Xiao Zishan told Sun Chang to prepare a mule cart and sedan chair to pick up people at the dock. [No pop-up novel website] i. Others hurriedly cooked and cleaned, and the empty house suddenly became busy. Sun Chang said that there is no need to pay for mules and carriages, just go to the Wei Escort Bureau - because of the need for escorts, the Escort Bureau usually has an "outer cabinet" for mule and carriage shops (tertiary industry, everything is ready-made.
While arranging to pick up the people, he also ordered a sedan to be prepared to visit Gao Zhi. On the way, he asked Sun Chang about various developments over the past year. Sun Chang said that since they left, Gaoju often sent people to deliver things. Ask if there is any news about Australian maritime merchants. The neighborhood was quiet, and there was nothing major except for the slight disturbance in the market due to Liu Laoxiang's loud commotion at the Pearl River Estuary. He didn't know much about the officialdom. He only knew that a high-ranking official in the palace had been replaced in Beijing, and there were some changes in the officialdom in Guangzhou. He couldn't tell the rest.
Xiao Zishan knew that this so-called high official in the palace was Wei Zhongxian. History has not changed its trajectory in this time and space: the powerful Jiu Qian was already in a hotel in Nanguan, Fucheng County, Hebei on the sixth day of the eleventh lunar month last year. Suicide in the store. From December last year to the first half of this year, Emperor Chongzhen was investigating the remnants of Wei Ni, and it was not surprising that the officialdom was shaken. Travelers should be grateful to this situation to a certain extent: people are in panic, and no one has the intention to deal with a pirate invasion on Hainan Island.
Xiao Zishan's sudden visit surprised and delighted Gao Ji. When he first built Wei Zhongxian's shrine, he had no other good idea, so he used the "tuo" word trick taught by shopkeeper Wen. The shopkeeper also made it clear that there would be big changes that month, and sure enough: Eunuch Yang was originally based in Guangzhou. He was urged to go to the house every day, and Gao Ji didn't dare to delay too much. He just made slow preparations, which lasted for almost twenty days. Suddenly, little Eunuch Yang came to say goodbye, ordered the preparations for the construction of the shrine to be suspended, and hurried back to Beijing with all the prepared Australian goods. He was so stunned that after about ten days, he received a letter from Beijing. Only then did he learn that on May 18, the emperor suddenly fell ill and his condition was very serious. This time Gao Zhi was not surprised, but rather had goosebumps on the back of his head.
"On May 18th, there are changes in Beijing, and things can be slowed down." This is what shopkeeper Wen said when he said goodbye. Now in comparison, this group of maritime merchants who were already somewhat mysterious made him feel even more unpredictable. He quickly looked around and asked if anyone had seen a strange large overseas ship. But no news. He had no choice but to give up and concentrate on waiting for the merchants to come to him - after all, the payment of two hundred thousand taels of silver was still here. After waiting for more than a year, there was still no news. Just when he felt hopeless, he heard some news in the past month: an unprecedented huge ship appeared in Qiongzhou. The sailors on the ship are all wearing short clothes and are very fierce. I couldn't help but wonder in my heart: Could this be an Australian maritime merchant's ship? I am thinking about whether to send someone to the local area to inquire.
Gao Zhang asked people to put out drinks and asked for help. He also brought the sales slip for the goods and told him that he had 50,000 taels of silver to withdraw right now, and the other silver could be collected in more than ten days.
"Don't be in a hurry for the money. You can deposit it with Shopkeeper Gao first." The time traveler is not short of money right now, but is short of supplies. Xiao Zishan was not too polite and told him that the purpose of his trip was to purchase goods. Since the goods were of various types, he would also ask shopkeeper Gao for a lot of help. I thought it was porcelain, spices and hardwoods from the past, and I agreed. But when I opened the list and looked at it, I was dumbfounded. The items listed above are completely unexpected: pig iron, graphite, fluorite, gall alum, alum, saponite, saltpeter, Glauber's salt, alkali, sulfur, arsenic, realgar, orpiment, cinnabar, borax, gypsum, tin, lead, copper ,mercury……
Gao Zhi himself didn't recognize most of these things. Some of them he knew were needed in the workshop, and some were simply medicinal materials. Saltpeter and sulfur are things controlled by the government. Pig iron costs 10,000 shi. It's okay to say that it only requires more trips to the iron fields. The mercury also costs 10 shi - even if the mercury in the whole city of Guangzhou is collected, I'm afraid I won't have it. One stone - what do they want these for? Is it possible that when an emperor or nobleman in Australia dies, he needs to be embalmed with mercury?
While he was thinking wildly, Xiao Zishan saw his expression changing and asked, "Is there any difficulty in this?"
"I can find everything." Gao Ju put down the list, "But isn't the quantity a bit too much? Just talk about gallbladder, mercury, etc. It would be nice to have one stone in the whole city. How can there be so many."
"Then please take care of yourself, Mr. Gao. Take as many as you want." Xiao Zishan didn't know the use of these things, but since they were purchased by name, it was crucial.
"Brother asks me to do something, so I should do my best," Gao Ju suddenly changed his title and whispered, "But there are a lot of forbidden things in it. It's not that brother can't handle it, but I have to ask about everything, so that it will be easier to master." Proportion.”
Xiao Zishan was stunned for a moment. He knew that saltpeter, sulfur and the like might be things controlled by the government, but he never thought about other things: "I wonder which goods are prohibited?"
"Iron, this item is not allowed to be exported. But this is easy. Copper, arsenic, saltpeter, and sulfur are a bit more difficult, especially since the quantity my brother wants is very large-"
"These are the raw materials of Australian goods." Xiao Zishan already knew from Sun Chang that Gao Ji made a fortune from Australian goods and became a "wealth myth" in Guangzhou city. He must do his best to use the raw materials used to make Australian products as a reason. But this is also the truth: the Ministry of Industry urgently needs these things to start modern manufacturing
Sure enough, Gao Ji fell silent immediately, as if he was thinking about something. After a moment, he seemed to have made up his mind and said: "Since brother wants it, brother, I will definitely help. It's just that it takes time to prepare the goods. How long can brother wait?"
"Fifteen days."
"It's a bit tight. I asked my shopkeepers to go out separately to purchase. Try our best to arrange it! I wonder where the goods are shipped? Is it still-"
"I have to ask my brother for advice on this matter." Another purpose of Xiao Zishan's trip is to establish a transportation line from Guangzhou to Hainan. In the future, he will conduct large-scale purchases in Guangzhou, and there is an urgent need for a suitable transfer point. There are many people in the city, and it is very inconvenient to import and export goods in large quantities. Therefore, it is necessary to find a warehouse outside the city as a place to transfer goods.
He told Gao Ji about his request, and Gao Ji said it would be easy. He would set up his own warehouse and dock on Youyu Island at the mouth of the Pearl River—the territory of fishermen who specialized in smuggling, and they were all half-private and half-bandit figures. People who are busy doing business in the city dare not go in. It is almost like a world outside the law. Travelers' ships can dock here. He is setting aside a separate warehouse for the turnover of goods.
"This is very good." Xiao Zishan was quite satisfied with this arrangement, and then told Gao Ju that they were purchasing these goods for a long time, and as long as they could acquire them, they would get as much as they wanted.
After the plan was completed, Gao Ju asked if any new Australian goods had arrived during their visit to Guangzhou. Xiao Zishan just smiled slightly, "Those are just some trivial things. In a few months, my brother will naturally know about it."
These words gave Gao Zhi a lot of room for imagination, but they also left him with a little fear. From a personal point of view, he was not afraid of the short-haired man in front of him, but the vaguely powerful force behind him made him uneasy. This group of Australian maritime merchants are by no means as simple as businessmen.
The next person Xiao Zishan visited was Sun Kecheng, the shopkeeper of the Qiwei Escort Bureau. The Escort Bureau has the ability to transport bulk materials over long distances and is a good assistant in establishing transportation lines across the country.
Along the way, Sun Wei had told his boss all the details about the escort agency. This is a bodyguard bureau that is composed of family, fellow villagers, and masters. From the head of the bodyguard, Sun Kecheng, down to the young men and grooms on the counter, they are all from the same race, fellow villagers, or the same disciples, masters, apprentices, and brothers. The geographical, blood, and patriarchal relationships between them are extremely close. They specialize in the route from Guangzhou to Nanchang, Jiangxi and also serve as short-distance routes within the province. There are many outposts along the way, which are considered medium-sized in Guangdong Province, and have some connections in all aspects. Xiao Zishan calculated that if he took control of this escort agency, it would be of great benefit to trade and intelligence activities in Guangdong.
Shopkeeper Sun was quite pleased with his visit - the Australian maritime merchants were really friendly people. Xiao Zishan sent some more gifts, and the two parties talked happily. Xiao Zishan took the opportunity to ask about the business of the escort agency.
Sun Kecheng sighed repeatedly, and his expression became gloomy.
The escort business is not bad. It’s just that the road is getting more and more uneven. There used to be a lot of bandits on the road, but they were still prominent figures in the world and more or less abided by the rules of the world. In the past two years, the world has become a world of wandering bandits. They are either desperate farmers or deserters who cannot be paid. These two people are basically No matter what your font size or rules are, you will rob anything you see and kill everyone you see. In the past, bandits only wanted gold and silver, but now the bandits they encounter simply want everything from things to cars.
Bandits are rampant, and villages and towns along the way have formed regiments one by one, and set up forts everywhere. When passing through villages and towns, they must be questioned and guarded. For a foreign bodyguard agency like them, if the master and apprentice brothers are basically from Jiangxi, and have some personal connections, they are really looking for it. It’s hard to find a place to stay. I reluctantly walked a few times, but although I didn't lose any darts, I killed or injured a dozen brothers. Everyone in the escort agency felt that the future was unpredictable.
When Xiao Zishan proposed to finance them by investing in shares and open a new escort agency, Sun Kecheng's mouth was opened wide - since the business of escort agency started, the escort agency was not a profitable business, and the brothers teamed up to spread the flag. If you can start a business, you can earn money by working hard, and you can live a well-off life all year round. It is impossible to say that you can get a large amount of dividends, so no one has ever used money to invest in the Escort Agency business.
"Don't pay dividends." Xiao Zishan then came up with the idea, "Now that we are going to do business and open a shop in Daming, we need to transport goods from the store. No one is more familiar with this business than yours. This money, Firstly, we don’t want the Escort Bureau to pay dividends, and secondly, we don’t want to interfere in the internal affairs of the Escort Bureau. It’s just that wherever our trading name goes in the future, the escort route of the Escort Bureau will also go wherever it goes!”
