Chapter 49: The Beauty in Her Cups

“Minister Long, your reputation precedes you—the stories are true, indeed.”
Shi Jian wore a beaming smile, the very picture of a seasoned merchant.
“Master Shi, you are no less remarkable; meeting you in person far surpasses your renown,” Long Chen replied, offering the customary flattery.
Shi Jian chuckled, “You flatter me. I am but a humble businessman. In a single year, Minister Long, you have become the chief of two departments—no one else in the land could boast such an achievement.”
Long Chen smiled. “Let us speak plainly, as merchants do. No need for further pleasantries. I am honored you have graced my Hall of Autumn Prosperity today.”
“To the point, then,” Long Chen continued directly, “I wish to propose a partnership between our Long Guild and you.”
Shi Jian was taken aback. “I am grateful for your regard, Minister, but our merchants’ guild has never done business with the court.”
Long Chen smiled. “What was impossible before does not mean it is impossible now. That others refuse does not mean you cannot.”
Shi Jian merely smiled, offering no answer.
Xiang Ning poured tea, and Shi Jian thanked her with a smile.
After a sip, Shi Jian spoke hesitantly, “This is not a decision I can make on my own.”
Long Chen smiled as well. At once, Xiang Ning brought in a wine flask and two fine porcelain cups.
She gently tilted the flask, and clear, water-bright liquor flowed into the cups, filling the air with a heady fragrance.
Shi Jian, a true lover of wine, felt his mouth water as the aroma reached his nose.
“What excellent wine!”
He stared longingly at the cup before him.
“Please,” Long Chen invited, raising his own cup and taking a delicate sip.
Shi Jian cradled his cup in both hands, inhaled the bouquet, closed his eyes, and praised with evident pleasure, “Superb! Truly superb!”
Carefully he brought the cup to his lips, drawing the wine in and savoring it for a long moment.
As it warmed his throat and then his belly, Shi Jian clicked his tongue in admiration. “This is the finest wine I have ever tasted! May I ask, Minister—”
He meant to inquire about its provenance, but realization dawned, and he exclaimed in surprise, “Minister Long, did you brew this yourself?”
Long Chen smiled. “Indeed, it is my own brew. I call it ‘Beauty’s Intoxication.’”
Shi Jian finished his cup and yearned for more. Xiang Ning poured him several more cups, which he drank as if they were nectar, utterly enraptured.
“Strong as it is, do not overindulge,” Long Chen gently warned.
Shi Jian laughed. “Forgive my lack of composure. I have always loved good wine and cannot resist when it is before me.”
Long Chen said, “You must stop, or you’ll be drunk.”
Shi Jian laughed again. “If I may confess, Minister, I have little talent, save for a great capacity for wine. Never once have I been drunk.”
Long Chen said to Xiang Ning, “Slice a plate of mutton, and bring another flask of wine.”

Xiang Ning promptly returned with another flask and a plate of salted, cooked mutton.
With more wine at hand, Shi Jian relaxed further and offered a respectful apology. “Forgive me, Minister.”
With that, he picked up the flask, ate a few slices of mutton, and drank down the entire flask.
“What excellent wine…” he murmured between swallows, feeling as though he were floating on clouds.
“Am I drunk?”
Suddenly, Shi Jian realized that he had never felt this way before.
“A single flask of this wine is as strong as a whole vat. You drank quickly, Master Shi, so you are indeed drunk.”
“Let us step outside for some fresh air.”
A eunuch entered and supported Shi Jian to the courtyard, where Xiang Ning served tea.
A breeze cleared his head a little.
“I see now,” Shi Jian said, “Minister, you wish to sell this wine through us.”
“Exactly. I have two products: honeycomb coal and Beauty’s Intoxication. We supply, you distribute.”
Shi Jian had assumed Long Chen wanted to buy directly into the guild, a proposal they would certainly refuse.
But if Long Chen supplied the products—especially such peerless wine—there was no reason to refuse.
In business, the ultimate contest is always the product.
“No problem. This, I can decide myself,” Shi Jian agreed at once.
A seasoned drinker, he knew that once Beauty’s Intoxication hit the market, it would be a sensation—and a certain profit.
For years, the rival guild’s products had outshone those of the Long Guild, but now he was sure he could turn the tables.
“Just one question: how much can you provide?”
Long Chen replied, “No limit on honeycomb coal; as much as you need, I can supply.”
“But for Beauty’s Intoxication, I will need you to procure the finest white rice from Southern Liang. To be frank, my wine is brewed from rice.”
Shi Jian answered at once, “No problem. White rice will be supplied in abundance.”
Long Chen smiled. “Then I will supply as much wine as you can sell, Master Shi.”
Shi Jian was overjoyed. “What about the price?”
Long Chen said, “Three hundred coins per dou!”
Shi Jian hesitated, “Though the wine is superb, the rival guild’s Restorative Wine fetches only a hundred coins per dou…”
He meant that the price was too high.
Three hundred coins per dou was Long Chen’s wholesale price; the guild would sell it for at least double that, making it six hundred coins per dou—a steep price indeed.
Long Chen smiled. “Master Shi, your guild has long been forced into the low-end market. This time, let us aim high.”
“And remember, my Beauty’s Intoxication is one of a kind—no competition. You set the price.”

As the head of his hall, Shi Jian understood the logic perfectly.
“I would like to test the market,” he said cautiously.
“Of course. Trial sales are essential.”
“Allow me to suggest, Master Shi: Southern Liang is home to scholars who love fine wine—a natural market. The wild tribes, too, living in harsh lands, drink to warm themselves. Both places will see brisk sales.”
“I recommend selling honeycomb coal to the wild tribes and to Western Xia. The tribes still burn cow dung, Western Xia lacks wood—both need honeycomb coal.”
Long Chen had already planned out the sales strategy.
Shi Jian was amazed. “I did not expect Minister Long to be so versed in commerce.”
Long Chen’s market targets were spot on. Shi Jian thought he seemed more a merchant than an official.
“I know a little,” Long Chen replied. “I have a hundred vats of Beauty’s Intoxication ready—five thousand dou in total. You may take them at once.”
He gestured for Xiang Ning to have the wine sent to the guild’s Qianlong Hall.
Sobered somewhat, Shi Jian rose, swaying, and bowed. “Minister, you are forthright indeed. I will take my leave.”
Long Chen instructed a eunuch to escort him.
Once back at Qianlong Hall, Shi Jian began trial sales of Beauty’s Intoxication in Daughter City.
At first, no one knew the wine, and it drew little interest. But after a few days, some seasoned drinkers tried it, and its reputation spread like wildfire.
The hundred vats soon sold out, fetching up to eight hundred coins per dou.
Delighted, Shi Jian wrote to the main guild, reporting his agreement with Long Chen.
A swift reply granted him full authority.
Phoenix Song Palace.
The Empress held a blue-and-white porcelain cup, filled with Beauty’s Intoxication whose fragrance filled the air.
“So this is the wine brewed by Long Chen?”
She tasted it; the bouquet was rich and potent—a wine unlike any she had ever sampled.
“Indeed. In Daughter City, the Long Guild sold it for eight hundred coins per dou; in Southern Liang, it fetched a thousand.”
“At this rate, the Ministry of Revenue’s deficit will be filled within two years.”
Shadow Phoenix was astonished; she had never imagined Long Chen capable of such a feat.
Everyone had assumed Long Chen would raise taxes, yet instead he had conjured up this wine and forged an alliance with the guild.
“That Long Chen is truly a clever spirit, always full of unexpected stratagems.”
The Empress took another sip, her gaze deep and unreadable, her thoughts a mystery.
“Your Majesty, I confess I have some concerns,” Shadow Phoenix said suddenly.