Chapter 468: Money Flows Like Water

Zhao Meipo is forty years old, an unmarried professional woman rare in ancient times.

She differs greatly from the stereotypical matchmaker—neither noisy and ingratiating nor flashy and greasy.

Zhao Meipo wears a loose, moon‑white robe; her long hair is simply pinned back with a plain silver hairpin.

The fabric looks plain, yet it is fine cotton from the Western Regions, soft, breathable, and lustrous.

Its price is more than three times that of local homespun cloth.

This detail shows that Zhao Meipo, living alone, does not settle for less.

Gu Xixi sipped a mouthful of hot egg soup, glanced at Zhao Meipo, and smiled, "Sister Zhao, this outfit looks very comfortable—did you make it yourself?"

Zhao Meipo looked down at her own clothes, smiling, "Just everyday wear; loose and breathable is naturally best."

Gu Xixi said, "If you have a ready pattern, could you give me a copy? I'll make two sets for myself later."

Zhao Meipo readily agreed, "Sure, sure—I'll make a rubbing for you to take away later."

At this moment she sat beside Gu Xixi, tapping a bowl of dried walnuts.

Fresh autumn walnuts are shelled, the bitter inner skin removed, then ground together with red dates into a paste to make walnut curd.

After chatting a while, Gu Xixi had finished her egg‑flower sweet soup.

She set down the empty bowl and began to discuss the matter at hand.

In the future, Cha Yuan will open commercial routes; from near to far, it is inevitable to first lay market foundations in the northwest interior.

Once local tea merchants approve and the foundation is set, we can then discuss long‑term routes, such as to the capital—this is the step‑by‑step approach.

Zhao Meipo's years of experience in the trade now reveal their advantage.

Under Qing Tian County's jurisdiction, there are several tea merchants; she knows each household's situation and family relations.

She knows whose resources are richest, whose procurement channels are most numerous, and whether their sources lean toward Jiangnan or the southwest.

She knows which tea merchants are on good terms with each other, which are enemies, and what past entanglements have occurred…

Zhao Meipo knows all of the above very well.

Though not exhaustive, it is already enough for Gu Xixi to understand the useful inside information.

She knows which merchants are big clients and which are small, and how the local market is divided.

From their personalities and respective strengths, she can further infer what they truly want.

This will be of great help in future cooperation talks.

Gu Xixi listened attentively, then raised a few questions she herself wanted answered.

Zhao Meipo could answer all of them for Gu Xixi.

Gu Xixi smiled in relief and handed over a prepared pouch of copper coins, "Thank you, Sister Zhao, you've helped me a great deal."

Zhao Meipo glanced at the bulging money pouch, teasingly pushing it back, "You came as a guest for a casual chat—why are you giving me money?"

"Hurry and take it back!"

Gu Xixi did not withdraw her hand, smiling, "Ordinary people who come to your door asking for information have to pay a fee—isn't that the rule?"

Zhao Meipo laughed, "Others come asking which son is marriage‑worthy, which daughter has come of age."

"It's not the same with you!"

Gu Xixi said, "You're inquiring about other families' circumstances, using the very knowledge you've painstakingly accumulated."

"Where is the difference?"

She said this, pushing the money pouch into Zhao Meipo's hand.

Zhao Meipo hesitated a moment, then finally did not push it back.

As fellow women earning a living by their own work, Zhao Meipo could understand Gu Xixi's reasons.

She said with a smile, "Then I won't stand on ceremony."

"But the amount you gave is not according to custom; for a first consultation it counts as a deposit."

"Just one‑third of this would already be a high price."

"I'll return the excess to you; when you truly need me to make introductions later, you can give the rest then—no delay."

Gu Xixi laughed; she very much enjoys doing business with someone like Zhao Meipo.

Feelings are feelings, business is business—clear and distinct, everyone feels at ease.

Gu Xixi said, "Don't rush to return my money, Sister Zhao—this pouch certainly contains more than just a deposit."

"There are still things I haven't told everyone, but since I'm asking you to make introductions, I'll tell you a few extra sentences in advance."

"Next year our village's Pinpo fruit will have a harvest."

"Have you heard? The daughter‑in‑law of the northwest Fruit King is the matchmaker you arranged."

The Fruit King's original surname is Wang, and he is not a native of Qing Tian County.

He is a merchant from the prefectural city, dealing in Jiangnan silk and tea, central‑region ceramics, and handling turnover of various goods.

He is called the Fruit King because he made his fortune by reselling fruit.

Summer melons and fruits from the Western Regions, southern plums and peaches, northwestern specialties like honey peaches and apricots.

Winter southern honey‑citrus, northern duck pears, tribute pears, and so on.

This fruit business the Fruit King still runs, and he has long been number one in the northwest.

Although ordinary people's demand for fruit as a side food is limited, the Fruit King's market is not confined to the northwest.

His fruit has long been sold in the capital, Jiangnan, and even some wealthy cities of the Western Regions.

With such a large enterprise, Zhao Meipo's claim that she arranged the Fruit King's marriage is, within the circle, a verifiable achievement.

Upon hearing Gu Xixi mention this, Zhao Meipo lowered her eyes slightly and gave a modest smile.

"Ah, that was just something from years ago."

"It was luck—nothing that happens every year."

She paused, then shifted the topic, "When do you plan to reveal this?"

"I might try to help you get a start."

"Let's do it next spring." Gu Xixi watched a yellow leaf drifting down from above.

"When the time comes, please ask Boss Wang to go see the apple blossoms filling the orchard."

"All right," Zhao Meipo agreed, "there's plenty of time; I can also visit their residence more during this period."

The sun hadn't yet cleared the mountain ridge; a gust blew, and she already felt a chill all over.

After autumn harvest and winter storage, the Northwest lies under endless snow.

During the farming off-season around the New Year, Gu Xixi's greatest pleasure at home is counting money.

The proceeds from her family's two-season grain harvest, the second-season bonus from the Northwest Army, dividends from the capital city's Gan Yu Ju general store and its branches, dividends from the agrochemical fertilizer workshop, and the technical remuneration from the Yun Ling County Seedling Merchants Association…

Earlier, when she invested in the tea garden, the silver notes in the wooden chest flowed out like water; lately they have been filling up just as quickly.

Even Gu Xixi, before closing the lid each time, would press down firmly.

"Lv Jing, I want to buy land again."

"There are also fruit tree saplings; we can invest more in spring as well."

Lv Jing laughed and said, "Among the local Gu clan, many people have already come to me to register their names."

"Wait until next year when they take the saplings from the landlord here and start planting pinpo fruit."

"Who knows how much extra dividend the landlord will have to add for the future festivals?"

Gu Xixi raised her head, exchanged a smile with Lv Jing, and said, "After the New Year, let's first get a carriage."

In the blink of an eye, winter had passed and spring arrived.

The Northwest's spring arrives much later than the south's; this year, on the day of the Shangsi Festival, the tea plantation only began picking the first batch of pre‑Qingming tea.

After spring began, Gu Xixi had to personally inspect the tea trees' condition and the new leaves' quality every two days.

The start of picking on the Shangsi Festival is the day she had set.

That day Gu Xixi went to the site to watch the tea pickers work, confirmed there were no issues, and then left the tea plantation.

The carriage did not return to Flower Pool Ford but headed toward Qing Tian Xiancheng.

Gu Xixi sat in the carriage, glanced sideways with the corner of her eye, her expression complex.

"Zi Chu brother invited me and Lv Jing to dine at his home today; we had made the appointment half a month in advance."

Mu Nan Zhao sat with eyes closed, upright, and gave a soft, moderate hum.