Chapter Nineteen: The Coal Ball Unfolds

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In winter, the teahouse was sparsely populated. Yet, it couldn’t simply close its doors. The teahouse owner took care to keep the place warm: every doorway was sealed with padded curtains to block the cold, and every small loft was equipped with fire basins. Still, these measures were only minimally effective.

A few days prior, He Chong’an had delivered a coal stove along with ten coal briquettes. The owner hadn’t thought much of it at first—after all, when someone gives you something for free, why refuse? It’s important to remember that in the pre-industrial era, every item was precious. He Chong’an’s sales tactic was unprecedented, and practically no one passed up such an advantage.

That very day, the teahouse owner experienced the benefits of the coal stove firsthand. Compared to the fire basin, the coal stove was far more economical. As its name implies, a fire basin was simply an iron basin filled with burning charcoal. To keep one fire basin burning all day required several times the coal of a coal stove. Moreover, this was a teahouse, where vast amounts of hot water were needed; the coal stove could simultaneously heat water and warm the room—exactly what the owner urgently needed.

When He Chong’an arrived again, the owner seized the opportunity without hesitation, immediately ordering fifty coal stoves and five thousand coal briquettes.

He Chong’an agreed without hesitation and said, “Boss, to be honest, our business has just started. We produce only a small amount of coal briquettes daily, so supply is tight. Once you finish this batch, I can’t guarantee the next delivery. Therefore, I suggest you place a larger order now; we’ll deliver the briquettes regularly over time.”

The owner frowned immediately.

He Chong’an saw the doubt in his eyes and promptly produced the He family’s official token. “Look here,” he said.

The owner took the token, recognized it instantly, and exclaimed, “The Marquis of Wuning, the He family.”

“Please don’t laugh. This is the business of the He family, Marquis of Wuning. Do you really think the He family would just try to swindle you out of a little money?”

Without another word, the owner placed an order for three months’ supply, totaling over three hundred taels of silver.

He Ziqi’s breathing grew rapid. There were hundreds, even thousands, of shops like this around the city’s front gate. If each placed similar orders, that would amount to tens of thousands of taels.

He Chong’an and He Ziqi went from shop to shop. After a full day, they had collected over ten thousand taels in payments and deposits.

Some establishments used the coal stoves more heavily—restaurants, wine houses, theaters, and brothels all placed orders in varying quantities. The largest single order exceeded a thousand taels of silver.

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It could only be said that these merchants were generally not short of money, at least not when it came to coal briquettes.

Some shops ordered less but still deposited dozens of taels.

When they returned, the silver coins and notes filled an entire cart.

Short-staffed, He Chong’an had He Ziqi volunteer as the accountant. Upon tallying the accounts, they found a surplus of several thousand taels.

He Ziqi couldn’t help but say, “Amitabha, at last we see some return on our investment.”

He was about to share the good news with He Chong’an, then asked, “What is the Third Young Master doing now?”

“He’s meeting with the coal yard’s manager again.”

At this moment, the coal yard manager felt a mix of fear, dread, and heartache, yet was powerless to act.

He Chong’an had already taken away two thousand taels worth of coal.

Two thousand taels was no small sum—beyond what the manager could be held accountable for.

At first, the manager thought of it as losing money to avoid disaster—officials and nobles forcibly extorted private property all the time in these lands; it was common and expected.

But the coal yard wasn’t his alone; there were owners behind him.

He could not afford to cover this loss.

Now, He Chong’an wanted to meet with him. Summoning all his courage, the manager resolved, “Even if I get beaten to death, I won’t let him take coal for nothing.”

When He Chong’an met him, the first thing he said was, “Do you know how to do business?”

“Ah—” The manager didn’t understand what He Chong’an meant.

“I buy coal from you, so why don’t you want money?”

“Ah—” The manager was stunned, his mind blank.

He Chong’an began to explain, “I’ve never done business before. Have you?”

“Before, when I bought things, I never worried about paying—someone else handled it. But now that I’m doing business myself, my subordinates are busy waiting for you to collect payment. What? You want me to come to you to pay?”

“No, no, no. You misunderstand, sir.”

“Misunderstanding? You say misunderstanding, but I nearly got scolded by my mother! The He family has a hundred years of clean reputation; we’ve never done anything dishonest. If people say I sell goods and don’t pay, how humiliating that would be!”

“My fault, my fault,” the manager apologized repeatedly.

“This is your fault to begin with,” He Chong’an scolded loudly.

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The coal yard manager gave himself a hard slap and said, “I humbly apologize, sir.”

“Don’t hit yourself. If you try to hit me and die in the process, my lord wouldn’t even frown. But if you hit me here, who would see? If word got out, it would seem that I, He Chong’an, bully others with my power. I could never clear my name.”

The manager was at a loss, unable to sit or stand comfortably.

He Chong’an threw a stack of silver notes to him and said, “Count them. Make sure it’s right.”

“If you say it’s right, then it must be. No need to count.”

“No, no. Money isn’t the point; my reputation is. Count carefully. It can only be equal or more, never less.”

After the manager finished counting, He Chong’an set the rules: the more coal used each month, the lower the price—a tiered pricing system—with monthly billing. Until then, all coal used would be charged to the account.

The manager thought it over briefly and agreed.

For bulk goods like coal, the cost of retail sales was high. It was natural for He Chong’an to press for a discount with large orders. Monthly billing was not an issue.

He then placed an order for another 500,000 jin (approximately 250 tons).

The manager no longer doubted and readily agreed, leaving with endless gratitude and deep respect for He Chong’an.

Though scolded, He Chong’an’s status and his refusal to cheat or extort merchants made him a rare good nobleman.

He Chong’an looked up and saw He Ziqi, feeling suddenly awkward.

The manager didn’t know why, but He Ziqi did.

He Chong’an cleared his throat and said, “I’m just trying to avoid tarnishing the family’s name and figure out a way to make amends.”

He Ziqi was silent for a moment before saying, “Actually, our He family isn’t entirely innocent.”

The He family was honest in the capital, but when collecting money from soldiers in the provinces, they weren’t so scrupulous. They were honest in the capital because of the many powerful figures there—no one knew who was backed by whom.

He Ziqi changed the subject: “You just ordered another 500,000 jin of coal, which probably costs several thousand taels. There isn’t that much silver in the account.”

“We settle at the end of the month—what’s to worry about?” He Chong’an was completely unconcerned.

He was perfectly at ease with running a business on credit, but He Ziqi was apprehensive.