As a relative of He Jing, the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, there are very few people who really dare to get along with Hu Chuyuan on this territory in Fujian Province.

Everyone knows this, and they have to swallow it even if they can't swallow it.

Ye Wenlan ate the loose meal quite happily, and soon, he sent away nearly thirty-nine officials who had been dismissed, and he also asked the housekeeper to prepare the accounts and take a sedan chair to the shipmaster's yamen.

Ye Wenlan's position in the shipyard yamen is the chief engineer, the rank of gabu political envoy, and he can be regarded as a second-class official and businessman, but he rarely works in the yamen, and most of the time he runs between Nanyang and Fujian to do business, operating the huge amount of private money for Shen Baozhen.

……

Hearing that Ye Wenlan came to visit him, Hu Chuyuan asked Zhang Baixi, Tu Renshou and others to avoid it first.

Soon after, Ye Wenlan led his housekeeper and several family members into Hu Chuyuan's study, and asked his subordinates to send dozens of account books first.

Only then did he say to Hu Chuyuan: "Raise your lord, Ye Mou came this time to discuss a big matter with your lord!" ”

Hu Chuyuan nodded slightly, invited him to sit down, and said, "Lord Shen Baozhen Shen has asked someone to send me a letter to tell me that there is a private account in the yamen, it seems that these account books sent by Lord Ye are those private accounts?" ”

"Oh?" Ye Wenlan was slightly surprised, and then said: "It is indeed these accounts, and I ask the adults to send someone to check, this amount has been accumulated since the fifth year of Tongzhi, and about 100,000 taels of silver are transferred every year." Over the years, I have deposited the money in four firms, operating the trade between Nanyang and Fujian, mainly engaged in tea and sugar porcelain, tinware, lacquerware, northern and southern groceries and local goods, etc., if there is no business contacts, then in Fuzhou, Xiamen, Nanyang three places to issue loans, run Fuchang money village seven. ”

Hu Chuyuan asked very dryly: "How much is the total amount of money at present?" ”

Ye Wenlan said: "A total of 2.14 million taels of silver has been allocated for official funds, and after thirteen years of painstaking operation, the total amount is about 4.29 million taels of silver. According to the agreement between Lord Shen and me, 20% of the profits belong to me, and counting the principal, adults can take 80% of them, which is about 3.86 million taels. ”

A businessman is a businessman after all, and there must be ghosts in the seemingly fair accounts.

Not to mention anything else, Ye Wenlan's fleet traveled exclusively from Nanyang to Fujian, transporting porcelain, tea, silk, lacquerware, and groceries when he went to Nanyang, and transporting pepper, sugar, tinware, mahogany, etc. when he returned, as long as he had a principal of 2.14 million taels of silver, he could earn a net profit of 2.14 million taels of silver by reselling them back and forth in three years.

Accounts, this kind of thing...... Who wouldn't do it?

There must be flaws in the fraudulent accounts, but it depends on who is cheating, the level of fraud of these officials in the shipping administration and yamen is basically the amateur second stage, and the blind can see the problem, Ye Wenlan is the level of the seventh or eighth stage of the profession.

Shen Baozhen said in a letter to Hu Chuyuan in advance that as long as 3 million taels of silver could be recovered, the yamen would be very profitable, and it was not appropriate to ask more.

The reason why Shen Baozhen said this was because he didn't know how to do business at all.

Hu Chuyuan was silent, pondering this matter in his heart, and he didn't know if it was necessary for him to pick out all the money that Ye Wenlan had embezzled.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Ye Wenlan smiled and said: "Don't be suspicious, my lord, Nanyang's business in Fujian is becoming more and more difficult, and there were still a lot of profits in the past few years. Although the principal is increasing, there are not many goods that can be received in the market. ”

"That's it......!" Hu Chuyuan made up his mind and said, "Lord Ye, I won't ask more about this account." The Fujian Navy Division was in a hurry to buy ironclad ships with the foreigners, but the imperial court's coastal defense expenses could only be concentrated in the Beiyang Navy Division. I thought about it, I donated 500,000 taels of silver first, and you raised a lot of donations for me in the Fujian and Taiwan areas, and the money raised was donated to the Fujian Navy Division to buy warships and defend our Fujian Taiwan Strait. ”

"...... this?" Ye Wenlan smacked his tongue secretly, listening to Hu Chuyuan's meaning, he had to come up with at least 300,000 taels of silver.

He thought, good guy, you really dare to spend your money, in order to fish out the money I swallowed, you are willing to take out 500,000 taels of silver as the principal.

Ye Wenlan asked: "In this way, the imperial court treats me very well, so that a businessman can also add the title of political envoy and rank as a second-class official." The grace of God is vast, how can I not report it, Fujian mountains and rivers have raised me for more than 50 years, how can I not report it? I will take out the 20% of the dividends obtained from the operation of the private treasury, a total of 430,000 taels of silver, and donate together with the adults, so that our Fujian sailors can also buy a few more ironclad giant ships that can be handled. ”

Hu Chuyuan said with a smile: "Lord Ye is so generous, this hand will donate 430,000 taels of silver, then okay, I will donate 600,000 taels." ”

Ye Wenlan thought for a while and said, "Okay, I'll donate 500,000 taels." ”

"800,000 taels!" Hu Chuyuan's expression was outrageous.

Ye Wenlan secretly complained about his grievances, thinking, why are we suffering!!

He admitted that he had made a lot of extra money, but compared with Hu Chuyuan's net worth, it was only 12/12...... He estimated that Hu Chuyuan's net worth was about thirty or forty million taels of silver.

"...... this?" Ye Wenlan knew that Hu Chuyuan really didn't plan to let go, so he hurriedly said: "My lord, you and I will donate 600,000 taels of silver each, if you go any longer, I can't stand it." Fighting with you to get rich, am I not stupid? ”

Hu Chuyuan didn't want to continue to press, so he stopped and said: "Then it's such a number, and I hope that Lord Ye will go to other rich gentry to lobby, each family can pay 1,200 taels, and it will add up to a lot, if you can have two million taels of silver, you can almost buy three or four ironclad ships." ”

Ye Wenlan nodded silently and said, "Okay, okay, I'll go to the rich gentry in Fujian in the afternoon to discuss." In addition, I would like to ask Lord Tiao, how will the money left by Lord Shen be used? ”

Hu Chuyuan smiled and asked, "What do you think Lord Ye should use?" ”

Ye Wenlan had already thought very clearly, and said with a smile: "It is still very profitable to specialize in the trade between Nanyang and Fujian, of course, if the adults use it to speculate and sell tea raw silk, it is not indispensable!" ”

This is nonsense, Hu Chuyuan's Jiangnan Commercial Bank is not short of money to fry silk and tea, and it is impossible to bring in the shipmaster yamen to share a profit, and the best way is to continue to use it for the operation of the sea trade between Nanyang and Fujian.

In addition, Ye Wenlan immediately leaked a flaw, Hu Chuyuan was going to check the accounts, he said that it was not profitable to operate the trade in Nanyang Fujian, and now he was going to operate a joint venture, and he said that he would make money.

O merchant...... No profit can not be early!

Hu Chuyuan didn't mind, and said with a smile: "I also intend to continue to operate maritime trade, and I have also discussed with Shen Shangshu, and I plan to set up a Nanyang commercial bank by the shipmaster yamen and Jiangnan Commercial Bank, and I am currently looking for candidates." ”

"What?"

Ye Wenlan was taken aback, he had to admit that he was really scared this time.

Hu Chuyuan smiled slowly: "Lord Ye don't be surprised, I have already considered it when I first planned the Jiangnan Commercial Bank with Lord Zhongtang, I want to monopolize the sugar trade between Nanyang and China, and vigorously promote sugarcane cultivation in Taiwan and Qiongzhou, and set up sugar mills. The current Jiangnan Sugar King is the Ningbo Fang family, and in two or three years, it will be our Jiangnan Commercial Bank. ”

"...... this?" Ye Wenlan was even more surprised.

After thinking for a moment, he couldn't help but "advise": "Raise your lord, I'm afraid this is not very good, doing business is about harmony and wealth, don't you want to offend all the businessmen in the world?" ”

Hu Chuyuan said with a smile: "Doing business is about fair competition, and it is impossible for me to only do my salt and silk business because I am afraid of offending people." There was also no law in the imperial court that clearly stipulated that no one could run a sugar business except for the Ningbo Fang family. ”

Ye Wenlan quietly broke out in a cold sweat, the Ningbo Fang family mainly bought sugar from Nanyang and Guangdong, and half of the sugar industry in Nanyang was supplied by him.

If Jiangnan Commercial Bank enters the sugar industry in a big way, and eats all the production, procurement, transportation, wholesale, and retail, then where will he still have his share?

Seeing that he looked uneasy, Hu Chuyuan smiled and said: "Lord Ye, do you want to add a share, with Jiangnan Commercial Bank as a channel, you can sell as many things as you import, and it is difficult for Nanyang Commercial Bank's business to be popular!" ”

Ye Wenlan pondered for a long time and said cautiously: "I really want to buy a few more shares, but I don't know if Hu Tituo is interested in recruiting me into the shares...... Raise the adult, let's open the skylight and say bright words, I know the business of Nanyang well, you are in the five provinces of Jiangnan is the channel is widespread, the money is strong, you and I join forces, that is really a wide range of money? ”

"Yes, that's exactly what it is!"

Hu Chuyuan smiled, as if he had just remembered, and said: "Lord Ye, this Nanyang Commercial Bank has been completed, I pondered, the Yamen accounts for 30% of the official shares, and the Jiangnan Commercial Bank accounts for 20% of the shares, you, I will give 30% of the shares!" ”

Ye Wenlan continued with Hu Chuyuan's words: "So...... Hu Shao, do you personally account for 20%? ”

Hu Chuyuan said: "So to speak. ”

Ye Wenlan thought about it and knew that he still had an advantage, after all, these transactions had to be operated by him, what he wanted was the principal of the commercial bank and the tax exemption policy of the imperial court, as well as the channels and outlets of the Jiangnan commercial bank in the five provinces of Jiangnan.

Of course, Hu Chuyuan can find someone else, but he may not be more familiar than him.

He pondered cautiously for a moment and said: "Hu Shao, Ye doesn't want much, forty percent of the shares belong to me, and the rest of the shares can be divided as you want!" ”

Hu Chuyuan said: "Three into five, the most, or ......!" ”

Without waiting for him to finish speaking, Ye Wenlan said: "Okay, just save your face, let's make a deal." I take 30% of the shares, but Nanyang Commercial Bank has to be my final say, and I am in charge of all affairs! In addition, the shipmaster yamen has to leave me a position of righteousness, and I have this official hat on my head so that I can do business. ”

Hu Chuyuan said: "There is no problem, in addition to the position of the general office of Nanyang Commercial Bank, I will also leave you with a transfer position in the shipyard yamen, which is equivalent to promotion, and is in charge of money and property inspection." The actual affairs will be handled by others for you, and you only need to leave the seal of the adjustment in the yamen. ”

Ye Wenlan smiled and said, "Leave it to others...... I don't worry, Hu Shao, promoted, transferred, the two positions will be taken care of by you alone, and the official seal will remain in your hands. ”

A businessman, after all, is a businessman.

As long as there is money to be made, everyone can talk about anything.

Ye Wenlan knew very well in his heart that Nanyang Commercial Bank was run by a government-owned business, which meant that it was very preferential in terms of tax and money...... With this alone, he is more profitable and easier to grow bigger than other merchants.

He can run a steamship and shipping in a bright and bright way, and he can also set up factories and banks in other places.

What's more, he can still rely on Jiangnan Commercial Bank to do business, he can sell as many goods as he buys, and he can buy as much as he can, and there is no backlog.