I founded a heavy industry group in the late Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 119 Business Warfare and Covert Battles: Each with Their Own Intentions

Chapter 119 Business Warfare and Covert Battles: Each with Their Own Intentions

Chapter 118 Chen Ying was extremely resentful of the Hui merchants' price-cutting tactics. In his later life, he once attended a friend's wedding where there were many vegetable greenhouses with large quantities of radishes, cabbages, and peppers rotting in the fields.

Chen Ying was initially confused. Chili peppers retailed for around three yuan each in supermarkets, and radishes for around one yuan each. The problem was, this mountain of radishes, cabbages, and chili peppers was simply going to waste. He went to inquire and discovered that middlemen, the sales channels, were ruthlessly driving down prices. Chili peppers were eight fen per jin, radishes five fen, and cabbages two fen. He then realized that China still used this currency unit. At these prices, farmers couldn't even recoup ten percent of their costs, let alone make a profit. Especially with chili peppers, they'd rather let them rot in the fields than sell them. There was no other way; these middlemen were utterly unscrupulous. Especially with green beans from Henan, prices were ruthlessly driven down every harvest season; getting two mao per jin was considered good.

This is not an exaggeration by the author. Around May Day last year, the retail price of watermelons was around 2.5 yuan, while the purchase price was only a few cents. The particularly good Kirin watermelons sold for around 80 or 90 cents. This is the real reason why farmers have no platform and are oppressed and exploited. Take rice and flour, for example, which are things that everyone eats every day. Wheat sells for around 1.2 or 1.3 yuan, and the cheapest flour is around 2 yuan. The problem is that there is no technical difficulty in processing grains. In the past, farmers ground flour themselves, and the cost per kilogram was only a few cents.

Because of Cheng Yi, Chen Ying realized that he could not hand over the sales channels to the Hui merchants, otherwise they could lower the prices at any time, because they had independent exclusive rights, which meant a monopoly.

Su Mei said softly, "My lord, are you really going to send Cheng Yi away?"

Chen Ying shook his head and said, "Let's see how he reacts. If he knows what's good for him and repents, I can let him live. If he doesn't—then I'll let him know who's in charge in Daning."

Su Mei was silent for a moment, then asked, "But has Your Excellency considered this: if we really drive the Cheng family away, who will we sell our goods to? Although the Huizhou merchants can drive down prices, Hengtayan has the channels to transport our goods to Jiangnan and sell them at a good price. Without Hengtayan, our goods will just rot in the warehouse—and there's also the issue of food. Yongning now has more than 350,000 people, plus the various tribes. How much grain do they consume every day? Relying solely on our own cultivation, it would take at least eight or nine months, which is far from sufficient to meet our immediate needs. The Huizhou merchants can transport grain from Jiangnan; do others have that capability?"

Chen Ying didn't answer immediately. He remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, "Su Mei, you're right. We really can't do without the Huizhou merchants right now. But—we can't do without them forever. The Huizhou merchants are one of the financial backers of the Donglin Party. Although we have a technological advantage in salt production on Dalu Island, the salt merchants are still the Huizhou merchants. Of the four major salt merchant families in Yangzhou, three are Huizhou, and they monopolize more than 80% of the salt. We'll be at odds with them sooner or later. Besides, the Donglin Party and Eunuch Wei are sworn enemies. This business of ours can't continue!"

Chen Ying is now being held hostage by the Huizhou merchants. Of course, being held hostage is unpleasant, and he doesn't want to be manipulated. The only solution is to avoid being held hostage. However, the problem is that the Huizhou merchants have grown in size, and no Fujian or Guangdong merchant can rival them. If the Huizhou merchants join forces with the Jiangnan capital group, they can truly influence the economic trajectory of the Ming Dynasty. They could even crash the Ming market.

Historically, Emperor Chongzhen dismissed Qian Longxi, the second-ranking official in the cabinet who came from the Donglin Party, and also prevented Donglin Party members such as Ruan Dayue and Qian Qianyi from entering the cabinet. From that time on, they began to fight back. The entire Shandong province went on strike, refusing to sell grain to Kong Youde or pay his military salaries, which directly forced Kong Youde to rebel. This not only devastated the entire Shandong province but also blocked the Grand Canal for nine months. This was actually the Donglin Party and their financial backers fighting back.

Whether it was the Huizhou merchants or the Donglin Party, they had no national interests in their eyes, only their own selfish interests. In later generations, the four major Huizhou merchant families touted themselves as Confucian merchants. What a load of bull! They were traitorous Confucian merchants.

Chen Ying explained, "Why can Huizhou merchants lower our prices? Because they have distribution channels and sales outlets. No matter how good our products are, if they can't be transported out or sold, they're just a pile of waste. So what we need to do is not to replace Huizhou merchants, but to build our own distribution channels."

Chen Ying began to scribble on the paper. Su Mei leaned over to look and saw several lines drawn on the paper, starting from Yongning Port, leading to Tianjin, Dengzhou, and the capital, and then extending in all directions to form a huge network.

"What is this?"

Su Mei asked curiously.

"Our own business philosophy!"

Chen Ying put down his pen, his eyes gleaming, and smiled faintly, "I'll call it Chen's Direct Sales Store. First, we can open one in Tianjin, Dengzhou, and the capital, selling our own flagship products: Tianqi plows, Huimin seed drills, four-wheeled carriages, two-wheeled carriages, snow salt, ironware, farm tools, canned goods, furs, mountain delicacies, and good stuff we've collected from the Haixi Jurchen and Wild Jurchen. We'll sell directly to the people, without any middlemen taking a cut."

Su Mei's eyes widened in surprise: "My lord, this—how much silver will this cost? And where will we get the manpower?"

"Manpower?"

Chen Ying smiled and said, "I currently have five guards under my command. Among the nearly 300,000 military households in the four guards of Xingzhou, there should be quite a few literate people. The stewards, accountants, and transport captains you need are all readily available. Even if you don't have experienced personnel, you can have those stewards and accountants you brought from Dalu Island act as teachers and apprentices, so that the military households in the four guards of Xingzhou can learn from them and gradually get the hang of it."

"With the goods store problem solved, the next issue is dealing with the local bullies. I have connections in Tianjin, Beijing, and Dengzhou, which I arranged beforehand. In Beijing, needless to say, I'll give Eunuch Wei a 30% cut; he'll be even more attentive than I am. He'll immediately arrange for Xu Xianchun and Tian Ergeng to assist. In Tianjin, there's Gan Yanshou. I heard he's been promoted to Deputy Commander of Tianjin Garrison. Eunuch Wei personally intervened; he wouldn't give me any face. Of course, I'll also give him 15% of the profits, and the other 15% will still go to Eunuch Wei. Dengzhou is even simpler!"

Chen Ying laughed and said, "The Dengzhou navy is an old acquaintance of mine. As long as I subcontract the transport work to them, they will take care of the checkpoints and patrol offices along the way!"

"It seems the master had this planned all along?"

"That's right!"

Su Mei seemed thoughtful, but was still somewhat worried: "But what if Cheng Yi's side—"

"If he's willing to change, then we'll leave him a way out."

Chen Ying said calmly, "But he must know that from now on, he is not the only buyer. I granted him the exclusive right to work for me, not to ride roughshod over me."

Su Mei nodded, then suddenly remembered something: "Sir, the Huizhou merchants still owe us a lot of money. What if Cheng Yi really turns his back and refuses to pay—"

"I'd love for him to keep delaying the payment."

A sly glint flashed in Chen Ying's eyes as he chuckled, "Have you forgotten? When we signed the contract, I deliberately kept a backup plan. Eunuch Wei has a share in all our businesses. The money they owe me is money they owe Eunuch Wei. He's still waiting for his share of the profits. If they dared not pay, Eunuch Wei would be worried about finding an excuse to extort them. Now that they dare to come knocking, Eunuch Wei will send the Imperial Guards to collect the debt. It's legal and justified. Those merchants, would they dare not pay? If they don't, their homes will be confiscated!"

Su Mei couldn't help but laugh: "Sir, this move is really ruthless. If the Huizhou merchants knew, they would probably regret opposing you."

Chen Ying waved his hand and said seriously, "It's not that I'm ruthless, it's that they're too greedy. There are thousands of ways to make money in this world, but the one thing you absolutely cannot do is push others to their death."

Chen Ying didn't actually speak to Su Mei. He knew very well that the Hui merchants were deliberately delaying Nurhaci's development to give him time to recover. This time, it was definitely for another matter.

That was firearms. The Jurchens had no technological accumulation. The Ming craftsmen that Nurhaci had plundered from the Ming Dynasty could not actually make the kind of cannons that Chen Ying had made, nor could they make granular gunpowder. No matter how well they made their firearms, their limit was probably the standard firearms used by the Ming army.

Of course, the flintlock musket of the Ming Dynasty was recorded and illustrated in detail by weapons expert Bi Maokang in his book "Illustrated Explanation of Military Weapons" in the eighth year of Chongzhen (1635 AD). The structure and usage of the self-propelled firearm were described, but the question is that there is no detailed record of when it was made. At least Chen Ying did not know.

This means that Nurhaci couldn't catch up if he wanted to. The only way was to buy them. However, in the entire Ming Dynasty, only Chen Ying had such firearms. He couldn't force Chen Ying with ordinary means, so he had to start with food. After all, Chen Ying couldn't watch his 300,000 to 400,000 men starve to death.

"How will the food problem be solved?"

Chen Ying pondered for a moment and said, "As for the grain, I have already made a plan. In Tianjin, Fu Yingxing and Gan Yanshou have both spoken to them, and they can directly intercept a portion of the grain transport. In Dengzhou, although Shen Yourong is old, the Shen family is still around. As long as the price is fair, there is no worry about finding buyers."

Chen Ying sat down again, picked up the paper with the supermarket layout drawn on it, and examined it carefully: "Su Mei, help me draft a plan. First, select locations in Tianjin, Dengzhou, and the capital to open one Chen's directly operated store in each city. Sell our own goods, and also buy local specialties, at fair prices, without cheating anyone, young or old."

"Secondly, establish the Da Ning Trading Company to manage all external sales. I will contribute capital, accounting for 60%, each guard will contribute manpower, accounting for 20%, and the remaining 20% ​​will be divided equally between you and each tribe. Let them know that they have a share in this business, and they will be more dedicated."

"Third, send people to Jiangnan to secretly contact other merchants. If the Cheng family is ruthless, don't blame me for being unjust!"

Su Mei noted everything down, then couldn't help but ask, "Sir, aren't you afraid Cheng Yi will resort to desperate measures?"

"Does he dare? This is Shuangchengwei, not Huizhou. His Cheng family's caravan needs my soldiers to protect it to pass safely. If he angers me, I'll confiscate both his people and his goods."

Su Mei was speechless.

"Su Mei, do you know what I hate most? It's not the Jurchens, nor those merchants who drive down prices, but being held hostage. If our grain supply is blocked, we go hungry. If our salt supply is blocked, we eat bland food. If our trade routes are blocked, we can't sell our goods, we can't earn money, we can't support our troops, and we can't defend our cities. I've had enough of this kind of life."

"Therefore, I will build the grain routes, salt routes, and trade routes myself. From now on, the lifeline of Daming will be in the hands of the people of Daming themselves."

Looking at the young commander, Su Mei felt a surge of indescribable emotions.

She recalled that a year ago, when he first came from Yongcheng, he was just a minor commander of a thousand households, struggling to survive in the desolate Shahe area. Now, he was a great general with three or four hundred thousand soldiers and civilians, and twenty or thirty thousand troops, who was awe-inspiring in Nurgan. But his eyes had never changed.

"My lord, I believe you can do it."

Chen Ying smiled and said, "Alright, stop flattering me. Go get busy."

"Zhou Bin!"

"Your subordinate is here!"

Chen Ying continued, "I hereby issue my order: starting tomorrow, the four garrisons of Xingzhou, left, right, front, and rear, shall each select personnel skilled in driving carriages, maneuvering boats, and operating cavalry. Each garrison shall submit a unified application, and I will establish a large-scale transportation brigade."

Secondly, they should select people who are literate, good at math, and have business experience to come to Chen's shop to learn how to do business!

"yes!"

"I'd like to see how long those Huizhou merchants can keep up their smugness."

Yongning Port, the backyard of Chengji Trading Company.

Cheng Yi pushed open the door with a gloomy face and entered. The two accountants behind him looked at each other and dared not utter a sound.

He walked straight into the inner room, plopped down in a chair, grabbed the teapot, and took a big gulp, unaware that tea was dripping down his chin.

Deep inside the hall, an old man was leaning back in a grand chair, resting with his eyes closed. He was wearing a worn cotton robe with a thin face and slightly high cheekbones. Although his eyes were closed, he gave the impression of being stared at by some ferocious beast.

This man was named Cheng Jiashan, a native of Shexian County, Huizhou. He was nominally the head manager of Chengji Trading Company, but in reality, he was the helmsman of the entire Huizhou merchants' trade routes in the north. Tea, silk, and porcelain from the south, as well as furs, mountain delicacies, and medicinal herbs from the north, all had to pass through his hands.

"Third Uncle."

Cheng Jiashan slowly opened his eyes, his gaze calm and utterly unwavering: "What, he kicked you out?"

No, not at all.

Cheng Yi recounted his experience at Chen's Trading Company in detail, saying calmly, "He wants us to raise the prices of goods from the four guards of Xingzhou to the same level as Chen's, and also make up for the previous price difference. If we don't agree within three days, he'll take back our exclusive rights and drive us out of Daning!"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Jiashan showed no anger whatsoever; instead, a faint smile appeared on his face: "That's all?"

"Third Uncle!"

Cheng Yi became anxious: "Our Chengji has been doing business for over two hundred years, always operating with integrity. Why are you provoking Chen Boying? We're in Yongning, on his turf. If we want to make money, we have to abide by his rules. You're going to ruin Chengji—"

"Shut up!"

"You think I asked you to lower the price so I could make a few extra taels of silver?"

Cheng Yi opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

Cheng Jiashan stopped and stared at him, saying slowly and deliberately, "Let me tell you, that little bit of silver is nothing to me, Cheng Jiashan. I asked you to lower the price so I could stall for time."

"drag?"

"To hinder Chen Boying's development."

Cheng Jiashan's voice was so low it was almost inaudible. "He has three or four hundred thousand military households, twenty thousand elite soldiers, snow salt, ironware, farm tools, and the Haixi Jurchen and Wild Jurchen tribes working for him. If all of these things were turned into silver, grain, armor, and muskets, what do you think he would do next?"

"He will head north and destroy the Jurchens."

Cheng Jiashan coldly replied, "Once the Jurchens are destroyed and Liaodong is pacified, the imperial court will be able to focus on dealing with Jiangnan. At that time, will we merchants still be able to live as freely as we do now?"

Cheng Yi's forehead was beaded with cold sweat. He vaguely understood what his third uncle meant, but dared not think too deeply about it.

Cheng Jiashan sat down again, his voice regaining its calm: "Yi'er, you must remember. The reason we Hui merchants were able to establish ourselves in Jiangnan was not because of the court's favor, but because of a balance. If the court is too strong, we have to keep a low profile; if the Jurchens are too strong, the court will pour money into Liaodong, and the taxes in Jiangnan will be lighter. Only when both sides are strong, and neither can destroy the other, can we do business on both sides and make money on both."

"Chen Boying is too good at fighting. If he cripples the Jurchens, it won't do us any good. So we have to stall him and slow him down."

Cheng Yi said in a trembling voice, "But—but what if Chen Boying really kicks us out—"

"He won't."

Cheng Jiashan shook his head and said, "He can't do without us. He has three or four hundred thousand people to feed, soldiers to support, and cities to repair."

Without our food, he won't survive this winter.

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