Chapter 120: East Great Ming Chamber of Commerce

The Ao Mountain Lantern Festival ended amidst laughter and joy; with the lanterns extinguished, the festive atmosphere of the New Year in Beijing finally dissipated in earnest.

Early this morning, the breeze was light and the clouds were thin, the distant mountains were vast and hazy, and the thin mist was slowly dispersing. In the streets and alleys of Beijing, sounds rose from all directions; cursing, clamor, and hawking intertwined into a single din.

The new year had officially begun.

Zhang Yunxiu's carriage drove into Wealthy Street and finally arrived in front of the Tianxian Pavilion by the roadside.

As the carriage stopped, Zhang Yunxiu lifted the curtain and bent over to step out. The waiter responsible for welcoming guests stepped forward with a beaming smile: "Great Master, Shopkeeper Hao is already waiting for you upstairs."

"Mm."

Zhang Yunxiu nodded slightly and, lifting his long robes, strode inside.

Passing through the lobby, Zhang Yunxiu walked up the stairs, and suddenly a hearty laugh rang out from the top of the staircase: "Oh my, Young Master Zhang, you have finally deigned to see this little one; seeing you in the past was as difficult as ascending to heaven."

Zhang Yunxiu looked up and saw Hao Ren, who had wrapped himself into a ball of flesh, standing at the top of the stairs with a smiling face.

"Shopkeeper Hao says that—are you scolding me?" Zhang Yunxiu teased with a smile.

Hao Ren waved his hands repeatedly, his feet "thump-thump-thumping" as he scurried down.

Because he was dressed so thickly, he wobbled as he walked, looking extremely comical. Fearing he might fall, Zhang Yunxiu hurried forward to catch him.

The two walked into a private room on the third floor, refilled the tea, and lit incense, after which the serving girls tactfully withdrew.

Hao Ren gave a fawning smile, stood up to pour a cup of tea for Zhang Yunxiu, and then blinked his small eyes, asking: "Young Master Zhang, regarding what I said last time about our two families partnering in business—could you raise your hand a bit more on the profit split?"

Three-seven split.

Seven parts still belonged to the other party.

This made him, the one putting up the money, feel somewhat uncomfortable in his heart.

"What, you think it's too much?" Zhang Yunxiu took the tea, sipped it, and squinted at Hao Ren. "I won't lie to you; I intend to establish a large chamber of commerce. If you invest money now, you count as a shareholder, and I'll take you along to play. If you want to buy in later, it will be difficult."

"Young Master Zhang, this three percent..."

"Two percent."

"You are being a bit too overbearing, aren't you?"

"One percent."

Zhang Yunxiu, unhurried and leisurely, held up a finger. Hao Ren knew his momentum had already leaked away, so he had to apologize with a smile: "Three percent it is. Being able to make money following Young Master Zhang is my good fortune. I dare not hope for anything else."

If you had just said that earlier, it would have been over; no need for me to waste all this breath.

Rolling his eyes at Hao Ren, Zhang Yunxiu began to complain: "Don't look at how much money you're investing now; I've also expended a lot of manpower and connections. Each and every one of these things requires cold, hard silver to grease the wheels."

"In this day and age, if you don't have rice in your hand, you can't even coax a chicken."

"Yes, yes, yes, that is the truth." Hao Ren nodded and bowed, fawning incessantly.

"As long as you do your job well, I won't let you lose out." Zhang Yunxiu smiled and continued to paint a grand picture for him: "Think about it, our business is small right now, so you don't think three percent is much."

"When our business grows large in the future, that three percent will definitely far exceed your imagination."

"How large?"

"Larger than the tax revenue of Jiangnan."

Zhang Yunxiu boasted boldly.

Hiss... Hao Ren's teeth chattered, his face full of disbelief.

"Can it really be that big?"

"You doubt me?"

Hao Ren shook his head repeatedly, but the expression on his face revealed his inner thoughts directly.

"It's not just you who doesn't believe it; even I didn't believe it at first, but the Higo in this will definitely exceed your imagination in the future."

"By then, you will have as much labor as you want, and as much land as you want."

If you don't believe it, why are you painting such a grand picture for me?

Hao Ren pursed his lips, but as he opened his mouth, his face cooperatively squeezed out a smile: "Since Gongzi has said so, I won't think about those other things anymore; I'll just follow Gongzi to get rich."

"It's just the name of the chamber of commerce—has Gongzi thought of it yet?"

"I have." Zhang Yunxiu smiled, stood up, stared into Hao Ren's eyes, and said word for word, "We shall call it the 'East Great Ming Chamber of Commerce'. Once we go out to sea, we will fly this banner."

"East Great Ming Chamber of Commerce?" Hao Ren muttered, feeling a sense of alarm in his heart. "Gongzi, for a chamber of commerce to carry the two characters 'Great Ming'—is that not a bit too ostentatious? Will those big shots above agree to it?"

The Emperor has already agreed; it doesn't matter a damn if others don't.

Besides, this Emperor of ours is the major shareholder.

"Don't worry, these matters don't require you to worry. Come next spring, once the Warships are assembled, I will first go to Joseon to take a look, and then go to the Mori islands to take a look."

Hearing Zhang Yunxiu say this, the heavy stone in Hao Ren's heart finally landed. He clapped his hands and shouted outside: "What are you waiting for? Why aren't you serving the food yet?"

After the two had eaten and drunk their fill, Zhang Yunxiu still had other matters to attend to, so he had no intention of chatting idly with Hao Ren, only instructing him to recruit more young and able-bodied men.

"Gongzi, rest assured, I understand the gravity of this." Hao Ren nodded in reply.

Subsequently, the two left the restaurant together and then went their separate ways.

On the return journey, Zhang Yunxiu sat cross-legged in the carriage, the major and minor events of the past year constantly surfacing in his mind.

From helping the Emperor make money, to defeating Zhang Jing, to helping Zhang Juzheng dismiss monks and Daoists.

The hard work of this year had finally allowed him to stand firmly on his own feet; now he also had his own power base.

Of course, all the power he possessed now was borrowed.

He was merely an avatar of the Emperor walking outside the palace, and he knew his position well.

He would not be like Zhang Juzheng, going head-to-head with the Emperor.

The Emperor could not be wrong; if there was a mistake, it must be that someone was deliberately looking for trouble.

Just as he was thinking, rice-grain-sized snowflakes began to drift over Beijing again, and the cold wind whistled; lifting the carriage curtain, a bone-chilling gust of cold wind blew in.

Zhang Yunxiu shivered and urged: "Faster, go to Han San's house."

"Yes."

The coachman nodded in agreement, flicked the horse whip, and the carriage dashed forward with a "whoosh." After about two quarter-hours, Zhang Yunxiu arrived at the residence of Han San.

This was a large three-courtyard mansion that had originally belonged to a wealthy merchant in the capital; it was meant to be a gift for Zhang Yunxiu to curry favor with him.

Zhang Yunxiu felt the place was a bit remote, and since Han San had been running errands so diligently, he felt he had to give him some sweetness in return.

With a wave of his hand, Zhang Yunxiu gifted the residence to Han San to live in.

As he strode into the mansion, inside the main hall, Han San was wearing casual home clothes, leaning back in a Grand Tutor chair, with a sixteen-year-old beauty on each side, their bosoms half-exposed, helping him massage his shoulders and legs.

On his right side sat a young woman of about twenty years old.

That was Han San's legal wife, Wang Lan.

"San'er, you're really full of yourself now, aren't you?" Wang Lan glanced at her husband's indulgent posture and hummed sourly.

"I've told you, from now on you aren't allowed to call me San'er; you must call me Master, do you understand?" Han San opened his eyes and barked at his wife, looking indignant. "Look at you, still wearing these rags; where is the air of a mistress of the house?"

"Where are they rags?" Wang Lan looked down and added, "This is the new clothing you bought me after saving up silver for a long time when we first got married."

"That's all in the past." Han San felt a bit guilty.

"Even if it's in the past, we can't forget our roots, can we?" Wang Lan frowned, recalling the time they had spent together before. "I still like that old alleyway; although the people living there were a mixed bunch, at least it felt like home."

"Unlike here, I don't feel at ease living in this place."

Han San waved his hand to dismiss the maids, then turned his head and stared at his sallow-faced wife, asking, "Stinking and smelly all day long—is that the 'home' you're talking about?"

"That's still better than here."

"You foolish woman, you have a life of toil ahead of you." Han San grumbled and urged, "Alright, hurry up and go make me two large flatbreads, and cook two bowls of millet porridge; I'm hungry."

"Yes."

Wang Lan nodded and stood up to leave, but a playful voice interrupted her: "Make one for me too; I happen to want to taste your cooking."

Han San looked toward the entrance of the hall and tumbled off his chair in a panic: "Young Master, why have you come? If you had any business, you could have just sent someone to let me know."

"Let you know what?"

Zhang Yunxiu shook his head, walked inside, and sat down on the chair to the left.

Han San wanted to invite Zhang Yunxiu to the main seat, but Zhang Yunxiu signaled for him to sit; Han San perched on the edge of the stool, ready to stand up at any moment.

"Master, who is this?" It was the first time Wang Lan had seen her husband like this, so she pointed at Zhang Yunxiu and asked curiously.

"What are you asking for, woman? Why aren't you going to make the flatbreads for the Young Master and me?" Han San waved his hand impatiently and scolded.

"Oh, oh, alright."

Wang Lan smiled at the two of them and walked away.

"You're quite imposing, Brother Han San?"

Zhang Yunxiu chuckled and couldn't help but tease him.

Upon hearing this, Han San's knees went weak, and he tumbled off the chair with a thud, begging incessantly: "Young Master, Young Master, you are going to be the death of me."

"Enough, I don't care about these trivial matters of yours." Zhang Yunxiu waved his hand and added, "You've been training Li Ergou for several months now, right? How is his training going?"

"The kid is still a man; he has a streak of ruthlessness in him. As long as the Young Master keeps a grip on his wife, he definitely won't have any second thoughts," Han San replied respectfully.

"That's good. I plan to dispatch a fleet in March, taking the Sea Chart from Eunuch Zheng, to explore the south. While exploring, record the maps."

"Has the Young Master chosen this Li Ergou to be the leader?"

Zhang Yunxiu nodded, stood up, and paced to the wall, looking at a piece of calligraphy and painting, murmuring to himself: "This is his opportunity. If he can explore a few more times and map out the route clearly, I will have plenty of rewards for him in the future."

"If he unfortunately dies, then that is his fate; he cannot blame me."

"Very well, I will go prepare immediately. I wonder how many ships the Young Master intends to send?" Han San asked respectfully.

"Thirty ships. Aside from two large ships, use medium-sized vessels for the rest. Tell those going out to sea that if they can return alive and map out the route clearly, I will reward each person with three hundred taels of silver."

Under heavy rewards, there must be brave men.

Zhang Yunxiu was certain that as long as the reward was sufficient, these gamblers would definitely give it their all.

Han San leaned in, wishing he could memorize every single word.

After Zhang Yunxiu finished speaking, Han San looked up at him and asked respectfully: "Does the Young Master have any other instructions?"

"Not for now."

Zhang Yunxiu said, sitting back in his original seat.

At this moment, Wang Lan walked in carrying steaming hot flatbreads and sauce: "Come, Master, time to eat. Today's sauce is something I specifically brought from the old neighborhood."

"Young Master, please." Han San smiled and pushed the plate of flatbreads toward Zhang Yunxiu.

"This is your home. If I were to overstep my bounds, wouldn't this tigress of yours swallow me whole?" Zhang Yunxiu pointed at the dark-faced Wang Lan and laughed heartily.

"She's no tigress, at most a house cat." Han San pursed his lips, pointed at Wang Lan, and ordered, "You go rest; I'll keep the Young Master company here."

"Oh."

Wang Lan responded respectfully and slipped away.

"You married a good wife." Zhang Yunxiu tore off a corner of the flatbread, put it in his mouth, and chewed slowly, letting the sweet wheat flavor spread in his mouth.

"That's right. When she married me, her father didn't agree. It was me being thick-skinned that got her to marry me." Han San scratched his head, a simple and honest smile appearing on his knife-scarred face.

"Then why aren't you gentler to others?"

Zhang Yunxiu curled his lip and asked in return.

"Young Master, you don't know. My wife is just like this; if you speak loudly to her and put on the airs of a master, she is actually happy. If I speak softly and talk to her about etiquette, it's as if she's drunk rat poison."

Han San grinned and explained in a low voice to Zhang Yunxiu.

"Interesting, interesting."

Zhang Yunxiu shook his head with a smile, stood up, patted Han San on the shoulder, and instructed, "You must treat your wife well in the future, otherwise I won't let you off."

"This subordinate understands."

(End of chapter)