Jinling merchant compound

This is an ordinary street in Jinling, and after the war, ten households and nine mourners. In this war, how many good sons and daughters in the south of the Yangtze River were broken and sunk into the sand, and the paper candle and incense shop, which usually had little business, is now particularly prosperous with the frequent bad news of the relatives in front of the people. The shopkeeper Wang Ping focused on checking the sales account books, and the guy Zhang Si ran over to ask the shopkeeper Wang Ping with a look of embarrassment.

"Master, there is a woman in the store who has no money and wants to exchange half a stone of rice for incense, candles and linen, seeing that she is really pitiful, do you see if you can ......" Zhang Si studied under Wang Ping, so that he could eat in the business world without any wages to get, and after three years of leaving the school, if he digs in another business to work, he can get his salary.

"Little bunny! Collect those sundries, you fill the holes in this account, the owner is going to come to us to count the account in the past two days, and the things that were changed out two days ago are still looking for the money exchanged by the grocery store Sun to fill in the account, don't change it today, get out! ”

Zhang Si saw that there was no play, so he had to turn around and go out, thinking that it was not good for you to barter things. I was about to tell the woman that she would not be exchanged today. Suddenly, the shopkeeper Wang Ping remembered that these things were all invisible, and he was afraid that Zhang Si's kid's mouth would leak and it would not be good if it reached the owner.

"Come back!"

"What else does the master command?"

"Don't spread the word about this barter to Caidong, otherwise you will look good!"

"Master, where are you talking about, Xiaosi, I don't know if I don't have the heart, you still can't believe me!"

Wang Ping said with a smile on his face: "Little four! There is a future, master, I am very optimistic that you will help you with a few kind words in Caidong in the future, and prepare a new dress for you this year. He~he~ Go for it! ”

When the woman learned that she couldn't change it today, her already sad mood worsened a little, and she wanted to cry tears. Zhang Si was also born with a bitter child, seeing that the woman was so sad and didn't know what it was like, this woman must be a relative in the family who died and had no money to mourn, and exchanged the family rations for paper candles. Zhang Si plucked up the courage to take the things that the woman in the store needed, and took half of the half stone rice and returned it to the woman, the woman was busy kneeling on the ground with joy and sorrow, "Thank you, little Engong!" Thank you, little Engong! Zhang Si hurriedly helped the woman up, "I can't help it, get up quickly." Sending the woman away, Zhang Si came to the shopkeeper with less than one-third of a stone of rice.

I only heard a stinking scolding and a sound of begging for mercy, and when I got closer, I saw chicken feathers flying all over the ground, which turned out to be the chicken feathers that fell from the feather duster when Zhang Si was beaten just now. The person who came in shouted, "Go!" Caidong is coming, but Wang Ping has not come out to greet Caidong! "The person who came was extraordinary, and this person was Lei Peng of Caidong Nursing Hospital. Hearing that Caidong was coming, the shopkeeper Wang immediately stopped and came out to greet Caidong. The anger just now ran to Java, in exchange for a pleasant servant face, and he hurriedly bowed down to salute, "I don't know if the wealth is far away!" ”

The middle-aged thin scholar beside Caidong asked, "Why did the shopkeeper of the king beat and scolded the guy?" ”

Wang Ping thought for a moment, "Oh! This kid exchanged rice for less than the price of the goods in the store, and did sell and buy at a loss to ask the wealthy to redeem the sin of the little man who had no way to teach. As he spoke, he looked very aggrieved and gave the owner a salute.

Cai Dong looked at Zhang Si, and seemed to be indifferent to this matter, and walked into the back hall to sit down, and the entourage waited for the stream to enter. Cai Dong spoke. "Wang Ping is pretending, let's do the right thing first!" Wang Ping saw that the shopkeeper didn't mention this trivial matter, and half of the stone in his heart was taken down, if he chased it, maybe the kid would not leak the wind with his mouth on the door, and then he might smash his job. Wang Ping respectfully presented the account books that had already been calculated. The abacus beads jumped up and down, and the middle-aged thin scholar carefully completed his checking work. Wang Ping personally served tea for Caidong, this was not Wang Ping's deliberate stammering, because there were only two of his masters and apprentices in this small shop, and Caidong usually didn't come much, just a middle-aged thin scholar came to check the accounts. In less than two teas, the accounts were checked, and the middle-aged thin scholar returned to Caidong's accounts to clear the accounts, and the accounts were two more layers than usual.

Wang Ping was secretly happy when he saw that Caidong had no displeasure on his face, the shopkeeper had not done it for nothing all these years, and he was still looking forward to Caidong being able to praise him a few words, and his heart was beautiful. Cai Dong said: "Wang Ping! Things are doing well, such a small shop for you is smooth and deserved, it seems that it will be useless to put you in this small shop in the future. ”

"Cai Dong is wonderful! Xiao Ke is just doing his job. Cai Dong didn't ask about the barter and praised himself, Wang Ping smiled all over his face.

"How daring! It's a good one, I don't know what you did, most of the other shops have less money and more things, but you are different here, and the little thing you did with the Yongfeng grocery store is not clear to others! Cai Dong suddenly slapped the table and stood. Frightened, Wang Ping's knees immediately fell to the ground, and the sweat on his forehead flowed down like a stream after rain. Knowing that his little Jiujiu was discovered by the wealthy owner, he begged for mercy and was willing to take out all the illegal gains, just begging the rich man to enjoy food for the sake of following him for many years. You must know that it is very important to have a stable career in this troubled world, because it is related to life, Wang Ping is still there as a "chicken eater". Cai Dong got up and wanted to walk out of the back hall, but suddenly stopped his footsteps and ordered, "Brother Boren, go to that batch of standing halls to find a capable person to replace him, Wang Ping will be demoted to the standing hall to wait for retention." ”

The middle-aged thin scholar wrote down this incident, and he was the Boren mentioned by Caidong, and his surname was Cui Mingzhi Boren. Cui Zhidao: "What should I do with that guy?" ”

"Let's keep it," Cai Dong said.

"Oh, let's take him to the general number to do chores" Cai Dong thought that this kid would definitely not be able to work here in the future, and if the master had a problem, the apprentice would be better there, and the shopkeeper who came to take over would not use him. Ay! Zhang Si's behavior of exchanging rice is enough to prove that he still has a benevolent heart, although the master calls him like a cow and a horse, and the master who did not betray himself in this situation is enough to prove that this son knows how to be loyal, so he cherished him and left him behind.

After all, the merchant is the ninth class, the merchant is not allowed to sit in a sedan chair in the rich, can only take a carriage or donkey cart, this donkey cart has a shed on it, more common in the north, Cai Dong's ancestor is also a northerner, only because of the Central Plains for many years of war, in order to avoid military disasters, Cai Dong's family moved south to Li Tang, originally wanted to get an official and a half job in the Tang court to support the family. But our proprietor is not good at poetry, even if there is no material to govern the country, there is no place for it, forced to make a living, so he had to give up literature and engage in business for 20 years, and finally got more than 100 shops in 35 continents in the Southern Tang Dynasty, becoming the largest business name in the Southern Tang Dynasty, Dexing. This person's career is not good, and he eventually becomes a strange material in the business world, and this person's surname is Hongyi.

Shang Hongyi and Cui Mingzhi sat in the car, and Cui Mingzhi saw that Shang Hongyi's poor appearance was not all due to the paper candle shop. The two sat quietly in the car, and after a while, they arrived at the gate of the merchant compound, and when they got out of the car, Shang Hongyi said to Cui Mingzhi, "Brother Boren! How's the morning going? ”

"Oh, I called Xiaoshi to inform you, everyone is looking forward to Caidong's statement, and they will definitely come at dinner," Cui Mingzhi said.

The main hall of the merchant compound, which is a hall that can accommodate six eight-immortal tables, will only be set up here during the New Year's festival or when the family is doing big things. Today is not the New Year's Eve or a major event at home, two tables are placed on the left and right sides of the hall, and a table is also placed above the center, obviously this table is for the high-ranking people. The time is approaching, some important store managers and some industry colleagues of Dexing who have been invited to come are coming, the guests are seated in the host's place, and Shang Hongyi toasts to the guests.

"Friends in the same industry, all Dexing shopkeepers! As the leader of the guild, Shang Mou has no solution to the current predicament, and today I invite you to discuss the countermeasures to the current crisis. said that Shang Hongyi led in, so that it was the prelude to the discussion. Merchants do not eat and sleep like literati, and often many businesses are negotiated at the dinner table.

On the left table, a businessman in his thirties, poured himself a glass, sighed, and said, "Hey! Now this business is getting more and more difficult to do, and now the goods are getting more and more difficult to sell, no one buys where to sell, it seems that it won't be long before it will be closed! At the table opposite, the young businessman answered: "It's not that others don't want to buy it, it's that they don't have the money to buy it, people often use the chickens, ducks, food, or something to change things in my shop. Most of the people at the banquet also echoed, it seems that everyone has encountered such a problem, it is not easy to save things in exchange, and the loss is large, in this way, we traders will not be able to calculate, and those copper coins do not know where to go. Someone said, "I heard that half a year ago, Yongfeng opened its first new shop in my Datang, because of high quality and low price, and now the development is about to catch up with Dexing." Shang Hongyi has also noticed this recently! is also a celebrity in the business world, and Li Zhao, a native of Chu, is the Caidong of Yongfeng. Chu is rich in tea cinnabar, this can't be compared with others, but they are also selling goods in the Tang Dynasty, the purchase channels are the same, why can they do the price that the same industry can't do, if it is to compete with the same industry, even if Li Zhao has financial resources, he can't afford it in the long run, besides, businessmen are profit-seeking, who will do this business that does not make money or lose money! Shang Hongyi realized that this matter was not so simple, and a certain ominous premonition arose, and now there was a shortage of copper coins in the Tang Dynasty, could it be that Li Zhao wanted to live in a strange commodity This commodity is copper coin. There are fewer copper coins in the world, and now the price of a copper coin is high, and you can buy more things, and Li Zhao is a merchant in Chu State, Chu State does not use copper coins to transfer to other countries for use and is inconvenient to carry, what is the use of him taking these copper? He couldn't figure it out. The current problem is how to deal with normal circulation now that there is less currency in circulation. There are some small businesses that have difficulty paying their men because of the sharp drop in copper money. Under the discussion of everyone, it was proposed that Dexing Money Village should bear the responsibility of issuing a smaller amount of "twist" to pay wages instead of cash, and it was necessary to remit the cash to Dexing Money for pairing, so as to solve the problem of insufficient copper money.

The winch is actually a larger firm, which is a kind of contract marked with silver taels made for the convenience of the transaction of goods, and the winch is divided into two parts, one is held by the buyer, and the other is held by the buyer, and the two together can obtain cash. The twist is generally based on a high degree of integrity, not all businesses can be sent to a big business such as Dexing, the credibility is very high, and many small traders who have dealings with them are also willing to take their hanging, so that everyone is convenient. In the imitation room, there are also small traders who exchange wrenches issued by Dexing.

After the banquet was dispersed, Cui Mingzhi, the guest Cui Mingzhi and the second shopkeeper and the third shopkeeper of the Dexing number came to the study of Shang Hongyi in the backyard. Shang Hongyi said, "Everyone is here, just sit down!" "Sit down in turn with Cui Mingzhi as the leader, and Cui Mingzhi is respected here in addition to Caidongshang Hongyi, because he is the general account of Dexing and the military advisor, and in the current words, he is the vice president of finance and the general counsel. This vice president of finance can make an indispensable contribution to the Dexing Dynasty, and Pingshang Hongyi is also a good courtesy to him and is commensurate with brothers. Shang Hongyi spoke, "What do you think about the things discussed at today's banquet, and the benefits and disadvantages are all self-defeating." ”

The last three shopkeepers put down the tea and said: "It is a good thing that our Dexing number is issued with a twist, which solves our current problem and does a good thing for everyone. ”

"Not really! There are pros and cons to everything! A second shopkeeper retorted.

"Oh! What is the opinion of the shopkeeper of Fang Er? Cui Mingzhi asked.

"The shopkeeper of the king of Fangcai said, 'three benefits with one stone', but I didn't expect that there was a drawback, this disadvantage is that we don't have so many copper coins to remit to others, if there is a run on the turnover, then the twenty-year-old signboard will be smashed."

Shopkeeper Wang was about to refute that there would be a run on the seventh, and Cui Mingzhi waved his hand to signal him to stop. He asked, "What is the opinion of the great treasurer?" ”

The big shopkeeper has been drinking his own tea, as if this tea is the best in the world, and he tastes it very carefully, and he doesn't seem to care about the discussion. Seeing that the vice president of finance greeted him, he deliberately pretended to be very surprised, put away the teacup and said, "What Shopkeeper Wang said is very correct, and what Shopkeeper Fang Er said is not unreasonable." Cui Mingzhi thought to himself, you old boy wants to not offend at both ends, it's really an old slippery head. Cai Dongzai, who had been silent, couldn't sit still and said, "Okay, my big shopkeeper, don't sell your officials, tell your opinion to the big guy!" "This big shopkeeper thinks that my big shopkeeper is not under you as a bookkeeper, and if you want to ask, you have to ask Caidong.

"The two shopkeepers and the three shopkeepers are all right, but you have all dropped a very fatal problem, this boiling salt and casting money is a major matter of the country, we are now distributing a small amount of money to the guys, this small amount of money will inevitably circulate in the imitation, isn't this equivalent to casting money, I don't know if the government will come to find fault, private money is a big crime like Dexing is resting!"

After saying that, everyone was silent and cold sweat broke out, Shang Hongyi turned his eyes away from Cui Mingzhi, and saw that he was at a loss and couldn't come up with a good solution. Due to the large amount of trouble caused by the distribution of hangers, Shang Hongyi did not agree on the spot to give everyone an answer after the senior management of the Dexing was properly discussed. Shang Hongyi saw that the discussion was fruitless, so he asked everyone to disperse, and he was alone on the Taishi chair in the study, looking at the night sky outside through the window. He has encountered countless blows and ups and downs in the mall, whether it is with his peers or the government, he can deal with it easily, but this time he encountered unprecedented challenges, and he felt that he had never been afraid of his whole body.

It is easy for people to fall asleep in the silent night, and I don't know how long Shang Hongyi suddenly woke up from his dream, and when he woke up, he was soaked in cold sweat. In his dream, he felt that the shop covered in blood was burned down in the war, he shouted desperately, but no one could hear his voice, and a vague figure in the distance was laughing at him, the laughter was so terrifying.

The next day, the general number of Dexing sent news that Caidong Shang Hongyi fell ill, and Lang Zhong said that it was the disease of evil qi entering the body and heart disease, so he was bedridden. As for the friendship related to the payment of wages on behalf of Dexing Qian Zhuang, it was suspended indefinitely.

In the east wing of the merchant compound, Mrs. Shang Hongyi and a few maids are taking care of Shang Hongyi, and he himself can now lean on the bed and drink some gruel. A maid came to report: "Mr. Cui is coming to visit the master!" ”

"Hurry up, please, Madame change my clothes quickly" After lying at home for a few days, he already wanted to meet this old brother Boren.

"I've seen my sister-in-law, Bo Rente came to visit Caidong" Cui Mingzhi responded and entered the east wing to give a gift to Caidong and his wife.

"Mr. Cui doesn't have to be polite, let's talk about business! Don't accompany you" Saying that Mrs. Shang returned the gift and the maids exited the room, Mrs. had long been accustomed to asking them about the men's business.

"It's suffocating me these days, what's going on outside? The suspension of the distribution of the wrench has gone well, right? Shang Hongyi's urgent question.

"It's okay, everyone also understands that it's not so easy to make decisions when it's big trouble!" Cui Mingzhi replied.

"That's good, Li Zhao! I saw this Chu State giant once last time I purchased spring tea, and this person was mediocre in appearance, so I couldn't imagine such a stake, so I had to find a chance to meet him. ”

"I'll arrange this, it may not be so easy to find an opportunity." Because they are both Southern Tang giants and competitors in the same industry, they have no business contacts now, but the fateful arrangement of these two fates is destined to always meet.