In order to welcome Liu Jing, Zhu Guike spent a lot of thought.
For this reception banquet, he invited most of the officials and businessmen in Datong Mansion today.
As for those wealthy and distinguished families, some of them have now become officials, and some have become businessmen because of their investment in the Datong Chamber of Commerce.
What surprised Liu Jing was that these people came to the banquet and did not bring any gifts except for an invitation.
This is different from the ‘official customs’ in Nanjing and even other places throughout the Ming Dynasty.
You must know that even if the patriarch of a family celebrates a birthday banquet, there is a way of accepting gifts, let alone Zhu Gui is still a vassal king.
However, he noticed that Zhu Gui did not show any displeasure, and the guests and even the servants of the palace seemed to be accustomed to this.
There were more than twenty tables in the Prince Dai's Mansion, and many of the dishes on the table were things Liu Jing had never heard of.
In fact, he also noticed this situation during more than a month in Datong Mansion. The entire Yunzhou, except for the population, seemed to be more prosperous than Nanjing.
This not only reflects the very low price level here, but also ordinary people can buy a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables and other novelty items, which are not even available in Nanjing.
And through the introduction of the businessman next to him, he learned that all of this was actually 'invented' by the young prince Zhu Gui next to him.
This made Liu Jing's heart stir up a storm again.
Liu Jing was originally a little puzzled by Zhu Gui's approach of giving such a high status to businessmen.
After all, it has been China’s experience for more than two thousand years to emphasize agriculture and neglect commerce.
But now he can somewhat understand Zhu Gui's approach.
It is precisely because of the work of these merchants that the goods in Datong Mansion are greatly satisfied.
What Zhu Gui, the young prince, has to do is to firmly control the power of the businessman in his hands.
He did indeed do it. Now almost all the businessmen in Datong Prefecture have joined the Datong Chamber of Commerce. As for the entire Yunzhou, more than half of the businessmen are also involved.
Once they join the Chamber of Commerce, the status of these businessmen is equal, and they will have more opportunities to cooperate, which also avoids excessive competition among businessmen.
After thinking about this, Liu Jing's eyes towards Zhu Gui changed.
During the dinner, Zhu Gui also passed several proposals put forward by businessmen of the Datong Chamber of Commerce, one of which was the idea of establishing branches in other cities.
Although the Datong Chamber of Commerce plays a decisive role in Yunzhou and even Shanxi, it can even be said to be the largest chamber of commerce in the entire Ming Dynasty.
But his influence is now limited to places that the caravan can reach.
If you want your influence to spread further, you can't wait for the official road to be renovated to that place, but you must make preparations first.
Although the 'tradition' of emphasizing agriculture over commerce is still very serious in the Ming Dynasty, these businessmen, with Zhu Gui's strong support, are very optimistic about their prospects.
As a businessman at the banquet said, "The reason why businessmen in the past were despised by the country and the people was because they were only interested in profit and disregarded the interests of the nation. King Dai taught us that the best way to change this practice is
Take it from the people and use it for the people.'
Of course, although during the banquet, all the businessmen were very optimistic about the future development of the Datong Chamber of Commerce, but they also knew that these all relied on the support of the King.
And once there is any lapse in Dai Wang's status, they will all be affected.
Therefore, many people were a little confused about Zhu Gui not congratulating the emperor on his birthday in Nanjing at this time, and they even asked about it.
When Liu Jing heard this topic, he also put down his wine glass. He also wanted to hear Zhu Gui's opinion on this matter.
He also heard a little about the conflict between Zhu Gui and Jin Yiwei in Nanjing, and he also learned from Liu Bowen's letter that the prince was seriously ill in bed and the relationship between the kings was becoming increasingly tense.
He wanted to know whether Zhu Gui was still staying in Datong Mansion at this time to avoid trouble or what.
Zhu Gui didn't say much at first, but seeing that everyone was attracted by this topic, he had no choice but to stand up, raise his glass and said: "Everyone should have heard about the relationship between this king and the emperor, right?"
After Zhu Gui said this, he paused for a moment, his face expressionless.
However, everyone at the table began to discuss quietly, and more than half of the businessmen had heard of this matter.
After all, Zhu Gui's reputation as the "Devil King" is very resounding in Nanjing.
Zhu Gui continued: "Actually, even if I continue to stay in Nanjing, I will only arouse the dissatisfaction of the emperor. At that time, I will be fined the lightest salary. It is all money. I don't want to ask for it myself."
It was boring, so I left with an excuse."
His tone was very relaxed, as if what he was talking about was not his own business.
When everyone heard this, even those who didn't know what was going on laughed. They felt that the king was not only unassuming, but also very humorous.
But the faces of those who had their own information channels looked a little solemn.
You must know that before Zhu Gui went to Nanjing, he defeated the Mongols in Ganzhou. If an ordinary person relied on this victory, he would be able to gain access to the palace and be re-employed.
Could it be that Dai Wang could not change the emperor's attitude with his military exploits?
But even if they had doubts about it, they didn't say anything.
The banquet lasted until midnight and then gradually ended.
The guests left one after another.
However, Zhu Gui and Liu Jing moved to the study room and continued to talk.
The two of them had just talked for a few words when Liu Jing changed the topic and suddenly asked: "Your Majesty, do you know if the dispute between you and Jin Yiwei is true?"
Zhu Gui, who was a little drunk at first, suddenly sat up straight and stared at Liu Jing when he heard this. After a while, he said: "There are some things that I don't know if I can talk to you about it."
Qing is a term used to express great respect for guests.
When Liu Jing heard this, he was startled for a moment, and immediately leaned down and half-knelt in front of Zhu Gui and said: "I was originally ordered to visit this place by my father, but what I have seen and heard in the past month, and the two conversations I had with the prince today,
This makes me feel that the prince is like a dragon or a phoenix among men, and I am willing to serve the prince, but I don’t know if the prince is willing to take him in."
"Haha, the minister alone is worth more than 10,000 elite men. This is my honor. Please come quickly."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Gui immediately helped Liu Jing up with a happy face.
Then he continued: "As for the question you asked just now, I will tell you the truth. It is indeed true that the Jin Yiwei wanted to be detrimental to me. If I hadn't had some tricks, I would have been killed by them. I am now considering it.