Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 156 Money Making
After Ma Shiqi left, He Yun settled accounts with Gu Yansheng.

“Cotton yarn mills are really cheap now, and negotiations are very easy. Given the situation in western Shanghai, I estimate that it will be similar in Zhabei. Buying ten cotton yarn mills might only cost two or three hundred thousand yuan.”

A car repair shop doesn't cost much at all. You provide the space, we just need to hire a few workers and buy some tools to get it up and running. At most, we'll need to stock up on some parts. I estimate a few thousand dollars should be enough.

But flour mills are quite expensive. Opening two flour mills would cost at least 30 yuan. Is it really necessary to open one?
Aren't you under too much financial pressure?

Although He Yun's flour mill was profitable, it hadn't been open for long and only generated tens of thousands of dollars in profit.

Gu Yansheng nodded firmly, "The new factory must be opened; I have to give an account to the Japanese."

The factories we buy are all existing assets; only newly opened factories represent new growth, and the money we need to spend still has to be spent.

As for the high price of flour mills, it's because flour sells well and there's never a shortage of sales. Moreover, under the forced requisition, although flour mill owners suffer losses, the remaining flour becomes increasingly expensive.

You can choose not to buy new clothes, but you can't choose not to eat.

"As for the money, 60 silver dollars is a lot, but I have enough, so you don't need to worry."

He Yun laughed, "We're rich and powerful, but I have an idea that might not require us to spend our own money."

Gu Yansheng was surprised, "Such a good thing? What idea is that?"

He Yun moved closer and said, "I heard you say that the Wang faction is planning to establish a central bank, right?"

"hold head high."

"The situation is difficult. So many factories have fallen into our hands, and they are cotton yarn factories. We have to control the supplies. I'm thinking, what if the Japanese go crazy and those Japanese companies take a liking to our industries and want to confiscate or sabotage them?"
I think we need to be careful.

Now that the Wang Jingwei faction is going to establish a central bank, we'll just happen to be supporters and ask the central bank for a loan, paying interest every month, and then mortgage the factory to the central bank.

"Once the money is extracted and the cash is in our hands, it's definitely safe. We can advance or retreat as needed. If anything goes wrong, we won't suffer any losses. We'll hand the factory over to the central bank and let the Wang clique fight the Japanese like dogs."

Gu Yansheng's eyes lit up. "Great idea! This idea is fantastic!"

No wonder she's an accountant; her calculations are truly exquisite.

Gu Yansheng had already started planning how to borrow money from the bank to acquire factories in Shanghai. Making money by borrowing money from the Wang Jingwei regime was interesting.

He Yun smiled shyly at the praise, "I mainly thought that those Japanese companies are too powerful and would suppress us in the future, so I thought of using them to my advantage."

"This is the matter that needs your help to handle. We definitely can't negotiate it ourselves. And if it really works out, I think we can borrow money not only from these new factories in western Shanghai, but also from our flour mill in Zhabei, to get all the 30 silver dollars in cost capital."

Gu Yansheng raised his hand: "It's a small matter. Leave the bank's issues to me. You go and acquire those cotton yarn factories now. After you've acquired them, calculate the value of the machinery in these factories and use the new valuation."

Gu Yansheng is now thinking about how to increase the value of the factory and then make money from it.

The factory was acquired for 10,000 silver dollars, so it's not an exaggeration to say it's worth 200,000 silver dollars, is it?

Back then, it was worth 20!
If you were to open a new factory now, even 20 yuan might not be enough to get it up and running.

"That's a fantastic idea!" Gu Yansheng had to add a compliment.

Moreover, this idea directly provided him with an opportunity to bring up the matter with Minister Zhou, thus exposing the smuggling of cotton yarn to Minister Zhou's mind.

To be precise, it was about giving him a share of the profits.

After having some snacks with He Yun, Gu Yansheng drove to a hotel in Hongkou to find Minister Zhou.

"minister."

"Yansheng, you've come at the right time. I need your help with something." Minister Zhou invited Gu Yansheng to sit down and said, "Luo Junqiang has been sent to Pudong, so the matter with the China Daily has fallen behind."

He told me that we should open the newspaper office in Pudong, but I felt that Pudong was too far from the city center, so it would be better to open it in western Shanghai.

"You're currently in western Shanghai, could you help me find a place to set up the newspaper office?"

"Sure," Gu Yansheng readily agreed. "Minister, what are your requirements for the location?"

"Don't make it too remote. It should be convenient for communication with the concessions. After all, it's a newspaper, and many of our news sources are inseparable from the international opinions in the concessions." Gu Yansheng nodded. "I understand. I think the location of the police station on Jessfield Road is good. It's just across the street from the concessions, and if there are any troublemakers there, the police station and the intelligence headquarters can help."

Minister Zhou thought for a moment and then nodded with a smile, “Good, that’s very well thought out. Then let’s go with Jessfield Road. I’ll have to ask you to handle the site selection and recruitment. The main thing is to understand the mindset of the staff. China Daily may become our government’s primary newspaper in the future. We must grasp the mindset of the newspaper’s employees and make sure they firmly support Mr. Wang’s ideas of peaceful nation-building.”

“This is still a bit difficult, mainly because it’s hard to judge,” Gu Yansheng said, frowning as he pondered. “However, I don’t think it will have a big impact. We can conduct a preliminary review, recruit the staff, and then the editor-in-chief can firmly control the newspaper’s distribution rights.”

"As long as the content of the published newspapers supports Mr. Wang, we can monitor the thoughts of the others during the work process. This way, the newspaper can be established as quickly as possible."

Minister Zhou nodded, "Okay, we'll do it your way. As for the salary, I've thought about it. From now on, it will be based on the government's staffing system. For now, we'll pay a bit higher, in line with Japan. We'll cover the cost ourselves first."

"understood."

"You came to see me for something?"

“That’s right,” Gu Yansheng said. “The bond issuance is still ongoing. Businessmen are quite enthusiastic. Mr. Wang has quite a few supporters, from Shanghai, Nanjing, Jiangsu, and all over the place. It’s just that other places are too remote, otherwise I estimate that people from Guangzhou would come to subscribe.”

During the issuance process, some businessmen offered me their opinions, hoping I would pass them on to Minister Zhou.

Minister Zhou was certainly pleased with the merchants' willingness to donate money, his face beaming with smiles, and he listened attentively to their opinions with a cheerful attitude.

"You said."

"That's right. At present, they feel that the Japanese are still too harsh. Some people also hope that after Mr. Wang's government is established, it can speak up for them with the Japanese and make their lives a little easier."

According to them, the suppression by Japanese companies is going too far. Many businessmen couldn't stand it and left for Hong Kong or Chongqing. The businessmen who remain in Shanghai are considered to have some connections and relationships in various aspects.

But even for people like them, it's just enough to make a living. Expanding their businesses and boosting the economy is extremely difficult, if not impossible, because their livelihoods are precarious.

They gave me an example: a cotton yarn factory that had an investment of 30 silver dollars could have broken even in a year before the war, but now it barely breaks even each month, even with their connections.

With the situation volatile and the prospect of recouping their investment seemingly far off, they had no intention of opening a new factory.

No one does business at a loss. After hearing this, I felt that what they said made sense. You should have seen how bad the economy of Shanghai was under Japanese rule these days.

With our new government in place, we need to improve the economy and collect tax revenue, right?

So, I'm just telling you about this situation. I don't think we can send them all to Hong Kong or Chongqing. What do you think?

Minister Zhou smiled after hearing this and said, "You don't need to worry about this. In fact, Mr. Wang and I have already considered this. In the subsequent negotiations, we will discuss this matter with the Japanese and take over the management and taxation rights of all factories into our hands."

The Japanese also have this desire.

The government's operations and the military's expenses both require money. If Japanese companies were to cut the money of Chinese-owned factories like this under Japanese rule, it would be like transferring money from one hand to the other, with the money rotting in their own pot.

It's simply that money that should belong to the Japanese national treasury ended up in the hands of some Japanese-owned companies.

If, after the founding of our nation, this money still ends up in the hands of Japanese companies and we don't receive it, then Japan's national treasury will have to allocate another sum of money to us as military expenses.

This is something their cabinet absolutely cannot afford, especially the Ministry of Finance, which will certainly not stand idly by.

Therefore, this issue will definitely be resolved in the subsequent negotiations.

The control over Chinese-owned enterprises and the flow of goods will return to our hands. This is determined by the domestic situation in Japan, and Japanese companies cannot stop it.

Gu Yansheng smiled modestly: "Your words have awakened me from my dream. Mr. Wang and Minister Zhou have considered things very carefully. Businessmen are truly blessed."

Minister Zhou waved his hand dismissively and smiled: "Their suggestions are very good. Do you have any other suggestions?"

“Yes,” Gu Yansheng nodded. “When they mentioned this to me, they also said that if this problem could be solved, they would be willing to expand production. Expanding production requires funds, and instead of taking out a loan from a Japanese bank, they would rather give the interest to the central bank that is about to be established.”

What they mean is that they are willing to support the central bank in the hopes that the central bank will offer them more favorable interest rates.

This is where Minister Zhou's territory lies. The first priority he brought to Shanghai for negotiations was to seize control of the financial system, and he wanted to keep the central bank firmly in his own hands.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Tell them that opening a factory is a good thing for the country and the people. On behalf of Mr. Wang, I welcome their support. The central bank will definitely give them preferential loan interest rates."

(End of this chapter)