Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 401 Futures [11,000 words, please vote for me! 】

At the same time, in the Imperial College.

Xun Zhan was reading "Spring and Autumn" in the room on duty.

"Master?" A servant's voice sounded outside.

"What's the matter?"

"Master Wang invites you!"

…

"Teacher, you came to me, but what can my disciple do for you?" Xun Zhan stood respectfully. He was wearing a blue official robe, and he seemed to have lost the domineering aura he had when he was wearing a scarlet robe.

The person in front of him had gray hair and a white beard, but he was still energetic. He was Wang Jing, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites.

Wang Jing sat on the futon with his hands on his knees.

"It's difficult to look at sex. If you have something to do, I'll do my best. If you have wine and food, do you ever think you're filial?"

Of course Xun Zhan understood what Wang Jing told him about the sentence "Zi Xia asked about the filial piety chapter" in "The Analects of Confucius·Wei Zheng Second". The focus was not on the last word, but on the first word.

On the surface, Confucius is talking about "color", but actually he is talking about inner feelings. Color arises from the heart.

"Mencius: The Best of the Heart" says: The nature of a gentleman is benevolence, righteousness, benefit and wisdom rooted in the heart. Its color is visible on the face, abundant on the back, and applied to the four bodies. The four bodies are self-evident. "

This means that you can understand what your heart is like, its body movements and facial expressions without hearing the words, and you can make them according to your true heart.

Xun Zhan was ashamed and said: "Disciple has been taught."

"You, being demoted is a good thing."

Wang Jing pointed at Xun Zhan's nose unceremoniously and said: "When you are a young minister, your tail will be raised to the sky. Look at what Hu Yan will be like after he is transferred from the cabinet and promoted to the Imperial College. Then? That’s called stability!”

Hearing this, Xun Zhan, who was already feeling guilty, lowered his head and remained silent.

"You are still young, remember not to be arrogant. If you are not careful, not only will your family suffer, but even the Great Luo Jinxian will not be able to save you!"

After that, Wang Jing let out a long sigh and continued to rest with his eyes closed, as if he called Xun Zhan over just to teach him a lesson.

But Xun Zhan knew that the teacher was not just trying to vent his anger on him. After all, the last case of the Champa Mission's wounding case had put him in trouble as a student. But as his mentor and supporter, Wang Jing's face was so bad. Does it look good?

Since he and Wang Jing have so many interests involved, and they are his disciples, and they are closely involved with the Wang family, and he is at a disadvantage, doesn't Wang Jing have any opinions and anger? After all, you need to give some reaction.

Xun Zhan thought about all the things he had encountered during this period, and he couldn't help but couldn't accept the gap between the ups and downs. His mood became more and more gloomy, and hatred welled up in his heart.

But Xun Zhan could only say again: "Disciple, please follow the teachings of my teacher."

Seeing that Wang Jing was silent, several servants also hurriedly exited the room and closed the door.

"No need to be polite, just sit down and listen to what I have to say."

"Yes! Thank you, my mentor, for the seat!" Xun Zhan picked up a futon and replied respectfully.

Wang Jing's tone softened a lot: "At your age and with such an official position, you can be said to be an important part of the imperial court. However, not everyone in this court loves you as much as a teacher. Don't do it because of some small things. If you make a mistake, you will let down your guard and let others take advantage of it.”

Xun Zhan even claimed that it was, but after seeing the three beatings, the disciple showed no sign of impatience. Wang Jing nodded with satisfaction and finally got to the point.

"Well... I heard that you have been having a hard time in the Imperial College recently. I happen to have an errand for you to do. I wonder if you are willing to do it?" Wang Jing slowly opened his eyes and looked at Xun Zhan who was sitting in front of him. asked.

Although the tone was inquiring, he believed that his students would not refuse this opportunity.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Xun Zhan, who had lowered his head, suddenly raised his head and looked at his teacher excitedly, his lips trembling slightly.

"May I ask the teacher what needs the students to do? If it can be completed, the students will do their best and there will be no shirk!"

"Hahahaha!" Wang Jing laughed.

He admires this most about his students. If he is determined about anything, he will not give up even if he is pulled by nine oxen. Such a person is undoubtedly the best knife to use.

Wang Jing suppressed his smile, first gave the reward, and said, "I talked with Huang Shangshu today. He is short of people. I plan to let you go to the Ministry of Works to be in charge of the Yu Heng Qing Officials Department."

Yu Hengqing officials!

Xun Zhan's breathing became rapid. There were four departments in the Ministry of Industry, and each department was not simple. Yu Heng, the Qing official, was in charge of manufacturing, sending and receiving various official utensils, and was in charge of weights and measures and coining. He was an out-and-out fat man. , not to mention the oil and water in the official utensils, just by minting money every year, the money passed through the hands is a huge number.

The difference between being transferred from a deputy in the Qingshui Yamen, such as the Imperial College Si Ye, to a supervisory official in a department, such as Yu Heng, the Qing Li Department of the Ministry of Works, is self-evident.

"Teacher, is this..." Although Xun Zhan knew very well that this job was a compensation given to him by the teacher and he should accept it, he still felt a little dreamy.

And the most important thing is that the teacher has not told him what errand he is going to do.

Although the official position is tempting, Xun Zhan still has to weigh the pros and cons.

"Do you think that being a teacher will harm you?" Wang Jing looked at Xun Zhan with a straight face when he saw this.

"Disciples don't dare."

"Hmph!" Wang Jing snorted coldly: "You kid, you are usually smart and smart, but today you are confused."

After that, Wang Jing told him what Xi Zhan could hear about the goods of the merchants accompanying the Japanese mission, and then continued in this way.

After saying that, Wang Jing patted him on the shoulder and said, "Work hard. I hope you can sit in the position of being a teacher in the future."

Although Xun Zhan looked embarrassed, he gritted his teeth when he thought of the darkest moment in his career that Jiang Xinghuo had brought to him.

Wang Jing also knew that this matter was indeed a bit difficult, and he had to go all out to do it, but he had no choice. There were too few people who could trust this kind of thing. In order to give Xun Zhan some reassurance, Wang Jingyi gave some advice. : "Is the Spring and Autumn Annals I gave you ready to be read?"

Xun Zhan was currently engaged in a battle between heaven and man. After being interrupted, he said a little distractedly: "Read it."

"Do you understand the truth about Zheng Bo's Duan Yu Yan in "Spring and Autumn"?"

Xun Zhan just nodded mechanically, not knowing whether he really didn't understand or was pretending to be stupid. Wang Jing stopped trying to hide it and told a story from the past.

"In the twelfth year of Hongwu, when I had completed my three-year mourning period, my recommender at that time, Zhejiang Chief Envoy An Ran, recommended me to serve in Beijing. I served as the day officer in the Hanlin Academy, attending court meetings, and later on the night shift. The hearing officer serves at the side of Emperor Taizu Gao."

Xun Zhan said quickly: "I know that at that time, the teacher was widely read and wrote "The Story of the Bell and Drum Towers of the Capital City". It was beautifully written and famous in the capital. It was appreciated by Emperor Taizu Gao, who was also ordered to compose the "Chao Xing Le Zhang" and "The Fan Dynasty". "Dynasty Court Ceremony", these things that the Ministry of Etiquette regarded as rules are still in use today."

"It's none of these."

Wang Jing shook his head: "September 25, the twelfth year of Hongwu. I will never forget this day in my life. It was also the day when the Champa Kingdom came to pay tribute."

When Xun Zhan heard about the Champa State mission, he instinctively felt a little uncomfortable, but then he thought of something, and then thought of the teacher's sentence "Zheng Bike Duan Yu Yan", and he couldn't help but feel horrified.

"That night, a eunuch came to the palace to report to Emperor Taizu Gao, saying that Prime Minister Hu Weiyong and others did not report the matter. Emperor Taizu Gao was furious and asked the prime minister of Zhongshu Province and the ministers on duty to come into the palace to explain. Hu Weiyong and Wang Guangyang kowtowed to apologize, but secretly blamed the blame on the Ministry of Rites, and the Minister of Rites blamed the Ministry of Education. I saw this with my own eyes. Later, the Hu Weiyong case broke out, tens of thousands of officials were implicated, and the position of prime minister was permanently abolished, and After revolutionizing the Zhongshu Province, it was strictly stipulated that the successor king was not allowed to appoint a prime minister again, and any minister who dared to petition for the establishment of a prime minister would be severely punished."

Wang Jing recalled that bloody past, but he didn't have much interest. Instead, he was a little less interested. He just said lightly: "After the abolition of the prime minister and the Zhongshu Province, their powers were divided into six parts. The emperor has the supreme power. Power, but how many years have passed now? The cabinet is vaguely a small minister, so the imperial advisor is not a small prime minister? They are just different terms, but the essence is still the same, they are both help and threat to the imperial power."

Wang Jing's turbid old eyes looked at Xun Zhan: "Do you think that Hu Weiyong really committed so many heinous crimes? Do you think that because he was innocent and had no desires, Emperor Taizu Gao would not kill him? Wrong! Big mistake. Damn! People in this position are close to the imperial power. The cleaner they are and have no weaknesses, the faster they will die. There is no way they can survive even if they are covered in shit. Was it all Prime Minister Qin Hui’s idea to kill Yue Fei? Qin Hui was sixty years old when he died. At the age of six, he was given the posthumous title of King Shen, with the posthumous title of 'Zhongxian', do you understand?"

"Disciple understands!"

After hearing this heart-wrenching remarks, Xun Zhan felt as if he had been fished out of the water. There was sweat everywhere on his body. He said hurriedly.

"Well, this matter has been settled. After you go back, you can find some trustworthy people to arrange it. In addition, please do not make this matter public."

"Yes, disciple understands."

…

After Xun Zhan left, Wang Jing was left alone in the room.

Wang Jing's attitude certainly made Xi Zhan feel that his future was bright, and even made the frustration caused by the Champa mission a few days ago much lessened. However, as the leader, Wang Jing was not so optimistic.

This time his goal is to be promoted to Minister!

If you want to be promoted to minister and reach the pinnacle of civil servants in the Ming Dynasty, you must please the emperor. But the emperor's attitude is erratic. The emperor can dislike someone, but he still has to use it. It's better to reuse; you can also think that a person is pleasing to the eye, but he won't promote you.

Therefore, if you want to be promoted to minister, in addition to having sufficient qualifications and abilities, you must also do something that satisfies the emperor enough to be rewarded by the minister.

Although Zhuo Jing, the Minister of Rites, is with Jiang Xinghuo and Wang Jing is at odds with him, Zhuo Jing cannot stop some of Wang Jing's actions. After all, Wang Jing has been in the Ministry of Rites for much longer than Zhuo Jing. From top to bottom, 60 to 70% of them are his people, which is not an exaggeration at all.

Of course, even so, unless Zhuo Jing commits a serious crime, Zhuo Jing's position cannot be replaced by others, and this depends on Xun Zhan.

"Jiang Xinghuo, I will take back the Shangshu that you helped Zhuo Jing take away from me."

——————

The next day, we will meet in the museum.

Unlike the bustling Japanese missions, the original camps in Annan and Champa are now empty due to the Chen Zuyi pirate gang pretending to be the mission of the Champa country.

Pei Wenli, who faked his death, was placed elsewhere, so in fact only Chen Tianping, the "grandson of Prince Annan", was left here.

"The Japanese want to drink with me? Talk about business?"

Chen Tianping was reading "Ming Pao" in the room at this time, reading the novel written by Jiang Xinghuo. At this time, he suddenly heard that the Japanese were looking for him to discuss business. He immediately frowned and thought to himself: "These Japanese What do you want to do?"

Looking at the Jin Yiwei that Jiang Xinghuo arranged for him as a bodyguard, Chen Tianping asked:

"Are you sure it's the Japanese who want to see me?"

"Sure."

Although he received an affirmative answer, Chen Tianping had a difficult life since he was a child. He had been wandering around for so many years and knew that the world was dangerous and the city was quite deep. Therefore, he still did not take it lightly at this time. Instead, he asked cautiously: "Has the other party brought any gifts? ? Or bring other things to prove your identity?"

The Jin Yiwei knew about the case of the Champa State mission's injury some time ago, and also understood Chen Tianping's concerns, so he replied: "Wait a moment, I will check with the Jin Yiwei over there."

Not long after, a high-level Jin Yiwei came over. This man's facial features were obvious. Half of his face was disfigured, but the other side was intact. It looked a bit like burns.

Chen Tianping also knew him, and it was none other than Qianhu Cao Song, the deputy of the Jin Yiwei who often followed Jiang Xinghuo.

Cao Song closed the door and whispered something in his ear beside him.

"What a great benefit?"

Chen Tianping nodded when he heard this: "Okay! In that case, then I will go meet these Japanese people."

Looking at Cao Song's leaving figure, Chen Tianping was thoughtful.

There was no doubt that this was a hint from Jiang Xinghuo, but why the other party neither came forward nor told him clearly was because he obviously didn't want to be seen interfering in it, or in other words, he couldn't let others catch him.

Chen Tianping is not a person who cares about friendship. Although Jiang Xinghuo helped him a little, he had already paid off the debt after signing the deed of state-consecration, which was enough for the ancestors of the Chen Dynasty to raise their coffins from their graves. For minor matters, additional calculations will be made.

Although Jiang Xinghuo hinted that it would be of great help to his restoration, he refused to explain, which undoubtedly made Chen Tianping a little curious for no reason.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Tianping immediately changed into more formal clothes, tied daggers on his arms and calves, and put a bag of lime powder in his pocket. Then he walked out of the room where he lived and went to another place in the Huitong Hall to meet him. The Japanese went.

The Japanese camp was at the corner at the end of the corridor of a courtyard. As soon as Chen Tianping walked over and entered the room, he saw a middle-aged man wearing a kimono with a tachi and a ribband on his waist, kneeling on the tatami. His men stood beside him respectfully.

This is obviously the Japanese representative who will discuss cooperation with Chen Tianping today - Ryotoshi Imagawa.

"Imagawa-kun, I have long admired your name."

Chen Tianping walked forward quickly, stopped in front of the small table, and smiled at Imakawa Ryojun and said hello.

"Chen Sang."

Hearing the voice, Imakawa Ryojun raised his head and looked at Chen Tianping, with a strange light shining in his eyes.

Imagawa Ryojun didn't hide his gaze for too long. He calmed down after just a moment, and then showed a kind smile and said: "Chen Sang, it's our first time meeting you. I'm here to discuss a big deal with you. I hope you don't mind. My rashness.”

"No, we have plenty of time today, let's talk slowly."

"That's good."

Imakawa Ryojun said politely, and after speaking, he extended his hand to invite Chen Tianping to sit down. Chen Tianping did not refuse and immediately knelt down and sat down opposite the small table.

Afterwards, the two parties exchanged a few pleasantries, and then Chen Tianping turned his attention to Chuan Liaojun's entourage.

These Japanese samurai are all young, mostly in their twenties. They are ordinary-looking and inconspicuous among the crowd. In addition, they are also pushing a small cart filled with various kinds of things. documents and information.

As if aware of the doubts in Chen Tianping's eyes, Imakawa Ryojun smiled and said: "Chen Sang, for the sake of confidentiality, I can only ask you to stay here alone to talk, because this batch of documents involves more than 100,000 taels of silver. The transaction of goods must only be seen by people who can be trusted, otherwise the secret will be exposed."

In the current fifteenth century, South American silver and Japanese silver, which have the largest reserves in the world, have not been mined on a large scale. The price of silver is very strong. The total amount of goods worth more than 100,000 taels of silver is not a small amount anywhere.

"understand."

Chen Tianping nodded suddenly.

"but."

Chen Tianping's expression was a little subtle, "Imagawa-kun may not be aware of the situation below."

"Clear, of course it's clear!"

Imagawa Liaojun laughed loudly. He was very aware of Chen Tianping's financial resources. To put it simply, he was just eating and drinking in the Ming Dynasty with a shameless face.

Not to mention that Chen Tianping couldn't eat the goods of more than 100,000 taels of silver. Even if the other party had 10 taels of silver in his pocket, Imagawa Ryojun would have a question mark.

But if today's matter is to be accomplished, it must be this person. It must be this pauper whose only name is "Annan Prince".

"Last night, when I went on a night trip to Lake Mochou with Duke Cao Guo of the Ming Dynasty and the Imperial Preceptor, the Imperial Preceptor introduced you to me. The Imperial Preceptor admired you very much."

"."

Chen Tianping suddenly thought that Cao Song said the same thing when he introduced Imakawa Ryojun to him.

It seems that the Imperial Master's vision of "appreciating people" is quite consistent.

However, since the other party moved out of Jiang Xinghuo, Chen Tianping knew that the whole thing must have been under the shadow of Jiang Xinghuo. With the acquiescence and help of this big shot in the Ming Dynasty, Chen Tianping felt a little at ease. .

He is still quite valuable to Jiang Xinghuo. If there is no greater overwhelming benefit, Jiang Xinghuo will definitely not harm himself and then destroy his plan.

Ryotoshi Imagawa continued: "This batch of goods, nominally speaking, is actually our Japanese mission who fell in love with Chen Sang at first sight. After hearing the story of the Annan Hu family and his son usurping the country, we were very angry and decided to donate all of them to Chen Sang for free. To help Chen Sang recover his country."

"Chen Sang, we have clearly estimated the transaction amount of this batch of goods."

With that said, Imagawa Ryojun took out a piece of paper and handed it to Chen Tianping: "The total estimated value of the goods is"

Chen Tianping took it and glanced down at it. Looking at the numbers on the paper, he couldn't help but take a breath of air.

——156,000,000 articles.

156 million copper coins is equivalent to about 120,000 to 130,000 taels of silver. This amount of money is enough to arm a sizable army simply based on purchasing power to buy food.

Of course, Chen Tianping knew that these goods were not given to him for free. The idea of ​​helping him regain his country at first sight was a lie. Chen Tianping knew very well what value he had. He was an "Annan" of the lineage of the deposed emperor, which he could recognize or not. "Wang Sun", the other party must be here for this name.

So, why do the Japanese need their own name?

Chen Tianping was smart enough and could even be called cunning. It took almost no effort for him to figure out the key points.

Of course, this is because Japan does not have a formal tribute trade relationship with the Ming Dynasty, but Annan does with the Ming Dynasty. Now that the throne of Annan has been usurped by the Hu family, he actually represents Annan on the Ming side. After all, Emperor Yongle summoned him not long ago. He personally acknowledged his legitimacy.

Therefore, as long as this batch of goods is transferred to your own name, you can legally sell it. As long as you acknowledge it, there is no reason for Daming to stop it.

And his name is his only value. Of course he can't trade it away easily. He must get enough benefits. This benefit is probably what Jiang Xinghuo said it can bring to him.

After thinking about this clearly, Chen Tianping said to Imakawa Ryojun: "I can help you sell these goods. How much can I get from it?"

Imakawa Ryojun took out another deed and handed it to Chen Tianping, in duplicate, which meant that after giving Chen Tianping hush money, this thing could only be kept by Imakawa Ryojun.

Chen Tianping read the contract carefully. Fortunately, when drafting the contract, Imagawa Ryotoshi did not mention anything else. He followed the normal cooperation content and had no intention of cheating.

If the only shortcoming is that he is the only one who knows about this cooperation, and as long as he signs the contract and takes the money, the deed will be established, and the deed will not remain in his hands.

But Chen Tianping was not worried at all. After all, although the money obtained through the transfer of his own name was not a small amount, it was still a drop in the bucket compared to the total amount of goods. Since Jiang Xinghuo had tacit approval, even if he If you can't get the deed, the other party won't hack you. After all, this is Daming's territory. If you go too far, Jiang Xinghuo will naturally take action.

"How is it? How is Chen Sang thinking about it? At this price, I think it won't be a loss if you change the name?"

Seeing that Chen Tianping was silent, Imagawa Ryojun asked again.

Hearing this, Chen Tianping took a deep breath and knew it was time to make a decision. He nodded and said, "Money and silk are very tempting, but I have a condition."

"Tell me about it." Imagawa Ryojun said.

"I am willing to give up part of the benefits, but I hope Imagawa-kun can lend me some people and come back with me."

Imagawa Ryojun raised his eyebrows slightly: "Does Chen Sang want to hire some warriors?"

"That's right!"

Chen Tianping looked at the samurai around Imagawa Ryojun and nodded, and continued: "I heard that many samurai in Japan became pirates after the end of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Their combat prowess is generally good, so I want to hire Imagawa Jun. A group of well-trained personal guards are used to handle some private affairs for me. After all, there will be many situations like the previous Champa State mission, and I can't stay in Ming Dynasty all the time. In this way, I will inevitably encounter to some danger."

Imagawa Ryotoshi nodded in agreement after hearing this: "I can understand your idea, but my manpower is not generous, and real samurai are not so easy to recruit. It is not just a matter of giving a sum of money, but first of all, each of them The monthly cost is high, and secondly, the additional rewards they get after each mission are also quite expensive.”

At this point, Imagawa Ryoujun paused slightly, and then continued: "Of course, the most important thing is Daming's attitude."

"I understand, I will go and see the Imperial Master in person."

At this point, Chen Tianping did not go any further.

He knew that if Imagawa Ryojun did not provide him with a bodyguard, everything else would be secondary. The most important thing was Daming, or Jiang Xinghuo's attitude. After all, if he was armed, Jiang Xinghuo's control over him would weaken, and To untie the bell, the person who tied the bell had to be tied. To solve this problem, he still had to talk to Jiang Xinghuo in person.

But not recently.

After all, Jiang Xinghuo personally planned and instructed him to meet with Imagawa Ryojun, but he never came forward because he didn't want to get involved. Before the matter was completed, Chen Tianping asked to see Jiang either openly or privately. Starfire will definitely be severely rejected, so don't ask for trouble.

But this is also what Chen Tianping is worried about. After all, the relationship between him and Imakawa Ryotoshi is not deep, and their mutual trust has not reached a level that can be trusted. Moreover, there are still various interests entangled in the transaction process. In this way First of all, if you want to truly trust Imagawa Ryoujun, and there is no middleman, it is really difficult for Chen Tianping, who is weak and weak.

But soon, he put these distracting thoughts behind him.

After all, he also needs money right now, and he needs it urgently.

As long as Imakawa Ryojun doesn't play any tricks, he is willing to try a deal.

After thinking about this, he spoke again: "I have no objection, so be it, Imagawa-kun, when do you think we will sign the deed?"

"The sooner the better!"

"Well, let's sign it now."

Chen Tianping hesitated for a moment and decided to make a quick decision.

After all, the later the time is delayed, the greater the probability of something going wrong, and who might find out the clues!

"no problem!"

Imagawa Ryojun readily agreed, then asked his subordinates to bring him a writing brush, scrawled his name in Chinese characters, pressed a bright red fingerprint and handed it to Chen Tianping.

"Sign and pledge."

"good!"

Chen Tianping checked it carefully again, signed his name at the end of the deed on the spot, and then pressed his fingerprint.

Seeing this scene, Imakawa Ryojun smiled.

Although he had expected this outcome, after seeing Chen Tianping actually sign the deed, he still couldn't help but feel a strong sigh in his heart.

Although Jiang Xinghuo told him the method and helped him prepare for this transaction, he was already prepared for the lion to open his mouth.

He had even thought of various ways to deal with Chen Tianping.

But he just didn't expect that Chen Tianping didn't even think about bargaining and signed the contract directly.

Could it be that Chen Tianping didn't know how to fight for his own interests?

of course not!

You know, before this, Imagawa Ryojun also specially sent people to bribe the officials of the Ministry of Rites of the Huitong Hall to investigate Chen Tianping.

In the last case of the Champa Mission's wounding case, Chen Tianping showed amazing calmness, agility, and meticulousness. Imagawa Ryojun originally thought that Chen Tianping was a cunning and shrewd person, and would definitely bargain with him constantly. But now it seems that he was wrong.

This courage impressed him.

What's even more rare is that Chen Tianping is very confident in Jiang Xinghuo's credibility, which is what he admires most about Chen Tianping.

Jiang Xinghuo is really the most amazing person Imagawa Ryojun has ever seen in his life. A matter that was originally extremely difficult was solved easily by Jiang Xinghuo. The wisdom reflected in it is really amazing.

Moreover, signing a contract with Chen Tianping to transfer the goods carried by these Japanese businessmen to the name of Chen Tianping, the grandson of the Annan prince, in the name of "free support for the Annan Restoration Movement" is only the first step of the entire plan, which was yesterday Jiang Xinghuo told him.

He had to complete this step before meeting Li Jinglong in person to find out the next step of the plan.

Thinking of this, the look on Imakawa Ryojun's face instantly became extremely solemn: "Now that the contract has been signed, Chen Sang, I hope we can become very good friends in the future."

"Haha, I definitely will."

Chen Tianping laughed heartily, and he also believed that this was an opportunity for him to establish a good relationship with Imakawa Ryojun.

After all, Imagawa Ryotoshi is a big shot in Japan. Being able to get close to such a person will definitely help him gain a foothold in Annan after returning to China.

After everything was settled, the two chatted for a while, and then Chen Tianping left.

Imagawa Ryojun stayed there and waited quietly for half an hour, then walked out of the station with the deed, got on a carriage and rushed straight to the manor on the outskirts of the city to meet Li Jinglong.

——————

Tangshan is located due east of Zhongshan, about forty miles away from Nanjing city.

And at the location of the hot spring at the foot of Tangshan Mountain, there is a garden villa, which is the property of Cao Guogong's mansion.

This villa covers a very large area, and its architectural style is similar to Suzhou gardens, full of Jiangnan style.

But the servant standing guard at the door exuded a strong murderous aura.

Not only that, Bieye is surrounded by servants patrolling with knives. The defense is so tight that it can be said to be watertight.

"The master of the house is waiting for you inside."

Just when Imagawa Ryojun arrived in front of the gate of the villa, a family general dressed in smart clothes greeted him respectfully.

It stands to reason that they can actually wear armor. The third-class nobles and princes have different numbers of legal quotas for wearing armor in their families. Military equipment such as iron armor and crossbows that are not allowed to be held by civilians is not a difficult thing for them, but here After all, he was under the emperor's feet, so he usually wore no armor, lest the emperor find out and think someone was trying to harm him.

After the guard at the gate confirmed that it was correct, he let him go directly.

Imakawa Ryojun nodded slightly and said, "Take me to see His Majesty the General."

"plz follow me!"

Cao Ada nodded and walked into the other industry with Imagawa Ryojun.

In front of a hot spring courtyard, Cao Ada stopped, turned to Imagawa Ryojun and said, "The master of the house is waiting for you inside, please come in."

"Thanks."

Imakawa Ryojun nodded and walked in immediately.

The mist rises in the natural hot spring pool, and two men can be vaguely seen sitting in the pool with their eyes closed and meditating. It is Li Jinglong and his brother Li Zengzhi.

Li Zengzhi is the second son of Li Wenzhong, King of Qiyang. If Li Jinglong inherited part of his father's military talent, then it can be said that Li Zengzhi did not inherit any of it and was only interested in making money. In recent years, relying on the power of Duke Cao's government, he has There are many farms everywhere, and each village often has hundreds or even thousands of tenants. Although it is a bit exceeded, Li Wenzhong is Zhu Yuanzhang's nephew. Li Jinglong and Li Zengzhi are of the same generation as Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Gaochi, and Zhu Gaoxu, and they are serious The top nobles were relatives of the emperor, so the censors turned a blind eye.

However, Li Jinglong's courage to say "somewhat wealthy" was obviously due to Li Zengzhi's vigorous efforts to make money when he was not at home.

"Signed?"

"It's signed and stamped."

Imagawa Ryotoshi put down his clothes and the deed under the service of the maid, and then entered the hot spring pool wrapped in a sweat towel. This meant that both parties did not carry weapons and were talking sincerely.

Li Jinglong stepped back, and the second step of the plan was officially started.

Chen Tianping's agreement to the deal did not surprise Li Jinglong. Jiang Xinghuo told him the steps of the plan. He had to handle the whole process. He had to do it cleanly and beautifully without leaving any traces and without giving people any excuses. It was very difficult to operate within the tolerance range of Emperor Yongle, but Li Jinglong was very confident because Jiang Xinghuo's plan was meticulous and amazing enough.

Li Jinglong pointed at Li Zengzhi and introduced Imagawa Ryojun:

"My younger brother always likes to buy property for the family. He is quite familiar with the wealthy businessmen in Nanjing. He will take care of everything that follows."

"learn."

Imagawa Ryojun is very aware of the temple sensitivity here. Jiang Xinghuo must not leave any evidence to anyone. Li Jinglong can participate as a friend, but he cannot operate openly, so he can only let his brother Li Zengzhi do business. Get involved as a white glove.

The reason why we even chose to talk in the hot spring was not only to be prepared to carry a hidden weapon, but also because we couldn't talk on paper and could only talk in this thick white mist.

Afterwards, everything will be like white mist, drifting away in the wind.

"Your Excellency, General, what is the second step of the plan?"

"Kill two birds with one stone."

Li Jinglong smiled and explained: "Now all the goods are in Chen Tianping's name in the name of free donation, but these goods have to be liquidated and sold. But in the plan of the national master, since Wang Jing has set up a plan to kill two birds with one stone, , we can also kill two birds with one stone and go back."

"I would like to hear the details." Imagawa Ryojun was very curious.

"Does Chen Tianping's move solve the problem of Japan having no tribute trade relationship with the Ming Dynasty, so it is unable to sell goods?"

Imagawa Ryojun nodded, and Li Jinglong continued: "But what the National Master means is that the way to solve the problem is not only to solve the problem, but also to open up the pattern, take a long-term view, and use this matter to do more. Lots of things.”

"for example?"

“The Next Unarmed Free Trade Zone of Tomorrow.”

After listening to Li Jinglong's words, Imagawa Ryojun was a little confused. He didn't understand how the sale of these goods was related to the tomorrow's unarmed free trade zone. Could it be that he wanted to introduce some Ming merchants who purchased the goods?

After listening to Imagawa Ryoujun's conjecture, Li Jinglong smiled and shook his head and said: "That's not the case, but we are organizing a bargaining event. The ultimate goal of the event is to sell limited commodity discount option coupons."

“What are options?”

At this time, Li Zengzhi, who is better at business activities, said: "According to the explanation of the National Master, options are actually the expiry contracts of commodities. This contract gives the option holder the right to purchase at a fixed price within a specific date range. or the right to sell a commodity.”

"For example, merchants from the Ming Dynasty and Japanese merchants agreed to trade one thousand sea otter skins. The goods of these one thousand sea otter skins will be delivered at Tsushima Port in the Tomorrow Free Trade Zone. The delivery date range is one year from now. It is from May to June in the second year of Yongle, and the agreed price is 2,500 wen. So no matter on this day next year, the price of sea otter skin increases or decreases, the merchants of Ming Dynasty can trade at this agreed price. , if the price rises, even if it rises to the sky, Japanese merchants will have to sell; if the price drops, even if it is worthless, Ming merchants will have to buy it. In the same way, if it is Ming Dynasty goods, such as silk, tea, and porcelain The same is true for futures options trading and other items.”

The reason why I take sea otter skin as an example is because it is a specialty of northern Honshu Island and Ezo in Japan. In fact, sea otter skin has always been very marketable in China because it is ripped from mammals in alpine areas. Leather, also known as fur, is not only very warm to wear, but also looks smooth and soft to the touch. It is much more expensive than mink fur.

In Jiang Xinghuo's previous life, trading firms in Russia, the United States and other countries in the early 19th century usually traded one sea otter skin for two to three large boxes of Chinese tea. Sea otters on both sides of the Pacific were hunted to the point of almost becoming extinct.

Closer to home, Imagawa Ryotoshi probably understands this gameplay.

"Actually, we are betting that prices will rise in the future. But what if the businessmen don't want to bet?" Imagawa Ryotoshi's thinking is actually very reasonable. Although businessmen value profits, they must also consider risks, especially in this era, which has just experienced a large-scale Due to the maritime ban, maritime trade was actually a very risky matter for the merchants of the Ming Dynasty.

Even if the Japanese pirates along the coast have been eliminated, and even if the Ming Dynasty and Japan have begun to negotiate free trade, in any case, if there are not enough benefits, it is certainly impossible for merchants to ignore the risk of traveling across the ocean to deliver goods. After all, If you are not careful, both people and their property may be buried in the belly of the fish.

“So we must first sell limited commodity discount option coupons, and cultivate and promote this trading model through profit sharing.”

Li Zengzhi explained: “When the goods are sold, we organize bargaining activities. If you buy a product worth 10,000 yuan individually, you will get a bargaining knife, or if you buy a product worth 100,000 yuan individually, you will get 11 bargaining knives. Knife (one additional gift), and all merchants participating in the purchase can use the bargaining knife in their hands to conduct bidding-style bargaining at the options auction to purchase discounted option coupons for their favorite products.”

"The number of discount option coupons for this commodity is not large, but as long as you can cut them off, you will make a lot of money by the delivery date agreed upon in the option (not necessarily a year, but also a number of months or days)."

Imagawa Ryojun understood, and thought about Li Zengzhi's role, using his semi-official status and his deep connections in the Nanjing business community, he convinced these Ming businessmen that option deeds were feasible, and there was no need to fear being cheated. Liar, after all, when Cao Guogong came back from Japan, he asked his younger brother to personally endorse it.

Imagawa Ryojun has also roughly understood the various social classes of the Ming Dynasty in the past few days. The merchants of the Ming Dynasty are different from the Japanese merchants. They do not have their own weapons, and it is difficult to influence the temple. Therefore, the status of Li Zengzhi is extremely noble, and If people who often deal with them come forward, they can easily use their own credibility and that of Cao Guogong's government as a guarantee to facilitate this first batch of futures transactions.

After all, the businessmen knew very well that for Cao Guogong's government, this amount of money could not compare with the reputation and face. With the reputation guarantee of Cao Guogong's government, they were assured.

Imagawa Ryotoshi said thoughtfully: "So powerful businessmen want to obtain more bargaining knives to overwhelm their competitors at option auctions and obtain discounted option coupons with lower discounts and better product types. , you will definitely buy these products under Chen Tianping’s name?”

"That's right." Li Zengzhi nodded.

Imakawa Ryotoshi thought carefully and asked again: "What if there are many people coming to compete for it? What if the goods are all sold out?"

"The Imperial Master has already prepared countermeasures."

Li Zengzhi said with a smile: "The lottery for purchase qualifications, coupled with the daily purchase limit."

Imagawa Ryojun: "."

Even though Imagawa Ryojun prides himself on being well-informed, today was a complete eye-opener. This "King of Kyushu" never expected that business and trade could be done in this way. He simply let this Ming Dynasty master play it out. When the flowers came, they were truly unheard of and unseen.

Li Zengzhi explained: “Whether they sell option discount coupons again, or they actually follow the option contract and come to tomorrow’s demilitarized free trade zone for delivery, on the day of futures delivery, there will always be someone with the option contract to trade. of."

Li Jinglong patted the water and took over the words: "So in fact, the first batch of transactions in tomorrow's unarmed free trade zone have been reached in this way, and as long as the large-scale delivery is successful once, the two parties have achieved mutual trust. We can continue to do this in the future.”

"This is the national master's plan to kill two birds with one stone. He not only skillfully resolved Wang Jing's difficulties and sold this batch of goods, but also paved the way for tomorrow's free trade, and even the free trade of more countries, and provided a flexible new type of The wisdom of the Imperial Master in the form of trading is really as deep as the ocean!"