NABC Chapter 2739 Suspicious Points, Somewhat Undoubted.
Chapter 2739 Suspicious Points, Somewhat Undoubted.
When Li Tai heard Du Chuke so highly praising the Ji Prince's plan, he smiled knowingly.
"Hehe, among our many princes, it's hard to say who is the most skilled in political maneuvering."
But when it comes to the ways of business and scheming, no one can surpass Lao Shi.
No one can rival the Tenth Prince; he possesses an unparalleled talent in this area. I have studied him for many years.
Even after meticulously recording and studying all his methods over the years, one can only gain a superficial understanding.
Just like this time, I couldn't even fathom his intentions.
"Does Your Highness mean that Prince Ji has other motives?"
Du Chuke quickly asked, admitting that the King of Wei indeed knew more about Prince Ji than he did.
The Prince of Wei wrote a book about all the management methods of the Prince of Ji's residence and everything the Prince of Ji had done over the years.
It was to understand the methods used by Prince Ji.
Li Tai shook his head:
"I don't know, but according to what Lao Shi said that day, his purpose was to make those of us who have spices sell them at a low price."
That seems to be true now.
But I have a feeling it won't be that simple.
Based on his understanding of Li Shen, how could Li Shen tell the truth to others?
The current situation is exactly the same as what he said in the palace that day, which makes Li Tai feel that something is wrong.
"Your Highness, are you overthinking this? I sent someone to contact the purchasing manager of Prince Ji's residence. Through some subtle questioning, I learned that Prince Ji's residence has not received any spices since the middle of last year."
For the past six months or so, we've been surviving entirely on our existing inventory.
Wang Hongfu, the head steward of Prince Ji's mansion, was so anxious that he flew into a rage more than once and sent people to the port of Guangzhou Prefecture to stake out and purchase spices.
But I haven't received it yet.
Du Chuke reported the information he had received to Li Tai.
From any perspective, the Prince Ji's residence doesn't seem to have any ulterior motives this time.
"Shanbin, this is what I suspect most. The power of the Prince Ji's mansion is so great, how could they not have received spices for half a year?"
Do you think the merchants at the port of Guangzhou would dare to offend the Prince Ji's mansion?
The name of the Tenth Prince is not as unknown as mine. The whole Tang Dynasty knows that Prince Ji has a fearsome reputation. Who would dare to offend him?
So don't you find that strange?
According to the information I have received, the Ji Prince's residence did not only collect spices for half a year, but rather spent the entire last year acquiring them.
Li Tai took a sip of tea and analyzed the situation calmly. Too much normality is abnormal.
Prince Ji's mansion has been purchasing spices from outside, but why has it never received any? Given Li Shen's infamous reputation, who would dare to compete with Prince Ji's mansion?
They might face Li Shen's invisible retaliation.
This is one of the reasons why Li Tai is suspicious.
Upon hearing this, Du Chuke frowned and fell into deep thought. The King of Wei was right; this was his oversight.
I went through what I knew in my mind again, but I still couldn't figure it out.
"Your Highness, almost no spices have entered the capital in the past six months. The spices we buy are all purchased from other merchants."
Their spices were also stockpiled beforehand.
Your Majesty, I wonder if it's possible that no spices have been arriving in Guangzhou for the past six months, which is why Prince Ji's residence hasn't received them.
As for acquisitions from others, they were mostly divided up among nobles and aristocratic families. After all, no matter how powerful the Prince Ji's mansion was, it couldn't possibly control everything.
Du Chuke offered his own explanation. This wasn't because he admired the Prince Ji's residence, but rather because he was exploring another possible model with the Prince of Wei.
After listening, Li Tai also pondered for a moment before speaking:
“What you said makes some sense. In the last six months, not many people have been selling spices; they've all been observing the market.”
Spices have seen their prices increase more than tenfold, but compared to their original prices, they are still less than three times their original value.
However, I still have doubts about why the Prince Ji's residence did not receive the spices; this is a point of suspicion.
Li Tai remained convinced that the matter was not so simple.
"Then, according to Your Highness, what deeper meaning does Prince Ji have?" Du Chuke asked immediately.
"I haven't thought of that yet. Do you think he might be using spices to cheat people? Buying low and selling high, just like before?"
As Li Tai spoke, he picked up a handwritten copy from beside his desk. The cover clearly bore the name Li Shen.
Li Tai then opened the book and handed it to Du Chuke.
"Look, aren't these methods that Li Shen used before very similar to this one?"
First, they inflate prices, then secretly sell in large quantities to make a profit, followed by a price crash that causes us all to suffer heavy losses.
Finally, I bought the item back at an extremely low price.
As you can see now, spice prices have increased tenfold.
Du Chuke looked down at the words in the book. This was a case of the silk scam from the last time, in which the Prince of Wei's mansion also suffered some losses.
Other noble families also suffered significant losses, with the Prince of Jin's family losing hundreds of thousands of strings of cash.
The method was exactly as King Wei had described: buy low and sell high, shipping out large quantities of goods.
"Your Highness, but the Ji Prince's Mansion did not sell spices in large quantities this time, and no one on the market is shipping them out in bulk."
Meanwhile, Prince Ji's residence continued to acquire and deliberately suppress prices, indicating that Prince Ji intended to lower the price of spices.
Our investigation revealed that most of those who spread the message were sons of officials who followed Prince Ji.
"This is somewhat different from what the prince said." Du Chuke retorted, closing the book.
"You mean the Tenth Prince didn't use any tricks this time?" Li Tai asked, frowning.
Du Chuke bowed and said solemnly:
"Your Highness, I just didn't see anything strange. Spices are different from silk, and the Prince Ji's residence doesn't have a large quantity of spices."
Otherwise, King Ji would have already started selling spices at high prices, so why bother lowering the prices?
I have never heard of any place in China that produces spices in large quantities; they are almost all obtained from the Western Regions.
When the spices arrived in our Great Tang Dynasty, they were already very dry and could not be grown as seeds at all.
Even if King Ji is powerful, he probably can't make dried seeds sprout again.
"How do you explain that the Prince Ji's residence hasn't received any spices for the past six months? Isn't that suspicious?"
Li Tai continued to press for answers.
"Your Highness, as Your Highness just said, Prince Ji is intelligent and unmatched in the ways of business, and is skilled in intrigue and scheming."
Your Highness, do you really think someone as intelligent as Prince Ji would leave behind such a significant point of suspicion?
After answering, Du Chuke asked a question in return.
You said Prince Ji was powerful, so why would he leave behind any suspicious points?
Du Chuke's question immediately stumped Li Tai.
Li Tai was also thinking to himself, "That's right, if someone is so shrewd, how could they expose any suspicious points?"
To set up a scheme, one must constantly deduce and check for any loopholes before implementing it.
What's the reason for this unexpected discrepancy? Could it be that Li Shen's true intention was simply to acquire spices?
(The Zhongshan Mountains are shrouded in mist and rain, a million soldiers have crossed the great river. The city, once a tiger crouching and a dragon coiled, is now more magnificent than ever before; the world has been turned upside down, a truly magnificent sight.)