It is an inevitable trend for banks to play their role as banks and conduct deposit and lending business.

Nowadays, there are many types of privately minted coins during the Hongzhi period, and it is obviously not possible to exchange all coins at the same price as before the silver horn.

Even if you want to continue to exchange silver taels and copper coins, you must also increase the color rebate, so as to ensure the healthy development of the silver number.

Yinhao is a "joint-stock enterprise", and in order to increase its business at present, it is necessary to hold a general meeting of shareholders to solicit the opinions of shareholders.

But before the shareholders' meeting, Hui Niang asked Shen Xi about all the unclear points, so as not to be speechless by the shareholders during the meeting. Shen Xi listed in detail the process of starting the money deposit and lending business, including some risk assessments after the business was launched, and handed it over to Hui Niang for review.

"With that, I'm sure I'll be able to convince the shopkeepers."

Hui Niang was very satisfied after reading it, and was full of confidence in the future development of the silver horn.

On the first day of April, Hui Niang held the first general meeting of shareholders of Yinhao.

At this meeting, in addition to announcing the expansion of the business scope of the silver number, Hui Niang also carried out a "share expansion" according to Shen Xi's proposal, increasing from the original 300 shares to 400 shares, and the principal reached 4,000 taels.

After Hui Niang agreed with Zhou, she increased her investment by 500 taels, so that she firmly occupied more than 50% of the original shares of Yinhao.

The remaining shares are either subscribed for shareholders or bought for other members of the Chamber of Commerce. In general, the people in the Tingzhou Chamber of Commerce are quite optimistic about the prospects of the silver number, and they also make money with money, and these people know better than Hui Niang how lucrative lending is.

On the second day of April, the school prepared by Hui Niang officially opened.

There were not many students in the first batch to study, more than 30 people were all children of businessmen in the city, the age was big and young, and there were as many as seven of Mr. plus Feng Yanqi, and there were six in the class.

In addition to the main teacher, there are other gentlemen in charge of the class, maybe the last class is still taught by this gentleman, and the next class is changed to another gentleman.

Hui Niang's expectations for the school are very high, and she hopes that Shen Xi can become a talent sooner. Shen Xi also lived up to her expectations, since Feng Huaqi is a good teacher who knows how to teach according to his aptitude, Shen Xi will not deliberately hide his knowledge, and it is very necessary to properly show "progress". Because it will expose him to a higher level of knowledge.

After Feng Yanqi assessed Shen Xi's knowledge, he was surprised to find that Shen Xi had an unbelievable "super talent" in reading, and it had only been a few days since he came into contact with the "Book of Songs" and "Shangshu", Shen Xi had been able to recite it proficiently, and Feng Huaqi assessed them one by one. When it comes to obscure scriptures, Shen Xi can answer them like a stream.

Even Shen Xi has unique insights into the "Book of Shang", and some of the points put forward by Shen Xi require even Feng Yanqi, a teacher, to think about it for a long time.

As a teacher of the school, Feng Yanqi would report the situation to the owner Huiniang every few days, and by the way, he would also calmly inform Shen Xi's progress.

When Hui Niang and Zhou learned that Shen Xi's studies were improving by leaps and bounds, they couldn't believe their ears...... They were originally worried that Shen Xi would always take care of business and the affairs of the Chamber of Commerce, and they would not be able to study well, but who would have expected that it would turn out that Shen Xi would have the potential to soar into the sky.

Shen Xi's progress has made Hui Niang have higher expectations for the school. Once again, she asked someone to hire a famous teacher, and even if she couldn't stay in the school, she could be a guest at the school, and occasionally come to pick up the students' knowledge. At the same time, the school also opened a piano, chess, calligraphy and painting course, and bought Shen Xi a guzheng and a game of Go for him to study hard.

Even after school, Hui Niang specially invited Feng Yanqi to her home to teach Shen Xi Baguwen the essence of breaking the topic, undertaking the topic, starting the lecture, entering the question, starting the stock, middle stock, back stock, and bundle stock.

Shen Xi felt that he had been condensed with too much hope, and his studies suddenly became much heavier. At this time, the other side complained bitterly. If he knew this, he wouldn't have flaunted his knowledge in front of Feng Yuqi.

With the gradual addition of the children of the Chamber of Commerce, the number of students at the school gradually increased from more than 30 at the beginning of the school year to 60 or 70.

Because of the novel teaching mode of the school. In addition, several of them are famous "famous teachers" in Tingzhou Mansion, and many gentry families in Fucheng and surrounding towns also want to send their children to study, but because the school is not open to the public, these applications were rejected by Feng Yuqi one by one.

In mid-April, Shen Mingjun, who had been back in Ninghua County for more than a month, finally returned, bringing good news: Shen Mingwen, the uncle of Shen Xi, was in this year's annual examination. With a first-class result, he successfully retained the title of Lisheng and restored the rice and silver.

The Shen family has now settled in Ninghua County, except for Shen Xi's fourth uncle Shen Mingxin, who stayed in Taohua Village, the other houses have moved back to the county seat, and the old lady used the money sent back by Shen Mingjun and his wife on weekdays to buy a four-entry courtyard in Ninghua City, plus trimming, and spent more than 150 taels of silver before and after.

“…… My mother left us two rooms in the west chamber of the second courtyard, saying that we can often go back to live in the future, and she misses Xiaolang very much. ”

When Shen Mingjun saw Zhou, his face was full of honest smiles.

"Xiaolang learns things quickly, and Mr. Feng praises him for his extremely high talent and tight academic schedule. Mr. Feng also said that in two years, he was going to let Xiaolang try to participate in the children's examination, and during this time, he had already begun to learn the art of making, and he was afraid that he would not have time to go back to see his mother and her old man...... Xianggong, you go take a bath first, and our family will have a reunion dinner. ”

Although Zhou always complained about Shen Mingjun, he was still quite attached to his husband in his heart, knowing that his husband was coming back, he didn't sleep well for two consecutive days, and Shen Mingjun put down what he was doing on the day he came back to greet him outside the city in person.

Shen Xi stood at the door, looking at the affectionate couple in the house, and sighed with emotion in his heart: After the Zhou family has achieved a little success in his career, he attaches great importance to the family, but it is a pity that his father does not understand the amorous feelings, and always does something to make his wife feel uncomfortable intentionally or unintentionally.

At dinner, Shen Mingjun took out the account book of the printing workshop brought back from Ninghua. During his stay in Ninghua, he drastically renovated the printing workshop there, repaired and refurbished all the machinery and equipment, and added a lot of new equipment. According to the previous plan of Zhou and Hui Niang, the printing workshop needed to be expanded again, and the original site was no longer enough, so several courtyards around the printing workshop were also bought.

After eating, Zhou was about to send the account book to Hui Niang for reference, Shen Mingjun suddenly asked: "Lady, I heard from the people in the Ninghua Printing Workshop that the lady is the big shopkeeper, I don't know why they spread it like this?" ”

Zhou didn't know how to respond for a while, she kept keeping her husband a secret that she was the major shareholder of the printing workshop, and even put the money she earned from the printing workshop to Hui Niang, so as not to be known to her husband.

But paper can't contain the fire after all, even if the printing workshop here in Tingzhou Mansion is the proprietor. On the side of Ninghua County, there are many people who know that the Zhou family is a veritable treasurer.

"Dad, people outside like to chew the root of their tongue the most, don't you know what they mean by that? That's obviously speaking ill of you......"

Shen Xi saw that Zhou's expression was not very good-looking. seemed to want to confess to her husband, and hurriedly played a round, "The printing workshop has been working on my aunt from the beginning, think about it, how can my mother be the shopkeeper?" ”

Shen Mingjun is also thinking about this problem along the way. Although Zhou often goes to the workshop, he mainly helps him do things, and Hui Niang has always been responsible for the investment and specific operation of the printing workshop. Thinking of the rumors that outsiders were going to marry Hui Niang as a concubine, Shen Mingjun couldn't help but shake his head and smile bitterly, grabbed his wife's hand apologetically, and patted it gently, which was regarded as an expression of apology.

When Zhou went to the pharmacy, Shen Xi pulled his father's shirt: "Dad." Don't hear the wind is the rain, you know, my mother is very mindful of those gossip. ”

"I know what's going on...... Don't worry, Xiaolang, it's those masters and guys in the county town who say so, I just tried to ask, and I won't say it in the future. Shen Mingjun said that he was determined not to listen to these rumors in the future, so as not to destroy family harmony.

Zhou came back after sending the account book, in fact, she blamed herself very much. In order to make her family live a good life, she hid the fact that she had shares in the printing workshop and the silver number, and wanted to say it at the right time, but it took a year before and after. It's a little too late to confess.

With a sense of guilt, Zhou became more and more obedient to her husband, and as for the "conscienceless" things that Shen Mingjun had done, she was quickly thrown out of the clouds.

Since then, Shen Xi found that when the old lady mentioned Shen Mingjun in front of Hui Niang, she was always "the one in my family" or "Xianggong". No more prefixes such as "no conscience".

In April, the silver account began to deposit and lend money, at the beginning of the loan more and less money, the ordinary people still have a wait-and-see attitude towards the silver number.

Although the deposit interest rate offered by the silver number is 10% per year, and one or two pieces of silver will have an interest of 100 wen a year, which is a great temptation for the people who have some spare money in their hands, but they don't want their hard-earned money to go down the drain.

Throughout the month, under the condition of comprehensive and meticulous publicity, the silver number only received a deposit of more than 200 taels of silver, but the amount of loans proposed by the chamber of commerce was 2,000 taels.

The silver number has a capital of 4,000 taels, Hui Niang did not rashly lend out all of them, just choose a few orders of business, and the money lent out is very careful, and the interest on the loan is unified to be half a year of interest, and it will be returned in six months, but the interest needs to be charged every month.

In the case of great market fluctuations, the interest of half a year is not much, because now the business business, relying on the capital can be multiplied several times in a few months, some shops that are interested in expanding the scale of business, are very keen on lending, and there is a formal contract protection, as long as the loan is repaid on time, the mortgage of the physical or land title deed can also be preserved, than the mortgage pawnshop, or from the outside of the loan shark is much more cost-effective.

Hui Niang kept the mortgaged land and title deeds carefully, for fear that any mistakes and omissions would affect the reputation of the silver number.

At the same time as the silver business was developing slowly, at this time, the establishment of the chamber of commerce procurement system proposed by Shen Xi at the beginning of the year was also put on the agenda.

In order to buy cheap and affordable spring tea, merchants who deal in tea in the city want to rely on the chamber of commerce to directly purchase tea from places such as West Lake, Taihu Lake, Dongting Lake and Xinyang, so as to skip the middleman.

But Hui Niang was skeptical about this.

The middlemen who deal in tea are the same as the merchants who did the northern millet and wheat business with the Tingzhou Rice Grain Store at the end of last year, and after suffering a big loss, these people learned that there were no "Jiangxi merchants" from beginning to end, but only a "trick" used by the Chamber of Commerce, resulting in not making enough profits, and they have been looking for an opportunity to retaliate against the Chamber of Commerce.

Although Hui Niang controls the Tingzhou Chamber of Commerce, she has no official background after all, and she has always been cautious about this matter, and she does not want to have a head-on conflict with these people.

But if the tea merchants in the chamber of commerce do not purchase in person, they will be sold new tea by the merchants, and they will definitely open their mouths at that time, and these people have now learned well, knowing that the chamber of commerce may use the means, people will definitely find a good home for the tea in advance, if the price is not satisfactory, even if it is a loss, it will not be sold to the merchants of the chamber of commerce.

At the same time as the Tingzhou Chamber of Commerce is booming, a resistance force against the Chamber of Commerce is gradually forming. (To be continued.) )