Zhejiang, Zhejiang Governor's Mansion.
Hu Zongxian, the governor-general of Zhejiang and the governor of Zhejiang, sat on the throne. Next to him were He Maocai, the inspector-general of Zhejiang, Zheng Mi-chang, the chief envoy of Zhejiang, and Yang Jinshui, the eunuch in charge of the Weaving Bureau. Tan Lun of the Qingliu school was sitting in the corner like a statue, without anyone. Talk to him.
There was a charcoal fire burning in the room, and several dancers were dancing gorgeously. All of them, without exception, were wearing thin silks, which set off their figures well. A dozen foreign businessmen looked at the silks placed on the table. , whispering, and occasionally touching her carefully, the look of satisfaction in her eyes could not be concealed.
"We want five hundred thousand horses, do you...do you have any?" the businessman from Bangbang asked with half-baked words.
"Yes, of course there are. Not to mention 500,000 pieces, there are also 800,000 pieces!" Hearing this, Yang Jinshui, the eunuch in charge of the Weaving Bureau, smiled and raised his eyebrows. Then he quickly stepped forward, picked up a piece of silk, and began to ask the foreign merchants. sell.
"What? You want to increase the price, 12 or 8 yuan? No, no, we don't have that much money." After hearing Yang Jinshui's quotation, the Fanbang businessman shook his head as if he wanted to rattle.
"This year's silk has adopted a new method, so the cost has naturally gone up. Look, the silk they are wearing is the same as the one in your hand. Does it feel thinner?" Yang Jinshui said, pointing to those who were dancing. Dancer.
The businessman from Bangbang looked in the direction of Yang Jinshui's finger, unable to look away for a long time, so he could only respond: "Okay...it seems to be thinner."
"But 12 or 8 dollars is too expensive, let's go to 12 or 5 dollars."
"Two or six dollars, it can't be less. I still sell it because you also ordered silk last year! If the price is lower than this, I will be punished." After Yang Jinshui finished speaking, he closed his eyes. No more words.
After listening to Yang Jinshui's quotation, the foreign merchants gathered together and whispered for a long time. Even if a piece of silk sold for twelve or sixteen yuan, they would still make a profit after shipping it back to Europe. Finally, they nodded and agreed to Yang Jinshui's offer. Quotation.
"Okay, twelve or six dollars a horse, we'll buy five hundred thousand horses."
Seeing that the deal was finalized, the foreign businessman sat back down and watched the singer's dance carefully.
After hearing the final price set by the Fanbang merchant, everyone present looked at each other and smiled tacitly.
In fact, this year's silk is no different from last year, but the price quoted is much more expensive. Last year, the price of a piece of silk was ninety-two and four yuan. While they were happy, everyone quickly thought of another problem.
"By the way, does the Weaving Bureau have that much output?" He Maocai took a sip of tea and asked Zheng Michang in a low voice.
"It... doesn't seem to be that much. Last year's output was only 300,000 horses." Zheng Michang gave the answer after recalling it for a moment.
"Then where are we going to get the extra 200,000 pieces of silk?" He Maocai's face suddenly became depressed.
A foreign businessman looked at Hu Zongxian who was sitting in the upper seat, cupped his hands and said respectfully: "Master Hu, in addition to silk, we want to buy something else."
After saying that, he glanced at the dancer dancing in the room.
Upon hearing this, Hu Zongxian stroked his beard, stood up from his seat, glanced at the foreign merchants one by one, and said loudly: "My Ming Dynasty can sell silk, tea and porcelain, but I can't sell people!"
Seeing that Hu Zongxian was angry, the foreign businessmen quickly picked up their wine glasses to apologize. After drinking a few glasses together, the atmosphere returned to the previous harmony.
After sending the Fanbang merchant away, Yang Jinshui breathed a sigh of relief, and then began to mentally calculate the possible profits.
"Your Excellency, a letter from Qi Jiguang!"
At this moment, a soldier hurriedly broke into the Zhejiang Governor's Mansion and handed the battle report from the front to Hu Zongxian.
"Since it is a battle report sent from the front line, I will not disturb you." After hearing this, Yang Jinshui quickly stood up and left. As a person in the palace, he should avoid suspicion in court affairs. This is also the "rule" set by the imperial court for many years.
"Eunuch Yang, go slowly." Everyone bowed and said goodbye.
After Yang Jinshui left, he looked at the envelope in Hu Zongxian's hand. Everyone in the room held their breath. The dancer's dance was still as graceful as before, but no one present was interested in watching anymore. Zheng Michang was a little irritated. , waved his hands, and then the dancers all went down.
Hu Zongxian opened the envelope. At the same time, Zheng Michang and He Maocai's hearts were in their throats. They stared at the envelope and did not dare to move away.
The content written in the letter made Hu Zongxian's frown relax: "Hahaha, OK! OK!"
"Sir, but the battle was won on the front line..." Zheng Michang and He Maocai couldn't help asking when they saw that their immediate superiors were so happy.
"Read it for yourselves." After Hu Zongxian finished speaking, he handed the letter in his hand to everyone.
Zheng Michang and He Maocai couldn't help but look happy after reading the contents of the letter. The letter stated that the Ming army had annihilated more than 2,000 Japanese pirates in Fenghua, Ninghai and other places. In addition, they also obtained news about Wang Zhi from the prisoners.
"This Wang Zhi is really hateful. He actually colluded with Japanese pirates to harm our people in the Ming Dynasty!" Zheng Michang looked indignant after reading the letter.
"If you ask me, just dig up his family's ancestral grave." He Maocai also put on a look of indignation.
Hu Zongxian ignored the flattering looks on their faces and simply said: "I will report to the court later to ask for merit for the soldiers. You guys should go back first."
"Yes." Zheng Michang and He Maocai looked at each other and said goodbye to their boss at the same time. Tan Lun, who had been sitting in the corner, also stood up and said goodbye.
After Hu Zongxian finished speaking, he went straight back to the study, spread out the rice paper, and started writing.
"Sir, this is a letter from Mr. Yan Ge." Xu Wei, Hu Zongxian's aide, knocked on the door and pushed in after receiving permission.
"Put it there, I'll read it later." Hu Zongxian motioned to Xu Wei to put the letter on the table without even raising his head.
After a long time, Hu Zongxian put down his writing brush, looked at the memorial that had been written, and breathed a sigh of relief. He immediately called the guards and warned: "Send this letter to the cabinet as soon as possible. Urgent!"
"Yes." The guard took the order, then mounted his fast horse, left the Zhejiang Governor's Mansion, and ran straight to the capital.
I don't know how many horses were exhausted, and soldiers were relayed at every post station. Before dark, this letter was delivered to the cabinet.
"Oh, Hu Zongxian's news? It's urgent. Did something happen?" After that, Xu Jie, the second assistant to the cabinet, opened the letter. The news above made him quite excited.
"Haha, okay!" Xu Jie happily patted his thigh.
"Mr. Xu Ge, why are you so happy?" Seeing Xu Jie so happy, Yan Song couldn't help but come over and asked.
"See for yourself." After Xu Jie finished speaking, he handed the memorial presented by Hu Zongxian to Yan Song.
Yan Song put on his reading glasses tremblingly. After reading the contents of the letter, he stroked his beard and chuckled: "It seems that I have to report this matter to the emperor. I won't send this information to the ceremonial supervisor for now." ”
Xu Jie also responded with a smile: "That's exactly what I meant."
…
After handing in the memorial, Hu Zongxian relaxed completely. When he was about to open the letter sent by Yan Song, he accidentally glanced at the map hanging on the wall and saw that the Japanese pirates' troop deployment was densely marked on the map. and marching routes.
"Fenghua, Ninghai..." Hu Zongxian put down the letter in his hand, circled the two places on the map with his finger, and deduce the current situation based on the Japanese pirates' troop deployment and marching route.
After a long time, his expression suddenly changed: "No, Quanzhou!"
