The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 121: Aspiring to Learn Taoism
With his sister-in-law's permission, Xue Yan breathed a sigh of relief and immediately went to find the general manager Zhang Dehui.

Most of the business of the first house is now supported by Zhang Dehui.

As for whether this person would take the opportunity to start his own business, Xue Yan was not worried. Doing business requires connections, and doing big business requires even bigger connections. The eldest brother of the Xue family passed away, but the nephew was still listed in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and received treasury silver. This title alone was not just about money.

Not to mention the official favor, no matter how hard Zhang Dehui visited various families, he was just a shopkeeper. Without the Xue family, he couldn't even enter other people's doors.

Zhang Dehui was an old man in the mansion, so Xue Yan did not doubt Zhang Dehui.

Zhang Dehui was surprised to learn that the Second Master had come forward and asked, "But has the Madam relented?"

Xue Yan didn't hide it and told Zhang Dehui that he had met with his wife and told her about the horse purchase in the north and the business in Tongzhou. Zhang Dehui sighed, "The north needs you to come out and support it. If you don't come, many relationships will fade. We can make up for the fading relationships later. The most worrying thing is that the original channels will be replaced by others, and then we won't be able to get them back."

"That's right." Xue Yan, as they were both experienced businessmen, smiled and said, "Let's take it one by one. We have to get through it."

What did they have to endure? Neither of them said clearly.

Business has its ups and downs. There may be ten years of good fortune, or even twenty years of good fortune, but there is no way it will last forever. There is prosperity after decline, and the cycle repeats itself. The Xue family business had gradually declined when the eldest master first took over.

The eldest master's business started to flourish again. Not only did it return to its previous state, but it became even bigger than before, and the relationship between the four major families became closer. This has been going on for twenty years.

The eldest master passed away, and the second master was supporting the south. Although the business was not very prosperous, it was still maintained. The only problem was that in the north, there were already many nobles and military governors, who valued personal relationships more, but there was no one in charge.

After all, the wife is a woman, and even though she often asks for advice, it still doesn't help.

If the second master could come and hold on, the situation would be much better. One day, the situation might suddenly improve again, so the most important thing is to get through it. If you can't, it will be difficult to get another chance.

But the wife was worried and didn't want the second master to interfere, so she brought her whole family to the capital early in the morning. She was somewhat wary of the second master. Under such circumstances, how could the second master dare to interfere in the business in the north?

This is their own shortcoming, it is not convenient to talk about it, just two people know it in their hearts.

We discussed buying horses in the north, but the business wasn't big, so the focus remained on Tongzhou.

"The capital is the center of the world, with a large population and fertile land. The neighboring provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Shandong are not only the lands of etiquette, but also have thousands of miles of fertile land. Although they don't have the convenience of the Yangtze River, they are connected by canals. Although the water volume is not as abundant as the North-South Canal and the river channel is not as smooth, they are still considered to be prosperous places. If you can do business well, you can not only transport goods to the world, but also enrich your region."

Talking about business, Zhang Dehui was very knowledgeable and said with a smile, "It's a pity that the rules in the capital are too strict. Originally, the canal ships could deliver goods directly to the capital, but because of the rules, the canal ships' terminal was changed to Tongzhou. Others despise these canal ships, but we merchants don't despise them. We love them. Now we can get a bargain."

These are clichés, but they are also true sayings.

Finally, Zhang Dehui expressed his concerns. "Tongzhou is the gateway to the capital and the base of the army. Over the years, those who have ideas have been unqualified, and those who have ideas have not. Each has its own concerns, like chicken ribs. Now that those who have ideas have ideas, it depends on the people who make them prosperous, but they can also be ruined by people. I wonder if the Second Master has any plans?"

He is worthy of being the head of the Xue family.

Having not seen him for a few years, Yuan was worried about his age. Xue Yan smiled and said, "As the old saying goes, the success or failure of a business depends on the people. General Wang Xin understands the principle that wealth gathers and disperses, and wealth gathers and disperses. He is also a very good person. Considering his age, even if his sons cannot take over his position, Hexi can be maintained for at least another twenty years."

The benefits are exciting.

The powerful and wealthy can take everything for themselves with just a word, while businessmen lose everything, so people gather and wealth disperses.

If you understand that everyone benefits and don't monopolize the lion's share, allowing merchants to make profits, business will continue and money will roll in. This is how money gathers and people disperse.

This is the truth, but who can do it?

For example, the Jia family was founded on military merit.

It is common sense that young men should learn to shoot arrows and be familiar with military affairs. Even Lady Jia knows this and has asked Jia Zhen about it. As a result, the archery training ground that the Duke of Ningguo specially left in the mansion has now become a place for young men to drink, gamble and have fun.

So the truth is the truth, and reality is reality.

The reality is that nobles can tolerate it for a while, but not for a lifetime, and most of them will open their bloody mouths and take everything for themselves.

The reason why the Xue family has been able to maintain its current scale is not only because of its original strong foundation and being a royal merchant, but also because it has benefited from the common ties among the four major families. It is not because it is better at business than other businessmen.

If we only talk about business ability, there are many businesses that are far stronger than the Xue family, but even their signs are gone.

Now that Wang Xin has appeared, everything is ready except for the east wind. Otherwise, the merchants in Yangzhou would rather give away money for nothing than actually invest in operations.

All I can say is that there are too many smart people in the world, and the path to wealth that I can see has already been seen by others.

Xue Yan couldn't help but feel proud.

These businessmen do have a keen sense of smell and a long-term vision, but so what? Those who are good at business cannot compete with those with good connections, and those who have great connections cannot do business. There are not many families that can be better than the Xue family in this respect, so the Xue family still has to occupy the majority.

After discussing the general direction, Zhang Dehui had a clear idea and knew what he wanted to do.

Xue Yan also had his own things to do. He made an appointment to meet with the newly-minted Jinshi Lu Zhongheng, who was the backer of the Yangzhou merchants. Finally, it came to Lin Ruhai. After all, they were family, so everything could be discussed.

Xue Ke watched it from beginning to end, following behind his father.

Seeing that he had the opportunity, he finally couldn't help but ask, "Father values ​​Wang Xin, and the business deal has been settled. Why bother to meddle in other people's business and take the initiative to interfere in my cousin's marriage? What if you offend the wife of the Jia family? Wouldn't that be bad?" Hearing his son's words, Xue Yan sighed.

How difficult it is for them to do business. It would be great if we could let them do business well.

"A man like Wang Xin, I believe he will be a great man in the future. He will definitely not just be a general, he may even become a nobleman. Such a man is of course a timely help, and we should be tied together early. Didn't the old master of Rongguo Mansion value your uncle in the same way back then?"

After hearing his father's words, Xue Ke was speechless.

Everyone says that the Xue family relied so much on the Jia family in the past, but in those years, the Xue family also transferred a lot of money to the Jia family. The most dangerous one involved the matter of the old Prince Yi Zhong.

The Shi family, one of the eight nobles, has completely declined, but the Jia family has remained prosperous for many years. Can't it be said that the Jia family relies on the Xue family?
Xue Ke is still a teenager after all.

My younger sister was already engaged, and his husband was from a Hanlin family. Besides, she was young, and I just admired her, so I didn't insist.

How could Xue Yan not know what his son was thinking?

But I think more about it.

His daughter is already engaged to the Hanlin family, and it was the engagement that was arranged by his late eldest brother. He cannot change it, otherwise it would not only be unfilial, but also offend Mei Hanlin. Also, it is for the sake of the first wife.

If Wang Xin could marry his niece, his sister-in-law would feel at ease and be willing to cooperate with the second branch.

He couldn't just sit and watch the business of the first house decline. These were not only the hard work of his eldest brother, but also the accumulation of several generations of the Xue family, so Xue Yan seized the opportunity immediately.

The main reason is that the nephew spoke at a good time. It was the idea of ​​her sister-in-law's own son, so she wouldn't be so sensitive and suspicious.

In this way, multiple birds can be killed at once, which is more beneficial to the entire Xue family. As the pillar of the Xue family, Xue Yan thinks more deeply, unlike his son who only considers his sister.

The next step is how to test Wang Xin’s attitude.

If an ordinary family proposes marriage and it fails, they will try another family.

But Xue Yan is not.

Now that I have an idea, I must work towards success. If I ask for it rashly now, what if he refuses? So I have to make sure that he can't refuse. How can I make sure that he can't refuse?

Wang Xin is young and energetic. If you force him with your connections, it will be counterproductive.

So what does he care about?

very clear.

army.

As expected, I was right. Knowing what my foundation is and knowing what I can do is even more amazing. Doesn't the Jia family know their own foundation? They know it, but they let Master Lian try to practice archery, and he ran away after less than half a day.

Xue Yan had an idea.

One is military horses, one is armament, and the other is a business. If the Xue family can take care of these three things, Wang Xin will have no choice but to refuse. On the contrary, he will only feel at ease if the Xue family proposes to marry their daughter.

Xue Ke remained silent all the way.

He finally understood his father's painstaking efforts. Although the Xue family's roots were in business, his father had forced him to study for a science since he was young.

The status of businessmen is too low.

Even their Xue family, which has been providing benefits to the Jia family for many years, cannot escape the fact that the Xue family relies on the name of the Jia family.

Now he is just Wang Xin.

What did the Xue family do? Without the Xue family, which of these things could Wang Xin have done? In the end, the Xue family even took the initiative to send their daughter, and in the end, they probably couldn't escape the reputation of relying on Wang Xin.

The more successful Wang Xin becomes, the more likely he will be to get rid of this title.

Thinking of this, Xue Ke completely gave up the idea of ​​following in his father's footsteps. Whoever wants to do business can do it. He never wanted to do business again. He said goodbye to his father, returned to his cousin's study, picked up the book and started to study seriously.

I must become an official, and a high-ranking one.

Xue Yan was unaware of his son's change, so he told Aunt Xue about his plan. Aunt Xue saw that Xue Yan's plan was thorough, but she was nervous and didn't know whether she should tell her sister.

My elder sister cares about Baoyu the most. If this matter is not handled properly, it might hurt the sisterhood.

Thinking of this, Aunt Xue became even more hesitant to mention it. She thought of her eldest brother again. Only if her eldest brother spoke up would her sister not be angry. She had to tell her eldest brother about this matter in advance.

(End of this chapter)