92: Chapter 92 Fuyuan Escort Agency

From Wuyang County town to Jinhuai Prefecture city, the journey was long, spanning over three hundred li.

It required passing through two other counties; compared to transport within the county, it was far more complex in terms of terrain, distance, and risk.

A single Escort trip to the prefecture city would take more than half a day.

According to the contract signed between Pei Qingyun and the Chen family, the Pei family had to deliver these eighty thousand dan of grain to the prefecture city before dark tomorrow.

This meant that even if he hired Escort agencies for the transport, they could only move twenty to thirty thousand dan at most in one go.

This was far short of the eighty thousand dan required.

Besides, the two or three Escort agencies in the prefecture city might not even be willing to take this job.

Although the trade route had been initially opened, the Demons had not been completely cleared. Once they left Wuyang County, the risks would multiply. Even if an agency accepted under these circumstances, the Pei family might not feel at ease.

What the Pei family wanted was not the compensation after an agency's failure.

Regardless, Pei Tianrong decided to visit an Escort agency first to see if anyone would take the contract.

No sooner said than done.

Accompanied by his guards, Pei Tianrong took a carriage to the largest Escort agency in Wuyang County town, the Fuyuan Escort Agency.

As soon as he entered the Fuyuan Escort Agency, an errand boy approached him and asked warmly, "Hello, guest, are you here to hire our Fuyuan Escort Agency for a delivery?"

Pei Tianrong had no intention of using his status to intimidate, simply saying, "Yes, have your Head Escort come over. I have a large business deal to discuss with him."

At those words, the boy looked Pei Tianrong over carefully. With just one glance, he realized the person before him was of extraordinary status.

In the next moment, the boy's warmth turned into flattery. "Honored guest, please take a seat here. Wait a moment, I'll go inform the Head Escort right away."

Before long, the boy reappeared in the agency's main hall. Following behind him was a tall, powerfully built middle-aged man.

This man was the Head Escort of the Fuyuan Escort Agency, Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan.

Their eyes met, and a look of deep shock appeared in Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan's eyes.

The errand boy might not recognize Pei Tianrong's identity, but as the Head Escort of the largest agency in the county town, how could he not know Pei Tianrong's face?

He immediately dismissed the boy and said respectfully to Pei Tianrong, "I, Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan, greet the Head of the Pei Family."

Pei Tianrong said, "Head Escort Qiu, no need for formalities. I am here because I have a shipment that needs your Escort. Regardless of whether we reach an agreement, please keep this a secret."

Hearing this, Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan restrained his smile and said solemnly, "Head of the Pei Family, please rest assured. I, Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan, still understand these rules."

In fact, Pei Tianrong also knew that Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan wouldn't dare to act recklessly; the prior warning was just a formality.

Pei Tianrong said softly, "I have a shipment of grain that needs to be escorted to Jinhuai Prefecture city, about ten thousand dan. Is Head Escort Qiu willing to take this job?"

Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan was somewhat surprised; he wasn't surprised that the Pei family had ten thousand dan of grain.

But to come to him at this time, and for transport to the prefecture city...

For a moment, a thousand thoughts raced through his mind.

But on the surface, he remained calm and said, "Ten thousand dan of grain, my Fuyuan Escort Agency can take it. However, when does the Head of the Pei Family need it transported? Please give me an exact time."

Pei Tianrong said bluntly, "Before noon tomorrow, I need Head Escort Qiu to deliver these ten thousand dan of grain to the Chen family in the prefecture city."

At this moment, the doubts in Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan's heart were suddenly cleared. Pei Tianrong's words were undoubtedly telling him that the trade route to the prefecture city had been opened.

Once this news got out, it would certainly be worth a thousand pieces of gold.

It would be even more profitable than running this Escort job.

But he also knew that he no longer had the power to refuse.

He even had to hide it from his Escorts before the trip started to prevent the news from leaking.

After all, his ability to resist temptation was based on his family business being in Wuyang County town. His Escorts, to put it nicely, were just trying to make a living.

Once the Escorts knew the news, he couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't take a desperate risk.

A thousand pieces of gold were tempting.

If the Pei family, or even the Chen family from the prefecture city, held him accountable then, he would be unable to escape the blame.

Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan said, "Head of the Pei Family, my Fuyuan Escort Agency will take this job. As for the price, how about one thousand taels of silver?"

"One thousand taels is too little. For this trip, charge according to the normal standards of your Fuyuan Escort Agency. My Pei family won't take advantage of your agency. Let's make it two thousand taels. As long as Head Escort Qiu can successfully complete this delivery, the Pei family will give priority to the Fuyuan Escort Agency when we need to transport goods in the future," Pei Tianrong said slowly after a moment of reflection.

How could he not understand Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan's little schemes?

For an Escort agency to survive, it had to rely on continuous delivery jobs.

Where would these jobs come from? Most came from wealthy families. But jobs from wealthy families were limited and usually sporadic.

Given the size of the Fuyuan Escort Agency, small jobs alone were not enough to sustain it.

Only merchant houses had a steady stream of goods that needed escorting.

As the largest prominent family in Wuyang County, the Pei family was naturally the largest merchant house.

It could be said that even a tiny bit of profit leaking from the Pei family would be enough to keep the Fuyuan Escort Agency well-fed.

However, to the Pei family, it didn't matter who did the escorting.

As long as the other party had the ability, Pei Tianrong didn't mind the Fuyuan Escort Agency making this money.

Hearing this, Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan was overjoyed; he had been waiting for these words from Pei Tianrong. "Thank you for your appreciation, Head of the Pei Family. I, Chief Escort Qiu Fuyuan, will definitely deliver this shipment to the Chen family in the prefecture city on time."

After leaving the Fuyuan Escort Agency, Pei Tianrong's mood improved slightly. Besides the Fuyuan Escort Agency, there was another one he planned to try.

However, this time, Pei Tianrong was disappointed.

Before Pei Tianrong could even finish explaining, the agency refused the job upon learning that the destination was the prefecture city.

However, to avoid offending the Pei family, the agency also provided a sincere explanation.

After learning the specific reasons, Pei Tianrong also understood why they refused the contract.

As for other Escort agencies, Pei Tianrong didn't consider them at all.

These agencies were too small and their strength was too weak.

Running within Wuyang County was not much of a problem.

But once they left Wuyang County, it would be a matter of life or death, wealth determined by fate.

Even if these agencies were willing to take the job, Pei Tianrong didn't dare take the risk.

By the time he returned to the Pei family home, it was already noon.

This distressed Pei Tianrong; he had only managed to arrange for ten thousand dan of grain in one morning. It seemed the Pei family would have to transport the remaining seventy thousand dan themselves.

In terms of strength, the Pei family was naturally stronger than the Escort agencies.

But for an Escort job, strength alone wasn't enough; the route was also very important.

A good route could avoid many dangers.

The Pei family had no experience in escorting goods.

Before the transport, he also needed to recruit some Escorts from other agencies to serve as the personnel for this trip.

"Time is running out. I must recruit the Escorts and finalize the accompanying personnel this afternoon. We must set out tonight at the latest," Pei Tianrong thought to himself.

...