Chapter 327: Mangoes Exchanged for Dahongpao

As he spoke, his eyes turned toward the mangoes on the table.

"It is precisely these mangoes from the Western Regions; the fragrance is truly intoxicating. Could Shopkeeper Bai sell me one? My wife and children at home would all like to taste them."

To the people of Daliang, mangoes were a rare item.

"This..." Bai Wei hesitated for a moment.

It was not that she did not want to sell the mangoes, but that she did not know how much to charge.

In her world, mangoes were just ordinary fruit, but in Daliang, they were Tribute Fruit; if she sold them too cheaply, she would be the one at a loss.

Just as Bai Wei was unable to make up her mind, the merchant assumed she did not want to sell and hurriedly added.

"If you don't intend to sell these mangoes, I can trade you for them with my goods."

Bai Wei narrowed her eyes, immediately becoming interested.

"Barter?"

This was a good idea.

The merchants in the shop all came from every corner of the land, and those capable of staying at this establishment were all merchants of substance; the goods they carried certainly would not be inferior.

She immediately asked, "What do you intend to trade with me?"

The merchant smiled and said, "I won't hide it from you, Shopkeeper Bai. My family is in the tea business, and this time I have brought a batch of high-quality tea to Yannan City. Among them is a type of tea called Dahongpao, which the wealthy and powerful families in Yannan are particularly fond of drinking."

"If you don't mind, Shopkeeper Bai, how about I trade one canister of Dahongpao for one of your mangoes? What do you think?"

Bai Wei's eyes lit up.

Dahongpao was truly a good thing!

In the modern era, there was a type of tea called Mother Tree Dahongpao that was worth its weight in gold.

Moreover, the Mother Tree Dahongpao had withered away almost entirely by the modern era, with only six trees remaining in the world.

The tea leaves produced by these six Mother Tree Dahongpao trees were hard to buy even with money.

"Bring the tea over for me to see."

The merchant immediately turned around, took a Red Sandalwood canister from his luggage, and opened the lid in front of Bai Wei.

Instantly, a rich tea fragrance drifted from the canister, refreshing the heart and spirit.

"It really is Mother Tree Dahongpao!" Bai Wei was both surprised and delighted.

She remembered the fragrance of this tea.

She had seen it once when she went to Yanjing to attend an antique expo.

At the time, she didn't have much of an impression, only remembering that this tea was exceptionally fragrant and mellow.

She never expected that the Daliang Kingdom would actually have such fine tea.

Seeing the look of pleasant surprise on Bai Wei's face, the merchant was also stunned for a moment, looking down at the tea in his own hands.

"Shopkeeper Bai, do you really like drinking this Dahongpao tea? Although this tea is not cheap, it is not some rare treasure; it can be bought from any tea merchant. If you like it, I have more here."

"Like it, of course I like it." Bai Wei's eyes shone. "How many more canisters do you have? I will trade with you."

This was Mother Tree Dahongpao!

In the Daliang Kingdom thousands of years ago, it could not be considered an peerless treasure; at most, it was just good tea.

However, since the mother trees had all died out by the modern era, the tea produced by the remaining six trees was worth its weight in gold.

Seeing that Bai Wei liked it, the merchant was also happy in his heart.

He hurriedly signaled his men to take out five more canisters of Dahongpao from the carriage outside the door.

"Bai, I didn't bring much of this tea; let's trade for five more canisters."

"Good, no problem." Bai Wei was so happy that her eyes crinkled into slits.

She picked out six large mangoes and handed them to the merchant.

The merchant was overjoyed, carefully holding the mangoes in his arms, terrified of bumping or bruising them!

This was Tribute Fruit that only the Emperor could eat; it was an extremely rare item!

To have traded six canisters of high-end tea for six pieces of Tribute Fruit—he had truly struck it rich.

Once the Tribute Fruit eaten by the Emperor was taken to Yannan City to be sold, wouldn't those wealthy families fight over it?

Bai Wei took the six canisters of tea, and for fear of being swindled, she opened them all and took a sniff.

There was no problem with the tea; the fragrance was intoxicating.

She was also happy in her heart; these six canisters of Dahongpao tea could be traded for a lot of money in the modern era!

And six mangoes would cost at most a dozen yuan in the modern era!

This business deal was worth it!

Seeing Bai Wei so happy, Xiao Moting stood to the side, a faint smile appearing on his handsome face.

He walked over and asked, "Bai, if you like tea, I will have people search everywhere for it. Once I find good tea, I will have it sent to you."

"Okay." Bai Wei hesitated for a moment, then nodded with a smile.

In truth, she didn't like tea, but rather money; this Mother Tree Dahongpao was rare in the modern era and could sell for a lot of money, whereas other teas might not.

However, if she refused Xiao Moting's kind intentions, she would be too unappreciative of the sentiment.

There were other merchants in the shop, and seeing the tea merchant trade six canisters of tea for six precious pieces of Tribute Fruit, they were all stirred into a frenzy.

Everyone was extremely envious and followed the tea merchant's example, swarming toward Bai Wei in a rush.

"Shopkeeper Bai, I am in the silk business. Can I trade silk for your mangoes?"

"I have transported quite a bit of spices; I want to trade spices for mangoes."

"Me, me too! I sell medicinal herbs; I want to trade medicinal herbs for mangoes."

Everyone surrounded Bai Wei, vying to ask.

That was Tribute Fruit!

These precious fruits, which only the Emperor is qualified to taste, are transported from the Western Regions thousands of miles away; who wouldn't want to taste such high-class fruit?

For the high-ranking officials and noblemen in the city, keeping a single Tribute Fruit in their home is a great source of prestige!

Moreover, the Tribute Fruit here with Bai Wei is even larger in size and more fragrant than the Tribute Fruit sent to the Emperor from the Western Regions!

Seeing that everyone wanted to trade for mangoes, Bai Wei was also extremely happy.

She said decisively, "Trade, I will trade them all."

Mangoes aren't worth much, but the silks, medicinal herbs, and spices in the hands of these merchants... are all good things; even if taken to the modern era, they could sell for a lot of money!

Being able to trade one mango for so many good things, she was making a fortune.

Bai Wei refused no one and immediately began the "barter" business in the shop.

Xiao Moting stood to the side, busy helping Bai Wei fetch mangoes.

Before long, the table behind Bai Wei was piled high with good goods from merchants of all backgrounds.

Shimmering Wujin Satin, water-rippling Fuguang Brocade, as well as Ambergris, Musk, Snow Lotus, Cordyceps...

Bai Wei smiled until her eyes curved into two crescent moons.

They were all good things!

A piece of top-grade Ambergris sells for three million per kilogram in the modern era!

Snow Lotus isn't cheap either, and it's purely natural.

And there are natural Cordyceps larger than a finger; Bai Wei had never seen such large natural Cordyceps in the modern era!

Only in the unpolluted ecological environment of ancient times could so many good things grow.

Watching Bai Wei busy running back and forth, visibly happy, Xiao Moting's cold, stern face softened unconsciously, and a faint smile appeared in his eyes.

Soon, a basket of mangoes was traded away.

Bai Wei still felt regret in her heart; had she known that ancient people were so interested in what the Emperor ate and liked "Tribute Fruit" so much, she should have stored a few more baskets of mangoes in the Warehouse.

When she was purchasing fruit, because she didn't really like eating mangoes herself, she had only bought one basket of mangoes.

Otherwise, she could have traded for even more goods today.

However, Bai Wei also understood the principle that scarcity makes things valuable; the reason "Tribute Fruit" is precious is, first, because it is a privileged fruit eaten by the Emperor, blessed with an imperial aura, and second, because it is rare in quantity; if mangoes were to become abundant, they wouldn't be worth anything in ancient times either.