“We need intelligence from Mongolia, Korea, and Japan. I need to know if the Tartars have contacted them, and if so, what conditions they promised. Have they agreed to them?”
“The Embroidered Uniform Guard had some undercover agents in those areas in the past. But they've been disbanded for years, and we can't recall many of them,” Ding Baiying said helplessly. Lu Xuan had entrusted her with the intelligence system, but she was truly powerless to do so.
"Don't blame yourself, the responsibility isn't yours. It's just that we haven't been in business long enough. But it's not entirely hopeless. Nowadays, Liaoyang is frequented by various merchant groups. Many of them probably have even wider connections than we do."
"Send someone to deliver invitations immediately. I will be hosting a banquet at the General's Mansion tomorrow night to entertain the heads of all the major merchant guilds. All the well-known and influential merchant guilds in Liaoyang must be invited. Especially the Shanxi merchants; every single one of them must attend."
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Chapter 140 The Ultimate Simp (Please Subscribe)
Something big is happening in Liaoyang tonight. The newly arrived commander-in-chief is hosting a banquet.
The local bureaucratic clique initially harbored deep resentment towards the new Liaoyang garnered by him. Later, however, they became deeply grateful. Why? Because those who had initially hated him were buried on the spot. There's no hidden meaning; it's just the literal meaning. Thus, those who survived instantly became tearfully grateful...
However, to be fair, most of the people in Liaoyangwei are deeply grateful to General Lu, and many families have secretly begun to worship him.
Since his arrival, he has rectified various local problems. The most obvious change is that the soldiers patrolling the streets are real soldiers. They are perfectly aligned, their eyes fixed straight ahead, and their spirit inspires respect at first glance. Crucially, they truly do not harm the common people in the slightest.
It's said that initially, a group of patrolling soldiers conspired to collect protection money on the streets. The vendors were already familiar with the scheme, as soldiers had always done this. Those who did this were usually the personal guards of the general. They had nowhere to complain, so they generally just accepted it.
But less than two days later, those dozen or so soldiers were hung in the street, and an officer was whipping them mercilessly. The soldiers were thrashed about. From then on, no one dared to collect protection money on the streets anymore. The thugs who used to do it were said to have been thrown into the mines outside the city. To this day, not a single one of them has returned unharmed.
Taxes still apply, and they're even higher than before. But all the merchants and vendors are still happy with them. Why? Because these standards are real standards. Whatever the price is, that's the price—not a penny less, not a penny more. Merchants aren't afraid to collect money; paying taxes to the authorities is only fair.
What they fear is that if they pay one levy today, they'll have to pay another tomorrow. The taxes themselves aren't high, but the various levies are a bottomless pit. These levies are unclear and arbitrary; whatever the authorities say is the amount, there's no strict standard. Many successful merchants, after all this, can barely make ends meet.
Now things are much better. Although the nominal amount paid is higher, the actual expenditure is less than half of what it used to be. This has made all the merchants in the city extremely grateful to General Lu.
In fact, by Lu Xuan's standards, the current level of taxation is undoubtedly too high. However, he understands the principle that a little kindness is appreciated, but too much kindness breeds resentment. Benefits should be given little by little to make people feel grateful.
Those large merchant guilds that frequented the area had far more complex feelings towards the newly arrived General Lu. Their old methods were no longer effective in the face of a completely new ruling system.
The new official of Liaoyang Garrison was incorruptible. He only considered the quality and price of goods. Whoever offered the best quality and lowest price could do business with the General's Mansion. This intensified competition among the various merchant guilds. No one wanted to give up this lucrative opportunity, as the General's Mansion was incredibly wealthy. In just about a year, they had already made millions of taels of silver in business. Moreover, the General's Mansion declared that they would continue to buy all goods, no matter how many came in. Who wouldn't want to do business so cleanly and efficiently?
Tonight, the General's Mansion deviated from its usual practice and suddenly announced a banquet for major merchant guilds. Many people were initially a little panicked. After all, General Lu's reputation in Liaoyang was built on bloodshed. He had wiped out countless officials, big and small, and their entire families in Liaoyang.
But then I thought about it again. This General Lu had always been good to us businessmen. There shouldn't be any problems; it might even be some kind of big deal.
A buffet dinner—something countless time travelers had already done. However, this was Lu Xuan's first time organizing one. Around the hall, tables were set up, laden with various snacks, food, and drinks, for people to help themselves.
This novel approach has intrigued many chamber of commerce leaders.
"Rumor has it that General Lu is a strict and rigid person, but now it seems that the rumors are somewhat untrue!"
"Heh, that's the peerless ruthless man who single-handedly killed Nurhaci, and the second-rank general who completely controlled Liaoyang Guard in less than a year. Anyone who really thinks that this General Lu is just straightforward and inflexible is the real fool."
"Manager Fan, tell me, what exactly is the purpose of General Lu summoning us here today?"
"How am I supposed to guess? But if I'm not mistaken, this time, they're probably targeting merchant groups like ours."
What do you mean?
"Look at this banquet, merchants from Jin make up about half of the attendees. This is enough to prove that this banquet was originally intended for us. However, you can all rest assured. General Lu is holding this banquet because he has something to ask for. Let's just wait and see."
Fan Wendou, the most representative figure of contemporary Shanxi merchants, can be considered the head of Shanxi merchants. He was also the foremost traitor. In the original history, it was he who led the Fan family and a group of Shanxi merchants, braving the Ming army's blockade and the bitter cold of snow, to travel thousands of miles to deliver grain to Nurhaci. This allowed the Tartars to survive their worst winter, which ultimately led to the Ming army's defeat.
To be honest, risking one's life and fortune to deliver supplies to an enemy country—that's the kind of sycophancy that modern-day public intellectuals wouldn't even be worthy of shining the shoes of the Fan family. They risked their lives for that. Who among you would dare?
Since taking control of Liaoyang, Lu Xuan had kept a close eye on the Fan family's dealings. Emotionally, he wanted nothing more than to order the extermination of everyone with the surname Fan. However, rationally, he remained composed. For no other reason than that, currently, 30% of Liaoyang's grain reserves came from the Fan family's merchant caravans. He absolutely refused to take action.
This is a golden goose. Killing it like this would be a waste. Consider the silver stored in the Fan family's coffers. We can make our move when the goose stops laying eggs, or when we're tired of the eggs. The key is that Lu Xuan wants far too much.
Money was too easy to make, so the Fan family hadn't been sending many supplies to the Tartars lately. There was no way around it; Lu Xuan's terms were just too good. Cash on delivery, no cheating. The Tartars, on the other hand, could only offer various promises, aside from some furs. Merchants are all about profit...
The banquet proceeded smoothly. Lu Xuan personally announced the tender for several essential items. Numerous chambers of commerce eagerly competed, creating a lively atmosphere.
Immediately after the banquet, Fan Wendou was informed by a guard that the General had asked him to stay, as there were important matters to discuss later. Fan Wendou noticed that, in addition to himself, seven other heads of merchant guilds from Shanxi had also been asked to stay.
"hehe......."
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Chapter 141 Punishment... (Please subscribe)
Late at night, a group of Shanxi merchants escorted Fan Wendou out of the General's Mansion.
"Manager Fan, we need your advice on this matter! What exactly does this General mean?"
"What does this mean? Does this General want us to work for him? The situation in Liaodong has changed drastically, and the Li family is in a weakened position. To the east, the Jurchens are eyeing us covetously; to the north, the Mongols are defiant; and to the south, Korea is also making its own plans. Furthermore, Japanese pirates are roaming the seas. The entire Liaodong region is surrounded by wolves. This General Lu is frustrated because he can't get anywhere and wants us to keep an eye on the surrounding area for him."
"You mean, he wants us to be spies?" asked a shopkeeper surnamed Cao.
"It's not about being a spy. What he really wants to know is the attitude of the Mongols, Korea, and the Jurchens. We merchants from Shanxi travel to the surrounding countries and are more than capable of acting as his eyes and ears."
"Yes, yes, that makes sense. But why doesn't Mr. Lu just say it outright, instead of going through all this trouble? If it weren't for Manager Fan's keen insight, we might not have been able to understand this matter."
"Heh." Fan Wendou glanced at the group of pretentious shopkeepers, a hint of disdain in his eyes. He saw through Lu Xuan's intentions immediately. He even knew that at least half of these people understood as well, but were simply pretending not to. These people knew what they had done and dared not easily respond to Lu Xuan's words. They could only shift the blame onto themselves.
A bunch of short-sighted fools. Fan Wencheng thought with contempt. He had been paying attention to General Lu for a long time. What his Fan family wanted wasn't just ordinary wealth; they wanted the stature of Lü Buwei. They wanted to be part of the ruling class. For that, they needed to support a powerful leader.
The Fan family had initially chosen Nurhaci. They wished him success in his early days, hoping he would rise to power. They believed that by virtue of their support, the Fan family would surely prosper. However, a year ago, Nurhaci was beheaded by an unknown soldier. This rendered the Fan family's initial investment worthless. Naturally, they then took notice of Lu Xuan.
It wasn't until Lu Xuan took the position of General of Liaoyang that Fan Wendou began to have a vague feeling that this General Lu was probably no ordinary person.
The issue of the foreign tribes surrounding Liaodong was a matter for the emperor to concern himself with. The fact that Lu Xuan was so attentive to it was a serious matter. This General Lu likely had ulterior motives. For this reason, the Fan family had been working diligently for the past year, supplying Liaoyang with countless provisions and laying a solid foundation for General Lu. In a sense, they had already regarded Lu Xuan as a second Nurhaci.