1928: The rise of giant merchants

Public concession, Bai Mansion.

Bai Xiongqi yawned and waited in the living room. It was almost twelve o'clock, and someone actually called and said they wanted to visit him.

If the other person was not Ye Luo, whom he had already decided on as his brother-in-law, Bai Xiongqi felt that he could be so angry that he could twist the other person's head off.

Mrs. Bai who was waiting at the door heard the doorbell ringing, opened the door immediately, took Ye Luo's coat and hat, and asked with concern: "Aluo, do you want something to eat?"

"No need to bother, sister-in-law, I'll just have a cup of coffee." Ye Luo followed her into the house, while Shi Jianqiao stayed in the car and did not come in, "Where's Brother Bai?"

"Waiting for you on the sofa." Mrs. Bai shouted inside, "Bo Yan, Aluo is here!"

"Brother Ye Luo~"

The sound of slippers came from the second floor, and the sleepy Bai Xiuzhu ran over in a hurry and threw herself into his arms like flying.

Ye Luo opened his hands and hugged her, and lovingly touched Bai Xiuzhu's little head: "Didn't I say you were already asleep?"

"I woke up when I heard you were coming~" Bai Xiuzhu nuzzled into his arms, enjoying the warm embrace.

The two haven't seen each other for a long time. As the wedding day approaches, Bai Xiuzhu's love for him seems to be getting stronger and stronger, and she can't wait to move to Ye Mansion.

Seeing their sweet looks, Bai Xiongqi coughed, but he was very satisfied in his heart.

Zhang Dingyao was right, Ye Luo was their lucky star. Since agreeing to his sister's marriage, Bai Xiong has had good luck, turned bad luck into good fortune, and made rapid progress in his official career. His colleagues in the city government are envious.

The two sat down opposite Bai Xiongqi, and Bai Xiuzhu, who was sleepy again, just sat in Ye Luo's arms, not looking like a lady at all.

Mrs. Bai sat down next to Bai Xiongqi and looked at her only sister with love on her face.

During the Republic of China, women's tutoring was very strict. In other wealthy families, Bai Xiuzhu's behavior would have been severely reprimanded.

Only Bai Xiongqi and his wife could tolerate her various childish behaviors and eldest lady's temper, and were reluctant to discipline her.

"Aluo, why are you looking for me so late?" Bai Xiongqi took a sip of his coffee and asked with a smile, "By the way, we just finished discussing Rendan during the day, so I just want to talk to you."

"Brother, you say it first." Ye Luo nodded while holding the coffee cup.

The Rendan incident is related to the black gauze hat on Zhang Dingyao's head. The problem is that he doesn't act quickly.

If the city government keeps delaying, Ye Luo will suspect that they are also involved in the Suzuki Hospital business, and then the matter will be serious.

"Mayor Zhang has ordered a thorough investigation of the Rendan issue, and Suzuki Hospital has also been temporarily sealed off, but..." Bai Xiongqi glanced at him, shook his head and said, "I think this matter will only end with a big thunder and a small rain. "

"Is it because Suzuki Hospital is backed by the Japanese Consulate?" Ye Luo felt slightly regretful.

After Morishita Hiroshi took out the letter from Shigemitsu Gui, Ye Luo realized that this group of people would most likely be protected by the Japanese army or even the embassy in Peiping. He just wanted to use the Rendan advertisement painting as a clue that was difficult to verify. Convicting them is simply a fantasy.

But as long as this series of events can affect the sales of Ren Dan, replace it with his Dragon Tiger Human Pill, and ruin the reputation of Suzuki Hospital, that will be enough.

"This is just one aspect. You should know better than me when doing business. Foreigners have too many privileges in Shanghai. Unless it's dog-eat-dog between them, it will be difficult for us to intervene in this matter." Bai Xiongqi nodded slightly, "Do you remember the tram Was the driver tortured and killed by French soldiers? As far as I know, the five soldiers responsible will board the ship returning home from Shiliupu Pier in the near future."

"Commander Xiong let him go like this?" Ye Luo raised his eyebrows.

Although he knew that no matter how hard he tried, it would be difficult for these murderers to be brought to justice, but hearing the news that they were about to escape, Ye Luo's chest still froze.

"Then what can be done? Consul General Verdi brought a personal letter from the ambassador, and others also said that the demands for apology, compensation, closure of brothels and bars, etc. have been met one by one. Since the late Qing Dynasty, the French have not done anything like this. If you want to detain other people's citizens and even put them on trial despite such big concessions, that will cause a serious diplomatic conflict." Bai Xiongqi spread his hands, "So, the same goes for Rendan, Suzuki Hospital will be blocked, Chief Zhang is worried that they are also involved in the conspiracy to poison him, but the issues you mentioned will not lead to a big fight at all."

"Is spying a minor problem?" Ye Luo looked at Bai Xiongqi and said in a cold voice, "Brother, that tram driver is also a living person."

"Human life? Aluo, people are killed every day in Shanghai. What does this mean?" Bai Xiongqi looked at him in confusion, "By the way, you weren't involved in Rendan's matter, were you?"

He was a little worried that Ye Luo was so keen on this matter that he was secretly involved in something.

That was a case closely related to Zhang Dingyao's poisoning. No matter whether it was good or bad, it was not a good thing to get caught up in it.

Looking at him, Ye Luo probably guessed the views and attitudes of the people in the general office towards things like spies and foreigners killing Chinese, and he became more and more disappointed.

The evolution of the Republic of China period into the Anti-Japanese War period was the result of the superposition of various factors.

The arrogance and domineering of the Japanese invaders, the various privileges of the foreigners in the concession, the inaction of the National Government, the hardship of the people at the bottom, the backward technology and industrial level, etc.

As for the National Government, which had the greatest power and military strength, its internal corruption and inaction were the root cause of the country's deficit and the Japanese invaders taking advantage of it.

Ye Luo finally understood that these politicians were really unreliable.

Even a brother-in-law like Bai Xiongqi can't do it.

"I wasn't involved, but seeing that Rendan was about to collapse, I took advantage of the situation and used the Kadoorie family's pharmaceutical factory to get new medicines." Ye Luo said as he took out several boxes of Longhuren Dan from his pocket and gave them one box each. .

"Well, it's so cool!" Bai Xiuzhu took one pill and suddenly became more awake. She played with the packaging box curiously, "This little pill tastes good, and it is very close to the taste of Ren Dan."

"How effective is the medicine?" Bai Xiongqi took a few pills. Since Ye Luo dared to give it to them, it meant that there was at least no problem. "We have been taking the Rendan from Suzuki Hospital. The effectiveness of the medicine can only be said to be average. It is better because it is cheap and does not cause any problems." alternatives."

"Nourishes yin and nourishes yang, refreshes the mind and replenishes nutrition. This is the main effect of our Dragon Tiger Man Pill. I can't say how effective it is, but it is certainly no worse than Rendan." Ye Luo smiled and picked up the small iron box. , "Such a box contains a total of 555 pills, which can be taken eight times a day, ranging from 5 to 10 pills each time. A box sells for 50 cents and 5 cents, which is cheap and affordable."

"Five cents and five cents?" Madam Bai asked with a smile, "Is there anything special about this price?"

"It's nothing special. It's just to let the guests have some impression of the Dragon Tiger Man Pill. Well, I have to say, it's similar to the pricing of 9.9 or 0.99." Ye Luo pointed to the blank space on the small iron box. "Brother, I plan to print some monthly advertisements here and inside. Wherever Rendan advertises from now on, we will do publicity next to them. I believe that after this incident, we can grab at least half of Rendan's market."

"Haha, if you can really hit Ren Dan, that would be a great thing." Bai Xiongqi patted his thigh. I have to say that his brother-in-law is extremely capable in business and makes people amazed every time. "Lu The massacre in the provincial capital has not yet passed, and the public's resistance to Japanese goods is very strong. If you can take advantage of the situation and rise, it will be much more meaningful than making a dance club or making a movie."

"I came here this time to ask big brother for a favor." Ye Luo told the story about Zheng Mantuo being forced to close his book.

"It's easy to talk to the Art Association. They mainly want our general office to let them go, and they don't dare to interfere. As for the Propaganda Department, I don't know who gave the order. Anyway, I will ask tomorrow. Don't worry, the Propaganda Department has a good relationship with our Military and Political Department. "It's not a big problem to let one person go." Bai Xiongqi thought it was something difficult, but it turned out to be just a small business issue. He waved his hand and naturally he could directly agree to Ye Luo for such a small matter.

After receiving Bai Xiongqi's reply, Ye Luo smiled and thanked him, preparing to go to Zheng Mantuo with Lu Meisheng tomorrow.

I have to say that his brother-in-law is now in full swing, and it is indeed very convenient for him to do business.

The two continued to chat, and Ye Luo mentioned the cooperation between Hua and Germany. Bai Xiongqi recently heard that the German military advisory group will arrive in Shanghai before the end of the year, and also hinted that he should establish a good relationship with Zhang Dingyao as soon as possible and open up the network of people on the Jinling side for convenience. They will start a military business next year.

Ye Luo smiled and agreed, but didn't take it seriously.

Zhang Dingyao did not survive the next year. After his illness became serious, he had to return to Jinling to resign and then go abroad to recuperate.

After he left, the top leader was replaced by Zhang Qun.

If you have a good relationship with this person, your business will be booming next year.

Of course, Ye Luo did not plan to discuss this matter with Bai Xiongqi in detail for the time being, lest he think too much and contact Zhang Qun too early, which would make Zhang Dingyao unhappy.

The upcoming November will also see the "Jiang'an Lun" incident. This case is of no small importance and has directly shaken the political and business structure of Shanghai. It is the last major event that Ye Luo needs to pay attention to this year.

Before leaving, Ye Luo hugged Bai Xiuzhu. Bai Xiongqi and his wife sent them to the door. Seeing Ye Luo getting into the car, Bai Xiongqi suddenly saw him turn around suddenly and asked himself: "Brother, what did you say?" If the accident happened not to an ordinary tram driver but to Xiuzhu, would you let those French soldiers leave?"