Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 143 Receiving Money
After leaving the consulate, Gu Yansheng didn't return to his office immediately; instead, he went to the foreign concession to seek outside help.

Sabotage is too easy; it was requested by the Japanese themselves, so there's no way to mess it up.

On the way, call Zhang Xiaolin and ask him to go to the Sassoon Building to find Sassoon.

Gu Yansheng arrived shortly after.

Since Sassoon's son died, Sassoon has been devastated. Not to mention his emotional state, Li Shiqun has not let him off the hook in business. First, Sassoon's own businesses withdrew from Shanghai, resulting in a sharp decline in profits. Second, the concessions have been unstable recently, and Li Shiqun's people don't mind using dirty tricks on Sassoon again.

Since we've already broken off relations, why should I make you feel comfortable?
"Why did Director Gu come to see us today?"

Sassoon seems to be in good condition; after all, it's been so many days, he should be able to recover by now.

Gu Yansheng took a sip of tea and said, "Of course it's about making money. I want to engage in hoarding and speculation in Shanghai."

Sassoon paused in surprise, then chuckled: "This word reminds me of some bad memories. Last time, Director Gu made me lose a lot of money because of hoarding and speculation."

“That’s because you didn’t choose the right partner,” Gu Yansheng said with a smile.

Sassoon chuckled. "I'm very interested in this, but hoarding and speculation requires the right timing. Does that condition hold true now?"

Sassoon's son was killed, and Kobayashi recalled all the foreign companies but not Sassoon. Of course, he was interested in such an enemy.

Gu Yansheng nodded: "I can help you create the opportunity. This time, we'll only focus on staple foods."

"How to do it exactly?"

"I will forcibly requisition grain from the market. Once the news gets out, it will inevitably cause panic. All grain merchants will have to dump their goods. You can buy them at low prices and store them. When Shanghai experiences a grain shortage, grain prices will skyrocket. You can sell your goods slowly. I will give you time to do so."

"What if the Japanese come and interfere?"

“This requires Mr. Zhang’s cooperation.” Gu Yansheng looked at Zhang Xiaolin. “Don’t leave the collected grain in the city of Shanghai, as it’s easy for the military police to confiscate it. Mr. Zhang’s people should have channels to smuggle this part of the supplies into the concession area. As long as it’s not in the city of Shanghai, what are we afraid of the military police for?”
You can sell them in the concession, or you can wait until things calm down and then bring them back to sell.

Learn from your mistakes. Last time, we hoarded too many goods and speculated on prices, so much so that they were all left in the Chinese territory and were seized by the people sent by Gu Yansheng.

They've learned their lesson. Transporting grain into the concession is no big deal; they can just row in by boat along the Suzhou Creek.

Even members of the Green Gang could carry a bag on their backs and swagger into the foreign concession.

Zhang Xiaolin understood and nodded, saying, "That's fine, I can manage it. I'll gather the crew off the ship within a day."

"Then you can collect the grain tomorrow."

After returning to the municipal government, Gu Yansheng went to find Fu Xiao'an.

Gu Yansheng was a rare guest, but since Gu had just helped him, Fu Xiao'an had to put on a smile and invite Gu Yansheng for tea.

"Did Director Gu come to see me on official business or personal business?"

"Both public and private."

Gu Yansheng took a sip of tea. Hmm, Fu Xiao'an's tea is indeed of high quality.

Putting down his teacup, Gu Yansheng said, "There's been an update on the cotton yarn matter. I've come to ask how much cotton yarn Mayor Fu still has?"

Fu Xiao'an didn't answer immediately, unsure of Gu Yansheng's intentions. After thinking for a moment, he smiled and said, "Director Gu, could it be that you've taken a fancy to my cotton yarn and want to forcibly requisition it? I'm sorry, you're too late. My cotton yarn has already been sold out."

"Are they really sold out?" Gu Yansheng asked with a serious expression.

Fu Xiao'an nodded matter-of-factly: "They're basically all sold out. There are only a few dozen packs left. If Director Gu really wants to forcibly requisition them, don't bother. I'll support your work and deliver them to you."

"What a pity." Gu Yansheng slapped the sofa and said regretfully, "I was worried that Mayor Fu's cotton yarn would not sell well, so I introduced you to a buyer, since the market is sluggish. Who knew you would sell it all? Well then, never mind, I won't requisition it. I'm leaving."

"Wait, wait a minute." Fu Xiao'an called out to Gu Yansheng, who was standing up. "Director Gu, what is the meaning of this buyer's intentions?"

"Not all sold out?"

"It can always be produced."

The two smiled and continued their conversation.

Gu Yansheng said seriously, "I told you, there's more to the cotton yarn issue. If you have a lot of stock, I can help you sell it. Up to 20,000 bales, it's negotiable. Let's not beat around the bush. I also have conditions: a referral fee of 10,000 US dollars. That's not too expensive, is it?"

Fu Xiao'an frowned slightly as he stared at Gu Yansheng, pondering the matter. He was unsure whether Gu Yansheng genuinely had a buyer or was trying to seize his inventory by deception.

Have to guard against it.

But if the cotton yarn isn't sold soon, the weather will get warmer.

"Director Gu, you're not lying to me, are you? I'm old and frail, I can't take any more stress."

“Mayor Fu, you are the only one who is lying to me. Ask yourself honestly, when have I ever lied to you on my own initiative? Besides, you look energetic and vigorous, but you are not weak at all.”

Fu Xiao'an didn't even blush. "What price will you pay?"

“Let’s offer a lower market price, since it’s being sold to them. But they can only offer either military notes or bonds; you have to choose one.”

“Bonds? What bonds?” Fu Xiao’an frowned.

Gu Yansheng explained to him, "Bonds issued in the name of the new government, with interest and a maturity period of several years, I don't think you'll want them."

“Of course not.” Fu Xiao’an nodded. “Alright, how do we trade?”

Military scrip was no different from cash to him.

Gu Yansheng said, "Find a few foreign merchants and have them come forward during the transaction. Just say it's their goods. Otherwise, it won't look good for you to sell so many goods to them."

"Understood, then it's decided."

How much stock do you have on hand?

"Twenty thousand packs." Gu Yansheng rolled his eyes. That's the maximum. Looks like he still has quite a few left.

"How much?"

"About 70."

"Is this price too high?"

"68."

"That still sounds a bit expensive. Is cotton yarn still that pricey?"

"Expensive?" Fu Xiao'an's voice rose. "It's only been a few months! In previous years, the price wouldn't have been lower than 110 at this time!"

"66 yuan, that's the lowest I can go. Any lower and I might as well sell them slowly. Director Gu, I asked you about your purchase price; you always buy them for 120 yuan."

Why did you suddenly become resentful while you were talking?
Can I help you?

When will it be ready?

"Anytime, I can give it to you right now if you need it."

"That's too fast. We'll have to pack it up. You prepare the goods, and I'll contact you when I need them."

After Gu Yansheng finished speaking, he left, heading to Luo Junqiang's office on the way.

Luo Junqiang didn't like him at all, but he had already received a call from Minister Zhou, so he could only try to make peace and forced a smile.

"Minister Zhou has already said that we should cooperate sincerely, and we will need Director Gu's help with things in Shanghai in the future."

Gu Yansheng didn't care about his attitude and said with a gentle smile, "Vice Mayor Luo, I lost my temper yesterday and was not entirely right. You are a magnanimous person, so please don't take it to heart. Next, it's best to focus on doing a good job on the tasks assigned by Minister Zhou."

"No problem." Since Gu Yansheng was willing to speak softly, Luo Junqiang had a way out, so he softened his attitude accordingly.

"What kind of tea do you want to drink?"

“Either is fine.” Gu Yansheng sat down and said, “Right now, the most urgent thing is money. I’ll negotiate the cotton yarn and try to get more than 20,000 bales. But the funding issue needs to be addressed as soon as possible, otherwise I can’t tell the merchants when to settle the deal.”

Today I looked into it, and the price of cotton yarn is around 75 yuan. I'll prepare 20,000 bales first, which is 1.5 million silver dollars, or 4.5 million military scrips.

"That's quite a sum," Luo Junqiang frowned. "Does it all have to come from the banks? If they had the money, why resort to forced collection in the first place?"

"To the bank, money is just a string of numbers. Vice Mayor Luo, don't take it too seriously. In the end, isn't this money still coming from the Japanese? It's just that nominally it's a loan from the new government, and it's only a preparation. They may not actually spend that much."

One record, and the cotton yarn for the new government's 50 troops would be completely solved.

Luo Junqiang felt a bit disgusted upon hearing this. If he wanted to spend money, why couldn't he? In the end, he became the villain, and the credit went to someone else.

But since Minister Zhou had given instructions on this matter, he had no choice but to comply.

"Okay, I'll have someone bring it to you."

"Thanks, please take it to my office."

After taking the money, Gu Yansheng returned to his office and called Wen Yan over.

"Wenyan, I have something for you to do. If you do it well, it will greatly benefit your future promotion."

“I have to do what you ask me to do, even if there’s no benefit in it,” Wenyan said with a smile.

Gu Yansheng hummed in agreement, walked out, leaned against the table, and said, "Go visit all pro-Japanese businessmen, regardless of who their backers are, as long as their assets exceed 1000 silver dollars. Ask them to donate to the establishment of the new Nanjing government. Go to the Industry and Commerce Bureau to get some information and check their assets. Don't go too far. Ask for 10% of their assets, with a maximum of 200,000 silver dollars."

You can tell them you can give them IOUs, and that in a few days, the new government's bank will be established and will issue them bonds, with monthly interest payments.

Wen Yan immediately nodded: "I understand. If anyone is uncooperative, then I'll just take them directly."

"Yes, there's no need to be polite with them. Pro-Japanese businessmen are not pro-the new government. If word gets out, people will think that the cooperation between China and Japan is a lie."

"What about those businessmen who are not so pro-Japanese?"

"How many people in Shanghai aren't pro-Japanese? They'd all be dead by now."

"If they want donations, you can threaten them a little, but don't go too far. They're the last few remaining people; pushing them too far will cause them to leave Shanghai, which will negatively impact the economy. On the other hand, pro-Japanese businessmen have nowhere else to go; give them whatever they want."

"Okay, I understand. Shall I head over now?"

"Well, let's go."

Gu Yansheng sat down, and a short while later, Luo Junqiang sent someone from the Economic Department to deliver the money.

Boxes of military bonds were brought in, and they even brought out a signature book for Gu Yansheng to sign, saying it was instructed by Vice Mayor Luo.

Gu Yansheng scoffed, not bothering them, and wrote down that he had received 450 million military notes.

Then they were allowed to leave.

Military scrip came in denominations of 100, so it didn't weigh much in total, probably only a few dozen kilograms.

Gu Yansheng still had to pay out some money.

The amount given to Luo Junqiang was 75 silver dollars, while the amount negotiated with Fu Xiao'an was 66 silver dollars.

The 9 yuan difference, if used for 20,000 packs, amounts to 180,000 yuan, which is not a small amount.

He won't accept it. Tomorrow, he'll give the goods and money to Minister Zhou, and how Minister Zhou handles it is none of his business.

(End of this chapter)