pass the inspection and acceptance and would be arrested and imprisoned.

The same is true for working for the powerful and wealthy. Being able to make a living is because they are kind-hearted.

Are you asking about wages?

What wages!
Working for the master means he respects you and doesn't even ask you to kowtow to express his gratitude, but you still want wages. Have you lost your conscience?

Such things were common in the imperial dynasty.

Therefore, the basic food allowance provided by the Qiqiao Pavilion opened by Wang Jing was already quite cruel in Wang Jing's opinion, but it still moved the blacksmiths like Li Feng to tears.

There is really no harm without comparison. In this world where everyone is competing to see who is worse off, if Wang Jing is a little better to the people below him, they will be grateful and even willing to work for him.

After dinner, Zhai Ping took Li Feng and others to get clean work clothes, and then moved into the dormitory.

Apart from the fact that the dormitories were a bit narrow and had large bunk beds with little personal privacy, the other treatments made the craftsmen who came to work at Qiqiao Pavilion very satisfied.

After all, they can get four brand new work uniforms as soon as they come in, and when they learn that they can get them once a quarter, they are so excited.

In the past, they could not even imagine such treatment!
After settling everyone, Zhai Ping happily went to find Lu Fang to take credit and report the good news.

"Zhengliang, I brought back fifty-three people today!"

"You are quite courageous."

When Lu Fang looked at Zhai Ping, he couldn't help but smile: "You, you have never liked studying since you were a child, and you only know how to run away. But this time you have done something serious."

Zhai Ping is the nephew of Zhai Jie. Zhai Jie is now the county magistrate, so he entrusted his nephew to Lu Fang, asking him to take care of him.

Lu Fang was a few years older than Zhai Ping, and both of them were Mohists with common interests, so they quickly became close.

"Zhengliang, look at what you said. It's not that I don't like studying, it's just that I don't have the brains for it, okay?"

Zhai Ping sighed helplessly. Born into the Zhai family, he was a natural Mohist. However, he felt dizzy whenever he read the Mohist Classic since he was a child. He felt like he was reading a book written in heaven and could not understand the principles in it at all.

Not only is he not good at studying, he is also careless in sword practice, making it difficult for him to achieve anything great.

After a while, Zhai Ping gave up completely.

I used to stay at my hometown all day long. I was not good at anything except eating, and I was often scolded by the elders at home for this.

But now that Qiqiao Pavilion has been opened and Wang Jing specially allowed the Mohist School to invest, Zhai Ping has gradually revealed his talent in management.

He is a humble person, eloquent, and good at building good relationships with people. He has stood up for his fellow workers at Qiqiao Pavilion many times and solved the troubles they encountered in their daily lives. As a result, he has been recognized and trusted by the workers and has a strong appeal among them.

Not only that, Zhai Ping also has some face in the underworld. He can talk to people from all walks of life. He is considered to be the kind of person who can get along well with both the black and white worlds and can settle many minor troubles.

Precisely because of his appreciation of Zhai Ping's communication skills, Lu Fang, after consulting Wang Jing, let Zhai Ping participate in the daily management of Qiqiao Pavilion.

This time, Zhai Ping had done another great deed. He smiled and asked for credit from Lu Fang: "Zhengliang, I have found a genius for our Qiqiao Pavilion this time, a 20-year-old craftsman!"

Zhai Ping told Lu Fang about the situation in Lifeng.

Lu Fang was surprised: "Are you sure you are a craftsman?"

"How could it be false? I personally took several masters from the workshop to take the test!"

After he finished speaking, Zhai Ping laughed again and said, "Brother, I can't be left out of the promised reward. I heard that if you bring in a craftsman, you'll get a reward of 100 strings of cash!"

"Don't worry, as long as you are sure that he is a skilled craftsman, you will get the money."

Lu Fang was also very excited. The addition of a craftsman was extremely important for Qiqiao Pavilion, which was now eager to expand.

For seven consecutive days, Qiqiao Pavilion attacked from all sides and poached people everywhere, almost sweeping away all the high-level craftsmen in the vicinity and gathering a large number of technically skilled talents.

(End of this chapter)