There is a famous saying in Shanghai - the silk of Nanxun, the money of Ningbo, and the comprador of Guangdong.

Nanxun was the center of raw silk in this era.

In the twenty-seventh year of Daoguang (1847), 21,176 bales of raw silk were exported from Shanghai port, and 13,426 bales were exported from Nanxun, accounting for 63.4% of the exports. In the Guangxu years, China's total raw silk exports increased by more than two times, and the proportion of Nanxun has declined, but it still accounts for one-third of the total export of raw silk in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and it is the best quality and the highest price.

In these 30 years, Nanxun merchants quickly became the richest group of people in the whole of China, and their rise speed and financial strength were only comparable to the thirteen lines of Guangdong in the past.

At present, there are more than 100 silk shops of various sizes in Shanghai, and Nanxun merchants occupy seventy percent.

Ningbo.

Ningbo people began to get involved in the money bank business very early, after the opening of Shanghai, they took the lead in entering Shanghai to expand their power, Shanghai's existing more than 300 money villages, half of the country is Ningbo people.

In Guangdong, after the collapse of the Thirteen Banks in Guangdong, a large number of Cantonese compradors poured into Shanghai to continue to work as compradors, and their nephews and grandchildren also took over their posts one after another.

In Shanghai today, half of the compradors are Cantonese.

This is called "the silk of Nanxun, the money of Ningbo, and the comprador of Guangdong".

Among these three forces, Tang Tingshu, who was the chief comprador of Jardine Matheson, has the widest face, the most wealth, and the most special status, and has three cousins who are big compradors in different foreign firms, even Hu Xueyan wants to give him three points.

Hu Chuyuan is still a newcomer to Shanghai, and he is mortal enemies with the Nanxun silk merchants and Ningbo money merchants, and he also has a common enmity with the salt merchants of Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

But after all, he still has big things to do in Shanghai.

There was no better way, so Hu Chuyuan decided to talk to Xu Run, who was also very prominent in Shanghai's comprador circles.

Until now, Xu Run has not criticized him, although Xu Run and Tang Yanshu are the closest allies in the mall, he doesn't have to talk to Tang Yanshu and Sheng Xuanhuai.

The most important point is that this person and Sheng Xuanhuai have been fighting for the position of the general office of the Shanghai Steamship China Merchants Bureau for more than two years, and they have not yet decided the winner to this day.

Xu Run lived on the easternmost side of Jing'an Temple Road, where he built a Jiangnan garden called Yuyuan, which is also the origin of Yuyuan Road in Shanghai.

Hu Chuyuan's Western carriage went all the way east, and stopped at Liujia Alley outside the gate of Yuyuan, and then he asked Hu Rong to send the post over and wait in the car himself.

In addition to him, there was another person in the car.

Miss Pan Limei.

Now, Hu Chuyuan has become accustomed to letting Limei stay by his side as an assistant.

Talent matters.

Pan Limei is also very smart, so he wants to train this girl well and make her his most important special assistant.

After waiting in the carriage for nearly ten minutes, the door of the Xu family opened, and a wealthy businessman in his forties walked out, with dark complexion, dignified appearance, and very elegant dress and demeanor.

Hu Rong also ran back and opened the door of the carriage.

Hu Chuyuan saw the rich businessman on one side of his face, and immediately stepped down, leaving Pan Limei in the carriage and waiting.

"Captain Hu, hello!" Xu Run arched his hand, not happy, nor cold.

Hu Chuyuan clenched his fists and said with a smile: "Master Xu, I have admired my name for a long time, and I only came to see you today, I hope you don't be surprised!" ”

Xu Run laughed indifferently, and invited sideways: "Captain Hu, let's invite inside!" ”

"Okay!"

Hu Chuyuan nodded silently and walked in side by side with Xu Run.

There are many complicated reasons why he was excluded by the Shanghai business community, one is the competition of commercial interests, once he has a firm foothold in Shanghai, Hu Xueyan is afraid that the matter of controlling the silk industry in Jiangsu and Zhejiang will be repeated; Second, he monopolized the salt industry in the five provinces, and was hated by people, especially the old salt merchants in Shanghai, who attacked him unrelentingly.

Xu Run is a real estate tycoon and Shanghai tea king, as long as Hu Chuyuan does not get involved in Shanghai real estate and the tea industry in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and southern Fujian, they still have a part to speak.

After entering the hall, Xu Run invited Hu Chuyuan to sit down and asked Hu Chuyuan: "Captain Hu, you came to Xu this time, I don't know what it was for?" ”

Hu Chuyuan said: "I heard that Boss Xu is enthusiastic about public welfare and donated funds to build a new hospital and public school, so I want to ask Boss Xu to fund the Jiangnan West School together!" ”

"Oh, haha......!" Xu Run laughed dryly and prevaricated: "Alas, with Captain Hu's financial resources, one person is enough to support it, so Xu won't join in the excitement." Furthermore...... Xu is a pure businessman, he doesn't want to cause more trouble, and he doesn't want to get involved in the personal conflict between you, Brother Tang and Xuan Huai. ”

"That's good!"

Hu Chuyuan had long known that this would be the reply, and said, "Then I want to talk to Boss Xu about the same bookstore." Boss Xu's newly opened Tongshu Office claims to be the first Western-style machine printing factory and publishing bureau set up by Chinese businessmen in China, and I intend to add a publishing house and printing house to the Jiangnan Western Academy, and then expand to the newspaper industry, I wonder if Boss Xu is interested in partnering together? ”

Xu Run laughed and said, "Captain Hu, you are not kind to business, and you eat the profits of the salt industry alone...... You don't think I'm as rich as you and have nowhere to spend it, do you? ”

You think I'm stupid?

Xu Run means this, but he doesn't want to say it explicitly, he is mainly engaged in the real estate industry, and he can't get along with Qianzhuang, and the Hu family's Fukang Qianzhuang is now one of the nine Qianzhuang in Shanghai, just looking at Chen Xiaobai's face, he can't say it too ruthlessly.

"That's it......!" Xu Run thought for a while and said, "If you want to do it, I support you, and it just so happens that I also want to transfer the same bureau." At the beginning of the year, I spent 40,000 yen to buy it, and if you are willing to pay for it, I will transfer it to you at the original price. ”

"Good!"

Hu Chuyuan agreed, he had already sent someone to check, and the machine in the same clerical office was worth tens of thousands of foreign yuan, plus those employees and editors who were on the way, he could accept it within 50,000 foreign yuan.

"Oh...... Well, let's settle it! ”

Xu Run didn't expect Hu Chuyuan to agree so happily.

Hu Chuyuan came prepared for everything, beckoned Hu Rong to send four Fukang money tickets with a denomination of 10,000 foreign yuan each, handed them to Xu Run, and said, "Boss Xu, then let's do it quickly, let's hand it over now!" ”

"Oh......!"

Xu Run was even more surprised.

He is also a tea king and real estate giant in Shanghai, and what he said cannot be counted, so he immediately signed an agreement with Hu Chuyuan to transfer the factory and workers with the clerical office to Hu Chuyuan, charging 40,000 foreign yuan, which is not much.

After completing the transaction, Xu Runcai and Hu Chuyuan said: "Captain Hu, Xu and Ling Zun have also had dealings before, so I will say something that I shouldn't say today." ”

Hu Chuyuan said: "You say! ”

Xu Run said: "If you want me to see, you are actually a little capable, whether you can support Ling Zun's share of the family business is hard to say, but it is not as bad as Tang Yanshu said." You...... Still too young to find a place in Shanghai Tang now! Come back to Hangzhou after two years of training, think about it slowly, take a solid foundation, and Shanghai will be yours sooner or later. ”

Hu Chuyuan could only reply: "Thank you Boss Xu for your heartfelt advice, I won't tell you, after completing the affairs of the Jiangnan West School, I will return to Hangzhou to manage the family business first, and we will see you again in two years!" ”

"Good!" Xu Run nodded silently and said, "Then let me send you!" ”

With that, he really got up to see off the guests.

What else can Hu Chuyuan say, anyway, let's go back to Hangzhou and work hard slowly, and when he comes back, I'm afraid it won't be so easy to get rid of today.