Chapter 2772 Capital (one hundred and twenty-five)
However, the emperor hesitated. To be honest, this was beyond his scope of cognition.
The overseas trade of the Ming Dynasty itself is a complex topic. Like many things in the Ming Dynasty, there is no specific organization to manage it, and there is no unified management standard.
Chongzhen ascended the throne as a young man. He did not receive complete imperial education and experience in his youth, and knew very little about the imperial system. The suggestions put forward by Qian Taichong seemed good, but to him they were full of uncertain risks.
Although Qian Taichong used the old system name Shibosi, the strangeness of "sea trade" still made him subconsciously feel fear.
Seeing the emperor's hesitation, Qian Taichong knew that such a major matter could not be decided by his words. It would have to go through the court discussion. Fortunately, Mr. Le told him that the bigwigs in the government and the public supported the "Kongfu"
There are not many people.
Immediately he said again: "Wei Chen has written an abbreviation of this matter and asked the emperor to read it." Then he took out a thick folder from his arms and presented it.
The eunuch in front of the emperor hurriedly took the fold and put it on the imperial desk. Qian Taichong said again: "If the emperor obeys my request, I would like to move the Zheng family, soldiers, ships, and assets to Shanghai, and serve as the original thirty-sixth president of Guangzhou for the imperial court."
Bad behavior."
The Thirty-Six Banks were the thirty-six tooth merchants in Guangzhou who used to act as agents for foreign merchants. Being a maritime tooth merchant can be very profitable and can make you rich, but the tooth merchants themselves also need strong funds and rich trade channels.
competent.
Considering the strength of the Zheng Sen Group, it is not difficult to serve as a maritime tooth merchant. Once you get the tooth seal from the Ministry of Household Affairs, you will become an "imperial merchant" with the aura of the imperial court. Moreover, Zheng Sen himself is a real hereditary military attache.
With the blessing of others, wouldn’t Shanghai County be the world under the Zheng family!
The emperor nodded slightly. Indeed, judging from the past history of the Zheng family, this is indeed a way for them to give full play to their strengths. It is almost useless for them to continue to stay in Zhangquan. Shen Youlong reported in the memorial that the original area in Zhangzhou Bay
The various forces in the Zheng family are incompatible with each other and have no control over the Kun thief. Instead, they compete to trade with the Kun thief.
Since they were willing to move out, it was not a bad thing. Chongzhen thought to himself, regardless of whether the establishment of a port and a shipping company in Shanghai would be successful or not, as long as the Zhengsen Group arrived in Shanghai, it would be entirely at the discretion of the imperial court. It was far different from the situation in Fujian.
Emperor Gao was far away and listened to the tune but not the announcement. Although the Zheng family was not what it used to be, at least the Zheng family still had a large fleet and thousands of troops that the imperial court did not have - and they did not need to be paid by the imperial court. It was also useful for simply defending the south of the Yangtze River.
Immediately he said: "Ai Qing's heart is commendable. The imperial court will handle the matter of setting up a shipping market in Shanghai. The Zheng family is willing to move to Shanghai, and the imperial court welcomes it. When the time comes, I will make appropriate arrangements for the place where I will issue the order."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Qian Taichong couldn't restrain his excitement and quickly knelt down and kowtowed. Although the establishment of a shipping department was not agreed, the fact that the Zheng family was allowed to move north to Shanghai showed that the emperor valued the Zheng family very much.
Although Shanghai is just a county under Songjiang Prefecture, it is the heart of Nanzhi and is very close to Nanjing. Without full trust, it is impossible for the emperor to allow an originally semi-independent maritime business group like the Zheng family to relocate.
To Shanghai.
For Qian Taichong, only gaining the emperor's trust is the key to success. Especially the Zheng family, who is currently "the master of the young country, is suspicious of the country". Without the protection and support of the imperial court, and without Zhuge Kongming's talent, he wants to revive Zheng.
It is a tree without roots!
Now, the emperor has fully expressed his trust in the Zheng family, no, in himself! Whether the Zheng family is loyal or traitorous, the emperor may not know clearly, he can only draw a conclusion based on his words and deeds.
After thinking about this, Qian Taichong couldn't help but feel happy while crying with gratitude.
"...As for you, your loyalty to the country is very commendable!" the emperor said, "I am determined to promote you. Your job is to inspect the school of Zhangzhou Haiphong Tongzhi Yamen, so I will temporarily appoint you as the governor of Haiphong Tongzhi Yamen.
Responsible for Anping coastal defense matters."
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!" Although the inspector of Tongzhi Yamen is an "official", he is an "unofficial" with no rank, but the governor is an official of the ninth rank. And he is "full-time Anping coastal defense". Although he originally had very few
I went to Zhangzhou Haiphong Yamen to work as an errand, and mostly worked in Anping. But now that I have this title, the name of my activities in Anping is more and more justified.
"Don't leave the capital just yet." The emperor continued.
"Wei Chen knows." Qian Taichong burst into ecstasy: This means he will continue to call for the right one!
The emperor was quite satisfied with himself after the two previous summonses. If the next summons is done properly and the affairs of the Shipping Department can be handled smoothly, it will be "in the emperor's heart" and the future is immeasurable.
Although he was just a student of the Imperial Academy through donations, the state affairs were deteriorating day by day, and the people employed in the imperial court were gradually becoming more and more eclectic. Sun Yuanhua was only a mere civil servant, and had only been an official for more than ten years. Now he was already a serious official with the title of Minister of the Ministry of War.
Lai is the governor.
He thought that his talent was no worse than that of Sun Yuanhua. It was only because Sun Yuanhua had a good father-in-law and took advantage of some connections with Kun thieves that he was able to rise to the top. Although he did not have a good father-in-law, he had much more dealings with Kun thieves than Sun Yuanhua. If the court really wanted to establish Kun
He is a first-class talent. Maybe in less than ten years, he can become a high-ranking official...
With such burning thoughts, Qian Taichong was sent back to the guild hall by the royal guards from the palace. That night, "Mr. Le" came again. He said "congratulations" as soon as he arrived.
Qian Taichong was surprised and thought that Mr. Yue had no idea where he came from. He would know everything about the performance he had with the emperor today by evening.
Mr. Le first congratulated him on his "promotion", and then praised his proposal to open Shanghai as a port. He also said that he would do his best to get the matter approved by the court.
"It seems that the students are worried about this matter." Qian Taichong is not a three-year-old child, nor is he new to officialdom. He is well aware of the shortcomings of the imperial court. Whenever the imperial court has major initiatives, it will often be delayed for several months without making a decision, and the emperor is indecisive.
, many officials will always oppose and obstruct in every possible way for various purposes.
"What worries you sir." Mr. Le nodded, "This matter is indeed not easy to handle. However, there are many knowledgeable people in the court, so my master secretly contacted them and formed public opinion in the court, which will naturally get twice the result with half the effort."
"Who is your master..." Qian Taichong couldn't help but be very curious.
Mr. Le smiled slightly and did not answer. Qian Taichong knew that his question was presumptuous.
"That aside," Mr. Le said, "do you know anything about the situation in Shanghai?"
"Know a little bit."
Qian Taichong has been equivalent to the "Prime Minister" of the Zheng Sen family in recent years. He has to handle all matters, big and small. He naturally knows something about the situation in Shanghai.
"I heard that some gentry in Shanghai jointly established a large shipping company called China Merchants Company. It specializes in shipping routes throughout the Beiyang. The business is very prosperous."
"Do you know who the shareholders of this China Merchants Company are?"
"No need to ask, of course there will be thieves."
"That's right," Mr. Le said, stroking his hands, "except Kun Thief?"
"It is said that it is Shen Tingyang of Chongming. I know a little about this person. His family was originally the leader of the Shachuan Gang in Shanghai. He has hundreds of sand ships under his command and specializes in trading between the North and South."
"It's not just him."
"It's not surprising that there are probably many Jiangnan Jin gentry people holding shares."
"Sir, you only know one, but don't know the other." Mr. Le shook his head and said, "The four words "Jiangnan Jin Gentry" cannot be summed up in one word as "not surprising."
These words aroused Qian Taichong's curiosity and asked: "Where else is the big shot?"
"To tell you the truth, most of the third-largest stocks in China Merchants Group belong to Fushe Group."
"Fushe?!" Qian Taichong was dumbfounded now. Even though he had been active in the Zhangquan area for these years, he also knew about the Fushe group and the names of Zhang Pu and others.
"Why did they get together with the Kun thieves?" Qian Taichong couldn't help but get nervous. If the Kun thieves had Fushe's backing in Jiangnan, even if they set up a shipping department in Shanghai, they wouldn't be able to do any business at all. Not to mention the tax of "two hundred thousand taels per year".
"Here, what should I do?"
"Don't panic." Mr. Le made up his mind first, "Tianru's cooperation with the thief Kun was originally a compromise. Now that the ambition of the thief Kun has been exposed, Tianru also wants to get rid of it. It's just a matter of doing business across the sea... ..." He said, looking at Qian Taichong with a half-smile.
"Yes! Yes! As long as the imperial court approves the opening of Shanghai as a port, students should do their best!" Qian Taichong understood what he meant and immediately agreed, "I just don't know if the imperial court will agree to the opening of the port."
"You don't need to worry too much about this matter." Mr. Le said, "There are many bigwigs in the government and the public who hold the idea of 'teaching Kun the skills to fight with Kun'. What's more, Tianru also has this opinion. With his help, it can be said to be twice the result with half the effort!"
"Yes, yes, it's all thanks to the master's plan!" Qian Taichong quickly flattered him.
Mr. Le valued this matter and said: "Sir, you are ridiculous! Everyone in the world who is knowledgeable knows that we in China are neither rogues nor pirates, but bandits! How can the princes in the government and the public not know the key here? It's just that The thief's ship is strong and the artillery is strong, and the world is in troubled times, so we can only try to deal with it slowly."
"Yes, yes, the students admire me!"
Mr. Le looked at Qian Taichong and said: "Sir, he is familiar with the affairs of the emperor. He will definitely be a capable person in handling the affairs of the emperor in the future. His future is immeasurable!"
"Students are ashamed."
Mr. Le smiled again and said in a low voice: "There is one more thing that I will tell you privately. Whether you do it or not is up to you..."
"I don't know what's going on?"
"Tianru is planning the return of Yi Zhai, which is quite difficult. If Mr. Tianru helps Tianru at this juncture, I think Tianru will definitely appreciate it, and Yizhai will probably also want to thank the Zheng family."
"I don't know where the difficulty lies..." Qian Taichong didn't understand it for a moment. He suddenly realized it before he finished speaking. He secretly cursed himself as "stupid" and said quickly, "This is a trivial matter. It's just that the student and Tianru don't know each other..."
"This is my name card. You can take it with you to Suzhou." Mr. Le took out the name card from his sleeve. "He generally knows everything about you. As long as you submit this name card, he will meet you naturally."