Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

“Are you kidding me? The exchange was established by you, and now you're proactively asking me to supervise it?” Xu Wenshu asked, half in doubt.

“Everything this humble commoner has said is true!”

Liu Zhongshun's expression was incredibly sincere, appearing flawless.

As a former professional beggar and top-tier wealthy merchant, his acting buffs were basically maxed out!

Xu Wenshu looked at him for a good while, but couldn't see through him, and could only nod, signaling him to continue.

Liu Zhongshun continued, “Seeing your reaction, esteemed sir, you must already have some understanding of the exchange, so this humble commoner won't elaborate.”

“The exchange looks prosperous now, but that's only because it was established recently. Furthermore, the businesses listed are all carefully selected from many merchants. It can be said that everything listed on the exchange is a top-quality investment.”

“But as time goes on, the number of shares circulating in the market is limited, and the current stock prices have been continuously inflated. Coupled with various rumors, both true and false, becoming more and more rampant, I fear that in the future, the stock prices will far exceed the value of those businesses themselves. This is like….”

Liu Zhongshun paused, lacking the vocabulary, and began to wrack his brains.

Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind, and he slapped his forehead, “Bubbles! Like the bubbles stirred up in soap water! If this continues, sooner or later these bubbles will burst, affecting the livelihoods of countless common people.”

That was quite a thorough and easy-to-understand explanation, and Xu Wenshu nodded inwardly.

Liu Zhongshun continued, “On the other hand, although the exchange was established by me, many powerful merchants joined in the early stages. Although I strongly advocate strictly limiting the businesses listed, others disagree with me, and many want to accelerate the process.”

“Although I am currently doing my best to stop it, as the exchange becomes more and more prosperous, more people are eager to make money, and it will be difficult to withstand this pressure in the future. If, in the future, fraudulent businesses are listed on the exchange, using rumors to stir up unrest and make a lot of money, this will be a major problem.”

“If countless common people are ruined and their families are destroyed as a result, who will bear the responsibility? Even if it doesn't fall on this humble commoner's head, I cannot accept a disaster that could have been prevented happening under my watch!”

“This humble commoner is originally from Taoyuan County. From the very beginning of my business ventures, the Marquis of Jianye has always warned me to be honest and upright, and to never even touch anything illegal or disruptive!” Liu Zhongshun said sincerely, “That's why this humble commoner has come to visit the Shangshu Manor, to implore the imperial court to intervene in the exchange! I, Liu Zhongshun, am willing to assist the imperial court in perfecting its regulations without taking a single penny.”

“The exchange is excellent, and this humble commoner doesn't want it to be shut down by the imperial court in the future due to accidents. It can allow many excellent merchants to quickly expand their businesses and benefit the people, so this humble commoner is not only doing this for myself, but also for my fellow merchants across the land. I hope Your Excellency will understand!”

What a righteous merchant!

After listening, Xu Wenshu was somewhat shocked. He pondered for a long time, then raised his hand and said loudly, “Someone, bring tea! Bring the best tea!”

After speaking, he pointed to a chair and said, “You are truly a Confucian merchant. This old man has never seen a merchant like you. If everyone in the world were like you, then what would Da Jing have to worry about?”

Liu Zhongshun was overjoyed and sat down cautiously.

Unexpectedly, Xu Wenshu changed the subject and said, “Since you are from Taoyuan County, the Marquis of Jianye must also be involved behind the scenes of the exchange, right?”

Liu Zhongshun's eyebrows twitched slightly, but then his expression became calm and he said, “Reporting to Your Excellency, this humble commoner is indeed from Taoyuan County. The people of Taoyuan County all call the Marquis of Jianye 'Master,' which is a habit formed over many years.”

“But this exchange is indeed not greatly related to my Master. To be honest, the idea for the exchange did come from him, but he never participated in its establishment or implementation later…”

Before he could finish speaking, Xu Wenshu raised his hand to interrupt him, saying, “Alright, you don't need to explain any further. This old man was just asking casually.”

Liu Zhongshun couldn't help but feel uneasy: “Then what does Your Excellency mean?”

“What you said before makes sense, but this old man has a question. If the Marquis of Jianye isn't involved, what benefit does doing this have for him?” Xu Wenshu asked.

Liu Zhongshun shook his head: “Speaking purely in terms of personal gain, there is no benefit. My Master, he… he is just that kind of person.”

Xu Wenshu didn't say anything, and began to pace back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back, sometimes frowning and sometimes sighing.

Occasionally seeing Liu Zhongshun stealing glances at him, Xu Wenshu couldn't help but say, “The Marquis of Jianye is indeed a strange person, always making it difficult to understand him.”

“If it were anyone else, they would have used the advantages of the train and railway to make money long ago. This wouldn't even be considered a violation in the imperial court, but he handed over all the opportunities to others. No one can match this, and this old man believes that he is not doing it for personal gain.”

“However, the Ministry of Revenue's intervention in the exchange cannot be swayed by your mere words. This old man still needs to consider it carefully and understand it in depth. Whether this matter is good or bad is still uncertain. You should go back for now.”

Liu Zhongshun hurriedly stood up and said, “What Xu-daren says is reasonable, so this commoner has already brought all the information about the exchange today.”

He said, pointing to a stack of books beside him, “These are all the transaction information since the establishment of the exchange, including the businesses that have already been listed on the exchange, as well as some of my insights.”

Xu Wenshu's gaze fell on the information, and his eyes shook: “Really?”

“Xu-daren can look at them at will.”

Xu Wenshu casually picked up a book and began to read it carefully, but after flipping through a few pages, he gasped.

The few pages he casually opened were filled with densely packed transaction information, and the amount of each transaction was not small.

After continuously flipping through more than a dozen pages, Xu Wenshu closed the information with a worried expression.

Terrifying… This small change in the exchange may trigger forces far beyond his imagination, and the imperial court can no longer ignore it.

Now it is no longer a question of whether the Ministry of Revenue should intervene or not, but that the imperial court must pay attention to it.

If such a surging force continues to rage in the private sector, many bad things may happen, as Liu Zhongshun said.

But if it can be used….

Xu Wenshu did not speak for a long time, and Liu Zhongshun asked, “What are Xu-daren's thoughts?”

“This old man knows about this matter. You can leave these things behind. After this old man finishes reading them, I will send someone to look for you… forget it, there is no need to look for you. This old man will go directly to the Marquis of Jianye. What do you think?”

Liu Zhongshun took a deep breath and nodded solemnly.

Since the other party has already seen through it, there is no need to pretend any longer.

After all, this matter was advocated by the Master, and he is just a glove. Now that he has done everything he should, he has no ability to intervene in the matters above.

“That would be for the best, then this commoner will take his leave.”

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