Chapter 878: The Third Foreigner

"Li Ziyou, the owner of Chengbei Trading in Qingjiangpu, is willing to pay us six thousand taels a year, and then the Chengbei Trading branch here in Xuzhou can hold a forty-percent silent partnership share. The aim is to keep Gaoshenghe blocked out of South Zhili." When he reached this point, Ruhui added with a smile.

Li Ziyou's Chengbei Trading also dealt in goods from Liaodong. According to what the Zhao Battalion had learned, his side was likely very closely tied to Dengzhou, relying on the fleet that shipped supplies to the Liaodong garrison to transport his own goods. Both traded in Liaodong specialties, so this Chengbei Trading and the newly arrived Gaoshenghe were naturally incompatible.

"He's got a fine imagination. During that agitation and trouble-making in Qingjiangpu, although he didn't take part, he was certainly up to some petty schemes behind the scenes. Why is he thinking of us now? Besides, here in Xuzhou we want to throw the doors wide open and let people in to do business. Otherwise, who would still stop over here?" Zhao Jin dismissed the proposal with contempt.

Gaoshenghe only planned to open a branch in Xuzhou. For them, gaining entry into Qingjiangpu was the real objective. Before the Zhao Battalion rose to power, Qingjiangpu's officials and merchants formed a single bloc, making it extremely difficult for latecomers to break in. But now the Zhao Battalion's attitude was one of complete openness — as long as you did business by the rules, they welcomed whoever came. And the Qingjiang Grand Market was increasingly becoming the commercial center of the entire realm. Prices were set here, and everywhere else followed. If a major trading house did not have a foothold inside, it would inevitably run into all sorts of trouble.

But the Daxing Trading, which dealt in steppe specialties and goods from Shanxi and Shaanxi, was different. They bypassed Qingjiangpu entirely and wanted to open a branch directly in Xuzhou. What concerned them most was the liquor produced in Xuzhou. Because there was no monopoly on this liquor, a previously unknown cattle-and-horse trader named Wang Ziyang had been allowed to grow step by step. Now that Wang Ziyang had finally made a foolish move, they rushed over to make contact. They didn't even need to make a profit, as long as they could buy the liquor. Otherwise, their connections on the steppe would be very hard to maintain.

"Our men planted under Wang Ziyang report back that Daxing Trading has someone close to Wang Ziyang. Nine chances out of ten, it's someone serving in his bedchamber — whether a catamite or a woman, no one knows. The moment the slightest stir happens, Daxing Trading knows about it. This foolish move of Wang Ziyang's was most likely instigated by someone as well." Liu Yong was also very clear on the cause and effect.

"This Daxing Trading is still conducting itself with some decency — they haven't gone directly for the kill!" Jixiang interjected with a laugh.

Liu Yong shook his head and said with a smile, "It's not that they haven't gone for the kill. Wang Ziyang keeps over thirty tough fighters of Han and Mongol origin by his side. They can ride, they can fight, and their archery is superb. Several times they've fought off the attacks head-on. And this Wang Ziyang is always out there boasting and dropping our big brother's name, making others think he has us protecting him from behind. Quite a few merchant houses from Shanxi have inquired about big brother's background, and they've all been scared off."

Everyone shook their heads and burst into laughter. Wang Ziyang had always managed things quite well — it was only this time that he picked the wrong side, and on top of that, thought himself clever enough to wait for Zhao Jin's defeat before making some petty moves. With an outcome like this, there was nothing to pity.

"The cattle and horses Wang Ziyang is bringing in now fall far short of what we need. If this Daxing Trading can deliver, then everything about the liquor is negotiable. We could even build a dedicated cattle and horse market for them," Zhao Jin spoke up.

Hearing this, a look of some admiration appeared on Ruhui's face. Nodding as he spoke, he said, "Master, you've truly thought of everything. A cattle and horse market at the junction of several provinces would certainly thrive. Traveling merchants from all over would be willing to come and do business. We can make money from it, and we can maintain a certain stock of cattle and horses without using our own funds, ready for use whenever we need them."

The names that could be mentioned in this council hall were just these two — Gaoshenghe and Daxing Trading. Besides these two, there were many other merchants opening shops in Xuzhou, but these were only merchants from Shanxi, Henan, Shandong, and South Zhili. They lay within the coverage range of the Xuzhou hub. For truly great merchants, Qingjiangpu was still the best choice.

Of course, many people did not believe that Zhao Jin could control Qingjiangpu very deeply. But whether or not they could enter the Qingjiang Grand Market depended on whether Zhao Jin nodded. So their opening shops in Xuzhou was all about building good karma.

"Once this year is past, whether this Zhao Jin can hold on or not, whether this amnesty can last or not, this Qingjiangpu will still be the most prosperous place under heaven. We've been squeezed terribly by these Xuzhou people, yet in this matter we've actually benefited from them." This was intelligence Wei Mugen had gathered from Qingjiangpu — a lament voiced by the wealthy merchants during their banquets and gatherings.

Merchants of weight from all across the realm had been drawn here for one reason or another. Naturally, they did not have the advantages of those established wealthy merchants. Zhao Jin's river-blocking this time had, in effect, made Qingjiangpu even more prosperous, while also massively elevating the status and wealth of the local wealthy merchants. Cloud Mountain Trading and the Sun Family Trading were, naturally, the greatest beneficiaries.

Along with that lament, other words were reported up at the same time. At that very same banquet, right after the previous remark was made, someone behind gave a cold laugh and said, "Our Qingjiangpu is already packed shoulder to shoulder. Every new person who comes in after us will, in the end, require us to make a little room. The real profit is over at Clam Port. Now all the fleets on the ocean have to unload their cargo there. The Yu family has locked down that port — who knows how much they're raking in."

Compared to sailing up against the current of the Yangtze River and then heading north along the Grand Canal to Qingjiangpu, it was far more convenient for seagoing ships to dock directly at Clam Port. The transit trade there had been directly monopolized by Cloud Mountain Trading and the Yu family. Maritime trade was all wildly profitable, so naturally there were people watching with greedy, envious eyes.

However, according to Yu Zhiyuan, Clam Port, near the Yellow River's mouth, would be unusable within ten years because the silt buildup there was too severe. Even now, when unloading Guangdong ships, the cargo had to be transferred at sea onto flat-bottomed sand barges, which were then brought into Clam Bay. Given the current situation, in a few more years, the port would be completely unusable.

Yu Zhiyuan had always had his own plans regarding this. He consistently believed that Songjiang Prefecture would be the future hub. Many people thought Yu Zhiyuan had selfish motives for this idea — the Yu family were natives of Songjiang, so his planning this way was surely for his own family's benefit. But Zhao Jin strongly agreed with Yu Zhiyuan's thinking. Cloud Mountain Trading and the Sun Family Trading had both specially gone there to open branches. This also left many people puzzled, thinking: Yu Zhiyuan merely delivered a few foreigners — surely Master Jin is placing too much importance on him. Not only did he support Yu Zhiyuan's wild fantasies, he even put up a huge sum of silver for Yu Zhiyuan to expand his fleet and establish a shipyard. This was far too wasteful.

Everyone was now familiar with the foreigner Louis and his servant, and even the common folk of Xuzhou were no longer as frightened as before. When children saw Louis and his servant, they no longer wailed in terror, but instead gathered around, laughing and watching.

Louis, after all, had come out of a seminary. Greedy as he was, he maintained a sanctimonious facade to the outside world and often helped the commoners living around the workshop, earning considerable praise. But everyone in the Zhao Battalion thought rather well of his old servant. That man was a true veteran. His accumulated knowledge of musket shooting, battlefield pike and swordsmanship, and formation drills was very rich, and he was a great help to the Zhao Battalion.

Louis's servant was no master fighter. Though his use of the short sword and pike had a distinctive style, he could not be said to be stronger than the skilled fighters of the Zhao Battalion. His other accumulated knowledge was merely a matter of details. But these details and experiences were tremendously beneficial to the Zhao Battalion, which lacked real combat experience. This was especially true regarding the coordination between musket-armed retainers and pike-armed retainers, and the pairing of cannons with cavalry. Although the old servant could not articulate the principles and could only describe what he had seen and heard back in the day, these things were extremely precious to the Zhao Battalion. Everyone here led and employed troops; as long as there was a precedent to follow, it was easy to grasp the reasoning and then delve deeper into study.

By now, Louis and his servant were master and servant in name only; in reality, their status had become equal. Moreover, everyone was closer to the old servant. They had already given him a Chinese name, casually calling him "Old Fu" in daily life. When it came to the distribution of gold and silver, the servant's share was not much less than his master's. This made Louis intensely jealous, but he dared not try any petty tricks.

The several cannons captured from the government troops had already been moved into the workshop. When the craftsmen and blacksmiths saw these cannons, they found nothing particularly daunting. After roughly measuring the dimensions, they knew how to cast them — it was nothing more than the sand-mold casting process. But the modifications Zhao Jin demanded were not so easy to achieve. The things drawn on the blueprints could be made readily enough, but getting them to match the specifications Zhao Jin required — that was the hard part.

Louis had been pondering this all along, and had been doing everything he could to subtly probe, trying to find out whether this young lord, Zhao Jin, had ever been to Europe or traveled through various countries. Of course, the only answer he ever got was: Master Jin was born in Xuzhou, had always been in Xuzhou, and had never left. Among his close companions, only that bureaucrat's son surnamed Wang had traveled widely, but he had always studied literature and philosophy, and had absolutely no connection to firearms.

By now, Louis had saved up quite a bit of silver, all hidden away in his quarters. Every night, counting and sorting through it by lamplight was his greatest pleasure here. Recently, however, all his time had been consumed by this cannon project. There had been not the slightest progress toward meeting Zhao Jin's requirements, and no pay to collect either. Yet Louis was more and more dedicated, because he could sense the prospects. The gold and silver being poured into this seemed to have no limit — whatever he needed was immediately procured. It was obvious what a rich reward he would receive if he succeeded.

But now Louis was also somewhat nervous, because in the middle of the tenth month, Yu Zhiyuan had delivered a third foreigner. This man was called Old Mai, a Prussian who claimed to be a craftsman. But judging from his speech and bearing, he was clearly of mercenary origin. Then again, those willing to leave their homeland and come to the distant East to seek a living often had complicated pasts.

This "Old Mai" claimed to be a craftsman, was quite skilled with the sword, and was an inveterate gambler. After being delivered to Xuzhou, before he had even properly settled in, he was already speaking stiff Mandarin with a Cantonese accent, dragging a group of people into shooting dice with him. The rules he used were, astonishingly, the rules of the Great Ming. He had absolutely no mind to do any work.

The wicked must be ground down by the wicked. Liu Yong directly arranged for several croupiers from the gambling dens to come over. After three days of play, this "Old Mai" had witnessed the wonders of this Eastern land called the Great Ming, and had already gambled away his freedom for the next several decades to the Zhao Battalion.

Thanks to "Yuan Heng Li Zhen" and "User: You Speak, I Instantly Understand" for the tips. Thanks to everyone for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. Thank you all.