In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 708 Flattered

"..."

Zhang He paused for a moment; Tang Qing's words were somewhat easy to misinterpret.

"Brother Zhang, let me introduce you."

Tang Qing, seeing that Zhang He hadn't spoken, didn't mind and introduced Yang Zheng and the other man to Zhang He: "This is Yang Zheng, the leader of the Yang Family Army, and General Yang Erlang."

Yang Zheng!

Zhang Hehu's body trembled, and he looked at Yang Zheng, who was smiling, incredulously.

The name Yang Zheng was renowned throughout Qingzhou and even the entire Nine Provinces. Zhang He never expected that the dignified ruler of Liangzhou would personally come to greet him...

"This humble citizen, Zhang He, pays his respects to Heavenly King Yang."

After a brief moment of stunned silence, Zhang He immediately knelt down on one knee and bowed to Yang Zheng.

The men in the caravan all bowed in unison with Zhang He, their faces filled with shock.

They never imagined that their trip to Liangzhou for business would lead them to meet the famous Liangzhou Heavenly King Yang...

"Brother Zhang, there's no need for such formalities!"

Yang Zheng smiled and helped Zhang He up, asking with a friendly expression, "Brother Zhang, how many goods did you bring this time?"

As Yang Zheng helped him up, a strange light flashed in Zhang He's eyes. He had heard many stories about Yang Zheng, and in his imagination, Yang Zheng should be a ruthless and imposing general. However, the smiling and approachable Yang Zheng in front of him was completely different from the Yang Zheng he had imagined.

"Reporting to King Yang."

Zhang He replied, "The goods we brought this time include 1000 yellow-feathered chickens, 1000 white-feathered ducks, as well as other goods such as chicken and duck eggs and down jackets."

What is this down jacket?

Yang Zheng asked, puzzled.

"Down jackets are a unique way to keep warm in Chenjia Village."

Zhang He explained, "In Chenjia Village, people would collect chicken and duck feathers to stuff the inside of their clothes to increase their warmth. That's how down jackets came about."

"I see."

Yang Zheng's eyes lit up instantly. The weather in Liangzhou was bitterly cold, and the people were in dire need of warm clothing. Even though Yang Zheng ordered the weaving bureau to produce as many warm clothes as possible, it was still difficult to meet the people's demand.

The down jackets that Zhang He brought were just what could alleviate the shortage of warm clothing in Liangzhou.

In fact, Zhang He thought so too.

When he left Liangzhou last time, he keenly realized that Liangzhou would definitely lack warm clothes when it snowed, so he brought a lot of down jackets this time, intending to make a good profit.

"Brother Zhang."

Tang Qing frowned and said, "We agreed on 10,000 chickens and ducks per month, but you only brought 2,000?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang He replied, "Lord Tang, it's not that I'm unwilling to bring more chickens and ducks, but my transport capacity is limited, and I'm powerless to help!"

Zhang He certainly wanted to transport 10000 chickens and ducks at once, but that was not realistic. The official roads were difficult to travel on in those days, and the trucks had limited carrying capacity, so it was impossible to transport so many chickens and ducks at once. He could only transport them in batches, 2000 at a time, and 10,000 in 5 trips.

"Don't worry, Lord Tang, I can guarantee that I can bring over 10,000 chickens and ducks within a month."

Zhang He solemnly made a promise.

Seeing this, Tang Qing didn't know what else to say.

Instead, Yang Zheng spoke up, saying, "That's good! With Brother Zhang's chickens and ducks, the soldiers will surely eat better and have stronger physiques."

After saying that, Yang Zheng warmly put his arm around Zhang He and they walked towards Yongliang County. As they walked, he asked, "I heard that Brother Zhang was originally from Liangzhou?"

"Yes, the boy's hometown is Zhangwang Village, which is not far from the county seat."

"Then how did you get to Qingzhou?"

Upon hearing this question, a hint of pain flashed in Zhang He's eyes. After hesitating for a moment, he still answered, "To be honest, King Yang, I couldn't survive back then, so I fled from Liangzhou to Qingzhou."

Can't we survive...?

Yang Zheng's smile vanished instantly, and his expression turned somewhat grave.

Zhang He fled to Qingzhou because he couldn't survive there, and Yang Zheng was no different.

If he hadn't been desperate to survive, why would Yang Zheng have risked his life to rebel?

It was those corrupt officials and those landlords and powerful figures who made insatiable demands on the people that forced Zhang He to leave his hometown and forced Yang Zheng to rebel.

Fortunately, all of that is in the past now.

Corrupt officials have all been killed by Yang's army, and landlords and powerful families have also been eliminated. Now, the people on this land have finally ushered in a good life.

Although they were still poor, at least they had a way to survive.

"Brother Zhang, why don't you tell me about your experiences in Taiping County?"

"If King Yang wants to hear it, this humble one will naturally tell you everything I know..."

As Yang Zheng learned about the situation in Taiping County from Zhang He, he walked towards Tang Qing's residence.

Before long, the group arrived outside Tang Qing's residence.

Upon arriving at this location, Tang Qing stayed outside the door to discuss the handover of the goods with the skinny monkey.

Yang Zheng, Yang Erlang, and Zhang He then sat down together in the living room of the mansion.

"Brother Zhang, have some tea."

Yang Zheng personally poured tea for Zhang He.

Zhang He was flattered by this.

The dignified ruler of Liangzhou, revered as King Yang by the people of the Nine Provinces, not only spoke to him with an approachable gesture, putting his arm around his shoulder, but also personally served him tea...

If this were told to others, probably no one would believe it.

after all……

In the eyes of most people, Yang Zheng, though not a formal prince, is an uncrowned king. Such a person should be high above others, so why would he show such respect to a businessman, even personally pouring tea for him?

"King Yang, I can do it myself."

Zhang He reached out to take the teapot from Yang Zheng's hand.

Yang Zheng brushed his hand away and said with a smile, "Brother Zhang, there's no need to be so polite. Just treat me as an ordinary friend."

"..."

Zhang He's lips twitched. "You treat me like an ordinary friend?"

Why don't you listen to what you're saying?

You are Yang Zheng, who commands an army of 200,000 and is revered as the King of Liangzhou. What merit do I, Zhang He, possess to be considered an ordinary friend?

After pouring tea for Zhang He, Yang Zheng sat down next to him and tentatively asked, "Brother Zhang, do you know the master of Chen Family Village?"

Yang Zheng did not ask the village chief of Chenjia Village, because he already knew that the person in charge of Chenjia Village was not the village chief, but Chen Dao, who was revered as Mr. Chen by the people of Taiping County.

"know."

Zhang He nodded. He not only knew Chen Dao, but was also very familiar with him; they could be considered friends.

"Brother Zhang, what kind of person do you think the head of Chen Family Village is?"

Yang Zheng asked again.

Upon hearing this question, Zhang He fell into deep thought.

What kind of person is Chen Dao?

Different people will have different answers.

In Li Mingyuan's view, Chen Dao was a virtuous man who cherished the people and cared for the weak.

In the eyes of the people of Taiping County, Chen Dao is a bodhisattva who saves them from suffering and a good person who enables them to have enough to eat.

In Zhang He's view...