Chapter 186 Man Gui
However, Wang An came here to do business and had no interest in Man Gui's ethnic background.

After politely greeting each other, Wang An immediately took out the bill of lading and handed it to Man Gui.

Man Gui did not have the arrogance of a provincial governor. To Wang An, he seemed more like a rough man who could only be found in the army.

He took the invoice carelessly, glanced at it casually to confirm that the quantities of supplies matched, and then put it aside.

"Yes, they are all what we want. I will ask the deputy general to go with you to check them later. If there is no problem, I will issue you a receipt."

Wang An immediately smiled and took out a jade ring from his bosom and placed it on Man Gui's desk, flattering him: "I heard that Lord Man is an expert in both riding and shooting. This jade ring is perfect for you."

Man Gui raised his eyebrows, picked up the jade ring and examined it carefully. After a while, he praised it, "It is indeed exquisite in shape and has a smooth texture, but it is just superficial and not practical."

Wang An's heart skipped a beat when he heard this, because this jade ring was one of Wei Zhongxian's treasures.

Because he thought that he might have to travel along the Datong route in the future and he couldn't do it without someone to protect him, he reluctantly took out the treasure.

However, he didn't expect that Man Gui didn't seem to be interested in this item. Wouldn't he be at a great loss this way?

However, Man Gui immediately added: "But it is worth a lot of money, and you are thoughtful."

"But don't think that since you gave me your treasure, you can cut corners and pass off inferior goods as good ones in the future. If we find out, we will punish you mercilessly!"

Wang An nodded quickly and agreed, "Don't worry, sir. I have always been honest in my business. The goods I sell are genuine and the prices are fair!"

Although Wang An was crazy about money, he was not so crazy as to have no bottom line, and he even moved closer to the eight imperial merchants.

If you want to do business, you must make money in an honest way. Only by making money that you can earn can you live long.

Otherwise, no matter how much you earn, the people above you will not be happy with you. In a word, all your wealth will just be a gift to others.

If the young master of an old man fails in his studies and wants to start a business, I will become the result of the other party's self-made business.

Upon hearing this, Man Gui nodded with satisfaction, then waved his hand to let Wang An leave.

However, as soon as he raised his hand, he thought of something and slapped his head in annoyance, "I almost forgot that His Majesty allowed me to do business with the Rainforest Man in the name of tribute. In this case, I have to trouble you to deliver this batch of supplies to the grassland."

"If I were to do the transaction myself, it would be easy for people to criticize me."

Wang An suddenly felt bitter, because the transaction amount before departure had been determined with the Honglu Temple, and the cost from Datong to the grassland was not included.

However, since this was their first collaboration, and it was proposed personally by a famous general in history like Man Gui, Wang Andao didn't want to refuse him, so he nodded obediently.

Anyway, I have already paid the extra money, so it doesn’t matter if I give it a final shot.

When we set out, we had already figured out that the main purpose of this trip was to open up the trade route. As for whether we could make money, that was a later matter.

Seeing Wang An being so straightforward, Man Gui stroked his beard and praised him, "You are really different from other merchants. The merchants we met in Liaodong before would complain and say they were not making money or that their capital had increased if we made the slightest request. In short, they were just not happy!"

Man Gui started playing with the jade ring again and promised casually, "In the future, if Datong needs military funds, we can get them from you!"

Wang An was overjoyed when he heard this. He felt that his new generosity had paid off, and was about to express his gratitude.

Man Gui then said, "But we have one thing in mind. That is, the goods must be genuine and the price must be fair. Another thing is that the price must be fair!" These are all old cliches in business. Wang An certainly had no reason to refuse, so he nodded in agreement.

Having said that, Man Gui waved his hand to signal Wang An that he could leave.

He didn't even say anything about inviting Wang An to dinner, or treating him with special regard or showing him extra respect.

Wang Andao was not at all disappointed, because he thought that a first-rank general like Man Gui could talk to him so much and even promised to let him purchase Datong’s military funds. Even if it was just a casual promise, it was already quite rare.

In later times, Wang An's current identity is just a small private enterprise boss who cooperates with the imperial court, while Man Gui is at least a director at the Guo level.

Even if there is a business involvement, at most they will send a clerk to get rid of you, and they won't even meet you, let alone talk to you.

After leaving the general's mansion, Wang An returned to the warehouse where he had been arranged to stay at first and told him about his plan to go to the grassland from Datong.

However, he didn't expect that all the thugs from both the carriage and horse company and the thugs from the fighting company shook their heads like rattles, and refused to go even if Wang An promised to pay more money.

Wang Andao could also understand that these people were only temporary hires after all. They had lived in the stable capital for most of their lives. How could they dare to go to the Mongolian grasslands where people were said to eat raw meat and drink blood?

However, although he understood it, Wang An was suddenly in trouble.

If these carriage companies and thugs are unwilling to go to the grassland with me, do I have to carry all these supplies there myself?
Wang An tried to persuade everyone again, but these cowardly bandits refused to give in no matter what, so Wang An had no choice but to give up.

Not long after, a man named Sun Zushou came and found Wang An with several servants.

Although Sun Zushou was a deputy general, he was just as humble as Man Gui and was even quite polite.

However, Wang An did not dare to be negligent. He diligently served tea and even stuffed a bag of silver into his sleeve.

Sun Zushou did not refuse, and his gaze towards Wang An became even warmer.

However, they were still strict when inspecting the materials. Fortunately, Wang An never had the idea of ​​cutting corners, so the whole inspection process was very pleasant and relaxing.

However, Wang An was always worried because the carriage and horse company and his thugs were unwilling to go to the Mongolian grasslands.

After receiving the silver, Sun Zushou saw that Wang An was in a bad mood, so he took the initiative to ask.

Wang An had an idea. Since he couldn't solve the current problem himself, it would be a good idea to ask the local tyrant for some advice.

So he told his problem.

When Sun Zushou heard this, he immediately burst into laughter and patted Wang An on the shoulder and said, "I thought it was something serious, but it turns out to be just this little problem."

Wang An said with a sad face: "Master Sun, please don't make fun of me. I can't transport the supplies to the grassland without my men."

Sun Zushou waved his hand and said, "Isn't it just manpower? How can our army be short of manpower?"

Wang Andun was overjoyed when he heard this.

(End of this chapter)