While he was busy, someone had already sent a thick stack of greeting cards and gift orders. [No pop-up novel website] Guo Yi took it and flipped through it, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart: It seems that power is truth, and strength is friendship, which is the same in any time and space. Compared with last year's scene of a deserted and hasty escape, it is really disappointing.
The greeting cards came in all shapes and sizes, some were just greetings, some were invitations to be guests, and of course there were also those who requested to see Baba. Yiliu classifies the guests in the guest book according to their status, distance and different purposes. Some want to reply, some want to be interviewed, and some don't need to pay attention, just say "the master is not at home". As for the gifts, whether you accept them or not, and whether you accept half and keep the other half, it all depends on Zheng Shangjie’s decision. Although she rarely appears in Guangzhou Station's external interactions, she actually plays the role of "main fù". Not only is he in charge of general affairs, big and small, but he is also responsible for all matters related to courtesy and exchanges.
Yi Liu pressed through the posts and left a few important posts that Guo Yi had taken care of. The others were given to Zheng Shangjie to deal with.
The first one was a high-profile post, and in the post was a clip inviting him to a banquet. Of course I have to go to the banquet. Guangzhou Station not only has some dealings with him to settle, but also wants to thank him in person for taking care of the interests of Guangzhou Station over the past six months. Of course, it also includes future cooperation plans for the Foreign Intelligence Service and the Ministry of Colonial Trade to come to Beijing.
The second one was from Liang Cunhou, and it was also an invitation to a banquet. Although the Liang family did not help much in this crisis, thanks to their brand, Cihuitang, which was used by Guangzhou Station to absorb homeless people, was saved. Because Cihuitang owned a lot of real estate and land, there were also many people who spied on it at that time. Some of the Zi's employees were caught because they failed to escape in time, and the Liang family also stepped in to save a few of them. This favor must be repaid.
The third one was posted by Li Xijue. This person is currently Li Fengjie’s designated contact person in Guangdong official circles.
Other than these three people, the other posts don't matter. As for the young masters and young masters who were hanging around Pei Yixiu, she would wait until the Ziming Building was restored to order, and she would be the one to entertain them.
Mei Lin and Li Xiaolu, the architects who came with the Lingao Construction Company, came in. They had just conducted a detailed survey of the damage to the entire Huifu Street building complex in order to formulate a repair and reconstruction plan.
Both of them were wearing nondescript Mingren attire, with Mei Lin wearing a uniform hat and Li Xiaolu wearing a crooked fake bun. Looks very uncomfortable.
This is the core part of the mansion. There are political security personnel at the entrance to the courtyard to guard the place. Except for the elders and their secretaries and confidential officials, neither naturalized citizens nor local clerks are allowed to enter unless summoned. It is a place where you can talk more casually.
Guo Yi greeted Yiliu while helping him pour tea.
"How's the situation? Will it take a long time to repair?"
Merlin drank. Cha, straightened his legs and tugged on his clothes: "It's not that bad. The house itself is not damaged, but the building accessories are severely damaged. There is not much mud and water work, and there is a lot of carpentry work. As for how long it will take to repair, it depends on you. How good are the accessories provided here? I looked at the remaining parts, and many of them are very well made. I’m afraid they won’t be available in a month or two, right?”
"Yes." Guo Yi nodded, "Recruit more local carpenters and let them hurry up and leave. As for the wood, go to Gao Li's warehouse to have a look. He has good wood that has been stored for many years and can be used immediately. .”
"Look at this sample, we don't have enough interior accessories. I'm afraid we have to order more from Lingao." Li Xiaolu looked at the book, "I don't know what the situation in Ziming Tower is like..."
"It won't be much better." Zheng Shangjie interrupted, and she sighed.
"I plan to do this," Mei Lin said, "first focus on repairing the access control facilities, overhauling the walls and roofs. Then restore the facades of Zizhenzhai and Zichengji so that they can resume business as soon as possible. As for the residences,"
"Renovate the front area for reception and entertainment first. It is also best to repair the garden as soon as possible. This is the place where we have entertainment and entertainment. We have just returned to Guangzhou to entertain guests. There are many things to do, so there must be a place."
Lin wrote down his request in his notebook, "I will also arrange for people to repair the inner house first. At least restore the water supply and bathroom equipment so that you can use it."
"I want to go see the condition of Ziming Building tomorrow," Li Xiaolu said, "so I can estimate the construction period and materials."
The next day, Zheng Shangjie and Pei Yixiu accompanied Li Xiaolu and others to Ziming Building to check the situation on the spot. They opened the locked door. Although it had been cleaned inside, it was still in a mess.
As Guo Yi estimated, the damage to Ziming Tower was not bad. Half of the carpet was cut off, and all the glass in the windows was broken. The sash and carved hoods were removed. The glass chandelier was gone. Although the large bath had been cleaned, much of the statues, plumbing hardware and tiles were missing. Apparently someone tried to dismantle the plumbing equipment and sanitary ware in the private room. As a result, a lot of damage was caused. The toilet, bathtub and various pipes were almost completely destroyed. The loss was serious because the pipes were damaged and the water in the water tank leaked out. There are traces of water erosion everywhere. Almost all the furniture, furnishings and other items in the building were lost, and even the animal-drawn machine used to fill the water tower with water was dismantled.
There are many things piled up in the hall. These are all items "returned" by the government, a miscellaneous pile of junk. Zheng Shangjie took a look, and saw that many of them were scraps that were just scraps. Some of them were items from Ziming Tower, but they had been ruined. There were several large pieces of sand that were originally placed in Pei Xiu's "salon". The brocade fabric on them had been torn open, revealing the kapok filling inside. Zheng Shangjie looked at them and found that the springs were gone.
The full-length mirror and the large clock in Pei Xiu's boudoir were missing. These two items have been taken by others and their whereabouts are unknown. Her dressing table and Zheng Shangjie's desk were still there. The fine rosewood furniture had been carefully chopped into pieces with an ax for some reason.
"I'm looking for hidden drawers." Zheng Shangjie sighed regretfully, "What a pity.
This table is very useful. "
Pei Yi was so delicate that she was speechless. She almost cried when she saw that her boudoir and salon, which she had carefully decorated, were in such a state of ruin. Zheng Shangjie also felt very angry. This is simply trashing things!
After looking at it, Mei Lin and Li Xiaolu came up with a repair plan. The repair of this wedding is not an emergency. And there are much more building materials that need to be shipped from Lingao than from Huifu Street. I had to put the construction period at the back. Although Pei Xiu was not satisfied, he had no choice but to admit it.
"I think you don't need to be in a hurry." Zheng Shangjie sat on the same sedan as her and persuaded her, "After the repairs on Huifu Street are over, you can stay on Huifu Street first. Here, please invite the regular customers from the past. Go visit again. It doesn’t matter if the house is not repaired. Put away the relationships...,
"
"That's all we have to do." Pei Xiu was unhappy.
"It's okay. It's only a matter of time before we reopen. Besides, didn't the Planning Institute approve our plans for the flagship store to be small? The second store is much bigger. Let's make detailed plans first."
Guo Yi goes out every day to visit guests or entertain guests at the mansions of local famous prostitutes. I met Gao Zhou first, and his face was full of enthusiasm. The relationship between the two parties seemed to be much warmer than before. Gao Ju said: "This time we can be considered as sharing the same adversity. The friendship between our brothers cannot be compared with each other." Guo Yi knew that this was the result of their full display of strength. The wealth and life of high-ranking officials are all in Guangzhou, and their financial resources are on the sea. Of course, they must maintain a more friendly relationship with their vaguely rising maritime power.
In addition to words of thanks, the two parties discussed the cleaning up of the remaining accounts. At the same time, in-depth discussions were held on the next step of cooperation. When Gao Ji heard that the Australians would import a large amount of spices to Xiangshan Ao, he knew that a new opportunity had arrived.
Spices were a bulk consumer product in China at that time, and they were also goods that a few Chinese countries were willing to import in large quantities. In addition to edible spices, other fumigating spices produced in Nanyang, such as benzoin and incense, also have a large market in China. If Australians can supply large quantities of goods, the financial resources will not be much less than his current experience with Australian goods.
"It's easy to talk about." Gao Ju nodded repeatedly, "To tell you the truth, brother, I can sell a lot of goods here. If brother has a ship that can be shipped overseas, brother, the goods here are complete, and there will be as much as you want."
"That's the best." Guo Yi thought that he would immediately attract a lot of business to Hong Kong.
Gao Ji is both a big importer and a big exporter. With him as the fundamentals, the goods shipped by the Dutch and the goods shipped away will be settled. The elders only need to change their hands in Hong Kong.
Guo Yi said: "There is one more thing I would like to ask my brother to tell me."
"If anything happens, brother, just ask."
"Shopkeeper Wen wants to send some people to the capital to do business." Guo Yi looked at Gao Zhan's face, "I want to ask my brother to help me."
The raised face tensed for a moment, then relaxed. He didn't answer right away." He thought for a while before asking, "We brothers won't speak outsiders' words among ourselves. You are now firmly established in Qiongzhou, and now you want to enter Beijing. What are your intentions? "
“Of course it’s making money.
"
Gao Zhang smiled slightly, leaned back and shook his head: "Brother, what you said is too outrageous. Although the eldest brother is not an inquiring person, there are some things that you still need to know in order to feel at ease."
Guo Yidao: "We traveled far across the sea to the Ming Dynasty, just to do business and make money. When we arrived in the capital, of course, we still wanted to make money. We must also take a look at the appearance of the court, explore the wind direction, and ask the elder brother to introduce a few... "Friends, lest the court one day be unleashed with the wrath of thunder..."
"Haha." Gao Ju smiled and nodded repeatedly, "Shopkeeper Wen is indeed extraordinary." a.
