hsntnovel Chapter 2682 He really has a brain disorder
Chapter 2682 He really has a brain disorder
Du Chuke was Du Ruhui's younger brother. He was quick-witted and resourceful, and his talent was comparable to Du Ruhui's.
That's why Li Shimin appointed Du Chuke as Li Tai's chief secretary. At that time, Li Shimin still liked Li Tai very much.
However, Du Chuke was only good at political strategy, but not so good at business.
As the saying goes, everyone has their own expertise, and no one is perfect.
"Shanbin, that's what I'm worried about. If the price drops, we might as well ship it now and make an extra 50,000 yuan."
Li Tai said this after listening to Du Chuke's words.
"Your Highness, prices are rising continuously. If we sell now, we may suffer significant losses."
In fact, I have inquired and found that the prices of various spices are only slightly higher than they were ten years ago.
It was only later, with the influx of spices from the Western Regions, that the price of spices dropped dramatically. And it was precisely because of this...
This is why many merchants from the Western Regions stopped transporting spices here, and now that prices have increased, this is precisely why Yichen is doing so.
Because merchants from the Western Regions stopped selling spices, and those who had stockpiled them had almost sold out, spices were in short supply, causing prices to soar.
Du Chuke stated his judgment, and his analysis was quite logical and reasonable.
After hearing this, Li Tai fell into deep thought. In the beginning, spices were indeed very expensive, about the same price as they are now. It was only a few years ago that the price of spices suddenly dropped, and it kept dropping.
Many people buy some meat to stew during festivals.
Based on Du Chuke's analysis, he felt there was some truth to it. Since spices were no longer profitable, there must be people who were unwilling to transport them from afar.
We can't even cover the transportation costs here, so we might as well sell something else.
If I think about it, the price increase seems to have started last year, which means everyone has used up all their stockpiled goods.
Because they are cheap, many people hoard them. Prince Wei's mansion used to have a lot of spices hoarded.
After much thought, Li Tai increasingly felt that Du Chuke's reason made sense.
But he was still a little worried:
"Shanbin, do you think this matter might be related to the tenth prince? Don't forget, all the abnormal things in the business world over the years have been related to the Prince Ji's mansion."
Isn't this how we've all been scammed? Prices fluctuate inexplicably, either suddenly increasing or suddenly decreasing.
They lure us into their schemes every time, then swindle our money. Last year, the Guanzhong Plain suffered a severe drought and had no harvest.
The Guanzhong gentry wanted to raise the prices of grain and salt slightly, but for some reason, before they could take any action, grain merchants from other places arrived and suddenly raised prices.
This frightened them so much that none of the families dared to act rashly, fearing that it was Old Ten who had set a trap for them.
"Your Highness, this cannot be blamed on these Guanzhong gentry. Not to mention them, now the entire noble families of the Tang Dynasty are like frightened birds."
Currently, the imperial court holds the most grain, followed by Prince Ji's Prince Ji's residence. He has established more than a dozen granaries in various regions for brewing wine.
The gentry were naturally worried that His Highness Prince Ji might take some action.
In the past, everyone would rush to grab a share of the money-making opportunity, but now they all wait and see what the Prince Ji's Mansion is up to.
"We must be on guard." Du Chuke said with a sigh. If this were in the past, facing a drought this severe, which would be a once-in-a-century event...
Even with government regulation, they still have to raise prices; even a one-cent increase can bring in a lot of profit.
"Hehe, they're scared. If they raise the price, Old Ten might just lower the price of millet back to the previous five coins."
"They'll all be crying then." Li Tai smiled. Last time the Xiao family raised the price of salt, the tenth son of the family didn't even have to lift a finger; the aristocratic family took care of it with just a word.
This shows just how terrifying the tenth brother's strength is. If he could be like that, how wonderful it would be! There would be no worries about accomplishing great things.
“Your Highness is right. It is indeed possible. Prince Ji’s actions are unpredictable, entirely based on his whims and desires.”
Du Chuke nodded in agreement. They had studied him for so many years, yet they still hadn't figured out the patterns in Prince Ji's actions.
I always felt that Prince Ji's ideas were incompatible with theirs, as if they were from different worlds.
Many normal people would do the same things, but Prince Ji would not.
"Sigh, perhaps this is because the tenth brother suffers from a brain disorder, which is why his thoughts sometimes wander so wildly."
I have consulted some renowned doctors, and they said that people with brain disorders may not even know what they are doing when they have an attack.
After the onset of the illness, the patient will forget what happened before.
Some may also be irritable and easily angered, acting impulsively and irrationally.
These traits are quite similar to those of the Tenth Prince. If he weren't sick, what normal person would lead troops to attack the Prince of Qin's mansion and even beat up the pheasant?
Even the Crown Prince and I wouldn't dare do that.
Li Tai sighed, his tone tinged with regret. In his view, Li Shen's illness was a fact.
Not only did Dr. Sun make the diagnosis, but even some famous doctors in the community described the same symptoms as Li Shen.
Otherwise, who would do such a thing?
"Does Your Highness have always suspected that Prince Ji is faking his illness?" Du Chuke asked with a smile.
Li Tai nodded without hiding anything:
"I did have my suspicions before. I have always believed that the Tenth Prince was faking his madness and that Father was deceived by him, which is why he allowed him to act recklessly."
But now it seems I was wrong; with Physician Sun's diagnosis, it shouldn't be false.
In fact, not only him, but all the nobles in Chang'an believed that Li Shen was faking madness.
"Does Your Highness also suspect that this matter is related to Prince Ji?" Du Chuke asked again.
Li Tai nodded again:
"Indeed, I have a feeling that the matter of spices is too suspicious. Think about it, spice prices used to be stable."
But suddenly it dropped by 70-80%, and a few years later, it has now increased tenfold. Don't you find that strange?
"Well... but the Ji Prince's Mansion hasn't made any moves in the past year, and the Ji Prince himself has been in Xizhou Prefecture the whole time."
"Our people haven't found any connection to the Prince Ji's residence," Du Chuke hesitated for a moment before reminding him.
Li Tai frowned. He needed to figure this out, otherwise he would be restless and unable to sleep.
"By the way, I heard from Zhinu that the merchant ship of Prince Ji's mansion that went to the Western Regions to buy spices sank, resulting in a loss of nearly one million strings of cash."
"Do you think this news is true or false?" Li Tai suddenly remembered what Li Zhi had said that day.
Prince Ji's mansion secretly acquired spices and even went to the Western Regions to buy spices by sea, but the ship sank.
“Your Highness, I have heard about this matter, but it is not the one-sided account,” Du Chuke said.
"Oh? It's not just one way of saying it. Tell me about it." Li Tai immediately became interested.
"Your Highness, I originally planned to report this matter after my leave of absence, and the source of this information is the profit-sharing meeting held at the Prince Ji's residence before the Yuanzheng era."
(Oh no, I really want to get the flu.)