When it got dark, almost the entire city of Yangzhou knew that the eunuch of Dongchang, the Minister of the Ministry of War, the chief soldier of Xuzhou, and the prefect of Yangzhou were guests at Wang's house.
Naturally, the highest standards must be met when entertaining distinguished guests. For example, the Wang family invited the most famous chef in Yangzhou City, and brought out the fine Fenjiu wine that had been collected for decades to entertain the guests. Gao Jie screamed excitedly, secretly glad that he did not run away in the afternoon.
Go out and "watch" Kuang Ren and the others.
The conversation continued during the dinner, mainly about Chang Yu and the Wang brothers further discussing cooperation matters. The others were really just accompanying the guests. After all, it was Chang Yu's personal matter and Dongchang's official business, and no one else dared to intervene at will.
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In the end, Chang Yu and the Wang family decided on two business cooperations at the dinner table. The Yangzhou branch of Daming Bank was wholly owned by the Wang family, with a 20% commission from the head office. The Wang family was also designated as the general distributor of Yangzhou official salt, with its own professional personnel for specific matters.
Come back to contact us later, and of course we may cooperate on other businesses in the future.
To be honest, just these two things are enough to take the Wang family's business to a higher level. You must know that in this era, the Grand Canal is an important logistics channel for merchants, and opening a national chain bank in an important town like Yangzhou can imagine the business.
Not to mention the salt industry, which was strictly controlled by the imperial court.
The Fan family was so grateful for this pie that fell from the sky that they insisted on donating some food and salary to the court to show their gratitude. They really let Chang Yu shirk him no matter what, but the two brothers refused to comply and even asked to donate 100,000 taels of silver. As expected, they were very wealthy.
Very.
Do you think Chang Yu really doesn’t want it?
How can it be!
Idiot, I don't want the free gift! The reason why he repeatedly declined was just to play hard to get and to get more from others: "Well, since the two of you are so thoughtful, I would like to thank you for your kindness on behalf of the people, soldiers and the court of the Ming Dynasty, but I
...Hey, now that we are no longer outsiders, I will tell you straight away that the first business of Daming Bank Yangzhou Branch should be done to me."
The Wang Zhaoyi brothers were immediately confused, and Shi Kefa and others were also at a loss. What are you talking about? Why do you want to do your business if you haven't even written your horoscope yet?
It was Ren Minyu who reacted quickly: "Could it be that the Lord Governor wants to borrow money from the Yangzhou branch?" This sentence woke up the dreamer, and everyone reacted.
Chang Yu did not deny it: "You all know the current situation of the imperial court better than the Governor. We need money and food, but there are endless natural and man-made disasters, especially in the capital area.
A large amount of grain. The governor originally stored some grain in Xuzhou for the army going south, but all of it had to be transported back to Beijing for relief. It was a drop in the bucket..." Everyone's faces were solemn after hearing this.
At the end, Chang Yu sighed: "I would like to borrow a million from you two to purchase grain and provide relief to Gyeonggi."
Millions! Shi Kefa and Ren Minyu looked at each other in surprise. This must be too much.
But Chang Yu's expression was calm. He believed that the Wang family could afford this small amount of money. The reason was very simple. They had bribed Duduo with 300,000 gold to stop him from killing innocent people.
Do you know how much three hundred thousand taels of gold is worth?
Some people would say three million taels of silver.
No, no, no, it’s much more than that. The ratio of gold to gold and silver has never been fixed at one to ten since ancient times. In the Western Han Dynasty, the exchange rate was one to three. At that time, gold mining was difficult, and silver was also difficult. By the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the exchange rate
It became one to ten, but by the Song Dynasty it was one to thirteen, and on the eve of the Opium War it was one to thirty. These data are not random talk, but have official historical records.
In the Ming Dynasty, especially in the late Ming Dynasty, it reached one to twenty. This is because the mining speed of gold is far slower than that of silver. Secondly, because the international price ratio of gold and silver has always exceeded that of China, so at least since the Ming Dynasty, there have been a large number of
Foreigners transported silver to China and then converted it into gold and shipped it out, making the price of silver in China lower and lower and the price of gold higher and higher.
Therefore, the 300,000 gold that the Wang family bribed Duduo at that time was equivalent to at least five to six million in silver. Of course, that may have been the entire Wang family's wealth, so Chang Yu only borrowed one million yuan.
Sure enough, the Wang brothers did not disappoint Chang Yu: "Does the governor want cash in cash, or the equivalent in grain?"
This is the vision and mind of businessmen. First of all, Chang Yu gave them the opportunity to invest in shares and make a lot of money. You can't refuse people's requests due to circumstances or reasons, let alone asking for a loan.
Secondly, with so many big shots testifying, it is absolutely impossible for the young eunuch to default on this debt based on his personality and the fact that he represents the imperial court. If he wanted to default on this debt, he would have directly smuggled the loan into the bank account instead of using the account of the Ming Dynasty Bank.
So since they have this ability, of course they have to do this business, not only do it but also do it beautifully. If you want money, I will give you money, if you want food, I will help you purchase it, and if you borrow it, I will donate it.
One hundred thousand taels and one penny is quite a lot.
These words really made Chang Yu happy and grateful. He stood up and toasted the Wang brothers with wine. This was the first time he took the initiative to toast tonight and he still stood up. The Wang brothers were flattered and drank three large glasses of wine.
People are in high spirits during happy events. Chang Yu, who usually drinks less, was dizzy after drinking tonight, but he still looked like he was not drunk. The Wang brothers put their arms around each other and had a short chat, which made Ren Min watch.
Yu was dumbfounded, Shi Kefa smiled bitterly and shook his head, Gao Jie rolled on the ground holding the wine jar, muttering I want ten...
It was the first time in his life to drink Duan Fang. When Chang Yu woke up, he was already in the guest room of the government office with a splitting headache. Lian Xin applied a wet towel to his forehead, but it didn't work. She also brought him some concentrated liquor that had been brewed long ago.
Tea, I drank half the pot in one breath and squatted at the door with my head in my hands: "Whoever lets me drink again will have to chop him up."
"You can pull it. Yesterday I advised you to drink less. If you yelled at anyone who wouldn't let you drink, you would chop him up..." Gao Jie came over at some point, looking top-heavy and hungover.
Chang Yu rolled his eyes: "Stop talking nonsense, before I got drunk, I clearly saw you rolling around on the ground with a wine jar..." Gao Jie blushed: "How is that possible? You must be dazzled by drinking too much..."
While the two were arguing with each other, Ren Minyu learned that Chang Yu came to see him when he woke up, and told him that Wang Zhaoyi had come to the Yamen early in the morning to greet him, and was waiting in the lobby at this time.
This made Chang Yu feel that the Wang brothers were really caring.
After washing up, it was almost noon. Chang Yu went to the lobby to see that Wang Zhaoyi was the only one there. He said that his brother Wang Zhaode was busy purchasing food. Chang Yu asked for details and learned that the Wang family had sent people to purchase everywhere. Anyway, whether it was along the river or
The land along the river is a land of plenty. As long as you have money, you can receive food, and the prices are more reasonable than Octopus. This gave Chang Yu the idea of letting the Wang family do purchasing in Jiangnan as Octopus.
Wang Zhaoyi was very excited after hearing this and said that the matter was negotiable. The two of them were talking and it was dinner time without realizing it. Wang Zhaoyi invited Chang Yu to go to the Wang Mansion for a banquet again, but Chang Yu declined politely. He still had official business to deal with.
Wang Zhaoyi was then sent away, and someone from Octopus came to contact him about purchasing grain and grass.
The yamen had a light tea and light meal for lunch, but Gao Jie disappeared without a trace. Chang Yu, Shi Kefa and Ren Minyu chatted while eating. Shi Kefa asked when he was leaving, and Chang Yu frowned slightly: "They should be here too."
Shi Kefa and Ren Minyu were surprised: "What should have arrived?"
"You two will know later." Chang Yu gave it up and took a nap after lunch. He was about to wait for Lian Xin to go shopping for some items when a bodyguard came to report eagerly: someone brought it.
What is Dianshi? To put it simply, he is a miscellaneous person who works for the county magistrate. Although he is an official but not high-ranking or popular, he is responsible for arrests. He is an official in the prison with a monthly salary of one meter and three stones, similar to the auxiliary police in later generations?
But it was these three low-ranking officials who led the people of Jiangyin to fight to the death with the Tatars when the county magistrate, county magistrate, coastal defense, academic history and other leading groups in the yamen collectively resigned and left.
For eighty-one days, everyone died in battle and martyred their country.
Chang Yu must use this kind of people. Although they are all unknown at this time, he must give them a platform to display their ambitions. Therefore, after he took charge of Dongchang, in addition to helping the emperor with some dirty work and gathering information,
He also did two things, one was to find people, and the other was to kill people.
Find some loyal people in history who fought bravely against the Tatars and sacrificed their lives for their country, and kill the two Japanese who led the way.
After all, the memory of the past life is limited, and many people have to go through contact before they can remember it. When they think of someone, they either find him or kill him. For example, when he was fighting in the Gyeonggi area before, he had no time to think about the people and things in the south until he settled Bai Wang this time.
After returning to Nanjing, he realized that Jiangyin was not far from here. When he left Nanjing, he sent people to Jiangyin to find the three people who agreed to meet in Yangzhou. The three people had official duties, so it was not difficult to find them.
Of course, when he ordered to go to Jiangyin to look for Sangong, he also secretly ordered Jinyiwei and Dongchang to go to Henan to kill Fang Heng. Even before the Tatars conquered Henan, he had already taken the initiative to kneel down to greet Fang Heng, a Jinshi of the Ming Dynasty who was then sent to Jiangyin as the new county magistrate.
His level of disgust is no less disgusting than that of Sun Zhixian.
Yan Yingyuan and the other three people had the same reaction as others who were approached by Dongchang, that is, panic, not knowing what they had done could alert Dongchang to come and take someone away.
However, they soon calmed down a bit, because they were not put in shackles, and the people were very polite along the way, saying only that someone wanted to see them in Yangzhou.
I just racked my brains along the way and couldn't figure out who wanted to see them, until I arrived in Yangzhou and met someone I never dreamed of, the eunuch of Dongchang.
Chang Yu saw that the three of them were in their prime and became more and more fond of them. He immediately went straight to the topic: "The governor wants to give the three of them a future. Should they become officials or join the army?"
Not surprisingly, the three of them were stunned.
Pies fall from the sky out of nowhere, no matter who you are, it's like a person who is begging for food on the street and is suddenly taken away by several people and meets a super rich man who tells him that this is his father.
After a lot of effort, the three of them finally determined that this was not a prank, and that the other party wanted to give them a future for no reason, either as an official or in the army.
Being an official requires fame, and at least you have to be above the rank of a civil servant. However, at best, a civil servant can only be a small official below the county magistrate. If you are lucky, you can be a small county magistrate in a remote area.
Although none of the three of them have any fame, it is not a problem to be appointed as a county magistrate with a strong backer like Chang Yu, but there are conditions, that is, they must be transferred to Henan and Hebei, which are the places that have suffered the most natural and man-made disasters in recent days.
The reason is very simple. The fact that these people died for their country shows that they have noble character. Even if they don't have outstanding talents, they will never harm the people under their rule.
If you choose to join the army, it is naturally impossible to be a general at first. First, the general or general Qian will be trained in the army and promoted through military merit.
But whether joining the army or becoming an official is far more promising than being a low-ranking clerk in Jiangyin Yamen. The three of them are naturally excited but can't make a choice at the moment. Chang Yu is not in a hurry to let them make a decision immediately. In the Yamen
The three people were really flattered by the banquet and the fact that Minyu was invited to accompany them, but they could not figure out how to win the favor of the young eunuch.
In the end, Yan Yingyuan and Chen Mingyu chose to join the army, while Feng Houdun chose to serve as an official because he was trained. Chang Yu asked Yan and Chen to go to Jinan and Octopus with Ma Yingkui to go to Puzhou to defect to Li Yan. As for Feng Houdun, he returned to Jiangyin first to wait for the officials.