Da Ming: Father, step aside, I'll be the prime minister!

Chapter 258 The Futures Market Scolds the New Customer at the Teahouse

"Is the Duke of Cheng addicted to futures trading?"

Inside the Xishan Thousand Household Office, Zhang Yunxiu encountered Zhu Yinghuai, who had come to "complain."

The latter is now the actual manager of Xishan Theater and is no longer the arrogant playboy who used to frequent teahouses and brothels.

But his older brother turned to speculation in the futures market.

Zhu Yinghuai looked bitter; despite his young age, he was already worried about his family.

"My brother has already invested over 100,000 taels of silver in the futures market. Now he spends his days hoping for prices to rise and for him to become rich overnight."

He looked somewhat heartbroken.

"The dignified Duke of Cheng has fallen to this state! Every day he goes to the teahouse as soon as he opens his eyes, and by the time he returns it is already dark. He is becoming more and more haggard. Please, my esteemed teacher!"

At this point, Zhu Yinghuai suddenly knelt down before Zhang Yunxiu.

He naturally wouldn't blame Zhang Yunxiu, after all, the teahouse was wide open and he wasn't forced to make a deal.

Especially at the very top of that futures trading market, there was a row of large characters written in a blatant manner.

"Futures trading involves risk; please exercise caution when purchasing."

Zhang Yunxiu repeatedly warned that the futures market should not be used for short-term speculation, but these people regard it as a game and a tool to make huge profits. What can be done about it?

"Yunfu," Zhang Yunxiu sighed. "It's not that I'm unwilling to help you, but your brother is a Duke. Apart from His Majesty, who can control him?"

The enthusiasm of the people of the Ming Dynasty for the futures market far exceeded Zhang Yunxiu's imagination. He dared not imagine what kind of turmoil it would cause if he had created a stock market.

"Teacher!"

Zhu Yinghuai repeatedly bowed and said, "My elder brother was always a man of integrity, but I never expected him to become so obsessed with this path. Please, Master, save him."

He raised his sleeve and wiped his eyes.

"My biggest worry about this student going to Southern Zhili is this elder brother. It doesn't matter if he is a bit reckless, but it's because he's causing our elderly mother to spend her days in tears at home. It's truly heartbreaking."

A number of drama, crosstalk, and storytelling actors have already left Xishan Theater, so Zhu Yinghuai, the theater's top performer, naturally has no reason not to go.

But this older brother became a concern he could never shake off.

Thinking of this, Zhang Yunxiu also became somewhat worried.

After all, the affairs of Jiangnan cannot be separated from the other party, so I still need to make good arrangements for logistical support.

He thought for a moment and said something to comfort her.

"The futures market merely amplifies people's evil thoughts. In fact, it's much better than gambling, at least you won't lose everything."

“But…” Zhu Yinghuai sighed repeatedly.

"That's all."

Zhang Yunxiu thought for a moment, then smiled and said.

"You don't need to worry. Go to Jiangnan with peace of mind. Your old mother and your good-for-nothing brother at home will be taken care of by your master. I will make my own decision on this matter."

With Zhang Yunxiu's words, Zhu Yinghuai felt much more at ease, since his master had never broken his promise.

He might rip you off, but he would never lie to you.

After thinking for a moment, Zhu Yinghuai nodded and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhang Yunxiu.

"Thank you very much, my teacher."

With his concerns about his older brother gone, he was quite looking forward to things in Jiangnan.

A few days later.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out in the thirty-ninth teahouse.

"Why can't I buy more? Where is the spirit of contract? It's clearly stated in the contract, why can others do it but I can't!"

At the counter, Duke Zhu Yingzhen of Chengguo placed his hands on the table and spoke with uncontrollable rage.

The man standing behind the counter was a middle-aged man who looked very calm. The scar on his wrist suggested that he was not an ordinary trader in the teahouse.

Therefore, the middle-aged trader naturally had no fear of Duke Zhu Yingzhen.

He crossed his arms and said, "Manager Zhu, there are rules in a teahouse. Even if royalty enters our teahouse, they still have to abide by the rules."

We had a prior agreement: the teahouse wouldn't do business with criminals. We've already honored all the contracts and even compensated them for handling fees. You can take the banknotes and go home. You don't need to come to this teahouse again; we're no longer doing business with you.”

"What kind of logic is this? I refuse to accept it! What do you mean by committing crimes? When have I ever committed any crimes?"

Zhu Yingzhen slammed his fist on the table. If he hadn't realized that the other party was likely a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he would have given him a good beating.

But the middle-aged trader seemed unwilling to talk to him any longer. He sighed heavily and spoke to the assistant who was already prepared.

"Respectfully see Manager Zhu out."

"You dare! I am..."

Just as Zhu Yingzhen was about to reveal his identity, a large hand immediately covered his mouth.

"Like a dog."

He was about to curse when he turned his head and was immediately startled.

"Uncle."

Zhang Rong, disguised and with a livid face, spoke to several of his men.

"take away!"

The tall, strong-looking waiter immediately lifted Zhu Yingzhen up and carried him out like a piglet.

During this time, the merchants and gentry in the teahouse were all silent and trembling with fear. Among them were some sons of noble families, most of whom knew Zhu Yingzhen and were filled with lingering fear.

This is the Duke of Cheng!
Even the Duke of Liancheng could be kicked out of the teahouse at will, which shows how powerful the teahouse was. Zhang Shiyuan truly had the emperor's trust!

In an instant, those who had originally intended to cause trouble immediately fell silent and no longer had any thoughts about it.

The middle-aged trader's expression gradually softened from serious to relaxed, and he transformed back into a harmless, timid shop assistant.

But no one dared to look down on him anymore.

But then he said, "I'm sorry to have startled you all. Manager Zhu has committed a crime. In our futures trading market, the most important thing is that the participants have a clean record. It's unacceptable for them to commit crimes."
"Our shop upholds the code of honor among江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the martial arts world). If you're content to go home, that's fine. But if you're still planning to cause trouble, then I'm sorry, we'll have to send you to the authorities for legal proceedings!"

As he spoke, he waved to the back of the room.

"The futures trading market is operating normally!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a group of traders immediately put up the market prices they had obtained one after another, and the special contract signing counters also started queuing up again.

In fact, these days many money shops have even sent people to stay in teahouses and set up a special trading area so that gentry and merchants can immediately withdraw silver and issue banknotes.

Zhu Yingzhen's ordeal was just a minor episode; within half an incense stick's time, the teahouse had descended into madness once again.

Among them, the most eye-catching are the "Two Kings," the top performers in the futures market.

Wang Shiqi had already reserved a VIP box for himself in the futures market.

The best spot is on the second floor, where you can see the price display board upstairs at a glance.

The teahouse doesn't care about status at all; whoever pays the money is treated like royalty, and they even provide a dedicated trader to handle the paperwork.

The best service naturally comes with a higher price. The private room costs fifty taels of silver per day with no upper limit. In reality, you would have to spend at least two hundred taels of silver to lie in this private room for a whole day.

Even the wealthiest ordinary merchants and gentry would never be willing to spend this sum of money.

Therefore, there were only two regular customers in this private room: Wang Shiqi and Zhu Yingzhen.

However, Zhu Yingzhen was kicked out of the teahouse, leaving only Wang Shiqi, who seemed rather lonely and isolated.

Fortunately, he has gained a new friend in the past few days.

"The price of pig iron has gone up by five copper coins per pound today! I bought an extra 50,000 taels of silver, and in less than half a day I've made several thousand taels of silver. It's simply astonishing!"

As Wang Shizhen's uncle, Wang Shimao was completely unlike his former aggressive self, even comfortably reclining in a deck chair, eating grapes one after another.

After finishing the meal, he even picked up the rather precious Mengding Stone Flower Tea on the table and used the slightly green tea to wash the grease off his fingers.

Even the notoriously extravagant Wang Shiqi couldn't stand this.

He shook his head and said.

“Uncle, this Mengding Shihua tea costs at least thirty taels of silver per catty. As the saying goes, the road to Shu is more difficult than ascending to heaven. This tea is picked from Shu, and even the palace cannot drink it freely. You are really wasting it.”

(End of this chapter)