latelenovela Chapter 255 Grain Merchants' Investments
Chapter 255 Grain Merchants' Investments
Zhou Shunda was busy accepting donations when a servant came to report that someone from the palace had arrived. Zhou Shunda was overjoyed and immediately led everyone out to greet them.
"Are you Zhou Shunda?" a young eunuch asked gently, holding a whisk.
“This humble one is indeed you! May I ask what brings you here, sir?” Zhou Shunda bowed respectfully.
"His Majesty's decree!" the eunuch shouted in a shrill voice, flicking his whisk. Zhou Shunda and his group immediately knelt down.
"His Majesty said: 'The merchants have shared the nation's burdens and generously donated, which greatly pleases me! After the enthronement ceremony, I will hold a banquet to thank the righteous merchants who donated more than one thousand taels of silver. I will also bestow plaques upon the merchants who have made significant contributions!'"
"Long live the Emperor!" the merchants exclaimed joyfully in gratitude. They had never imagined receiving a banquet and a plaque from the Emperor. They were ecstatic!
Throughout history, when has an emperor ever received a merchant? Let alone bestowing a banquet or a plaque upon them. They were lucky if their homes weren't confiscated; they never dared to dream of such treatment.
"Get up, Mr. Zhou!" The young eunuch nodded with a smile.
"I'm telling you, Her Majesty the Empress will also be attending the banquet. She's even prepared gifts for you personally!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, and the Empress for your great kindness!" The merchants bowed again in gratitude.
"Boss Zhou! Her Majesty the Empress was overjoyed to hear the news and praised you for handling the matter well! She said she would reward you handsomely when you enter the palace."
"Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty! This is what I, a humble commoner, should do." Zhou Shunda grinned so wide his eyes disappeared!
Other businessmen cast envious glances. This Zhou Shunda is truly favored by the emperor! He's probably going to rise to prominence. We must get along well with him in the future.
"Boss Zhou, don't underestimate yourself. You'll soon be more than a commoner! Hehe!" the little eunuch said in a low voice.
He vaguely heard the Emperor and Empress discussing bestowing a title upon Zhou Shunda. This guy's life is too good; he's risen to the top in one step!
"Oh! Really? Father-in-law, I didn't know..." Zhou Shunda's heart pounded wildly.
"I can't tell, I can't tell! You'll find out soon enough!" The young eunuch waved his hands repeatedly.
He only revealed a little bit because he saw that this guy was very popular with the Empress. He dared not say anything that had not yet been announced.
"Alright! You all go about your business! I need to return to the palace to report!" The little eunuch waved his hand and prepared to turn and get into the carriage.
"Respectfully seeing off Eunuch!" Zhou Shunda stepped forward quickly and slipped a pearl the size of a thumb into the little eunuch's hand.
The young eunuch squeezed the bead, his smile widening. Such a large bead must be worth at least several hundred taels of silver. This Zhou Shunda is truly generous!
"Boss Zhou, the Emperor and Empress attach great importance to this matter. You must handle it well, and you will benefit from it!" Having received the generous gift, the little eunuch also offered some pointers.
"Thank you, sir, I understand!" Zhou Shunda quickly replied.
"Alright! I'll head back to the palace to report! Goodbye!" The little eunuch turned and got into the carriage, heading towards the Forbidden City.
"Boss Zhou, congratulations! We look forward to your continued support!" After seeing the young eunuch off, a group of merchants gathered around, offering their congratulations.
Although the young eunuch lowered his voice, the people nearby still heard him. Seeing that Zhou Shunda was about to become an official or be granted a title, everyone was eager to curry favor with him.
"Hahaha! It's all thanks to everyone's help!" Zhou Shunda laughed loudly and clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.
"Let's go inside and discuss this together! We'll make sure this is done perfectly! A great gift for His Majesty's ascension to the throne!" Zhou Shunda said loudly.
"Good!" the merchants shouted in agreement, crowding around Zhou Shunda as they walked into the restaurant.
"Hmph, Zhou Shunda, that country bumpkin, is making quite a show of himself! We can't let him have all the glory. Afu, take my film and go invite Lao Qian and the others over right away. Tell them I have something important to discuss with them." In a large mansion in the southern part of the city, a slightly plump old man said.
Soon, several luxurious carriages arrived in front of the mansion, and several imposing figures alighted from them and entered the mansion under the guidance of the gatekeeper.
"Gentlemen! You must have heard about what Zhou Shunda did! What are your thoughts?" Qi Decai, sitting at the head of the table, glanced at everyone and said.
“Uncle Cai, please speak your mind! Our Yang family has always followed your lead!” A middle-aged man at the bottom said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.
The others remained silent, only nodding slightly.
“Alright! Then I’ll say it! Zhou Shunda is currently stealing the limelight, and even the Emperor in the palace has issued an edict praising him. We can’t let him enjoy all the glory alone.”
"In terms of wealth, none of us here are inferior to him. How can we let a country bumpkin like him outdo us!"
"I've decided that our grain store in the capital will donate 500,000 dan of grain to the imperial court for disaster relief!" Qi Decai said through gritted teeth.
It must be said that Qi Decai, as the leader of the grain merchants in the capital, is indeed quite ambitious.
"Ah! Five hundred thousand dan!" Upon hearing this number, an old man exclaimed in surprise!
“That’s right, it’s 500,000 dan! If we’re going to do it, we should do it right the first time. Hesitation will only make us a laughing stock!” Qi Decai said confidently.
"But Uncle Cai! Isn't 500,000 dan too much? Even if all of us join together, we can't produce that much grain! We still have our businesses to run!"
Although Yang Kun claimed to follow Uncle Cai's lead, he was unwilling to contribute such a large quantity of grain. At the current market price, 500,000 dan (a unit of weight) was worth a million taels (a unit of weight). If everyone shared the cost, each household would have to contribute nearly 200,000 taels – no small sum!
“Yes! Uncle Cai, we can contribute some grain, but isn’t 500,000 dan too much?” the others chimed in.
"Hmph! Short-sighted! You only see the immediate benefits, can't you take a longer-term view?" Uncle Cai, considering his seniority, lectured him.
"The largest grain stores in the capital are just a few of us! Tell me yourselves, which of your stores didn't have shares held by Manchu nobles in the past? Didn't you have to give them tens of thousands of taels of silver a year?"
"Now that all those powerful and influential people have been arrested, why not just donate their tribute to the new dynasty and try to please the emperor?"
"With the imperial court's protection! Even if those former powerful figures don't die, would they dare to cause us any trouble? Grandma!"
"With the new emperor's ascension to the throne imminent, we're still wondering how to offer our tokens of appreciation. What are we waiting for with such a wonderful opportunity?"
"Don't be fooled by the fact that the various regions haven't pledged allegiance yet. I'm certain that once the new emperor ascends the throne, most places will be pacified with a single proclamation!"
"Who in the world doesn't know the fighting power of the Shandong New Army? The Eight-Nation Alliance was utterly humiliated, and Japan's million-strong army was wiped out in the blink of an eye. Even the Japanese Emperor and his family were captured!"
"Who in the world would dare to stand against us?"
"If we do not pledge our loyalty now, when will we?"
"Wait until those bumpkins from Shandong eat us all up?" Qi Decai shouted.
"The Northeast War, the expedition against Japan! We Shandong colleagues have been transporting grain and troops, and we've all made a fortune! If we don't make some noise, they'll be setting their sights on Beijing!"