Chapter 4 Find an Agent

  Li Zhe immediately began preparing, spending several days visiting the market and purchasing a large box of lighters, totaling 1500. He also ordered online a replica Nepalese kukri knife and two small folding knives for himself, as well as several modern replica steel knives and a long gun to give as gifts to his future comrades-in-arms. Additionally, he purchased an ordinary double-use steel sheet crossbow and its corresponding arrows and steel balls for self-defense. In total, the weight of all these items added up to 100 kilograms.

  Adding up all the odds and ends came to over 3,000 yuan, and with that, Li Zhe had basically equipped himself with everything he needed, but in doing so, he had spent every last penny of his savings.

  He put on a full set of canvas military uniform, with everything properly equipped and packed into his personal space. It's do or die this time, Li Zhe thought to himself.

  Still the same strong dizziness, still the old and desolate temple, but at this moment the temple in Li Zhe's heart has a completely different meaning. "I don't know what kind of god! You must protect me! When I come back, I will definitely build you a new temple and open your golden body!" Li Zhe silently bowed his head several times, got up, and headed north.

  To the north is Yan Province, which is Cao Cao's territory and much safer than Ru Nan. A few years later, Cao Cao relied on the output of this place to sweep the north and south, opening up the era of the great Wei Dynasty. That was where Cao Cao would rely on to become rich in the future, and it must have been well-governed. It was also the predetermined destination that Li Zhe had planned beforehand.

  This time Li Zhe did not forget to cancel the anchor point, and if possible, this time Li Zhe also planned to establish a long-term foothold in Cao Cao's territory, where safety and stability were the constant pursuit of a merchant.

  There were no horses, Li Zhe walked alone in the wilderness, fortunately he brought dry food, and did not fall to the same miserable situation as those refugees, but for an otaku, such a long time of wilderness trekking was indeed a considerable burden, but the hope for the future supported him, continuing the difficult journey.

  On the way, they encountered several waves of refugees. Each one carefully sized up Li Zhe, but when they saw that Li Zhe was tall and majestic, with a sharp glint in his eyes, his whole body dressed neatly, holding a sharp blade, and having an extraordinary aura, no one dared to easily come over to provoke him, which was much better than the treatment he received last time.

  It was a hard-hearted journey, enduring his own luxurious sympathy for Li Zhe was a bitter thing. After walking for half a day, he saw several villages, but they were all dilapidated and had long been abandoned. All he could see with his eyes were scenes of desolation along the way, making Li Zhe's mood somewhat irritable.

  By afternoon, when there was a lull in the crowd, Li Zhe finally couldn't bear it and went forward to strike up a conversation.

  "Older brother! Excuse me, how far is it from here to the nearest village? I have some things to sell!"

  This group of refugees heard this, and looked at Li Zhe with surprised eyes, making Li Zhe feel uneasy: "Young man, the current situation in Xunyang County is chaotic with thieves running rampant everywhere. Only the northern territory under Lord Cao's control is relatively stable. We are all fleeing north with our families, and the nearby areas have been emptied out. Where can we find people to buy your goods?" An old man spoke frankly and clearly about the situation.

  Ah! Bad, Li Zhe was somewhat stunned, this time it's really miscalculated. Didn't expect to still underestimate the cruelty of this doomsday, at this time people can't even survive, where is there any commodity economy?!

  "But these goods are urgently needed by everyone!" Li Zhe said with some urgency.

  "What's the hurry, can't even fill our bellies, who has time to buy your goods!" A burly man in the crowd chimed in with a sarcastic tone.

  Li Zheyi listened, fearing that everyone wouldn't believe him, and hastily stretched out his hand to pull out a lighter from his body, and with a "pa" sound, he lit the fire. "Look, look, how can such a useful thing not be needed? Everyone walks at night and needs it!"

  A small transparent trinket made of neither gold nor jade, with just a light press, can actually produce sparks, where have these people ever seen such a delightful thing.

  They swarmed up at once with a loud noise.

  "What on earth is this thing?!"

  "What is this thing made of? Is it crystal?"

  ……

  Everyone was talking at once, surrounding him and chattering nonstop.

  Li Zhe held up the lighter in his hand, letting everyone see it. "This is a family heirloom, made with the skills of the immortal family, and it's self-igniting 'divine fire'. Everyone can take a look." After finishing speaking, he handed the lighter to the big man who had just spoken strangely, letting him try it himself. The big man, although having a strange mouth, was not a reckless person, carefully taking the lighter with one hand holding it and the other hand lightly pressing it.

  Wow! It's really bright!

  Overjoyed, Han jumped three zhang high.

  "Uncle! Uncle! Look, it's lit up! It's really 'divine fire'! It's really 'divine fire'!" This immediately triggered another round of sighs from everyone.

  Li Zhe smiled and handed the lighter to the crowd, who passed it around one by one, carefully trying it out. However, many people were too afraid to touch it, merely brushing their hands against it before quickly withdrawing, fearing they might break this treasure.

  "Master! Master! I was too quick with my words just now, and I blasphemed your treasure, Master. Please don't blame me!" The big man handed the lighter to someone else to pass around, while he himself made a gesture of apology to Li Zhe.

  Li Zhe waved his hand, indicating that he didn't mind. "Ah! Never mind! Even the best things are made for people to use, what's there to blame? It's just that I'm wondering, does anyone still want this 'divine fire' of mine?"

  Dahan listened, his face was somewhat hesitant, and he looked at his uncle's family with each other, saying: "Don't be offended, young master! This treasure is one of the best things we've ever seen in our lives, wherever it's placed, it's invaluable. But forgive me for speaking too much, do you really want to sell this treasure?"

  "Sell! Sell!" Li Zhe shouted repeatedly.

  "But such a treasure, we common people from Qin can't afford it!" The big man said with a hint of regret.

  His uncle also chimed in, "Yes! Young master! Such a good thing, we refugees can't afford to use it. Why not send it to the imperial capital of Xuchang? The officials and nobles there, the young masters of aristocratic families, are the only ones who have the fortune to use your things."

  Li Zhe's mouth curved up and he asked back, "Oh? What price does this old man think I can sell my 'divine fire' for?"

  "Something like this, how can you put a price on it? In my opinion, it's at least thirty gold!" The old man trembled slightly as he spoke, and spat out a number! Ah, what an honest fellow indeed!

  Suck it up!

  All I could hear was the sound of people around me gasping in unison.

  Thirty taels of gold was an astronomical figure for these refugees. The crowd's hopes, which had initially been pinned on the lighter, were once again dashed.

  Li Zhe smiled slightly and said: "Old man! I think this way is better! I feel that your family still has some vision. Why don't I hire you to help me with things? These 'divine fires', I'll give them to you at a low price of one gold, and you can help me sell them at a high price. The extra money will be your reward. And even now, I can give you a few to try first."

  The old man hesitated for a moment: "I don't know how many of these 'divine fires' you have."

  Li Zhe stretched out a finger: "Not many, just one hundred, and after they're sold out, we can make more."

  One hundred! That's all! The old man opened his eyes wide and finally understood why Li Zhe took out such a treasure so casually. Since there are many things, the scarcity naturally decreases, and it can't be considered a treasure at all.

  Moreover, Li Zhe alone, if it's really just one or two such treasures, then under the watchful eyes of these people, it's possible that someone might kill him to get the treasure. However, Li Zhe directly showed them the quantity and also let everyone help him with his business, which means treating these "divine fires" as ordinary goods for trade, sharing profits among all, and Li Zhe controlling the source of goods. In this way, who would still have thoughts of harming him? Protecting him is already a priority.

  What to do? Old Su began to think hard, and the surrounding Su family members all looked at him with eager eyes.

  This divine fire, which ignites with the wind and burns by itself, is convenient and reliable. The shape of the device is also extremely beautiful, clearly it can be sold for a high price. Even in this chaotic world, easy-to-use ignition devices are indispensable for both the military and civilians, it's truly a good business, only...

  "But now our Su family has no extra gold, all the excess money and silk have been exchanged for food and weapons."

  Li Zhe furrowed his brow and thought for a moment, "No need to be so meticulous about money matters since we're working together. The key is trust. Take the 'Divine Fire' and sell it first, consider it as borrowing from me. You can exchange it for grain, cloth, or even gold and silver coins. Let's just get everyone settled down first. Find a few shops, recruit some guards, enhance our self-defense capabilities, and work together to achieve great things! What do you all think?"

  This time Su Laozhang and others were thoroughly convinced!