In Hongwu, we started as rebels

Chapter 654 Money is not as good as power; two sets of methods

By the time Shi Yu left the courtyard and rushed back to the inn where he had checked in, it was already completely dark.
As soon as he entered, Shi Baifeng hurriedly came to greet him, his face beaming with joy:

"Father!"

But soon, he noticed his father's dejected expression, and his heart skipped a beat:
"Father, please sit down. What's wrong?"

Shi Yu was helped to sit down.

Leaning back in my chair, I closed my eyes slightly, my temples throbbing.

Despite his efforts to suppress his emotions,
But it had no effect whatsoever; the heavy breathing echoed continuously in the guest room.

"Bai Feng, your father has made his decision."
"I'll send you south to study, find you a good teacher, and then you can pass the imperial examinations."

A hint of surprise flashed in Shi Baifeng's eyes.

Last year, my father said he was getting old.

In two years, I will take over the business.
Why have you changed your mind now?
Shi Yu slowly opened his eyes, which flashed with a cold light and some resentment:
"Bai Feng, the Ming Dynasty is no longer the Yuan Dynasty."

Having money is useless; you need power!
Where do you want to go? Jiangsu/Zhejiang or Jiangxi?
Or you could go to Wuxi; there are many academies there.
"As long as you're willing to spend the money, you won't have trouble finding a good husband."

Shi Yu appeared somewhat excited.

He spoke much faster than usual and lost his composure.

"Father, why did you suddenly change your mind? What happened today?"

Shi Yu's breathing gradually calmed down:

"It's better not to talk about it. In short, having power is worse than having money."

Even if we are incredibly wealthy, we are nothing more than kneeling lackeys of those adults.

How's the matter you're investigating going?

After this interruption, Shi Baifeng's earlier excitement subsided.

"Father, both of Liu Qianshi's wives are still mature women with considerable charm."
One person heard that it was the owner of a brothel in Zhili.
The other person is Ya Rong, the manager we met at Kang Le Lou last time.

"A mature woman?"

Shi Yu was taken aback and asked:

"What is Lord Liu's family background?"

I've only heard of a father who was a merchant in the capital.

He had never heard of his mother having any, and he had no siblings.

Shi Yu suddenly realized:

No wonder he likes mature women.

Shi Baifeng tentatively asked:

"Father, why don't we find a few respectable women in Beiping and send them over?"

"No, no, sending a woman shouldn't be done in such a rush."

Acting rashly will only cause resentment; it's better to focus on financial resources.

"I understand. I will investigate further tomorrow."
Let's see what kind of business Lord Liu runs at home.

Shi Yu nodded:

"Even mature women should not forget..."
If Vice Commissioner Liu really likes it, we might be able to take advantage of it.

There are so many widows in Beiping; surely we can find a few to use."

"Is Father trying to whisper in my ear?"

Shi Baifeng was quite shocked by this bold idea.

"Just trying."

Shi Yu didn't want to explain too much, so he simply waved his hand.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door, and the steward's voice came from outside:

"Shopkeeper, Lord Fang sent someone to ask if we're still going to have some fun today?"

"huhuhuhu"

Shi Yu's breathing immediately became rapid, and he slammed his hand on the table:
"That's unreasonable!"

He looked at Shi Baifeng, his tone impatient:
"Look, Bai Feng, look at this, this is what happens when you have no power."

It's absurd that a father nearing fifty still has to shamelessly accompany people to brothels!

Fang Chenfeng, that bastard, always says he's treating.
Look at this nonsense!
"You're just asking me to come along so you can pay for everything!"

Shi Baifeng quickly brought the tea to him, gently patting his back as he said:

"Father, please calm down, or else..."
Father, you stay home and rest; shall I go and entertain the guests in your stead?

Shi Yu frowned and waved his hand:

"No need. The brothels of Daning City can't compare to a single hair in Beiping."
You don't need to suffer anymore; get some rest tonight.

Once we get back to Beiping, I'll find you a tutor.

Let's quit business and go back to school!

Shi Baifeng's lips trembled slightly, but he ultimately remained silent.

In the military headquarters, Lu Yunyi was studying the 40th experimental machine in his office.

As the long needle on the machine head clicked and tugged in continuously.

One knot after another appeared,

His eyes gradually became vacant, and his thoughts drifted away to who-knows-where.

When footsteps sounded outside the door, Lu Yunyi's gaze sharpened, and he looked up.

Liu Heiying pushed open the door and entered.

The light snow outside had already turned the official robes white, as had his head.

"It's so cold! The weather always gets colder around the Lunar New Year."

Lu Yunyi listened to his rambling and stood up to pour him a glass of hot water:
"Why are you here so late instead of going home?"

"Brother Yun'er, the matter has been clarified."

Liu Heiying took a sip of hot water and spoke quickly.

"The matter of provisions?"

"Um"

Liu Heiying then took out a document from his pocket and handed it over.

"Okay, that's pretty quick."

"By a combination of fate and luck."

Liu Heiying gave an explanation, and Lu Yunyi began to read it.

The text above is not long, only three or four hundred words.

However, it clearly describes what Qu Qingfeng, Hu Chongyi, and Shi Yu wanted to do.

After reading it, a look of realization flashed in Lu Yunyi's eyes, and he smiled:

"There are quite a few clever people in our Great Ming Dynasty."
We're paying people out of sugar, and before we've even sold it for a few days, some people are already making money off it.

Or is it a case of getting something for nothing, using the government's grain to make money for oneself?

Have you calculated the difference?

Liu Heiying said:
"Based on the white sugar that Shi Yu brought today, we can speculate..."
After replenishing the grain supplies, we might earn around 40,000 taels of silver.
The two split the profits 50/50, which means each person received 20,000 taels.

This calculation is based on the fact that 50% of the goods in today's caravans are white sugar.

If Shi Yu were a little more insane, seven or eight out of ten parts would be white sugar.

The money earned would likely be around 60,000 taels of silver.

Suddenly, a tremendous sense of disparity surged within the two of them.

The weather is a bit cold today.
People from both the south and north of the city lined up for nearly an hour in the cold weather, eager to pay just ten coins.
Qu Qingfeng and the others made tens of thousands of taels of silver just by flicking their palms.

If you add Ya Rong's Kang Le Trading Company, the layers become clearly distinct.

Lu Yunyi flipped through the document a few times:
"No wonder so many people are rushing to climb up; it must feel amazing."

Liu Heiying knew what he meant and nodded repeatedly:

"Brother Yun'er, I never felt this strongly when I was in the army."
But after arriving at the military command and becoming a local official...

It feels a little different.

It's just like... just like an emperor!
In fact, I secretly thought it best if Lord Zhou didn't come back.

At this point, Liu Heiying lowered his voice, his expression somewhat inscrutable.

"Be careful what you say."

Lu Yunyi spoke calmly, his eyes also somewhat deep-set: "His Majesty in the capital may not be as direct as we are."
"You and I deal with officials, merchants, and ordinary people; Your Majesty only deals with officials, making you a bit more difficult to deal with."

The room fell silent, with orange-red candlelight flickering gently in the small study, illuminating the two tall, upright figures.

As the oil and wax sizzled and burned

Something called "ambition" has also quietly begun to emerge.
This is a transformation brought about by changes in identity and power, and no one in the world can escape it.

After a long while, Lu Yunyi stood up and returned to his desk.
I started searching through the vast amount of documents and quickly found a blue booklet.
"These past few days, all the merchants have been trying to collect white sugar, and some have even tried to be clever."

Zheng family of Wenchang Street, Wang family of Daliang Street, Huang family of Tongqu Street, and Hu family of Fu'an Lane
They both used two methods, one overt and one covert.

On the one hand, they arranged for people to be hired openly for ten coins.
On the other hand, they secretly hired those who were not well-informed for one to three coins.
Or women and children who are not in good physical health.

When Yunfang came to collect his benefits today, he told me,
He personally witnessed a woman with two children queuing for an hour in the alley, earning two coins.

By the way, it was originally one coin.
It was only after the woman pleaded and begged that it was reduced to two coins.

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Heiying's expression remained unchanged.

His fist, which was lying to the side, clenched silently. A surge of anger rose within him, and he burst into a tirade:
"These bastards, they exploit everyone at every turn."
It was supposed to be a win-win situation for everyone, but it's turned out like this.

Brother Yun'er, I think our methods weren't ruthless enough.

This gave some people a sense of complacency.

The meetings of the past few days were a complete waste of time.
They promise the best, but when it comes to actually doing it, they're all scoundrels.

The outburst calmed Liu Heiying down for a moment, and he said in a deep voice:

"Brother Yun'er, these are probably some of the managers or employees handling this matter, who are taking a cut at each level."

Lu Yunyi's expression remained calm as he nodded slightly.

"Such situations certainly exist, but there are also quite a few cases where both overt and covert methods are used."

Now that things have just started to gain momentum, we must strike hard.

If this continues, even a good thing can turn into a bad thing.

Liu Heiying's small eyes were filled with ruthlessness:
"Brother Yun'er, let's use imprisonment."
The hydrogel workshop will start operations after the New Year.
Send these people to the west and south of the city to level the roads and lay the foundations!

The Ming Dynasty's penal servitude was divided into five grades: one year, one and a half years, two years, two and a half years, and three years.

The prisoners will be sent to designated locations.

Such as performing labor in places like factories, warehouses, and post stations.
Engaging in various forms of manual labor, such as building city walls, repairing roads, transporting goods, and pounding rice.
This can be considered a way of "making the most of resources".

Lu Yunyi nodded:
That's what I think too.

Furthermore, I'm considering whether to take advantage of this situation and arrest a few wealthy merchants as a deterrent.
I think Hu Chongyi is quite good.
They used to be bandits from the grasslands; they might have even stolen your melons.

Liu Heiying ignored the jokes.
He seemed to be lost in thought, then changed the subject and asked about something else:
"Brother Yun'er, are you planning to pursue the matter of Qu Qingfeng?"

Lu Yunyi shook his head:
"We will not pursue this matter. There is no reason why officials are allowed to set fires while ordinary people are not allowed to light lamps."

"We're here to raise money to repair the road. We're different from them."

Liu Heiying muttered something under his breath.

"Ah"

Lu Yunyi laughed and slowly shook his head:

"Who would believe it before it's done?"
At least in the eyes of ordinary people, merchants, and officials, it was all the same.

They all condoned smuggling and made money off sugar.

"To hold Qu Qingfeng accountable now would only isolate us."

Liu Heiying lowered his head and muttered under his breath:

"Damn it, this is too much trouble. If you want to make money, why do you have to do such hard work as making sugar?"

In the end, all that effort was wasted, and all I got was a bad reputation.

"Brother Yun'er, do you think my head has gotten a bit bigger lately?"

A look of doubt flashed in Lu Yunyi's eyes:
"Why do you ask?"

"I've taken too much blame for myself."

Lu Yunyi chuckled and raised his hand to tap him:

"Making money is secondary; we need to let the people of the city know that there are benefits to be gained by following us."

If this mindset isn't changed...
Even if the road is repaired, people will still criticize it for being a waste of money and resources.

As for our reputations, we may receive some bad publicity, but time will heal those wounds.

"Why?"

History becomes clearer and clearer as time goes on.

Just like Qin Hui, who died peacefully in his sleep and was even posthumously granted the title of "King of the Single Characters," at which time his reputation was incredibly good.

But as time went on, the characters became clearer.
You'll then discover he's a great traitor.

At this point, a faint smile appeared on Lu Yunyi's lips:
"We might be surrounded by bad reputation right now."
Once the roads and the Great Wall were repaired, Daning flourished and became known as the "Jiangnan of the North."

At that time, people suddenly realized,
We two brothers have actually done so much.

"can you?"

Liu Heiying was somewhat suspicious; in his memory,
Officials don't have a good reputation, and he recalled something else:
"Brother Yun'er, when Yue Fei was killed back then..."
The entire court and the public were jubilant; the people wept with joy.

We won't end up like that, will we?

That's terrible.

Upon hearing Liu Heiying's question, Lu Yunyi was momentarily speechless, unsure how to answer.

However, he was quite composed:
Who can predict the future?
However, the immediate tasks must be done well; the bridge and road construction must be expedited.
The sooner we do it, the more prosperous trade will become.
Our reputations will be much better.

That’s right.”

Lu Yunyi waved the mink fur in his hand and sighed deeply:

"The sewing machines are getting better with each iteration, and we can start trial production at the beginning of the year."
"We'll see how it goes then. We need to hurry up with the mink fur shipment from the Duoyan Three Guards."

"So fast?"

A sense of urgency inexplicably arose in Liu Heiying's heart.

If the mink coat is developed quickly, then road construction will become the top priority.

He thought that even after the road was repaired, it would be difficult to produce mink fur.

"Old Lu's apprentice is really skilled; he's solved many problems."
This sewing machine is perfectly capable of sewing soft fabrics.
I plan to buy some cloth from Beiping (Beijing) and have it processed.

"Processing?" Liu Heiying was taken aback.
"Processing doesn't make money, Brother Yun'er."

"That's not how you do it. Even if the workshop is open, it doesn't necessarily mean it's not making money."
"At least we've supported so many people, it's not a loss."

Liu Heiying had long understood this principle:
"Brother Yun'er, isn't there a business that can make money, support people, and also have a good reputation?"

Lu Yunyi glanced at him:
"Jiangxi produces kilns, Jiangnan produces silk, Lianghuai produces salt, and Fujian and Guangdong engage in maritime trade."
These are all easy businesses that guarantee profits.

Liu Heiying pursed his lips and muttered:
“If Da Ning were capable of this business, we wouldn’t be in these positions.”

"Hahahahahaha."

Lu Yunyi suddenly burst into laughter:

"You know, there are so many good business opportunities in the world."

But Daning is located outside the Great Wall, so not a single person could do it.
"You can only start with the hardest, dirtiest, and most arduous work, and then gradually seek breakthroughs."

Liu Heiying nodded helplessly:

"Alright. It just so happens that Shi Yu, the third manager of the Taxue Trading Company, is in the city."
Since Brother Yun'er doesn't intend to pursue the matter, I'll go and make contact with him.
Buy some cheap cloth from him and ship it back.

He brought me a lot of things when he came to see me today.

He's clearly very powerful; he shouldn't refuse to help with this small favor.

After he finished speaking, he added:
"He has no choice but to help; if he doesn't, arrest him."

"Okay, you can handle this." Lu Yunyi nodded in agreement.

“Brother Yun’er, it’s not a good idea to let the merchants in the city keep exploiting us layer by layer.”

I will leave this matter to Duan Zhengze.

He's constantly on edge these days, so we always have to find something for him to do. 'Lu Yunyi said calmly.'

"Can he handle it?" Liu Heiying asked with some doubt.

"Never underestimate the heroes of the world. Being able to get things done is a basic skill."

Lu Yunyi waved his hand, looked at the numerous documents on the table, and shook his head in annoyance.
"Forget it, I won't read any documents today. I'll go home and rest."

I'll go with you to pick up your uncle tomorrow.

Liu Heiying looked excited and nodded repeatedly:

"Good good!"

(End of this chapter)