On September 26, 1729, autumn began to dawn.

As rice came to market, Osaka also ushered in the busiest time of the year, when countless feudal convoys and grain ships began to import bags of rice into Osaka, either at market prices in exchange for much-needed silver, or to pay off the debts of loan sharks.

The whole city is filled with the fragrance of rice, and countless gold, silver and copper coins flow.

Yoshida Kobei of Yoshidaya got out of the carriage and subconsciously glanced up at the huge signboard above the building, "Oriental United Bank", a few strong and powerful Chinese characters, which made people feel a trace of inexplicable safety and ...... Awe.

"Yoshida-kun, I've been waiting here for a long time!" Chen Shuyi, the director of the Osaka branch of the Eastern United Bank of Qi, greeted him with a smile and a few men and armed guards, and while greeting him, he glanced at the carriage with his spare eyes.

A few powerful ronins were laboriously lifting several large boxes from the carriage, and then looked around vigilantly, and then looked at their master, waiting for instructions on the next step.

"Well, let's talk about it." Yoshida Kobei bowed slightly, and waved his hand to signal his men to carry the box into the bank.

Yoshida Kobei was a well-known raw silk merchant in Osaka and the Gyeonggi region, and his ancestors were rich peasants in Yamada County, Ueno Province. After the end of the Sino-Japanese War, the Treaty of Edo was signed, requiring Osaka, Kobe, Nagoya, and Kamisaoku (Chiba City) to be treaty ports, and Osaka immediately became Japan's largest international trading port. Yoshida Kobei's father came to Osaka with hundreds of taels of funds, built Yoshidaya, and began to engage in raw silk export trade, which lasted for decades and eventually became a predator, almost monopolizing nearly 20% of the raw silk export trade in the Osaka area, with an annual income of tens of thousands of gold.

Since the opening of the port, raw silk has always occupied the first place in Japan's exports, reaching 5 to 60% of the total export value at the end of the last century. With the expansion of Japan's cotton planting industry, raw silk has gradually fallen to second place in the past ten years.

Merchants who sell these raw silks, which occupy the forefront of exports, to foreign trading companies are called "risk-taking speculators". At the beginning of the opening of the port, there were more than 200 salesmen, but after decades of fierce competition, up to now, there are only 22 households left in the entire Osaka Castle, and the number of merchants known as "big salesmen" has also been reduced to nine, forming a monopoly pattern of Osaka trade merchants.

In the early days, the merchandisers relied on the capital and joint delivery of goods from many wealthy farmers and merchants in the township, and then contacted foreigners through the port to resell the raw silk that had been collected one after another. For those merchants in the countryside, trade is a "harvest of luck" and a golden opportunity.

Soon, after taking control of the sales channels, the raw silk merchants obtained the right of first refusal to purchase from the daimyo and the shogunate, who adopted the monopoly system of trading raw silk, and borrowed large sums of money from wealthy merchants such as Koikeya and Mitsui or the banks opened by Qi Guo at the port, gradually monopolizing the entire raw silk import and export channels, and making huge profits.

Unlike the Qin State on the mainland, the Qi people were basically able to walk through the hinterland without hindrance, and according to the provisions of the treaty of commerce, foreigners (mainly referring to Qi people) were not allowed to trade outside the treaty ports, which made most of the transactions of Japanese goods through Japanese comprador merchants.

However, there are policies at the top and countermeasures at the bottom. Foreign businessmen will generally entrust comprador businessmen to purchase directly from the place of origin by prepaying huge sums of money, so as to bypass too many transaction links and achieve the purpose of saving transaction costs. Yoshida Kobei, the owner of Yoshidaya, was the largest comprador merchant here, relying on the business network established by his father and son for decades, he continuously transported raw silk to Osaka, and then delivered it to Qi merchants, earning the difference between the two ends and accumulating a huge net worth.

Coming to the Oriental Union Bank today, Yoshida Kobei brought three boxes of gold and silver, worth more than 100 taels of silver (about 375 kilograms, or 12,000 taels). In addition to some of the money to be exchanged in the bank for bills of exchange, which are used to pay the cooperative Qi importers - yes, in addition to the raw silk export trade, Yoshidaya also acts as a trade agent for all kinds of Qi imported goods, most of which are deposited in this Qi bank, which is run by the Qi country for the profits earned in recent months, to ensure the safety of his own funds.

In fact, before the opening of the port of Osaka, there were a large number of money changers (usury merchants) in Japan, who were engaged in the business of storing and lending currency, and many merchants with idle funds and local feudal lords would entrust these "well-managed" merchants to lend money on their behalf and obtain some financial returns. However, after the influx of Qi people, several banks were set up one after another, and with their abundant funds, coupled with their more professional and diversified service methods, they gradually won the favor of many Japanese businessmen and robbed many customers of money changers.

When doing business with local comprador businessmen in Japan, those Qi merchants who came to Osaka would also actively ask their partners to open an account in a Qi bank, deposit cash, and then trade goods through a bank draft, instead of using huge amounts of cash as in the traditional Japanese model.

After decades of habitual formation, not only did many comprador businessmen accept this method of trading and deposited a large amount of cash in the banks opened by Qi State, but even some rice merchants, cloth merchants, and merchants followed suit, so that the business of several Qi Guo banks suddenly expanded more than ten times, not only firmly gaining a firm foothold, but also having a tendency to replace local currency changers, which once aroused the suspicion and panic of currency merchants such as Mitsui Echigoya.

During this period, Japan's monetary system was divided into three types: gold, silver, and copper (copper coins). The gold unit is "two", "fen" and "zhu", one zhu gold four pieces = one cent of gold, one cent of gold four pieces = one or two gold (one or two gold is a small judgment often seen in later Japanese dramas).

The units of silver are guan, タ, and minute. Unlike gold, which is measured by weight, silver is measured by weight. Silver 10 minutes = 1 タ (3.75 g), 10,000 タ = 1 guan (3.75 kg).

The exchange rate set by the shogunate was 1 tael of gold = 60 taels of silver = 4,000 bunin (4 kanbun).

However, the exchange rate is constantly changing according to the actual situation, especially in recent decades, the shogunate has frequently changed the currency, which makes the currency exchange more complicated, and the purchase of things is particularly troublesome to calculate.

The Edo people used to use gold when buying things at high prices, but the merchants and common people of Kyoto and Osaka mostly used silver. As a result, Japanese commerce requires frequent currency exchanges.

Currency changers made it easier for people to exchange money for a small fee, and as merchants and townspeople interacted more and more frequently, more and more money exchange businesses and more and more wealth was accumulated.

In addition to actively carrying out currency exchange business, the Qi Guo Bank, which was established in Osaka, has also launched a variety of businesses such as deposits, loans, commercial bills, bill acceptances, and commodity pledges, leaving Japanese currency changers with little knowledge stunned and watching their business being snatched away little by little, but there is nothing to do about it.

Truth be told, as one of Osaka's biggest raw silk salesmen, Kobei Yoshida really enjoyed dealing with Qi Guobank. They are not only strong and diverse, but also able to bring and match a lot of profitable businesses for you through their own massive customer resources and sensitive news channels, which are enthusiastic and caring.

"Chief Chen, you tell me the truth, did your Qi State intervene in the dispute between the shogunate and the Choshu Domain?" After drinking a few cups of tea and briefly greeting him, Yoshida Kobei gently put the teacup down and asked with a concerned expression.

"How can the people of my generation of businessmen easily participate in the major affairs of the military?" Chen Shuyi smiled slightly, shook his head and said: "Whether our Qi Kingdom participated in the battle for the shogun, the information I got here, I'm afraid it's the same as Yoshida-kun, it's not known!" ”

"......" Yoshida Kobei looked at Chen Shuyi in a daze, and his heart was suddenly unhappy.

Excuse me, how can you, the Oriental Union Bank, which is said to be one of its shareholders the Ryukyu Governorate, not know anything about whether or not to intervene in the dispute between the shogunates?

"However, this war is not good news after all." Seeing the other party's gloomy expression, Chen Shuyi hurriedly said: "If the war drags on, it will have some impact on the import and export trade. What do you think, what do you need to rely on to fight? It's nothing more than money and food, and there are military equipment. ”

"Of course, I know about these situations." Yoshida Kobei nodded and said, "A few days ago, news came from China (western Honshu Island) that the shogunate striker was ambushed by the Choshu domain in Shimomatsu and lost nearly a thousand people. This has led to a rise in the price of rice in Osaka, and the price of rice in the entire Gyeonggi region and even the Kanto region. In this regard, all of us businessmen are worried and don't know how to deal with it! ”

With the strength of the Choshu Domain alone, how could it resist the thunderous attack of the shogunate alone?

It is reported that the shogunate's forward troops were long-trained all-firearms "Daigun" troops, numbering more than 2,000 people, and with the conscription of thousands of local feudal troops, the strength reached more than 4,000. Unexpectedly, Xiasong, who had just entered the territory of Zhou Fangguo, was attacked head-on by the Changzhou Domain, losing more than 1,000 soldiers.

Is this something that the Choshu clan can do on its own?

"The Choshu Domain, for the sake of the samurai honor and family inheritance, fought back angrily under the oppression of the shogunate. Although the strength is not enough, the courage is commendable! Chen Shuyi said: "We have an ancient saying in China, the rabbit dies and the fox is sad, and the thing hurts it. What happened to the Mori clan of the Choshu Domain today, and how do you know that it will not befall the Shimazu clan of the Satsuma Domain, or the Date clan of the Sendai Domain? If I don't mourn today, who will mourn for me after that? ”

"What does Chief Chen mean......" Yoshida Kobei's eyes widened, a little incredulous.

"Over the years, the Shimazu clan of the Satsuma domain has purchased many merchant ships from the Ryukyus and Luzon." Chen Shuyi said meaningfully: "Although there are not many of these ships, only seven or eight, if they transport people, they can carry more than 1,000 at a time. ”

"Is the Satsuma clan going to participate in the battle for the shogunate and bring down the curtain together?"

"Who knows?" Chen Shuyi blinked.

"If the Satsuma Clan does it, then the Date clan of the Sendai Domain, which is located in the northeast, will also ......?"

If the shogunate had gone all out to attack the Choshu Domain, and had not been able to defend the Sendai Domain, which was behind them, wouldn't they have been stabbed by the other side!

Once the shogunate is defeated, the daimyo of the feudal kingdoms with strange intentions in various places will inevitably be ready to move.

The consequences are ...... The world is stormy, and the Warring States are rising!

"Yoshida-kun, do you need our bank to issue you more commercial drafts so that you can stock up on more goods and supplies?" Chen Shuyi asked enthusiastically: "The war continues, and presumably the raw silk trade industry will be greatly affected. At that time, Yoshida-kun may take the opportunity to lower the price and make a big purchase. In this way, I will first give you a good news in advance, and the wealth is rolling in! ”

When Yoshida Kobei heard this, he immediately showed a knowing smile.

This battle between the shogunate, oh, no, should be extended to the battle between the shogunate and several powerful feudal clans, and although the Qi people will not intervene in it with great fanfare, they will definitely interfere to a limited extent through the mode of covert assistance to the feudal domains.

Then, I am afraid that this conflict will not end in a short time.

War is not only a stage for heroes, but also a great opportunity for us and other businessmen!

weapons, grain, cloth, cane sugar, medicinal herbs...... and many other war materials are inevitably in extremely strong demand, and due to the impact of the war, the goods and materials in the inland areas will not be able or difficult to sell abroad, then, in this way, these merchants with strong energy will usher in a gluttonous feast and make a war fortune.

With the arrival of the Qi people, they brought machinery, hardware, glass, fat (fragrant) soap, tobacco, crystal, honey, weapons, spices, furs, etc., and then took silver, raw silk, cotton, saltpeter, lacquerware, paper screens, etc. from Japan.

Of course, the most important thing is silver, and the others are not very easy to sell, and the people of Qi don't seem to lack anything.

In addition, there is an unexpected product, which is the Japanese slave girl.

More than 100 years ago, Portugal had been engaged in the slave trade for a period of time after getting along with Japan. The Portuguese bought a large number of Japanese slave girls in Japan and brought them to serve in the Portuguese technical institutes, and a very small number were kept in Japan as lovers (concubines) or oyster glasses to do business, but later the Portuguese felt that the slave trade was too big and ruined the country's image (do they have an image?). ), before it was gradually banned.

Later, the Qi people kicked open the door of Japan, in addition to peddling their goods and earning Japanese gold and silver, they also continued to recruit wandering samurai and purchase Japanese slave girls.

Needless to say, the purpose of recruiting wandering warriors is to be cannon fodder for people and fight for the overseas interests of the Qi State.

And the female slave trade - oh, by the way, the Qi people call it "female worker recruitment", in order to balance the imbalance between men and women in Qi and many overseas territories, recruit people to the past, "freely" choose, tie the knot with others, and live a better life together in the future.

Occasionally, Qi people also work part-time in Didi, running other routes, transporting people to Beiming, Dongdan, and Bohai and other three countries that failed to obtain Japan's trade rights, earning some hard-earned "introduction fees".

Many of the Qi people who ran the Qi trade and made a lot of money would choose to settle in Osaka, Kobe, Nagasaki, and Hengguan, bringing huge profits to the local area, and many groups such as local comprador merchants, underworld leaders, and pimps also ate a lot of oil from it, and also fought with the Qi people.

After a century of peace in Japan, the situation in the world may collapse as the battle for the shogunate evolves.

So, is there something we should do as businessmen?

(End of chapter)