Crossing the Unknown Country

Chapter 432 Someone is looking for trouble at Moxiangzhai

In this way, the Su family's Moxiangzhai opened in the city and made a lot of money. When the family saw the pile of silver, they finally realized that business in the city was good.

What they didn't know was that their family had already taken over other cakes, and several similar shops nearby were experiencing declining business. Originally, they were all at peace, but because Mo Xiang Zhai was so special, most of their original customers went to Mo Xiang Zhai.

On the ninth day, as soon as they opened the door, someone came to collect money and asked them to pay. Su He, her father, and the masters were drinking tea and chatting in the back. When they heard that someone was coming to cause trouble, they hurried out to see what was going on.

Su He's father looked at the two people coming and greeted them with a smile, "Hello, two young men, let's sit down and talk. We are new here and didn't know there was such a thing."

How could Su He and the others not know that someone was looking for trouble, otherwise why would someone collect money for no reason? Who would open a store without greeting the neighbors? The Su family also visited the neighbors in advance with gifts.

It's just that doing business requires solving problems calmly. When the two men saw so many people and that Master Su He and his men had murderous auras, they immediately behaved themselves.

They pretended to be calm and said, "This area is under our jurisdiction. The Su family needs to pay protection fees, one or two taels of silver a day!"

Su He's father didn't say anything, Feng Dayuan asked directly: "We have already reported to the government office, and the silver tax has been agreed to be paid at the end of each month. Why didn't anyone tell us that we have to pay protection fees? You see, our store still needs your protection. We soldiers who have come down from the battlefield have nothing to be afraid of."

The two were dumbfounded when they heard this. They had met a tough guy, but they were taking money to help him get rid of the disaster.

The two men immediately said, "Think about it first, we'll come back tomorrow."

After saying that, they fled in a hurry. They had to go back to call more people and discuss countermeasures. This kind of store is the most difficult to deal with. These hooligans can go to food stores, pharmacy stores, and clothing stores to cause trouble, but how can they find an excuse to deal with pens, inkstones, and paper?

It was hard to find fault with the pens, ink, paper and inkstone. They discussed for a long time before coming up with a way to collect money, and this was a trick for small vendors. You can't just set someone's shop on fire, that would be a serious crime. Especially since people usually live in the shop, if you burn someone to death, it would be a capital crime.

They are all locals in the city, with families and businesses, and they come out to bully the common people because they don't want to work hard. They are also afraid of those who can open such a big store, because who knows what kind of background they have.

Su He and his masters discussed and decided to go to Fu Man Lou to say hello. General Wang An's influence could be borrowed, but distant water could not quench immediate thirst. Fu Man Lou's business was so big here that the government must have settled it. It would be a waste of resources if such a ready-made support was not used.

Su He and his friends arrived at Fu Man Lou at noon. Su He politely asked the waiter, "Is your shopkeeper here? Please tell him that a friend of Shopkeeper Wu from Fengyu City's Fu Man Lou is here to visit."

When the waiter heard that Wu was the shopkeeper's friend, he hurried to find their shopkeeper. After a while, the waiter invited them to the backyard.

Standing at the doorway, a middle-aged man of medium height, thin build, and a mustache smiled and greeted, "Manager Wu's friends are my friends. Come, come, come in."

They followed him into the house and sat down. Su He's father bowed and said, "Excuse me for disturbing you. Please forgive me for your surname Su. We have been cooperating with Fu Man Lou in supplying goods, and we are good friends with Shopkeeper Wu."

When he heard the last name Su, his eyes lit up immediately and he said with a smile, "So it's Brother Su who's here. I've heard of your name for a long time and finally met you in person. This girl must be Su He, young and promising. Fu Man Lou is lucky to have your recipe."

"You're welcome. My last name is Cheng. I may be a few years older than you, so just call me Brother Cheng."

Su He saw that Manager Cheng was a smart and capable person, otherwise he would not have been able to gain a foothold in the capital city. Su He smiled and said, "Hello, Uncle Cheng, we are new here too and have just settled down. I am sorry to bother you."

Su He's father briefly explained how they would settle down and open a shop here. He also asked if he could help introduce someone to the government office, since they were planning to open a shop here in the future.

Manager Cheng smiled and said, "This is easy. After lunch, we can visit each store one by one in the afternoon with some gifts. We can ask them to say hello to the yamen runners in charge of that street, and then we can open the store safely."

They had lunch together at noon, and Su He showed his sincerity. He directly taught Cheng a method of mixing sauce, which was very good for dipping sauce.