I served as an admonisher in the Song Dynasty

Chapter 522: A big fight! Wang Anshi buys more government bonds and fights with Jiangnan Commercial Society
August 27th, near noon.

Wang Anshi sat in the lobby of a teahouse called Yuhu Tea House, drinking tea alone.

Not far away from the corner.

Su Liang and Cao Yi were also dressed as businessmen and sat drinking opposite each other.

Today is the third day of the "government bond cooling-off period".

If Wang Anshi had not gone to the provincial government to return the money before sunset, the 30,000 strings of cash would no longer be available for withdrawal.

These two days.

Wang Anshi experienced many warning methods such as "burning ships, falling objects from high altitudes, and no one collecting medicinal materials."

Apparently someone was trying to stop him from buying government bonds.

But he showed no sign of compromise and continued to speak of the benefits of buying government bonds on many occasions.

Today is the deadline.

Su Liang and the other two expected that the people from Jiangnan Trading Company would definitely have some other tricks up their sleeves.

Su Liang already knew that someone was investigating Wang Anshi's identity under the alias "An Youwei" and "Qiantang native".

Su Liang had already made arrangements for this.

The pseudonym "An Youwei" was not made up by Wang Anshi.

It can indeed be found in the household registration of Qiantang County.

An Youwei's father was An Hongdao. When An Youwei was seven years old, his family moved to the northwest to do business and never returned. He had no relatives in the county...

If investigators go to the northwest to verify, it will take at least a month to go back and forth.

Therefore, no one can expose Wang Anshi’s false identity at present.

What Su Liang and the other two urgently want to know is: Why does Jiangnan Trading Company hate government bonds so much?
Only by finding the cause can we prescribe the right remedy.

……

moment.

Just as Wang Anshi was about to leave the teahouse, an acquaintance appeared in front of him.

Not someone else.

It was Tao Yiren, the owner of Tao’s Jewelry Store.

Tao Yiren smiled and said, "Manager An, can we go to the private room on the second floor to chat?"

"Humph!"

Wang Anshi sneered and asked, "What for?"

"Help you sell that shipload of medicinal materials! Hangzhou is not comparable to the Northwest. The humidity here is very heavy. If they are left for too long, they will probably go bad." Tao Yiren said with a smile.

There was a hint of threat in the words.

Hear this.

Wang Anshi frowned slightly, then stood up.

As a medicinal herb merchant, he naturally had to show that he cared about the medicinal herbs.

These two days.

In order to test the control of Jiangnan Trading Company, he began to sell medicinal materials.

pity.

No one dared to buy it in Hangzhou.

He even lowered the price to 80% of the market price so that he could make money by reselling it, but still no one dared to buy.

Immediately, the two of them went upstairs to the private room.

Tao Yiren sat at the table, looked at Wang Anshi, and asked, "Manager An, you are from Anjia Village, Qiantang County, right? My wife's uncle also lives there, maybe we are relatives!"

Wang Anshi smiled faintly. The other party was obviously testing his identity.

"Manager Tao, your wife is lying to you. There is no such thing as Anjia Village in Qiantang County. I live in Xiatang Village."

"That... maybe I remembered it wrong!"

Tao Yiren changed the subject.

"Manager An, forgive me for being blunt, but if you insist on having your own way and don't return the national debt, your shipload of medicinal materials won't be sold in the entire Jiangnan area!"

"You think you can become famous by doing this, but in fact it will make it impossible for you to do business in Jiangnan. Withdraw the national debt immediately!"

Wang Anshi glared and said, "It's fine if you merchants from Jiangnan Trading Company don't buy government bonds, but what good will it do you to stop me from buying government bonds? Even if I lose money, it's my money, what does it have to do with you?"

Tao Yiren shook his head slightly.

"Jiangnan merchants share gains and losses, and are one body. If you buy government bonds and other merchants follow suit, won't that cause disunity among Jiangnan merchants?"

"People are not united?"

Wang Anshi retorted: "If everyone buys government bonds, wouldn't people's hearts be united? And it's not a losing business!"

"You...you...do you really not understand or are you pretending not to understand? Jiangnan is the world of Jiangnan merchants, not the world of the Song Dynasty court. The purpose of our Jiangnan Trading Company is to serve the people, not the court!"

Tao Yiren was a little anxious.

He slowed down and lowered his voice and said, "Manager An, I have something to say that is a bit treasonous. If Song and Liao go to war, it is hard to predict who will win or lose. We are far away from the war in Jiangnan. Whether it is Liao or Song, they need us to develop commerce and provide livelihoods for the people. The best way for us to survive is to not help each other..."

Wang Anshi looked gloomy.

If he didn't need to conceal his identity, he might have already taken action.

He didn't expect that the Jiangnan businessmen would have such thoughts.

selfishness.

There is no country or people in his eyes.

Tao Yiren continued, "If you follow my wishes, I will recommend you to join Jiangnan Trading Company after the three-month observation period. After joining, I guarantee that you will make a lot of money and never have to worry about money again in your life."

"If not, Jiangnan Trading Company will make you bankrupt and your life will be worse than death. You should think about it carefully!"

After saying that, Tao Yiren strode away.

……

Half an hour later.

In the house rented by Su Liang and others.

Su Liang and Cao Yi listened to Wang Anshi angrily recounting the entire conversation between him and Tao Yiren.

Cao Yi was so furious that he rolled up his sleeves and started cursing.

"What does it mean that Jiangnan merchants work for the people rather than the imperial court? What does it mean that Jiangnan is the world of Jiangnan merchants rather than the world of the Song Dynasty? What does it mean that Jiangnan merchants can survive well regardless of whether Liao or Song occupies Jiangnan?"

"So selfish! So shameless! If our Song Dynasty is in danger, these people will definitely be traitors!"

"Without the Reform of the Song Dynasty and the various laws that benefited business, how could they have made so much money? Now that they are rich, do they think they are above the court? Do they think that the change of dynasties has nothing to do with them and they can protect themselves completely? They can even take their private property overseas?"

……

Cao Yi cursed angrily, while Wang Anshi nodded in agreement.

The two were very annoyed by the attitude of the Jiangnan Trading Company members towards the current court.

This is totally like eating milk and cursing the mother.

Lean slightly.

Seeing that Su Liang had not spoken, Cao Yi could not help but ask, "Jingming, why have you remained silent?"

Su Liang slowed down.

"I was just as angry as you were just now, but after thinking about it carefully, I feel that Tao Yiren's ideas cannot represent the businessmen of Jiangnan, or even the businessmen of Jiangnan Trading Company."

"They are most likely being coerced by someone, either for money, or for the safety of themselves or their family members, or simply to live a stable life in Jiangnan."

"National debt is not a losing business. Jiangnan merchants are afraid to buy it. It is probably because of the president of Jiangnan Trading Company, Zhisou." "Merchants like to protect themselves, but I heard hatred for the court from Tao Yiren's words. If there is no hatred, it is really wrong."

Say it.

Su Liang took out a document, handed it to Cao Yi and Wang Anshi, and said, "This is the latest information about Zhisou."

The spies under Su Liang who were gathering intelligence shared information with the Imperial City Bureau and were qualified to review all kinds of files in various prefectures at any time and anywhere.

After reading it, Cao Yi was surprised.

"The household registration document of Zhisou says that his name is Lin Luonan, his ancestral home is Hangzhou City, his family is ordinary, his parents died early, and he was a poor scholar before he was thirty years old. He failed the imperial examination three times, and then...then he left his hometown and disappeared!"

"He disappeared for thirty-one years. In the fifth year of the Qingli reign, when he was sixty-one years old, he returned to Hangzhou alone, without children or helpers. Yet, in just ten years, he was able to control nearly 70% of the textile, printing and maritime trade in Jiangnan. He is truly a business genius!"

"Where was he from the age of thirty to sixty-one? What on earth did he go through? He must have made a lot of money during this time, otherwise it would be impossible for him to create such a huge industry in Jiangnan at the age of sixty-one!"

The information about Zhisou from the age of 30 to 61 is missing.

The ten years from when he was sixty-one to seventy-one years old was the period when the Song Dynasty started the Qizhou Reform and then the comprehensive reform.

In the past ten years, the pro-business policies have been very good.

But without sufficient capital, he would not have been able to earn such a huge fortune.

Wang Anshi continued, "Zhisou has no country in his heart, but he has the people. Apart from this national debt incident, Jiangnan Commercial Company still has a good reputation in the hearts of the people of Hangzhou City. They have helped a lot of people, but...but why does he have such malice towards the court?"

Su Liang and the other two were all puzzled by this.

There is absolutely no need to be full of malice towards the imperial court.

Su Liang thought for a moment and said, "I'm afraid I can only get more information by meeting this wise old man."

Su Liang turned and looked at Cao Yi.

"Brother Jingxiu, how much money do you have?"

Cao Yi extended a palm.

"Fifty thousand strings of cash! If it's not enough, I can go get more immediately!"

Long before Wang Anshi took out 30,000 strings of cash to buy government bonds, Cao Yi had already collected 80,000 strings of cash.

At that time, there were many Jiaozi shops between states, and Cao Yi knew many businessmen, so it was not difficult for him to collect tens of thousands of strings of cash.

"Okay! Jiefu, later, you will take 50,000 strings of cash to the state government office to buy government bonds. Make a big noise, and then when you pass by Kong Fanglou, curse Tao Yiren and ridicule Jiangnan Commercial Company. The bigger the noise, the better!"

"I want to see if there are any merchants in Hangzhou who dare to go against the will of Jiangnan Trading Company and buy national debts. What will Jiangnan Trading Company's reaction be? You have purchased a total of 80,000 strings of cash and the momentum is so huge that it should attract the attention of Zhisou!"

"Understood. I am best at verbal battles. I will definitely ask this wise old man to meet me!"

……

An hour later.

Wang Anshi set out from the inn, followed by more than ten guards. The guards pulled four carts, and on the carts were eight mahogany boxes.

Soon, the convoy arrived at Qufu Bridge, in front of Kongfang Building, the headquarters of Jiangnan Trading Company, and next to Tao's Jewelry Store.

Wang Anshi waved his hand and the convoy stopped.

And the moment he stopped, a large group of people gathered around him.

Most people thought he was going to spend more money.

A small number of people thought that he was going to withdraw 30,000 strings of national debt.

But this time, Wang Anshi did not spend money because there was no need and there were already enough people watching.

He looked in the direction of Tao's Jewelry Store.

Soon, Tao Yiren quickly squeezed into the crowd and saw Wang Anshi's motorcade. He thought that Wang Anshi was going to the provincial government to raise money and couldn't help but be overjoyed.

"Manager An, a man who knows the current situation is a hero. It seems that my words were not in vain!"

Just when Tao Yiren was happy, Wang Anshi shouted, "Open the box!"

Swish!Swish!Swish!
Eight large boxes were opened at the same time.

The people around were stunned instantly, and some even drooled.

Eight large boxes were filled to the brim with silver ingots and banknotes.

"Here, there are a full 50,000 strings of cash. I, An, am going to go to the state government again to buy government bonds!"

Using 80,000 strings of cash to purchase government bonds almost made him one of the richest men in Jiangnan.

There is a saying: With a fortune of one hundred thousand taels, one can ride a crane to Yangzhou.

If a businessman had a net worth of 100,000 strings of cash, he could basically live a carefree life for the rest of his life. Wang Anshi took out 80,000 strings of cash to buy government bonds, so it was obvious that his net worth was at least 150,000 strings of cash.

This person is considered a big businessman in the whole Jiangnan region.

Tao Yiren was dumbfounded.

The president originally asked him to suppress the matter.

I didn’t expect that this young man would buy more and more, as if he was determined to fight to the death with Jiangnan Trading Company.

"Cough cough!"

Wang Anshi cleared his throat and quieted down the people around him.

"Everyone, I am not showing off my wealth, but I hope that the patriotic merchants in Jiangnan can buy national bonds if they have extra money. This will help our dynasty to prosper, and it will also bring honor to our Jiangnan merchants..."

"In the past few days, this shopkeeper Tao has been threatening me, saying that I am against Jiangnan Commercial Society by buying national bonds. I don't know how I have done anything wrong. The members of Jiangnan Commercial Society don't buy national bonds. The court has not forced them to do so, and the state government has not forced them to do so. But they are preventing other merchants from buying national bonds. What do they want to do? And they are also trying to ruin my business and kill me..."

Wang Anshi shouted in a high-pitched voice.

The people below were talking about it.

Jiangnan Trading Company can control the publication of this matter in the tabloids, but it cannot control the mouths of the people.

"Well said! Shopkeeper An, I also want to buy 10,000 strings of government bonds to bring honor to the Jiangnan merchants. I'll go get the money now!" After saying that, the businessman left quickly.

"I want to buy government bonds too! If Jiangnan Trading Company doesn't allow me to buy, should I not buy them? It's not like I do business in Jiangnan all the time!"

"I also want to buy government bonds. This move has no disadvantages and has only advantages. Shopkeeper An is not afraid of retaliation, so I am not afraid either!"

……

Not long after.

Three businessmen went home to get money, intending to buy government bonds.

Wang Anshi couldn't help but be overjoyed.

His favorable impression of Jiangnan merchants suddenly increased by two points.

In the world, as long as the first challenger jumps out, there will be a second, a third, a fourth...

Not far away, in a private room of a teahouse.

Su Liang looked at Liu Sandao standing aside.

Liu Sandao immediately understood and said, "I will immediately send someone to protect these three people. If Jiangnan Trading Company makes any moves, they will be recorded."

Liu Sandao has followed Su Liang for several years. He knows what to do just by looking at Su Liang.

Su Liang nodded.

At this moment, Tao Yiren was so angry that his face turned blue and he wished he could sew Wang Anshi's mouth shut with an embroidery needle.

"This rascal is really capable of causing trouble. Does he want to die? This matter has become a big deal. I must report it to the president immediately!"

Tao Yiren flicked his long sleeves and left quickly.

After Wang Anshi had cursed to his heart's content, he led his convoy towards the provincial government office.

This time.

Not only did he want to buy 50,000 strings of government bonds, he also wanted to sue Tao Yiren for attempting to murder him, and then see how the state government and the Jiangnan Trading Company would handle the matter.

(End of this chapter)