Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 897 Everyone Gets What They Need
Yuan Chongyu's calculations were good. Starting from Jiangnan could not only get the urgently needed materials for the Qing Dynasty, but also win over Jiangnan officials, gentry and merchant groups to serve the Qing Dynasty. Once this was done, it would be much better than the previous plan. After the smuggling trade was in operation, the Qing Dynasty could not only solve the problem of urgent shortage of materials, but also use these people for the Qing Dynasty.

Now the result given by Yang Dehua was better than Yuan Chongyu expected, which made Yuan Chongyu very excited. He concluded that when he returned to Liaodong, he would report the matter to Huang Taiji, who would definitely reward him handsomely. By then, he would no longer be an ordinary idler, and it would be possible for him to be given a real position or even directly lead a Niulu.

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became, but Yuan Chongyu did not show it on the surface. He pretended to have a discussion with Yang Dehua and looked a little embarrassed about the other party's request. After all, the quantity of goods was much more than before, which would affect the financial problem on the North Korean side. So Yuan Chongyu made his attitude clear on the matter. Although he did not lower the price, he also put forward corresponding conditions in exchange for time for capital turnover.

The two discussed for a long time before finally reaching an agreement. When the dust settled, they both breathed a sigh of relief and smiles appeared on their faces.

In Yang Dehua's view, this matter was completely successful. With this way of making money, he would be waiting for a continuous flow of gold and silver. The same was true for Yuan Chongyu. The success of this matter not only allowed him to complete the task entrusted by Huang Taiji, but also earned him credit. In addition, he could also get a lot of benefits from this trade, which was a win-win situation.

Of course, neither side is stupid. Behind Yang Dehua are Gao Hongtu, Zheng Sanjun, Xu Shiqi and others. Their network of relationships covers almost half of the officialdom in Jiangnan. In addition, local gentry and Jiangnan businessmen are also involved. It is impossible for them to do this just based on a few words from Yang Dehua.

As early as after Yang Dehua reported the matter, Xu Shiqi and others secretly investigated Park Sang-yin, who claimed to be from the Park family of Korea. Although Yuan Chongyu's preparations were very thorough and he had Park Sang-yin's official identity certificate in his hand, don't forget that under absolute power, it is not difficult to carefully check a person's background. What's more, Yuan Chongyu is not an unknown person. He is Yuan Chonghuan's younger brother and a big businessman who controlled the Liaodong trade back then. Many people in the Ming Dynasty know him.

When Yuan Chongyu came to see Yang Dehua under a pseudonym, Yang Dehua felt that this person looked familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen him before. It was not that Yang Dehua had met Yuan Chongyu before, but that Yang Dehua knew Yuan Chonghuan when he was in the capital. Yuan Chongyu and Yuan Chonghuan were brothers from the same mother, and their faces were 70% similar, which gave him this feeling.

Under the mobilization of official forces, Yuan Chongyu's true identity was revealed. When Yang Dehua and others learned that the so-called Park Sangyin was actually Yuan Chongyu, they were indeed surprised. No one expected that Yuan Chongyu, who had been out of touch for a long time and had no idea where he had gone, would suddenly appear, and even pretend to be a Korean and run to Jiangnan to engage in trade cooperation with them.

They were also curious and looked into Yuan Chongyu's situation. After verifying where Yuan Chongyu came from and how he came to Ningbo, they immediately determined Yuan Chongyu's true origin. Needless to say, he must have come from Liaodong, and there was only one possible place where he came from, which was the Jiannu.

You should know that Yuan Chongyu helped Yuan Chonghuan in smuggling in Liaodong and sold a lot of things to Jiannu privately. So it was no secret that Yuan Chongyu and Jiannu were colluding. After Yuan Chonghuan was imprisoned, Yuan Chongyu disappeared from Liaodong without a trace. There was no news of him in the interior. Combined with the previous situation, it is clear that Yuan Chongyu must have gone to Jiannu and directly surrendered to Huang Taiji.

Logically speaking, Yuan Chongyu was not only a criminal, but also a traitor and a lackey of Huang Taiji. He came to Jiangnan under the banner of doing business, but in fact he was purchasing supplies for the Jiannu to make up for the shortage in Liaodong.

As Ming officials, they should have arrested Yuan Chongyu directly in this situation, and reported to the court as soon as possible. But these people did not do so, because in their view, the country is the country, and business is business, and the two cannot be compared. What does the war in Liaodong have to do with them in Jiangnan?

Moreover, after Yuan Chonghuan's death, his reputation in the north was very bad, but his reputation in the south was very good. Due to various reasons, and the great changes in the Ming Dynasty in recent years, several provinces in the south only recognized the central government in name only, and in fact they had always been pretending to obey the emperor's orders and doing their own things. They didn't even care about the emperor's will, let alone a mere Yuan Chongyu?

What good would it do for them to arrest Yuan Chongyu? Even if they handed him over, it was impossible for them to be promoted because of Yuan Chongyu. You have to know that their official positions were already high, unless they were transferred to the capital to take charge of a department. But how could such an arrangement be possible? There was only one position for each person in the capital, so who would be willing to give up their position? Besides, compared to the capital, isn't the world of Jiangnan not good? Staying in Jiangnan is much more comfortable than in the capital.

On the contrary, if Yuan Chongyu was arrested, this way of making money would be gone. It would be very simple to compare the two and decide which one would be more beneficial to him. Besides, gold and silver were the most important things at the moment. With gold and silver, what else could compare to them? Even if he became an official, wasn't it for this purpose?

No matter who Yuan Chongyu is or where he came from, the biggest benefit is the real money. For this reason, everyone pretended to be deaf and dumb. Anyway, Yuan Chongyu never revealed his identity. Didn't he claim to be Park Sangyin from Korea? Then he should be a member of the Park family in Korea. At most, they were trading with Korea. As a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, Korea was not an outsider. Even if this matter was finally spread, what could they do to them?

There are so many smugglers in the world, and there is no shortage of them. Moreover, there are countless people doing this kind of business in the south. In addition, the specific things will be handled by the people below. The bosses above just need to say a few words and make arrangements, and naturally there will be gold and silver falling into their pockets. As for Yuan Chongyu, it is the same. Although gold and silver are good, they are nothing in the Qing Dynasty. It is not that the Qing Dynasty does not have silver. Over the years, the property looted from the Ming Dynasty alone is not a small number. These things are not good for eating and drinking, and are far less important than food, ironware, or even military equipment.

In Huang Taiji's eyes, the latter was the foundation of the Qing Dynasty. Without a strong military force, the Qing Dynasty would have no chance of survival. Huang Taiji was not a short-sighted person. He knew what was important and what was not. Therefore, Yuan Chongyu's bargaining was just an attitude. No matter how high the other party's price was or how many things he sent, he was sure to get them all.

As long as they could get the supplies, the Qing Dynasty would have the confidence to continue the war with the Ming Dynasty. When they could enter the interior of China again, wouldn't everything in the Ming Dynasty belong to the Qing Dynasty? The gold and silver they paid now were only temporarily stored in the Ming Dynasty. When the time came, they would all use force to take it back. This deal was quite cost-effective for the Qing Dynasty.

The two sides hit it off and agreed on the cooperation. After leaving Yang's house, Yuan Chongyu was in a very good mood and even walked in a light mood.

After staying in Ningbo for a few more days and discussing the follow-up arrangements with Yang Dehua, Yuan Chongyu took a north-bound ship from Ningbo under Yang Dehua's arrangement, heading north along the coastline, but did not stop in Shandong. After crossing the Yellow Sea, he went directly northeast and went to Mokpo, a port in Jeolla Province in southern Korea.

After landing in Mokpo, Yuan Chongyu asked his men to wait here for a while, while he headed directly north without stopping and arrived in Seoul, the capital of Korea, in a few days.

After Huang Taiji conquered Korea, he sent troops to Korea and set up a garrison in Seoul. The first person stationed in Korea was Amin, but later Amin was killed by Huang Taiji for some reason. After Amin's death, another person was sent to replace him, and Ajige was stationed there instead.

At present, Ajige is in Korea with 3,000 Eight Banners soldiers, but due to insufficient military strength, the Qing Dynasty's control over Korea is not strong. Moreover, after Pi Island was recaptured by the Ming army, the Ming Dynasty once again returned to the situation of controlling part of Korea during the Mao Wenlong period. The Korean King Yi Jong is caught between the Ming and Qing dynasties and is simply powerless. Logically, as a vassal state, Korea should be loyal to the Ming Dynasty, but Seoul, including itself, is completely controlled by Ajige. He, the king, is equivalent to a hostage in the hands of Huang Taiji. Even leaving the palace requires Ajige's permission, let alone other things.

Helplessly, Li Jong could only give up. In addition, due to his poor health, he basically did not care about state affairs in the past two years. Ajige had the final say in the entire Seoul.

After arriving in Seoul, Yuan Chongyu immediately found Ajige and reported his affairs in the Ming Dynasty. He also said that a ship had come to Korea with him and was now in Mokpo, with some goods. Although the quantity of these goods was not large and it was only a first attempt, with this beginning, the next things would be much easier.

Ajige was very happy when he heard about this. He was worried about food. Liaodong was short of food. The Qing Dynasty could only find a way to collect food from Korea. However, Korea was a small country with little food. He tried his best but couldn't get much food. Now he got such good news. He hurriedly sent someone to report the situation to Huang Taiji in Shengjing, and on the other hand, he sent someone to go to Mokpo to confirm immediately.

A few days later, the people from Mokpo came back first, and they brought with them the goods on the ship. These goods all came from Jiangnan. There were not only exquisite silk, porcelain, tea and other items, but also a lot of food on the ship, as well as ironware, military equipment, etc. What made Ajige even more excited was that there were actually several Portuguese cannons. When he saw these things, Ajige's eyes lit up.

Although the items were a bit expensive, Ajige felt that it was worth it. Because many of the materials were urgently needed by the Qing Dynasty, and even silver could not buy them. Moreover, even if he did not need silk and porcelain, he could make a lot of money by selling them in Korea, not to mention tea and food.

A few days later, Huang Taiji also sent people, not only bringing people but also a lot of gold, silver and jewelry for trading. Along with it came an imperial edict from Huang Taiji to Yuan Chongyu. In the imperial edict, Huang Taiji praised Yuan Chongyu very much and asked him to do a good job in this matter and continue to make contributions to the Qing Dynasty. As long as he could continuously get materials from the Ming Dynasty, it would be a great achievement. Not only that, Huang Taiji also specially promoted Yuan Chongyu from the original Boshiku to the position of Niulu Zhangjing. Such a generous reward made Yuan Chongyu dance with joy.

(End of this chapter)