Wu Mengming chatted for a while and then let it go. This dignified commander of the Jinyi Guards of the Ming Dynasty had long since stopped doing his job. He was thinking about how to make money with Chang Yu every day. Fortunately, he was such a person.
Chang Yu finally had enough to eat. He held some tea and chatted with Song Siyang some more, and asked him to go directly to the account department tomorrow to settle the money with his account book.
Song Siyang, a local coward, never expected that one day, he would be surrounded by high-ranking officials from the imperial court, and the eunuch attached to Dongchang would really enjoy the cool weather.
Is it easy to settle the court's money?
The answer is very difficult. The main reason is that the imperial court is poor and the treasury is empty. Every day when I open my eyes, there are people asking for money, military pay, salary, disaster relief funds... etc. It can be said that the officials of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War are the most miserable among the six ministries.
Forced.
However, with Dongchang's background and Emperor Chongzhen's nod, the Ministry of Revenue would not be able to push back any further, not to mention that the current Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, Ni Yuanlu, was a die-hard fan of Emperor Chongzhen.
Is it easy to make money from the imperial court?
Of course it is easy to make money, otherwise all the companies throughout the ages have wanted to get government contracts. In addition to honors, there are also various subsidies and benefits. Song Siyang made a rough calculation and found that the grain outside the customs alone, excluding labor costs, is almost 5,000 taels of silver.
earn.
Wu Mengming was overjoyed when he heard this. Although five thousand taels of silver was not worth mentioning, it was just a transaction. It was just the first order. Just imagine, if all the Ming Dynasty's military rations were purchased with Octopus cards...
I'm going to do it, I can't sleep just thinking about it.
"The governor is more concerned about how much money this trip will leave for the court?" Chang Yu picked up the teacup and took a sip.
Song Siyang clapped his hands, and the two accountants came in cautiously with their account books. The abacus in their hands was clicking and they whispered in Song Siyang's ears before exiting.
"At least thirteen thousand taels!" Song Siyang said.
The corners of Chang Yu's lips raised. This was the cost of purchasing grain only. If it was considered as manpower and material resources, the price the court would have to pay would be even more!
Half an hour later, Chang Yu left, and Song Siyang and Wu Mengming were sent to the intersection before returning.
"How's it going in the south?" Chang Yu asked Chunxiang with his eyes squinting against the car window in the car. It was a secret of the East Factory, so of course we had to talk in private.
"Gao Wencai has gone south. According to your instructions, arrangements will be made along the way!"
Chang Yu nodded: "I want Dongchang's informants to be all over the Ming Dynasty within half a year! If there is any shortage, the Jinyi Guard manpower will be transferred."
Chunxiang nodded, then suddenly smiled and said: "Wu Mengming's head is full of money. In Jinyiwei, it is the vegetarian corpse place you mentioned."
"Isn't this good?" Chang Yu chuckled: "It's better than asking the emperor to recruit a cold-faced guy to stare at us."
"That's true, but Wu Mengming is two-faced and not a good thing," Chunxiang said again.
"Don't worry, he is just a decoration now, just like a grasshopper like us. He doesn't dare to say anything when he sees something, but he will help cover it up."
When the car stopped in front of Daming Gate, Lao Hu stuck his head in and asked: "The factory master is going back to the palace or to the Yamen?"
Chang Yu opened the car curtain and looked at the bright moon in the night sky. It was particularly bright. A group of people came from the south. They were officers and soldiers on duty at Zhengyang Gate. They saw a motorcade wandering around the gate of Daming and came to investigate.
He was stopped before he had taken nearly twenty steps: "from Dongchang."
The officers and soldiers bowed, turned around, and walked away faster and faster, muttering in a low voice that at this point, the leader of this battle was most likely the leader of the East Factory.
Chang Yu got out of the car, walked to the corner and lifted up his clothes...
They immediately turned around and didn't dare to look at each other, but Chunxiang stood side by side, leaning against the wall together.
"Has the matter in Zhongguancun been done?" Chang Yu shook the bird and walked towards the car.
Chunxiang rubbed his hands on his body and hurriedly caught up: "After receiving the order, I have ordered the craftsmen to work on it all night, and I will be able to make it tomorrow."
Chang Yu nodded, got in the car, and said to Lao Hu: "Go to Guangqumen"
Guangqumen is the outer city, and there is a Dongchang fan who calls to open the Zhengyangmen gate. People gather in horse-drawn carriages and leave the city, slowly heading east. A wall separates two worlds.
It was late at night, and the inner city was mostly quiet. Only a few restaurants and flowerhouses near the city gates were still noisy, but outside the front gate, the whole street was noisy!
This is the red light district of Beijing, and the nightlife has just begun.
Sure enough, brothers Jiang Fa and Chen Suole's eyes widened again. They saw on both sides of the street, the sound of silk and bamboo playing in teahouses and theaters, and the singing of warblers and swallows from the flower house. They really felt itchy.
Chalou, the predecessor of Guanghelou, one of the four major theaters in the Qing Dynasty, was just an ordinary teahouse and theater in the late Ming Dynasty. Later, due to improper business operations, it was bought by a wealthy gentleman. After some renovations, it was renamed Dajingcheng!
This is a big tone. There are many famous buildings and famous actors in the capital. Who can have such a big tone?
Dajingcheng has been promoting it since it was renovated. The reason why it is called Dajingcheng is because it has gathered almost all the entertainment projects in Beijing. Whatever you want to do, you can enjoy it here, whether you want to listen to music, have music, or drink tea.
Yes, if you want to gamble, if you want to piao, get out. There is no flesh and blood business here, but there is something new, a boxing match.
At first glance, it sounds like a new thing, but it is actually a ring fight, but it is not the kind of ring fight they imagined. Everyone has a club, and anyone can train several boxers to compete in competitions, with generous rewards and unlimited bets.
.
It turned out to be such a cruel and exciting thing... It aroused the curiosity of everyone from the nobles to the pawns in the capital. It set a record on the day of opening. Anyone who could get in and take a look felt that it was doubly honorable...
At this time, the outside of the Grand Capital Club was still overcrowded. Many people who had not entered the venue were waiting on the streets outside, asking from time to time who lost or won the game inside. Although they couldn't squeeze in, some of them had people helping them place their bets...
…
"Brother, do you want to go in and take a look?" Chunxiang asked as the car passed by. Chang Yu shook his head and took a look from the car window: "Who cares about this place?"
"Behind the scenes is the East Palace, and the people who come forward are Xinlehou Liu Wenbing and Xuancheng Bowei Shichun."
Chang Yu had a look of surprise on his face. He was the one who proposed Zhu Cihong to prepare the Dajing City Club. He was too busy with official matters and did not get involved deeply. He also knew that Zhu Cihong would find someone to take charge of the meeting as he was not able to come forward as the prince, but he never thought that it would be these two nobles.
It seems that Zhu Cixiang really has 100% trust in him, because Chang Yu once told him that in that dream, the Ming Dynasty fell and Emperor Chongzhen committed suicide, and the two noble families were reunited.
I haven't seen Xinlehou Changyu, nor has Xuancheng Bo Changyu, but my two sons have, and they were almost beaten by him.
These two people were very loyal to the old Zhu family. Zhu Cihong used them as a countertop, which was both classy and reassuring, and at the same time, he could attract more nobles to join his family.
"Brother, is the prince worried about our Dongchang? This matter should have been left to you!" Chunxiang tilted his head and felt a little unbalanced. The boxing match was created by Chang Yu, and the idea was also his.
How come you turned around and turned away completely?
Chang Yu laughed loudly: "In our Dongchang, dog meat cannot be served at the banquet. Think about it, if this big capital was opened by Dongchang, ordinary people would not dare to come and play, and nobles would not want to come. If those civil servants knew about it,
He even scolded our Dongchang to death, and even the emperor was implicated."
But it’s just the same if two noble people join forces to open a store. It’s reasonable and legal, has a bright sign and a wide network of contacts, so that they can make a lot of money.
"The emperor wants to make money, and the prince is also making money. Even Wu Mengming is getting into the money every day. Brother, is our Dongchang also going to make money?" Chunxiang sighed with emotion, and then whispered: "
Isn’t our Dong Factory short of money?”
Chang Yu smiled bitterly: "I'm always short of money. Our Dongchang is now the poorest. Your Majesty asked me to supervise Dongchang. He gave me power but also a burden. I have to support the hundreds of mouths in Dongchang."
.And even though the four battalions under my command are under the name of Jingying, they still have to be raised by Dongchang. Chunxiang, I am so poor now that I am not willing to drink cold water!"
"Then we have to find ways to make money." When Chunxiang heard that Chang Yu wanted to support so many people, he became anxious: "Wei Zhongxian made a lot of money when he was working in the East Factory. Don't lose his prestige when you are here.
”.
"Wei Zhongxian's money is too dirty, we can't imitate him." Chang Yu shook his head: "Corruption and bribery are the things I hate the most."
"But we are here to do the emperor's dirty work." Chunxiang sighed.
"You can do dirty work, your body can be dirty, and your heart can be clean." Chang Yu also sighed. Clean people can't survive these days. Clean businesses don't make money, and they don't know that they are pretending to be innocent.
"Let's all wait to starve to death." Chunxiang rolled his eyes.
Chang Yu chuckled and suddenly said: "Chunxiang, do you know Luo Yangxing?"
"I know, Wu Mengming's last commander of the Jinyi Guards, his father Luo Sigong was also the commander of the Jinyi Guards, and he was very favored by the emperor. It was Luo Yangxing who found out that Zhou Yanru, the chief assistant, lied about military information, and became the leader to bring down Zhou Yanru.
The most powerful blow".
That's good, Chang Yu praised him. Chunxiang was originally a young eunuch in the inner court, but he has learned a lot in just a few months. In addition, he has gained more experience after joining the Dongchang.
"Then do you know why he went down?"
Chunxiang frowned for a moment: "I heard that the emperor dismissed him because of serious corruption."
Chang Yu smiled obscenely: "Oh, corruption is serious." In his memory, Li Zicheng tortured 30,000 taels from Luo Yangxing after entering Beijing!
Chunxiang also laughed, and even more vulgarly said: "Brother, the work we do in Dongchang is really unspeakable. Tsk, tsk, tsk, is this considered cheating?"
"P's gangsters are gangsters, and anti-corruption and corruption investigations are within the scope of our Dongchang. I think it is necessary to punish some court officials," Chang Yu said righteously. (To be continued)