The Kingdom That Never Sleeps CH 018 Trust
One day later, Yao San came to report to Tang Shen dejectedly.
"Little boss, as you said, no one asked us to deliver anything or send a message. Some people asked out of curiosity, but they just asked and left after saying a few words."
Tang Shen was practicing calligraphy.
Writing two eight-legged essays and one test poem every day was his basic homework. In addition, he also had to practice writing fifty characters and write them neatly and in aligned rows and columns. After writing another character, Tang Shen carefully dried the ink, put the rice paper aside, raised his head and said, "Someone actually asked?"
Yao San: "..."
He was afraid the little boss’s head was kicked by a donkey!
"Shouldn't someone ask?"
“That's true, everyone has curiosity which is understandable. Just asking some questions won't be any meat off your bones."
"..."
Yao San: "Little boss, what should we do?"
Tang Shen continued to lower his head and write: "No rush, you go back to the courtyard today and tell them to continue tomorrow. But in the future, the commission will be one coin for delivering goods once, and it will no longer be free. By the way, did you inform them of the rules they must follow every day? I said before, this must be treated seriously, and everyone must even memorize the rules."
Yao San: "I told them, don't worry. I'll go to the courtyard right away."
Yao San and Accountant Lin were not very optimistic about the logistics business. They had never seen anything like it before.
When a wealthy family wants to do something, they always have servants to do it for them. There were also several armed escort agencies in Gusu City, which were very famous in Jiangnan. If you want to have something delivered, you could hire an armed escort agency. But from what Tang Shen said, it seemed that he did not intend to do long-distance business, but only within the scope of Gusu City.
Could this really be done?
After writing the characters, Tang Shen went directly to the Liang Manor. Holding the eight-legged essay and the characters he had written, he said upon seeing the other: "Sir, save me!"
Liang Song: "..."
After understanding the cause and effect, Liang Song laughed and scolded in amusement: "How did I ask you that day? If you need anything, just ask the steward to prepare it for you. But you said that all you needed was ten clever bailiffs and a promise. Now you want me to be your first customer, to attract more customers for your Tang's Logistics?"
Tang Shen explained seriously: "Sir, how could this be regarded as a need? I am your student, your direct student. I am sir's only student and it is my first time doing business by myself. Isn't it only natural that you take care of me? If I opened a restaurant, I would invite you as the first person to taste the food, and you would definitely come."
Liang Song: "You little rascal, you've said everything, what else do you want me to say?"
"Sir, all you need is to say a word to your servant so that he would loudly call out to a Tang’s Logistics employee on the street tomorrow and ask him to help deliver the things. It would be even better if he needs to run all over Gusu City with the things."
"Ha, then is it the more conspicuous the thing I asked him to deliver, the better? Would it be even best if he could carry a big flag with the name "Liang Bowen" written on it and have him parade ostentatiously about the town?"
"Hehe, sir, you understand me well."
"Begone!"
"Okay! Sir, don't forget to find the employee from Tang's Logistics tomorrow."
Begone, from "Zhuangzi: Lie Yu-kou", translated as: Get out of here!
Liang Song was amused and vexed: "Come back here, I haven't looked at the essay and characters you brought."
Tang Shen came back with a bitter face and listened to his teacher's comments on his homework.
Though Liang Song scolded, he still asked the manservant to take a box of books early the next morning, and find a Tang's Logistics employee to take to the governmental office. From Liang Manor to the governmental office, one had to pass through half of Gusu City, which was considered to be in line with Tang Shen's requirements.
Along the way, some people saw the Tang's Logistics employee holding a box of books and asked curiously: "You are a Tang's Logistics employee. What are you sending and where are you going?"
Normally, Tang's Logistics employees were not allowed to name their customers. This was strictly prohibited by Tang Shen. But this time it was different. This employee had been personally reminded by Tang Shen the night before to reveal his customer's name.
"I'm going to the governmental office. This thing is from Mr. Liang Bowen, Liang daren."
After parading ostentatiously across town all morning, this employee slowly came to the governmental office. When he arrived, half of the people in Gusu City knew that he was delivering something to Liang daren.
At noon, Madam Tang in the west of the city also hired a Tang's Logistics employee to deliver something.
Instantly, more and more people became curious about Tang’s Logistics. In the evening, a xiucai who lived in the east of the city finally came over and hired someone from Tang's Logistics to deliver a letter: "I have something to do at the moment, and I can't leave. I need someone who can deliver it for me instead. How much does it cost to send a letter to Zhaimen Alley?”
“One copper coin. Regardless of distance, it is still a copper coin."
"It's very cheap. You must deliver it, otherwise I will find your boss for an explanation!"
"Okay!"
At the end of the day, this was the only true order that Tang's Logistics really got. The xiucai was desperate, and when he heard that Liang daru had hired a delivery man from Tang's Logistics, he gave it a try. In the end, the xiucai's letter was indeed delivered, and the delivery man was very agile and did not delay on the road.
The name "Liang Bowen" was as important as the word “trust" in Gusu City and even in the entire Song Dynasty.
Gradually, Tang's Logistics also gained some business in Gusu City.
Customers were never wealthy people, but ordinary people.
After getting his first business border, Tang Shen ordered people to post several rules of Tang'¢ Logistics on the walls of major streets. First, never reveal the name of the customer or the items being delivered; second, ensure delivery as quickly as possible without any delays on the way; third, if items are damaged or lost, we will compensate you ten times the cost of the item.
Gusu Prefecture was the largest in Jiangnan, with a population of one million and there were hundreds of thousands of people in Gusu City alone.
At first, the people hired the logistics employees to deliver only small things. Later, when they saw that the logistics employees had no problems and the deliveries were always very safe, the things they hired them to deliver became more and more expensive. Either because of the cold weather or because they were too busy, the business of Tang's Logistics was not too bad, but not too good either. As the business continued in a lukewarm manner, the people gradually didn't think it was such a strange thing.
Accountant Lin was balding with worry: "What a loss, such a big loss! Little boss, you said before that the people in Gusu are very wealthy, and you said that there were predecessors who have done this business. But after these ten days, do you know how much we have lost? We can’t make ends meet, spending twenty taels just to support those delivery men, and you even bought a big courtyard! You also let them eat well and drink well, not allowing them to be treated badly!"
Tang Shen was still practicing calligraphy: "Why are you so anxious? The dividends we earned from selling scented soap and essential oils in ten days are far more than twenty taels."
"But this is a bottomless pit!"
Tang Shen stopped writing and looked over what he had written.
“If the people have no trust in their rulers, there is no standing for the state."
From "The Analects of Confucius·Yan Yuan".
Tang Shen: "Some things I really don't want to happen, but it is destined to happen, and it must happen. Misfortune lies where blessing lies, and blessing lies where misfortune lies. Just wait!"
Three days later, a butcher came to Tang Shen's door angrily. Seeing Tang Shen, he said, "Are you the owner of Tang's Logistics? You have such a strong tone, daring to do such a deceptive thing! Today your worker took my item, but six hours have passed and it still hasn't been delivered. Your Tang's Logistics is a scam, and I will smash your sign today!"
Tang Shen was calm: "Tell me, when and where did you hire my worker to deliver your things?"
The butcher saw that Tang Shen was so calm and confident, and also looked like a scholar. He was worried that Tang Shen possessed a scholar rank, so he restrained his temper and said, “The monk may run away, but the temple can not. It doesn't matter if I tell you, I found him at the pork stall in Linglong Lane in the south of the city at sishi (TN: 9-11am, in the system of two hour subdivisions used in ancient times) today. The item is the new dowry jewelry I ordered for my daughter!"
Tang Shen said to Yao San: "From Linglong Lane, go find Bailiff Liu."
Yao San nodded.
The butcher was confused as he listened to the conversation between Tang Shen and Yao San. Not long after, he saw a young bailiff dragging an unkempt man into the yard. When the butcher saw the man, he said angrily: "It's you, you little thief took my things and didn't deliver them!"
The smiling bailiff Liu Qi kicked the man on the knee, causing the man to kneel to the ground.
Liu Qi: "Tang Gongzi, I caught him for you. He did indeed try to take a set of silver jewelry out of the city. But how could he know that my eyes have been paying attention to the logistics employees wearing a red short coat in the city! Before he could even leave Linglong Lane, he was stopped by my people. Bah, this kind of little thief should be jailed according to the laws of the Song Dynasty. But I sent him over to you first, how do you want to deal with him?"
Tang Shen: "Thank you so much, Bailiff Liu. Brother Yao, go check that set of jewelry and see how much it's worth."
Yao San brought over the jewelry set made of silver. Accountant Lin looked at it carefully and said, "It's not pure silver, but it can still be sold for ten taels. It's just that this guy was too hasty when he stole the things. He may have bumped into something somewhere and dirtied a spot, but it's no problem after washing it. If you pay a jewelry shop to make this set, eight taels of silver will be enough."
Tang Shen said to Yao San: "Brother Yao, give him one hundred taels of silver."
As soon as these words were uttered, everyone was stunned.
Tang Shen: "The rules of Tang's Logistics are that if the items are damaged or lost, it will be compensated ten times the price."
Accountant Lin: "But little boss, we've found the item!"
Tang Shen: "Isn't it dirtied?"
Accountant Lin: "It's the same after washing, it's just a bit of dirt on the surface."
Tang Shen: "Brother Yao, give this customer one hundred taels of silver. My Tang's Logistics is an honest business. If one isn't trustworthy, how could others trust you?"
The butcher got a hundred taels of silver for nothing. He held the set of silver jewelry and looked at Tang Shen dazedly. Overjoyed, he loudly said: "Boss Tang is sincere and honest, your logistics business will definitely last for a long time!"
In just one afternoon, the story of Tang Shen spending one hundred taels of silver compensation money spread throughout Gusu City. Among the teahouses and restaurants, the news spread faster than "Liang Bowen hired Tang's Logistics to deliver something", and he soon became a household name.
"Did Boss Tang really just take out one hundred taels of silver?"
"That's right! One hundred taels of pure white silver taels, the butcher's mouth is still crooked from smile even now!"
But as soon as this happened, before the people of Gusu could even muse over this matter further, all the Tang Logistics employees on the street left. Someone cleverly noticed that the Tang’s Logistics employees left one after another. He grabbed one and asked, "What's going on? Why are you all leaving?"
The employee said: "I also don't know what happened. The boss said that he will close the business for reorganization. Maybe it has something to do with the theft in the morning."
The gossipmonger hearts of the people in Gusu were instantly ignited.
On the second day, Tang Shen had people post public notices in various streets, and everyone hurriedly gathered around.
"Tang's Logistics will reopen in three days... That's right, if something like that happens, you definitely have to teach that unruly worker a lesson."
"I heard that guy was sent to the governmental office, beaten ten times with sticks, and expelled from Gusu City. Liang daren personally ordered that no soup kitchens will provide relief to that guy. That guy is done for!"
"Eh, what is this? Tang's Logistics will set up some stalls in the alleys and lanes to record the items delivered by the workers. Each time, the specific appearance of the items to be delivered and the location where they are to be delivered will be recorded clearly on the delivery form. Tang’s Logistics and the customer each will have a copy of the delivery form?”
"If you don't want to write down the appearance of the In item, you must put the item into Tang's Logistics' wooden box and affix a seal."
"This Tang's Logistics wants to do something strange again!"