Lord Moyu was forced to open

Herfordshire.

"Hahaha, long time no see, Master Zhang!"

"Hahaha, isn't it possible that the Huang Family Master hasn't shown up for a long time?"

"Busy! Busy! How can we support such a big family if we are not busy? The head of the Zhang family seems to be doing big business recently. Huang looks envious!"

"Hey, there's no such thing as a big business. I'm just running a small business to make ends meet. It's not a big business."

In Haifu County, in a luxurious manor in Tianfu Mansion, two of the top local wealthy businessmen were chatting with each other.

After the two of them sat down humbly, the Huang family leader who spoke first showed a mysterious smile and looked at Zhang Mi, the Zhang family member opposite, and asked in a low voice:
  "Master Zhang, please don't hide it. I have heard that the rise of King Zhang in Shunyi County is inextricably related to your Zhang family.

Look at the places they've occupied, almost all of them have been taken over by your Zhang family. Isn't this obvious enough? "

Even though he was called out to his face, Zhang Mi still smiled nonchalantly and said, "Master Huang, please don't joke. My Zhang family is a law-abiding businessman in the Song Dynasty. How could I collude with thieves?" ?
  Talking nonsense can kill people! "

After saying that, Zhang Mi looked at Huang Kai opposite with the same meaningful smile and said: "Huang Family Master, it is your royal family. I heard that Huang Tiangong Huang Zhi in Mi County seems to be a sideline of your Huang family, right?"

Upon hearing this, Huang Kai immediately shook his head with a serious face and continued: "Master Zhang, please don't make such a joke. Our Huang family has always abided by the law. How could we do such a thing as colluding with a bandit?"

After they finished speaking, the two of them were smiling, but their hearts screamed at the same time!
  "Damn it, old fox!"

Ever since the chaos broke out in the South and the North had no time to take care of itself, the entire South has become a mess.

For their own benefit, all kinds of monsters and ghosts appeared at this time.

In the beginning, those refugees who formed the bandits really had to rebel in order to survive.

But later on, everything changed.

Behind them, there was nothing but people standing there.

The major families in the south, the powerful, the landlords, the big businessmen, all began to choose a team among all the teams to support. If they couldn't find one, they asked their own families to pull up a team. With their support behind them, Without the suppression of the imperial court, their respective teams sprung up like bamboo shoots after a rain!

Not just the Huang family and the Zhang family, there are several larger families in the south who do not support their own people.

Even if it is to avoid being slaughtered by bandits who are supported by others, they will support their own people.

However, after a business conversation, the two began to talk about the main reason for today.

"Brother Zhang, have you heard of this Revolutionary Army?"

Zhang Mi's face suddenly became solemn, he nodded heavily and said:
  "They rose from the Xia Clan. Although their number is the smallest among all the rebels, their combat power cannot be underestimated.

From the time they raised the flag to now, at least three prefectures in the entire Haifu County have been occupied by them, and they are now heading towards the Zhangzhou Prefecture of my Zhang family.

The most important thing is that these revolutionary troops are very difficult to deal with. They don't know what kind of hatred their leaders have against the landlords and businessmen. Everywhere they go, they pull out the local landlords and businessmen and put them on trial for those mud-legged people. Just confiscate the property and divide the fields!

Those mud-legged bastards were short-sighted and focused on dividing the fields, so they were particularly praised. The recent magistrate of Hua'an County was just preparing to defend the city, and the group of mud-legged bastards actually opened the city gate directly, allowing the revolutionary army to He rushed in and took down the entire Hua'an County in one pot!
  Tsk tsk, those officials, landowners, and businessmen from Hua'an County died tragically! "

After listening to Zhang Mi's words, Huang Kai nodded and said solemnly:

“Indeed, their momentum is too strong, and now there is a saying among the mud-legged people that when the king of Chuang comes, they will not pay for the food, divide the fields, and fight against the local tyrants.

If we let them continue like this, I'm afraid they will come to us, Long Yan, soon. What should we do? "

Both of them frowned. They had not thought about bringing the forces they supported back to guard the home. However, judging from the past performance of the Revolutionary Army, the forces supported by their two families were not the enemy of the other party at all.

And they don't want to bring back the support unless they have to. They never put their eggs in one basket. This is the usual practice of people like them.    This is also an important means for a large family to continue to pass on.

"Master Zhang, let me also say that the Zheng family is going to send someone to talk to the general of the Revolutionary Army. If everything goes well, maybe we won't have to worry!"

Huang Kai remembered something and immediately said excitedly.

"Zheng family? Which Zheng family?"

Zhang Mi was confused for a moment.

Huang Kai immediately said: "And the Zheng family, isn't it the Quanshui Zheng family? Oh no, they are now the Zheng family!"

"Member of the Zheng family?!"

Zhang Mi was immediately shocked. This member of the Zheng family is not a simple person.

None of the coastal families and merchants like them are engaged in maritime business, and only maritime business can bring him such huge benefits.

But one family among many is special.

Others buy more ships, transport more goods, and go into business to make money, but the Zheng family buys more ships, recruits more people, and then makes a fortune by robbing merchant ships at sea!
  At first, the people along the coast were naturally very angry. They once tried to join forces to encircle the Zheng family. However, by robbing merchant ships, the scale of the Zheng family has grown to a terrifying level. There are thousands of ships and they occupy Taiyuan Island serves as a base.

Every day, his subordinates were asked to block the only routes of various shipping routes, and they would rob anyone who came. They all joined forces to fight the Zheng family, but they failed to win.

But raising so many boats requires food, drink, and money, so in the end the coastal merchants and families who could not defeat the Zheng family gave in.

They negotiated with the Zheng family, and finally they were able to continue doing business at sea in the form of paying protection fees.

Specifically, every time a ship goes to sea, each family has to buy the flag of the Zheng family according to the size of the ship. The Zheng family will not intercept the merchant ships that have bought the flag. Even if other people touch these ships, the Zheng family will send someone to ask for them. justice.

The ships are divided into big, medium and small, and so are the flags.

One big flag costs three thousand taels.

One thousand five hundred taels for the central flag!

A small flag costs five hundred taels.

Every year, the Zheng family earns millions and nearly ten million taels of silver from collecting this protection fee. With abundant money, the Zheng family's power is getting stronger year by year.

Nowadays, the Zheng family has become a behemoth along the coast. In addition to official ships, ships going to sea must fly the Zheng flag!
  That's why the two reacted so strongly when they mentioned the Zheng family.

"It's just a revolutionary army, is it possible that the Zheng family needs to take action?"

Zhang Mi was puzzled.

Huang Kai nodded and said: "Of course I want it. No matter how powerful the Zheng family is, it will only be on the sea.

The Zheng family has little power on land, and with the current size of the Zheng family, the money they spend every month is already an astronomical figure. With the Revolutionary Army organized like this, there are fewer and fewer businessmen going overseas day by day. The interests of the Zheng family have been harmed. Naturally, To solve.

But the Revolutionary Army did not go to sea, and their power could not affect the Revolutionary Army, so they had no choice but to send people to negotiate. "

"I see. Is there any news about when the negotiations will begin?" Zhang Mi asked.

Huang Kai narrowed his eyes: "Tomorrow, at the base camp of the Revolutionary Army, Xiamen Mansion!"

... (end of this chapter)