Going to Beijing to save his father, all the powerful officials in the city are vying to be his fath

Chapter 123 Auction 2

The foreign merchant repeatedly negotiated with Qi Lusheng, but he was like an iron weight—unmoved, even sullen. He had the porcelain put away and said unhappily, "Why were you doing this earlier? I told you I had a lot of good stuff here and asked you to prepare your money, but you looked down on us, the Marquis of Wu'an, and didn't bring enough money. Don't blame me for not giving you face. Good things always belong to those who are prepared. Well, let's stop here today. We'll meet again if we're lucky. Someone, please send us off."

After saying that, he flicked his sleeves and left like a proud peacock, leaving the merchants looking at each other in confusion, like eggplants hit by frost. Finally, they looked at each other, sighed helplessly, and left with the goods they had bought, like defeated roosters.

Qi Lusheng didn't go far either. Like a naughty monkey, he hid behind a pillar and peeked to see if all the merchants had left before running upstairs.

He happily pushed open the private room where Su Qin was and asked excitedly, "Miss Su, how did I perform? Was it amazing?"

Zeng Lao couldn't stand his impulsive and impulsive behavior and couldn't help but scold him, "Calm down a bit! This is unbelievable!"

Qi Lusheng didn't care and continued to smile and said, "I'm just too excited."

After saying that, he sat down, picked up the cup on the table, poured a cup of warm tea, and drank it up with a gulp.

Su Qin was also very happy. The first step of the planning was a complete success. She smiled and gave Qi Lusheng a thumbs up, praising him, "That's amazing! You're so good at auctioning on your first try. You're so talented! You'll definitely become the best auctioneer in the future!"

Qi Lusheng became even more excited, his mouth almost grinning from ear to ear, his eyes twinkling with stars as he asked, "Really? Am I really talented?"

Su Qin nodded affirmatively: "Yes, you are the most talented person I have ever seen!"

She hadn't really had much experience with auctioneers before, but that didn't stop her from praising Qi Lusheng. Qi Lusheng was truly exceptional, having mastered the rhythm, the mood, and the price point perfectly in his first auction. While many items had gone unsold, that wasn't Qi Lusheng's fault, but rather the fact that the foreign merchants hadn't taken the auction seriously and weren't fully prepared.

Qi Lusheng was so excited by the praise that he rubbed his hands together. "Haha, I told you I'm not the kind of playboy who only knows how to eat, drink and have fun. I'm smart!"

Fearing he might get too complacent, Zeng Lao quickly poured cold water on him, "Don't get too excited just yet. This is just the beginning. Once the news gets out, the scene will surely be spectacular. If you can still manage it by then, you'll be a true master."

Qi Lusheng wasn't sure about it, but he showed no fear on the surface. He raised his head like a rooster about to crow and said proudly, "I'm sure there will be no problem!"

Su Qin also encouraged him: "Yes, you can do it. We will definitely get better and better in the future and make more money!"

Qi Lusheng slammed the table hard: "That's right, I want to be the richest man!"

Qi Lusheng, full of enthusiasm, suddenly remembered something and frowned. He asked worriedly, "But we haven't sold the emperor's porcelain. Will the emperor blame us?"

Su Qin shook her head gently and said comfortingly, "No, we can't easily sell the things given by the emperor. If we do, we won't get a good price. We pursue quality rather than quantity. We want to use the least amount of goods in exchange for the most money. Only by making things seem rare can we sell them at a high price.

Have you forgotten what I said about 'scarcity makes things valuable'? If we sell all the porcelain this time and the emperor sends us more next time, those merchants will know we have a large amount of these items, and they will become a common sight.

When these six merchants return, they'll undoubtedly tell their friends and associates about this auction, and they'll also be hoping to buy your porcelain again. Therefore, many foreign merchants will undoubtedly come looking for you in the future. If anyone has a particularly suitable treasure, we can offer one or two in exchange. Don't sell all of your porcelain and then announce that all the porcelain has been sold. That way, when the next auction is held, those people will be fully prepared."

Qi Lusheng's face was still filled with worry. "But the Emperor is in urgent need of money. I won't sell the remaining porcelain. How can I explain this to the Emperor?"

Su Qin smiled sweetly, "The Emperor doesn't lack these things. What he lacks is silver. Next time, let the Emperor exchange for another batch of things. With the previous preparations, if there are good things, those people will be afraid of missing out and will definitely rush to get them like hungry tigers. The money earned this way will definitely be more than simply selling porcelain. As long as you explain the reason to the Emperor, he will understand."

Qi Lusheng nodded repeatedly: "Okay, I understand, but I still have a question."

Su Qin opened her red lips and said, "You say."

Qi Lusheng: "Why do you ask for as little money as possible when exchanging goods? Those merchants brought a lot of gold and silver when they came. Wouldn't it be much more convenient and faster to take their gold and silver than for us to just take the goods and sell them later?"

Su Qin explained to them in detail: "First, the gold and silver they brought are all foreign. We cannot allow large amounts of foreign gold and silver to enter our country. This will disrupt the market like a flood that breaks through the dam and cause currency devaluation. Sometimes more money is not always better. It is best to maintain a stable and equal exchange of money and goods."

Qi Lusheng was completely confused and bewildered. Isn't it better to have more money?

Not to mention him, even Mr. Zeng beside him was confused: "Girl, what do you mean? Can you explain it in more detail?"

Su Qin thought for a moment and explained inflation and deflation to them in the most accessible terms. Qi Lusheng only understood half of what she said, but Zeng Lao did understand the gist of it. He asked curiously, "Where did you hear all this?"

Su Qin couldn't tell the truth and could only give him an example: "This is very simple. Many people in the countryside will exchange their own things for other things, such as exchanging eggs laid by their own chickens for firewood, rice, oil and salt.

If you lay fewer eggs, they are valuable and can be exchanged for more things. If you lay more eggs, they are worthless and can be exchanged for less things.

Eggs are like silver to us. Large amounts of silver from foreign merchants have flowed into our country, causing silver to become more plentiful and worthless. Silver can buy fewer things, but this doesn't affect the wealthy. With more silver, they have more money at home, so prices are higher. But ordinary people are different. They don't have money to begin with, and many have never touched silver in their lives. When things become more expensive, they can only stop buying or buy less. Ultimately, it's the ordinary people who suffer."

Mr. Zeng nodded and said approvingly, "You are right. We must think long-term when doing things. We cannot cause suffering to the people because of our own selfishness."

He looked at Su Qin with eyes full of admiration: "I just thought you were smart before, but I didn't expect you to be so righteous. You can think of the people's livelihood through a small egg. If you were a man and entered the court as an official, it would definitely be a great blessing for the people, a great blessing for the people!"

Su Qin felt embarrassed by the praise. How could she be so smart and great? She was just copying things from her previous life. In her previous life, there was a dynasty that did a lot of business with foreigners and brought back a lot of silver, which led to supply inflation and devaluation of silver. How could she disrupt the market economy here for her own selfish interests?

Qi Lusheng admired Su Qin so much that he even considered becoming her apprentice. He asked impatiently, "What about the second one?"

Su Qin continued, "Secondly, if we want to compete with King Liang, we need to make friends with officials and strive to win over as many allies as possible. After accepting gifts from foreigners, we can also hold an auction for the officials' families. This way, we can gather them together and strengthen their relationship, without having to go to great lengths to curry favor. This approach is far more beneficial than simply accepting gold and silver."

Qi Lusheng suddenly straightened up, clapped his hands excitedly, and praised loudly: "Brilliant, Miss Su, your idea is really far-sighted and far-sighted. Compared with those shrewd old men in the officialdom, you are even better!"

Zeng Lao patted him lightly and said angrily, "Stop your nonsense. Who are you talking about? How can those stubborn people be compared with my granddaughter? If my granddaughter were a man, she would be able to enter the court as an official and would definitely be made a marquis or a prime minister."

Qi Lusheng quickly slapped his mouth: "Blame me, I said something wrong, I accept the punishment."

Su Qin said with a smile: "He deserves to be punished. Otherwise, Mr. Qi should be punished to move all the goods obtained from the auction here so that we can take inventory."

Qi Lusheng slapped his forehead and said, "Look, I forgot about the important matter. Wait."

After saying that, he ran away with a thud.