Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 259 Days
"This traitor lives a life worse than a dog!"

"The key is that it's impossible to get these 100,000 tons of grain. Didn't Director Gu give us a demonstration? If it's 20,000 tons, people in Shanghai will be robbing rice in the streets. If it's 100,000 tons, people in Shanghai can eat all the land!"

What are they trying to do? Isn't this just looking for trouble?

"100,000 tons of military rations, that should be enough to feed the entire Japanese army in Central China for a year, right?"

"Enough to stuff them to death!"

"It's highly likely that in addition to supporting the Japanese army in Central China, they also had to support other regions. The Jiangnan region is a land of fish and rice; in which dynasty or era didn't it support the entire country?"

"Stop complaining." Fu Xiao'an interrupted with a stern face, glaring at the loudest complainers. "What's the use of complaining? Think of a solution!"

"Mayor, it's not that we're complaining, but you know the market for 100,000 tons of grain. Do you think it's possible to complete this task?"
The key issue is that he also needs to guarantee future tax revenue, which is impossible to accomplish.
I think the Japanese have a problem right now. If they requisition 100,000 tons of grain, Shanghai will definitely be in dire straits. They won't even have the energy to develop the economy.

The Japanese are just using us like prostitutes; they put on a virtuous facade while they raise funds for their army, and we're the ones who get the blame.

"Then try not to accept it?" Fu Xiao'an glanced at him sideways, and the other party chose to shut up.

Fu Xiao'an rolled his eyes at him and looked away: "100,000 tons is a lot, but how do you know it's impossible without trying? At least in the first few months, you have to show results and make the Japanese believe that you have made an effort. In the later months, it's understandable that the quantity is a little less, isn't it?"

As soon as he said that, everyone present understood.

"Mayor Fu, do you mean to just be serious for the first two months? Then, during the autumn harvest season, we'll gather 9000 tons, and then we'll take whatever comes after that, without forcing anything?"

"What do you mean by not forcing it? If the Japanese heard you say that, wouldn't they be asking for trouble? Trying and then failing is one thing, not trying at all is another. It's a matter of attitude."

"Yes, the mayor is right."

"Stop talking nonsense. If you have an idea, then speak up. If you don't, then shut up."

Then everyone shut up.

Gu Yansheng remained silent, saying that even if he could come up with a solution, he wouldn't let him.

Ten thousand tons of grain? That's a good idea. Wanting tax revenue and grain at the same time? There's no such thing as a free lunch.

If this 100,000 tons of grain were forcibly requisitioned, Shanghai would surely descend into chaos.

Gu Yansheng didn't understand either. Xingya Institute was doing so well in developing its economy, so why would it suddenly want to stab itself with a knife?
Fu Xiao'an was furious at the sight. "What can I expect from you guys? You talk nonsense like a machine gun, but when it comes to the important stuff, not a single one of you opens your mouth. Have you all become mute?"

"Mayor, this is a difficult matter. Ten thousand tons... this... hehe."

"Go back and think of something," Fu Xiao'an said dismissively, not expecting them to come up with any good ideas.

"Secretary-General Ling, Director Gu, please stay behind." Important matters still need to be discussed by the three of them.

After everyone left, Fu Xiao'an sighed deeply, "What do you think we should do about this? I can assure you, this mission will not be easy to complete. If we want to complete it, we'll have to skin Shanghai alive."

The Japanese have really gone too far this time. If it were just Shanghai, it would be manageable; they could procure some grain from Jiangsu. But judging from their tone, Jiangsu also has its own tasks, which I estimate are no less demanding than theirs.

Ling Xianwen asked, "You understand economics, what is the approximate shortage in Shanghai?"

Fu Xiao'an shook his head. "There's a lot. Even in a bumper year, Shanghai wouldn't have this much grain in stock. Last year, the Japanese had Director Gu carry out that forced requisition, and Shanghai's grain reserves were completely depleted."

Let me tell you about the current grain situation in Shanghai. Last year, when grain was cheap, rice cost 12 silver dollars per shi (a unit of dry measure).

Due to the forced requisition, rice prices skyrocketed, briefly increasing by more than 200 times. Even now, rice prices have not completely returned to last year's levels, still reaching 30 silver dollars per shi (a unit of dry measure).

"When rice is plentiful, prices fall; when rice is scarce, prices rise. This 30 yuan figure perfectly reflects the current state of grain supply in Shanghai."

"What would happen if 100,000 tons were forcibly requisitioned?" Ling Xianwen asked.

Fu Xiao'an frowned. "Shanghai has nearly 4 million people, with Chinese making up 60%. If this 100,000 tons of grain is given to the army, it will be enough to feed 400,000 Japanese soldiers. If it is given to civilians, it will be enough to feed 600,000 people, which is a quarter of the population in the Chinese-speaking area."

To be realistic, if that quarter is gone, it won't just mean everyone eats less and still has food to eat; it will mean prices rise to the point where a quarter of the population starves before this situation ends.

"Is this absurd? If this were to happen, what kind of chaos would Shanghai be in?" Ling Xianwen looked at Gu Yansheng.

Gu Yansheng's silence is golden.

He frowned and nodded slightly, indicating that the matter was indeed troublesome.

Seeing that Gu Yansheng didn't react, Ling Xianwen looked at Fu Xiao'an and thought for a moment before saying, "I have an idea. If we set price limits, limit quantities, and forcibly control the number of people, could we accomplish this task? At least everyone would have some food to eat. Even if they eat less, it's fine, and Shanghai would be a little more peaceful."

Fu Xiao'an thought for a moment and nodded slowly, "Price and quantity limits. We can try it, but there are problems. Logically, it can be done this way, but how do you actually collect the taxes?"

You have to collect taxes from the farmers who grow the crops now. Collecting taxes from farmers is a one-time transaction; it's impossible to collect them monthly. If you collect 100,000 tons at once, what will Shanghai eat?
"Tax it on merchants? How? If they buy 100 tons of goods, do they have to pay 25 tons to the municipal government? They'll lose money on that business."

"What about raising the price? After the price increase, we'll set a price limit to ensure he doesn't lose money. You just said it was 30 yuan for 60 kilograms, right? How about raising it to 39 yuan for 60 kilograms?"

“It’s not as simple as you think.” Ling Xianwen wasn’t in business, but Fu Xiao’an had to give him a lecture. “Secretary-General Ling, it’s not that they only want to sell the grain for 30 yuan, it’s that the buyers can only afford 30 yuan. You have to consider the income of the Chinese in the area. They only have about ten silver dollars a month. If they spend three months’ salary on 60 kilograms of rice, then after eating the rice, they won’t have a single penny left.”

"Yes, we don't have enough money." Ling Xianwen clicked his tongue in exasperation and looked at Gu Yansheng.

Gu Yansheng's silence is golden.

He frowned and nodded slightly, indicating that the matter was indeed troublesome.

Ling Xianwen smacked his lips. "Yansheng, don't stay silent. You have a lot of ideas. Give me some suggestions. You can't be a minister now and not care about the city government anymore, can you? It hasn't even opened yet, at least not for a month, right?"
"They won't open in just one month, will they?"

"No, not so soon." Gu Yansheng shook his head and sighed.

Fu Xiao'an chuckled jokingly, "Minister Gu can indeed ignore things now. He can just say he's a minister in the new government, and Tsuda really can't do anything about it. Who can blame him for being so busy?"

"It's not that I don't want to talk about it, it's just that I really don't have any good ideas." Gu Yansheng was so wronged, how could he think that he had a solution?

Ten thousand tons of grain were taken away, leaving people without food. This is a problem that even the King of Heaven himself couldn't solve.

Of course, from Shanghai's perspective, secretly going to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to buy some grain, sacrificing friends to save oneself, is another matter entirely.

If we let the merchants pay for it and make purchases overnight to take advantage of the time difference, with each location handling 20,000 tons, then the remaining 60,000 tons in Shanghai will not be under much pressure.

The task can indeed be accomplished.

There's really no way around it.

If you ask me, both of your ideas are fine.

First, we need to meet the monthly targets to show our dedication. Then, we'll set price and quantity limits to maintain them as much as possible. As for the outcome, we'll see.

Another thing I'm considering is that the Japanese are fickle; they might be one way today but another way tomorrow.

Earlier you talked about developing the economy, but now you're saying that if we go down this path, how much of the citizens' money will be left after buying grain?

"Without money, other consumption will inevitably decrease, and it would be a miracle if the economy were to improve." This makes sense. Working for the Japanese, who knows how long you can stay? You might as well just take it one day at a time.

"Let's do it this way for now, and see how things go later."

After leaving the municipal government, Gu Yansheng drove to Zhou Enlai's residence to report the matter.

"This is a bad thing. Doing this before the new government is established will severely damage Shanghai's foundation. The industrial base in western Shanghai that I worked so hard to build will be lost when there are no consumers. The new government will have to bear the loss."

"How could they do this? These Japanese people really don't understand economics at all!"

Minister Zhou frowned upon hearing this. "You just said rice costs 30 yuan for 60 kilograms?"

"Yes, the price was 30 before the increase, and it's estimated to be 39 now that it's on sale."

"Even without considering the price increase, it would be equivalent to 500 silver dollars per ton, so 100,000 tons would be 50 million silver dollars."

Minister Zhou felt a pang of heartache upon hearing this. This was only in Shanghai; if the entire occupied area were included, it would mean the loss of hundreds of millions of grains.

"The Japanese promised to give us 300 million yen a month in funding, which is less than what they took from Shanghai in one go. The Japanese really went too far."

The exchange rate between the Japanese yen and the Indian yak is not much different now.

"The city government has already decided to do this, right?"

"Yes, it was the Japanese who demanded it, and they didn't dare to refuse."

“The Japanese are so unethical.” Minister Zhou shook his head, thought for a moment and said, “Then let’s do it, let’s do it vigorously. Let’s use this incident to incite the citizens’ dissatisfaction with Japan, and it would be best to cause chaos in the Japanese-occupied areas, forcing the Japanese to push forward the establishment of a new government more quickly, so that we can step in to clean up the situation and turn a bad thing into a good thing.”

To be honest, from this perspective, it is indeed beneficial for the establishment of the Wang faction, since they are still uncertain about when or even if it can be established.

"Minister, you have a brilliant idea. I do have some thoughts, but they're a bit difficult to express," Gu Yansheng said with a smile, without continuing.

“Speak up, why are you beating around the bush with me?”

"That's right, I think this is actually quite interesting."

Minister Zhou asked with great interest, "What's so interesting about it?"

Gu Yansheng laughed and said, "I once read a story about the imperial court's disaster relief efforts. In order to prevent non-disaster victims from stealing the food, the disaster relief officials would add sand to the porridge."

The reason might be that people who are about to starve to death wouldn't look down on such things.

The method was good, and these officials were described in historical records as honest and upright officials.

Then I was thinking, if sand is added, won't the porridge become heavier? Won't there be more rice?

So how is this extra amount reimbursed?

In this year of great disaster, rice prices are not cheap.

Gu Yansheng put it very bluntly, and Minister Zhou understood immediately: it was interesting to mix sand into the Japanese rice.

"People who go to the battlefield will eat some sand, they're going to die sooner or later anyway, what do you think they should do?"

"I definitely can't handle it. It's better if we keep to ourselves and not get involved. I think it's more suitable for No. 76 to handle this matter. Director Li or Director Ding are both fine. Director Ding goes without saying. As for Director Li, you should also want to know whether his surname is Wang or Ri."

Director Li also serves as the Deputy Minister of Police Affairs.

Collecting grain would definitely require a large number of police officers, and what the people feared most was this black-clad policeman.

If Director Li wants to take action, he absolutely can.

If he doesn't do it, you'll say it's a test; if he does, you'll understand his stance.

Another advantage is that the Japanese will eventually find out about this and, if they want to know the reason, they will need to investigate.

Who can they turn to? It has to be Number 76.

Minister Zhou listened thoughtfully and smiled, "Okay, I understand. Don't worry about it, get some rest."

Gu Yansheng bowed in acknowledgment and left.

We returned to the teahouse.

His subordinates told him that Fu Xiao'an had called.

Gu Yansheng called back, "Mayor Fu, what's wrong?"

“I suddenly realized that this might affect our cotton yarn business. The last forced requisition caused the stock market to plummet. If futures prices are driven down, our profits this time will be much lower.”

Fu Xiao'an still has lingering fears about the last stock market crash, which almost bankrupted him.

Gu Yansheng scoffed, "Mayor Fu, aren't you overthinking this? This is just grain requisition; what does it have to do with our cotton yarn?"

"You can't think like that. Markets are interconnected. If rice is expensive, people will spend more money on rice, and then they'll have less money left over. People who originally wanted to buy stocks won't have the money to buy them now."

Or, if someone who bought stocks can't afford to eat anymore, they'll have to sell their shares, and the stock price will drop.

"Hey, Mayor Fu, when did you become so hesitant?" Gu Yansheng laughed. "Didn't you tell me that we can completely control the funds, and we can raise or lower the price as we wish? People who can't afford rice can't afford stocks at all. They're not even the same kind of people."

“But we have stock on hand. This grain requisition covers the entire region. If cotton yarn merchants judge that the requisition will lead to a bad market, they will buy less. We have so much stock on hand, who are we going to sell it to?”

It's true that it can't be said that it has no impact, but Gu Yansheng doesn't think the impact is that great.

In these times, how can poor people buy new clothes every year? Last year's cotton-padded coat is still wearable this year.

The price of cotton yarn has risen so high that it's only the daughters and wives of wealthy families who are being exploited.

"So, Mayor Fu, what are your thoughts?"

"Start early and begin shipping, whether it's futures or spot, you have to sell a portion to avoid risk. The older I get in the business, the more timid I become."

"Haha, sure, I have no objection. I'll tell my team to fully cooperate with your operations. Okay, that's settled then."

Gu Yansheng put down the phone.

This matter is now going to be very serious. The Japanese requisitioning of grain will lead to social unrest and a poor economic environment, with the poor being the most affected.

Fu Xiao'an chose this time to sell his shares. After selling them and leaving the market, the stock price plummeted, and the rich were the most affected.

These days are going to be tough.

(End of this chapter)