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Lin Yunpu's attitude was quite respectful. After hearing Zhao Junchen's inquiry, he quickly put on a smile and replied: "Sir, you are worrying too much. We, the Huizhe Merchant Gang, have no other demands. We just admire your reputation for a long time and want to I want to make friends with you, sir, so I have prepared such a meeting gift... Sir, you have a distinguished status, so naturally we don’t dare to be shabby or perfunctory, otherwise it will not be enough to express our sincerity."
Dai Fengfu on the side also nodded repeatedly and agreed: "Yes, this is just a meeting gift, we have no other intentions."
However, as soon as the two of them finished speaking, Bai Mingyu suddenly added: "However, although this meeting gift cannot be said to be shabby, it is indeed not a generous gift... If you, sir, can become a friend of our Huizhou-Zhejiang Merchant Gang, , then you will find that the real generous gifts are yet to come. Although we, the merchants, are powerless, we are not short of gold and silver, and we will never treat our friends badly!"
Hearing Bai Mingyu's words, Lin Yunpu frowned slightly, and Dai Fengfu couldn't help but change his expression. They all thought Bai Mingyu's words were extremely inappropriate.
Just now, Zhao Junchen has made it clear that these gifts are definitely a generous gift, so Lin Yunpu, Dai Fengfu and Bai Mingyu should echo his words, saying that these gifts are indeed a generous gift - however, Bai Mingyu put on a show of He looked unconcerned and said, "The real gift is yet to come." Isn't this a mockery of Zhao Junchen, who is so rare and strange that he has never seen a real "gift"?
In addition, the content of Bai Mingyu's words can be described as a naked temptation of gold and silver, without any cover-up. It was as if Zhao Junchen could be bribed with just money. Anyone who was interested could understand the contempt contained in it.
However, if you only need gold and silver, you can easily buy them, and they will do things for you as long as you give them money. So what is the difference between Zhao Junchen, a second-rank official of the imperial court, and the servants in his own house? It's just that the price is higher - even if this is the truth, how can it be said clearly?
Obviously, Bai Mingyu has been in contact with middle-level officials of the imperial court such as prefects and prefects for a long time, and he is used to using money to open roads and hit people with money, and he has always done everything to his advantage. In his confusion, he forgot that Zhao Junchen's status was completely different from that of the middle-level officials of the imperial court.
Therefore, it is not difficult to understand the changes in the expressions of Lin Yunpu and Dai Fengfu.
So, as soon as Bai Mingyu finished speaking, Lin Yunpu scolded him sternly: "Be careful! Mr. Zhao is an important minister in the court. How can you speak like this!?"
On the other side, Dai Fengfu hurriedly explained to Zhao Junchen: "I hope you don't blame me, sir. Bai Mingyu is young and energetic, and he has never been able to speak. He always says what he says but doesn't mean it. But he has absolutely no intention of looking down on you. Sir, please understand." .”
Lin Yunpu and Dai Fengfu cooperated tacitly, one was responsible for reprimanding, and the other was responsible for explaining, and they were not only reprimanding and explaining. He also secretly observed the changes in Zhao Junchen's expression, fearing that Zhao Junchen would be angry because of this.
Then, under the reminder of Lin Yunpu and Dai Fengfu. Bai Mingyu finally realized his gaffe, his expression also changed, and he quickly apologized to Zhao Junchen.
In the history of the Ming Dynasty, although the power of Huizhou and Zhejiang merchants was at its peak, and even the famous Donglin Party was one of their spokespersons, after the purge and rectification by Emperor Chongzhen. The power of Huizhou and Zhejiang merchants has now been greatly reduced, although their financial resources are still abundant. However, he lost his influence on the center of the imperial court. For Zhao Junchen, the Minister of Household Affairs and the powerful official in the temple. They are also in a weak position and do not have many means of confrontation. Now that they are seeking help from Zhao Junchen, they naturally dare not offend him even more.
However, unexpectedly, Zhao Junchen was not angry at Bai Mingyu's gaffe, but instead laughed softly.
After laughing, Zhao Junchen looked around the three of them and said slowly: "Oh? Do you just want to be friends with me? Haha, in my opinion, there is never friendship for no reason, whether in official circles or shopping malls. Most of my friends come together for the sake of profit, and then disperse for the sake of profit. You want to be friends with me, and you sent me such a generous gift. I’m afraid you also want to get something from me, right?... Well, you don’t have to. I was panicked, but I wasn’t angry. In comparison, I admire Boss Bai’s straightforward nature more... Tell me, what do you want me to do for you? If you don’t understand clearly, I can't accept these gifts from you with peace of mind. After all, even if you are as rich as the rest of the world, your money doesn't come from strong winds."
After hearing Zhao Junchen's words, Lin Yunpu, Dai Fengfu, Bai Mingyu and others secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, under Zhao Junchen's repeated questioning, Lin Yunpu pondered for a moment, and finally revealed his purpose, saying: "I hope you will see clearly, we really just want to make friends with you... If you insist on saying so, If there is any intention, it is that we and the Huizhou-Zhejiang merchant gang want to seek an equal opportunity for ourselves through our friendship with you, sir."
"Equal opportunities?" Zhao Junchen looked at Lin Yunpu with meaningful eyes and asked slowly.
Lin Yunpu nodded and said: "Actually, it is about developing Sichuan salt and rectifying Sichuan salt affairs! The benefits of this matter are so great that even the Huizhou and Zhejiang merchant gangs like us are very jealous. However, Shanxi merchants are important to you, sir. With your full support, they almost monopolized this big business. The Hui-Zhejiang Merchant Gang is obviously no weaker than the Shanxi merchants in terms of financial and human resources, but they don't even have a chance to compete..."
At this point, Lin Yunpu probably felt that his words were meant to accuse Zhao Junchen, and quickly explained further: "Of course, we and other Huizhou and Zhejiang merchants also know that you and several leading figures among the Shanxi merchants are My friend, when you were providing disaster relief in Lu'an Prefecture, you received a lot of help from Shanxi merchants. Since then, Shanxi merchants have spared no effort to cheer for you, publicize your achievements everywhere, and also fully support your position in the temple... ...So, it is reasonable for you, my lord, to repay the Shanxi merchants."
After a pause, Lin Yunpu's voice rose slightly, and his expression became more sincere, and he continued: "However, I and the Hui-Zhejiang Merchant Gang also admire you very much, and we are willing to spare no effort to support you from now on. , I hope you can accept the friendship of our Huizhou-Zhejiang Merchant Gang and become our friend! The Hui-Zhejiang Merchant Gang will never make you feel embarrassed, let alone Your Excellency, you are partial to others, as long as you can give Huizhou and Zhejiang merchants a chance to compete fairly with Shanxi merchants! This is the wish of all our Huizhou and Zhejiang merchants, and I hope that you can seriously consider it."
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…(To be continued)
