My eunuch godfather

Chapter 143 Early New Year Greetings

New Year's Day is approaching.

Since the Gregorian calendar of later generations is not used in this world, the first day of the first lunar month is the first day of the Lunar New Year.

Last year on New Year's Day, Zhang Kun was in Shandong, on his way south to establish the Nanjing Jinyun Ship.

In previous years, I spent the Lunar New Year in Zhangjiawan, Tongzhou, with my eunuch godfather.

This year, Zhang Kun was finally able to spend the Lunar New Year with his family at home.

Because of the remote location of Dagukou, it was very troublesome to travel after the New Year, so Zhang Kun visited each household in advance to offer New Year's greetings.

Zhangjiawan.

The first person Zhang Kun paid New Year's greetings to was, of course, his eunuch godfather, Zhang Ye.

Although the two families were splitting up, Zhang Ye did not obstruct Zhang Kun's side.

Instead, he calmly accepted that his adopted son had become an ally, effectively placing him on equal footing with him.

As for whether Zhang Ye harbored any resentment, Zhang Kun couldn't see through this eunuch godfather.

They could only offer generous gifts to repay Zhang Ye's kindness in helping them.

"Sigh, without you by my side, this year-end feels so lonely..."

'

Zhang Ye and Zhang Kun sat alone at a table, with a bottle of sparkling wine that Zhang Kun had brought.

A plate of pickled cucumber strips, a plate of braised beef, a plate of sweet and sour lotus root, and a plate of fermented fish slices are served as appetizers.

Zhang Kun's audacity not only piqued Cheng Wenqing's curiosity but also intrigued Zhang Ye.

For example, during the Spring Festival, Zhang Kun proposed and hosted a Spring Festival Gala, which made the festival more lively and festive in those years.

Last year, someone else hosted a Spring Festival Gala, but it wasn't anything new.

Originality.

Zhang Kun is full of originality; he always manages to make people feel novel, interesting, and energetic.

This is a kind of spirit that can only be possessed by those born in a rapidly changing and developing world.

He subconsciously believes that the world should continue to develop and progress, with new knowledge and technologies constantly emerging.

Life should get better and better, and people should become happier and happier.

Moreover, he can see the road ahead, and his confidence can help people avoid many detours and wrong turns.

In this era, change and development are rare, and there is even frequent regression.

The entire Ming Dynasty was also gloomy and decadent, just like the decadent Wanli Emperor in the palace.

Zhang Ye was willing to tolerate Zhang Kun.

On a rational standpoint, Zhang Kun has now gained considerable influence, and it would be unwise to turn such a powerful ally into an enemy.

On an emotional level, Zhang Ye felt that the Ming Dynasty needed a vibrant figure like Zhang Kun.

Although Zhang Ye was poor and destitute in his childhood and had no choice but to become a eunuch in the palace, his official career thereafter was relatively smooth sailing.

From the son of a farmer, he rose to become a high-ranking official, holding positions such as Attendant at the Directorate of Ceremonial, Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Horse Administration, and concurrently Tax Supervisor of Tongwan, Zhili, Xuanfu, and Datong, enjoying immense wealth and honor.

Therefore, compared to many who came from wealthy families and had unsuccessful official careers, Zhang Ye was more loyal and grateful to the Ming Dynasty.

After drinking with his eunuch godfather, Zhang Kun left the city and arrived at the Liangshuihe camp of the river engineering camp.

He drank with his old subordinates, including Yang Desheng, Ge Dajin, and Li Yong.

The river engineering camp is no longer of much use to Zhang Kun, since there are now Shengzhou Society and Tuntian Division.

Zhang Kun planned to transfer his old subordinates, such as Yang Desheng and Ge Dajin, as well as the old river workers and old military craftsmen, away after the New Year.

Completely relinquish power to the river engineering battalion.

The vacant positions, including those at the Liangshuihe Camp, were left for the successor—the other adopted sons of the eunuch godfather—to receive salaries without working.

The Hehai Society ceased its investment in the Hegong Camp, which was then taken over by the Chongwenmen Propaganda Department.

The old camp in Nanxiawa, Beijing, was converted from a public to a private entity and transferred to the name of the Hehai Society.

As for the funds transferred from public to private ownership—the previous investment of the Hehai Society in the Hegong Camp was counted as funds used to purchase the old camp in Nanxiawa.

"Victory! This time, as I sail out to sea, you will be in charge of Dagu Port."

Zhang Kun picked up his wine cup, clinked it with Yang Desheng's, and instructed him: "If anything happens in Liaodong, you must take the initiative to cooperate with the officials sent by the court."

Don't worry about money and food; the key is to protect Shengzhou Society.

"We must protect the shipyards, ironworks, and cannon foundries!"

"Yes, my lord, please rest assured!"

Yang Desheng downed the wine in his cup in one gulp and said to Zhang Kun in a resounding voice.

After drinking with his old subordinates from the river engineering camp, Zhang Kun changed direction and returned to Matoudian, which is located between Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu.

During his tenure as governor of Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu, Zhang Kun banned the establishment of gambling dens in all areas.

They drove all the gambling dens to the horse-head shop and came up with various ideas to force them to implement them:

For example, it can provide a one-stop service including accommodation, catering, entertainment and finance.

As long as you spend a certain amount at the casino, you can get free accommodation and meals, and even free low-end alcohol.

Entertainment was not limited to brothels; it also imitated later Las Vegas by employing various theatrical and fantasy troupes to perform.

Another example is unifying the chips used by different players and adding labels to distinguish them.

Each player's chips can be taken to other players for gambling, and can also be exchanged for cash from other players' chips.

At the end of the month, the silver was used to exchange the chips back to their respective owners.

Another example is adding new gameplay elements.

One aspect is to improve upon the existing Pai Gow, dice, and leaf games, and add new games such as Mini Pai Gow, Fan Tan, and Ten and a Half.

Secondly, it introduces new gameplay elements not found in the world today, such as roulette, white pigeon tickets, animal fighting, or insect fighting.

Third, new games such as chess, Go, and mahjong that do not involve betting on probabilities will be introduced, with restrictions on the amount bet but not on the number of participants.

To some extent, it is a disguised form of organizing competitions as part of the casino's performances.

Professional sports in later generations also developed through gambling, and have always been intertwined with gambling.

During Zhang Kun's tenure as the governor of Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu, the gambling dens in Matoudian were booming.

When Zhang Kun was transferred to Dagukou in Tianjin.

The successor—the other adopted sons of the eunuch godfather—loosened control over the gambling den business after accepting bribes.

Gambling dens could be opened in Zhangjiawan and other places in Hexiwu, which had a significant impact on Matoudian.

Even so, the gambling business in Matoudian was still number one in Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu, and by a huge margin.

As a result, Zhang Kun's prestige in the gambling industry increased significantly.

Because everyone discovered that the gambling den at the horse-head shop was thriving, and it wasn't just because of the monopoly franchise.

The new ideas proposed by Zhang Kun, as well as the economies of scale achieved through monopoly and franchising, are indeed very useful!

"The general's meaning is that you can follow him to Tianjin,"

Qin Jisheng, representing Zhang Kun, met with the owners or managers of various gambling dens and conveyed the message: "Although the territory under the jurisdiction of the Great Town General is far less prosperous than Zhangjiawan and Hexiwu."

However, within the jurisdiction of the Great Town General, only Xinhe is permitted to operate a gambling den, and Xinhe is only allocated ten slots!

Gambling dens are extremely profitable, hence the competition is fierce.

Leaving aside the underhanded methods, the methods used on the surface are varied and each has its own merits.

Zhang Kun has proposed many new ideas to various industries, and looking back, the gambling dens learned them the fastest.

The monopoly license offered by Zhang Kun is more useful than any new idea!

After fierce competition among various gambling dens, all ten spots were sold for a high price of over ten thousand taels of silver!

This directly gave Zhang Kun an extra 10 taels of silver, which can be considered an extremely generous bonus at the end of the year.