After writing the plan, Shang Yi read it several times and felt quite satisfied. Of course, this plan can only be seen by himself now, and he cannot tell others yet, so he has to keep it carefully. Unfortunately, he keeps it on his computer. At Muling Pass, Ye Yaoyao keeps it safe, otherwise it can be entered into the computer and saved, so that no one can find it.
Early the next morning, someone came to report that it was Lin Zhiyang who asked to see Shang Yi.
After Shang Yi learned about it, he immediately asked them to come in, and he also came to wait under the eaves. After meeting Shang Yi, Lin Zhiyang was also quite moved. An official as young as Shang Yi and without much official strife is really impressive. Not to mention that Shang Yi is definitely a very popular figure in Zhejiang Province, and it is indeed rare to be able to maintain such a simple style.
Shang Yi let Lin Zhiyang take a seat in the hall, and Lin Zhiyang bowed his hand to Shang Yi again and said: "General Shang regained Hangzhou this time and put down the rebellion in Zhejiang. It is really a blessing for us and the people of Zhejiang." , thanks to the general, I can finally return to my old home in Hangzhou. I really want to thank the general."
Shang Yi said: "Mr. Lin is too generous. Since the imperial court appointed me as the commander-in-chief of Zhejiang Province, it is my duty to protect the country and the people, so why should I thank you?"
Lin Zhiyang then took out a piece of paper from his sleeve, handed it to Shang Yi, and said: "This is the goods that your Excellency entrusted me to purchase. Please take a look at it."
Shang Yi took it and took a look. He saw that it said 20,000 jin of rice, 30,000 jin of pig iron, 2,000 jin of sulfur, 3,000 jin of various medicinal materials, and 20 jin of mercury. A total of 85,000 taels of silver. Wait for Shang Yi to read. After finishing, Lin Zhiyang added: "This batch of goods will be shipped to Hangzhou in three days. Please send someone to check it when you arrive.
Shang Yi also nodded, thinking that Lin Zhiyang was very efficient in delivering the first batch of supplies so quickly, and said: "Okay, I'll have someone prepare the silver right now."
Lin Zhiyang said hurriedly: "Sir, there is no need to worry, the goods have not been delivered yet."
Shang Yi smiled and said: "It's just two or three days. It doesn't matter if it's earlier or later. In short, I can rest assured that Mr. Lin will do things."
Lin Zhiyang said a few more polite words, and then said: "Didn't your Excellency say last time that you wanted to do the silk business? Now that the rebellion in Zhejiang has been put down, I wonder what your Excellency thinks about it?"
Shang Yi thought to himself that after quelling the rebellion in Zhejiang, his status was indeed different. Lin Zhiyang also took the initiative to seek cooperation with him. Of course, there were also factors involved in Sun Chuanting's fiasco. Then he asked again :"
It turns out that not to mention Sun Chuanting's disastrous defeat in Jiaxian, even the news of the fall of Tongguan had spread to the south. After careful analysis, Lin Zhiyang and Li Gefei concluded that although Sun Chuanting's life or death was still uncertain, anyone with insight would know that. , In fact, at this point, it doesn't matter whether Sun Chuanting lives or dies, because the army has been destroyed, and even if Sun Chuanting is still alive, he can't turn the tide. And the Ming Dynasty will undergo tremendous changes, and the country's subjugation is not impossible. Even if the country is not subjugated, the imperial court's control over local areas will be greatly reduced.
Therefore, at this time, the market for strong local generals like Shang Yi who holds military power will naturally rise. After going south, Shang Jun has established a good reputation in the south, and he is the commander-in-chief of Zhejiang, so it can be said that he is He was stationed in Zhejiang justifiably. No matter from which aspect, at least for a certain period of time, Shang Yi was obviously the most powerful person in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
If the Ming Dynasty perished because of this, Shang Yi would at least have the ability to establish himself as king in the south of the Yangtze River. Even if the Ming Dynasty survives, the court will probably act based on his face in the future. At least it will be a vassal town on one side. Interfering in the silk business will naturally stop talking. Got off.
In addition, Li Gefei even believed that Shang Yi could achieve his current achievements at such a young age, and his knowledge and experience were far beyond ordinary, so in troubled times, his future might be unlimited. Therefore, he should seize the opportunity as soon as possible. , strengthen cooperation with Shang Yi, and even join Shang Yi's camp, but every time Shang Yi develops in the future, Lin Zhiyang and Li Gefei can follow the rising tide, so Lin Zhiyang also takes the initiative to ask Shang Yi We proposed to work together.
Shang Yi is naturally aware of this, but now he also needs businessmen like Lin Zhiyang and Li Gefei for in-depth cooperation, especially Li Gefei. Although Shang Yi has only met him once, he is keen I found that he is one of the few Chinese people in this era who understands the world, and is exactly the partner I need most. No matter where I end up reaching, I will do my best to bring China to the world and actively participate in world competition.
Now that Lin Zhiyang brought it up, it couldn't be better, so Shang Yi said: "Then I won't hide it from you, sir. I want to open a weaving workshop, purchase raw silk, directly process and weave silk, and then repurchase it." Go overseas."
Lin Zhiyang couldn't help but be surprised. He originally thought that Shang Yi was planning to engage in the business of silk thickening, that is, to earn low prices and resell them. This way, the cycle is short, the money comes in quickly, the risk is small, and the profits are large. It is also very simple. Almost all businessmen would choose this mode of operation. But I did not expect that Shang Yi would choose to produce silk by himself. Although doing so can control the supply of goods and make greater profits, what follows is The initial investment will increase, and the risks will naturally increase.
Of course Shang Yi saw Lin Zhiyang's doubts and couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart. In fact, this was a matter of concept.
In ancient China, the policy of focusing on agriculture and suppressing business was always implemented. Many people in later generations believed that this was an important reason for China's modern backwardness. However, the underlying reason is that in ancient China, merchants and handicraft production were the main Completely separated. The way for merchants to make profits is simply to transport the products from place A to place B for sale and earn the price difference. To put it bluntly, they are long-distance traders. As for the production of goods, it has almost nothing to do with merchants. Basically, it is based on Cottage industry, or small handicraft workshop to complete.
Because China has a vast land, rich resources, and a large population, it can only rely on cottage industries and small handicraft workshops to provide merchants with sufficient goods. Moreover, Chinese goods have always been highly competitive overseas and have never been worried about sales. There is no need for merchants to engage in production. Seek ways to improve production. During the Song and Ming Dynasties, China's overseas trade prosperity was actually supported by hundreds of thousands of family craftsmen and small handicraft workshops in the inland areas.
As a result, although China's foreign trade is developed and its commodities are highly competitive, its business practices have not been able to break through the small-scale peasant economy and bring China's social productivity to a new stage. On the contrary, they have undermined and destroyed small-scale farmers. The role of the economy is that after businessmen make money, they only do two things, one is to buy land and rent it, and the other is to make loan sharks, instead of using it to expand production and improve technology, the result will only be land annexation and serious harm to small farmers. Exploitation, and price reduction for industrial workers.
Of course, if at this time, the imperial court could adopt active policies and intentionally guide and support the handicraft industry to expand its production scale, it would certainly be able to solve this problem. It is a pity that the imperial courts in the past have chosen simple and crude policies of banning and restricting business. The result is a vicious cycle. The more business is banned, the less social production will be developed, and the less social production is developed, the more business will be banned. This is also an important factor in why China failed to produce an industrial revolution in modern times. one.
So now Shang Yi decided to try it himself and integrate production and sales. It can be regarded as a trial. Anyway, he now has sufficient funds on hand, and China's silk has never been worried about sales.
Of course, these reasons could not be explained to Lin Zhiyang, so Shang Yi could only say: "Now the overseas trade of silk and raw silk has almost been cut off by Zheng Zhilong. I cannot compete with him overseas for the time being, so now I can only control the source. , let him do the overseas side for the time being. Anyway, Zheng Zhilong always wants to buy silk and raw silk. Buying from others is the same as buying from us. Once we control the bulk supply, we can also use this Negotiate with Zheng Zhilong as conditions, and then jointly create overseas trade."
Of course, what Shang Yi said is also true. Zheng Zhilong is almost the master of China's coast. Any Chinese ship that wants to do business overseas must bear the Zheng family's flag and pay protection fees like Zheng Zhilong's before it can go to sea safely. The same is true for Lin Zhiyang and Li Gefei's sea-going ships. Although Shang Yi has a comprehensive plan for the navy and overseas trade, he doesn't have a single ship on hand now, so Zheng Zhilong can only compete with him, so he can only retreat now. Secondly, control production on land first, and then slowly move towards the ocean.
After listening to this, Lin Zhiyang felt that what Shang Yi said made sense. He was originally worried that Shang Yi was young and energetic and wanted to compete with Zheng Zhilong. Now it seems that Shang Yi is indeed a wise and well-planned person. , at the same time, he couldn't help but think of Li Gefei's evaluation of Shang Yi, "In troubled times, the future is unlimited." He seemed to think that this evaluation was definitely good. Now it seems that this troubled time is almost coming, so Shang Yi How far can it be achieved?
Although Li Gefei didn't say it directly, Lin Zhiyang had known him for nearly thirty years, so he still didn't understand what he meant. Could Shang Yi really go that far? Lin Zhiyang suddenly shuddered and didn't dare After thinking about it further, he asked again: "Then what do you plan to do?"
Shang Yi said: "I need to ask Mr. Lin for help. First, I will buy a few silk weaving mills in Suzhou, so that I can have workers and looms, and rent a larger space. I still have more than 10,000 kilograms of raw silk on hand." , we can start construction right away, even if people are dissatisfied, it doesn’t matter, we can slowly expand in the future.”
Lin Zhiyang nodded and said: "Okay, I'll take care of this. It's just whether you want to do it alone or join forces with others."
Shang Yi smiled and said: "If Mr. Lin and Mr. Li are interested in participating, I will naturally welcome it. If they are not interested in this, then I will do it alone, but I still ask for your help."
Lin Zhiyang also smiled and said: "Who doesn't want to do things that make money? I can make the decision for Gefei. I am willing to make progress and retreat together with you."