"Your Highness, please don't talk nonsense."
It took a long time for the three of them to calm down. The four words "No. 1 Salt Merchant" would make anyone excited, not to mention that the Cui family is the number one family in the world, and the salt industry is the most profitable industry. If they could get it in their hands, it would be like adding wings to a tiger.
They have thought of ways over the years, but the Wang family of Taiyuan has been in the salt industry for a long time, and they cannot have too many conflicts within their ranks. Once the conflicts become serious, it will be easy for the court to find an opportunity.
"Since Third Master is not interested, then just pretend I didn't say anything. I simply don't have enough salt permits, and it's getting late, so I'll leave first."
Li Xiang left these words in a confused manner and did not give these people a chance to speak, but a bait has been thrown over, and it depends on whether you guys will take the bait.
The three of them felt as if they had been living in a dream for the past incense stick. How did Li Xiang get here? What did he say? And how did he leave? So much happened in that instant that the three of them felt a little overwhelmed.
"What on earth does he mean?"
The room was silent. Cui Yunzhu couldn't stand it any longer. He couldn't figure it out on his own, so he could only listen to his cousin and third uncle.
snort!
Master Cui San snorted coldly. In his opinion, Li Xiang had no good intentions. He sold a lot of salt in the salt market during the day, and came here to talk a lot of nonsense at night. He just wanted to alienate the five surnames and seven families, but you also think we are too stupid.
"You didn't believe his lies, did you?"
Uncle Cui saw that Cui Yuncheng was silent for a long time. Could it be that his nephew had other ideas? Among the young people of the next generation, Cui Yuncheng had the greatest hope of ascending to the position of head of the family. However, Li Xiang had damaged his health, so he had no chance of becoming head of the family. No one could choose someone with poor health to take the position.
But there is nothing wrong with Cui Yuncheng's brain. If Cui Yuncheng had not stopped temporarily during the auction on the grassland, the Cui family might have been pushed into a dangerous situation. They are not jealous of how much money the major families make on the grassland, as long as we are safe.
"My mind is a bit confused right now. Let's analyze it slowly. In the past, the Emperor couldn't take action against us because our various industries were relatively scattered. Even if the Emperor concentrated his forces, he could only destroy part of us and wouldn't cause us much harm. But after the grassland and salt permits, our money is highly concentrated. The Emperor will definitely not let go of these two things. If he were to take action, any unrest would be extremely disadvantageous to us."
There were countless streams of information in Cui Yuncheng's mind, and he didn't know what he wanted to express, but he just wanted to analyze everything from beginning to end. Cui Sanye and Cui Yunzhu both kept their mouths shut. They had been together for decades, so they naturally knew how powerful Cui Yuncheng's brain was.
"You're right, but it's a shame we saw it too late. When our assets were dispersed, no matter what he did, he could have taken us down unless he wanted to stop the prosperity of the entire Tang Dynasty. But now one-third of our assets are concentrated in these two projects. If he were to take action, we would suffer heavy losses."
Mr. Cui Sanye also sighed helplessly. Although their Cui family had a good layout, it was different for other families, especially those that had invested heavily, such as the Longxi Li family and the Taiyuan Wang family. Half of the family's assets were tied up in these two projects.
"His Highness just said that he has a lot of salt, but he lacks salt permits..."
Cui Yuncheng brought the conversation back to this point, still remembering Li Xiang’s words in his mind, that is, the number one salt merchant.
"We still have quite a few salt permits..."
Cui Yunzhu added.
"What do you want to say?"
Mr. Cui racked his brains but had no idea what Cui Yuncheng wanted to say, and he was a little anxious at the moment.
"According to my nephew's observation, it's almost impossible for the Five Surnames and Seven Families to maintain this structure in the future. Either we seek change, or we find a new backer."
Cui Yuncheng finally sorted out what was in his head. Li Xiang's coming here just now was like throwing out a bait. You either leave the Five Surnames and Seven Families and follow the Crown Prince, or continue on the same path until the end. We will fight again next year. If you win this year, it's just your luck. Can you still win next year?
"Why should we look for a backer? We have always been our biggest backer."
Cui Yunzhu said disdainfully.
"That was all in the past. If we still want to maintain the same state as before, it's unlikely that we can do that. We still have the opportunity to choose while the losses are not serious. If we fall, will he still give us the opportunity to choose?"
Cui Yuncheng carefully pondered every word of Li Xiang. Li Xiang did not come here for no reason. He must want to cooperate with them, but the Cui family and the emperor are in opposition. Once they cooperate with Li Xiang, they will definitely be kicked out by other prominent families. Can Li Xiang's ability compare with other prominent families?
What's more, the Cui family itself is the largest and most prestigious family. The emperor and his successors will certainly continue to weaken the aristocratic families. When all other aristocratic families have been eliminated, can the Cui family be spared?
Mr. Cui Sanye and Cui Yunzhu also understood that what Cui Yuncheng meant in the final analysis was to break away from the Five Surnames and Seven Families and form a strategic alliance with Li Xiang. Only in this way could the Cui family go further.
Of course, this may be too far-fetched. Let's take the current situation as an example. The Cui family must contribute their salt permits, and Li Xiang must contribute his salt, and together they will support the Cui family to become the number one salt merchant.
Then the ones who suffered the loss were the Wang family of Taiyuan. To put it more precisely, Li Xiang and the Cui family were going to divide the Wang family of Taiyuan.
Mr. Cui Sanye and Cui Yunzhu sat in their chairs, on the one hand marveling at Li Xiang's courage, on the other hand they were at a loss. This matter was really too big, they never expected that Li Xiang would dare to do this. If they won, the Cui family would certainly be able to advance rapidly, but at the same time they would also lose the relationship with other major families.
But if we don't cooperate, Li Xiang will definitely come back next year. Will we still have such luck? Everyone has seen what Li Xiang has done. Even the First Family is afraid of being an enemy of such a monster...
