Back at the mansion behind Qichang Foreign Bank, Han Xiufeng drafted a letter as if he didn't care at all, wrote down everything he experienced at night, and asked Ding Gui to take it back overnight to report to Yang Nengge.

Early the next morning, just as he was going to ask Xiao Wuzi to go to the front foreign bank to ask if there was any news of "selling chickens", Huang Yunsheng, a friend of "selling chickens", not only came back from Jiangnan Daying, but also brought an old acquaintance who was too familiar to be familiar anymore.

"Brother Han, they all said that Shibei should be impressed for three days, and it has only been a few days since Taizhou said goodbye, and you have been promoted again! If I hadn't read the transfer text sent by the Yamen to the Jiangnan camp, I wouldn't have believed it just by listening to the words of the surname Huang. Zhou Xingyuan came to Shanghai for the first time, he had never seen a foreigner before, let alone lived in a bungalow, and he pressed the chair under his butt while talking, as if he was very curious about why the chair that foreigners sat on was so soft.

Han Xiufeng was also very happy when he met his old acquaintance in another country, and asked curiously while beckoning him to drink tea: "Brother Zhou is radiant, there must be something good, can you talk about it first, let me help you be happy and happy." ”

Zhou Xingyuan is in good spirits on happy occasions, and he couldn't help but smile and said: "Thanks to my brother's blessing, I have to help Shuai and seek a recovery." But compared to my brother, this little good thing for me is really nothing. ”

"So the official has been reinstated?"

"How can it be so easy for the official to be reinstated, just now, the acting Shanghai County Cheng, I still ask Shuai to help you in your face, brother. But then again, I, Zhou Xingyuan, was originally a person who was dismissed and never used, and it was not easy to find a reinstatement and a shortage. ”

"That's right, after all, the hardest thing is to open and recover." Han Xiufeng smiled and asked curiously: "Brother Zhou, Xiang Shuai's side is just the time to employ people, and his old man asked you to come to Shanghai, not just to act as a county officer, right?" ”

"I don't know how to hide it from my brother." Zhou Xingyuan looked back behind him, saw that the door of the study was closed, and then thought that Xiao Wuzi should be guarding outside at this time, so he said worriedly: "Changmao divided his troops to the west, and the imperial court not only frequently drew troops from the Jiangnan camp, but also issued an edict to Shuai to attack the city in three days. But Xiang Shuai is not only tight in troops, tight in food, and even the guns are not sharp, you can tell me how to attack this city and how to fight this battle to Xiang Shuai? ”

Thinking that Xu Naizhao transferred Xue Huan, Liu Cunhou, Hu Songlin and Qin Ruhai, who were the soldiers under them, from the Jiangnan battalion to Shanghai to quell the chaos, Han Xiufeng realized that the Jiangnan battalion was now estimated to have only a few thousand soldiers left, and Xiang Shuai could only sing the "empty camp plan" now, not only did he have no spare strength to attack the city, but even whether he could block Changmao and keep Suzhou, Hangzhou and other places of wealth was dangerous.

"Brother Zhou, so Xiang Shuai asked you to come to Shanghai to raise money for a gun?"

"Exactly."

"It's easy to say that there is Wu Jianzhang, as long as there is silver, not to mention foreign guns and cannons, even foreign ships and foreign soldiers can be hired, but where does the silver come from?" Han Xiufeng touched the corners of his mouth, and continued: "Xiang Shuai asked you to act as the county minister, but the county leader has to listen to the county!" Sun Feng, the new county magistrate of Shanghai, is not difficult to deal with, but now that he, the county magistrate, has said that it doesn't matter, not only is Wu Xu staring at him, but everything has to be reported to the new Su Song Taidao Yang Nengge. It's not that I'm discouraged, this errand handed over to you by Xiang Shuai is not very easy. ”

Zhou Xingyuan didn't hang his head, but asked, "Brother Han, Wu Xu is Xu Naizhao's person, right?" ”

"You don't even know that!"

"If I don't find out, if I don't have any preparation, I won't dare to come."

"Brother Zhou, this matter is not as simple as you think, you must know that the Shanghai it is today is not the Shanghai of a month ago. Xu Naizhao wants to raise food and salary on the spot, and Yang Nengge is also changing his methods to raise money and food on the spot. The people can have a few money, and if the people have money, they will not resist food or even rebel with the rebellious party. Let's put it this way, now everyone is staring at me, the nominal superintendent of the Jiang Customs, and those gentry and merchants who have fled from the county town to the concession. ”

"Don't worry, brother, I won't beat your idea."

"And how are you going to raise money?"

Zhou Xingyuan took out an envelope from his arms proudly, Han Xiufeng took the envelope and took it out, it turned out to be an official document issued by Peng Yuwen, the general grain station of the Jiangnan Daying, and it was actually ordered Zhou Xingyuan to come to Shanghai to open a lijin.

"Brother Zhou, so you have two positions, both Shanghai County Cheng and the General Office of the Silk Tea Bureau who directly obeys the orders of the General Grain Station!"

"If the name is not right, it is not good, if you don't do this county, it will not be very convenient to set up a card to collect two donations of silk tea." Zhou Xingyuan put down the teacup, and said with a confident smile: "I came to Shanghai to start a donation, I asked for the court's permission from Shuai Xiao Jiangbei Ying, not to mention him Yang Nengge, even Xu Naizhao and Gil Hang'a don't want to interfere." ”

Han Xiufeng didn't expect that the imperial court would actually agree to the Jiangnan camp to open a donation like the Jiangbei camp, and then thought that the general grain station was still Peng Yuwen, so he couldn't help but smile and asked, "So you have to prepare two accounts?" ”

"When I receive the centi, I have to hand over a little bit to Master Peng, and the rest will be used to get guns."

"Brother Zhou, do you think Master Peng is so relieved that he won't send someone to keep an eye on you?"

"Master Peng is an old minister of the Three Dynasties, and the imperial court entrusted him with a heavy task to serve as the chief grain station of the Jiangnan camp, how can he not know the good intentions of the imperial court, not only do not worry about my Zhou Xingyuan, but also do not worry about Xiang Shuai. It's just that his old man is old and frail, his energy is low, and he can doze off when he talks, so how can he care about this. ”

Looking at Han Xiufeng's thoughtful appearance, Zhou Xingyuan said again: "And Xiang Shuai just asked me to start two donations of silk tea in Shanghai, not to let me do the donation of the entire Songjiang Mansion, let alone to see all the commercial goods, this is similar to picking up leaks from his old man's hands." ”

Foreigners sell opium and cloth to China, and the goods that China can sell to foreigners are mainly silk tea. And Shanghai is a big wharf, not only Su Songtai and other mansions, but also most of the silk tea from all over Zhejiang is also shipped to Shanghai to trade with foreigners. In other words, what Zhou Xingyuan wants to collect next is not only the silk tea gold in Shanghai, but the silk tea gold in the entire Jiangnan.

Thinking that he would be rich as soon as he opened, Han Xiufeng looked at him with a smile and asked, "Brother Zhou, you gave Xiang Shuai the idea of coming to Shanghai to donate two cents of silk tea, right?" ”

"I was guessed by my brother again, but my brother can rest assured that although Zhou loves money, a gentleman loves money in a good way. The reason why this idea was come up with and why I took the initiative to invite Ying to come to Shanghai was really to repay the grace of Shuai! ”

Zhou Xingyuan's face was sincere, and his words were sonorous and powerful.

Han Xiufeng believes that he is a person who knows how to repay his kindness, but he really can't believe that he can be fair and honest, after all, thousands of miles of officials are only for money. can think that if Xiang Shuai is a different person, not to mention that he may not be able to set up a card under the noses of Xu Naizhao, Gil Hang'a and Yang Nengge, even if he can do it, he may not be more incorruptible than the former "Bronze King" in front of him.