Chiang Kai-shek cleared his throat and said: "Wherever Ningbo people gather to make a living, there is almost always a 'Siming Public Office' or a 'Ningbo Association', which are gangs related to fellow villagers. Several counties under Ningbo Prefecture, such as Yin County,
Cixi, Fenghua, Dinghai, Zhenhai, Ninghai, Xiangshan, etc. have the largest number of people gathered in Shanghai and are the strongest. The Ningbo People's Association in Shanghai ranks first in the country's rural gangs. It has become a big climate and has the most people who have made a fortune, such as Ye
Cheng Zhong, Zhou Yangshan, Zhu Baosan, Yu Qiaqing and other famous big capitalists are all like this. The so-called 'Alarong people with good deeds' are like this."
Seeing that President Wang Hengyue listened with great interest, Chiang Kai-shek smiled and said:
"There were two 'Siming Gongsuo cases' that caused a lot of commotion. The Ningbo people organized the 'Siming Gongsuo' from their hometown and united to launch a tenacious and protracted struggle against the French Concession, which made the French very anxious.
In the courts controlled by foreigners and favoring the French, they refused to give in and fought with multiple parties. Both times, the French had no choice but to compromise, and the Ningbo people won the case and the case was closed. It became a good story for a while. The Ningbo Gang's reputation and power grew, and it became more and more important.
Feeling nostalgic..."
"Well, that's good." Wang Hengyue nodded slightly: "We need to unite, not just Ningbo, but if the whole of China unites, things in this country will be easier to handle. By the way, the Liu Hongsheng you just mentioned,
What's going on?"
Chiang Kai-shek smiled again: "This Ningbo native is quite legendary..."
...
For Liu Hongsheng, who is eager to seek business opportunities, the "Ningbo People in Shanghai Association" is his greatest hope.
The president of the "Ningbo People's Association in Shanghai" is Zhou Yangshan. Zhou Yangshan is rich and famous, and has extraordinary connections with foreign businessmen. He is a good candidate to borrow from him. Zhou Yangshan and Liu Hongsheng's father Liu Xianxi came here.
They are fellow villagers, and secondly, Liu Xianxi is shrewd, respectful, and their friendship is not bad. Liu Hongsheng also met Zhou Yangshan when he was young, and asking for help at this time will probably be helpful. Although he thought so, Liu Hongsheng was not hasty.
The government is eager to achieve success, but first understands the details and then formulates an implementation plan.
Because his father Liu Xianxi got acquainted with Zhou Yangshan through nostalgia and popularity. In terms of economic status, it was difficult to achieve. Moreover, the two families were not well-connected when Liu Xianxi was born. He has been dead for more than ten years now. More news.
We have been in contact with each other for more than ten years. The world is in a hot and cold world, and people are warm and cold. I wonder if there is still some old love? Can I write to ask for help? It is also possible that out of friendship with the fellow villagers, I made some arrangements for him, but it is just a "brief", absolutely not
Wouldn't it be in line with Liu Hongsheng's wish? To visit him? Firstly, he has no money to buy corresponding gifts. Secondly, for such a distinguished and busy person, he never knew when he would get an opportunity to be summoned alone, so how could it happen that it was the opportunity to calm down?
?
Therefore, Liu Hongsheng immediately worked hard to deeply understand Zhou Yangshan's personality and current situation. As long as Liu Hongsheng worked hard, he would do it wholeheartedly, go all out and grasp it accurately. Soon, all possible ways were passed, and then after comprehensive
After analysis, it was determined that Zhou Yangshan was a courageous, knowledgeable, tolerant and generous person. Now he has a lot of wealth and a high status. He pays more attention to reputation, respects dignity, and likes to reward promising people among his descendants. This is perfect.
After a day of preparation, Liu Hongsheng wrote a letter to Zhou Yangshan. In the letter, he just said hello, expressed his courtesy as a nephew, talked about his good impressions from his childhood, and talked about his father's sincere praise of Zhou Yangshan's character all the time in Japan.
Hongsheng regarded him as an example throughout his life. Even though his father has passed away for a long time, his words are still in his ears, which is not enough to ask for his guidance.
This first letter was not sent out, but was sent in person to a fellow villager with a high status and good reputation to work in the Zhou Mansion. Liu Hongsheng was confident that the fellow villager had a good impression of him and would speak on his behalf. At least
It attracted Zhou Yangshan's attention to this letter, so that he would not fail to read it in time or not read it carefully because he was busy or unimportant.
Sure enough, the effect was very good. Soon, Zhou Yangshan replied to the letter. Although it was short, it was affectionate, praising and inviting Liu Hongsheng. Liu Hongsheng then wrote a second letter. In addition to polite greetings, he also mentioned that his father had visited him when he was alive.
He was repeatedly told to treat Uncle Zhou as his closest relative; before his death, he was also told to listen more to Uncle Zhou's teachings on how to behave. These were sincere and appropriate to suit Zhou Yangshan's temperament. Within a few days, Zhou Yangshan took advantage of the opportunity and came to Liu's house in person.
Based on his understanding and confidence in Zhou Yangshan, Liu Hongsheng expected this, but he didn't expect it to come so quickly.
Because they had received the news in advance, the Liu family had dinner in advance and tidied the room carefully. Liu Hongsheng was waiting outside the door early.
Zhou Yangshan rode a four-wheeled carriage that had just emerged in Shanghai at that time. It was decorated with copper decorations and was very elegant. However, he drove the carriage simply and followed only a follower. After the carriage stopped and the curtain was lifted, Liu Hongsheng quickly jumped in front.
He took a step forward, bowed deeply with eagerness and joy, and said solemnly:
"My nephew respectfully wishes Mr. Zhou how well he is!"
Although Zhou Yangshan was not tall, he was very strong. He stepped in front of Liu Hongsheng with strong steps, took Liu Hongsheng's hand and made him stand up. This straightening made Zhou Yangshan, who was of medium height, look up.
Liu Hongsheng was prepared for this. When he straightened up, he bent his knees downwards. Zhou Yangshan held his shoulders and looked at him carefully. He was overjoyed and said continuously:
"Okay! Okay! Tall, big, handsome, good-looking, good-humoured, and you will have a queen, and you will have a queen!"
Liu Hongsheng lowered his hands and said solemnly:
"Thank you for the compliment! Uncle Zhou has already expressed his gratitude to me for thinking about my nephew, and now he condescends to come..."
Zhou Yangshan waved his hand and said with a chuckle:
"My family, you're welcome...you've been a long time late!"
After entering the room and sitting down, Liu Hongsheng still stood with his hands down. He behaved very appropriately as before, showing that he was not humble and sincere. Seeing Liu Hongsheng's dignified appearance and his etiquette, Zhou Yangshan, who was already very fond of him, even more
Feeling happy, he smiled cordially and gestured with his hands:
"Sit down! Sit down! Your father and I are inseparable. We are not outsiders, so why should we be polite?"
Liu Hongsheng replied respectfully: "Thank you, uncle! Thank you, uncle!"
Even though he said this, he didn't sit down yet.
Zhou Yangshan was not aggressive, but he liked him more and asked kindly about Liu Hongsheng's current situation. Liu Hongsheng knew that the time was ripe, so he frowned slightly and replied:
"My nephew lost my father's love and became a translator at the Huishen Public House. Although the money is not much, a place like that..."
At this point, he paused intentionally, and at the same time, his face became troubled.
After hearing this, Zhou Yangshan nodded repeatedly and said: "Yes! Yes! This bowl of rice is for some reason after all. You should know? That Huijian Gong's house is specially designed to trick me, the Chinese! Huh, that's right.
I, the people of Ningbo, are not easy to bully. Let’s just talk about what happened in the 32nd year of Guangxu’s reign. If I, the people of Ningbo, are not tough, I know how big a loss I will suffer!”
Liu Hongsheng said with admiration and yearning on his face:
"My nephew knows! My nephew knows! How can my nephew do such a big thing for me to be a Ningbo person? Keep it in mind? Now I am really forced to make a living, and I have no choice but to live temporarily. How can I hang around there for a long time?"
Zhou Yangshan became increasingly satisfied, twirled his beard and said with a smile:
"Easy to handle! Easy to handle! I heard that there is a vacancy for a streetwalker in the Shanghai office of Kaiping Mining Company. Although the job is not first-class, it is dignified and elegant. With your intelligence, there is a lot to be done! The monthly salary of this streetwalker
It's one hundred yuan, extra, and there's commission. The formula is that for every ton of coal sold, you can get eight yuan and four cents of silver. How much you earn depends on your ability. I think it's pretty good. You
What do you think?"
The more Liu Hongsheng listened, the happier he felt, but he didn't show it on his face. He just nodded respectfully.
Zhou Yangshan continued:
"The coal mine is a British business. The manager of the Shanghai office is also an Englishman. His name is Calder. He speaks fluent Shanghainese with a hint of Suzhou flavor. He is very familiar with me. If you are willing, please do it."
I will lead you to me and ask for this job for you myself."
Liu Hongsheng was overjoyed when he saw that things had matured and his goal had been achieved. He bowed down solemnly and said gratefully:
"Thank you so much, uncle, for your support and cultivation! My nephew has expressed his gratitude to me on behalf of my late father! I am a great virtuous man, and my nephew will always live up to his high expectations!"
At this point, Liu Hongsheng accidentally grasped Zhou Yangshan's powerful stepping stone and knocked on the door to wealth...
When Chiang Kai-shek said this, he smiled and said: "Liu Hongsheng is not a simple man. He went to work with the British. Not only did he gain a firm foothold, but he also replaced the British manager of the Shanghai office. He has monopolized the power."
"That's amazing." Wang Hengyue nodded and said, "It seems like this person is quite capable."
"Not only did the British have no complaints at all about being ignored by him, but they actually introduced him to their immediate boss in Tianjin. Do you think this is strange?"
Wang Hengyue asked curiously: "What is going on?"
...
Liu Hongsheng was summoned to go north to Tianjin and directly met with the British businessman, Steno, the chief executive of Kaiping Mining Corporation. After a brief exchange of greetings, Liu Hongsheng showed off several gifts he had brought with him and said:
"It was too late to prepare. A few local products are not respectful, but I hope you will accept them!"
Then, he introduced them one by one:
"This set of tea sets is newly made in Yixing, the capital of pottery. It is used to make tea, keep it warm, prevent it from losing flavor, and help purify it. This set of wine sets is a specialty of Jingde, the capital of porcelain. Please take a closer look: its whiteness is better than snow,
It is as thin as paper, and its sound is like fragrance. It is used to hold wine. It is elegant, light and can also add interest. Here is a selection of two kilograms of good tea, Biluochun, which is not respectful, not respectful!"
Listening to everything, Steno became more and more interested. In addition, Liu Hongsheng's sincere demeanor, decent demeanor, and concise language made Steno feel more cordial and even moved his index finger!
Just as he opened his mouth to praise, Liu Hongsheng unexpectedly said slowly:
"There is one more small gift. Because it is inconvenient to carry, I will keep it in the store and bring it to you tomorrow. Sir, does he know the famous bar that Emperor Qianlong liked the most during his six visits to Jiangnan?"
In fact, he had known for a long time that Stono knew about it and was very fond of it, but he was just trying to hide it.
Sure enough, Stenuo shouted with even greater interest:
"No. 1 Red! No. 1 Red! Good wine, good wine! Mild and mellow, your Jiangnan treasure, it is the pride of you Chinese people!" (To be continued.)..ge