Wu Sijing walked back from outside the house. He closed the door and only waved to the four merchants.
"What's wrong?" Fan Shang, who had a beard, put down the tea bowl in his hand and spat out a piece of tea leaf in his mouth.
"People from the Ministry of War are here," Wu Sixing lowered his eyelids and sighed, "The county sent people to Ninghe to check the handwriting, and then start building the factory."
"Then we need to leave immediately?"
"Don't worry, I've prepared some snacks, tea and fruits for him to wait in the side room for now. Let's discuss our issues first." Wu Sijing said calmly.
"What are you going to say today?" The bearded man was tired of going back and forth these days.
"Don't think I am verbose. In fact, the situation in this country is too complicated and intricate. It is by no means easier to do business than in Nanyang. If you want to do this business well, you must be cautious." Wu Sijing saw through his mind and said Said with a solemn face.
"Then it's up to the bishop to help." Fat Fanshang accepted the words with interest.
"I will help you, it is my duty. But even if it is a plowing cow, it still has to eat a few mouthfuls of fodder, let alone me." Wu Sijing smiled faintly and picked up the tea bowl, "I recently had one in Ninghe The restaurant is about to be renovated, but money is tight and the turnover cannot be opened. Anyway, you are going to open the factory in a few days. Can you sneak some wood over? By then, my financial position will be preserved, and I will be able to protect your interests. "
"Bishop, we can transport this wood from the ship, but so much wood is transported from Beitang to the county in batches. Walking along the road, it is really eye-catching and cannot be hidden. If we are investigated, even the Ministry of War will be arrested. I want to ask, how can you and I get away?" The bearded man expressed his worries.
"Isn't Mr. Ye, who presides over the New Deal, here?" Fat Fanshang found another way for them. "We can propose to him that the imperial court provide wood and bricks from the Ministry of Industry's warehouse to build a factory for us. The wood from Beijing will definitely be sent to us. When you get to the county, ask us to go and collect them, and we will give you several batches of materials on the spot. The journey is short and will not arouse the suspicion of outsiders. In this way, it saves time for the government and freight for us. , built a restaurant for the bishop, the Chinese saying is 'the best of both worlds', but we have one more!"
"Not bad!" Everyone couldn't help but stand up and cheer.
Wu Sijing also nodded, but frowned slightly: "If Ye Yongjia comes to Ninghe alone, your plan will definitely succeed; but now that the assistant minister Cai Xianqing is following... this person is not simple."
Instead, the bearded man snorted coldly, stroking his beard and smiling: "Bishop, the powerful enemies in the north are staring at their national defense now. They are more anxious than anyone else. How can they care about bargaining? They turn a blind eye to us. They even have to make offerings like ancestors, this is their only choice!"
Magistrate Ninghe finally fell asleep in a daze. He felt someone push him from behind, turned around and looked angrily, and saw a clerk kneeling there: "Sir, several people invited from outside have arrived together."
"I got it." The county magistrate waved his hand and sent him out, then rubbed his temples, his head still hurt a little. He sat there stunned for a moment, then got up, took care of his official uniform, washed his face, and thought of looking for the purge guests in the yard, but found out that they had already said goodbye and left, so he said "boring" a few times and put the things on the table down. All the wine was removed.
Ye Yongjia and Cai Xianqing also came out of the guest room. They had not dared to sleep. When they heard that Wu Sijing and others had arrived in the second hall, they hurried to meet them.
Wu Sijing was sitting sullenly on a chair facing the door. Suddenly he heard footsteps in the yard. When he looked up, he met Cai Xianqing's eyes and was horrified.
"Oh, everyone is here," Cai Xianqing smiled calmly, "I was just wanting to get to know you. Bishop Wu, why are you here too?"
Wu Sijing felt uneasy, and he bowed helplessly and replied: "I was summoned by the county magistrate, so I had to come to Ninghe. I didn't go there on my own."
"Hey, do you think Ninghe County is troubled?" Cai Xianqing sat down next to him and joked with him, "You are just a puller. You helped a few small things and were recognized by the government. You have become their accomplice. Is it possible that you will work towards their interests and harm the Ministry of War?"
Wu Sixing's eyes quickly turned twice, and he lowered his head and was speechless.
"Haha, no way, absolutely impossible." Cai Xianqing reached out and patted his shoulder again.
"The magistrate is here!"
When the yamen servant shouted this, everyone raised their heads, and saw the county magistrate walking in a drowsy way, with his head tilted a little, and he almost didn't cross the threshold.
Ye Yongjia held back his anger and reluctantly watched him sit on the armchair on the west side.
"Today is not for anything else but to check the handwriting," the county magistrate said straight to the point. "I won't waste everyone's time. Come, bring the documents, and there will be pen, ink, paper and inkstone."
After a while, the yamen servant brought in all the things he needed. The bearded Fan Shang wrote first, and then checked the handwriting in turn, and they all matched.
"Okay," the county magistrate took out a small seal from his sleeve, "There is no problem anymore. The Ninghe County has upheld the wishes of the emperor and allowed you and other merchants to start the factory!" After saying this, he jabbed the small seal deeply. , stamped it, and handed it over to the book office; the book office immediately transcribed it, and ordered one copy to be deposited in the county government office, and one copy to be retained by the merchant, who would keep it.
"You have no doubts, right?" The county magistrate rubbed his aching head and glanced at them.
"Since Mr. Ye is also here," the bearded man said, "then I have a proposal to make. Although we have a big ship, transporting wood by sea will consume a lot of money and material resources. Can you please use the warehouse of the Ministry of Industry and Development of the Imperial Court? Build a factory for us? After all, this firearms factory also belongs to your empire."
Ye Yongjia was deeply afraid that there was fraud and did not dare to make a decision directly. Instead, he looked at Cai Xianqing with doubts.
Cai Xianqing was also noncommittal and actually turned to Wu Sijing and asked: "Bishop Wu, what do you mean? Do you agree with them?"
Wu Sijing was listening very leisurely, as if he was not involved, when suddenly such a sentence came out. He was so shocked that he was at a loss and stared with round eyes. It took him a long time to come up with a response: "Ah, I heard about this. Several people mentioned it, but they didn’t understand the reason and didn’t understand the responsibilities of various departments in the imperial court, so they didn’t delve into it. Sirs, please forgive Wu for being ignorant, I just want to help as much as I can."
"Okay," Cai Xianqing agreed, and even Ye Yongjia was surprised. "This proposal is acceptable. You can go back to your homes and wait. The court's reply will arrive in less than three days."
Everyone looked at Ye Yongjia, and Ye Yongjia naturally relaxed: "Everything is according to what Mr. Cai said."
Seeing that they were all about to leave, Wu Si Jing secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that this time there was no danger. He was about to walk out the door when he was suddenly shocked by a powerful voice:
"Well, Bishop Wu, we can talk about it again."
