It's very safe in the safe zone.
There are thousands of policemen here to maintain law and order. There is no need to worry about Western soldiers popping up from nowhere. There is also no need to worry about Westerners breaking into the house in the middle of the night and dragging women out, or in other words, being ravaged in front of men.
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During the war, a place like this was simply a paradise, but this paradise was very crowded. After all, this place only occupies less than one-third of Tokyo, but now it is crowded with more than 300,000 people.
Hundreds of thousands of refugees can only live in shacks on the roadside, enduring the biting cold.
Although Korekiyo Takahashi's monthly income is over 100 yuan, he was still shocked by the high rent when he was looking for a place to live.
"It's really a businessman. It's just a loft. It used to cost only one or two yuan, but now it costs ten yuan."
"Oh, there's no other way. There are so many people squeezing in, so of course they'll take the opportunity to raise the price."
"Hey, the guy who wants to make money for his country is really unscrupulous!"
"Otherwise, let's go to school and have a look!"
While Takahashi Korekiyo and the students were looking for a place to live, in a yard on the roadside, Sun Zhenzheng was talking about business with several people in a lively manner. As an expat, he originally did not have a house here because of the
After I evacuated, many houses became empty. Some of the expatriates who evacuated to the safe zone were able to take possession of those empty houses and open shops with the permission of the consulate.
Sun Zhen, a businessman, also made a temporary guest appearance. He was originally in the "laboring" business, recruiting female bonded workers from Japan to the Ming Dynasty. After Tokyo was occupied by Britain and the United States, he saw a business opportunity.
In fact, there are business opportunities everywhere in the safety zone. After all, too many people gather here. Moreover, in order to ensure the safety of residents, entry and exit are usually allowed in the safety zone to prevent resistance personnel from using the safety zone as a shelter.
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This has also led to an extreme shortage of daily necessities for the Japanese in the safety zone. Food and various supplies are needed by the Japanese in the safety zone. At this time, only expatriates can enter and exit the safety zone with their passports.
"Mr. Sun, as long as you transport the grain in, I will give you an increase of 60% on the purchase price!"
Taro Harada gave his asking price directly.
"Double, Mr. Harada, the price of food on the market is already three times what it used to be. Give me an increase of 60%...your profit far exceeds mine!"
Sun Zhen shook his head and refused.
"I'm taking a big risk by leaving the safe zone!"
"Mr. Sun, you can go directly to collect the food with the purchase receipt. I'm just borrowing your identity..."
Taro Harada looked at Sun Zhen with envy. They all looked the same, but he had a Ming Dynasty passport.
“A Ming Dynasty passport is worth ten thousand yuan!”
Sun Zhen said with emotion.
"If that doesn't work, then Mr. Harada should find someone else. I believe there will definitely be a lot of people here who are willing to do this business."
There are more than a few, and they can line up a whole street. After all, the Ming Dynasty expatriates in Tokyo have never exceeded three digits. Now they are the only ones who can freely enter and exit the safe zone with their passports, and they don't need to worry about being attacked by foreigners.
"Oh, Mr. Sun, you are making me very embarrassed like this! Otherwise, what do you think...it will be four or six?"
"Fifty-five, in addition to food, I can also bring in other goods. When the time comes, we will trade directly on the Edogawa River. You can earn at least tens of thousands of yuan from one shipment of goods!"
You earn more!
Taro Harada said with envy and hatred in his heart.
But it's useless no matter how envious or jealous he is, because he doesn't have that passport!
For small businessmen and hawkers, they just rely on the convenience of their passports to buy supplies there. But for big businessmen, Li Chenggong is actually not a big businessman. He is just a manager in a trading house, which specializes in selling goods to people.
A Japanese seller of Ming Dynasty goods. After Tokyo was occupied, he gave the goods in the warehouse a 50% increase in price and gave them to Ming dynasty employees on credit. The employees then sold them to Japanese businessmen at an increase in price. After everyone made a windfall,
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They poured Japanese yen there again. In the safe zone, Japanese yen banknotes could not buy anything at all. No merchant was willing to collect Japanese yen banknotes. After all, when the reform government fled Tokyo, the credit of banknotes was naturally
A thousand miles away, but the Japanese pockets are full of yen notes.
When the government almost completely collapsed, most Japanese people thought that these banknotes were like waste paper, so Li Chenggong specially set up an exchange house to buy Japanese yen at a low price, and reduced ten yen to about two or three yen.
Then they are trafficked back to Yokohama.
As usual, Li Chenggong, who was carrying a box of Japanese yen banknotes, was followed by six Japanese as soon as he left the safe area. These were the bodyguards he hired.
"Mr. Li, please get in the car."
Li Chenggong asked after getting on the rickshaw.
"Have you bought your train tickets?"
"Yes sir, I have already bought it."
Muto Ichiro, who was following the rickshaw, answered as he ran.
Although there are trains between Tokyo and Yokohama, not everyone can buy train tickets. After all, those Westerners now control the station, and only foreigners with passports can leave Tokyo by train. This is of course also those Westerners
For their own safety, they were worried that the Japanese would leave by train after killing their soldiers.,
Therefore, only foreigners can buy tickets freely, otherwise they need a special pass.
It was under these restrictions that Li Chenggong was able to start this business.
This business is very simple. He only needs to exchange those Japanese banknotes at a very low price at the exchange office in the safe zone, and then take them to Yokohama, where he can exchange them at a one-to-one exchange ratio at the bank there.
Exchange Ming Dynasty banknotes or silver coins.
This is naked currency speculation.
Why is the Japanese yen freely convertible in Yokohama now that the reform government has collapsed?
This is the subtlety of the international economy, because Japan has not collapsed economically. That's it. As long as those in the safe zone only have daimyo passports, they can become nouveau riche overnight with a little thought.
Of course, everyone knows that all this will eventually end, so every time he boards the train from Tokyo to Yokohama, Li Chenggong always has one thought in his mind.
"Perhaps, this is the last time!"
Why do you think so? Because everyone knows that the war will one day stop and the safe zone will be dismantled one day.
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When everything is over, this kind of speculation business will naturally be impossible to continue.
But what is certain is that the spring of 1875 was definitely the happiest time for profiteers. In just less than two months, hundreds of people emerged in the safe zone of Tokyo.
Millionaires, they are basically all Ming Dynasty people.
Therefore, decades later, some Ming Dynasty businessmen who have become successful will recall this short day with a nostalgic tone in their memoirs. For them, this seemingly short day is undoubtedly happy...
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This chapter has been completed!