The Empress Dowager Ci'an in the East Palace and the Empress Dowager Cixi in the West Palace listen to politics behind curtains. The bamboo curtains they use are all selected by craftsmen from the south and are carefully woven through more than a dozen processes. These bamboo curtains will be replaced after they are worn, because
The old curtains were used by the royal family and could not be sold to ordinary people for use. They could only be stored in a place, so there was a curtain warehouse, and the alley where the curtain warehouse was located became the curtain warehouse alley.
This is the warehouse of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and is under the jurisdiction of the eunuchs. Many of the people living nearby are servants formed by eunuchs and maids. The marriage of these servants is allowed by the palace. They can register with the House of Internal Affairs, but there is one condition: the maids
You can only register for marriage when you have left the palace and no longer work as a maid.
The maids in the palace were all Manchu girls. They were sent to the palace from a young age to learn to serve their masters. They were not sent out of the palace until they were in their twenties and became grown-ups. Of course, there were also old girls in their thirties who left the palace.
.In addition to paying a sum of money to these maids who were sent out of the palace, the Ministry of Internal Affairs also had to find their husbands' families for them.
They live on the streets. People develop feelings after being together for a long time. This is the case for maids and eunuchs who stay in the palace. Many maids marry eunuchs as soon as they leave the palace. For the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they like to do this kind of adult beauty the most.
Many eunuchs and maids get married, and the eunuchs and maids with status in the palace will come out to have wedding banquets.
At noon, Li Guolou came to Liangziku Hutong to drink the wedding banquet of a pair of eunuchs and a maid. He didn't know the pair of eunuchs and maids. But Li Lianying asked him to come. They were going to meet at the wedding banquet.
Eunuchs usually get married at noon, which is different from common people's weddings. They say it's because the yang energy is strong at noon. In fact, it's because the Forbidden City is closed at night. Those eunuchs and maids with status who ask for leave have to go back to the Forbidden City at night. Only
Noon is the best time to have a wedding reception.
Eunuchs and maids all have money, especially high-ranking people. In addition to monthly silver, they also have gray income.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs spent 40,000 taels of silver a day, 70% of which was embezzled by eunuchs, maids and their masters at all levels.
(In the late Qing Dynasty, due to inflation, the palace expenses reached 60,000 taels of silver a day, which seemed like a lot, but was actually not much. Because the Ministry of Internal Affairs was very good at making money, most of the expenses were handled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs itself. For the national finance,
It did not become a burden. Many times, when the treasury had no money, it would still ask the emperor for money.
The emperor borrowed money.) Li Guolou and Wei Xiaoliu came to a decorated restaurant together, where a wedding reception for a pair of eunuchs and maids was being held. The shops here are all opened by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and are royal assets. Doing business is
There is no need to pay taxes, so the things here are good and cheap, and the shops are doing a booming business.
Li Guolou looked up at the restaurant's signboard "Phoenix Tower" and asked, "Xiao Liuzi, how much wedding money should we give?"
Wei Xiaoliu scratched his head and said awkwardly: "Father, I forgot to ask this, but I think you are on the same level as Mr. Li, so you can give him whatever he gives. I will go in and ask first, and you wait." After that,
Wei Xiaoliu was the first to step into the restaurant lobby.
Li Guolou didn't have a beard, and his dress was no different from the eunuchs around him. Some eunuchs passed by Li Guolou and asked, "Xiao Dezhang, why are you standing at the door? Let's go in together."
Li Guolou could only reply awkwardly: "Friend, you have recognized the wrong person. I am not Xiao De Zhang, I am his elder brother. I am waiting for someone here and will go in immediately."
"Oh;;;;;;it looks quite similar. The two brothers were carved from the same mold. Grrrrrrrr!" After a sinister smile, the eunuch patted Li Guolou, not forgetting what the eunuch liked to do the most, touching Li Guolou.
Lou, giving Li Guolou a layer of goosebumps all over his body.
Li Guolou touched his nose and looked at the eunuch who took advantage of him with a wry smile. Those big-footed girls were all Manchu girls. They talked and laughed with the eunuch without shying away from suspicion. They entered the "Phoenix Tower" together and stood here to see the world.
Various eunuchs and maids, full of mystery, are dressed up brightly and have proud smiles on their faces.
They are all wealthy owners. Although they have low status and are shamed by the world, as long as they can cross this threshold, it means that they have become human beings and will not be poor in their lives. Li Guolou looked at the shops around him and thought to himself.
, is it possible to open a "Please come in bank" here to make it easier for eunuchs and palace maids to save money.
The money hidden in these eunuchs and palace maids is comparable to a golden mountain with tens of thousands of eunuchs. The accumulated wealth of the palace maids cannot be underestimated.
Li Guolou was chatting with some unknown eunuchs. Wei Xiaoliu walked out of the restaurant and said with a smile: "Father, I say hello. Two silver ingots, good luck and good luck."
"Oh, please Eunuch Cui and Eunuch Liu, it's a great honor to meet you. Please take good care of you in the future." Li Guolou bowed and let Cui Yugui and Liu Deyin walk in front.
"Giggle, giggle! I have heard from Xiao De Zhang that you, the big brother, are really interesting and fun. I will remember you." The eunuch Cui Yugui picked up his front clothes and walked into the lobby. The restaurant was decorated with lights and colorful lights, filled with laughter and laughter.
.
Eunuchs are very particular about rules and order, with clear distinctions between superior and inferior. Even eunuchs have specific rules for getting married. Eunuchs of each level send different congratulatory gifts.
Eunuchs gave money to each other when they got married. Li Guolou didn't have any money with him, so he took out his banknote and gave it to Shiliu Liang. The two small ingots were exactly sixteen Liang.
Eunuchs are very thick-skinned. One of the eunuchs who received the banknote took the banknote given by Li Guolou and looked at it, touched it, and even exposed it to the sun, fearing that what Li Guolou gave him was a fake.
In the corridor upstairs, Xiao Dezhang shouted: "Xiao Menzi, stop taking the photo. My elder brother gave it to me. You ask my brother to come up."
Li Guolou waved upward, and hearing Xiao De's open tone, he knew that Xiao De Zhang had gotten in, and his hard work had not been in vain.
The positions of eunuchs are divided into eighteen levels, which are exactly the same as those in the court. If you want to move up, you have to be destined to be liked by your master and sit on the throne. Li Lianying was able to sit in a high position because of his good skills in bunting, which was liked by the Empress Dowager Cixi.
The other way is to spend money to buy "officials", which is the same as
There is no difference between being an official in the court. For example, a sixteenth-level eunuch with an annual salary of fifty taels would have to spend at least five times the price to buy it. As for whether this position is worth two hundred and fifty taels? There is no regret medicine in the world.
To sell to a high level, there must be a real shortage, which is the same as in the court.
"Congratulations, congratulations!" Li Guolou saluted the bridegroom and Xi Niang with clasped fists, took two bags of wedding candies and a bag of wedding cakes, and went upstairs with Wei Xiaoliu.
When I came to the private room, there were sitting the powerful eunuchs in the palace. Among them were Li Lianying and Cui Yugui who had just spoken to Li Guolou. As for Xiao Dezhang, although he was seated at this time, his power could not be compared with these three. He belonged to Li Lianying's younger brother.
At that time, the palace was divided into three factions. One faction was from the Empress Dowager Cixi, the other was from the Empress Dowager Ci'an, and the other was from the Empress Dowager Cixi.
The faction is the people who belong to Emperor Tongzhi. Among them, the people who belong to the Empress Dowager Cixi are the most powerful. They hold the powerful and important positions in the palace, and all the good positions are occupied by them. The people sitting next to Li Guolou are all the people of the Empress Dowager Cixi, and they have clear distinctions.
The pies are located in different private rooms. Everyone is polite on the surface and has their own sphere of influence.
The banquet began, with people drinking and drinking each other's cups for three rounds. This was called "brothers" and shouting could be heard all the time.
After the groom and the bride came in to toast, Li Lianying asked: "Xiaolou, what do you want from me?"
Li Guolou smiled and said: "Oh, that's what happened. I just finished the scientific examination and I am very confident that I will pass the Jinshi. Aren't I going to go to the palace to meet the saints and sit in the Qianqing Palace to write articles? I want to ask my eldest brother. , find me a good seat so that the emperor can see me."
"Oh;;;;;then congratulations first, you passed the Jinshi. Come! Let's have another drink." Li Lianying showed a proud smile on her face. Although the Qianqing Palace belonged to the sphere of influence of the eunuchs under Emperor Tongzhi, there was no relationship between the eunuchs. Collusion with each other, no one will make money if they have money.
"Brother, give me a real price. Don't be as vain as Mr. An. I can't stand it." Li Guolou drank it all in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and said carelessly.
Li Lianying whispered to Xiao De Zhang next to her, "Go find Eunuch Liu." Xiao De Zhang immediately walked out and went to find the eunuch Liu Deyin.
After a while, Xiaode Zhang Fu'er said a few words to Li Lianying and told Li Lianying the price.
Li Lianying knocked on the table, thought for a while, and said: "Xiaolou, for the sake of our friends, let me help you again. I will mention a few words about you in front of the Queen Mother, and some people will also mention it in front of the emperor. To speak for you, you will give me four thousand taels of silver first. If I really get into the first grade, you will give me another eight thousand taels. Are you satisfied with this price?"
Li Guolou stood up, raised his wine glass high, and said proudly: "Go ahead! Brother, I will never forget your help in the future. As long as I get rich, I will send you a filial piety every year, no less than one hundred thousand taels. I also hope that you, my friends help me."
Cui Yugui was the oldest and had long been accustomed to the filial piety of high-ranking officials. Generally, if he could earn a thousand taels throughout the year, this high-ranking official would be considered generous. Like Li Hongzhang, who won the battle to eliminate Dongniu, entered the palace to meet the saints, and met the two empress dowagers. Just give Li Lianying two thousand taels of silver. This is not the norm. The chance of giving it another time is very slim. Usually it is just dozens of taels of silver notes, or even a few taels of silver notes. One hundred thousand taels of silver was given to their eunuchs. Well, this has never happened before, so I was stunned when I heard it. After regaining my composure, I hurriedly asked: "Xiaolou, what kind of business do you want us to help you with?"
Li Guolou put down his wine glass and said seriously: "To be honest with you friends, my family has opened a bank called "Please Come In Bank". It is registered in the British Concession in Tianjin. It is a joint-stock bank. My uncle is helping me outside. The road to Zhili and Liangjiang areas is smooth, and there will be hundreds of stores in the future. I also want to open a few in the territory of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. As long as you are willing to deposit your money with me, I will give you 50% of the money you earn. I just said The 100,000 taels I mentioned is a guarantee, and I don’t dare to tell you if it’s too much, for fear that you might say I’m a big talker.”
Cui Yugui frowned and said: "Xiaolou, you are too naive. Who dares to touch the money of the Ministry of Internal Affairs? You don't want our heads."
Li Guolou glanced at him and said: "Eunuch Cui, you are such a smart person, how dare I let you do such bad things? I asked you to deposit your money in my bank. There are so many father-in-laws in this palace. Maid, this amount of money is at least more than one million taels. By then, even ladies will deposit the money into the bank I opened. I didn’t let you do anything illegal, I just opened an opening to steal the business of other bank accounts. Already."
"Oh;;;;;;" Several eunuchs suddenly realized that this was a commercial competition where the big fish eats the small fish, and they only needed to take care of Li Guolou's business.
Li Lianying said slowly: "Xiaolou, although the idea is good, it must be done secretly. Those ticket numbers are backed by the prince. We can only provide you with a chance to compete fairly. As for business competition, it is your own business. We
Don't interfere."
Liu Deyin had come over for a drink a long time ago and said suspiciously: "Xiaolou, are you confident that you can compete with Wanjia Bank? You won't close down."
Li Guolou smiled and said: "Eunuch Liu, you are dealing with me for the first time, and you don't understand me yet. There are talents behind me who dare to open a bank. The road of government and business is smooth. Who can compete with me? Those princes are just collecting money."
A filial piety, this
Can such a thing be difficult for me? The ticket company makes money from water charges, but I am reaching out everywhere. I have the ability to make money by myself. I don’t have to worry about lending the money out and not getting it back. As long as you believe in me, the bungalows where all my friends live for retirement will be
I’ve got it covered!”
Several high-ranking eunuchs smiled broadly and frequently toasted to Li Guolou. Nowadays, wealthy eunuchs are buying land and building bungalows in the Tianjin Concession. This trend has become a trend.
Xiao Dezhang jumped up and shouted: "Brother, I fully support you, come on! Let me toast you first!"
Li Lianying smiled casually and said: "Xiaolou, you always give me a surprise every time I see you. I invite you to come again next time I get married."
"Oh;;;;;;" Li Guolou and several eunuchs nearby started making noises, asking Li Lianying to tell him when did the maid he fell in love with get married?
Eunuchs are also men, and they also have normal human feelings. As for corruption, it is their job. Although Li Guolou and the eunuch sitting here are brothers, money is an indispensable matter. When making friends, eunuchs talk about money first.
, Only money will bring motivation. Nowadays, the eunuchs are arm-in-arm with Li Guolou, singing songs and making trouble for the bride and groom.
Li Guolou admired Xiao De Zhang's singing. His voice was pleasant and pleasant. This young man has a bright future. Ladies will definitely like Xiao De's ability to open his mouth.