Chapter 34: You Are Not In Exile You Are Clearly Traveling!
Chapter 34: Profitable Business
"Reselling medicinal herbs?"
Captain Sun became interested. He knew that the medicinal herb business was extremely profitable, but without some background, it was impossible to get involved.
"Tell me more!"
Bailiff Qian repeated Chen Xue's words verbatim, not mentioning Chen Xue at all.
After speaking, Bailiff Qian was somewhat hopeful for Captain Sun's praise, but he saw Captain Sun furrow his brows, causing his heart to skip a beat.
"Captain, isn't this business profitable?"
"It's indeed very profitable, but..."
Captain Sun didn't finish his sentence, leaving Bailiff Qian curious and frustrated, feeling like a cat that had seen a mouse but couldn't catch it.
"Reselling medicinal herbs is a profitable business, not to mention it's already monopolized by the big merchant guilds. But let's talk about the initial capital first; it's not something we can afford."
Captain Sun sighed, explaining that they were only doing small businesses and reselling small items because they lacked sufficient capital.
While reselling medicinal herbs was indeed profitable, it required a considerable amount of capital and background connections. Without these, they would have to purchase the herbs at market prices, which were even higher in the capital than elsewhere.
Even the cheapest medicinal herbs, priced at five taels per plant, would cost fifty taels for ten plants and five hundred taels for a hundred plants.
Where could they find such a sum?
Even if they could afford it, not every herb was cheap. Even if they bought the cheapest ones, purchased a hundred plants, and managed to reach the Southern Barbarians in seven to eight months if fast, or a year if slow, the herbs would lose their freshness and value during the journey.
Moreover, as they traveled by foot, encountering bandits, wild animals, and other crises along the way, they might lose a significant portion of the herbs.
By the time they reached the Southern Barbarians, out of a hundred plants, they might only have eighty or ninety left, and even that was an optimistic estimate. Plus, with the loss of potency, they would struggle to sell them at a high price.
Furthermore, the Southern Barbarian territories were rich in forests and herbs, making their imported herbs less attractive compared to locally harvested ones.
In conclusion, while reselling medicinal herbs was profitable for the big merchant guilds, it was risky and less profitable for them.
"It turned out like this!" Bailiff Qian's face changed after hearing Captain Sun's analysis. He had thought it was a very profitable business.
"So, while this business seems good, we don't have enough capital or channels to obtain the herbs at a low price, so it's not suitable for our small-scale operations."
Feeling angry, Bailiff Qian exclaimed, "Damn it, we've been deceived by them!"
"Deceived?" Captain Sun frowned. "What do you mean?"
Bailiff Qian realized he had slipped up but felt that since Captain Sun didn't see the business as profitable, there was no need for him to take the blame.
So, he sold out Chen Xue. "They said they wanted to cooperate with you on this business..."
"They're a poor family, how could they afford the capital to purchase herbs? They must be playing us."
"Captain, let me go and teach them a lesson so they know not to mess with us..."
"No!" Captain Sun interrupted him, his eyes flashing. He didn't agree with Bailiff Qian's words.
Chen Yuan was still a former official, responsible for financial matters and national resources. He might have channels to obtain herbs at a lower price.
Furthermore, as a official of ministry of revenue, Chen Yuan was definitely not a fool. He could see that reselling medicinal herbs was not something ordinary people could do. Even in exile, he dared to venture into this business, indicating that he had confidence.
"Go, take me to them!"
"Huh?" Bailiff Qian hadn't reacted yet. "Captain, didn't you say this business wasn't good and we couldn't do it? Why are we going to them? Are we going to hold them accountable?"
"You little fool."
Captain Sun glared at him. "Read more books when you have time, don't act like an ignorant fool."
Bailiff Qian rolled his eyes speechlessly. "Captain, you don't have much education either. I haven't seen you read many books!"
"Get out!"
...
"Sir, Miss, Captain Sun is here!"
The servant's voice came from outside the carriage. Chen Xue quickly put away the snacks and the go board on the table, then got out of the carriage.
When Captain Sun arrived, he got straight to the point, "I heard you want to cooperate with me in business?"
Chen Xue and Chen Yuan exchanged glances, both seeing the joy in each other's eyes. They had tried various methods before but couldn't win over Captain Sun. Not only that, he had been avoiding them.
Now that he finally appeared, Chen Xue wouldn't miss this opportunity.
"Captain Sun should know what kind of business we want to do, right?"
"Naturally." Captain Sun nodded when he saw Chen Yuan didn't speak up but Chen Xue did. Although he was surprised, he still nodded, "However, you should know that the medicinal herb business is not something ordinary people can do."
"You probably don't have the capital, do you? You must have some channels!" Captain Sun guessed, "Your so-called cooperation is about me providing the capital while you provide the channels, right?"
"Of course not." Chen Xue smiled, "What we're doing is a zero-capital business."
"Oh?" Captain Sun's interest grew stronger. Everyone liked a zero-capital business, but was there really such a thing in this world?
"Tell me more. If it's really a zero-capital business, why do you want to cooperate with me?"
"Exactly, as you know, our movements are restricted now. Not to mention doing business, even purchasing goods is very difficult."
After hearing Chen Xue's words, Captain Sun nodded. It was indeed the case. The Chen family was now exiled, unable to leave the custody of the exile captain. If they did, it would be considered escape, and they could be killed on sight.
In that case, it was quite normal for the Chen family to want to cooperate with him.
"Tell me more about your so-called 'zero-capital' business."
However, Chen Xue shook her head, "Captain Sun, as the saying goes, cooperation is mutually beneficial. Let's discuss the terms first, then we can talk about the specific cooperation."
Captain Sun sneered at her words, "If you don't explain clearly, how can I determine if this business is worth cooperating in? Besides, do you have other choices besides cooperating with me?"
"That's right. Although we don't have other options for cooperation, we can choose not to do this business."
"You..."
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