On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month of the ninth year of Chongzhen, a few snowflakes fell from the sky. Even if Anqing did not suffer a military disaster, this year's Lantern Festival was much deserted than in previous years. Only a few people prepared lanterns, there were only scattered firecrackers around the city, and pedestrians were listless.
Due to the news of rogue bandits appearing in Qianshan, the city of Anqing was once again under martial law. Soldiers from each village took turns to go to the city, including members of the Cao Gang. Because there was less work in winter, and the gangs were given two cents of silver a day, so
These labor trackers were actually more cheerful than the soldiers.
Under the city ladder of Shengtang Gate, Tan Leizi pulled up his scarf a little higher, lowered his guala hat, put his hands in his sleeves, and hurried past a group of Caobang who were going to the city.
"Tan Leizi! When will you get the wine money you owe before you leave, you piece of shit?"
"If you don't come back, I'll beat you tomorrow."
I don't know who recognized him, and everyone in the Caogang laughed and cursed. If in normal times, such a group of servants doing hard work dared to laugh at themselves, Tan Ya would have scolded them like a bitch, but Tan Leizi recently lost his temper.
Losing his momentum, he just walked away in a hurry, not intending to pay attention to the servants.
A voice came from the other side of the street, "I heard that you got a wife in Hezhou. Have you brought her back?"
There was a roar of laughter at the city stairs. Tan Laizi heard it coming from across the street and thought it was not from the Cao Gang. He immediately pulled off his Guala hat and turned around to fight the man. When he turned around, he saw that it was shopkeeper Qian.
, the guest who was dragged across the river at the door of his inn that day was beaten up by the shopkeeper and his waiters. Originally, he was not afraid of him if he joined the Cao Gang, but today these Cao Gang will definitely not help, so he is definitely not the opponent of shopkeeper Qian.
Tan Leizi spit on the ground and cursed fiercely at the people on the street, "Let me tell you, the pile of thieves I killed in Hezhou was higher than the roof. Ask in Manhezhou, who heard Tan Ya
Don’t say a word of righteousness. Mr. Pangda personally met me, Tan Ya, in Dangtu. I will re-employ me when I come back. I am a bunch of short-sighted dogs. Then let’s see who of you can offend Tan Ya.”
This sound was very stern, but it did not frighten those people. Instead, they scolded even louder. Tan Laizi did not dare to fight, and hurried eastward amidst the ridicule. He walked straight for a long time to Kangjimen, and no one on the street paid attention.
Only then did Tan Leizi slow down.
The streets were crowded with beggars and people fleeing from all over the place. Tan Laizi buried his head and secretly took a look at the women among them as he walked.
"There are a few smart ones." Tan Leizi touched his arms. The two taels that Pang Daren had pawned as rewards were forced by several creditors in the past few days. He paid back nearly one tael. After dinner, he only had the remaining
It looks like nine coins. Although the population price has plummeted, it is still not to the point where nine coins can buy it.
"It would be great if Hezhou's silver hadn't been lost." Tan Leizi looked up at the gloomy sky and cursed in a low voice, "You stupid thief, why did you steal Mr. Tan's money? You weren't chopped into pieces by the stray thieves in Hezhou."
The meat sauce was fed to the horses, and the remaining bones and dregs were poured into the river, and there was no place to collect the corpses."
With the tragic scene of the thief in his mind, Tan Leizi felt better and his steps became much brisker.
Walking all the way to Chenggen Street on the right side of Kangji Gate, Tan Leizi stopped in front of an alley. The smoke from cooking was floating in the alley, and the smell of food came from the alley. After hesitating for a moment, he slowly walked in and rang the first bell.
The courtyard gate of the second house.
The door opened, and a man appeared in front of the door carrying a rice bowl. The bowl was still steaming, with a piece of freshly sliced meat on top. His face was somewhat similar to Tan Lezi, but when he saw Tan Lezi
He looked rather unhappy afterwards.
Tan Laizi smelled the aroma of meat, secretly swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and was about to walk in. The man put his hand on the door, blocking the way in, and looked at him with an impatient look on his face and said, "What are you doing here?"
Tan Laizi didn't look at him either. He raised his head and said to one side, "It's the Lantern Festival today, so of course I'm here to accompany my parents."
"Why are you here with your parents empty-handed?" The man retracted his hand and put away the bowl, "I heard from the people on the dock that you didn't do your best to practice your teeth, but instead joined the cauldron. Can you pick or pull?"
"That's why Pangda insisted on me going."
The man curled his lips and said, "Why does Mr. Pang see you so much? Don't tell me such nonsense. I think of my house during the holidays. How much money do you owe outside this year? Don't come to my door if you owe money. Do you want to Why did those creditors come to my door? Don't call me cruel as a brother. Think about how many bad debts I helped you pay off in the past few years. Now you can't even think of taking money from me again."
Tan Laizi raised his head angrily and said, "Go to the dock and ask around. Lord Guangda rewarded me with ten taels of silver. How many thieves have I killed in Hezhou? If it weren't for that nasty thieves, who would care about you..."
An elderly man's voice came from inside and interrupted, "Let him go if he comes empty-handed, so as not to be upset."
Tan Leizi buried his head and gasped for air.
"Did you hear that I asked you to leave? Since the family is separated and you never give me any money on weekdays, there is no need to come during the New Year."
Tan Laizi's head drooped like a frustrated rubber ball. He glanced at the meat on the bowl and shuffled out of the alley. The courtyard door behind him closed with a bang.
When they were about to reach the entrance of the alley, the courtyard door rang again. Tan Leizi quickly turned his head, but an old woman followed her out. She walked very slowly, and Tan Leizi quickly took two steps to meet her.
"Mom, please walk slower."
The old woman had a sad look on her face, pulled Tan Leizi's sleeve and said with concern, "You know you, your brother, and your father don't like your coming, so why don't you feel comfortable during the Chinese New Year? Do you have no money left?"
"Yes." Tan Leizi quickly took out the remaining nine coins from his arms, "I brought the silver for you. If it weren't for the thief Hezhou killed that day, I would be rich now."
Tan's mother didn't look at it and pushed it back, "You can keep it for yourself. Mom has food and drink here, so don't worry about it."
She looked up and down for a moment and then said, "Why have you joined the Caogang now? What's the point of hanging out with those hard-working people? I don't have the money to replace the toothpaste. Mom, I still have two pieces of jewelry here. Come tomorrow afternoon, Let's take it to pawn, and at least keep the toothpaste."
"I won't have to replace my toothpaste until next year. I'm rich. People really appreciate me. I'm just a stick in the Cao Gang, not someone who works hard. Mom, ask around the city. Who's messing with me now on Shengtang Ferry? If you can afford Tan Ya, take your money and buy whatever thoughtful items you like. Your son is rich."
After Tan Lezi said this, he put the silver in Tan's mother's hand. Tan's mother heard what he said seriously and looked at the silver in her hand with suspicion.
Tan's mother reached out and patted the snowflakes on Tan Leizi's shoulder. "Hey, I haven't started a family in my twenties. Your brother is two years older than you, and the eldest child is five years old."
"Mom, I'm married, and my wife is from Hezhou."
"Then bring me back quickly to see my mother."
"They got separated again while crossing the river."
Tan's mother sighed in a low voice, and Tan Laizi quickly said, "You can always find it."
"Where can I find this chaos of war? You must have a queen after all..."
Tan Leizi interrupted before she could finish her words, "Mom, go back and eat. When Master Pang comes back, I will be reused. Then it will be a good choice."
After that, without waiting for his mother to speak, he walked out of the alley and headed back to Kangji Gate.
Today is the Lantern Festival. Many people want to eat an extra meal, and there is meat for lunch. The smell of meat is everywhere on the street.
Tan Laizi's mouth was gushing with saliva, his stomach was growling, but he only had two copper coins in his arms, so he definitely couldn't afford meat.
Resisting the feeling of hunger, Tan Leizi walked to the Kangji Gate with his head held high. There were many women there who were selling their bodies for sex. It seemed that they had fled recently.
Tan Leizi stopped in the street, looked around, and saw no one he recognized, so he swaggered to the street.
Seeing his demeanor, the refugees and women thought he was from a wealthy family, so they cheered up. Tan Leizi couldn't help but stretched out his hand to pinch a woman's face, and his hands suddenly felt slippery. Tan Leizi hummed, but seemed not to take notice.
He touched down again, pinching the woman all over.
Tan Laizi shook his head with satisfaction. A group of prostitutes behind him looked at him with disappointment, regretting that they had lost the opportunity to enter a wealthy family.
At this time, we have arrived at the entrance of Kangji Gate, which is a small dock in Anqing. The entrance is the place with the most people. Although the city gate is closed under martial law, it can still escape the cold wind, so it is occupied by local beggars.
There was a beggar in front of him. He was holding a broken bowl with five or six copper coins in it. When he saw Tan Lezi stop, he quickly raised the bowl to Tan Lezi and waited for him to give alms. Tan Lezi was in his arms.
He touched it and made a gesture of touching money. Upon seeing this, a beggar next to him immediately came over and put the bowls side by side.
Tan Lezi stretched out his hand and put it on the bowl. The two beggars looked at Tan Lezi's hand expectantly, waiting for a string of copper coins to fall from it.
Suddenly, Tan Laizi reached out with both hands, grabbed the copper coins in two broken bowls, and walked towards Juechen in Kangjimen Inner Street, leaving behind two stunned Huazi.
…
"What do you do with a flower child? It doesn't even come cheap."
There were loud gongs and drums outside the bustling Jubao Gate in the south of Nanjing, and the streets were crowded with people watching the excitement. Two teams of horse-drawn carriages were lined up on both sides of the street. Advertising boards for Dajiang Yinzhuang were hung on both sides of the carriages. There was a conspicuous ingot on it.
The shape of the river surrounds it, with the four characters Dajiang Yinzhuang written on it.
Liu Ruogu loudly said to several of his subordinates, "Our bank is used by a wealthy family. It is lively with beggars, but it is not suitable for our bank. Each person will be sent away with a few copper coins. Let the band and the carriage team set off.
, tell them to speak louder, if I hear that they don’t speak loudly, I will deduct their wages.”
One of the subordinates said loudly, "I'm afraid that the commander of the army will not be allowed to pass through the city."
Liu Ruogu waved his hand, "It was agreed just now that they have collected the money and will go to Taipingmen. As long as they don't go to the Beibingma Division."
After a while, two convoys set off amidst the sound of gongs and drums, one heading towards Baoen Temple and the other heading out of the city.
The people on the carriage were scattering flyers and shouting loudly, "Dajiang Bank has opened with great success. At the end of Huaiqing Bridge on Sanshan Street, there is still interest on deposits. Three hundred taels can be deposited together. As evidenced by the talents of Hezhou Fushe, Dajiang Bank has great credit."
Guaranteed…”
The crowd was noisy and followed the carriage team to watch the excitement. Liu Ruogu breathed a sigh of relief.
The Jiangbei bandit rebellion has gone away, and Nanjing, across the river from Puzikou, is still in shock, but those who fled are returning one after another, and the wealthy families who came across the river from Jiangbei still choose Nanjing as their first choice, and even many people from Yangzhou also cross the river.
After Jiang Qian came and experienced the fear of rogue bandits coming to the city, they urgently needed a place to settle down in the south of the Yangtze River. Therefore, although the rogue bandits left not long ago, Nanjing's real estate market has begun to recover, and the market has also become lively.
Pang Yu wanted to develop a bank and a casino at the same time in Nanjing, but the one he urged most was the Dajiang Bank, followed by the casino. Taking advantage of the market chaos a few days ago, Liu Ruogu bought a three-story building at Huaiqing Qiaotou.
The wide market is one of the most prosperous areas in Nanjing. It cost 4,000 taels of silver, which is 30% lower than the market price. It is considered to be one of the few people who took advantage of the bandits.
After buying it, he renovated it and engaged in publicity work at the same time. Pang Yu had many strange ideas. In addition to newspapers, he also wanted to promote land at the dock and in the city. Liu Ruogu had never done this before, and he finally started to launch it reluctantly today.
He hurriedly returned to the city gate under a porridge shed and met Pang Yu, who had just arrived today. He had just gone to Jurong to meet Zhang Guowei. Things seemed to have gone smoothly, and he looked very relaxed when he returned to Nanjing.
When the bandits came to the river, the circulation of Jiangnan Times increased greatly. With the constant advocacy every day, this giant man was now famous in Nanjing. Many people almost thought that Anqing Pang Shoubei single-handedly saved the entire Jiangnan. Under the turbulent public opinion
, Nanjing officialdom was also paying attention to this little guard. Although Liu Ruogu knew the truth, he was still more careful when facing Pang Yu.
"Sir, the convoy has set off. Today we will hang an advertisement at Xiaxinhe Pier. Would you like to go and have a look?"
Pang Yu put her hands behind her back and said, "What's the price?"
"We contacted several companies with the best locations. Each of them gave us two taels of silver and let us hang out for a month."
"It's very cheap. They don't understand the market yet." Pang Yu laughed and came out and pointed at the porridge shed and said, "The porridge shed should also have a Yinzhuang brand on it."
"But there are beggars eating here, and they are illiterate. Your Excellency just said that beggars do not suit the image of our bank."
"Of course it's not for beggars. All advertisements are for customers. Doing good deeds is different from asking beggars for publicity. These rich people all regard themselves as literati and are more proud of being good, regardless of whether it is true, good or hypocritical. Our bank
Now we only accept deposits of more than 300 taels, and we are dealing with these wealthy and educated people. We can’t just do business, we also have to have an image that appeals to our target customers.”
Liu Ruogu could only nod in agreement. He didn't quite understand Pang Yu's routine yet, and even if he didn't understand something, he still didn't dare to disobey it.
Pang Yu closed his eyes and muttered for a moment and then looked at Liu Ruogu and said, "There are a lot of people at the city gates. There are thirteen city gates, and the busiest ones are in the south. All six gates in the south have porridge sheds. Fengyi Gate in the north is a good place.
Porridge stalls should also be set up and signs should be hung on them. This would be enough for city gate advertisements. There should be signs on the bridge heads of the seven bridges from Shicheng Gate to Hongwu Gate, the five bridges over Qingxi River, and the six bridges on the Qinhuai River.
"
Liu Ruogu quickly remembered that Pang Yu spoke very quickly. Liu Ruogu had to keep up with the new content while also recalling the previous ones, so he was very nervous every time he talked to Pang Yu.
But this time Pang Yu did not continue and seemed to be thinking.
"Do you have any more instructions, sir?"
Pang Yu raised his right hand, "We have ports, city gates, and bridges. I also thought of a type of place where advertising would be more precise. It's hard to say where we should go. We have to find Fang Yizhi to try."