1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3924

Dai Chengrong was unable to participate in the military operations in Jiangxi, thus missing a crucial opportunity to contribute military merit at this critical moment; otherwise, his confidence in the matter would likely have been more than 30%.

But for these seasoned veterans present, a 30% chance of success was an absolutely worthwhile gamble.

If Dai Chengrong can be 30% confident on his own, then with the full support of the Salt Merchants Group, wouldn't the chance be more than 50%?

As for how much money it would cost, that wasn't a primary concern for the salt merchants. The phrase "wealthy enough to rival a nation" perfectly describes their financial power.

Moreover, they knew that this money wouldn't be wasted. The inside information that Dai Chengrong could provide was far more valuable than any of the random information sources available on the market, and it always brought considerable profits to the salt merchant group.

Moreover, the benefits gained from this are often not just economic, but also valuable political capital for the salt merchants, which is exactly what the old salt merchants care about most now.

The role played by Dai Chengrong in enabling the Yangzhou salt merchants to expand their business beyond the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, and even to distant overseas colonies, cannot be ignored.

For example, before Wang Tom led his troops on an expedition to North America in 1652, Dai Chengrong informed his family of the relevant news.

Although the salt merchants had no intention of following Wang Tom to North America, as long as they obtained this information in advance, they could raise a large quantity of various supplies needed by the expeditionary force and sell them to the Ministry of National Defense at a reasonable price. This would not only bring them considerable economic benefits, but also earn them the military's approval through their excellent efficiency.

Because of this outstanding performance, the Salt Merchants Group even secured a long-term contract for the North American Expeditionary Force to procure some of its supplies domestically. Once established, this cooperative relationship would not be easily broken and could last for more than ten years, or even several generations.

During the second war against the Ming Dynasty in 1657, the salt merchants also benefited from Dai Chengrong's guidance and withdrew their offices from Nanjing and other places several days in advance, greatly reducing their losses during the war.

Then, immediately after the war, personnel were organized to return to their original posts and restart their offices, sending a large amount of supplies to the region to stabilize prices and supply the Haihan Army with supplies.

This practice, which both made money and earned the favor of Haihan's top leadership, indeed greatly benefited the salt merchant group. If Dai Chengrong, the source of information, held a higher position in the military, the information he accessed would naturally be more valuable, and he might even have the opportunity to directly participate in the formulation of certain military plans.

It's no wonder that the heads of the seven major families didn't even need to think things through; they immediately expressed their stance to Dai Yingda and Dai Chengrong, saying they would definitely support Dai Chengrong in vying for the position.

After a brief exchange of opinions, the leaders came up with a few approaches and decided to split up their efforts to conduct public relations.

The military is naturally a key target of the campaign, especially Shi Diwen, who holds military and political power in the East China Sea region and can make the final decision on the selection of this deputy division commander.

Based on the long-standing good relationship between the salt merchants group and Shi Diwen, Dai Yingda and others were confident that there would be many means at their disposal to increase Dai Chengrong's chances of promotion.

As for the other influential figures in the Executive Committee, they will definitely need to be visited separately. Regardless of whether they can get them to speak up for Dai Chengrong, it's essential to ensure that these important figures won't interfere at crucial moments.

During their discussion of the plan, Dai Chengrong did not interrupt much, only responding briefly when someone asked him a question.

Dai Chengrong knew he couldn't be too enthusiastic about the support offered by the salt merchants, as that would only give the old foxes a way to manipulate him. He also understood that this support wouldn't be provided free of charge; he would have to offer some valuable information to the seven major families in exchange. Although the banquet at Qu Yuan was lavish, the salt merchants' interest was clearly not in the food. After a simple meal, everyone's attention returned to Dai Chengrong's promotion opportunity.

During this period, some suggested that measures could be taken against other competitors to weaken their competitive advantage. Of course, most of these so-called "measures" would be shady and clandestine.

This suggestion was immediately and firmly opposed by Dai Chengrong: "Absolutely not! The Military Intelligence Bureau has informants everywhere. Once they discover something fishy, ​​we'll only end up losing more than we gain!"

Dai Chengrong's concerns were not unfounded. The scope of the Military Intelligence Bureau's supervision was not limited to other countries; the Haihan Army itself was also under its jurisdiction.

Today, military courts and military police that are in charge of military law are both derived from the Military Intelligence Bureau, and the intelligence information for their law enforcement still mainly relies on the Military Intelligence Bureau.

Any negative incident involving a high-ranking military officer will inevitably attract the attention of relevant departments. Once the military intelligence agency intervenes in the investigation, many seemingly flawless plans will actually be full of loopholes upon closer examination.

Using illegitimate means to frame other competitors is unlikely to achieve the desired effect of deceiving the public. If multiple competitors run into trouble one after another, their motives become too obvious, and the intelligence agency will quickly find commonalities, thus focusing suspicion on the beneficiary.

Dai Chengrong simply explained the risks involved and emphasized that it could bring him considerable trouble, which dissuaded the old guys from resorting to underhanded tactics.

However, they also reminded Dai Chengrong that although they would not use such methods, they could not guarantee that others would not use such methods against him. They still needed to be careful in everything they did and not fall into other people's traps.

By evening, the discussion on the matter had finally come to an end, and the salt merchants were finally able to leisurely enjoy the delicious food and beautiful scenery of Quyuan.

The salt merchants' planned measures will take some time to be implemented. However, the new information Dai Chengrong can provide them means they don't have to wait for these measures to take effect; they now have an opportunity to consider whether the investment is worthwhile.

Dai Chengrong said, "Uncles and elders, have you read the newly published Haihan Times? What are your thoughts?"

Dai Yingda was the first to express his opinion: "Next time there's a large-scale campaign like this to conquer cities and seize territory, you'd better act early to try and get it. If you had led your troops into battle this time, you would have at least earned a few more military merits!"

Dai Chengrong shook his head and said, "I'm not talking about the Jiangxi battle report published on the front page... but about things further west than Jiangxi."

Ji Qing replied, "Is Cheng Rong referring to that article about Fubo Port and Zhenhai Port in the Western Ocean? I have read it, but I didn't see anything interesting about it. Could there be some hidden story behind it?"

Dai Chengrong nodded and said, "I was referring to that article."

Ji Qing pressed further, "What does this have to do with us?"

Dai Chengrong said, "I think... it's possible!"