Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 148 The Difficulty of Making a Ruler Like Yao and Shun

The next morning, after waking up and washing up, Zhang Dai did not stay at Duting Post Station to continue taking advantage of the public resources. He took An Xiaochen and a few others to the street to have some breakfast before leaving.

When the group arrived at the main gate of the post station, they saw several postmen carrying items onto a carriage. Du Hongjian had been standing by and directing them the night before.

When Du Hongjian saw Zhang Dai pass by, he was about to go forward and say something, but after taking a few steps, he stopped. Perhaps it was the pride of youth that was getting in the way, and he was unwilling to admit his mistake.

Zhang Dai paid no attention to this and quickly rode away from the area. He found a restaurant at the end of the alley, ordered some of his usual breakfast dishes, and after filling his stomach, he left Qinghuafang. He crossed the Xinzhong Bridge to the south of the river and arrived at Huixunfang Villa, where he ordered his servant to summon Wang Yuanbao.

As the year drew to a close, money and goods were being transferred frequently, and Wang Yuanbao was very busy these days. It took him more than an hour to rush over. After entering the hall, he bowed repeatedly to apologize before even sitting down.

"Is the money-making business quite busy lately?"

Seeing his ruddy complexion, Zhang Dai asked with a smile.

"Indeed, the closer it gets to the end of the year, the more frequent business becomes in both capitals. In particular, the first batch of merchants from Chang'an who used the flying money have already returned to the capital with their goods, and they have all made considerable profits. This has also made the atmosphere in both markets even more lively, with everyone vying to use it!"

Wang Yuanbao spoke animatedly about the booming state of the money-making business, and held up one finger to Zhang Dai, saying, "One million strings of cash! The money-making business has already yielded a profit of one million strings of cash, and there is still more than a month left until the end of the year. If we continue to manage it diligently, the profits at the end of the year will surely be even greater!"

The commission for flying money was usually around 25%. If the profit was one million strings of cash, it meant that at least four million strings of cash were used to achieve flexible allocation between the two capitals.

Even though new things have a period of high returns, and with the added boost from the torrential rains and natural disasters in the middle of this year, Feiqian's actual operations this year have only lasted a few months. Therefore, even if there is a decline next year, the profits will certainly not be lower than this amount, and if managed properly, it is even possible to double the profits.

However, it is obviously impossible to operate stably and properly in the long term. Such a business, which relies heavily on personnel background to operate, will inevitably be greatly affected by changes in personnel background.

Take the major shareholder, Consort Wu Hui, for example. She doesn't care about the amount of profit, so why would she care about whether the business can operate smoothly?

Zhang Dai sighed inwardly, then said to Wang Yuanbao, "If this matter can be entrusted to someone else, Wang Er might as well return to his hometown first, or go elsewhere. It would be best not to stay in the capital around the end of the year."

"Why do you say that, young master?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuanbao's smile vanished instantly, and he said in a deep voice, "Is there something wrong with the people involved...?"

Zhang Dai had a good impression of Wang Yuanbao and didn't want to see him caught in an unsolvable personnel dispute and suffer difficulties. After a moment's thought, he said, "The Duke of Huo has a beloved daughter who he wishes to present to the Emperor. Does Wang Er know about this?"

Wang Yuanbao first nodded, then shook his head, and then quickly said, "Although I have the good fortune to study under Duke Huo, and know that Duke Huo dotes on the women in his household, I did not know that Duke Huo had such intentions. Could it be that this is the reason for making things difficult?"

Zhang Dai nodded, then said, “Consort Hui is my benefactor, as Wang Er should know. Since Duke Huo’s wish has offended Consort Hui, I should also make a statement. Duke Huo is not allowed to receive any interest this winter. Wang Er’s staying here will only cause more trouble, so you should leave.”

"What about the operation of Flying Money? Millions of strings of cash are coming and going, enough to feed countless families! The powerful and wealthy are just throwing their anger around and want to obstruct this? For whom am I working so hard? The nobles are enjoying huge profits, yet they still want to create trouble..."

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuanbao's face fell immediately. He then said in a reluctant voice, but after a moment, realizing that his words were inappropriate, he quickly bowed to Zhang Dai and said, "Wang Er was in a moment of panic and misspoke. Please forgive me, young master!"
This plan was originally devised by you, young master. You should know best how much divine and human assistance has brought this to where it is today. Once there is any turmoil, it will be extremely difficult to gather popularity and wealth again!

After witnessing the enormous profits and immense potential of the money-making scheme, he genuinely wanted to maintain the industry's stable development and didn't want it to be disrupted by irrelevant personnel.

Upon hearing these words, Zhang Dai sighed inwardly. The world is so fickle; what many cherish as their lifeblood is worthless in the eyes of others, to be carelessly manipulated and completely disregarded. What is a mere money-making business compared to the glorious Tang Dynasty that could be ruined so easily!

Seeing Wang Yuanbao's heartbroken expression, he couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy. Wang Yuanbao lamented the fleeting wealth, while he lamented the prosperity of this era, yet neither of them were the true owners of this fortune.

To make the ruler like Yao and Shun, and to restore the purity of customs. This is the dream of countless virtuous and ambitious people, but if the ruler does not follow the right path, all we can do is lament in vain.

"The operation of Feiqian will continue as usual, but the interest belonging to Duke Huo cannot be withdrawn. If you, Wang Er, continue to stay in the capital, you will be forced by Duke Huo and will only become my enemy."

Zhang Dai then said in a deep voice, "I know you cherish this profession, but unfortunately, we are both the arrows and the bows. Since we are using this power to do things, we should know that we are not in control of our own destiny. I am telling you this not to make things difficult for you, and you should know my intentions."

"Wang Er thanks you for your kindness and protection, young master. I know this matter is beyond my control. Please rest assured, young master, I will be heading to Bianzhou shortly. There are still some financial matters to attend to there, but I have been busy with the cash transfers from Luoyang, which is why I have been putting it off until now. Alas..."

Wang Yuanbao couldn't help but sigh again as he finished speaking. Zhang Dai knew very well that unless they could break free from the imperial power structure of the Tang Dynasty and create a new personnel system to allocate and gather resources, similar cases of abandoning projects halfway through would inevitably continue in the future.

The ideal of making the emperor like Yao and Shun sounds simple, but many people can't even teach their own sons well, so how can they talk about persuading and influencing an adult whose values ​​are already formed and who can theoretically do whatever they want? If you can't teach your son well, you can slap him, but what can you do if the emperor doesn't listen to you?
Upon hearing that Wang Yuanbao planned to travel east, he said to him, "In that case, I would also trouble you, Wang Er, to oversee and assist in the disaster relief efforts in the east. If anything goes wrong, please write to me. My disciples recently compiled a simplified 'Mathematical Classic' and improved the abacus; I will have my family send it to you later."

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuanbao perked up slightly and nodded, saying, "In that case, I will temporarily set aside this matter and go to various weaving workshops to build free schools, so as not to fail your advice!"

Zhang Dai was even more delighted upon hearing this. Although he had entrusted the relevant matters to Zhang Yi, it would undoubtedly be more appropriate if Wang Yuanbao, the financial backer, were willing to personally go and supervise the process.

Wang Yuanbao was quite decisive. After receiving Zhang Dai's notification, he handed over all the affairs in Luoyang to his disciples the next day, packed his things, and left Luoyang for the east.

He was just a merchant, and his thoughts were irrelevant. These personnel disputes were a headache even for Zhang Dai, so he naturally wanted to stay as far away from them as possible.

Just a few days after Consort Wu Hui returned, the Emperor also returned to Luoyang from Ruzhou, and Zhang Dai naturally had to go to Longmen to welcome his grandfather.

Since Wang Maozhong did not reveal his intentions in a completely public setting, not many of his officials knew about it, but Gao Lishi and other close associates were clearly aware of it.

So when Zhang Dai went forward to greet his grandfather, Gao Lishi also rode over, winking and making faces at Zhang Dai, clearly harboring some ill intentions.

After the officials returned to the palace in Luoyang with the emperor, they dispersed. Zhang said that after leaving the palace, he called his family to go home together. However, Gao Lishi came up to him again, pointed at Zhang Dai and said with a smile, "This fellow needs to be borrowed. Lord Yan, please go home with the rest of the family."

"This child has yet to achieve any official rank, but the Duke of Bohai and others show him excessive favor. We must guard against him becoming arrogant and neglecting his studies, lest he fail the examination next year and become a laughingstock!"

Zhang said he wasn't entirely clear on the details, but he had long noticed that Gao Lishi paid special attention to this boy, so he frowned and said that he didn't want Gao Lishi to corrupt this grandson on whom he had placed such high hopes.

Upon hearing this, Gao Lishi quickly added, "This young man is already a beloved and talented scholar, and the virtues of Yan Gong's upbringing are widely known throughout the capital. He is about to take the imperial examinations, so I will not disturb him with trivial matters. I will only ask him about some minor issues, and I will certainly not interfere with his evening training in the courtyard!"

Zhang's expression softened slightly upon hearing this, and then he looked at his grandson and instructed him, "Come home early later, and don't be tempted to stay for a meal. We've been apart for over a month, and I still need to carefully examine your studies."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai immediately responded respectfully, then escorted his grandfather and his party across the Tianjin Bridge before hurriedly returning to the north side of the bridge to meet Gao Lishi, who was still waiting.

"Let's go to my place first!"

Upon seeing him return, Gao Lishi took the lead and rode towards Luobei Ward, while Zhang Dai and his adopted sons and relatives followed behind, returning to their residence together.

Upon returning home, Gao Lishi first dismissed the disciples from his household, leaving only his trusted adopted sons, Gao Chengxin, and Zhang Dai. He then asked Zhang Dai, "Consort Hui returned to the capital several days early, presumably to summon you to the palace to discuss matters. That audacious official Wang Maozhong dares to harbor such wild thoughts; many despise him. What are your thoughts on this matter?"

What Zhang Dai thought was naturally unimportant; what Gao Lishi mainly wanted to know was what Consort Wu Hui was thinking, probably wanting to see if there was any room for cooperation between them.

Zhang Dai had previously suggested to Consort Wu that they could win over eunuchs such as Gao Lishi, so he naturally didn't hide it now. He immediately recounted the counterattack he had suggested to Consort Wu, emphasizing that it was Consort Wu's idea and that he had no need to show off his wisdom in such matters.

"This plan is excellent! This plan is excellent! First, cut off their money and goods, then disrupt their social interactions, and finally strip them of their favor..."

After hearing this, Gao Lishi clapped his hands and laughed, then said, "I originally wanted to go back and ask Consort Hui to tell her not to be angry and upset about this wicked servant, but I didn't expect that Consort Hui already had such a brilliant plan to deal with him! My son has given it a good advice, and I will never let Consort Hui be isolated in the palace!"

Since Gao Lishi also expressed his willingness to cooperate, Zhang Dai did not linger any longer.

Since Wang Maozhong's plan failed, he's probably watching everyone's reactions. It's fine for him to come up with some bad ideas in secret, but there's no need for him to be too eager. Anyway, no matter how things develop in the end, it won't be Wang Maozhong's daughter's turn to come. If he jumps around, he'll only make himself disliked.

So he sat for a while longer before getting up to take his leave. Because of what Zhang had said earlier, Gao Lishi did not try to keep him any longer and gestured for Gao Chengxin to see him out of the residence.

Zhang Dai hurried back home and found that there were quite a few guests. In addition to Zhao Dongxi and other frequent visitors, there were several court officials, including his esteemed cousin Zhang Jiuling, whom he had not seen for a long time. They all looked serious, as if they were discussing something important.

(End of this chapter)