Bachelor

Chapter 125 The Wealth of the World
Sun Dan is not surprised at all that Lu Bing said this to make money.This guy is a person who loves money in history. Since he has a high status, it is much easier to get money.However, the Lu family was originally a wealthy family in Huguang, and his family property alone was enough to make him one of the richest people in the world.Therefore, Lu Bing did not become corrupted into a big corrupt because of his high position.

What surprised Sun Dan was, how could this Lu Bing say that he wanted to cooperate with him?
This matter is as inconceivable as the Bill Gates of later generations who suddenly appeared in front of him and said that he wanted to be a business partner with a poor man like him.

Sun Dan never thought that he would encounter such a good thing as a pie in the sky. If there was such a thing, the biggest possibility was that the pie was made of pig iron, and he might be smashed to the ground.

Therefore, Sun Dan only pretended to be modest, and said: "Is there any good idea I can have? When I was in Shandong, I wrote a novel because my hands were itchy, but I couldn't bear to put this book on the shelf and be wormed." Moth rats gnawed, so they simply borrowed the Sun family's bookstore to print tens of thousands of copies, so that more people could see them and earn some tuition fees. Sun Dan was born in a poor family and lived a poor life. A sum of money, at any rate, can last for a few years."

He sighed: "Students, farmers, businessmen, studying is the right way. Sun Dan almost gave up his studies. A small business can't make much money, which makes Lu brother a joke. People say that Zhong Xiang's Lu family is a well-known wealthy family in China. , Handling tens of thousands of accounts every year. In the eyes of Brother Lu, what is the hard-earned money I compiled? You said you would cooperate with me, and you kindly accept it, and I can’t give you any ideas.”

"It's not like that." Lu Bing said solemnly: "Although studying is the right way, it is always good to have some money. Although scholars, farmers, businessmen, and merchants are sent at the bottom, they are indispensable. The circulation of materials between the north and the south, stabilizing prices, To raise money and food for the country, businessmen are indispensable. Besides, although businesses vary in size, the methods and ideas of operation are the same. Selling a bowl of noodles is the same as selling [-] shi of flour."

He stood up and took Sun Dan's hand enthusiastically: "Brother Sun, don't be humble. In fact, many of your methods when you published "Journey to the West" in Shandong were remarkable. Going into business, I can be sure that within ten years, you will become a famous rich man in the world. My Lu family also opened a branch in Beijing, with more than a dozen shops. This meal is almost finished, so if Brother, if you have nothing else to do, just follow me to see the Lu family's business in the capital, and give me some pointers."

Sun Dan was a little embarrassed. In fact, after he set off from Shandong to Beijing, he had run out of money and was a little embarrassed.I thought about starting a new project to see if I could make some more money.But now, something happened to Li Meiting, even if there is a handwritten letter from Emperor Zhengde, if Mr. Li can be saved from suffering in prison, the money needed is not a small amount.

Sun Dan was still very curious about Lu Bing's business in the capital.Not to mention that Lu Bing is the future emperor's favorite, if he can have in-depth contact with him, it will be of great benefit to his career.Even if I can't become an official in the future, if I really want to take the road of doing business, seeing what the top merchants of this era look like is also good for broadening my horizons.

Hearing Lu Bing's invitation, he was also a little moved: "It's not good, I'm on duty, so it's hard to talk to Mr. Gou."

Lu Bing snorted, with a look of contempt on his face: "Those two villains, even if they look at them more than once, they feel that their eyes are dirty. Does Brother Sun never tire of seeing them? What are you afraid of them?"

Sun Dan laughed, "Brother Lu took it lightly, well, anyway, I don't have anything to do today, so I might as well go to the famous Huguang Guild Hall and the famous Zhongxiang Lu's house."

Seeing Sun Dan nodding his head, Lu Bing was pleasantly surprised: "I'll call for a carriage right now. There is still a little distance to Huguang Guild Hall, and the walk is too slow."

After getting off the restaurant, I hailed a car, and after half an hour in the city, I finally arrived at the Huguang Guild Hall.

Huguang Guild Hall is located in a place called Bensi Hutong in the east of Beijing. This is a well-known commercial area in Beijing. Next to it is the Lumi Warehouse, which was also the place where the salaries of civil servants in the Ming Dynasty were distributed.Therefore, the surrounding two miles are full of bustling people, and the shops are next to each other.The names of several surrounding alleys are also very interesting, such as: Lvshi Alley, Fried Noodles Alley, Lamb Noodles Alley, Youfang Alley... From the names of the alleys, you can tell what is sold here.

Huguang is familiar and the world is full. Most of the residents in Huguang Guild Hall are rice merchants from Hubei. The inside is very spacious. It is a five-entry mansion with a large yard.

The Lu family was the leader of a group of Huguang merchants. Seeing Lu Bing coming, the two boys quickly took him and Sun Dan in, and ran in to report.

After a while, a middle-aged man with a white face and beardless, gloomy face came to receive him.

Sun Dan heard from Lu Bing that this person is called Huang Jin, who is the big shopkeeper of the Lu family in Beijing, and is fully in charge of the business in the capital.

Jin Jin said few words, and his words were sharp and sharp, as if there was a sharp knife hidden in his throat.As soon as Sun Dan saw this person, he felt an uncomfortable feeling in his heart.He had come into contact with too many eunuchs during this time, and when he saw this kind of Yin body person, he had a subconscious disgust.

Taking a closer look, I was suddenly startled, this shopkeeper Huang didn't have an Adam's apple either.Could it be...

Seeing that Sun Dan was puzzled, Jin Jin forced a smile: "I know what you are suspicious of. That's right. I came out of the palace and was taken in by the Lu family. That's why I became their big shopkeeper."

When he said that, Sun Dan understood.There are [-] to [-] eunuchs in the Forbidden City, and some of them are eliminated every year. It is understandable for the Lu family to take in one or two eunuchs.However, the Lu family has a special relationship with Xing Wang's mansion, maybe this eunuch Huang came out of Xing Wang's mansion.

This matter has nothing to do with Sun Dan, and he didn't think about it, so he nodded to express his understanding.

The host and guest sat in the hall separately, and after tea was served, Lu Bing pointed to Sun Dan and said to Jin Jin, "Master Huang, although Brother Sun is a well-known scholar, he is very talented in business. We Lu My family’s business in the capital is losing money every year. I asked him to come here this time, just to ask him to take a look, see if there are any problems in our operation, and see if he can give us some ways to make money. In this way, shopkeeper Huang, please tell us first Tell me what is going on with the business in the capital, so that Big Brother Sun can prescribe the right medicine."

Jin Jin didn't seem to take this matter seriously. He picked up the teacup, picked a piece of tea foam floating on the soup surface with the long nail of his little finger on his right hand, and said softly, "Da!" Said: "If we talk about business, our family is having a headache! The rice and grain needed in the capital have to be transported from Huguang along the river, which consumes a lot of money on the road. Transporting a boat of rice from the two lakes to Beijing, when it reaches the ground, ten There are only eight stops left in the stop, and after deducting the expenses and capital on the road, it is not bad to earn [-]% of the profit. If there are some shipwrecks, the government will increase taxes on the road, etc., I will accompany some of them. According to our family’s opinion , there is nothing to do in this business.”

Even his big shopkeeper has no interest in doing business, which makes Lu Bing a little embarrassed.

But Sun Dan couldn't help nodding: "Indeed, this business can be done in other places, but in the capital, it's not interesting to do this." There was already a hazy shadow in his heart.

"Brother Sun, why would you say such a thing..." Lu Bing couldn't help shaking his head and smiling wryly.

Sun Dan shook his head: "I understand what shopkeeper Huang means. He spent a lot of effort but couldn't make enough profit. The income and expenditure are not proportional. According to Sun Dan, the city of Beijing is under the feet of the emperor, the heart of the world, and he has an innate ability to do business. Advantages. And relying on the relationship and connections of the Lu family, if you only do this kind of business, the starting point is too low." The thoughts in his heart became more and more mature.

"Does Big Brother Sun really have a good idea?" Lu Bing has a passion for business that ordinary people can't match, his eyes lit up, and he hurriedly asked.

"I have some ideas, but I'm not mature yet." Sun Dan nodded, raised his teacup and warmed up his hands: "Before I say my own ideas, can shopkeeper Huang tell me about the big merchants in Beijing City, who are they? What business is it?"

Jin Jin: "Okay, let me tell you. There are tens of thousands of merchants in Beijing, but only a dozen or so in Pingyang, Luzhou, Lu'an, and Huizhou are really doing big business. , Shanxi three surnames, Huizhou two surnames plus our Zhongxiang Lu family is the largest among them."

The merchants in Pingyang, Luzhou, and Lu'an in Shanxi were the predecessors of the later famous Shanxi merchants, and the Huizhou merchants in Anhui became even more famous later on.It seems that these people started their business in the middle of the Ming Dynasty.

Shanxi merchants started out mainly selling cattle, horses and grain, while Huizhou merchants mainly dealt in silk and porcelain.As for the Lu family, it is more like a wholesaler of agricultural products.Of course, later Lu Bing became the commander of Jinyiwei. After he became the number one celebrity in the court, he naturally had the means to make a fortune.Otherwise, it would be impossible to rank No. 5 among the seventeen richest families in the middle of the Ming Dynasty after the king of Shu, the eunuch Huang Jin, the Duke of Qian, and the elder Yan Ge.

Sun Dan asked Jin Jin again: "Master Huang, do you know how strong these rich merchants are?"

"The merchants in Shanxi and Huizhou are the best in the world, and they can't be called rich unless they earn a hundred thousand." Jin Jin replied.

"Not necessarily." Lu Bing interrupted Jin Jin's words: "In my opinion, each merchant in these two places has at least one million taels, and two to three million taels, then it is Jia Er."

Hearing this number, Jin's face changed color, and he couldn't help asking: "Are they really so rich?"

Sun Dan took a long breath and was shocked.A net worth of one million taels of silver, converted into modern currency units at the price of the Ming Dynasty, is at least several billion.The business methods of the ancients were simple, and there were no high value-added commodities.It sounds incredible that such a family business can be accumulated just by trading a horse, a sheep, a silk and a grain of rice.

He originally planned to rely on business to improve his family's financial situation, but when he thought of relying on this small business to accumulate bit by bit, he felt that it was too long and too painful.Of course, if you become an official in the future, you can also accumulate a large amount of wealth by using some means.The so-called three-year Qing magistrate, one hundred thousand snowflakes.But he was really asked to be a corrupt official, but Sun Dan felt that he was too immoral, and he couldn't do that kind of land-grabbing thing no matter what.

Sun Dan sorted out his thoughts, and already had a preliminary idea. He put down the teacup in his hand, and asked, "I also want to ask Shopkeeper Huang, how to deal with the funds needed for business by foreign merchants in the capital, and how to deal with the accounts?"

Jin Jin giggled triumphantly: "I know this best. Naturally, it is transported back to the place of origin. There are not a hundred horse-drawn carriages departing from the capital every day, but dozens of them. These old hats don't know what to do if they make money. They are all packed in sacks and sent home. When the money is needed in the capital, they are sent by car. A few days ago, the money cart of Nie’s family in Pingyang overturned, and all the copper coins in the cart were broken. The thread was rolled and rolled all over the floor. I happened to see it. It is estimated that there are at least [-] yuan, and the ground is full of copper coins. Everyone is robbing, and they are crowded, and some people have their arms broken. Hehe , our family laughed to death."

"What a backward business method!" Sun Dan murmured: "After the money returns to the place of origin, it will be divided into countless shares to purchase goods in the countryside, and then transported to the capital for sale. Then the money from the sale will be transported back to the hometown... ..."

"Isn't this the same way in business?" Jin Jin was a little puzzled.

Instead, Lu Bing sensed something, and he looked at Sun Dan solemnly: "Brother Sun has come up with a good idea, tell the little brother quickly. If it is feasible, the little brother is willing to cooperate with the big brother."

Sun Dan: "I don't know much about doing business, but I think there are unique conditions for doing business in the capital. If you only do ordinary business, you will waste such a big market. Maybe..."

"Finance, finance!" A voice shouted in Sun Dan's heart.

Like the financial, cultural, and political centers of Beijing and Shanghai in later generations, the current Beijing City has begun to take shape as an international metropolis.In modern times, such big cities generally do not advocate the development of industry.Moreover, everyone has to do more financial products, such as banks, bonds, real estate and the tertiary industry.And put the manufacturing industry in the second-tier and third-tier cities.

"What kind of business is the most profitable?" Lu Bing continued to ask.

"What business is the most profitable?" Sun Dan rubbed his chin and smiled, "Of course the business that directly makes money is the most profitable?"

As soon as this remark came out, not only Lu Bing, but even Jin Jin's face changed color.

Jin Jin patted the seeds, and screamed sharply: "You are so brave, you dare to mint copper coins privately, aren't you afraid of being beheaded?"

Lu Bing looked at Sun Dan with piercing eyes: "Shopkeeper Huang, don't get angry. I believe that Brother Sun is definitely not a person who breaks the law and discipline. It is absolutely impossible for us to do such a thing. Brother Sun, tell me, what happened?" thing?"

Sun Dan smiled softly: "According to the "Law of the Ming Dynasty", those who privately cast copper coins will be beheaded, but I didn't let you mint coins! We don't make coins, we print them."

"You mean printing precious banknotes. Printing that kind of thing is also a capital offense." Lu Bingli denied Sun Dan's idea: "Besides, the circulation of precious banknotes is too large, and it has become useless paper by now. In the market, there are always precious banknotes. If you can’t change two pennies, what are you printing that kind of thing for?”

Sun Dan: "It's not printed banknotes. They are banknotes issued by the state. I don't dare to forge them. What I mean is, see if your Lu family can print some small paper notes like this. They are used as a voucher when they are used, and they can be used at any time. Go to the Lu family to exchange for equivalent silver taels."

"Print our Lu family's own banknotes." Lu Bing's eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh, "Good idea, brother, please explain in detail."

"At the moment I was not very clear, otherwise, I will write a note for you. You see, if you can do it, you can do it that way." Sun Dan didn't major in finance before, and the database Although there are many aspects of economics, it also takes time to organize and summarize.

"There's no need to come down, let's do it now. I don't have anything else to do today, so I'm writing in the Huguang Guild Hall." Lu Bing couldn't help but shouted to the side: "Come here, the Four Treasures of the Study are waiting for you."

Sun Dan was very helpless, so he had no choice but to pick up the pen, and while sorting out the information in his mind, he summarized it into words that the ancients could understand.He didn't make it too complicated, so he briefly wrote the workflow of modern banking.

……

What business is the most profitable?

Naturally, it is the fastest way to get money directly by printing banknotes.

……

Sun Dan's article is not long, only about [-] words in total, and Lu Bing and the others can't understand things that are too deep.

Fortunately, at the beginning when he was writing novels with thousands of words a day, Sun Dan wrote extremely fast. Now he only cares about handwriting speed, and he doesn't care about the neatness of handwriting. time.

After getting the report, Lu Bing immediately called several stewards and shopkeepers of the Lu family stationed in various shops in the capital, and asked them to take a look.

It doesn't matter if it looks like this, everyone took a breath, and then danced up and down at the same time.

"Good idea!" A shopkeeper-like businessman patted his head: "Hey, why didn't I think of this idea before. By the way, our Lu family's business has grown bigger and bigger in recent years. From harvesting rice grains to delivering to In the capital city, the cost of the road is huge. It takes three months to sell the grain and pay back the cost. During this period, rice money and freight, as well as labor and taxes on the road, and other expenses have to be paid in advance. The cash on the Internet is not enough. If you can use the banknotes, you can double the capital. In this way, the business of my Lu family can double. No, if you can attract enough merchants to deposit money into our merchants , my Lu family's business can expand tenfold."

"That's right!" The other person laughed happily: "Besides, we will use this kind of bills for grain purchases and account transactions in the future, which can save [-]% of expenses. This is net profit. How much rice do we need to sell?" to earn it back.”

"I said, you only see small profits, but don't you see the big article in it?" Someone shouted again: "If this kind of ticket number can pass through the whole country, what kind of grain business are we still doing? Money is all it takes Breathing is enough for us to grow hair, heck... short-sighted guy!"

Hearing this, everyone took a breath.If you think about it carefully, according to what Sun Dantiao Chen said, other businessmen can get [-]% interest every year if they deposit their cash in the Lu family's business, but if the Lu family releases the money, they can get [-]% interest.Once in and out, you can get [-]% of the profit without any effort.This is a good business without money!
Thinking of the benefits of this, some people couldn't help laughing wildly.

Lu Bing naturally knew how powerful it was. As far as he knew, the annual cash and bank transactions of major firms in the capital amounted to at least one million taels.This is only one place in the capital, if it is extended to the whole country, it may be tens of millions of taels.The 1000 million taels are used for lending, so there may be a profit of 50 taels.

Within a year, you can be rich and powerful.So, what about ten years from now, 20 years and 35 years from now?
When Lu Bing thought of this, his hairs stood on end, one with joy, the other with fear.

He was a shrewd person, he knew that this business could not be done by the Lu family alone, and he had to recruit some people into the water.

"What's the deal?" Lu Bing asked everyone.

"Naturally it's very exciting."

"Okay, everyone step back, remember to keep it secret. I have something to say with Shopkeeper Huang and Big Brother Sun."

……

When everyone retreated, Lu Bing gritted his teeth and said, "That's it. I've decided to do this business. Brother Sun, the idea is that you get out. In the meantime, how to operate the ticket number and all the details must be taken care of." You check it out. Of course, our Lu family alone doesn't have the power to do such a big business, and we have to recruit several shareholders to join us. I'm going to write a letter to the Wangfu to let the Wangfu also participate in the shares."

"And me." Shopkeeper Huang, who had been silent all this time, suddenly interrupted: "This kind of good thing can't forget our family. Our family has been lonely all our lives, and we also want to earn some pension money. I still have 1 taels on hand, and I will give it to you. "The shopkeeper Huang is Huang Daban Huang Jin from Xing Wangfu, he is a person who loves money very much, how could he let go of such a great opportunity.Although I don't know much about business, it can be seen that everyone has a good business and naturally wants to participate.

Sun Dan nodded: "The impact of this matter is estimated to be very large, so naturally more people should be brought in."

Lu Bing: "My preliminary plan is that if my Lu family offers 20 yuan, the palace will give it a title of 3 yuan and [-] yuan. The shopkeeper Huang will offer [-] yuan, and Big Brother Sun will not pay. By the way, I am going to pay again. Get two big companies that have business dealings with my Lu family. The shares are divided like this: my Lu family owns [-]%, Wangfu [-]%, Brother Sun and Shopkeeper Huang each own [-]%, and the other two companies each own [-]%.

He smiled and looked at Sun Dan and shopkeeper Huang: "Do you think this distribution is good?"

"Okay!" Shopkeeper Huang nodded again and again, quickly calculated in his mind, and said, "Our family doesn't think much about it, as long as we can pay back our capital in a year, and have a few thousand taels of income every year."

Sun Dan is also happy in his heart. The so-called interest group is a collection of groups with the same interests and common goals. This kind of relationship is the safest and strongest.Accidentally became a partner with the future emperor and powerful officials. The future of me, Sun Dan, is really bright!

He said: "Okay, I have no objection. However, I don't know much about business. I will find another person to come over to help me run this business. There is nothing to do during this time anyway, so I will be busy with the ticket number. Try to get it done before the Chinese New Year. Get this done."

Sun Danzhi was in the imperial examination and didn't have much time to do business, so it seemed that Sun Jia could only come over to take care of him.That little girl would love to do this kind of thing.

Sun Dan: "It's getting dark soon, I still have things to do at night, so I'll take my leave first."

Lu Bing and Jin Jin looked at each other, and said, "Your side is important, go quickly."

Coming out of the Huguang Guild Hall, Sun Dan only felt refreshed.

If the banking industry can be introduced to the Ming Dynasty in advance, and there are two powerful figures Jiajing and Lu Bing to cooperate, it will be difficult not to make a fortune.

In less than ten years, all the wealth in the world will be in the Lu family bank, and I, Sun Dan, will also be as rich as an enemy.

(End of this chapter)