Linxia

Chapter 175, Overseas

Xu family.

Fang Lin came to ask for some information because he knew that Xu Kuolao had some shares in the dock and the fleet. After he acquired 40% of the shares of the Nanyang fleet, he came here specifically to ask some questions.

"This time when we meet, I should ask Brother Fang to change his name to Fang Zhenfu." Old General Xu Kuo welcomed Fang Lin as he came in and said with a smile.

Ever since the imperial edict was received that day, many people changed the way they addressed Fang Lin from Manager Fang to Fang Zhenfu.

"Brother Xu, it's just an empty title. We should get along the same way as before. Don't embarrass me."

Fang Lin knew that while Xu Kuo was joking, he was actually testing his current attitude.

Sure enough, after hearing what he said, Xu Kuo laughed and his attitude returned to what it was before. He put his arm around his shoulder and walked in. "No matter whether it's an honorary position or not, in my eyes, it's still a high-ranking official of the fifth rank. Brother Fang, you have to keep some food for me this afternoon and drink with me to celebrate."

Mrs. Xu prepared good wine and food, and the two of them sat down.

Old Xu Kuo looked at Fang Lin, still envious, and sighed, "If I could become a fifth-rank official, even if it was just a nominal position, it would be enough to open a separate page in the family tree of my Xu family. What a pity, I wanted to do the same thing last time with Ma Mengqi's character card, but was beaten away by the old man."

"Ha ha!"

Fang Lin listened and smiled. He knew about this. "Brother Xu, I think Xianwen is smart. We can count on him to open a separate page in the family tree in the future..."

"You mean that kid? Alas!"

No matter how Xu Kuo behaved in front of outsiders, when talking about his son, he was just an ordinary parent at this time: "The boy is smart. He learned to read quickly and has a good memory. He can recite the Four Books and Five Classics quickly. But when it comes to writing eight-part essays, his teacher always says that he is...what's the word? Yes, heretic! I think this boy may not be able to pass the imperial examination in the future. He can only make a living by doing business."

"People have different talents. Xianwen may not be talented in writing essays. In fact, the same is true for me."

Fang Lin shook his head and said, "It depends on one's fate. If you don't take the imperial examination, you may not be a bad person if you do business. Brother Xu also knows the world. There are natural disasters and man-made disasters. The officialdom is treacherous. A blessing in disguise."

"That's right, let's not talk about that. Brother Fang, I think you came here for something. I heard that Brother Fang bought 40% of the shares of the Nanyang Fleet. I'm afraid you came here to ask this, right?" Mr. Xu Kuo is a rough man on the outside but a meticulous one on the inside. He knows everything in his mind!
"That's right. Please tell me about it, Brother Xu."

"To talk about this, we must first talk about the layout of our city."

While drinking, Xu Kuo Lao talked to Fang Lin: "There are five top families in our city, the Fan family, the Gu family, the Ma family, the Shao family, and the Duan family. The Fan family has connections in Liaodong in the north, and runs fur and medicinal materials businesses. Recently, they have developed a perfumed dew business; the Gu family has a shipyard, an oil press, a porcelain workshop, a weaving workshop...all kinds of factories, and a fleet, most of which go overseas. When they make money, they continue to open factories and expand their fleets... They have a very strong momentum and are developing very fast..."

"Isn't this Gu family just like capitalists?" Fang Lin thought to himself.

"The Gu family made money and continued to open factories and expand their fleet. Very little was spent on buying farmland. However, the Gu family also had ambitions for farmland. As a result, they were not clean and were deeply involved in the case of the strange farmland. The Gu family suffered a lot from Han Yushi's strange farmland case two months ago. They were seriously injured and have been selling some non-core fleets recently..."

"I see. I was wondering why the Gu family would sell off some of their good assets at a low price when they were doing well?" Fang Lin nodded in understanding.

"The Ma, Shao, and Duan families are different from the Gu family. They also run factories, but they mostly do business within Daxia. Now, they are gradually going overseas. However, these three families are cautious and use most of their earnings to buy land. They are less involved in the case of the strange field... Below these five families, there are weaker ones, such as the Yang family. The Yang family mainly runs the tea business and has many tea houses. Daxia's tea business is not easy to do. In the past two years, they have been sending ships overseas..."

Fang Lin understood: "The Fan family, needless to say, is a big suspect in Tongliao. Now I have been cheated. They are determined to fight for the Xianglu business. The Gu family sounds like a qualified capitalist family, but they were hit in the Guitian case. The Ma, Shao, and Duan families, although they also run factories and fleets, are more like small farmers. After making money, they are reluctant to continue investing, or hoarding money, or buying land... For me, it is also a good thing. They are so conservative, and in the future, they will leave opportunities for me."

To a certain extent, his biggest competitor is the Gu family. On the contrary, he has no fundamental conflict with the Ma, Shao, and Duan families, because these three families value stable land more and have no idea about industry or capital expansion.

"The land may seem safe, but once the Tartars march south, everything will be lost. I won't compete with them. What I want is to become a big capitalist, open a factory to recruit people, and run a fleet to operate a retreat. Compared with land, money, etc., I pay more attention to the resource mobilization ability of big capitalists. Everything is to create a retreat and prepare for the future." Fang Lin thought secretly.

Xu Kuo Lao continued, "Speaking of this fleet, there are many pitfalls. If someone is deliberately tampering with it during a trip overseas, a big profit can turn into a loss."

Fang Lin nodded, indicating that he understood: the Yang family would definitely take action. For a newbie like him who has just entered the fleet industry, who else would they cheat if not you?

Yes, he has a background, but everyone has a background. In this case, everyone has to do what they want within the rules.

The so-called background only makes you eligible to participate and prevents the other party from going too far. At most, they can turn a big profit into a small profit, but they will not be so shameless that they make you pay money when the profit turns out to be negative.

"Back then, the Gu family and the Yang family jointly opened the South China Sea fleet, and the Yang family was cheated by the Gu family many times. If you want to work in the fleet business, this kind of experience is inevitable. Brother Fang, take your time!" said Xu Kuo Lao.

"Brother Xu, I understand. Should I pay the tuition? I understand. I should."

Fang Lin clinked his bowls to express his gratitude to Xu Kuo Lao, and thought to himself: "Haste makes waste. I have patience, and this matter cannot be rushed. I will slowly understand the fleet's operating model and discover talents. If the Yang family goes too far and I find evidence, I will dig up their talents in the future. Even if I stand on the moral high ground, people will be speechless."

……

In the evening, Fang Lin called Fang Chuanhui and Fang He to come over for dinner.

"Brother Linzi, I heard that you became a fifth-rank official. Our Fang family has never produced such a high-ranking official. If grandpa and grandma knew about this, they would definitely be happy." Fang Chuanhui said happily.

"I heard that the acting manager of our branch was very shocked and has been reading the Four Books and Five Classics these days." Fang He also said.

"It's just an honorary position, don't take it too seriously. As for letting your grandparents know, I've sent a letter along with yours." Fang Lin said with a smile.

In addition to reporting their safety, Fang Chuanhui and Fang He's letters also told about what they had seen and heard in the city over the past two months. It was particularly worth mentioning that the second part of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was a big hit last month, and they received extremely high wages.

Calculating the time, these three letters will soon reach Xiaohe Village. It is conceivable that once these news are passed back, they will inevitably cause huge waves.

Tonight, the Fang family had a very sumptuous dinner, needless to say, chicken, duck, fish and meat.

Fang's father, mother, and Tian Xuan were very enthusiastic, serving food to Fang Chuanhui and Fang He. Fang Chuanhui and Fang He had been in the city for half a year, and had seen the world. They also received a high salary of 20 taels of silver a month, which greatly improved their ability to bear and they were no longer as reserved as before. During the meal, Fang Lin said, "I still have two tickets for the fireworks show 'Eight Immortals Holding Longevity'. Chuanhui and Hezi, you can go and have a look when you have time off."

As soon as the second part of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was released, the fireworks show in the city reached a climax. Now, all the parts of the two parts of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" that could be changed into fireworks shows have been changed, but the people in the city are still not satisfied, so Qinghuan Xiaoju set its sights on other novels about gods and demons.

No matter what kind of fireworks show it is, Qinghuan Xiaoju will definitely give out some tickets for free.

"Speaking of which, novels about gods and demons that are collected from folk legends are relatively easy to write, and are widely accepted by the people, so they are likely to sell well." Fang Lin thought divergently.

The "Heroes of Sui and Tang Dynasties" that Zhong Zongdian published through distribution channels encountered a fantasy novel "The Legend of Twenty-Four Arhats" at the same time. "Heroes of Sui and Tang Dynasties" is already a very good work among fantasy novels, while "The Legend of Twenty-Four Arhats" is just a small masterpiece among fantasy novels. In terms of actual sales, the two are of the same caliber.

It can only be said that Fang Lin's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" greatly raised the threshold of readers for historical novels. After "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", no matter what kind of historical novel, the readers' evaluation automatically dropped a level. In addition, today, readers are somewhat aesthetically fatigued with historical novels, but are interested in novels about gods and demons, just like martial arts novels meeting fairy tales.

"So, after Romance of the Three Kingdoms, if I write another novel, it must be a novel about gods and demons, Journey to the West or Investiture of the Gods," Fang Lin thought to himself.

"This fireworks show of 'Eight Immortals Celebrating Birthday' is great. We've seen it before. Let's go watch it that day. You'll be in the store so it won't be easy to shout." Tian Xuan said.

"Yes, you two can go by yourselves, so you don't have to be restrained with us." Fang's mother also said.

"Yeah!" Fang Chuanhui happily took the ticket: "I heard that tickets for this new fireworks show are hard to come by. Our shopkeeper managed to get one with great difficulty and even showed off to us."

"Yeah!" Fang He was also quite embarrassed. The last time he came here to eat, he took tickets for the 'Liu Guanzhang Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage' fireworks show. This time is the same. Every time he comes here, he eats and takes things.

The two boys were very sweet-talkers and made Fang's mother and Tian Xuan laugh all the time. The meal ended in a happy atmosphere.

After dinner, Fang Lin called Fang Chuanhui and Fang He over and said, "I recently bought shares in a fleet and I need to send someone there. Once he goes there, he will have to follow the ship overseas. Who of you is willing to go through the store?"

After hearing this, Fang He hesitated subconsciously, because he was really satisfied with his current job in the bookstore.

"I'll go!" Fang Chuanhui agreed without hesitation when he heard it.

He always remembered what his father had said, 'You are clever, but no matter how clever you are, can you compare to your cousin? Follow Linzi, put aside your cleverness, and don't mind if you suffer some losses. Linzi will never really let you suffer any losses. Even if you suffer a loss for a while, he will make it up to you later.'

"Then let Chuanhui go! Hezi, you go first. I have something to say to Chuanhui."

"Oh!" Fang He agreed, regretting that he was a step slower, feeling lost for the opportunity; he also felt guilty for hesitating just now when Fang Lin was so good to him; and he was secretly happy deep down that he was satisfied with his current life and did not have to face uncertainty... He had a real mixture of emotions.

"Brother Linzi, you once told me that outside Huai'an, there is Yingtian, the capital, and overseas. I grew up in Xiaohe Village and came to the capital last year. Now I finally have the opportunity to go further." Fang Chuanhui spoke with a hint of anticipation.

Fang Lin had originally intended to talk to Fang Chuanhui about the hardships of sailing, and ask if he was sure about this choice. Unexpectedly, he was comforted by this guy instead. However, he had a better impression of Fang Chuanhui because of this. He shook his head and smiled, "You, seeing how smart you are, I feel relieved to join the fleet. But, tell me the truth, are you really not afraid of going overseas?"

"I'm afraid. I really want to go further and see. I'm also really afraid." Fang Chuanhui scratched his head and said nervously, "I've heard from others that there are storms in the sea and people can drown..."

"Haha, you can rest assured about this. Nowadays, shipbuilding technology is advanced, and we have rich experience in sailing to the South Seas. You are not a poor sailor in the fleet. Even if you encounter a storm, as long as you are not extremely unlucky, your safety is guaranteed."

Fang Lin looked at Fang Chuanhui and said, "As I said, I bought 40% of the shares of the fleet, so I am one of the owners. If you go to the fleet, the fleet will also support you for my sake, and your treatment will not be bad."

"But let me ask you, Chuanhui, do you know what you are going to do when you go to the fleet?"

"Keep an eye on them and don't let them tamper with the accounts." Fang Chuanhui thought for a moment and said.

"No, the Yang family will definitely do something. They will test the bottom line at the beginning, and they shouldn't go too far. Even if they do, you don't have to care, let alone tear your face apart. Just remember it."

"So you want to learn the skills of sailing?"

"Not really. Navigation skills are the business of captains and sailors. You just need to understand them and not be deceived."

Fang Lin said earnestly: "Those who work with their minds rule others, and those who work with their hands are ruled by others. What you need to do is to see which people are capable and which are just filling in the gaps, understand overseas channels, and the entire operating model... In the future, if you start a new business, you will have the ability to stand on your own."

This was a promise, or a test. Fang Chuanhui understood and said excitedly, "Brother Linzi, I'll remember it."

"Ah That's good."

Fang Lin patted Fang Chuanhui on the shoulder and said, "A trip to Nanyang takes two to three months. There is plenty of time on the ship. If you have free time, you can also read more books and don't give up arithmetic... In short, remember the four words 'read more and talk less'. You only bring your eyes and ears with you on this trip, but not your mouth."

Fang Chuanhui listened carefully and nodded heavily.

……

The next day, Fang Lin brought Fang Chuanhui over. The manager of the Nanyang fleet received him warmly. The Yang family had no objection to this. As a partner, it was only natural for Fang Lin to send someone over. It would be strange if he didn't bring in one of his own people.

Apart from this, Fang Lin didn't do much for the time being, waiting for the situation to develop.

'The shares of the Nanyang Fleet are just to pay the tuition fee. In the future, I still need to have a completely independent fleet of my own. On the other hand, I also need to open a factory so that it is convenient to migrate the population as a basic base. At present, I have enough background and qualifications to open a factory, but under the general environment, there are not enough workers. I still need to find a suitable entry point.'

Fang Lin's eyes seemed to be able to transcend time and space and see through the future: "However, with natural disasters, man-made disasters, and land annexation, I think this time will come soon. "

……

(End of this chapter)