Chapter 1554 Little People, Big Business

This was the first time Zhang Qu had heard of the Haihan people building a salt farm in Ningbo. He could not have imagined that Haihan's influence in the Ming Dynasty would be so great that even a resource controlled by the state, such as the salt farm, would dare to directly

Intervene. And listening to the tone of others, it seems that members of the royal family were involved in the construction of this salt field, so this is simply colluding with foreign countries to sell out national interests. As a scholar with a good reputation, Zhang Qu naturally understands the principles of loyalty and integrity, but

He found that in the face of truly huge interests, it would be difficult for anyone to remain loyal to the Ming Dynasty.

There is no need to ask why the prince is involved in this matter. It must be for money. It is a naked power-for-money transaction. However, Zhang Qu has no position to accuse others now, because the reason why he came here is also to get close to Haihan.

He made a fortune by relying on others, and even forged his identity to do so. However, compared to the background of the imperial businessman, his identity as a fake official businessman is really low. If he really wants to discuss a large-scale transaction with a senior official from Haihan, Zhang Qu is actually a little worried.

Whether you can hold up the situation?

When Zhang Qu came to Ningbo, he planned to rely on his knowledge to get an official position in Haihan. However, after arriving, he found that there were too many people here who wanted to take the path of masters or counselors, and he did not have much practical experience.

Scholars with experience in government affairs are simply not as good as those veterans who have worked for senior officials in terms of administrative methods. In the head-to-head competition, they have no other advantages except age. They even have no chance to meet senior officials in Haihan.

It's hard to show up.

It is precisely because of this that Zhang Qu decisively gave up this path that seemed to have no chance, and instead chose another risky but promising way to get close to the Haihan people. Ya Xing was tailor-made for him

The fake identity was almost perfect, and he had already had the opportunity to meet with high-ranking officials from Haihan, but Zhang Qu always felt that his identity was a bit too weak compared to the businessmen around him who had real government backgrounds, or even royal backgrounds.

Zhang Qu even wondered whether it would be possible to leave this place safely if a senior official from Haihan saw through his trick during the conversation later.

Zhang Qu waited uneasily for about a cup of tea in the flower hall when he heard a burst of noise coming from outside the house, which was also mixed with someone's cry of pain. It seemed that something had happened. Everyone was naturally very worried.

Curious about where this high-ranking official from Haihan settled, who was so bold and dared to cause trouble, they all rushed to the door to see what was going on outside.

But even though there were Haihan soldiers with live ammunition blocking the door, they were not allowed to go out. Everyone was about to make a fuss, but an officer stood outside the door and said: "Thieves are being caught outside. For safety reasons, everyone still

Just wait in the house! Anyone who does not obey the arrangements will be treated as an accomplice of the thief!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone immediately became quiet. No matter whether the thief is being caught for real or fake, the most important thing is not to involve yourself. Otherwise, with the methods of the Haihan people, there will be no place for them even if they are killed on the spot.

Redress your grievances.

Zhang Qu was thinking in his heart that the high-ranking officials of Haihan were probably talking to Cao Lu, the eunuch who had entered earlier. He didn't know if the thief had disturbed them. However, the courtyard was guarded by Haihan soldiers inside and outside.

Even the servants were brought over by Haihan himself. This thief must have had wings, otherwise how could he avoid so many eyes and ears and sneak into the inner courtyard.

Although he couldn't go out to see what was going on, he could actually see some of the situation outside from the pause of the Haihan soldiers blocking the door. Zhang Qu was so curious that he stayed at the door without moving.

Not long after, I saw several Haihan soldiers dragging a person out from the inner courtyard. There was some blood on this person's face and body, and his face could not be seen clearly, but judging from his clothes, it turned out that he had entered the inner courtyard without incident before.

The eunuch Cao Lu.

Zhang Qu thought he was dazzled, so he rubbed his eyes and looked again. Someone beside him had already muttered: "Isn't this... Master Cao?"

The soldiers dragged the man to the patio outside the flower hall and threw him on the ground. Everyone in the flower hall stood on tiptoe and looked through the gaps between the people. Sure enough, they quickly confirmed that this man was Cao Lu.

But he clearly went in to interview with senior officials of Haihan, how could he be dragged out in such an embarrassing manner? Moreover, Cao Lu is said to be a subordinate of a certain prince. Are the people of Haihan really not afraid that doing so will offend the powerful people of Ming Dynasty?

Soon, a young man in Haihan costume came out of the inner courtyard and came to the flower hall and announced to everyone: "Everyone, please be patient. This matter was personally ordered by Chief Shi Diwen. As for the reason, it is

Because this person pretended to be an imperial merchant and cheated, the chief saw through it, so he was only slightly punished."

When everyone heard these words, they immediately exploded, especially the few people who had gathered around Cao Lutao earlier. They couldn't believe that the news announced by the Haihan people was true. How could the emperor's merchant envoy come to Cao Lutao in just a short time?

Became a charlatan.

Compared to others, Zhang Qu was even more panicked after hearing the news. He didn't expect that he was not the only one who dared to play with a false identity in front of the Haihan people, and he also played a bigger game than him, directly pretending to be an imperial merchant.

I don’t know what this guy surnamed Cao was talking about. He was actually found out by a senior official from Haihan in front of his face. Naturally, life will be difficult. Looking at the blood on his head and face, this guy must have eaten something before he was dragged out.

He was stunned, and given the temper of the Haihan people, this matter might not be over yet. He would be sent to report to the official later. Just for pretending to be an imperial merchant, it is estimated that he would be imprisoned for several years.

Of course, the person Zhang Qu is worried about is not the person named Cao, but himself. He pretended to be an official and businessman of Jinhua Mansion. This matter is also big or small. If it is handled according to the current method, it will probably be difficult for him to get through.

If Haihan were to arrest him and report him to the police, he would be done for the rest of his life.

Thinking of this possibility, Zhang Qu couldn't help but regret his previous impulse. Now that his identity has been reported, he might be summoned soon. At this time, it is too late to take any measures. The issues Zhang Qu considered

The question has changed from "can I walk away safely?" to "can I get the forgiveness of the Haihan people by confessing on my own initiative?". Before he could see the real owner, Zhang Qu had already begun to retreat in his heart.

After Cao Lu lay on the ground for a while, the Haihan people probably felt that the effect was almost done, so the officer ordered him to be taken away. Then the officer came to the flower hall and asked everyone one by one if they had heard Cao Lu mention any special names before.

Or the name of the place, it seems that there are some of his accomplices outside. Zhang Qu answered the officer's questions without hesitation, and he began to worry that if he was exposed, he might not even be able to find the person who reported the news to his family.

Although such an incident occurred, the meeting did not stop and soon resumed. Zhang Qu's heart was constantly at war between heaven and man. He considered whether he should decisively give up this opportunity to meet and quickly found a reason to run away.

Maybe the Haihan people wouldn't pursue it. But he still had some luck in his heart. Maybe the Haihan people wouldn't have expected that a second businessman who came to the talks with a false identity would appear so soon. If he could

If you muddle through, you may receive many benefits in the future.

Before Zhang Qu could make a final decision, someone came to take him to see Shi Diwen. Zhang Qu took a few deep breaths, tried his best to keep his emotions stable, and then followed the Haihan staff out of the flower hall and through the patio.

Entered the inner courtyard.

In the study room in the inner courtyard, the anxious Zhang Qu finally met the legendary Haihan general. The dark skin color represented that he had spent a long time outdoors and at sea, and the body was so strong that he had almost no fat.

The person lives an extremely healthy life, and does not lead a sensual life because of the greater power in his hands, causing his body to be out of shape. What makes Zhang Qu most uneasy is the killing and decisive aura of a superior person exuding from the other party, which is always present.

He was reminded that the person in front of him had become a high-ranking official through his accumulation of military achievements. It would probably be quite difficult to be clever in front of such a person.

On the table in front of Shi Diwen is Zhang Qu's personal information. Of course, this information is based on the registration information of each company. For example, Zhang Qu's information contains his origin and background. Since this kind of interview activity is almost continuous,

, In fact, Shi Diwen didn't have time to digest Zhang Qu's information in advance. Basically, he could only take the time to read the next guest's information after seeing off the previous guest.

I have to say that the identity prepared by the local daring dental shop for Zhang Qu was really good. Shi Diwen took a rough look at Zhang Qu’s background and the content of the interview. He didn’t think there was any problem, so he gave the interview in silence.

This left a foreshadowing. Jinhua Prefecture is an inland state capital in Zhejiang. It cannot even directly participate in dialogues on the theme of business and trade. It can only engage in the lowest level processing industry. But things are often just afraid of what will happen.

, the first question Shi Diwen asked made Zhang Qu almost kneel down.

"I only met the prefect of Jinhua last month, why didn't he mention your matter to me?"

Of course Zhang Qu knows why, because his identity is simply fictitious and he is not the nephew of the prefect of Jinhua. Even if the real prefect of Jinhua could recognize Zhang Qu's new face at the scene, it would be difficult to imagine that this person is actually Magpie Nest Jiuzhan

, and accidentally left myself with nowhere to sit.

Zhang Qu had no choice but to bite the bullet and explain: "I have been traveling back and forth between various states for a long time, eating and sleeping in the open. The prefect does not know my schedule. What's more, when you met with the prefect of Jinhua last month, there was no transportation at all.

News about Shang! It was only after I heard about this that I came to Ningbo to meet you."

Zhang Qu's mind was spinning very fast at this time. He didn't dare to admit the truth, so he could only write a script. After hearing this answer, Shi Diwen was noncommittal, nodded and continued to ask: "What does Boss Zhang want to do with our country?"

What about buying and selling?”

Zhang Qu had already thought about what to say earlier, but he was so stimulated by Cao Lu's incident just now that he blurted out: "Salt..."

"Oh? It seems that you have heard about the news that we are building a salt farm in Xiangshan, but if you plan to act as an agent for the salt sales of Jinhua Mansion, you must do it according to our rules." Shi Diwen did not doubt that he was there.

, because during these consecutive days of talks, more than one or two businessmen had already asked him to be an agent for the sales of salt in the region.

The production of Xiangshan Salt Farm will change from private salt to official salt. The official permission has been obtained, but for the specific local sales, we still have to wait for the relevant yamen of the Ming Dynasty to give a guiding opinion. Now that we have contacted the Ming Dynasty

After officially establishing diplomatic relations, Shi Diwen did not intend to copy the previous private salt trading methods in full. Instead, he adopted a semi-public operation method and managed agents in various regions in a more standardized manner.

Zhang Qu is not the first businessman to come from Jinhua, but he is the one with the best background conditions that Shi Diwen has seen so far. He has an uncle-nephew relationship with the current prefect. This status brings many conveniences in the local area.

Especially in a special industry such as the salt industry, if you don't have a certain background, it is difficult to force yourself to get an official position.

Zhang Qu regretted it as soon as he said it, but after listening to what Shi Diwen said, he didn't seem to be suspicious. He didn't dare to withdraw his statement easily, so he could only bite the bullet and ask Haihan how to obtain the salt sales agent qualification.

Shi Diwen was quite patient and told him the steps to go through the relevant procedures. The most important thing was to open an account at Haihan Bank. In the future, there would be no need to use cash for settlement of money. All he had to do was write a check and transfer it from the bank.

Regarding how to become a regional agent, the Haihan Department of Commerce has already had a complete set of standardized operating procedures, which can be applied. However, the salt industry is quite special. After listening to Zhang Qu once, I have basically memorized it.

The Han people do have rules and regulations in doing things, and they are very particular about details. It is no wonder that they can do a prosperous business. However, Haihan requires a certain amount of deposit to be deposited in the bank, which makes Zhang Qu uncomfortable.

"You should have seen the so-called imperial merchant who was dragged out from here earlier, right?" Shi Diwen suddenly changed the subject. Seeing Zhang Qu nodding his head, he continued: "He also wants to win the salt business.

, and he planned to contract the output of the entire salt farm. I asked him to deposit a deposit of 50,000 taels of silver in the bank first, and this man actually started crying to me about poverty, saying that the palace was not well-off. Haha,

Did he really think that I had no contact with the palace? I pressed him a few more questions, and he began to be unable to answer, and later he admitted that he wanted to take the opportunity to deceive me."

Zhang Qu couldn't help but ask: "Even if he cheats, he has to buy the output of the salt farm first, right?"

"You think too simply." Shi Diwen shook his head and said, "As long as he gets the agent of Xiangshan Saltworks, he can use this qualification to negotiate terms with other people, such as car and horse dealers, such as distributors, there are many ways

You can monetize this agency right.”
Chapter completed!